November 17, 2009

• Swimming With Dolphins and A Shark Attack!

  What a weekend!  Too bad it had to end, because today the Sarah Palin media blitz began. 
  I’ll get to that waste  of brain matter in a minute, but here’s a quick recap of the weekend:

  • Drove up to Santa Barbara…managed to avoid a speeding ticket despite a few close calls.
  • Eva, Bine & I hung out with Rob & August all day Saturday; enjoying:
  • Beach volleyball (I was the photographer).
  • A beached sea lion that had been attacked by a Great White Shark (we were told).
  • Swimming with dolphins….when Bine saw them she immediately ran into the water and swam to them, even getting bruised by a dorsal fin in the process.
  • Another spectacular Santa Barbara sunset.
  • A Filipino barbecue courtesy of grillmaster Rob, who has been a “friend in my head” for years and is now the real thing!
  • I caught a cold Saturday night as the temperature in Eva’s house was about 20° cooler than I keep The Hotel Careyfornia.
  • Claudio & Ryan found a Chocolate Lab on the street in Oxnard Saturday.  She and Chazz became best of friends.  We’re calling her “D” (for dog) for now, and searching for the owner, but it’s been 2 days.  Story developing…
  • Claudio & Ryan drove up to Santa Barbara with aforementioned new dog and Chazz, and we had dinner on the beach to yet another breathtaking sunset
  • Drove home and have been drinking lots of hot liquids.
  • Tonight, Bine & I are going to go see the movie Precious.
  • Tomorrow Carolina is coming for lunch and then Bine & I are going to The Jay Leno Show(we were supposed to go last week, but changed the tickets).  Tyra Banks will be the guest.

  It Took A Long Time – LaBelle

  Here are my favorite photos from the past 2 days:

  
  That’s Bine, swimming towards the dolphins…she eventually caught up with them…and loved it!

  
  Gross, but pretty cool, huh?  They said it was from a Great White, but Joelle said that the bite looked small for a Great White and why didn’t it eat the whole thing??

  
  A crowd gathered around the departed seal

  
  Father & Daughter (with bird hat)

  
  Rob congratulating Bine after she swam with the dolphins
  
  
  The winning shot??  Nope!

  
  The full size photo is even more vivid

  
  Bine was freezing as she was still wet from swimming with dolphins

  
  Best friends

  
  August brought the Filipino pork from Carson and Rob grilled it up perfectly!

  
  Bine, Eva, Rob, August, Thine & Puneeth

  
  I woke up Sunday with a bad cold

  
  I love the back turtle’s legs

  
  State Street, Santa Barbara, CA

  
  Sunny Breakfast

   
  In front of the courthouse…and a Tibetan Terrier
  
  
  Real trials are still held in this room…but Rob & August are innocent

  
  The hills of Santa Barbara and the infamous Tea Fire

  
  August, Riley & Me

  
  Who’s a good dog?

  
  Our “new” Chocolate Lab, “D” with Ryan & Chazz

  
  A great end to a great weekend

  
  The beautiful Santa Barbara seafront

  
  Click here for the best of the rest…

    Palin Roundup

  “Prepare for the latest Palin media onslaught. An hour with Oprah, a multi-parter with Barbara, and appearances all across the country. An initial read shows Going Rogue doesn’t reveal much. No surprise there. This isn’t about the book, it’s about the book tour — which includes a politically convenient stop in Iowa — and the money. Besides, it’s not like there’s much we haven’t already learned about Palin since she burst onto the national scene. We even know when her water broke during her last pregnancy. Talk about overexposed. In the end, I expect this will be one of the most mocked books of the year — and one of the biggest bestsellers. Palin fans will find much to love, but I doubt a single doubter will be converted. It’s a 400 page Rorschach test. With no index.”

  Max Blumenthal: How Sarah Palin Made Herself Indispensable While Destroying the Republican Party If Palin is indeed a cancer on the GOP, why can’t the Republican establishment retire her to a quiet life of moose hunting in the political wilderness? Why won’t she listen to, or abide by, conventional political wisdom?

  Geoffrey Dunn: Schmidt Calls Palin’s Memoirs “Total Fiction” Steve Schmidt now joins a host of former McCain staffers who have challenged the veracity of Sarah Palin’s book, Going Rogue, even before it hits the streets on Tuesday.

  Mike Elk: Liberal Elitism Will Make Sarah Palin President – How Only Union Organizing Can Stop It The experiences of liberal elites are so outside of the mainstream that, very often, they just don’t understand the working class. Very few have any experience living with or knowing working-class people.

  Geoffrey Dunn: Palin’s Bob & Mark Show Shame Palin’s mention of Alaska “personalities” Bob & Mark for her upcoming book tour conjures up a truly shameless moment from Palin’s past.

  Shannyn Moore: Sarah Palin: Rogue Republican or Democratic Operative? If the Republican Party had half a mind, they would look at Palin’s history of party divisiveness, polarization and destruction and take heed.

  Geoffrey Dunn: Going Rouge Skewers Palin One thing is certain: You will read far more about the real Sarah Palin in Going Rouge than you ever will in her own memoirs, being published by (who else?) Rupert Murdoch.

  Alex Remington: The Fortune Cookie Chronicles: A Half-Baked Tale That Leaves a Good Story Untold Jennifer 8. Lee’s recent book The Fortune Cookie Chronicles is a bit like her subject matter: slightly enjoyable, but mostly bland, trite, and unworthy of the meal it evokes.

  Jeanne Devon (“AKMuckraker”): The Ugly Irony of Sarah Palin’s Book Title Perhaps the title is meant to encapsulate Sarah Palin’s fierce, independent spirit. But there are many here in Alaska who heard Going Rogue, and were horrified by the ugly irony of her book title.

  Joe Peyronnin: Going Rogue: Gotcha! Never underestimate how much shear chutzpah, ambition and attractiveness can get a person in this day and age. Try at least $1.2 million.

  Jeanne Devon (“AKMuckraker”): Alaska Governor Snubs the President and the Troops In what Alaskans hope is not becoming a longstanding tradition, the new governor just dissed the President of the United States.

  Jacob Heilbrunn: Sarah Palin’s Slap Shot The truth is that Sarah Palin’s current and most immediate struggle isn’t against President Obama or the Democratic party or even liberals. It’s against the GOP itself.

  Beth Armogida: My Review of Sarah Palin’s New Book Going Rogue Without Actually Having Read It If anything, Going Rogue shows how a woman from a small town in Alaska can go from burning books to writing them.

  Max Blumenthal: How Sarah Palin Made Herself Indispensable While Destroying the Republican Party If Palin is indeed a cancer on the GOP, why can’t the Republican establishment retire her to a quiet life of moose hunting in the political wilderness? Why won’t she listen to, or abide by, conventional political wisdom?	Geoffrey Dunn: Schmidt Calls Palin’s Memoirs “Total Fiction” Steve Schmidt now joins a host of former McCain staffers who have challenged the veracity of Sarah Palin’s book, Going Rogue, even before it hits the streets on Tuesday.
  Mike Elk: Liberal Elitism Will Make Sarah Palin President – How Only Union Organizing Can Stop It The experiences of liberal elites are so outside of the mainstream that, very often, they just don’t understand the working class. Very few have any experience living with or knowing working-class people.	Geoffrey Dunn: Palin’s Bob & Mark Show Shame Palin’s mention of Alaska “personalities” Bob & Mark for her upcoming book tour conjures up a truly shameless moment from Palin’s past.

  • 2:57 am
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