Car Names

We usually have more than one car, so we usually give them names, although they are often as basic as "the Mazda", "the yellow Bug", &c. Still, names.

One of my favorites (as a vehicle and as a named object) was the blue and white VW bus that I called "the Scarabaeus". I drove the kids around in it, back when we had kids, and often referred to it by that name. Can't recall whether anyone else ever used that name, but I did.

Right now we have a Dodge minivan ("the Dodge") and a Ford van ("the Ford" or "the big van"). My uncle Wesley's Isuzu ("the Isuzu") has just died, so we're buying a 1991 Ford Escort.

We have been starting to refer to it as "the little Ford", but considering how fond it is of beeping every time you open the doors, it occurred to me today to start calling it "Sputnik".

//The Magic Eight-Ball says, "Treat inanimate objects as though they had feelings and you will treat them with more care, and they will perform better. Besides, perhaps they do."\\

Pirates Who Talk Like Somalis

Somali pirates seized yet another cargo ship in the Indian Ocean, but this time the crew successfully fought back.

The difference being that the crew of this ship were merchant seamen.

Proving, once again, that if you want a job done right, hire union labor.

//The Magic Eight-Ball says, "Acta non verba"\\

Goo-Goo vs. Boo-Goo

By tradition, though not by any known rules of grammar, "Goo-Goo" is short for "good government", referring to legislation which is hoped to have the effect of making the government do a better job of serving the people, and more importantly, showing the public that the legislators are busy making the government be good.

It occurs to me today that there is also such a thing as "bad government" legislation, which is intended to show the public that the legislators are aware that the government is bad and must be punished.

"Boo-Goo" laws are produced from both left and right. Conservatives' favorite Boo-Goo is tax cuts, but another classic example is the Freedom of Information Act.

Frequently, Boo-Goo measures are also Goo-Goo -- see FOIA above. And frequently they actually have good effects (ditto). But let's not kid ourselves that such laws are ever entirely written to serve the public interest.

//The Magic Eight-Ball says, "Who watches the watchmen?"\\

Plugged My Ears Again

I took out my three earrings before my brain surgery in November of 2007 and never got around to putting them* back in, until yesterday**.

* Actually, I have three holes (because one is for wimps and two is for girls), but one of them seems to have closed.

** Actually, I have just one in, because one of them seems to have disappeared during the night. Oh, well, they were only 75c each.

In other news, my father is continuing to recover, and I have switched from nights to afternoons, leaving him to handle the nights for himself.

//The Magic Eight-Ball says, "I won't tell them that you initially forgot to mention how your father is doing."\\