I can't wait. Saturday my cable modem will be back up and running and this site will magically start working the way it used to.
Just for this week, Email me any questions you have for Wednesday's � Answers � column.
I didn't do much yesterday. I washed Jen's car, moved the stereo from the office to the living room, started building an MP3 server slash CD jukebox computer to hook into the stereo, did a couple loads of laundry... cleaned a bit, and watched TV.
We now have digital TV. On one level it's really silly because I seem to watch the same 4 or 5 stations - The History Channel, Animal Planet, CNN, FX, and sometimes TNT. But now I've discovered the evil that is HBO.
HBO. It's no Skin-a-Max, but they have Band of Brothers - one of the best series I've seen in a while. I watched The Sopranos for the first time and felt a bit lost, but I can see how that show would pull you in after a while.
The mayor of my city hates the Sopranos. He's Italian. Mayor Vincent Ciancci. I heard a story how The Sopranos originally wanted to film some episodes in Providence and he refused. "Not all Italians are mobsters and that show gives Italians a bad name." I'd assume he doesn't like Martin Score-say-sea (however you spell it) either.
�
I'm trying to get focused on work right now and obviously failing - because I'm sitting in my cube typing this.
My current practice is to type out an entry and then post it on my lunch break. It's an hour later than I used to post, but since they put these restrictive filters and started monitoring all net traffic here, I don't have much of a choice
and I don't dare try and circumvent the security (although I easily could) because I like my job. They pay me well.
Speaking of my job, the building management wants to be Fort Knox. They've closed the main street entrance and made it exit only at the end of the day. We now have to wear our ID badges around our neck on lanyards that are color coded for the company you work for, the parking garage has reportedly been hermetically sealed, and once a month I'm going to have a proctologist bend me over and anally probe my anus.
"Hi my name is johnpowers and I've just transferred to the Department of Redundancy Department."
No one else is getting anally probed though, so they just might have read my post on Saturday telling everyone to stop freaking out over Anthrax and they suspect me of smuggling powder in my butt - or the security guys don't like me because I often bitch about their elevators
or they really like me.
Who knows?
�
Headlines? Oh that's right.
� Today's Headlines �
U.S. strikes hit Taliban front lines
� Taliban claim jets attacked hospital
The Taliban claims also include:
They have suffered very few casualties.
The entire Muslim world is on their side.
Afghani women like wearing head to toe garments in 110 degree weather and appreciate having less rights than the donkeys of their husbands.
Growing a beard and not flying kites promotes virtue and prevents vice.
Requiring religion to influence politics is a good idea.
That President Bush is the Devil (but we all know Bush is not that clever)
and that Osama Bin Laden could walk on water - were there any large bodies of the stuff in Afghanistan.
Tracking Anthrax
� America Freaks Out
I have a feeling the Anthrax hysteria has reached it's peak. It's important for America to channel it's fear into awareness. Because it's the fear and the freaking that causes the problems - not so much the work disruptions and the few people in the hospital.
Terror links deepen in Europe
� WashPost: More plots revealed
Taylor my cat thinks the neighborhood Tabby is in al Queda. The tabby is always slinking around outside his windows, he looks a little shifty, and swears he spelled out 'down with the US!" when it pooped in the bushes.
I told Tay that we already knew there were thousands of terrorists loose in the world and just because he's brown and the tabby is orange - that's no reason to suspect single him out.
Taylor wouldn't reply but later said he can't update because the modem is too slow and he doesn't know the dial-up password.
U.S. cautioned on Ramadan attacks
� Asian Muslims warn of mass protest
In WWII, did we not attack on Christmas?
Dispatches from war's many fronts
� NBC reporters weigh in from the field
"Lot's of flashing at night. Booms follows the flashes."
"Booms at night, flashes proceeding the booms."
"Jet noises heard around booms and flashes... at night."
"People mad at US, people mad at the Taliban, after hearing booms and seeing flashes. Reports of Jet noises."
"I've seen a lot of rubble."
� Newsweek: A tale of two villages
"My village was filled with rubble and poorly run because the Taliban didn't know how to run a country - just oppress us. Not the rubble is on fire. We don't like the Taliban, we don't like the US."
"My village cleaned up much of it's rubble, but then the Taliban came in and killed a bunch of people for owning radios and refusing to grow beards. Now we have rubble again. We don't like the Taliban, we don't like the US."
� Cultivating courage, staying sane
My new reality is that the news is getting repetitive.
Seriously, if you're having trouble dealing with all of this, just talking about it really helps.
� WSJ: Big sales for online Cipro firm
Cipro is only one of the drugs that battles Anthrax. It the entire class of drugs that Cipro is in that battles that pesky anthrax - for example tetracycline and types of penicillin can cure Anthrax as well.
� 'United We Stand' rocks on in D.C.
Michael Jackson finally got to contribute. I do appreciate the effort, but I can't help but wonder if he's trying to resurrect his career through his charity efforts as well. Poor pale guy.
"Be nice to Michael - He has a skin disease!"
Uh huh.
� Rams roll to easy win over Jets
Damn, I missed it. I missed the Patriots win as well. I shall now commit suicide via paper cuts.
� New box office champ 'From Hell'
This movie scares me. Somehow I think that's the point.
� 'Scoop': Cult leader tries charity route
Michael Jackson again?
