500 days and counting...

500 days from today will be January 20, 2009. For those who missed out on US Civics class (or just forgot it), January 20th in years following election years (like 2008) is inauguration day. On that day (WARNING: POLITICAL VIEW TO FOLLOW) our long national nightmare will end, and anyone other than George W. Bush will become "Leader of the free world".

A tribute to this number in corn chips!

For those who are discouraged by the length of time we are talking about should think about the spread of time. 500 days ago was April 25, 2006. On that day:

• A tornado hit El Reno, Oklahoma
  
• San Francisco had just finished commemorating the 100th anniversary of the 1906 "Big One" quake.
  
• Tony Snow had just been picked as the new White House Press Secretary
  
• Rosie O'Donnell was about to be announced as the new host of the View
  
• Starbucks' sponsored movie "Akela and the Bee" was about to open nationwide
  
• "United 93" was about to open nationwide
  

That doesn't seem THAT long ago, does it?

Crushing sadness...

3 totes, 2 boxes, 3 bags. These represent the life of a young woman. This is a young woman I've known for 10 years. As a child, she was a sweet, beautiful, intelligent, caring, loving girl. She was a great friend of my son at a time when my son desperately needed a good friend.

The cruel twist of fate that is bipolar disorder has reduced this girl to a tortured soul, incapable of understanding the depth of trouble that she is in. She came to visit us, and within a couple of weeks her manic phase hit. She started to spiral down into a pattern of abusiveness towards others and massively self-destructive behavior. She is delusional, telling us that she's being offered jobs that she has no qualifications for and that strangers are offering her incredible deals on apartments at a fraction of their market value. She's threatened suicide and claims pregnancy.

Her family is out of the picture. We've put her in touch with those qualified to help her but she has to take the step of asking for help. If she doesn't soon I'm afraid she's going to, as our pastor said, "bump into reality." Given her behavior and lack of care, that could be just about anything -- there are a lot of people out there who are chomping at the bit to take advantage of someone like that. I pray that her demons let go soon. Given the right circumstances, she has an incredible amount to offer the world.

In the mean time, we wait for her to pick up her 3 totes, 2 boxes, and 3 bags.

Daly City Overlook / SEBC

Wednesday, had to go downtown, forgot to take the D70 with me, so this one is from the Small Emergency Backup Camera.

Taken at the Daly City overlook (Skyline at John Daly).

My 5th pickle fork pic...

This is my fifth entry with Sutro Tower (aka, the pickle fork). This one is taken from Portola avenue, just west of Twin Peaks.

The park across the street...

Dang, this camera takes some CLEAR pictures...

This is the park across the street from our house. It seems to be the best shot I managed to take today.

Now how friggin cute is that...

A cloth rose, a freshly brushed face, and a quick shutter. Add in a little cropping, and poof...

Cookin over charcoal...

I have 2, count'em 2 dead gas grills in my back yard right now. I'm pretty sure that one of them can be repaired (seems to be a leak somewhere in the regulator, so the safety/control valve is blocking the gas from getting to the burners).

But, the kitchen was hot, and I just didn't feel like cooking anything tonight that was going to heat it anymore than it already was, so...

I headed out to Target, where they had all of their charcoal grills on sale. Then a quick trip to Trader Joe's for some lump charcoal (the real stuf -- not that compressed briquette stuff), and 30 minutes later I had burgers cooking they way they are supposed to be -- over red hot, smokey charcoal.