Stumbled upon a couple of things lately.

First, gas was $3.02 on the Hudson-Stow border today. Can you believe it...$3.02!

Saw a rainbow on Tuesday about 5:30. Right by 480 and 77. There he was, Roy G. Biv, in living color right there through my windshield. I tried to see where it ended for the pot o'gold. I think it was Jimmy Dimora's house in Independence. Well, at least it was close enough.

Dave's Mercado had an insane price on pints of Pierre's this week. Only $1.25. It's been ages since I've seen pints of any brand that low. Also had a voter registration table there, too.

I completed my pre-VP debate dinner tonight. Sloppy Joes and a piece of Sara Lee cheesecake. OK, could you do better? Not just Ground Beef plus Manwich, either. An actual timeworn recipe.

Here are my notes on the Vice Presidential debate. BTW, the bar has been lowered for Sarah ("Things She Can Name") Palin from the height of a standard bar height for female high jumpers to a box of Cheez-Its to a matchbook to a blade of grass to a pea.

Immediate afterthoughts. Biden way off his game early, but came on like gangbusters in the last 50-60 minutes. Actually cleaned up on the foreign policy. Palin obviously performed better than what people thought, but that was just it. She performed, completely ignoring the questions and reading talking points with a folksy attitude that made me numb after 90 minutes. 2012 goes back to the old rules for VP debate, I'd bet. Loser was Gwen Ifill. Really a bad performance. Softballs to both really and no followups were a killer. You don't have to be rude, but suggest to one of the participants that people are watching and you might wanna answer a question I actually ask. Too many passes by Gwen.

Palin

"Can I call you Joe?" (As in Sixpack.)
"Joe Sixpack". He's good at any party.
"Hockey Moms". Bingo, I win already!
"I'm not going to answer the questions the way you and the moderator may want."
"Man activities." Trust me, I am not watching this on the pay channel.
"Climate change." What, did she say that 40 times. In one answer.
Name a question and she'll give you a talking point. Any talking point.
Has no clue about Kyoto. Bring other countries along, my ass.
"I don't want to argue about the causes." This is a debate, eh?
"Drill, Baby, Drill."
"Hungry markets."
"Senator O'Biden." Oh, no she dint.
"Nucular." Many times. Good God!
No rape kit for the Continental Shelf.
Will the Continental Shelf keep the baby?
"Energy-producing state."
"Clean green natural gas."
Gay question. Palin DOES NOT support equal rights for couples. Ifill/Biden: Crickets!
"I know a lesbian soccer mom that I saw at a hockey game who lives in the state I govern, Alaska, and well, I have many diverse family and friends on my team of mavericks."
Here we go. Surge.
"Opposed funding for troops.' Blah blah blah.
"White flag of surrender." Did I read that right, Dinosaur, I mean, Senator McCain.
"We will end this war."
Did I hear Talibani? Snap. He is the President of Iraq. She is smarter than a 5th grader.
"Second Holocaust." Who comes up with this shit?
Reading from notes. Busted!
Those crazy Castro Brothers. Seriously, that makes me laugh.
"No preconditions." Someone told me to say that because it was bad.
"Naivete." Somehow pronounced correctly.
"Respect for women's rights." Oh, you and your geezer kill me.
"They hate us for our freedoms." Zzzzzzzzzz.
No one brings this up, but doesn't Israel have nukes?
"Embassy in Jerusalem."? Oh boy, here we go.
"Finger pointing backwards instead of looking toward the future." From the party that still yaps about Bill Clinton.
"Wasilla Main Street."
"I'm not used to how you guys operate..."
"I'm not a big fan of government, but I want to work there."
"Doggone it."
Teachers. Yawn! Shoutout to 3rd graders. Yawn! Extra credit. Snore!
Wait a minute, more VP powers? Who IS this woman?
Mainstream media, I hate it.

Biden

Come on, Joe. Man, this short format is killing him.
"If you don't understand the cause, how can you solve the problem?"
Coal-Yesterday's energy...Today!
"Drill, Drill, Drill, We must!"
Which one said rape? Someone raped the Continental Shelf? WTF? Was that on Channel 19?
"Ultimate Bridge to Nowhere."
"He's for everything as long as the free market takes care of it!"
Gay marriage is a no.
Finally, foreign policy. Biden had a weak first 25 minutes or so there.
"I didn't hear a plan."
Hey, George Bush comes up. Finally.
"John McCain voted not to fund the troops. Let me repeat that!"
"God love him, but he's been dead wrong!"
"McCain hates Spain."
"Nobody has EVER been a bigger friend of Israel than Joe Biden."
"Abject failure." Say it, everyone. Sounds good.
"Past is prologue." That was a nice right hook there.
"Bosniaks". I think one of them founded Apple.
"Biggest election since 1932." Seems random, but McCain voted for Hoover that year.
"I'm at the Home Depot a lot." Building what, may I ask?
Cheney! Hahahahahahahaha.
"Scranton. I saw Michael Scott returning a Foreman Grill at the Home Depot once."

Meanwhile, McCain bags Michigan.

Meal of Links

If you know some people still pulling that "I can't vote for a black guy" routine, I urge you to show them this. Here is an impassioned plea from AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer, Richard Trumka. This guy nails it.



Huckleberry Hound is 50 today. Not Val Kilmer, the cartoon.

Get a load of these New York Dolls photos from Bob Gruen. The second one blows me away because they look so young.

Another look at the life of John McCain.

Exercise Yard

Helio Castroneves better pay his taxes before Obama gets in there. And he thought he had a bad year on the track.

Visitor

39 Across: Goddess of the dawn (3 letters) Answer: Eos