:: Ray's Periodic Rantings ::

:: Sunday, May 27, 2007 ::

Springtime fun

Cleaning the gutters takes on a whole new dimension in a truly two-story house. We have one gutter on our master bedroom dormer that is too high up to reach by my diminutive extension ladder. I had to climb onto the roof in the front of the house, where it is lower, then scurry over the peak to the rear, and have Mary send the hose up to me by a string that I lowered -- Rapunzel, Rapunzel, send up your hose! I just came down, and I am still buzzing from the adrenalin. Bzzzz.

On the plus side, I am happy to say that while I was up there, I discovered that something in nature took care of evicting the terribly loud sparrows from under the eave, which were waking us up every morning with their squeaking (feeding time), so I did not have to do so. I was not looking forward to it.
:: Ray 2:00 PM [+] ::
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In which Ray gives his id some free reign

Donald Trump came to Chicago today to try to whip up sales in the tower he is, um, erecting on the site of the former Sun-Times building. It seems that in the face of the flagging real estate market, his sales have been, um, flaccid with only 8 units in the building sold since the beginning of the year.

It was just a few months ago that he reneged on discount advance sales contracts for units in the building, contracts that he used to help secure financing for the project. While not illegal, it was a cocky, unprecedented slap in the face to early supporters who had put their money down in good faith. Perhaps people are having second thoughts about buying from someone who would conduct business this way.

Or maybe they are just reluctant to live in a building named after a clown with comically bad hair, who seems to think it is good sport to publicly mock a nationally popular, outspoken, overweight lesbian.
:: Ray 2:01 PM [+] ::
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Short truth

Dick Cheney is quoted today as saying, "We didn't get elected to be popular."

Mr. Cheney, you didn't get elected at all.
:: Ray 11:26 AM [+] ::
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Galactica rocks.

I should have written this a couple of months ago, when the episode first aired, but having just seen it again, I have to say that the middle of the second hour of the two-part Battlestar Galactica episode, "Exodus," is one of the coolest moments of televised science fiction that I have ever had the pleasure to witness.

To set things up, most of the humans in the fleet are living on "New Caprica," where the Cylons found and surprised them months before, forcing the skeleton crews of the two battlestars in the fleet to jump away or be lost. Now, after extensive preparations among resistance forces on the planet, a rescue is attempted. First, a squadron of raptors launch drones intended to lure the Cylon base ships guarding the planet to launch their raiders away. With this goal successfully accomplished, Galactica jumps directly into the New Caprica atmosphere at high altitude, and of course begins falling like a stone. Flames all around from the heat, she launches a squadron of vipers to support a rebellion on the ground, now under way, then jumps away, dissappearing with a boom. Later, in a slightly predictable turn of events Pegasus, the other battlestar, joins the fray, against orders, to save Galactica now that 4 Cylon base ships have ganged up on it. Pegasus announces her presence by taking out one of the base ships with missiles, Later, after being abandoned, she rams another. It crumples, and they both explode. Then, a large chunk of Pegasus impacts a third base star, taking it out, too.

The battle in space is depicted with stunning special effects, yet its main purpose is to serve as the backdrop for several different dramatic subplots among a host of different characters, including realistically shot battle footage of the rebellion on the ground, and the frustrated reactions of the Cylons when they realize they have been duped. In addition to all this, I love the fact that the jump into the atmosphere represents an intelligent, yet risky use of the faster-than-light technology upon which the show is premised.

I tell you, the entire two hours of this two-parter is strong, but this twenty minutes or so, in particular, is amazing. Kudos to Ron Moore, the producer whose vision has made this all possible.

I know I may sound like a geek, and I am completely unapologetic about it.
:: Ray 3:01 AM [+] ::
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Flying in the 21st Century

Last weekend Mary and I flew to Pittsburgh for a family event. While packing for the return flight, in the fog of the morning, Mary mistakenly placed a jar of Keiller & Son Dundee orange marmalade (the really good imported British stuff that comes in a white jar), which had been given to us (not by a terrorist, but by her British mother), in her carry-on bag. You can all feel more confident the next time you board an airplane, secure in the knowledge that the dutiful staff of the Transportation Safety Administration discovered and relieved us of this potential aviation hazard. After all, we might have also been carrying some other chemical reagent capable of turning that innocent crumpet spread into a dangerous explosive! A bomb that tastes deliciously sweet, yet somewhat tart...diabolical!

Anyway, I felt safer on that very flight, and I hope someone from the TSA enjoyed a peanut butter and marmalade sandwich the next day. It would be a shame to throw that good stuff out!
:: Ray 12:05 PM [+] ::
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