I find this really scary . . .

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Poll Results

How do you think the threat of global warming is portrayed?

It's exaggerated	52%	35,727
It's understated	26%	18,129
It's represented fairly	22%	15,318

Total Votes: 69,174

Note on Poll Results
Poll results are not scientific and reflect the opinions of only those users who chose to participate. Poll results are not reflected in real time.

As I told Steve when he asked why I thought so many people were so blind to reality, I can't explain why stupid people are stupid.

Boggles the mind

In the past couple of years, the Aspen Animal Shelter engaged in a huge fund-raising effort in order to enable it to move and build a new facility. We now have quite the state of the art animal shelter. It even has an online Doggie Daycare Cam. Pretty cool.

I pulled a brochure out of my mailbox on Thursday entitled Aspen Animal Hospital Facilities Expansion Project. My first reaction was that I couldn't believe that the animal shelter was asking for money again so soon. After my double take, I read the brochure a bit more carefully and realized that this wasn't from the animal shelter but from the local vet, Scott Dolginow.

What?

The vet is asking for "donations" (which are not tax deductible, mind you) to fund his business. The Aspen Animal Hospital is a for-profit corporation, just like any other local business.

What would you think if your local businessman asked you to give him/her money to purchase equipment which s/he is then going to use to make money? You're not going to get a discount on future services; you're not getting a slice of the pie; it's not an investment. You're simply funding a purchase for no return. But he will be grateful.

I find this outrageous. Ballsy, but completely outrageous.

The most ironic piece is the recent piss poor review I found of this vet online today.

I guess I'm a geek . . .

'cause I find NPR fascinating

PostSecret

Tomato and Mozzarella Salad

Yum!

One pint of cherry or grape tomatoes (we found some new grape tomatoes in our grocery store called Cherubs which are especially tasty)

One container of ciligene mozzarella balls (cherry tomato sized)

1/2 to one jar of pitted Kalamata olives

Newman's own Balsamic Vinaigrette (or whatever your favorite is)

Rinse the tomatoes in a colander*.

Empty the mozzarella into the same colander (right on top of the tomatoes) to drain the liquid.

Empty the olives into the same colander (right on top of the tomatoes and cheese) to drain the liquid.

Transfer the whole mixture into a container with an airtight lid.

Add vinaigrette to taste (I generally use 1/4 to 1/3 of a bottle when I'm making a salad using the quantities above).

Close lid and gently shake to evenly coat tomatoes, cheese and olives with vinaigrette.

Enjoy!

*If I'm making this salad for company, I'll cut the tomatoes in half so that my guests don't have to chase tomatoes around with their forks. When I'm making it just for me, I omit this step since I don't mind chasing tomatoes around with my fork.

The bear deal

My comment exchange with Susie on my last post brought to mind a magazine ad which I saw last week, probably in Real Simple. It's a full page color ad for some homeowner's insurance company which depicts a bear standing in someone's kitchen. The general point of the ad is that as totally unlikely as this scenario may be, this insurance company will protect you should this happen.

The point that struck me was that bears in kitchens is a daily occurrence this time of year here in Aspen. The photo seemed run of the mill to me . . .

Aspen Daily News staff report

Wed 08/22/2007 11:01AM MST

As summer shifts into fall, local black bears are ramping up their food intake by thousands of calories to fatten up for winter hibernation. Many bears are finding those extra calories in the unsecured garbage or unlocked houses of Aspen and Pitkin County.

But rather than follow the local bear "problem" with relentless articles detailing the latest bear antics, relocations or euthanasias, the Aspen Daily News is launching "The Bear Deal." Every Wednesday, this piece will provide a weekly by-the-numbers look at our local bear troubles.

In recognition of the bear problem, both the city of Aspen and Pitkin County are taking emergency steps to institute stiffer fines and stronger enforcement of local trash containment laws. The county will vote on an emergency ordinance at their regular meeting at noon today. City staff is currently looking into drafting such an ordinance.

Bear calls during the week of Aug. 14-20 (Tuesday through Monday):
Aspen: 75
Snowmass Village: 3
Pitkin County: 30

Colorado Division of Wildlife activities in Pitkin County:

Total number of bears relocated from Pitkin County: 9
Total number of Pitkin County bears killed by DOW: 7

And here's the text of an email I received from one of my neighbors on 8/16:

I got a call today from Txxxx Kxxxxxx (he manages Hunter Longhouse). He said that the DOW was there a few days ago to remove a bear that walked into someone’s apartment. The guy was home and had the door open so in came the bear. The DOW saw the latches on our dumpster enclosure and suggested they be changed. Txxxx has volunteered to change them out. He also said to LOCK your doors and windows, the bears are aggressive right now. They have been breaking through windows and tearing down doors. Let’s keep an eye out for each other’s places in case you see a bear inviting himself inside one of our homes.

Photo Credit

I'm a hypocrite and I'm ok . . .

Today is the one year anniversary of Chicago's foie gras ban so NPR did a story on it.

As a rule, I'm not a fan of laws and regulations which seek to micro manage behavior.

I have ranted about a Vermont law seeking to regulate behaviors behind the wheel and New York's paternalistic efforts to limit trans-fats. I haven't taken on Chicago's foie gras ban simply because I don't like the stuff so I don't really care if I can order it when I eat out. But I have enjoyed the various news stories about the lack of enforcement and restaurateurs thumbing their noses a la Prohibition.

So it was with some self deprecation that I noted my reaction to the end of today's NPR story. As they were listing all of the various invasive attempts sponsored by the architect of the foie gras ban, they mentioned an attempt to allow dogs to sit next to their owner's table at outdoor restaurants.

My mood immediately changed from derision to total acceptance. I could totally get behind a regulation like that. It's such a pain in the ass when we're walking around town at lunchtime in the summer with Ellie and we can't eat at a restaurant because of the silly health department rules that dogs aren't allowed in restaurants, including their outdoor patios. The outdoor seating at most restaurants in Aspen is frequented by all sorts of wildlife, including big, nasty, berry pooping bears.

And the health department is worried about Ellie?

photo credit

This week's favorite

"Highest"

Seems that word might not mean what all those Mount Everest adventurers think it means.

Here in Aspen, we have more than our fair share of Everest expeditionaries.

They may be climbing the wrong mountain.

Depending on how you define highest, Mount Everest is not the highest spot on earth.

According to May 1999 GPS triangulated measurements, Mount Everest is 29035 feet above sea level.

However, the top of Mount Chimborazo (elevation 20702 feet) in the Ecuadorean Andes is 1.36 miles further from the center of the earth.

Since the earth is not a perfect sphere, Mount Chimborazo is therefore 1.36 miles closer to the moon.

See: The 'Highest' Spot on Earth? and Did Edmund Hillary Climb the Wrong Mountain?

A billion and a half beats

This morning on NPR's Weekend Edition Saturday, Robert Krulwich reported on the Hidden Mathematics of Life.

According to Geoffrey West, a scientist and the president of the Santa Fe Institute,

on average . . . elephants and shrews and most of the critters in between have a limit of about a billion and a half heartbeats in a lifetime and then they die.

The reason an elephant lives longer than a shrew is not because its heart beats longer. It's because its heat beats slower. So it takes a few more years for the elephant to complete his or her up to one and a half billion beats.

Now Steve has a really low heart rate. So low, that when he was in the hospital two years ago, every nurse who took his pulse commented on how low his heart rate is. This in a place where there are a lot of world class athletes with low heart rates.

I have a really fast heart rate. So fast, that when I would take my heart rate during aerobic exercise, I would freak out my instructor because I was always way off the top of the charts, way outside of the 'acceptable range,' even though I felt fine. It seems it runs in my family. My brother's coach used to tell him he had a freakin' jackrabbit heart.

So, depending upon how you look at it, either I'm screwed because I'm going to use up my billion and half beats before Steve or he's screwed because he's going to outlive me and outlive his almost non-existent retirement funds.

Son of a Witch by Gregory Maguire

It took me two readings to really appreciate the charms of Wicked.

On the first reading, Son of a Witch does not match the mastery of Wicked.

Son of a Witch picks up the story of Elphaba's son, Liir, although Maguire expends an annoying amount of energy and verbiage trying to convince the reader that this fact is in question.

The novel picks up approximately 10 years after the death (?) of Elphaba and fills in the intervening years through flashback. A recurring theme throughout the book is the question of whether "Elphaba Lives." Given that I had just seen Wicked - The Musical, I was amenable to the idea that Elphaba was in fact alive.

The book was uneven and choppy. It held my interest in spite of itself, mostly due to my curiosity as opposed to any intrinsic artistry. Maguire's imagination still impresses but his storytelling disappoints.

I finished the book with a feeling of inconclusiveness. I suspected yet another sequel and was not surprised to learn that in October of 2006, Maguire announced that he was working on a third book based in Oz.

There's something wrong with me

The other day, Steve emailed me in response to my How Much Jail Time? post.

I logged onto Blogger under his log-on and posted his email as a comment.

Then, later, he said something to me (directly, yes, we do actually converse) about my Upcoming Travel post.

Once again, I logged onto Blogger under his log-on and posted his verbal statement as a comment.

But this time, I signed off as Steve, signed back on as me and posted a comment responding to the comment I had posted as Steve.

So, I'm having comment conversations with myself.

There's something wrong with me.

Wicked - The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West

Unbelievably epic and rich in detail.

I first read Wicked a few years ago and having just seen Wicked - The Musical, decided to re-read it.

I'm amazed at how much I had forgotten.

I remembered my surprise upon reading it the first time at how political Elphaba's life was but so much had escaped me.

As is his wont, Gregory Maguire takes a key but hardly central character from the Wizard of Oz and fleshes out her backstory with stunning imagination. He hones in on and explores the question of the Wicked Witch of the West's essential wickedness.

It's significant that the subtitle of the book is The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West and the subtitle of the musical is The Untold Story of the Witches of Oz. The fundamental theme of the musical is friendship and the musical really does not even touch the issue of evil. The fundamental question in the book is the question of the nature of evil and time and again, throughout the book, Maguire returns to this theme.

In the Grimmerie, the keepsake companion book to the musical, Maguire notes that he came away from the Wizard of Oz wondering why the Wicked Witch of the West was wicked and why it was necessary for Dorothy to kill her. Wanting to write a book exploring the nature of evil, Maguire saw Elphaba as an ideal vehicle.

Oftentimes, when I'm reading a book for the first time, I'm reading for plot and much of the detail gets lost. Because Wicked is so rich and so deep, it's amazing to read it a second time and realize how much is really there.

Wicked - The Untold Story of the Witches of Oz

When Rachel and I were in Chicago, we went to see Wicked. Rachel took the train downtown on Friday to meet me and spend the night at my conference hotel.

As Rachel said to me, Wicked felt like Broadway.

We had been to see Rent on Broadway but due to the subject matter of the muscial and the faded glory/shabbiness of the Nederlander Theatre, while we enjoyed the play, it didn't feel like Broadway.

Wicked felt like Broadway. The Oriental Theatre/Ford Center for the Performing Arts is very ornate and plush.

The play, although significantly different from the book, was quite good. It convincingly tells the tale of the friendship between the two opposites, Glinda, the Good Witch of the North and the Wicked Witch of the West. For all of its pomp and grandeur, it's an intensely character driven story and, therefore, more adult oriented (not in any R rated way). As I was looking around at some of the younger children in the audience, it struck me that Rachel at that age would have been very squirmy throughout the whole thing.

The lifelong friendship between Elphaba and Glinda and the love story between Elphaba and Fiyero were both a joy to experience. We left feeling uplifted (and Rachel left significantly lighter in the pocketbook after visiting the souvenir stands, not once but twice).

This week's favorite

This week, PostSecret is going a different direction so I can't single out my favorite here but if you watch the video, it's the first one.

How Much Jail Time?

I caught Anna Quindlen's column, How Much Jail Time?, in the Aug 6, 2007 issue of Newsweek the other day.

Quindlen was discussing a "curious little mini-documentary" she had seen on YouTube.

In the video, the question of what penalty a woman should face for undergoing an illegal abortion is posed to people protesting in front of an abortion clinic in Libertyville, Illinois.

Their responses, or really, lack of responses, are incredible, as in unbelievable.

Upcoming travel?

Upcoming travel wishlist (emphasis on the wish part!):

Hawaii - October 2007
(visiting Steve who'll be there working for 3.5 months)

New York - January 2008
(taking Rachel to see Hairspray on Broadway for her 16th birthday)

San Francisco - April 2008
(taking Rachel to see the Charmed manor during Spring Break)

Yosemite - April 2008
(traveling with another couple during waterfall season)

Indonesia - May 2008
(visiting Susie who'll be there for 1 year)

Orlando - June 2008
(attending a conference and taking Rachel & Steve to Disney World)

Glacier National Park - June 2008
(family get together)

Grand Canyon National Park - July 2008
(Colorado River raft trip)

Kinda unrealistic, huh?

Sad but true

I'm sorry to say that this is my favorite from this week's batch over at PostSecret.

I say sorry because I think it's unfortunate that I'm allowing all of the rational Christians to be tarred by this brush/bush and his ilk.

But, I couldn't help it. My reaction when I first saw it was visceral and honest. To pretend otherwise would be dishonest.

I thought about seeking out a second favorite to avoid offending. Rather cowardly . . .

Have I met your travel needs?

I guess I'm about to add my voice to the now commonplace complaints about air travel.

How unoriginal.

At 10:30 pm on Monday, July 30, 2007, I got an automated call on my cell phone informing me that my 7 am flight the next morning had been cancelled. United's automated attendant proceeded to rattle off new flight information which I was totally unprepared to take down.

This was complicated by the fact that one of my two fellow travelers was calling, first on my cell and then on my home phone, so the automated attendant was being interrupted by various beeps and clicks.

There were three of us traveling but our itineraries weren't linked due to differing returns. One was notified and rebooked. One was simply notified and left to fend for herself. The third was not even notified.

So, I called United for all three of us. Such fun.

The first time, as soon as the thickly accented attendant realized how complicated our situation was, she promptly disconnected me. Nice punt.

I called back. 67 minutes later, all three of us were rebooked together, scheduled to arrive in Chicago at 6 pm instead of 2 pm and stopping twice in Denver and Minneapolis instead of once in Denver. There were multiple flights that would have gotten us to Denver to make our original connection (we had a long layover in Denver) but she wouldn't/couldn't put three of us on any of them.

At the end of the call, "Maria" asked me if she had met my travel needs. I said no. She asked again. I said no again. When she asked a third time, I replied that I was sorry but I was not going to be able to answer in the affirmative. I understood that she had done the best that she could but the answer to the question was still, "Not really."

She didn't ask again.