Until they get her to quit that is. If I was her I would have done it by now and left them with stupid ass little children.
Bonner bristles at stinging review
I went through that school system. I know children need more than I got. She was brought in to change things but they cannot get over the fact that she doesn't have time to be their bestest friends. That's all this is about. The School Committee's widdle egos keep getting hurt. Awww.....
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Stuff to do in New Bedford
Let me explain for you one more time why it is that New Bedford sucks. I have often thought that a place really isn't the place it's its people. And New Bedford at a location, meaning it's spot on Earth, isn't bad at all. Nice trees, it's on the coast. You gets the seasons. But what makes it suck (and it really sucks) is its people.
People always complain that there is nothing to do in New Bedford. In fact it's their favorite excuse when their kids join gangs, turn to drugs, or anything they can blame on something other than personal responsibility. So I have posted many a thing that exists for people to enjoy in New Bedford, most of the time either cheap or free because I don't have any money either. But often times the turnout is less than stellar. Well.. I saw something that even made my normally cranky self surprised at it's utter ridiculousness.
For Veteran's Day there was a parade of course. It even had the national champions there. The Dartmouth High Marching Band beat everyone, IN THE COUNTRY, for THE SECOND YEAR IN A ROW!!! Go kids!
The turnout was kinda slim because god help us it was 50-ish degrees. In November. In Massachusetts. (Really is everyone currently living here originally from Florida?) So afterward there was a ceremony and then a free will donation (meaning give what you want) to get into the Zeiterion theater to see a pretty much all-day music festival. Here are the bands/artists that participated. It started I guess around noon-ish or earlier and then went on until 7PM. The music was great. I went after the parade. Then left to go back home real quick and came back. It was so awesome. There were actual musicians donating their time for this event which should have raised money for the Veteran's Transition House. But to say that the place wasn't full is an understatement.
Before the last act went on, the mayor got up and said a few words. And it was so empty in there that it looked like a Stephen King movie where what's left of the town is trying to brave out the storm/psychokillers/etc. And he's giving them a speech about how they just need to make it through the night. I mean it was sad. And it just made me angry. Why do people not show up for things? I mean it's embarrassing. Those performers must have been not only insulted but disgusted. It was for Veteran's for Christ sake. ON VETERAN'S DAY.
Best, imo. Dan Lawson band.
Maybe they got lost on their way to a real place.
So then next night was Aha night. SSDD. I mean wall to wall music 2 nights in a row and you either had the same aha night crowd or people who were trying it for the first time. But it should be packed every month because it's F-R-E-E. But nooooo.... The only thing most people show up to is stuff their kids are in. If it's not some school concert they could care less. And they barely can stand to go to those. They leave those concerts like their butts are on fire. So take a look at the clips I recorded and tell you're friends that there's plenty to do in New Bedford and you should be able to get in easily because the citizenry are a bunch of 'tards.
Back Eddy Bluegrass
People always complain that there is nothing to do in New Bedford. In fact it's their favorite excuse when their kids join gangs, turn to drugs, or anything they can blame on something other than personal responsibility. So I have posted many a thing that exists for people to enjoy in New Bedford, most of the time either cheap or free because I don't have any money either. But often times the turnout is less than stellar. Well.. I saw something that even made my normally cranky self surprised at it's utter ridiculousness.
For Veteran's Day there was a parade of course. It even had the national champions there. The Dartmouth High Marching Band beat everyone, IN THE COUNTRY, for THE SECOND YEAR IN A ROW!!! Go kids!
The turnout was kinda slim because god help us it was 50-ish degrees. In November. In Massachusetts. (Really is everyone currently living here originally from Florida?) So afterward there was a ceremony and then a free will donation (meaning give what you want) to get into the Zeiterion theater to see a pretty much all-day music festival. Here are the bands/artists that participated. It started I guess around noon-ish or earlier and then went on until 7PM. The music was great. I went after the parade. Then left to go back home real quick and came back. It was so awesome. There were actual musicians donating their time for this event which should have raised money for the Veteran's Transition House. But to say that the place wasn't full is an understatement.
Before the last act went on, the mayor got up and said a few words. And it was so empty in there that it looked like a Stephen King movie where what's left of the town is trying to brave out the storm/psychokillers/etc. And he's giving them a speech about how they just need to make it through the night. I mean it was sad. And it just made me angry. Why do people not show up for things? I mean it's embarrassing. Those performers must have been not only insulted but disgusted. It was for Veteran's for Christ sake. ON VETERAN'S DAY.
Best, imo. Dan Lawson band.
Maybe they got lost on their way to a real place.
So then next night was Aha night. SSDD. I mean wall to wall music 2 nights in a row and you either had the same aha night crowd or people who were trying it for the first time. But it should be packed every month because it's F-R-E-E. But nooooo.... The only thing most people show up to is stuff their kids are in. If it's not some school concert they could care less. And they barely can stand to go to those. They leave those concerts like their butts are on fire. So take a look at the clips I recorded and tell you're friends that there's plenty to do in New Bedford and you should be able to get in easily because the citizenry are a bunch of 'tards.
Back Eddy Bluegrass
Sunday, November 01, 2009
Saturday, October 10, 2009
The wheels are coming off the bus now
New Bedford has been a mess. Probably for longer than I've been alive but it continues to be amazing. Now granted every stupid story I post or that have happened lately aren't in New Bedford exactly. But they might as well be. I'm going to link to as many as I can find.
100 year old woman probably killed by 97 year old roommate because she had too many visitors.
Speeding while changing lanes results in death.
Overloaded power strip responsible for deadly fire.
Jesus loves you when you hand in your firearm.
People don't want a new mayor because things are going soooooooooo well.
Electric scooter company going t*ts up.
Living in contaminated houses you can't sell.
Serial bank robber.
Robber of delivery persons punches woman in face to steal wedding ring right off her finger.
Killer bugs stop everything fun.
...and I've missed a bunch. Stay classy, New Bedford
100 year old woman probably killed by 97 year old roommate because she had too many visitors.
Speeding while changing lanes results in death.
Overloaded power strip responsible for deadly fire.
Jesus loves you when you hand in your firearm.
People don't want a new mayor because things are going soooooooooo well.
Electric scooter company going t*ts up.
Living in contaminated houses you can't sell.
Serial bank robber.
Robber of delivery persons punches woman in face to steal wedding ring right off her finger.
Killer bugs stop everything fun.
...and I've missed a bunch. Stay classy, New Bedford
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Dr. Bonner & the Banana Splitz
The School Committee is a group I don't understand. I'm not sure what we need them for exactly. But whenever Dr. Bonner tries to do something they use the local paper to discredit her and to show themselves to be a bunch of attention grabbing babies. Last time it was Swine Flu, this time it's school transfers.
Over the years if people have wanted to transfer there kids from one school to one in another district I think they pretty much got their wish. As neighborhoods have taken on certain characteristics, certain schools have become desirable than others. Makes sense. So parents want their kids to go to the better schools. And therefore they ask for transfers. But they shouldn't get them for that reason. They should get them for valid reasons. Especially since there is a new superintendent who intends to fix any problems in any of the schools. In order to do this she wants to make sure class size doesn't get out of hand anywhere. Well, if kids get transferred as much as their parents wish you can see how classes in the "good" schools would get overcrowded. In order to avoid this problem she asked all the parents/kids to reapply who had been transferred in the past to make sure they had good reason.
Here's where it all goes to hell. She granted most of the transfers, but not all of them. So those parents called School Committee members with their complaints. And again the school committee members couldn't deal with angry parents and that she didn't check with them first. So this time, when they threw their shitfit, she threw one back and approved all of them outright so that the school committee could be responsible when the parents started complaining in September about overcrowded classrooms. I thought it was a master stroke. They don't want to let her do her job. They want to make all her decisions for her, so she gave them their wish.
So there was a school committee meeting the other day. They usually have their executive meeting at the end. But this time they put it up front to try to get rid of the public. They figured if they made people sit there and wait for them while they went into another room, they'd get impatient and leave. Well an hour and 45 minutes later, no one had left. They really have a lot of nerve. Someone is trying to be a master manipulator and he sucks at it. I would suggest he study Ben Linus from LOST. Because he really doesn't get people or how much he can't passive-aggressively push them around.
So what happened? To tell you the truth I'm not really that sure. I think they've still all been transferred. The Principal from the most popular school looked like she was going to make a break for it or fake her death or something, because on top of the increase class size, she lost her teacher's aid to budget cuts. Those kindergartners are probably going to go Lord of the Flies on her.
My answer is the same. Get rid of the illegals. They'll take their 'merican kids with them. That's what's an unnecessary drain on resources and is bulking up the class sizes. So very simple.
Over the years if people have wanted to transfer there kids from one school to one in another district I think they pretty much got their wish. As neighborhoods have taken on certain characteristics, certain schools have become desirable than others. Makes sense. So parents want their kids to go to the better schools. And therefore they ask for transfers. But they shouldn't get them for that reason. They should get them for valid reasons. Especially since there is a new superintendent who intends to fix any problems in any of the schools. In order to do this she wants to make sure class size doesn't get out of hand anywhere. Well, if kids get transferred as much as their parents wish you can see how classes in the "good" schools would get overcrowded. In order to avoid this problem she asked all the parents/kids to reapply who had been transferred in the past to make sure they had good reason.
Here's where it all goes to hell. She granted most of the transfers, but not all of them. So those parents called School Committee members with their complaints. And again the school committee members couldn't deal with angry parents and that she didn't check with them first. So this time, when they threw their shitfit, she threw one back and approved all of them outright so that the school committee could be responsible when the parents started complaining in September about overcrowded classrooms. I thought it was a master stroke. They don't want to let her do her job. They want to make all her decisions for her, so she gave them their wish.
So there was a school committee meeting the other day. They usually have their executive meeting at the end. But this time they put it up front to try to get rid of the public. They figured if they made people sit there and wait for them while they went into another room, they'd get impatient and leave. Well an hour and 45 minutes later, no one had left. They really have a lot of nerve. Someone is trying to be a master manipulator and he sucks at it. I would suggest he study Ben Linus from LOST. Because he really doesn't get people or how much he can't passive-aggressively push them around.
So what happened? To tell you the truth I'm not really that sure. I think they've still all been transferred. The Principal from the most popular school looked like she was going to make a break for it or fake her death or something, because on top of the increase class size, she lost her teacher's aid to budget cuts. Those kindergartners are probably going to go Lord of the Flies on her.
My answer is the same. Get rid of the illegals. They'll take their 'merican kids with them. That's what's an unnecessary drain on resources and is bulking up the class sizes. So very simple.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Senator Kennedy has died
I disagreed with him the last few years on the issues but he did so much for this country. Probably more than anyone ever has really if you think about it. My heart goes out to the family. Although he was sick this must have been sudden since Gov. Schwarzenegger was tweeting to normal people a few hours ago. RIP Senator Kennedy.
50s Night
The only night the citizens of New Bedford actually come downtown en masse. (okay maybe the occasional First Night, weather permitting). Check out this slideshow if you missed it.
Monday, July 27, 2009
Aha Nights have been pretty cool
I really haven't been updating as much as I should. I've got some Aha Night stuff from the last couple months actually that I'm going to post here. Right now, during the summer they have like mini-Aha nights every Thursday. The last two Thursdays I went to the concerts at the Visitor's Center/Corson Building. This last Thursday there was a Cape Verdean band that say they play at the Bisca Club. I guess that means they're the Bisca Club Band? lol I dunno. I should have made sure before I left. But I don't go to clubs. I don't enjoy that atmosphere, but these guys sounded really good.
The time before it was a group singing sea shanties. I really like those. This is something I think I should look into more. Here is their website: http://www.hornpipe.org/
The actual Aha Nights on the second Thursday of every month usually have pretty cool music to check out and other stuff too. I usually stick to the music. Last time I caught these guys and they were very groovy.
The time before they had Ana Vinagre who is pretty big around here I think. She was awesome.
You should really check some of this stuff out when you have the chance. This upcoming month is NB Cultures.
The time before it was a group singing sea shanties. I really like those. This is something I think I should look into more. Here is their website: http://www.hornpipe.org/
The actual Aha Nights on the second Thursday of every month usually have pretty cool music to check out and other stuff too. I usually stick to the music. Last time I caught these guys and they were very groovy.
The time before they had Ana Vinagre who is pretty big around here I think. She was awesome.
You should really check some of this stuff out when you have the chance. This upcoming month is NB Cultures.
Tuesday, July 07, 2009
Michael Jackson
I'm of the Mtv Generation. I was one of those kids that watched Thriller every hour on the hour. I had a school folder with this image on it.
It was an amazing thing to be a kid at that time. As the years went on I continued to enjoy his music. Back in my groupie-ish days when I was waiting for the Power Station outside the Hit Factory in New York where they were recording their second album, I got Michael's autograph. He was also recording there. He sent some down for me and my friends through his body guard. We would watch his limo leave everyday and he would wave. There were some girls from Italy there who were major fans. I don't remember their names but I've thought of them at this time.
His music was amazing. Not just Thriller or Off the Wall. I really loved Dangerous and Invincible. In fact I thought he might have had a major comeback with Invincible if it didn't come out the same week as 9/11. When I heard "Rock My World" I thought it was the best song I'd heard in at least 10 years. But the media wouldn't let him be. They had to keep going for him.
About his allegations. I never believed he did anything. I don't believe he was a confused man/child. I don't believe any of the crap. I just believe that most people, 99% of people, cannot understand someone as good as Michael Jackson. A sensitive person like him was never going to last into old age. Not in this world. I thought I was going to go on a rampage when I heard he'd died. But what happened was that I had expected it, and I almost felt happy for him. A calmness washed over me from I don't know where. I guess I just felt like after the people who loved him rushed out in numbers and the media had to report it AND they couldn't do anything to him anymore. He's free of them. I mourned the fact that he wasn't going to be able to have that comeback but I realized that that's just my loss. He's being reinstated right now by the worldwide cavalcade of love from fans (and I acknowledge many posers) but it's forcing the story to be written that he was beloved.
I loved Michael Jackson. I'll always love Michael Jackson. I feel like this isn't the last from him. The record companies will put out everything they can in a money making scheme but we'll win in the end with more music from him than we ever could have imagined. And Michael will WIN. But I'm going to miss him.
It was an amazing thing to be a kid at that time. As the years went on I continued to enjoy his music. Back in my groupie-ish days when I was waiting for the Power Station outside the Hit Factory in New York where they were recording their second album, I got Michael's autograph. He was also recording there. He sent some down for me and my friends through his body guard. We would watch his limo leave everyday and he would wave. There were some girls from Italy there who were major fans. I don't remember their names but I've thought of them at this time.
His music was amazing. Not just Thriller or Off the Wall. I really loved Dangerous and Invincible. In fact I thought he might have had a major comeback with Invincible if it didn't come out the same week as 9/11. When I heard "Rock My World" I thought it was the best song I'd heard in at least 10 years. But the media wouldn't let him be. They had to keep going for him.
About his allegations. I never believed he did anything. I don't believe he was a confused man/child. I don't believe any of the crap. I just believe that most people, 99% of people, cannot understand someone as good as Michael Jackson. A sensitive person like him was never going to last into old age. Not in this world. I thought I was going to go on a rampage when I heard he'd died. But what happened was that I had expected it, and I almost felt happy for him. A calmness washed over me from I don't know where. I guess I just felt like after the people who loved him rushed out in numbers and the media had to report it AND they couldn't do anything to him anymore. He's free of them. I mourned the fact that he wasn't going to be able to have that comeback but I realized that that's just my loss. He's being reinstated right now by the worldwide cavalcade of love from fans (and I acknowledge many posers) but it's forcing the story to be written that he was beloved.
I loved Michael Jackson. I'll always love Michael Jackson. I feel like this isn't the last from him. The record companies will put out everything they can in a money making scheme but we'll win in the end with more music from him than we ever could have imagined. And Michael will WIN. But I'm going to miss him.
Sunday, July 05, 2009
Waiting for the evildoers to start their fireworks
They've already started their loud party. Don't ask me when but it was going when I got home at 7PM. It's the same people all the time. And somehow they can't be stopped.
I didn't post about Michael Jackson but I will.
Here are some other stories about illegal fireworks. It should be a federal law don't you think? It's only that some states have some of them be legal that let's this go on every year. If there were illegal everywhere there'd be no excuse for why the police can't do anything about them.
http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/local/east_bay&id=6898558
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,530055,00.html?test=latestnews
http://www.philly.com/philly/wires/ap/news/state/new_jersey/20090702_ap_njcrackingdownonillegalfireworks.html
I didn't post about Michael Jackson but I will.
Here are some other stories about illegal fireworks. It should be a federal law don't you think? It's only that some states have some of them be legal that let's this go on every year. If there were illegal everywhere there'd be no excuse for why the police can't do anything about them.
http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/local/east_bay&id=6898558
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,530055,00.html?test=latestnews
http://www.philly.com/philly/wires/ap/news/state/new_jersey/20090702_ap_njcrackingdownonillegalfireworks.html
Monday, June 22, 2009
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Preach, it Bill
I've been worried about the health care thing. I think the President might make us all get health insurance which would be worst than the situation we're in right now.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Hey! It's Jesus' cousin Chuck
This picture was taken outside of Gallery X. The "artist" who did the Jesus poster on that video store has struck again and this time it's Charleton Moses who refuses to tell us how he got up on the side of that building. Personally I think he's worried about the ants going into his mouth.
Now that first Jesus photo bothered me because I thought it looked like a standard Jesus picture that had been copied and not drawn at all. Now I don't mean about it being a poster. We all know it's a poster. But I mean that it was someone else's work that was used and then just painted over. Like not even traced because the photo seemed like a familiar version of Jesus.
Now look here you can clearly see that this is Charleton Heston.
It's not some artist's rendering of Moses. It's not even a painting of Charleton Heston as Moses. It's a still from the film basically with extra paint effects applied to it. I don't know if it was done with a printer and then gone over. Or if it was done with big pieces of paper and one of those projectors. There's pop art and then there's poop art. You decide which this is. But although I may doubt whether Jesus or Moses are watching I'm sure Chuck Heston is on the job. Our neighborhood artist better hope they don't have guns in heaven.
Now that first Jesus photo bothered me because I thought it looked like a standard Jesus picture that had been copied and not drawn at all. Now I don't mean about it being a poster. We all know it's a poster. But I mean that it was someone else's work that was used and then just painted over. Like not even traced because the photo seemed like a familiar version of Jesus.
Now look here you can clearly see that this is Charleton Heston.
It's not some artist's rendering of Moses. It's not even a painting of Charleton Heston as Moses. It's a still from the film basically with extra paint effects applied to it. I don't know if it was done with a printer and then gone over. Or if it was done with big pieces of paper and one of those projectors. There's pop art and then there's poop art. You decide which this is. But although I may doubt whether Jesus or Moses are watching I'm sure Chuck Heston is on the job. Our neighborhood artist better hope they don't have guns in heaven.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Dr. Bonner & the Furious Five
Okay there are more than 5 school committee members but I think only 5 were furious.
New shenanigans as a child from one of the city's many schools caught the swine flu, H1N1 to revisionists.
Remember the two I said were in cahoots? Well they still are as you can see from that article that appeared in the local paper. What's new is the mayor's willingness to "throw her under the bus" as one commenter put it. "Her" being Superintendent of Schools Dr. Portia Bonner. The mayor is most of the way through his second term and is in the midst of deciding whether to run again or not. Re-election hopes are as good a reason as any to throw someone under a bus.
What's the problem here? I'll sum up. A kid had the swine flu. They found that the child did not attend school at any time during his/her incubation period. After everything was checked and rechecked the Superintendent decided to not send out papers to parents informing them of the situation since there had been no risk from being at the school with the child. The kid wasn't there. She did however post something on the school department's website.
When people found out they were up in arms as they always are involving their children. This is what maybe she didn't know. Everyone thinks their kids are little darlings but around here, it's elevated to a blissful ignorance that is quite nauseating. People don't reprimand their children ever because if they do then their kids will start taking drugs or some other terrible activity. That's what they all fear, and boy do they fear. So you have a place where the children rule. And their rule is enforced by the parents.
So her decision was wrong if she wanted anyone around here to like her. It was right if you're a sensible person who can understand English and sees the problem with mass hysteria. But of course hysteria happens anyway and these people are hysterical.
The meeting. Well, they had all the officials, health department people, official nurses, everyone who reported their findings to Dr. Bonner. They all explain that the current thinking about swine flu is that it's no worse than the normal flu. Anyone who has been keeping abreast of the news already knows this. These people tried to explain it to the school committee but they wouldn't listen and just kept up their mantra. WE should have been notified. WE should have been notified. They supposedly agree that they would never want the name of the child to get out. (They'd like to know it themselves I'm sure.) But when the officials tried to explain that giving what seems like harmless information such as the specific school or saying "he" or "she" will allow people to deduce who the child is thereby violating the child's privacy, that went over the school committee's heads. Medical records are supposed to be private by law. So the point is these people were trying to protect the privacy of the child and would have given out the information to parents and children who go to that school IF it was necessary. It wasn't necessary because no one could have been infected by that child AT SCHOOL.
Here's where the problem is. This is a small community. There aren't that many places to go. So everyone pretty much occupies the same spaces. Just recently the whole city had a cold. I had it. Everyone I ran into was coughing and sneezing. It was really weird and abnormal to tell you the truth. I've never seen everyone have a cold before. Anyway, the point is the real reason people are probably concerned is because they're not just worried about their children or themselves coming into contact with this kid at school. They're worried about McDonald's, Walmart, playgrounds, etc. They want to know who that kid is. They want to know if he lives on their block. They want to know if their kid might have passed him on Maple Street just as he/she coughed. Dr. Bonner didn't give them that crucial information, and they're pissed. But it was never her job to do so. Her job is to protect the children at school. And she did. I don't think any reasonable person, even here, would expect her to notify the entire student body's parents if a child had a normal flu. But because of the initial reports about swine flu from Mexico with an inaccurate death toll and how scary it all seemed, some people never got used to the idea that the swine flu is no worse. So again we have the problem of an uneducated populace. They didn't make it past the 8th grade and they don't bother to educate themselves as adults. Sad but true.
On to the mayor. If the mayor wanted, he could have told everyone who it was. He's a lawyer though. And that's all he is really. I can't tell you how many times he used the phrase "risk assessment" at that meeting. He just wants to cover his ass and the City's whale of an ass and hasn't learned in all this time how to govern. And if he really wanted to he could have taken on the responsibility of spilling the beans. But he knew he wasn't supposed to. (He actually did say "he" or "she" in an article. I'm not saying which.) He knew about the child's right to privacy. So he'll just throw Dr. Bonner under the bus for not doing something he could have done himself IF he really thought it was the right thing to do. But he knew it's wasn't.
What a leader would have done was cool out his babies. He would have explained to everyone that there was no reason to panic. That a child did have swine flu and that they had not gone to school when they were contagious. Beyond that, it was up to him to find out whether the kid stayed home and went out into the community. And he could have passed on that information if he wanted to. But he did nothing of the sort. He just acted like it was Bonner's problem but he made sure he said publicly that he would have done it differently. Well he didn't do it differently because it was his problem too. He let his people become an angry mob and he was waiving a torch right with them. I've tried to give him the benefit of the doubt on so many things that I disagree with him on, but he's just not a leader. He's a lawyer through and through. If you had been at that meeting and had not known who was who on the school committee, based on behavior it would have been difficult to guess who the Mayor was. His demeanor was no different from the school committee member who was concerned about his own child.
It's good to understand the people you govern, but you're not supposed to do what they'd do. You're supposed to do what's right, not popular. Dr. Bonner did that. She's a leader. Mayor Lang? I'm afraid that I have to admit that he is not one. He's just a lawyer who's trying to do a job he's just not good at. Does he mean well? I think so. But his own kid-centric philosophy gets in the way sometimes. He must be a great dad though.
New shenanigans as a child from one of the city's many schools caught the swine flu, H1N1 to revisionists.
Remember the two I said were in cahoots? Well they still are as you can see from that article that appeared in the local paper. What's new is the mayor's willingness to "throw her under the bus" as one commenter put it. "Her" being Superintendent of Schools Dr. Portia Bonner. The mayor is most of the way through his second term and is in the midst of deciding whether to run again or not. Re-election hopes are as good a reason as any to throw someone under a bus.
What's the problem here? I'll sum up. A kid had the swine flu. They found that the child did not attend school at any time during his/her incubation period. After everything was checked and rechecked the Superintendent decided to not send out papers to parents informing them of the situation since there had been no risk from being at the school with the child. The kid wasn't there. She did however post something on the school department's website.
When people found out they were up in arms as they always are involving their children. This is what maybe she didn't know. Everyone thinks their kids are little darlings but around here, it's elevated to a blissful ignorance that is quite nauseating. People don't reprimand their children ever because if they do then their kids will start taking drugs or some other terrible activity. That's what they all fear, and boy do they fear. So you have a place where the children rule. And their rule is enforced by the parents.
So her decision was wrong if she wanted anyone around here to like her. It was right if you're a sensible person who can understand English and sees the problem with mass hysteria. But of course hysteria happens anyway and these people are hysterical.
The meeting. Well, they had all the officials, health department people, official nurses, everyone who reported their findings to Dr. Bonner. They all explain that the current thinking about swine flu is that it's no worse than the normal flu. Anyone who has been keeping abreast of the news already knows this. These people tried to explain it to the school committee but they wouldn't listen and just kept up their mantra. WE should have been notified. WE should have been notified. They supposedly agree that they would never want the name of the child to get out. (They'd like to know it themselves I'm sure.) But when the officials tried to explain that giving what seems like harmless information such as the specific school or saying "he" or "she" will allow people to deduce who the child is thereby violating the child's privacy, that went over the school committee's heads. Medical records are supposed to be private by law. So the point is these people were trying to protect the privacy of the child and would have given out the information to parents and children who go to that school IF it was necessary. It wasn't necessary because no one could have been infected by that child AT SCHOOL.
Here's where the problem is. This is a small community. There aren't that many places to go. So everyone pretty much occupies the same spaces. Just recently the whole city had a cold. I had it. Everyone I ran into was coughing and sneezing. It was really weird and abnormal to tell you the truth. I've never seen everyone have a cold before. Anyway, the point is the real reason people are probably concerned is because they're not just worried about their children or themselves coming into contact with this kid at school. They're worried about McDonald's, Walmart, playgrounds, etc. They want to know who that kid is. They want to know if he lives on their block. They want to know if their kid might have passed him on Maple Street just as he/she coughed. Dr. Bonner didn't give them that crucial information, and they're pissed. But it was never her job to do so. Her job is to protect the children at school. And she did. I don't think any reasonable person, even here, would expect her to notify the entire student body's parents if a child had a normal flu. But because of the initial reports about swine flu from Mexico with an inaccurate death toll and how scary it all seemed, some people never got used to the idea that the swine flu is no worse. So again we have the problem of an uneducated populace. They didn't make it past the 8th grade and they don't bother to educate themselves as adults. Sad but true.
On to the mayor. If the mayor wanted, he could have told everyone who it was. He's a lawyer though. And that's all he is really. I can't tell you how many times he used the phrase "risk assessment" at that meeting. He just wants to cover his ass and the City's whale of an ass and hasn't learned in all this time how to govern. And if he really wanted to he could have taken on the responsibility of spilling the beans. But he knew he wasn't supposed to. (He actually did say "he" or "she" in an article. I'm not saying which.) He knew about the child's right to privacy. So he'll just throw Dr. Bonner under the bus for not doing something he could have done himself IF he really thought it was the right thing to do. But he knew it's wasn't.
What a leader would have done was cool out his babies. He would have explained to everyone that there was no reason to panic. That a child did have swine flu and that they had not gone to school when they were contagious. Beyond that, it was up to him to find out whether the kid stayed home and went out into the community. And he could have passed on that information if he wanted to. But he did nothing of the sort. He just acted like it was Bonner's problem but he made sure he said publicly that he would have done it differently. Well he didn't do it differently because it was his problem too. He let his people become an angry mob and he was waiving a torch right with them. I've tried to give him the benefit of the doubt on so many things that I disagree with him on, but he's just not a leader. He's a lawyer through and through. If you had been at that meeting and had not known who was who on the school committee, based on behavior it would have been difficult to guess who the Mayor was. His demeanor was no different from the school committee member who was concerned about his own child.
It's good to understand the people you govern, but you're not supposed to do what they'd do. You're supposed to do what's right, not popular. Dr. Bonner did that. She's a leader. Mayor Lang? I'm afraid that I have to admit that he is not one. He's just a lawyer who's trying to do a job he's just not good at. Does he mean well? I think so. But his own kid-centric philosophy gets in the way sometimes. He must be a great dad though.
I'm really far behind in my blogging
There are many subjects I need to comment on. Some I'll hit in this post briefly and then others I'm going to post the headings for and then edit. Just so I see what I've got cut out for me.
Wednesday, May 06, 2009
Envisioning New Bedford
The Downtown Land Use Plan Public Meeting held on April 28th at the Corson Building wasn't very public. Here is the flyer I picked up at the library a couple of days beforehand. It basically says that people should come for an envisioning session about how to improve New Bedford's downtown, once the true center of the city. Well it seemed from listening to them that they'd already envisioned a great deal and have started making what I'd call plans. This bothered me especially since most of the people in there were either city employees or other government representatives but definitely the "In" crowd.
Now, look. I go to these things because I never know what's going on. The Standard Times never tells you anything. They may report on a meeting but if you read those articles, you get absolutely no information from them. WBSM is a slightly better source of information but you have to stay glued to it. But it too has dropped in relevant information since they canned Evan Rousseau. So when I can attend a meeting, I will.
So because I was one of the few actual people at this meeting I felt compelled to act as a representative of "the people" and at the end of their Powerpoint presentation I balked. And you should have seen their faces when they turned to look at me. It was like I have just submerged my hand in the punchbowl thereby ruining their party. I told them that the flyer I had picked up lead me to believe that this was the beginning of something. But the Powerpoint presentation that I had just witnessed made it seem like it was the end and that they were just having this meeting on a technicality. (They have to have public meetings. It's a rule of some sort.) The presentater lady kept saying "this will" happen and "this will be" at this particular location. All of her verbage was definite and not speculative at all. So my gut feeling was that they are trying to take over New Bedford behind the backs of the public. How will they find out if they didn't go to the meeting? How can they attend the meeting if public meetings always pop up with little warning? I don't think they're taking over New Bedford because they want it. It's just to make money from it and move on. Get developers to develop more ghost housing and ghost commercial space that will just sit there unrented while they line their pockets and resumes from the deals.
They were young, relatively my age, Gen X if you will. I'm fairly certain I went to high school with Matthew Morrissey but I didn't know him then or now. I remember hearing that name float about. Anyway, these are people on the rise who are looking to cement their own futures, not protect the past or what New Bedford has always been. A small quiet city full of old people and young families.
My thinking is that downtown should be a tourist friendly place where residents of New Bedford also shop and hang out. The only place I can imagine tourists going besides the Whaling Museum is Elaine's T-shirts. And then what? Is some nuclear family from Wisconsin supposed to go bar hopping? Because that's really the only thing down there. People don't want to bring their kids to bars to eat a burger and fries. Everytime you turn around a new bar is opening and that is supposed to represent New Bedford moving up. Maybe we should change it from The Whaling City to Wino City.
Also this need of theirs to convert downtown New Bedford into one big campus says to me that they want New Bedford's downtown to be a party place. Like some kind of jacked up New Orleans. One dude (I think he's actually from the City Planner's Office) said that HE WANTS it to be a "COOL PLACE FOR COOL PEOPLE". Well I guess what exists in downtown New Bedford in the future will be whatever HIS definition of cool is. (I'm guessing it's twentysomethings who want to get bombed and pretend that they like jazz so they will seem like intellectuals.)
And that's when I flipped. No one person, or handful of people, should be engineering the cultural future of New Bedford. Not like this anyway. Let things happen organically so that the people who actually live here will decide in a natural evolutionary way what New Bedford's going to be. They're the ones who are going to have to deal with Mr. Cool's possible successes but probable failures. If a business owner builds a building for their own use and it's appropriate, it will succeed. But having developers develop shells in the hopes that businesses will eventually fill those shells is not only putting the cart before the horse but also putting all your eggs in one basket.
Using New Orleans as an example of a cool place for cool people again. Most people think of New Orleans, when not thinking of Hurricane Katrina, as a Mardi Gras festival atmosphere when you can get beads if you expose yourself. Loads of fun. (<--sarcasm) Anyway, it's a party place. An incredibly crime-ridden party place. Many people might think that New Bedford is already crime-ridden so why not party? Well, we're not even close, but it's getting there. And I personally don't think plans like this are helping. Making a section of town were the high rollers run while ignoring the everyday folks is how you get a set up like New Orleans, Las Vegas, or Rio. You wouldn't want to step foot outside the "tourist areas" in those cities. Yeah I know we're never going to be like those places, but still.
Whatever the result of these "envisionings", these envisioners will be long gone when their plans come to fruition. They'll be on to greener pa$tures, and the public that didn't go to this meeting will be stuck with what's left.
Now, look. I go to these things because I never know what's going on. The Standard Times never tells you anything. They may report on a meeting but if you read those articles, you get absolutely no information from them. WBSM is a slightly better source of information but you have to stay glued to it. But it too has dropped in relevant information since they canned Evan Rousseau. So when I can attend a meeting, I will.
So because I was one of the few actual people at this meeting I felt compelled to act as a representative of "the people" and at the end of their Powerpoint presentation I balked. And you should have seen their faces when they turned to look at me. It was like I have just submerged my hand in the punchbowl thereby ruining their party. I told them that the flyer I had picked up lead me to believe that this was the beginning of something. But the Powerpoint presentation that I had just witnessed made it seem like it was the end and that they were just having this meeting on a technicality. (They have to have public meetings. It's a rule of some sort.) The presentater lady kept saying "this will" happen and "this will be" at this particular location. All of her verbage was definite and not speculative at all. So my gut feeling was that they are trying to take over New Bedford behind the backs of the public. How will they find out if they didn't go to the meeting? How can they attend the meeting if public meetings always pop up with little warning? I don't think they're taking over New Bedford because they want it. It's just to make money from it and move on. Get developers to develop more ghost housing and ghost commercial space that will just sit there unrented while they line their pockets and resumes from the deals.
They were young, relatively my age, Gen X if you will. I'm fairly certain I went to high school with Matthew Morrissey but I didn't know him then or now. I remember hearing that name float about. Anyway, these are people on the rise who are looking to cement their own futures, not protect the past or what New Bedford has always been. A small quiet city full of old people and young families.
My thinking is that downtown should be a tourist friendly place where residents of New Bedford also shop and hang out. The only place I can imagine tourists going besides the Whaling Museum is Elaine's T-shirts. And then what? Is some nuclear family from Wisconsin supposed to go bar hopping? Because that's really the only thing down there. People don't want to bring their kids to bars to eat a burger and fries. Everytime you turn around a new bar is opening and that is supposed to represent New Bedford moving up. Maybe we should change it from The Whaling City to Wino City.
Also this need of theirs to convert downtown New Bedford into one big campus says to me that they want New Bedford's downtown to be a party place. Like some kind of jacked up New Orleans. One dude (I think he's actually from the City Planner's Office) said that HE WANTS it to be a "COOL PLACE FOR COOL PEOPLE". Well I guess what exists in downtown New Bedford in the future will be whatever HIS definition of cool is. (I'm guessing it's twentysomethings who want to get bombed and pretend that they like jazz so they will seem like intellectuals.)
And that's when I flipped. No one person, or handful of people, should be engineering the cultural future of New Bedford. Not like this anyway. Let things happen organically so that the people who actually live here will decide in a natural evolutionary way what New Bedford's going to be. They're the ones who are going to have to deal with Mr. Cool's possible successes but probable failures. If a business owner builds a building for their own use and it's appropriate, it will succeed. But having developers develop shells in the hopes that businesses will eventually fill those shells is not only putting the cart before the horse but also putting all your eggs in one basket.
Using New Orleans as an example of a cool place for cool people again. Most people think of New Orleans, when not thinking of Hurricane Katrina, as a Mardi Gras festival atmosphere when you can get beads if you expose yourself. Loads of fun. (<--sarcasm) Anyway, it's a party place. An incredibly crime-ridden party place. Many people might think that New Bedford is already crime-ridden so why not party? Well, we're not even close, but it's getting there. And I personally don't think plans like this are helping. Making a section of town were the high rollers run while ignoring the everyday folks is how you get a set up like New Orleans, Las Vegas, or Rio. You wouldn't want to step foot outside the "tourist areas" in those cities. Yeah I know we're never going to be like those places, but still.
Whatever the result of these "envisionings", these envisioners will be long gone when their plans come to fruition. They'll be on to greener pa$tures, and the public that didn't go to this meeting will be stuck with what's left.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
There is going to be a meeting tonight
for Public Involvement or something about the Downtown Area. I've got a million idea about what to do downtown but I doubt very much that I'll be able to voice my opinion or that those there will even listen. No one ever listens to me.
Anywho, firstly if we're talking seriously about a vision. We'd have to know the situation. My think is the commuter rail. That meeting I went to all that time ago was about possible locations for a station. Now there was one option for a waterfront station. I never really understood where it was supposed to go. I think it was in this area.
Anyhow, my idea was if it's a little platform sized station, it would be great if it could be New Bedford themed. Like a station in the shape of a whale. Of course that's cheesy but we all really love cheesy stuff deep down. Imagine the train pulls up, people get out onto what looks like a stylish station but they're actually walking into a whale and then as they walk through a normal looking tunnel there could be little placards that talk about the history of New bedford and whaling. Maybe even just a timeline that would lead to the wharf and the last entries in the timeline would be at the end of the tunnel which would also be the mouth of the whale. So everyone would come out onto the working waterfront and then new visitors would turn around and see that they'd just come out of the belly of a whale. Kids would love it. It would be impressive and it would serve as a fun landmark like the big blue bug.
Other idea I had, well firstly, there are too many empty store fronts. That needs to be fixed and there should be more tourist themed stores closer the museum. Elaine's should not be on Purchase Street. Purchase Street should be geared more towards the locals. Not that she doesn't have cosutmes and stuff for normal people but I just mean as THE tee-shirt shop I think stores like that should be closer to the museum. Speaking of the museum what are those empty buildings behind it? Or are they empty? I couldn't really tell. Sometimes downtown New Bedford looks like a party that no one bothered to put decorations up for.
I'm going to put together a slideshow right now to see if that can better illustrate what I'm getting at.
Anywho, firstly if we're talking seriously about a vision. We'd have to know the situation. My think is the commuter rail. That meeting I went to all that time ago was about possible locations for a station. Now there was one option for a waterfront station. I never really understood where it was supposed to go. I think it was in this area.
Anyhow, my idea was if it's a little platform sized station, it would be great if it could be New Bedford themed. Like a station in the shape of a whale. Of course that's cheesy but we all really love cheesy stuff deep down. Imagine the train pulls up, people get out onto what looks like a stylish station but they're actually walking into a whale and then as they walk through a normal looking tunnel there could be little placards that talk about the history of New bedford and whaling. Maybe even just a timeline that would lead to the wharf and the last entries in the timeline would be at the end of the tunnel which would also be the mouth of the whale. So everyone would come out onto the working waterfront and then new visitors would turn around and see that they'd just come out of the belly of a whale. Kids would love it. It would be impressive and it would serve as a fun landmark like the big blue bug.
Other idea I had, well firstly, there are too many empty store fronts. That needs to be fixed and there should be more tourist themed stores closer the museum. Elaine's should not be on Purchase Street. Purchase Street should be geared more towards the locals. Not that she doesn't have cosutmes and stuff for normal people but I just mean as THE tee-shirt shop I think stores like that should be closer to the museum. Speaking of the museum what are those empty buildings behind it? Or are they empty? I couldn't really tell. Sometimes downtown New Bedford looks like a party that no one bothered to put decorations up for.
I'm going to put together a slideshow right now to see if that can better illustrate what I'm getting at.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Bullying to death
Reading this story, I could not help feeling like I'm going through the same thing as this kid.
When you live with a situation that you can't correct by yourself and people who should help you, whose job it is to do something about it, keep ignoring you you feel hopeless. It wears you down. You can't get out of it. You don't want to go through it anymore and you can predict with certainty that you will again. When you have no doubt that you're going to suffer with the same stuff tomorrow, you really don't feel like getting to tomorrow.
I'm 35 years old and this is how I've felt for a long time about the way my neighbors are allowed to affect me whenever they feel like it. I've felt that desperate. But this was a kid. How can people not help a kid? I've heard about the increase in bullying. Even at a local school. Last night I went to a neighborhood meeting and they were saying how Keith Middle School ("Junior High" when I went there) is now some den of bullying. I don't understand how people stand by. Do they not believe that people can be driven to suicide or worse? It was ten years since Columbine this past Monday. Oprah pulled her show because it was too much about the shooters. Well guess what? They were bullied. It should have been about them. That anger that very normal anger that comes out of you when you're bullied can either be turned outward the way it was at Columbine or inward the way it was with this 11-year-old boy. I hope all their teachers/administrators rot in hell. I've got a few "law enforcers" they can save a place for.
When you live with a situation that you can't correct by yourself and people who should help you, whose job it is to do something about it, keep ignoring you you feel hopeless. It wears you down. You can't get out of it. You don't want to go through it anymore and you can predict with certainty that you will again. When you have no doubt that you're going to suffer with the same stuff tomorrow, you really don't feel like getting to tomorrow.
I'm 35 years old and this is how I've felt for a long time about the way my neighbors are allowed to affect me whenever they feel like it. I've felt that desperate. But this was a kid. How can people not help a kid? I've heard about the increase in bullying. Even at a local school. Last night I went to a neighborhood meeting and they were saying how Keith Middle School ("Junior High" when I went there) is now some den of bullying. I don't understand how people stand by. Do they not believe that people can be driven to suicide or worse? It was ten years since Columbine this past Monday. Oprah pulled her show because it was too much about the shooters. Well guess what? They were bullied. It should have been about them. That anger that very normal anger that comes out of you when you're bullied can either be turned outward the way it was at Columbine or inward the way it was with this 11-year-old boy. I hope all their teachers/administrators rot in hell. I've got a few "law enforcers" they can save a place for.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
F'in Zeiterion Theater
Oh now wait, "Performing Arts Center". We must get that right. We wouldn't want to think that it's a lowly theater.
M*therf*ckers had no more seats for the Willie Nelson concert tonight. When I checked over the weekend it said that they might have released seats but they wouldn't know if any would be available until afternoon the day of the show (today, Thursday, the 16th). It's not there anymore so I can't prove it but it was there. So I waited til today and went to the box office window just after noon. I asked if they released any seats and she was all "No and I don't think there is going to be any but there is a waiting list." And that's where I lost my mind. You don't have a waiting list that you've been putting names on for a couple of days when your website said that you wouldn't have any information until Thursday. That basically means don't call until Thursday. Which I didn't. Because I can read. But apparently other people who can't read did call and because the people at the Zeiterion are frightened by a ringing phone, they decided to make a waiting list. So I'm #25 on the waiting list because I followed instructions and didn't contact the box office until Thursday afternoon. Unfair.
Now I never expected to get tickets once I saw that they were sold out. Willie's got a huge entourage. If they were family seats they were holding I don't think he'd have any to spare. However on the rare chance that you may be able to score released seats to such an event you need to be one of the very first people there. And now that I think of it, I've never even heard of a waiting list for a concert. Maybe these people used to work in airline reservations or something.
My problem is that I've actually lived in a real place with real people. I've gone for last minute seats at least a dozen times in my life. I got tix to see the Rolling Stones at Madison Square garden an hour before the show on their Bridges to Babylon tour because of released seats. I know how it works. Or I at least know how it's supposed to work. I failed to get tix to see the Beastie Boys because I went to the box office at the wrong time. This is how it goes. But I've never heard of a fucking waiting list. Especially after the venue says the earliest they'll have information is Thursday afternoon and then at noon on Thursday there is a pre-exisiting waiting list.
Do you see why, hard as I try, it's nearly impossible for me to NOT hate New Bedford with every fiber of my being? This bullshit because no one knows anything. I spend so much time dealing with people at front desks and in kiosks and answering phones who just don't know shit.
I was walking down the street the other day and this old man was yelling at this guy in a parked car. Because this guy was parked in the parking spaces reserved for the elederly residents of the building. The old man was yelling at this 20something for parking there and the kid was saying something to the effect of "I didn't know" but mind you he was yelling right back at this old man. And the old man said "You know why you don't know shit? Because you're from New Bedford. That's why you don't know shit!" Couldn't agree more.
Anyone who wants to see a town full of idiots come to New Bedford, but make sure you spend your money somewhere else. :D
I had just seen Mariza at the Zeiterion. I usually go to the shows Mr. Charbonneau and Mr. Marchand put on in the summer. But no more. That shit theater (excuse me, performing arts center *snort*) isn't getting anymore of my money. If you see me there for some reason, that means I won tickets. Not another dime to them.
M*therf*ckers had no more seats for the Willie Nelson concert tonight. When I checked over the weekend it said that they might have released seats but they wouldn't know if any would be available until afternoon the day of the show (today, Thursday, the 16th). It's not there anymore so I can't prove it but it was there. So I waited til today and went to the box office window just after noon. I asked if they released any seats and she was all "No and I don't think there is going to be any but there is a waiting list." And that's where I lost my mind. You don't have a waiting list that you've been putting names on for a couple of days when your website said that you wouldn't have any information until Thursday. That basically means don't call until Thursday. Which I didn't. Because I can read. But apparently other people who can't read did call and because the people at the Zeiterion are frightened by a ringing phone, they decided to make a waiting list. So I'm #25 on the waiting list because I followed instructions and didn't contact the box office until Thursday afternoon. Unfair.
Now I never expected to get tickets once I saw that they were sold out. Willie's got a huge entourage. If they were family seats they were holding I don't think he'd have any to spare. However on the rare chance that you may be able to score released seats to such an event you need to be one of the very first people there. And now that I think of it, I've never even heard of a waiting list for a concert. Maybe these people used to work in airline reservations or something.
My problem is that I've actually lived in a real place with real people. I've gone for last minute seats at least a dozen times in my life. I got tix to see the Rolling Stones at Madison Square garden an hour before the show on their Bridges to Babylon tour because of released seats. I know how it works. Or I at least know how it's supposed to work. I failed to get tix to see the Beastie Boys because I went to the box office at the wrong time. This is how it goes. But I've never heard of a fucking waiting list. Especially after the venue says the earliest they'll have information is Thursday afternoon and then at noon on Thursday there is a pre-exisiting waiting list.
Do you see why, hard as I try, it's nearly impossible for me to NOT hate New Bedford with every fiber of my being? This bullshit because no one knows anything. I spend so much time dealing with people at front desks and in kiosks and answering phones who just don't know shit.
I was walking down the street the other day and this old man was yelling at this guy in a parked car. Because this guy was parked in the parking spaces reserved for the elederly residents of the building. The old man was yelling at this 20something for parking there and the kid was saying something to the effect of "I didn't know" but mind you he was yelling right back at this old man. And the old man said "You know why you don't know shit? Because you're from New Bedford. That's why you don't know shit!" Couldn't agree more.
Anyone who wants to see a town full of idiots come to New Bedford, but make sure you spend your money somewhere else. :D
I had just seen Mariza at the Zeiterion. I usually go to the shows Mr. Charbonneau and Mr. Marchand put on in the summer. But no more. That shit theater (excuse me, performing arts center *snort*) isn't getting anymore of my money. If you see me there for some reason, that means I won tickets. Not another dime to them.
Monday, April 06, 2009
Work this one out...
I went out earlier and saw this right up the street from my house. The question is HOW?
How goes it get up there without causing damage to the street or sidewalk or knocking into the hydrant?
How goes it get up there without causing damage to the street or sidewalk or knocking into the hydrant?
Thursday, April 02, 2009
Your Own Personal Jesus
This is why I don't (can't?) get along with most people. There is just a lack of thinking that goes on that I can't take. And I believe these non-thinkers are the ones screwing up the world. Whether it's because they think someone else smarter than them has a handle on it or not, I can't abide the idea that they just surrender their brains at the drop of a hat. And therefore leave the world spinning out of control.
Okay so a local artist put up a picture of Jesus on the wall of a local video store. He painted it at home, cut it out and pasted it on the wall. Then people acted like it magically appeared. They acted like it was one of those Jesus in the toast phenomena. They started deciding for themselves what Jesus meant by appearing there on the wall. From day one it was clear it was a painting. If you walk up to it you can see edges where the paper doesn't exactly stick to the wall. But these people want to believe beyond the facts that Jesus put that image of himself on the wall as a message of his displeasure with crime in the area and whatever else they think Jesus thinks. I actually read a anti-gay comment from someone speaking for Jesus. People were reportedly "moved" and "crying". There was a photo in the local paper of a family kneeling in front of it. It's basically a poster so this whole thing actually disturbs me. Makes me not want to look either.
The fact that someone left plastic flowers there as a tribute, I think sums up the whole thing nicely. I like this pic I took better.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
New Bedford Half Marathon
Hey this year the half marathon was pretty good. They even had a banner!!! There was a fair amount of people out and they seemed to do a better job getting people to come. The women's winner was the same lady as last year and the men's winner was some dude from Rhode Island who never ran before. Weird. Anywho, I've been uploading some of the video I took but it's taking me a while. I'll keep posting links here. So if for some reason you need more footage of yourself I may have caught it. Although my battery crapped out about an hour in.
Here is before the race with everyone going down to the race by way of a pied piper.
Here is the start.
Here are the first finishers.
(They look all weird though like there are double people. It doesn't look that way on my camera. If someone knows why that is let me know. lol Since youtube started with the widescreen things have been weird for me.)
Here is before the race with everyone going down to the race by way of a pied piper.
Here is the start.
Here are the first finishers.
(They look all weird though like there are double people. It doesn't look that way on my camera. If someone knows why that is let me know. lol Since youtube started with the widescreen things have been weird for me.)
Mariza at the Zeiterion
Mariza came back to the Zeiterion this past Friday and Saturday. I wasn't able to see her the first time but I did manage it this time. She was great and the interesting thing was the crowd. It wasn't like they were at a concert it was like they were at a kids' school concert. Like they were there supporting one of their kids with all the whooping and cheering. They loved her something awful.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Potholes and rocks
The stuff they fill potholes with jumps right back out when it rains again and when the cars go over them them become like bee-bees. And then they all end up on the sidewalk and no one cleans them up. I was trying to transport something heavy with one of those little luggage carts and the wheels kept getting stuck on all of them. Could you imagine if someone was trying to ride a bike or skate over them or worse if they were in a wheelchair. Geez.
And speaking of what if you're in a wheelchair. Why would a business be allowed to block the streets like this?
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Fun New Bedford Stuff
Hey. Last Sunday I went to a organ concert at St. Anthony's Church in New Bedford. It's a really cool church and it's the second concert I went to there. They have them on Sundays so I have to walk and it's a serious walk from where I live. Anywho, it was really awesome. They need to fix their organ, personally I think they should lose the crazy lightbulb situation in there, but I'll let you listen how the organ sounds. These concerts are some of the things people should be doing in New Bedford. It was only a voluntary donation to go. And you can adopt a key or other part of the organ to help pay for the restoration.
Thursday was Aha! Night which not enough people go to even though it's FREE. My favorite parts of these are always the concerts that they have at the Unitarian Church. This time it was this singer Anton Belov. Really really cool and he looks terribly familiar. And then there were noisy people. You know how I hate noisy people. But this time these people were... babies. I'm really losing it because I was that close to killing a baby, in a church. But yeah anyone who has the time should also check this stuff out, it's every second Thursday of the month. My only issue is that they schedule all the things I want to go to at the same time. :/ They should really spread them out a bit. So you can go to like 4 things in the night I usually only make it to two at best.
Thursday was Aha! Night which not enough people go to even though it's FREE. My favorite parts of these are always the concerts that they have at the Unitarian Church. This time it was this singer Anton Belov. Really really cool and he looks terribly familiar. And then there were noisy people. You know how I hate noisy people. But this time these people were... babies. I'm really losing it because I was that close to killing a baby, in a church. But yeah anyone who has the time should also check this stuff out, it's every second Thursday of the month. My only issue is that they schedule all the things I want to go to at the same time. :/ They should really spread them out a bit. So you can go to like 4 things in the night I usually only make it to two at best.
Thursday, March 05, 2009
more New Bedford BS
A year ago I called into the local radio station when the mayor is on for a weekly show to complain about people who don't shovel their walkways. He kinda thought it was funny but my point was that if they're not held accountable people will get hurt and he said they'd make sure people did shovel their walkways.
Of course no one did anything and we've gone through an especially icy/snowy winter where people have just left glaciers on the sidewalk forcing people to walk in the street or fall. There was even more than one story in the local paper about mail carriers and normal citizens breaking bones and asking that people do shovel their walks.
Well I called again on Monday and this mayor really seems to think that people should and WILL be responsible for themselves. He seems to have a serious problem with getting after people who refuse to do the right thing. You know the other issues I have in this city and how they are not handled. It's like they don't understand the day to day problems that could easily be handled IF someone actually cared to do something about it. This Mayor needs to man up and crack skulls because all the shit he's been chasing like a casino are going up in flames in this economy.
Here are some pictures of residences and businesses some are ONE BLOCK AWAY FROM CITY HALL who never ever shovel their walks.
Of course no one did anything and we've gone through an especially icy/snowy winter where people have just left glaciers on the sidewalk forcing people to walk in the street or fall. There was even more than one story in the local paper about mail carriers and normal citizens breaking bones and asking that people do shovel their walks.
Well I called again on Monday and this mayor really seems to think that people should and WILL be responsible for themselves. He seems to have a serious problem with getting after people who refuse to do the right thing. You know the other issues I have in this city and how they are not handled. It's like they don't understand the day to day problems that could easily be handled IF someone actually cared to do something about it. This Mayor needs to man up and crack skulls because all the shit he's been chasing like a casino are going up in flames in this economy.
Here are some pictures of residences and businesses some are ONE BLOCK AWAY FROM CITY HALL who never ever shovel their walks.
Tuesday, March 03, 2009
Friday, February 20, 2009
Look at this
Rihanna after being beaten
Any kids who think you're supposed to take stuff like this and that snitching is wrong need to see what it looks like when someone who normally looks absolutely beautiful looks like when they get beaten. I saw a little boy with a Chris Brown shirt a couple of days after this story broke wearing it like he was supporting him. It made me sick.
Any kids who think you're supposed to take stuff like this and that snitching is wrong need to see what it looks like when someone who normally looks absolutely beautiful looks like when they get beaten. I saw a little boy with a Chris Brown shirt a couple of days after this story broke wearing it like he was supporting him. It made me sick.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Ted Haggard on Oprah
I'm watching this right now. And I'm going to try a live post.
How can she (Oprah) trust that he'll give her honest answers? I mean he flat out lied to everyone. Over and over. How do you trust a known liar?
He's saying he developed a mentality that that wasn't him, the gay part. The taped phone call forced him to say it, he says.
He still doesn't think he's gay. He's a heterosexual with homosexual attachments. I believe in complexities too, but I don't know about that. He was molested in the second grade and didn't see it as abuse. His brain tries to organize unorganizable things I think.
Ohh... I just want him to be gay.
Gail is the problem now. Ted is getting it. He's coming around, but that's his wife. He's got to get rid of her.
He's in the process. He keeps using the word "process". I think he knows he's gonna be completely gay one day. He just needs to go through the process.
I dunno. I think he's going to be okay. The wife is in denial. I don't know why Oprah didn't have a gay minister on. She needs to have a second episode.
How can she (Oprah) trust that he'll give her honest answers? I mean he flat out lied to everyone. Over and over. How do you trust a known liar?
He's saying he developed a mentality that that wasn't him, the gay part. The taped phone call forced him to say it, he says.
He still doesn't think he's gay. He's a heterosexual with homosexual attachments. I believe in complexities too, but I don't know about that. He was molested in the second grade and didn't see it as abuse. His brain tries to organize unorganizable things I think.
Ohh... I just want him to be gay.
Gail is the problem now. Ted is getting it. He's coming around, but that's his wife. He's got to get rid of her.
He's in the process. He keeps using the word "process". I think he knows he's gonna be completely gay one day. He just needs to go through the process.
I dunno. I think he's going to be okay. The wife is in denial. I don't know why Oprah didn't have a gay minister on. She needs to have a second episode.
Monday, January 05, 2009
Jett Travolta
This is really upsetting. I've been a fan of John Travolta's for decades, just like everyone else. And he's always seemed like a really sweet guy and Saturday Night Fever and Staying Alive are among my very favorite movies. The thing is if you've seen him on talk shows and other interviews over the years, you know how much he loves his kids.
So why him? With all the horrible fathers in the world who couldn't care less about their children, why does he have to lose? It's beyond cruel. It's asinine. I hate this world. I hate that John Travolta will never really be completely happy again. I hate it so much. If I thought there was a God, I'd kick his ass on John's behalf. It's just not right. So many senseless deaths and tragedies around Hollywood. You almost can't watch a movie without feeling bad for someone or just feeling bad about life and how mean it is.
And then they're talking about whether he'll be able to attend the stupid Golden Globe awards. He sang a song with Miley Cyrus that was nominated. It's called "I thought I'd lost you". Could you imagine? That song at this time. Could you imagine it being nominated for an Oscar? Talk about insult to injury. I'm so sick of the unfairness. So sick of it.
If I knew what to wish for John I would. He and Kelly and their daughter Bella must be in such a state. There is nothing that can make it better. And I am so incredibly sorry for that.
So why him? With all the horrible fathers in the world who couldn't care less about their children, why does he have to lose? It's beyond cruel. It's asinine. I hate this world. I hate that John Travolta will never really be completely happy again. I hate it so much. If I thought there was a God, I'd kick his ass on John's behalf. It's just not right. So many senseless deaths and tragedies around Hollywood. You almost can't watch a movie without feeling bad for someone or just feeling bad about life and how mean it is.
And then they're talking about whether he'll be able to attend the stupid Golden Globe awards. He sang a song with Miley Cyrus that was nominated. It's called "I thought I'd lost you". Could you imagine? That song at this time. Could you imagine it being nominated for an Oscar? Talk about insult to injury. I'm so sick of the unfairness. So sick of it.
If I knew what to wish for John I would. He and Kelly and their daughter Bella must be in such a state. There is nothing that can make it better. And I am so incredibly sorry for that.
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