Neat-O-Rama offers this great "meet our staff" photographic display shot by Michael Hughes (available at Flickr)...yeah, he used a vintage 'Blad.

Hughes writes:

The Teams project is progressing well with the unveiling of an eight metre by five metre print on the occasion of the official opening of the Hedwigshohe Hospital in Berlin, September 2007. Situated on the main axis and comprising 236 individual portraits organized systematically with colour backgrounds, the viewer can identify the Team membership of those whose functions enable a modern hospital to operate efficiently.

Someone broke into the workshoppers' living quarters, and stole a bunch of things, including four laptops. See this post from cmpriest for more information, ways you can help, and updates.

This totally sucks. A lot.

I'd been meaning to make a July 4th post about my tempestuous and tumultuous emotional relationship to this country and its government, but family bonding has thus far prevented me from having the time to do it. Instead, I shall present to you Allen Ginsberg reading his poem "America", with the accompaniment of Tom Waits providing piano background:

America

America I've given you all and now I'm nothing.
America two dollars and twenty-seven cents January 17, 1956.
I can't stand my own mind.
America when will we end the human war?
Go fuck yourself with your atom bomb
I don't feel good don't bother me.
I won't write my poem till I'm in my right mind.
America when will you be angelic?
When will you take off your clothes?
When will you look at yourself through the grave?

(Read the whole poem, really. Allen, baby, I miss you.)

It's amazing how watching Nicholas Briggs do the Dalek voice at a readthrough just brings this TOTAL SMILE OF GLEE across your face!

Our local neighborhood association and businesses put together a July 4th parade, which ran along the street next to ours, and a festival. I took photos, and put them up here on the MikeAndKaren.org photo website

Here's a sample:

Roberta Carlson, "Bert", as she was known to many, a personal friend and a much loved Pacific Northwest con-runner, died on her way from Seattle, Washington to Westercon in Las Vegas. An investigation by the Highway Patrol determined that the accident was "no fault".

Accompanying Bert in the car were 4 other Pacific Northwest fans. All 4 are suffering from the traumatic experience. One of the fans is still in the hospital with serious damage to both of his hands. Arrangements are being made and a location set up to collect funds to help these fans return to Seattle. More information is available on the following Web page: http://community.livejournal.com/seattle_2011/ William Boyde, one of the four, will pay for the group's air flights home and the fund will be used to reimburse these travel costs. Any funds beyond the travel costs will be donated to Roberta's family.

You can send any donations to William via paypal to wboyde@eskimo.com

Thank you again for all your warmth, concern and sentiments.

Bobbie

We're supposed to have thunderstorms, but I wasn't expecting horizontal rain! Maybe it will calm down by the time it hits the Mall. No ivy hacking when it's wet, so I'm just online and will change back to the Twilight Zone marathon after the news.

It's a day of celebration, but I really shouldn't add Jesse Helms' death to that.

Wednesday, Lydy picked me up at the airport with my car -- she'd been using it while I was gone for catsitting and whatever else.

We switched places so I could drive, and I asked about the idiot lights that were shining out from the panel -- "charge" and "rear." She said the rear light had been going on with the brake (which I knew), but that it hadn't been shining continuously. And the charge light hadn't been on at all.

I drove Lydy home, then went home and tried to catch up on work without falling asleep -- my plane from Boston had left at 6:40 a.m. The next day, the car started okay, so I took it to Lake Nokomis to exercise with Pat WINOLJ. When I went to leave, my luck had run out -- the car went click-wheeze when I turned the key, instead of click-vroom.

I grabbed Pat before she could leave so I could borrow her phone, and called AAA, then left a message for Bruce that I would be late. The guy from AAA showed up about 15 minutes later, fiddled with stuff, got the car going with a jump, and told me it wasn't the battery, it was the alternator.

So I drove the car straight to my repair place (the BP at 494 and Portland, formerly at 66th and Portland), and dropped it off. They didn't get to it Thursday, but they were open today, despite it being the Fourth of July. The repair guy called around 2 p.m. and said it wasn't the alternator, it was the alternator belt, which appeared to be completely missing. I'm not sure how much fixing the alternator would have been, but parts and labor on the belt were about $125.

An hour later I walked over to the BP, picked up my car, and paid for the repair. This was just a week after paying $90 to get the turn signal fixed. I'm pretty much willing to keep paying for these sorts of repairs as long as they keep the car running, but I do wonder when it'll be time to call it quits.

Vampire zombie sea monsters and random Russian solders? Manipulative and hurtful Sylvester McCoy?

I like.

(I also like naye, who I got to spend some quality time with.)

http://journal.neilgaiman.com/2008/07/with-still-milion-things-to-say.html

Today the Arcadian idyll turned into something an awful lot more like work. TV interviews all morning, press conference all afternoon. Oh well.

Neil,I'm in Campinas-Brasil, and it's a 5-hours-car trip to Paraty. If I get there, most likely on Saturday, where can I find you since I don't have a ticket to Flip? I really, REALLY would love to have you sign one of books. I, like many in this sunny country am a major fan of yours. I REALLY love your books! And I'm dying to get my hands on Graveyard Book and Neverwhere...Thanks for the attention Livia

Let's see... first of all, you don't need a ticket for FLIP. You do need a ticket to get into the main tent where the authors are talking, or to sit down and watch the overflow screen -- but you can watch the interview without sitting down or listen from anywhere near where the big screen overflow place is. Richard Price and I will be talking at 11:45 am. As for signing, there will be a signing at about 1.00pm on Saturday in the signing area, which will undoubtedly go on for a while. We will probably have to limit the number of things I sign (so for heaven's sake don't hitchhike or drive carrying all the Sandman books plus another set for a dying friend -- they won't get signed. It will be two, maybe three things are most). I'll stop signing at 7.00pm when Tom Stoppard's talk starts, because I want to hear it.

I'll also be on on Sunday at the DESERT ISLAND BOOKS panel at 5.00pm -- there's no signing planned after that, though.

There may be more signing, there may not -- probably not, as the organisers haven't planned for it. I may sign stuff if you bump into me on the cobblestones or in the town square and ask nicely or just hold something out and smile (I have been so far, but it'll depend a bit on how many people try and whether I need to get from place to place) especially if you can do it without making it look like I've suddenly decided to do a signing in the street.

I listen to lots of podcasts on my iPod shuffle. Every now and again, after I listen to a podcast it DISAPPEARS. Not just from the iPod itself, but from iTunes (after I sync the shuffle to the computer of course). This isn't a big problem, because I usually delete podcasts after I listen to them. Eventually. And it's hard to be sure when one disappears that I didn't actually delete it. But ... I think that sometimes they are deleting themselves.

Even worse, this occasionally seems to happen with music. I wouldn't mind if the songs just disappeared from the iPod, but I don't like it one bit when they also disappear from my iTunes library! Could I have gotten confused and deleted them from the library when I thought I was just removing them from the iPod? I need to pay more attention....

Hello my Friends,

I need to get some word out. I have two Foster Bengals who need a home. These are wonderful Kitties, purebred Bengals and I know there is someone out there who needs them as much as they need them, if you could pass this on, with my contact info, I would truly appreciate it....

fabulouslorraine@gaiman.net 715 529 2800

Many thanks!!!!!

Here is the story so far....

Some months ago I learned about the Great Lakes Bengal Rescue Group ( http://www.greatlakesbengalrescue.com/ ) and signed on as a Foster home. I got my first two foster kitties in early May.

I need a home for these Kitties.

They had been sold by a breeder to someone who hadn't done their homework, and the first thing they did was have them de-clawed, at nearly two years old. Very bad idea. They were living in a small room, with too many people, and were very traumatized.

The owner felt very bad, but did not want to keep them because they hid constantly and would not be touched. In the time that I have had them, they have come to trust me, and will now come to me when I bring them food and let me pet them. The rest of the time they are very curious when I am in there, and no longer hide.

I believe that they will learn to trust and want to be loved by someone. These are truly beautiful Bengals, and they need a home The GLBR co-ordinater knew the breeder and we learned their original names, Ginger and Sabrina, which I have been using to bring back the time before all the bad things.

These kitties will need a lot of love and patience. They should be adopted together, by someone who can give them time to trust. They need a home with no other pets, and no children, perhaps a single person or a couple.

If you are interested, go online and read up on Bengals. They are a lot of cat. They are smart, sensitive and energetic. That said, if they give you their hearts, they will love you forever. And you will love them.

I know that these Kitties have someone out there who will love them, and that they will come to love. Please feel free to drop me a note if you are interested, or know someone who is. Let's find them a home!!!

Many thanks,

Lorraine

I'm very glad I don't live near Vienna, Virginia, where lasers are subbing for fireworks.

Fireworks are a thing of the past in Vienna as the town replaced them with lasers for 4th of July celebrations after people were hurt in 2007 by a malfunctioning firework.

The switch to lasers has a lot of people upset. Right in front of an elementary school, a gigantic screen will go up for Friday's laser show, but many residents said they're not excited to see it, saying the holiday just won't be the same.

As science fictional as it is to have lasers shooting into the sky...I want booms and bursts and "oh!"s and "ah!"s.

Happy 4th of July from the Muppets!

Is contained in LJ?

Can any one remember which Space Shuttle Jean was piloting when she got fried?
I really can't be mithered going upstairs and rooting through the boxes of comics to find the right issue.
I have a feeling it was Enterprise (given CC's love of Trek) but I can't remember and my Googlefu failed me.

FF

This is an excellent day to remember that unjust laws should not be obeyed. Blow up something in the name of liberty!

"Government, even in its best state, is but a necessary evil; in its worst state, an intolerable one." —Thomas Paine

“Every generation needs a new revolution.” —Thomas Jefferson

“Experience hath shewn, that even under the best forms (of government) those entrusted with power have, in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into tyranny” —Thomas Jefferson

“I have no fear that the result of our experiment will be that men may be trusted to govern themselves without a master.” —Thomas Jefferson

“Dissent is the highest form of patriotism.” —Howard Zinn

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness." —The Declaration of Independence

My ancient (G3) iBook needs more work than it's probably worth, so I don't want to take it in for service or put it on eBay, but I hate to send it straight to recycling. I think it has motherboard problems, and I know the lid is a bit askew, but it might be useful to someone. Suggestions?