Over the Rainbow

On preparing Ethiopian chicken:

Do you know how hard it is to find a capon these days? I even went to two butcher shops. You see after teaching my class on Saturday I stopped by a spice store (a place where they know me so well they save the odd stuff that comes in for me to try). While there I was talked into buying a large assortment of Ethiopian spices, and in doing so, I looked around for some recipes and found one for chicken. Thus my search.

Now I was not aware of this, but if you go into a normal grocery store and ask someone at the meat counter for a capon 3 out of 4 times they will refer you to the seafood section. Well, after a great deal of searching I found my chicken.

This brings me to part two of my story. While standing in line, I was behind a woman, who in response to her child’s cries, called her a little bitch and slapped her across the face, hard enough to make her nose bleed. Now as I was later to find out the age of the child was 16 months old, that information was given by the “mother” of this child.

Unlike everyone else in the store who was suddenly struck both blind and mute, I addressed the woman along the lines of, if you hit that baby, that hard here in public, what do you do when no one is looking, she kindly suggested that I “fuck off and mind my own business”, little did she know, that this is my business.

I called the law, and Johnny Law was right there. Now, did I make a difference? Who can say, but the “Mother” will now know that other people are watching and that there are some lines you don’t cross. …and for me, it’s just another day in court one that I will gladly sit through.

Anyway, I didn’t end up making my chicken last night, but I was thankful for the quick response of the PD and CPS (the baby had old and new bruises, in places that children don’t often get burses). I guess my point is that sometimes, all it takes is for us to stand up and act to save a child.

I however did start the capon before I left the manor house this morning, slow roasted and bathed in plane yogurt and spices, it smelled really good. …and in case your wondering, my ankle still hurts.

Area News:

Number of female inmates tops 100,000 – a record
By Anne GearanAssociated Press

WASHINGTON – The number of women in state and federal prisons is at an all-time high and appears to be growing fast, with the incarceration rate for women increasing at nearly twice that of men, the government reported Sunday.
There were 101,179 women in prisons last year, 3.6 percent more than in 2002, the Justice Department said. That marks the first time the women’s prison population has topped 100,000, and continues a trend of rapid growth.

Keep that in mind if your out on the dating scene, half-way houses for felons might be better places to pick-up hot jail girls than the normal ways of crusing the maternity wards and 12-Step programs for sexual compulsives (at least you know those chic’s put out). The downside could be getting shanked in the shower when she has PMS. Hey, its just an idea.

Man hurt on hayride:

A man participating in a recreational hayride suffered a serious head injury when he fell from the wagon and was run over by it Saturday night, reports the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department.

According to the state morbidity report (if you ever want some cheerful light reading) over 63 people are injured annually on hay-rides, resulting in 12-18 fatalities. Might be a good idea to hold off on the hard cider and move away from the edge next time your on one.

Salvation Army kettles lighter after Target bell ban
Charity’s Indiana leaders must help make up lost millions in donations.

Salvation Army leaders across Indiana said they must make up a large portion of holiday donations this year after Target Corp.’s decision to ban the group’s bell ringers from its stores.
Bell ringers at Target stores raised $8.8 million last year for the Salvation Army, or nearly 10 percent of the $93 million the red kettle campaign took in nationally.

I understand why as does everyone who activly hides from girl-scouts selling cookies and co-workers wanting you to buy candy for their kids band trips, but man didn’t they think this might give them some bad PR?

Miami Nation to repair grave damage:

JALAPA, Ind. — Members of the Miami Indian Nation were promising to repair damage done by vandals at their cemetery which has graves dating back more than 100 years. Dozens of grave markers were discovered broken and overturned Tuesday, two days after Halloween.

Now this is something that makes the news about four times a year. Talk about some chicken shit crap.

Liberals dismayed by 'moral values' claims
By DAVID CRARYAssociated Press

NEW YORK - Family values, traditional values and now, "moral values." Most American adults would say they have them, and yet that two-word phrase is the focus of an ideological tug-of-war heightened by President Bush's re-election, with conservatives declaring principal ownership and liberals scrambling to challenge them.

"We need to work really hard at reclaiming some language," said the Rev. Robert Edgar, general secretary of the liberal-leaning National Council of Churches.

"The religious right has successfully gotten out there shaping personal piety issues - civil unions, abortion - as almost the total content of 'moral values,'" Edgar said. "And yet you can't read the Old Testament without knowing God was concerned about the environment, war and peace, poverty. God doesn't want 45 million Americans without health care."

Ok, how about this:

If you don’t like abortion don’t have one, and if you’re a man, shut the fuck up until you grow a uterus.

If you don’t like gay marriage, don’t marry one, if your invited to a gay marriage, don’t go.

If you don’t like the way things are going in the country, become involved and work to change it.

Ok, your right I guess I am a liberal. …and here I was just thinking I was using common sense.

Bishop reflects on sex abuse crisis:
By RACHEL ZOLL Associated Press

BELLEVILLE, Ill. - A week before his term expires as leader of the nation's Roman Catholic hierarchy, Bishop Wilton Gregory said that the pressure of guiding the U.S. church through the height of the clergy sex abuse crisis "drove me to my knees" spiritually.

Well, I am sorry, but it’s about time. Not like they didn’t cover-up the fact that many innocent children were brought to their knees, long before he was.

Stray deer stir up commotion outside City Hall:

A Stokes basket is a fairly common piece of firefighting equipment. Basically a long bed that an injured person can lie in and be lifted from a crevasse or a building, it's standard issue for most fire departments.

But Monday morning, the Marion Fire Department found another use for it when firefighters had to haul two deer, a buck and a doe, out of a sunken courtyard located just south of the Branson Street entrance to City Hall, after the duo jumped over a short wall and plunged more than 20 feet to the ground.
"We've used them on humans quite a few times, but never on a deer," Marion Fire Capt. Ben Guinon said.

Which reminded me of a joke my grandmother was fond of telling:
A couple of Lutheran deer hunters in rural Indiana are out in the woods deer hunting when one of them falls to the ground. He doesn't seem to be breathing; his eyes are rolled back in his head. The other guy whips out his cell phone and calls 911. He gasps to the operator, "My friend is dead! What can I do?"The operator, in a calm soothing voice says, "Just take it easy. I can help. First, lets make sure he's dead."There is a silence, then a shot is heard. The guy's voice comes back on the line. He says, "OK, I'm sure he's dead, now what?"

Mr. Weenie’s gets new owners:

A landmark restaurant on the north side of Peru is under new ownership.Ron and Lorrie Potts purchased Mr. Weenie's on Oct. 25. The business has actually only had three owners — William Bullock built the restaurant in the late 1960's and owned it for many years. He sold it to Jim and Lesley Murphy about three years ago, and now the Potts have taken on the challenge of running the drive-in.

Yep, that was more hard hitting news headlines from the heartland. Well worth the trip if you like Weenies.

Bottom-dwelling life found in Georgia

SAVANNAH, Ga. - Researchers working off coastal Georgia have discovered what could be three new species of bottom-dwelling creatures known as sea squirts.
The diminutive creatures - also known as tunicates - were recently found at Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary, a reef 17.5 miles east of Georgia's Sapelo Island.

Ok, I would but that is just to easy.

Todays Poem:

(Sonnet XLIII) Edna St. Vincent Millay
What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why,
I have forgotten, and what arms have lain
Under my head till morning; but the rain
Is full of ghosts tonight, that tap and sigh
Upon the glass and listen for reply,
And in my heart there stirs a quiet pain
For unremembered lads that not again
Will turn to me at midnight with a cry.
Thus in winter stands the lonely tree,
Nor knows what birds have vanished one by one,
Yet knows its boughs more silent than before:
I cannot say what loves have come and gone,
I only know that summer sang in me
A little while, that in me sings no more.

Todays Bill:

SONNET 28
How can I then return in happy plight,
That am debarr'd the benefit of rest?
When day's oppression is not eased by night,
But day by night, and night by day, oppress'd?
And each, though enemies to either's reign,
Do in consent shake hands to torture me;
The one by toil, the other to complain
How far I toil, still farther off from thee.
I tell the day, to please them thou art bright
And dost him grace when clouds do blot the heaven:
So flatter I the swart-complexion'd night,
When sparkling stars twire not thou gild'st the even.
But day doth daily draw my sorrows longer
And night doth nightly make grief's strength seem stronger.

Public Service:

Have you seen this man? http://www.indianasmostwanted.com/warrant/02.323591 sent in all the way from Memphis, thx J. Thom

Quote of the Day:
The thing about boxing is, you can give up. You drop your arms and you lay down and it's over. Sure, you've lost the fight, but at least you're not getting beaten up anymore. Life, though... You drop your arms and you lay down and the son of a bitch just keeps pummeling you. -- Greg Knauss

Introspective, Moody, and yours very truly:

JQP