Lost in the Seven Herbs and Spices

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When you legitimately cannot go to sleep, you have difficulty. And when you watch Internet television you have no time. There is absolutely no timetable that you adhere to. You are cast afloat in a sea of time. Just a straight number of hours that meet each other at the number twelve. I need something to punctuate time, something to ground it, to stick a tack in it as a waypoint. But there is nothing of the sort.



So here I am, three o'clock in the morning, watching Internet television when a commercial comes on. A commercial for hunger in New York City. In the commercial they have all of these celebrities saying how nobody is hungry in this country, and that there is nothing that they have to do about it, but they are obviously being sarcastic. Besides, words are flashing next to their heads how 1.3 Million New Yorkers need Food Assistance.



Oh how right they are. A McDonalds job just can't feed the whole family anymore. Funny, did it ever? That's why kids want nothing to do with these types of jobs. They make so little money for the effort. Why not sell crack cocaine and make a real killing for the same amount of time? That's the logic. And the logic here is food pantries and soup kitchens to aid starving New Yorkers. Basically, dry goods galore of foods that you've never seen before. Brands from third world nations. Generally tasteless foods or foods that don't taste anywhere NEAR where they are supposed to.



In the commercial, they say that starving is a bummer. Hey, maybe I'm being fucking picky here, being that it's on television and all, but honestly, starving is a fucking bitch with a bad attitude. The bad thing about starving is that you KNOW it's COMING. You are running out of food days before its over. To me I think rationing is bullshit. I eat just the way I want to. This amount, that amount, filling myself up and hurry up and run out of food. Now I'll go four days hungry instead of eight days half full. I find half full more annoying than having nothing. It's like you're toying with yourself.



Go ahead and starve. Get it over with. That's the problem. You dwell on it in fear as as if it will kill you to miss several meals. You'll survive, trust me. Just drink a whole lot of water. A whole lot. Every time you feel a hunger pang, fill up a glass with water and drink it. If you're like me then you'll piss like a busted New York water main pipe, but at least you keep the walls of your stomach from rubbing together. That you don't want to happen.



Like the commercial says, that shit's a bummer. I can tell you that shit's a fucking bitch. When that happens you mentally feel fucked. Your body feels fucked. You feel fucked. It's just a fucked up experience, but I tell you the truth, after two or three days, when your body realizes that YOU ARE NOT GOING TO FEED IT, it stops with the fucking hunger pangs. Yep, they just go away because, it seems, your body is pretty smart. You stomach realizes that if you are not answering its calls for sustenance then you can't give it what it wants, so why continue to keep asking?



After that, you skate. Although you do get noticeably weaker and slower.  You even get tired and seek chairs, couches, and beds faster, just to take a load off. Now, your body is starving. This is true starvation. It's not hungry where it's been an hour and you didn't eat. It's real starvation. Your body is using up fat so fast that it's wearing you down. The cool thing at this point? You enter into a state of Nirvana. Yeah, you get high and you stay high. An elevated sense of self, a higher viewpoint, whatever you want to call it, you are really enlightened. This is probably why wise men fasted to gain an epiphany. It sure feels like one will come.



Another thing about starving for more than three days. DON'T RUSH BACK INTO FOOD. You will have the most terrific stomach cramps known to man and may require hospitalization. Go slow. Lots of water and a few bites at a time. Be good to yourself after being so bad. You've got to give it a break, or it will break you.

Yeah, 1.3 million? And that shit's a bummer?
Trust me, there's not enough stupidly rich celebrites in this city to feed all of the poor. That number is going to grow, trust me.

And then it will be a fucking bitch.

HobobobSource URL: http://extravagancedeplumes.blogspot.com/2011/01/
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RED HOT Coming Attractions for February!

by Jeanne Adams

It's RED HOT February!

Its going to be an amazing month around the Lair, folks. We have a line up that you just won't believe.

Along with all the usual wonderfulness of the Bandita's, one of the coolest things this month is that we're partnering with the American Heart Association to highlight the dangers of heart disease.

Did you know that heart disease is the number one killer of women, rather than breast cancer as most people would guess? Well, it is! So, to help all our wonderful Bandita Buddies and any of our male Bandita Buddies lady friends, we'll be giving a tip-a-day every day this month to help improve heart health. Some of these tips will get you moving, and others will give you something to think about.

So be sure to stick with us and check back every day, especially if your heart's acting up. Grins. In the meantime, check it out at:

http://www.GoRedforWomen.org/index.aspx

Oh, and today's tip from the AHA: Rather than tempting your beloved with chocolates, consider a gift that has more permanence. Search for a poem that describes your feelings and write it on beautiful paper for a handmade Valentine.

(Although dark chocolate CAN be good for you....and if you look at the 14th you'll see that we're ALL about poems!)

We kick off the Fabulosity of February with the red-hot Jessica Anderson's return to the Lair.

Bandita Nancy and Jessica will talk about Jessica's latest novella, set in the NIGHTKEEPER'S Universe, CRYSTAL SKULL. This romantic jungle adventure features two of the winnikin, the Nightkeepers aides.

Enjoy the discussion with Jessica as they talk about Jessica's part of the ON THE HUNT paranormal romance anthology.



On February 3, Jana Oliver makes her first appearance in the Lair. She'll talk with Bandita Nancy about her YA Urban Fantasy, The Demon Trapper's Daughter, which frankly looks absolutely fabulous.

On February 4, Bandita Nancy, our resident guest-hosting mavin, is back again with the ever-popular Laura Anne Gilman.

Laura Anne will pop in to chat about PACK OF LIES, the second installment in her Paranormal Scene Investigations her urban fantasy series.

On February 6th, the wonderfully witty Janet Mullaney will be back with Bandita Christie to talk about her latest release, MR. BISHOP AND THE ACTRESS.

Feburary 7th The fabulous, historical romance author extraordinaire Tiffany Clare (http://www.tiffanyclare.com/) returns as Bandita Anna Campbell's guest to talk about her second book, THE SEDUCTION OF HIS WIFE!

And on February 8th, put on your dancing shoes for the darrlin bands Absolutely Fabulous Valentine's Ball! There will be fun, dancing, prizes, and a revelry beyond compare.

On February 9th join us for the return of Mr. Romance, when the inimitable Brad Parks returns to the Lair.

He's sure to woo all our regulars and lurkers with his fabulous brand of Brad Parks wit. Oh, and he has a new book out too....

On February 11th, we're thrilled to have Regency historical romance writer and Word Wench Cara Elliott visit with Bandita Christine to chat about her sexy new release, TO TEMPT A RAKE.

There will be no stopping the terrific trio that will be invading the Lair on Saturday, February 12th. Join Bandita Christie Kelly as she hosts Sally Mackenzie, Vanessa Kelley and Kaitlin O'Riley for a rousing, what-a-red-month, good time.

Ahhhh, Valentine's Day! On THE RED DAY, February 14 the we'll have a very special gues in the esteemed heart doctor, Dr. Robertson, Chief Cardiologist from American Heart Association. For a barrel of fun and frivolity along with some seriously wicked good tips for keeping your heart healthy, we'll have the Terribly Heartfelt, Amazingly Unstable Wacky Love Poems Day.

Dr. Robertson will be with us not only to discuss heart health, but to judge the poetry, limericks, and haiku for 5 prizes along with a heartfelt basket of something or another from AHA and from the Banditas

On February 25th mystery author Linda O. Johnston will be Bandita Kate's guest on to launch her fabulous new Pet Rescue mystery series, starting with BEAGLEMANIA! We'll all be going to the dogs in very best way!

Which, of course fits right in with our whole Go Red, Valentines theme since the Amazing, Annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is on TV starting with four groups on Valentine's Day, the 14th, and finishing with three groups and Best in Show on the 15th. It's a ton of fun to watch, and may the best dog win!

(I'll be rooting for the Dalmatian and the Irish Water Spaniel, how 'bout you?)
Source URL: http://extravagancedeplumes.blogspot.com/2011/01/
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Website nearly ready

It's taken quite a while to sift through my photos but my photo website is now nearly ready to go live

It's been a bloody tedious process but I hope it's worth the effortSource URL: http://extravagancedeplumes.blogspot.com/2011/01/
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A Philosophy Poetry Challenge -With great prizes!

I've decided that enough is enough: there are a number of intellectual pursuits that I simply can't get my head around: calculus and pholosophy are two that spring to mind imediately. While 'm sure that I can overcome my calculus block on my own I fear that there is no chance that I will ever be able to sit down and read the works of Schopenhauer, Hegel, Nietzsche or Lacan...

Gems of knowledge such as this by Lacan are a mystery to me: A geometry implies the heterogeneity of locus, namely that there is a locus of the Other. Regarding this locus of the Other, of one sex as Other, as absolute Other, what does the most recent development in topology allow us to posit?

Unless I can get my head around this I fear that the likes of Slavoj Zizek and Jacques Derrida will simply remain tedious pricks with no more relevance to the world than Jordan.

I therefore need help to overcome this block. Readers are therefore asked to explain philosophical concepts in verse form. All forms of verse are acceptable but the shorter the poem, the better - Haikus are particularly welcome!

There will of course be prizes for the best poems. The winner will receive a copy of the collected novels of Flann O'Brien. Second prize is the Third Policeman on audio book (read by the actor who played Bishop Brennan in Father Ted!).. Also up for grabs are three copies of the Poor Mouth (The novel that gave this blog its name)

All you need do is leave your poem as a comment... or poems, - you can enter as often as you like! . Closing date is 31 JanuarySource URL: http://extravagancedeplumes.blogspot.com/2011/01/
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A Warning

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"Here, you listen to the wisdom of almighty Hobobob, or you pay the consequences bitches. Oh, where's the hair conditioner?"
Source URL: http://extravagancedeplumes.blogspot.com/2011/01/
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Sue this Jeff Koons!

For having the temerity to post this video I accept that uberprick Jeff Koons may sue me. All legal correspondence can be sent to:

Jams O Donnell
póg mo thóin Cottage
Corkadoragha
County Lout
OirelandSource URL: http://extravagancedeplumes.blogspot.com/2011/01/
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A Message From Mr. Spock

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"I'm still trying to understand the logic behind this blog. It seems to me that Hobobob is a very sick and twisted individual with severe mental problems, and yet he is given a device like this blog to reach thousands of people, which in and of itself is illogical. But Gawdamn, I enjoy reading this fucker! There is absolutely nothing like him on my home planet of Vulcan. To this end I say, keep it up you sick sonofabitch."


- Signed
Mr. Spock
Source URL: http://extravagancedeplumes.blogspot.com/2011/01/
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Happy birthday, Lucy!

My twin sister Lucy and I turn a whopping 32 today (eeps)! I wish I could beam myself to San Francisco to buy her some carrot cake.

(Photo from our wedding by Max Wanger)Source URL: http://extravagancedeplumes.blogspot.com/2011/01/
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Birth of a Nation

The provisional results of the referendum concerning the independence of Southern Sudan have been announced. The results give a clear message: an overwhelming vote in favour of independence – nearly 99%

Of more than 3.8 million ballots cast, less than 15,000 were for continued unity. International observers had earlier stated that the vote was largely free and fair.
"
Anywhere else you see these kinds of numbers, you're going to cry foul," said one Western diplomat who travelled to Sudan to observe the vote. "In this case, we're pretty confident that that is pretty much exactly the reflection of the voters' wishes."

The results are still preliminary until finalised in Khartoum early in February. South Sudan will split from the north on July 9, according to the timetable laid down in a 2005 peace deal that ended the civil war between Sudan's north and its south.

The vote was the final part of the agreement ending a civil war, that took the loves of around two million people and lasted for almost forty years.

Here’s wishing the people of Southern Sudan peace and prosperitySource URL: http://extravagancedeplumes.blogspot.com/2011/01/
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Anne Hathaway in Marni: tragic or cute?

These pictures of Anne Hathaway at a press screening of Rio, an animated film in which Anne has done a voice.


This is not the prime minister, is the selection process, so no need to wear their best clothes for Anna or something. And maybe the problem - it's like Anna with "random" team games.


I mean ... Marni Rachel Zoe get this up and down it? Or not entirely Anna? Really, really want to think they chose a sweater.


It's like a version of the high culture of the 90's something, would have led to Freddy Krueger.


And the pants would be nice ... in another situation. How, without the sweater.


But I can not hate Ann. She is beautiful and talented, and Rachel Zoe stops to put on the worst shit I do on the Internet.


I have high hopes for her and James Franco at the Oscars - as owner, I think he was surprised at the end of each of us and eliminate the park, press a thumb.

......................................................................................................Source URL: http://extravagancedeplumes.blogspot.com/2011/01/
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The Legion of Super Losers

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It's amazing living the life that I live.

There is something new and humiliating every day that will happen to you. And much of it does nothing but lower your self esteem. Trust me, if you want to keep your self-esteem, then don't become homeless. Homelessness causes you to accept anything from anyone no matter how flimsy or low. No matter how degrading or vile, why? Because that's the way you feel about yourself on the inside.



You're just a cog in the whirling wheels of society, chewing up shit and shitting it back out. You are basically nothing, subsisting off others, like a leech. Keep your head up, is the old refrain. My question is, why? Why the fuck would you want to do that? Especially when you are wearing someone else's clothes that largely don't fit. Someone else shoes. Their food. Their lives. You have nothing to really call your own. Even your laptop, your baby that you can't live without is not yours but a loan from friends until you can pay for it.



So why not have a fun and degrading day? Hey! Don't look at it so bad. It doesn't bother me any more. I have a teflon soul and a cast iron spirit. As Phil Collins would say. I don't give a fuck anymore. So here I am at home, sick. I wake up last night with dry, painful sinuses, runny nose, headache. I hate when this shit happens. I'm miserable fast. I pop some pain killers, and drink a lot of hot tea. While drinking hot tea, I also make Iced tea. Since I'm doing one, I might as well do another.



So while I'm toiling for my own benefit I hear a ring at my doorbell. I go to it, and on the other side are two well dressed strangers. They are ringing Richie's doorbell when I open my door and they turn to me with a smile. "Did you want to get your free shoes today?" Wha? "Free shoes. We have brand new shoes downstairs. All you have to do is bring your Medicaid card and you can get a brand new pair of shoes. We're closing up shop now, so you have to hurry."



Richie opens his door, which shocks and amazes me, because I have not seen nor heard the man in months. Somehow I believed that he just floated up into the air and left the planet. Like the Earth stopped for him, flinging him off and into the cosmos. But no. There he was, declining the offer for free shoes.



Well, trust me, I should know by now that there isn't anything free in this world and sometimes there is a cost for things. Today, the cost is my self-esteem. I ride the elevator down and go into the cafeteria. A jovial guy asks a few questions before I walk in, and a nurse approaches me and sits me down in a seat. After several questions about my health, she takes my blood pressure and directs me to another table where two women are handing out forms. I sit, hand over my medicare card and am handed back forms to sign.



No sooner than I'm done there, am I shuttled back to another doctor, a podiatrist who asks me to take my shoes off for an examination. I'm already embarrassed at this point because I don't wear socks and my feet have been filled with fluids because of sitting in my chair, banging on my computer for hours on end. But okay, he wants to see these dry, ashy, peeling, clubbed hooves of mine? I pull them naked out of my shoes, and plop them on the chair that he's set up between us to examine me on. "Oh, you have a bunion!" He points out. He points out other things too, but his examination is quick and painless. He writes out a prescription for my feet and hands me back to the women who hand me to an attractive, blonde haired Polish woman with a terrible accent. Half the time you're asking her what did she just say.



I go with her behind a partition and she tells me that she has to check the circulatory system in my legs. Sure. So I hop up on the bed  that she has there. "Okay, take off your pants," she says with her heavy accent. Now I don't think I hear her correctly, because what does all this examination have to do with getting a free pair of shoes? Nothing actually. Like I said. Nothing is for free. Well, I tell the young lady. I don't know how to break this to you, but I don't wear underwear. Yes, that's right, I GO COMMANDO! It's just more comfortable than wearing cotton jockeys, and grime does not collect and stick on my ass, so that when I get up off toilet seats I no longer leave a ring. It's just one of the occupational hazards of being homeless.



"Oh," she says. "It's alright. I'll cover you up." So she takes two pieces of papertowel and lays it on my lap. "Okay, take off your pants." Okay, now get this, I'm pulling my pants down to my ankles while this woman has her hand on my package, keeping a paper towel in place. Gee, thanks. Do I get a kiss and a dinner afterward? She lays me back down and takes sonogram readings of the thighs and the backs of my knees. Fine, whatever. Soon, after ten minutes of this she tells me I can leave and then exits the partition. I hop up, put my pants back on and stroll out of the little area, thanking her for the wonderful experience.



I head to the table with the shoes arrayed on them. Sneakers, loafers, stuff like that, but no patent leather dress shoes. That's fine. I wanted the rugged looking boots in eleven and a half. The guys shakes his head. "Sorry, we're out of those." Give me a fucking break here. I've been prodded and fondled and I can't have the shoe of my choice? I am pissed, but I have to go on to find another pair. A pair of black loafers next in my size. I take them back to my room with me and stash them under the bed for special occasions. That's my thing in life now. Special Occasions. I don't have many, or any for that matter, but I am one to dream.



One day, my nightmare will be over and guess what?

How will I feel?

HobobobSource URL: http://extravagancedeplumes.blogspot.com/2011/01/
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Regan Hastings, Author of VISIONS OF MAGIC - Giveaway!

Although VISIONS OF MAGIC is the first book by Regan Hastings, it’s far from the author’s first book. Under another name, her contemporary romance novels number in the double digits, and she has been nominated six times for the prestigious RITA award from the Romance Writers of America. Her romance novels have appeared many times on the USA TODAY bestsellers list. She’s holding a contest for readers to guess her true identity for a chance to win a Federal Bureau of Witchcraft fleece jacket. Enter at http://www.reganhastings.com/. The contest ends February 1, the release date of VISIONS OF MAGIC, so enter immediately!



Kate: I know who Regan is, but I'm not telling! I'll give you a hint, though. She's fabulous, and I love her and her books. Welcome to the lair, Regan Hastings!

Thank you for hosting me, Kate!

Modern Day Witches

Ten years before the start of my book, VISIONS OF MAGIC, the world discovered that witches are real. Reaction was volatile and violent. Women were imprisoned without trial if they were even suspected of witchcraft. Some – including the heroine’s aunt – were burned at a stake erected on a high-tech, gas-powered grid.

The truth is, I believe that magic is real, and witches do exist. But there’s no reason for paranoia because, like humans, witches can be good or bad.

I’ll give you a few examples.

Bad witch: Martha Stewart. Magical power: Making perfectly competent women feel like failures. Not only can Martha fashion the julienned strips of a butternut squash into an amazing centerpiece, she can win the public’s admiration by going to prison.

Good witch: Pink. Magical power: Levitation. Did you see this chick at the Grammy’s last year? First of all, only a witch would feel comfortable in an outfit made of masking tape. Then she rose above the crowd, belting out a song with her powerful voice, and performing Cirque d’Soleil acrobatics all the while.

Bad witch: Lindsay Lohan. Magical power: Destroying her own career (aka, wasting her talent). I keep pulling for Lindsay. Beneath all the addictions, she’s a very talented actress, and I truly want her to get clean and move us again to some emotion other than distaste.

Good witch: Ellen DeGeneres. Magical power: Opening minds, and making even the least coordinated of us get up and dance. Who can resist her joy for life? Portia is a very lucky woman.

Bad witch: Kathy Griffin. Magical power: I don’t know, but she is just plain mean. Wicked… and not in a good way.

Want to play? Name a modern day witch and her magical power. I'll give away a copy of VISIONS OF MAGIC to a random commenter.

Kate: Thanks for visiting with us today, Regan! What a fun post! Except ... Kathy Griffin makes me laugh. Does that mean I'm a bad witch, too? Or am I just under her power? Source URL: http://extravagancedeplumes.blogspot.com/2011/01/
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Choose People

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"The left...you read this blog. The right...you go back to reality as you know it."
Source URL: http://extravagancedeplumes.blogspot.com/2011/01/
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President Picks Wrong Thing to Brag About

Jan 30, 2011. In his State of the Union Address last week, President Barack Hussein Obama, D-Kenya, cited the example of  the Bruce Randolph School in Denver.

He said this was an example of a public school that was a huge success. Making the point that school vouchers and home schooling are not the solution. Public schools are.

“Take a school like Bruce Randolph in Denver,” he said.

“Three years ago, it was rated one of the worst schools in Colorado. Last May, 97 percent of seniors received their diploma.”

In order to appreciate what a poor example President Obama picked to illustrate "the success of public schools," you have to know something about the history of this school, and how it came to be so successful. The deadwood had to go.



Bruce Randolph School has succeed precisely because it isn't run like any of the other public schools.

To put it bluntly, every reason for their success involved something that the Obama Administration opposes, and conservative critics support.

Five years after it opened, that school was given permission by the state to run completely autonomously and free from school district and UNION rules.

And then, in in a shocking move, the principal made every teacher reapply for his/her job.

Only SIX teachers made the cut. It's actually pretty amazing that the Union allowed this to happen, but they should be commended for doing so. Because this was the key to the turnaround at Bruce Randolph School.

The principal who oversaw the transition said the success was simple:

“Having the common expectations about what it means to be a student at Bruce Randolph school, and what it means to be a teacher at Bruce Randolph school. And every teacher agreeing to have the same rules and expectations.”

According to their own government sponsored website, Bruce Randolph School:



Principal Kristen Waters turned the school around
"serves a predominantly Hispanic student population, is one of a dozen schools in the district undergoing reform and revitalization.  

Waivers recently granted by the District and the Denver Classroom Teachers Association will give Waters and her staff significant flexibility in .... hiring, teaching loads, and the ability to pay staff above the levels stated in the collective-bargaining agreement for certain assignments."

The school 83% Hispanic, while the state average is 27%.
They have more crowded classrooms with 21 students per teacher; the state average is 17.
They have 94% of their students on the free lunch program; the state average is 33%.

The President was right about one thing. This school is a raging success. But only because it breaks every principle that he and the liberal Democrats hold dear. The Union doesn't run this school, and neither does the centralized school board.

The Principal and the teachers do.Source URL: http://extravagancedeplumes.blogspot.com/2011/01/
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I know I have been silent on recent events in Tunisia and Egypt, partly because I have been preoccupied but mainly because there are plenty of people out there who can analyse the state affairs much better than I ever could.

The turn on events has come as a huge surprise to me. Who would have thought that the self immolation of a street vendor not much more than a month ago could have precipitated all of this? I don’t believe that this has been orchestrated by the West regardless of the Telegraph’s revelation . Nor do I believe that they are an Islamist front.

The protests appear to be the release of a hell of a lot of pent up anger, be it unemployment, spiralling food prices, anger with corrupt and repressive leaderships/Sometimes all it takes is a single spark to light the fires of anger. Mohamed Bouazizi seems to have ben just that spark (apologies if the metaphor is inappropriate given his form of protest).

Where will this end up? Who knows. I hope to hell that it leads to better things for millions of people who people who deserve so much.

There is a serious risk that fundamentalists like the Muslim Brotherhood could hijack the protests. That is something that will be, to say the least, unwelcome (a huge understatement!). But this by no means inevitable.

We can only see what happens. This is for the people of Tunisia and Egypt (and, and, and) to sort. Here's hoping that it leads to better things for them.Source URL: http://extravagancedeplumes.blogspot.com/2011/01/
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A Song By Govenor Cuomo

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"The colors of the rainbow so pretty in the sky
Are also on the faces of people going by
I see friends shaking hands saying how do you do
They're really saying I love you.


The streets are clear of his shoes and slacks
his underwears blowing like shit from smoke stacks
And I say in this song
How good to have Hobobob gone"
Source URL: http://extravagancedeplumes.blogspot.com/2011/01/
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