I know some people who read this probably didn’t watch the Super Bowl. So I’ll share the best part. My tastes usually don’t line up with the rest of America, but on favorite-Super-Bowl-ad, my opinion matched that of the USA-Today-Ad-Meter.
After the SAG Awards and this, I’m hooked on new Betty White moments in 2010…
I changed my black-and-blue theme to white-and-black about a week ago. I’d had themes with black backgrounds for a couple of years. I thought I needed a change and should go to something a little more standard. Alas, I’ve decided I prefer a black background. I’ll probably continue to mess around with the stylesheet over the next few days. It’s the closest thing to “development” that I get to do.
If you’re usually reading this on Facebook or through some other feed reader, you really don’t care.
And now I shall blog about soap operas.
I am saddened by the passing of legendary actress Frances Reid at the age of 95. If you don’t know who that is, that’s probably good for you! That means you didn’t spend an unmentionable number of hours watching soap operas years ago. (Or you just didn’t watch Days of Our Lives.) (Or you don’t pay attention to the actors’ names.)
Frances Reid was an accomplished actress prior to commencing her most well-known role in 1965, but she is legendary for having portrayed Days of Our Lives matriarch Alice Horton for more than 40 years. Soap characters and actors come and go, but Frances Reid on DAYS was comforting constant. Both her character and off-screen persona were class acts.
I’m getting really fed up with a particularly garrulous patient here at dialysis. If I were not reclined so that my face were hidden from his view by my dialysis machine, he would surely be talking me up, about any and every random thought that ran through his head.
As things are now, I’ve got my earplugs in, headphones on, and volume way up on the television. Yet, I can still hear Mr. X’s bellowing and frequent laughter, puncturing any peace I hope to have here at dialysis, which is a hopelessly unpleasant experience.
In the past, I’ve been sitting up in my bed watching tv, with the earplugs and headphones, and the tech has motioned to me and called my name, forcing me to remove my ear equipment, because Mr. X wanted to ask me if I had gotten my Diet Hansen’s soda at Trader Joe’s.
As I’ve said repeatedly, this nocturnal dialysis is simply not conducive to a relaxing night. There are the harsh lights, the beeping machines, and the patients and staff who treat the dialysis unit like a social gathering.
However, if I switched back to mornings, I’d be dealing with the noises fivefold. I was really looking forward to nighttime dialysis because the normal shift had felt so chaotic. Besides, the slower, longer dialysis I get at night is supposed to be better, physically.
I’ve always been very sensitive to noises, whether I’ve heard neighbors or dogs or car stereos while at home or coworkers or outside music while on the job. I desperately want quiet here at dialysis, but I know I’m never going to get it. I could tolerate dialysis so much more if I could rest in peace here.
I have been trying to curb bluntly partisan posts, but I am compelled to react to this new poll of 2000 self-identified Republicans. The poll was commissioned by left-wing site DailyKos, but it’s a scientifically valid survey with statistically significant results.
It’s nearly impossible to imagine that President Obama will ever get any cooperation from a party that must answer to the constituents described by these poll results. Years ago, I thought of the two parties as having distinct ideologies, where I definitely had a strong preference for one party over the other. I may have had a strong dislike for the other party, but I’d occasional remember that, deep-down, most in the other party were well-intentioned and cared about the well-being of the country. In 2010, I’m afraid a majority of that party, the GOP, is just bat-shit crazy. If Obama continues to seek bipartisanship, I’m afraid his presidency is doomed. And the next decade or two or ten are doomed. Ironically, this is the same opinion that most Republicans have, but based on the premise that Obama might get something done.
Highlights:
Should Barack Obama be impeached, or not?
Yes 39
No 32
Not Sure 29
Do you think Barack Obama is a socialist?
Yes 63
No 21
Not Sure 16
Do you believe Sarah Palin is more qualified to be President than Barack Obama?
Yes 53
No 14
Not Sure 33
Should openly gay men and women be allowed to teach in public schools?
Yes 8
No 73
Not Sure 19
Should public school students be taught that the book of Genesis in the Bible explains how God created the world?
Yes 77
No 15
Not Sure 8
The Atlantic’s Andrew Sullivan hopes for bipartisanship:
I do not believe that, given the fiscal and healthcare crisis we are in, that we should simply surrender to the basest impulses of partisanship. And I believe that was the core message of the Obama candidacy. And if this opportunity is simply thrown away, the bitterness will deepen, the polarization will widen, the public cynicism will explode and the country will truly pass the point of no return on its core and pressing problems.
Meanwhile, the President has submitted his 2011 budget, which Noble-winner Paul Krugman finds “depressing” and is indicative of “how sick our political system is”.
What we’re witnessing is an awesome national failure.
Why do I follow politics? There’s never any good news.*
* End of DADT is a good thing. It’s a stupid, offense policy.
UPDATE Apprently, pesky Al Qaeda is going to be attacking us on our own soil soon. Heard that one before, but not in a long, long time. Just terrific. Obama will be blamed if anything happens. Then we can really abandon all hope.
Hoping for five and a half hours of sleep. I know people who have been doing this for five years. I’m only up to five months I can’t imagine another five months or five years.
My life is not just on hold because I’m on dialysis. It’s been on hold for 20 years. I didn’t make the most of my potential in high school. I was a failure of mediocrity in college. After a career of over a dozen years, I can’t describe to people what it is that I do. And that’s just my career.
I can’t tell someone what my interests are. What sports do I play? What music do I like? What do I do around the house?why don’t you hire someone to clean things up? Why don’t you just clean things up? Why do your clothes smell like rotten cat food? Why don’t you go to the gym? Why don’t you do yoga? Why don’t you get your ass out of bed on the weekends so you can help the chained dogs you claim you want to help?
Why do I let myself become paralyzed by feelings of weakness, incompetence, failure?
I do. It happens. And the path away from this is painfully elusive.
I censored a recent post in which I admiited having inhibitions compromised by AmBien. I can tend to admit to unsavory thought and behaviors.
Tonight I admit I am a broken mass of ineptitude.
And now I hope for five hours of sleep.
Yay for 88-year-old Betty White, picking up the Screen Actors Guild Lifetime Achievement Award last night.
Her acceptance speech starts around the 4:00 mark.
