R-E-S-P-E-C-T

find out what it means to me...

when Kate Middleton graced our area with her presence a while back, she brought a little buzz to town....appearing with her hubby Prince William at the Polo Fields in Carp, she was a down to earth gal who happened to be the Duchess of Cambridge...I liked her immediately because I'm a good judge of character and she's pretty hot too...

now, when Kate's helicopter touched down in Carpinteria, my hope is that some of that class would rub off on Carpinteria farm gals..I'm still hoping...

Britain's Kate Middleton takes up addiction causes
Kate Middleton, the newly married wife of England’s Prince William, has become a patron of the British charity Action on Addiction. Her decision is considered controversial because of the stigma attached to drug addiction, with many comparing it to the late Princess Diana’s support of charities benefiting people with HIV/AIDS, which in the early 1980s was also considered controversial.
About one in three people in Great Britain struggle with addictions. One official report from 2007 noted that Britain has the highest rate of drug consumption, and the second highest number of drug-related deaths in the European Union. One in four young people under age 30 years old told researchers they had experimented at least once with Class A drugs like heroin or cocaine. According to the report, Great Britain’s problems are not about casual drug use, but rather that thousands of people are addicted to hard core drugs. Drug abuse costs Great Britain over £13 billion a year for expenses related to medical care, crime, and incarceration.
Middleton, whose formal title is Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, has already visited and talked to clients enrolled in treatment at Clouds House in East Knoyle near Warminster. The center treats alcoholics and drug addicts through a program that includes detoxification, intensive counseling, and a 12-step agenda.

so we all know how stupid drugs are, yet we flail around trying to get people to stop taking them...now I mentioned before how stupid I thought it was for the SB school board to send in the drug sniffing dogs to junior high..how that is a NAZI mentality..raid instead of educate..the three members who voted for this waste are David Cash,the new superintendent from Fresno, Kate Parker and Ed Heron..they voted "yes" while Annette Cordero and Monique Limon voted "no"...good for Annette and Monique....and this act by the other SB School board members is outrageous!

ACLU of Washington and Center for Justice Applaud Decision

SPOKANE, WA -- In response to a threatened lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union of Washington and the Center for Justice, the Nine Mile Falls School District has stopped using drug-sniffing dogs to search its middle and high school students.

"We are pleased that the district has chosen to respect its students," said Julya Hampton, the ACLU of Washington's Legal Program Director. "The district's blanket use of drug-sniffing dogs treats every student as a suspect, without suspicion or evidence that they have done anything wrong."

Superintendent Cash had some leadership issues in Fresno and resigned abruptly because of conflicts with colleagues..and he is heavily supported by pot house landlord and News-Press flunkie Lanny Ebenstein which I find rather ironic..Cash should be calling out the dogs on the druggies over at the News-Press!!! such hypocrites!!

Cash, Parker and Heron are on my radar now..where are the studies indicating drug use in our local schools that requires uniformed officers with mad dogs to sniff thru the students' back packs..this is insane and should be an invasion of privacy....and perhaps it's time to call in the ACLU dogs....

follow the drinking gourd...

well at the Carp city council meeting I found the comments about Ulysses S Grant to be insane...

trying to excuse one numbskull by pointing to another...
first of all, we're not in another civil war yet though the teabaggers are pushing us towards that end..if it happens they will be crushed in one day..in order to do that, we need leaders, commanders like Grant...

Grant was a disciplined officer and leader..his drinking was infrequent and never interfered with his duites as a commander..and he never once rode his horse into a tree drunk!!

many myths and stories are told about the civil war ..and I was there, I saw Grant take a few sips now and again, but it seems if General Grant was a lousy drunk, I'd be singing Dixie right now wid a slave cleaning up my condo and takin' care of my chirren..but that ain't what happened because I'm listening to Whitney Houston sing her heart out right now and she ain't no slave...

Many of the drinking stories come from battlefield politics. Jealous Northern generals who could find no other way to discredit this brilliant man who was delivering battlefield victories to President Lincoln, spread malicious rumors about Grant being drunk on the job. There were stories, there were innuendoes, there were suppositions. But, in truth, there are NO RELIABLE witnesses of any drunkenness on the part of Grant during the Civil War.

In his book The Trial of U.S. Grant, Charles Ellington illuminates Grant's controversial West coast years. He asserts "Captain Grant was not an alcoholic. If he were an alcoholic he would have a problem in drinking any time, even in a moderate way. And there is plenty of evidence that Grant did drink-moderately, for the rest of his life. Furthermore, as somebody who had that reputation, everybody kept their eye on Grant. It was impossible for him to take a drink without somebody watching out of the corner of his eye to notice that he did not have another drink. Every time he turned over his wine glass, as a signal for declining wine, somebody seems to have taken note of it. It was almost a no-win situation." 2

Mixing speculation with fact, Ellington further asserts: "Grant drank, sometimes to excess, but he was not a problem drinker. His physical build made it impossible for him to drink much, yet he had sometimes desired alcohol to relieve his loneliness [during the West coast years]. Grant did spend time in Eureka [California] saloons, but that is not evidence of heavy drinking. Here is where community leaders met, talked about a wide variety of subjects, and expressed the civilized conviviality of that isolated place.... That Grant and his fellow officers drank off-duty seems to be undisputed. That Grant was drunk on duty has not been proven. ... The only valid conclusion that can be drawn about Grant's drinking is that he drank-like most soldiers of his time. But he was not a drunkard. Grant did not consume large quantities of liquor because his body did not require much to achieve the inevitable results. Some of Grant's contemporaries recorded that he went on 'sprees,' but none accused him of failing in his duty because he was under the influence ..

so maybe the truth lies somewhere in between..people drink but some can't handle alcohol..we've seen it right here in Santa Barbara and Carp..and the drunks are still blaming everyone else from the cops to their political enemies for their own failings...

tipping the bottle and passing the buck...

she's no lady..

she's my wife...

ok so I go to the Carp city council meeting Monday evening...I'm expecting a full council to deal with the ongoing Joe Armendariz issue...the city's options with Joe's ethics slump re his repeated DUIs...they could censure, ask him to resign, send him to rehab, strip him of his committee duties...

I get there at 5:15 and start taking pics of pretty girls..damn nice babes tonight... everyone is in good spirits...before the festivites started, a chick from COX explained the switch to digital TV which will allow council meetings to be seen in Carp..right now I only get Santa Barbara meetings! so that's good..now we get both..both cities can watch each other!! and the chick who gave the presentation, I'd like to watch her take a bath!

then the council files in...except Joe...he told the media he wouldn't be there tonight...Brad Stein still has a cold but managed a wave..hey Brad!

witchy Kathleen Reddington arrived on time..it was a miracle! what is up with the Addams Family hair...there's a Goth thing in Carp I don't know about?

Kathleen's stance on Joe was to coddle and baby him and say this was all just a witch hunt while the guys on the council were running out of patience with Joe's lack of ethics and poor representaion of the city....you can't spin a few DUIs by a councilman as positive for the City of Carp..no way, no how

so we get to public comment and the Hot Dog guy, William Connell, got up and presented a laundry list of Joe's bad behavior...it's getting pretty personal between Bill and Joe so I'll let them duke it out while I expose the hypocrisy of the rightwingers...

a few folks defended Joe's DUI and one guy pointed out that Ulysses S Grant was a drunk and so was Ted Kennedy...if that is the best defense for a city councilman's lapse in ethical behavior, then we might as well have no ethics clause in the city charter..and then the guy says he could dig up dirt on all the council members...he was a nut!!

apparently there was a rumor going around that Mayor Clark beats his wife! Clark put it to rest and said tongue-in-cheek--"well duh it's not true...if you don't believe me, ask my wife"--- and he provided a phone number...God I hope Joe's little fans haven't gotten so desperate as to start rumors about the other council members...leave that shit for the News-Press!!!

the night was a clinic about alcoholism and drunk driving..some folks spoke about their family issue with drunks and all the damage done...and accepting personal responsibility to change the situation..if you can't or won't as in Joe's case, then the city council will do it for you..and that's what happened..after reviewing their options with the city manager and attorney, the council voted 3-1 to censure Joe, strip him of his committee duties, and ask him to resign..all reasonable acts to counter a most unreasonable act of drunk driving...

so congrats to the Carp City Council except Kathleen, for dealing with the issue that Joe won't deal with...it wasn't quite a "Code Red" but it was close...you simply need to deal with the weak links..fairly and quickly...in order to resume with the city's business as Mayor Clark eloquently pointed out...

oh..and Joe.. you owe a great big thank-you to Carty, Stein and Clark...for cleaning up your mess

the Bodyguard

candle in the wind...

do you suppose if my homie Kevin Costner was doing his job, Whitney Houston would still be alive? I thought Kevin was her bodyguard..I know if Whitney had spent the day with me at the beach, she would still be singing her songs...

I haven't watched the Grammys in ages, but I checked in to see the tributes..Bruce Springsteen opened with a rousing "We Take Care of our Own"...
rapper LL Cool-J hosted..of course I don't know who he is, but he did an ok job....I loved Lupe Fiasco and Bruno Mars...I flipped back and forth between the cable music channels..they were doing nonstop Whitney Houston videos...back in the 80s she was Queen of Soul/Pop churning out hits at breakneck speed....the daughter of Cissy Houston, she grew up around Dionne Warwick and Aretha Franklin....geez..talk about music royalty..

well, back at the Grammys, Joe Walsh, one of the greatest rocknroll guitarists of all time was helping Paul warble his way thru "My Blue Valentine"..Joe was on classical guitar..sorry guys, it didn't quite work...Paul just doesn't have the voice for that stuff...and tonight it was all about the voice...the Beach Boys reunited for "Good Vibrations", helped by some much younger musicians..Mike Love looking rather frail and elderly...I saw Brian Wilson at the Lobero a few years ago and he was great..but tonight he looked a bit forlorn, and quickly left the stage after the song....

so I'm watching Whitney Houston videos...I always have when they happen to come on...she's a beautiful woman, energetic and smiling, with a beautiful voice....and I heard some songs I've never heard before that became quick favorites.."I Have Nothing" from the "Bodyguard"...and another one about being hurt real bad.."yeah ya did, shor ya did" she sang masterfully...
she was on stage, sitting on a tall stool...wearing a white dress..sweat glistening off her face...she looked like an Olympian athlete..she was singing with every fiber of her being..and that's why I liked her...

I don't know about the drugs and alcohol or why she took up with a no-talent guy like Bobbie Brown, but something happened... I was looking for it in her videos..and there was something behind her smile, her eyes, that was hard to describe.....a sadness...maybe "the Greatest Love of All" said it...I don't know....but I know this, no one at the Grammy Awards could hold a candle to her voice....

it's a beautiful day...

white bird must fly, or she will die....

well it was Saturday....it was the most beautiful day I've ever seen...I started the day with some Beach Boys blaring and was so glad to be in California...it's just beautiful here...the wind was blowing, the clouds were roaming, and some little dog somewhere was foaming at the mouth...like the ocean when it laps up to the beach..you know, the foam...

anyway, I felt like shopping so I went to Big Five and got some summery items like a watch with instructions in five languages...then I went to Sears because I am a patriotic American..

then I decided to go thru Hope Ranch and visit Snoop and Wendy and swing by the old school..Laguna Blanca...it's a great school and hasn't changed much..in fact Hope Ranch stays blissfully the same..of course every neighborhood school has its secrets, but yours is safe with me..altho the education was great and personal at Laguna, the French teacher sucked..there is no way I'm learning French with some lady showing me cartoons with no captions and telling me to fill in words in French...geez, how lazy can you get, lady...how do you say "FUCK YOU " in French??

hey I figured I'd stop by the Boathouse to see how Tony Denunzio manuevered his truck on that fateful night.. I pull into the parking lot and geez I'm sober and still having trouble driving thru this little maze!! don't hit that surfer girl!!!

wow..the day gets more beautiful by the minute....whimsical clouds dance in the pale blue sky...the ocean is close by and the truck nearly drives itself down the Mesa, down Shoreline Dr to the Harbor....oooo..it's so pretty the sand the sea...

hey, I'm behind a Mercedes with a lady driving who looks like Wendy..but lucky for her, today I love everyone!! even Ruppie who's journalists are being arrested left and right for bribery!!

then I park it at the Harbor... the beautiful Harbor..once a target for piracy by Dr. Laura and the shame she brought to the Yacht Club for cheating at the races..today it stands proud again..still a great hangout ....and then a nice walk on Leadbetter...some surfers fighting the windblown waves...shorebirds hanging out....little fluffy dogs everywhere..I even made some room in my heart for them!!

it was a beautiful day that began with Beach Boys music...and ended with Whitney Houston music...

lost her in the sun..

the winter of our discontent...

can someone tell me why in the middle of winter it's 75 degrees right now? in the sun? the blaring brutal sun....it's trajectory across the sky is low so the hotness is super hot compared to summer hotness....lately, the sun is setting as the gentle tide rolls in as the light blue sky smiles down happily..and burns my ass!

I just want a sound explanation not there's a high pressure ridge somewhere close by...an explanation because I bought a bunch of winter clothes and gave the old ones away to the homeless charity.....but when am I gonna be able to wear this thinsulated jacket..or this down vest from Cabela's? now? no, I tried and started sweating so had to turn on the fans...it's ridiculous...

oh I see..the only time I can wear my new clothes, my new Gallatin flannel shirt, is three o'clock in the morning when the temp dips to the high 40s...ok so I'll get up and dressed and take a walk outside in my vest and new Rockports...I'll head out to the hills in the serious moonlight and meet with the coyotes and raccoons and skunks...

I'll take a walk over to the cemetery.....pay my respects to little Anna Lee..I don't even know her and yet she is indeed my inspiration...

better yet I'll visit her in the morning when the sun is warm....as warm as my heart when I think of her....and these yellow flowers by the side of the road..they smell so sweet and there's hundreds of bees buzzing around them...

Anna Lee..little darlin'..it's alright....

happiness

runs in a circular motion...

oh I didn't know there was a "World Happiness Day" until I read the News-Press and another silly article by this Dave Mason guy..I hope not the ex-Traffic guitarist....the guy who played with Hendrix!! couldn't be..this Mason begins the article like this: the surf gently rolled in, and the sun began its slow descent in the light blue sky on a quiet late afternoon...

WTF? that sounds like something I would write ... geez, Dave, knock it off!

anyway, the Constitution guarantees the right to pursue happiness, it says nothing about obtaining it......no guarantee that you will be other than unhappy for the rest of your life...some people are happy that way, I guess..

but the article in the NP tells us about a gal named Jackie.... a Montecito therapist who got a BA in Psychology and a Master's in Creative arts...(I'm giggling now because I'm happy)..and well she wants you to be happy, even if you aren't, she will make you happy..well I can think of a way she could make me happy right now baby but she might sue me, so I'll let ya guess what I'm thinking about right now!..and wut I'm thinking right now is a making me very very happy!!

look, psychology is not something to be toyed with...nowadays it's become pop-psychology and that makes me unhappy...

the real work you do can help you help yourself..in the right hands, a facilitator can help you deal with all the stuff in your head that's causing you some confusion and..well..unhappiness...if you don't want to be happy, then you don't have to be...embrace the unhappy and the happy will follow...it's ok to feel blue, otherwise you won't know what happiness is....

if you think that sucking up to rich people will make you happy, then go for it...but think about this: it will make me very very unhappy...Jackie, do you want that on your conscience??