Nietzsche's near-miss

It's not God that's dead - it's movie theatres.  I just now realized the extent to which they will quickly become a thing of the past.  Like a huge assortment of other Americans, I've been waiting MONTHS for the release of "Babies".  Darn them - they had originally scheduled its release last week but, like the shrewd money-making buggers they are, they have now delayed it until Mother's Day.  But here's the thing:  I would GLADLY pay $50 to have this thing streamed via Netflix to our TV at home, like every other movie we watch.  It used to be that people were sure to reserve the best movies for viewing on "the big screen".  Well, our "big screen" now puts theatre technology to shame!!  The picture is so amazing that we can't even tear ourselves away from the COMMERCIALS!!  So it's only a matter of time before people realize that what we REALLY need is first-run movies streamed to our televisions (think of how much gasoline that'll save!).

Incidentally, the "Babies" trailer is a hit in its own right, with three hundred thousand views on YouTube - and that's just the HD version.  It won't allow embedding, so here's the link below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vupEpNjCuY

One issue in two homes via two videos in one day

 realize that this is becoming an issue all over, and not just in the places I live, but it's still a bit freakish to wake up, load all my usual news URLs, and see essentially the same stories 2,500 miles apart. 
Story (dial up):

http://www.ultimateclearlake.com/2010/04/coyote-roams-league-city-neighborhood

Video (broadband):

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20100409/coyotes_nova_scotia_100409/20100409?hub=Canada

I've seen coyotes numerous times in Clear Lake, but never strolling down a subdivision street in broad daylight.  They prefer easements, particularly high-line easements, which only get mowed once or twice a year and therefore provide some cover.  Easements are the coyotes' equivalent of freeways.  I am always watchful when we follow the high-line along the back side of our neighborhood to get to the League City post office. 

Foster dog continues complete slut-a-thon...

Do you think she might LIKE us?!

I can understand her ingratiating herself to Cayley...

...but it's open season on the rest of us, too.

Tax Day Thoughts...

A great article from NPR below this post.  In addition to what they've stated, there's another reason why soaking the "rich" (I use the term loosely) is a dangerous federal strategy: the government doesn't seem to comprehend 21st-century behavior of the Laffer curve.  Many of us are exquisitely positioned to turn our own incomes on a dime (pun intended).  I've already voluntarily reduced my own revenues because I felt I was paying too much in taxes (I also pay self-employment tax, so my total is more severe than for a conventional salaried worker). Increasingly, today is not like the before-time, when everyone was basically tied to a one-employer scenario and didn't have at-will income control.  If they jack the upper brackets too high, they may get a stunningly-swift surprise in terms of lower (not higher) tax revenues and the reduced economic activity that they would reflect.  

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=125991138&sc=emaf

The coming of Nyx

This time we signed a foster contract so that we can be sure we're on a good path prior to the final adoption decision being made. Cayley has named this brindle-coated young lady Nyx (pronounced "nicks"), after the Greek goddess of the night. She's one year old and, if I average out the staff opinions, she's a Catahoula / Australian Shepherd mix (the dog we had for 14 years when I was a child was predominantly an Australian Shepherd and I immediately noticed behavioral similarities).


We picked her on the basis of personality after visiting her across two days. She clearly remembered Cayley when we returned today, and she refused to leave Cayley's side after our arrival. She's definitely more calm and responsive than the dog we attempted to adopt last year. Totally unexpected bonus: she comes fully-loaded. Her previous owners allegedly had to travel for business and could not keep her, but they made sure she had every possible vet bill paid in full prior to dropping her at the shelter (which is what I did with last year's dog - spent hundreds on her to maximize her chances of re-adoption by a more suitable owner). She's had every shot and parasite treatment, is already spayed, and is heartworm-negative.

The Galveston County shelter told me that they have taken in almost TWO THOUSAND abandoned animals so far this year - and it's only mid-April (for comparison, there are only about 280,000 people living in the County). That's an average intake of almost three animals PER EACH HOUR that they are open for business. They are overwhelmed. Nobody, neither the staff nor a volunteer worker, would hint at how many of those animals are actually adopted back out. The staff said, "We do what we can." The volunteer lady said, "I don't have the courage to know [how many are euthanized]."

Fingers crossed that Nyx works out.