The big news out here has nothing to do with Presidential politics, Iraq or the economy (except in the local sense), the major story in the newspapers, on radio & television has been the fire at Universal Studios this past weekend.

It was pretty spectacular to wake up yesterday, turn on the news and see aerial shots of the New York City street, King Kong building and assorted sets & film stages going up in smoke. For close to twelve hours firefighters were trying to contain the blaze, keeping if from spreading to other studio buildings and up the hillside to private homes. Fortunately, there were only a few injuries, mostly to firefighters and those non-serious. Considering the amount of flammable material and several explosions that took place it could have been much worse.

Early reports seem to indicate that workmen may have accidentally caused the fire while working on the New York set.

Donna and I have talked about doing the tour, but have never gotten around to doing so. We have both been there in the past, she several times with Kristina and others, and I went with Elayne years ago. We both have found memories of the visits and might finally get around to doing another trip once some of the clean up has taken place.

It was great seeing so many of Donna’s family and friends this past weekend. It was also a good reminder of why we don’t miss Brooklyn as much as you might think.

Don’t get me wrong, there are things we do miss (good pizza, bagels and Italian bread & pastries) but more we don’t (alternate side of the street parking tops the list). It was nice to have a Dunkin’ Donuts only a few blocks away, plus amazing Italian restaurants & pizzerias within walking distance. Except for Tuesday the weather was good, especially on Monday when my brother-in-law Doug had a barbecue in the back yard.

The flight out on U.S. Airways wasn’t all that great, as we hit turbulence over the central states and changing planes in Las Vegas was a pain in the butt. Both there and at JFK (where we flew back from via Jet Blue) are under construction, so we had to take shuttles from one terminal to another. Fortunately, we did have enough time in both cases. The planes were packed both ways, and even First Class on U.S. Airways isn’t what you would think it would be. The extra seat space is nice, but you would expect more than the usual snacks and soft drinks for the price wouldn’t you?

Unless a family emergency, wedding or the like arises I can’t see us flying back in the next couple of years. I do feel guilty that I wasn’t able to see my sisters & friends in Connecticut, but they have open invitations to come out here at any time. We have talked about trying to sail on a cruise together one of these days, but we’ll have to wait and see. Since I have more vacation time than Donna, I might take a few days next year and just fly solo to Connecticut.

We have had some very, heavy rains and flash flooding today. The worst were in the areas still recovering from the wild fires of last year. Fingers crossed this is over by the time I have to drive home!!

I've added two new links over on The Left that you might want to check out.

Tabloia! is from web artist and fan, Chris Wisnia and lots of very talented folks. Those include Sergio Aragones, Dick Ayers, Jill Thompson, John Severin, Sam Keith and others. If you miss the old WEEKLY WORLD NEWS, love giant monsters and just want to laugh this is a site you might enjoy.

On the other hand, What's The Harm? is a bit more serious, although they do have a sense of humor. Here you will find links to sites which look critically at pseudo-science, 'alternative medicines' and other things which really might not be as 'harmless' as you might think. Hopefully, you do think?

On the political front, there's not much to say about the results of yesterday's primaries. Neither was a surprise to anyone following the polls and talking heads, with both candidates doing pretty much as expected. Although a couple polls had Hillary doing a bit better in Oregon than she ended up doing. With only three primaries left to go I don't think there is any doubt who will be the nominee in early June.

One interesting thing from last night was Tucker Carlson (on Dan Abrams' After Hours show on MSNBC last night) hinting that there were things about Obama that we don't know yet, but will come out in the Fall. Curious if he has some knowledge or is just trying to help Rush with Operation Chaos.

Donna finalized our plane tickets for this Friday, so all that's left to do is pack. We're flying out of John Wayne Airport on a 'red eye' for JFK. It will be nice to see Donna's family and some friends for a few days before heading back here.

It's weird, as I may have said before. It is still sometimes surprising for me to look around and realize that we are actually living in California. Just a few years ago it was something we talked about doing 'one day' but now we are actually here and just going to New York to visit. I'm happy to see the reservations call for a round-trip. :-)

I have a class in Microsoft Office '07 later today, which I'm not thrilled about. I have a feeling it will just confuse me more than I already am, but it's not like I have a choice. All out computers are being updated in the next few weeks, plus we are planning on upgrading the public PCs later this year. I feel ignorant enough about some of the things folks want to do on the computer without the additional headache of learning a new system. Oh, well!

Probably have a few more comments later tonight, since I'm working.

I was saddened to learn of Ted Kennedy's medical problem. It really doesn't look good, but my fingers are crossed and I'm hoping for the best. I don't believe that he is up for election until 2010, but it would not surprise me to find that his doctors and family may push for him to retire perhaps after the November elections.

I had yesterday off so I used a 'free pass' a friend gave me to catch IRON MAN at the local multi-plex. I'll post a quickie review over on SHOT'S SHACK later today.

Donna & I had to renew our Verizon contract and took the opportunity to get updated phones and new numbers. Up to yesterday we still were using our New York numbers, which was pretty confusing, but not worth the price of changing them over. We now have local phone numbers, so some of you can expect phone calls and others e-mail. If you need my number ASAP drop me an e-mail or call our home phone.

Autism Recovery-A Remarkable Conversation PART 1

The first part of an interview with my friend Dorian Tenore-Bartilucci on autism. Today Dorian is one of most intelligent and witty women you could hope to meet. A wonderful mother and very, talented writer.

The interview should give hope to parents and family members who deal with autistic children.

Good for you, Dorrie!

G.W. seemed to use his Knesset speech as an opportunity to take a swipe at Obama.

Does the GOP really want to get into painting Obama as anti-Israeli? A glance at his Senatorial voting record would show that is not the case. On the other hand, the Dems might want to discuss the cozy relationship this administration has with Saudi Arabia, including a very large military sale to them. Hardly done to make Israel safer, IMHO.

John McCain vows to get us out of Iraq by 2013, just in time for his second inaugural I guess.

The John Edwards endorsement of Obama is nice and a sucker-punch to Hillary, for sure.

Also on the plus side, the California Supreme Court overturned a ban on gay-marriage here in the state. Of course, this is another issue the GOP can use to raise funds and get out the 'faithful' this election year.

Another swell day in American politics!

Bill O'Reilly Flips Out

And he wrote a book for kids???

Pardon his language! Bwahahahaha

Well, I spoke to my doctor this morning and things are not as bad as I feared.

The two diverticulum on my bladder contain no stones, so for the time being nothing will be done to remove them. I'm going to continue on the medication I was given and in three months will have another x-ray taken. Dr. Randall tells me that he has patients who have had these for years and they caused no problems. The surgery is pretty invasive, with a week to ten days of recovery, so if I don't have to have it done I would like to put it off.

Thanks to those who have written or called me about this. I appreciate the concern.

Nancy Pelosi Rubber Chicken

Go Shirley!

Nothing major going on, but I figured I should post something so you'll know I'm still around.

Personally, I don't believe that today's primary results will change much of anything. Unless one or the other candidate wins both states I think the whole thing will drag on.

Probably because I'm a Obama supporter, not a strong one by any means, I fail to understand Hillary's appeal. I'm afraid to criticise her as it may make me appear sexist and I'm anything but. However, she seems to me to be running a mostly negative campaign and I would think that would turn more voters off. I expect, should she get the nomination, that my fellow progressives will fall in line behind her. I just cannot see myself joining the herd.

Health issues continue to dominate things here at Chez Chaput. Donna is having difficulty with her diabetes and I'm still waiting to meet next week with the specialist regarding my bladder. Sadly, there is no simple solution for either of us.

The next few months will be busy ones for us, with trips to New York and then our Alaska cruise coming up way too soon. In between I'll be heading to San Diego for the ComiCon in late July, probably a one-day trip to the American Library Association Convention next month and we are trying to decide what to do for the Independence Day weekend.

Regarding various headlines:

I hate to see myself agreeing with anything Laura Bush has to say, but it is indeed a tragedy in Myanmar (or Burma, if you will). I hope the dictatorship there will allow aid to reach their citizens.

It seems it is okay for a major mainstream magazine to have revealing photos of an underage actress, but if an adult male was found to have similar photos of a non-famous female the same age it would be questionably legal. Am I missing something here? Maybe now as a step-parent I see things differently. I really have to wonder about this girl's parents, who were supposedly present at the photo shoot.

Probably more tomorrow on today's election results!

Norbert

In tribute to Free Comic Book Day. Vinne Bartilucci's NORBERT drawn by Rick Geary.

Star Wars according to a 3 year old.

This is pretty much how I remember it, too!

Pretty warm here in the OC, as I'm sure folks have heard. Easily in the 90s the past few days and perfect for shorts, even for chubby, middle-aged white guys. The Child and her friend Christine were brave enough to hit the beach, but I'll keep my tasty bits in the pool while that Great White is cruising off shore.

On the medical front, Donna seems to be getting her sugar under control, but she still needs to see a specialist about other things. I will be discussing unpleasant matters with my own doctor in a couple of weeks and then a decision will have to be made. The big one is not IF, but rather WHEN the operation will have to take place. Personally, I'd like to hold off until after our Alaska cruise in late August, but we have to see what the doctor says. Our trip back to New York is in about a month and I really want to get to the San Diego con this year, so I want to put things off until September.

This is a Bladder Diverticulum. You have your normal bladder there in the center and unnatural growth of the diverticulum on the sides. Basically like squeezing a balloon until smaller projections appear.

They can only be removed by surgery.

One guess who has two of these?

Not my best year!

Will I vote for Hillary Clinton? No!

Will I change my mind come November? Probably not.

Will vote for McCain? Definetly not!

Will I vote Third Party? Maybe.

Will I simply not vote for President? Likely.

The longer it goes the more uncomfortable I feel about her. I believe that she would rather destroy the Democratic Party's chance of taking the White House than allow anyone but herself to be at the top of the ticket. I really do feel that she would rather have John McCain win this November, allowing her to run again in 2012.

You disagree?

Donna and I are both awaiting results from medical tests we have taken. Her situation is more serious than mine, so we are both concerned. I'm hoping to get my results tomorrow and we'll see if I need to undergo any surgery later this year. Same may hold true for Donna, but we won't know until she has discussed things with her specialist. Not our best year healthwise, although everything else seems to be going okay.

On a lighter note, I was talking to a friend from Brooklyn last night and he said he had a good time at the New York Comic Con. He reports that it was much better than last year. There is a possiblity that he may fly out for the San Diego Con, so that should prove interesting (even if his female companion doesn't join him). Dan has never been to the SD convention, while it has been a decade since my last trip. It should be fun for both of us!

Leaked: ABC's Stephanopoulos interviews John McCain

You can only wish George S. would ask some of these!

Sadly, this is exactly what happened to me!
It took a couple of months, but I'm growing it back.

Good to see ABC doing Fox News' job last night.