sundries

[rm]

Last night Cricket managed to flip a hideous waterbug onto its back so that Patty could dispose of it. Cricket, though, did not understand why. Pretty and I, meanwhile, supervised.

Woke up to good news this morning. The cruise we want for next year is back in the catalog for the dates we want it. This is very, very exciting, and I look forward to calling and switching the reservation and seeing what they can do for us $$-wise.

Patty and I are going to stop by the opening of Eataly tonight, I think.

I really, for reals, seriously, have a damn proposal deadline today. But the weather in my head hasn't been great regarding my ambitions and whether they're any good for me lately. Which is all well and good, but I can examine that when I'm Not on a Deadline.

Both Kai Owen and James Marsters have had to pull out as Dragon*Con guests. Having seen them both at various cons before, I find myself oddly relieved: less stuff I want to do at Dragon*Con means more time to relax, and lord knows I'll need it with what my own schedule looks like.

Rachel Maddow had a long, scary round-up on anti-Islamic violence last night. Anyone know of anything similar on the Internet I can point to. There's the Koran-burning in Florida, the stabbing here in NYC, the prayer rug desecration (also in NYC), the opposition to the mosque in Tennessee that supposedly about parkking availability but clearly isn't now that construction equipment has been set on fire and shots fired, and some stuff going on in California.... yeah. Bad news. azn_jack_fiend points us to a piece on the trends from SPLC that is necessarily working with older data as well as current events. But being reminded of the SPLC is always good.

Ickful, interesting and weirdly hilarious: the trials and tribulations of bedbug researchers. The best part? Totally the part about the university and the condom budget.

But New York doesn't just have a bedbug problem. Oh no, now we have raccoons. It's not just that the little fuckers might be rabid; it's that they are really good at breaking into houses.

Torchwood: tragically delicious!

Comments

[azn-jack-fiend.livejournal.com]

The SPLC Hatewatch blog always has great, thorough coverage, though it isn't up-to-the-latest-minute. Recent post here:

http://www.splcenter.org/blog/2010/08/26/wave-of-hate-crimes-directed-at-muslims-breaks-out/

[ladyofthelog.livejournal.com]

I don't know how much this has gotten covered in what you've seen, but the incidents in Florida and Tennessee have taken place in medium-sized college towns; Gainesville is home to the University of Florida and Murfreesboro is where Middle Tennessee State University is located. It's also become a sleeper community for Nashville in the past 10 years. All of this stuff is happening where there's already some tension (class-based and otherwise) between religiously-and-otherwise conservative locals and more liberal out-of-towners/the university community.

[rm.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I should look at that more often.

[rm.livejournal.com]

That aspect has not really been covered, no. It is interesting to me because it highlights my own biases: I expect university students in places like that to be the source of bias crimes, because I experienced religion- and sexual orientation-based bias crimes (and was certainly aware of race-based ones) on my college campus perpetrated by other students.

[ladyofthelog.livejournal.com]

I expect university students in places like that to be the source of bias crimes, because I experienced religion- and sexual orientation-based bias crimes (and was certainly aware of race-based ones) on my college campus perpetrated by other students.
I can't speak in terms of what occurs on campus, but it absolutely does not surprise me that the town locals are behind these particular situations. Not because I think they're Teh Evil, because this is an issue where they can vent all kinds of dissatisfaction and they have a built-in audience. (I spent three years off and on in Murfreesboro with the ex-h and the subsequent ex, and spent one summer up in Gainesville with Martin on weekends.)

For the record, the other reason Murfreesboro has been in the news over the past few years has been their successful rejection of a Bible theme park. Consider the politics of that navigation of zoning laws.

[rm.livejournal.com]

I can't get to the zoning laws, I'm still on "Bible Theme Park" because all I can think of is "experience the chamber of locusts!" and I don't understand.

[ladyofthelog.livejournal.com]

Wait, are you not familiar with the one here? Across from IKEA?

http://www.holylandexperience.com/

Living in Central Florida: when your cousin's grandma talks about her recent visit to the Holy Land and how she thinks you would love it, she's not talking about Israel.

[azn-jack-fiend.livejournal.com]

Umm, the SPLC link you put up goes to the Space Burrito ;)

[rm.livejournal.com]

I mean, I know about it, I just.... I literally can't get my head around it. New York is so agnostic until your scrambling for services tickets a couple of times a year, regardless of faith.

[rm.livejournal.com]

Shit!

I will fix that!

[ladyofthelog.livejournal.com]

It's never seemed weird to me because I'm from here. Orlando: you can make ANYTHING into a theme park! It's not really about Jesus.

My mom seriously suggested that my brother get a summer job being Jesus.

[tsarina.livejournal.com]

I would be more than a little upset if I found a dead raccoon in a drawer in my house. ARGH! Raccoons are spooky with their little paw hands.

Also, groceries?

[rm.livejournal.com]

Yes, I email you! Thanks! It's er, been a week.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

JESUS CHRIST DID YOU SEE THIS DETAIL IN THE BEDBUG ARTICLE?!?!?! ZYKLON B WAS INVENTED AS A BED BUG REMEDY. OH MY GOD, THEY REALLY ARE EVIL.

[rm.livejournal.com]

I KNOW!

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

[ladyaelfwynn.livejournal.com]

As much as I'll miss seeing James Marsters, I, too, am relieved that he won't be there. This is my first Dragon*Con and it was shaping up to be wildly busy with me having to miss things I desperately wanted to see. Now, I'll have less to choose between.

I foresee a trip to NYC in Oct. for NYCC. It's close and easy to get to and James is planning on being there, plus, it'll be a chance to see some of my friends in NYC!

[starkyld.livejournal.com]

Mark saw a raccoon on the next block in Wburg about a month ago, just sitting on top of a trash can and complacently looking at him.

[rm.livejournal.com]

THAT IS NOT OKAY. The Queen/LI border is one ting, but that is NOT OKAY.

[imaginarycircus.livejournal.com]

At least they aren't packs of rabid chihuahuas!

[pantryslut.livejournal.com]

You all haven't had raccoons before now? Lucky.

[notlefthanded.livejournal.com]

Hello - we have a few friends in common, so I've come across your posts from time to time. I appreciate your perspective and these round-ups of interesting information. I'd like to add you to my friends list, if you don't mind?

[rm.livejournal.com]

Sure, welcome!

[notlefthanded.livejournal.com]

Thanks, and nice to meet you! :)

[stardragonca.livejournal.com]

If raccoons B&E a place that has (non-wind) musical instruments, they will play with them for hours.

[glinda-w.livejournal.com]

In Seattle, someone attacked a convenience-store clerk and said he (the clerk) "looked like a terrorist". It's happened to cab drivers, too, but not recently enough that I can find cites.

Sometimes I hate the human race. (Though the incident a week ago, of a mobile home fire in Belfair, where strangers stopped and rescued two children, does sort of counteract that.)

[sinonmybody.livejournal.com]

The conservatives here in this area {Tennessee} are saying the construction company started the fire to get the insurance money. /eyeroll.

[bodlon.livejournal.com]

Raccoons are super clever. I used to live in a second-floor flat and they'd climb up the posts onto the deck to play. The landlord never figured out how, but they'd also get into the attic and raccoon around up there as well, including once where one tried to claw its way in through our ceiling.

Nothing says "get the fucking raccoon out of the fucking attic" like little paws sticking in through the ceiling, incidentally.

[stardragonca.livejournal.com]

After 9-11, there were people hassled or worse for being:a)Portuguese(looked wrong;Christian Orthodox clergy(dressed wrong); plus of course Hindus and Sikhs(From Over There.)
This was in Canada.

I will not forgive those who promote this shit.

[sociallyawkrd.livejournal.com]

The whole anti-Islam thing is making me crazy. I am really proud of my community. They don't normally show this sort of love. The comments on the article is maddening but the content of the article is awesome.

http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2010/aug/28/common-threads/