Welfare at the Nudie Bar
It turns out California's welfare debit cards were usable at dozens of strip club ATM's across the state. So THAT's what they mean by "Stimulus!"


Gore Case Reopened
After four years, police in Portland, Oregon are now reopening the sex assault investigation against Al Gore. They just wanted to wait until the local jail had a cell with recycled toilet paper.



LeBron Bidding
The bidding for NBA superstar free agent LeBron James began at midnight. James is reportedly holding out for the same $750 million deal Elin Nordegren is getting from Tiger Woods.



Immigration Speech
The White House says President Obama will deliver a "major speech" on immigration today... but unless it's a preview of the World Cup quarterfinals, the target audience isn't expected to be listening.



Passport Fee Hike
The fee to get a U.S. passport is increasing from $100 to $135... those full-body pat downs at the customs check are apparently worth it.







July 1st


1933: The Canadian Parliament suspends all Chinese immigration, disappointing the three Chinese people who had been thinking about playing hockey.


1960: Ghana declares its independence and becomes a republic mostly dedicated to embarrassing the U.S. in soccer.


1987: American radio station WFAN in New York City is launched as the world's first all-sports radio station. All married men across the New York area cease even pretending to listen to their wives from that day forward.

King Quitting
Larry King is ending his nightly show on CNN this fall. With King not leaving the house as often, Depends adult diapers are expected to go out of business.



Kagan Grilled
Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan is taking heat from several Senators for not allowing U.S. military recruiters on the Harvard campus. But in her defense, it's important to note that most Harvard students are only interested in being recruited by al Qaeda.



Verizon iPhone?
Apple will offer an iPhone and iPad with Verizon service this January. This would be big news in the Apple world, but everyone with AT&T iPhones and iPads don't know about it yet because they're still waiting to get connected to the internet.



Prison Spending Slash
Britain is hoping to cut government spending by halting $5.5 billion in new prison construction. To keep criminals off the streets, British cops will simply put bars around all their soccer stadiums during each match.



Charger Busted
Former San Diego Charger Kevin Ellison was arrested after being found with 100 vicodin tablets. Ellison is accused of trying to sell the pills to Charger fans after each of their last five heartbreaking playoff losses.





June 30th


1559: King Henry II of France is seriously injured in a jousting match against Gabriel de Montgomery. The injuries sting all the stronger when instant replay determines that de Montgomery should have been called offsides.


1805: The U.S. Congress organizes the Michigan Territory. It's organized into two sections: "Cold" and "Really Freaking Cold."


1990: West Germany and East Germany merge their economies. One part takes the lead in building cars and heavy machinery, the other dominates the growing business of collecting welfare.

Spania 1 - Portugal 0

Flamenco show cancelled again, but the reaction of Spanish friends when David Villa scored the only goal and gave Spain the quarter final position, may be Flamenco good enough.At least it gave me the opportunity to get "dos copas de vino blanco" from the bar.The intended Flamenco photos must be replaced by another Ruven Afanador photo. Flamenco passion more than enough.

Spania 1 - Portugal 0

Flamenco show cancelled again, but the reaction of Spanish friends when David Villa scored the only goal and gave Spain the quarter final position, may be Flamenco good enough.At least it gave me the opportunity to get "dos copas de vino blanco" from the bar.The intended Flamenco photos must be replaced by another Ruven Afanador photo. Flamenco passion more than enough.

X is for X-ing the emissions with "Tres Hombres"

No ordinary ship passed me by this morning: it was Brigantine "Tres Hombres". It may look like an "ordinary" sailing vessel, but it is not. It was built in 2009 on a Dutch initiative to make sustainable merchant ships with zero emission.

It is engaged in so-called tramp freight and is registered in Sierra Leone (you can catch a glimpse of the flag in the lower photo). It has now been in Bergen to fetch a load of timber and traditional Norwegian food. The timber is intended for the restoration of The Norwegian Seamen's Church in Cardiff, and the food for a food festival there.

And here is what The Norwegian Seamen's Church looked like in 2002.

Today's post is an entry in the SIXTH round of ABC Wednesday, the meme initiated by Denise Nesbitt. For more, you can log on via the MckLinky enabled site

News Report - Brisbane Train Graffiti

Nanaimo City News

Nanaimo BC, Canada

Spoonflower

So, we have been on the hunt for the perfect fabric for two club chairs for a client's living room. The chairs will be the first thing you see when you walk in - focal point. JD and I both know what we want, we can see the fabric in our heads, but we can't find it anywhere! That brings me to Spoonflower. Folks, you can design your own fabric: you pick the pattern (send them jpg file), color, fabric content, repeat etc. Prices are $18-32 a yard. Love this place! Check it out here.

www.spoonflower.com

Some fabrics customers have created at Spoonflower:













Fun, right?

Malaga, an Exciting city

Ruven Afanador´s exhibition "Mil Besos" (thousand kisses) of great photos in Paseo del Parque in the heart of Malaga Andalusia, should be a reason to visit the town whatsoever.
Malaga is an exiting city, with old and modern environment.At noon the temperature outside the tunnel under the Alcazaba castle and Castillo de Gibralfaro was as shown on the photo: + 26C. Later that day the heat increased.In the main shopping street Marques de Larios they have found a way to handle the heat. By covering the opening between the shops and beautiful buildings with sails the reduction of the sun beams became satisfactory. We also felt a gentle breeze going through the street.At Plaza de Toros the young Toreros (novilleros) are training with their Muletas. Some of the persons are pretending to be a bull with long horns, ( I was not taken as a bull!) but most of the training is how to dance around with the red cape.
The red color of the muleta is actually unnecessary, though, as bulls are dichromatic, meaning neither the cape nor the muleta color can be accurately discerned by the bull. The color is retained merely for tradition.The colors of the Can-Can dancers dresses at the night show are however carefully chosen by layout designers to improve the visual effect of speed and rythm . The Can-Can achieved popularity in music halls, where it was danced by groups of women in choreographed routines. This style was imported into France in the 1920s for the benefit of tourists, and the French Can-Can was born—a highly choreographed routine lasting ten minutes or more, with the opportunity for individuals to display their "specialities". The main moves are the high kick or battement, the rond de jambe (quick rotary movement of lower leg with knee raised and skirt held up), the port d'armes (turning on one leg, while grasping the other leg by the ankle and holding it almost vertical), the cartwheel and the grand écart (the flying or jump splits).To night we will visit a Flamenco show, and look forward to see if this performance in any way can compete with Ruven Afnador´s images.

Malaga, an Exciting city

Ruven Afanador´s exhibition "Mil Besos" (thousand kisses) of great photos in Paseo del Parque in the heart of Malaga Andalusia, should be a reason to visit the town whatsoever.
Malaga is an exiting city, with old and modern environment.At noon the temperature outside the tunnel under the Alcazaba castle and Castillo de Gibralfaro was as shown on the photo: + 26C. Later that day the heat increased.In the main shopping street Marques de Larios they have found a way to handle the heat. By covering the opening between the shops and beautiful buildings with sails the reduction of the sun beams became satisfactory. We also felt a gentle breeze going through the street.At Plaza de Toros the young Toreros (novilleros) are training with their Muletas. Some of the persons are pretending to be a bull with long horns, ( I was not taken as a bull!) but most of the training is how to dance around with the red cape.
The red color of the muleta is actually unnecessary, though, as bulls are dichromatic, meaning neither the cape nor the muleta color can be accurately discerned by the bull. The color is retained merely for tradition.The colors of the Can-Can dancers dresses at the night show are however carefully chosen by layout designers to improve the visual effect of speed and rythm . The Can-Can achieved popularity in music halls, where it was danced by groups of women in choreographed routines. This style was imported into France in the 1920s for the benefit of tourists, and the French Can-Can was born—a highly choreographed routine lasting ten minutes or more, with the opportunity for individuals to display their "specialities". The main moves are the high kick or battement, the rond de jambe (quick rotary movement of lower leg with knee raised and skirt held up), the port d'armes (turning on one leg, while grasping the other leg by the ankle and holding it almost vertical), the cartwheel and the grand écart (the flying or jump splits).To night we will visit a Flamenco show, and look forward to see if this performance in any way can compete with Ruven Afnador´s images.

Suburban Spies
The FBI has arrested 10 alleged Russian spies. The leaders of the ring were operating out of a house in Montclair, New Jersey, the best place to find out when the next sale is planned at Nordstrom.



Broke Countries Play
Spain plays Portugal in a World Cup round of 16 match today. At halftime, the players from both sides are expected to go into the stands and pan handle.



Airline Baggage Fees
U.S. airlines made $769 million in revenues from baggage fees in the first quarter of this year... and that's just the money they got from selling the bags they "lost."



Biden to the Gulf
Vice President Joe Biden is expected to visit the Gulf area today. The White House is sending the only thing slimier than the water new the BP rig.



Tesla Soars
The IPO for electric sports car maker Tesla Motors was a rousing success yesterday. Most of the stock was bought by Al Gore, who needs a faster green car to speed away from the scenes of his sexual assaults.





June 29th


1926: Arthur Meighen returns to office as Prime Minister of Canada. He had sgtepped out for lunch in 1923, and nobody noticed for three years.


1928: The Outerbridge Crossing and Goethals Bridge open in Staten Island. Some of the first cars on the bridge that day are still trying to get through the traffic.


1972: The Supreme Court rules the death penalty could constitute "cruel and unusual punishment"... especially if administered by Oakland Raiders fans.

New Monday Feature! House of the Week

On Mondays we are going to feature a "house of the week." These will be houses that we like and admire in Atlanta and other places we travel.

We are getting started with a charming Atlanta cottage that was purchased to be renovated, but then had to be torn down to the foundation due to some damage that was unknown when the project first started. Norman Askins is the architect and Richard Anderson the landscape architect. Jackye Lanham reportedly did the interiors, but we don't have photos of the inside. Perhaps we will all see it in a shelter magazine in the near future. Enjoy!










I love these windows on the front screen porch. This house could be in the mountains...