Saturday, March 31, 2012

Quote of the week

Didn't we all leave Myspace a few years ago? Why is facebook trying to remind us of what we left behind with this new layout they are forcing on us? - my sister

Friday, March 30, 2012

Retro Commercial Friday

Do you remember...

Chiming in

I'm sure you've all been hearing about this Trayvon Martin case. If you haven't, then good for you for living under a rock and not having to endure every which way you turn.

Now, I don't want to make this a long, drawn out (mainly because it's kind of late), but it seems like the main thing people seem to be bringing up is race.

Yes, Trayvon is African American and was shot by a...well, some reports say he's white and others say he's Latino. They really need to make up their minds about what the guy is.

Anytime you see Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton somewhere, you know they're going to start up some racial stuff, but shouldn't the real topic here be the face that a young man...a 17 yr old boy was shot!

When I hear people talking about this, that seems to be the one thing everyone is forgetting, in favor of digging up all kinds of dirt and useless facts meant to besmirch the names of these two guys involved.

I'm not sure what sickens me the most, the fact that this guy "allegedly" shot this kid because he looked suspicious, the overexposure this has gotten in the media, or the fact that it has been a month and he's still free.

Since when can you shoot someone and not be at least detained until the investigation is completed? Maybe the fact that his father is a judge has something to do with that, though...hmmm

Look at these other crimes...and how fast the culprit was arrested

Kim Kardashian had flour thrown on her and they arrested the person on the spot
Michael Vick ran a dogfighting ring and wasn't arrested for about a year (no humans were killed, just dogs)
Plaxico Burress shot himself in the leg and was immediately detained (once he got out of the hospital)

Those are just a few examples. Now will someone tell me why it is that this guy is running free? That child molester guy up at Penn State is free, yes, but he has been arrested about 3 or 4 times since this came out, but keeps posting his bail, so that's a different story

I guess the main thing here is justice. I mean if this guy gets away with shooting like this (he claims its self-defense), can you imagine how unsafe it'll be to walk down the street? If someone thinks you're suspicious they'll shoot you and apparently get away with it.

*SIGH*

So, what say you, dear readers?

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Overrated

A few minutes ago, I was reading an article on Yahoo! about who the most overexposed celebs are. No surprises on this thing, except for the fact that of the 12 people on there, all but 1 are reality "stars"

I'm no fan of reality shows, and this just shows how far these things have gone. It is truly a sad day when these no-talent hacks are as popular and well-paid as they are.

And everyone wonders why i wish I could go back to another, simpler era. Oy!

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Password bill

It appears that there is a bill in Congress that will allow potential employers to ask applicants for their facebook passwords. WTF?!?

First off, why in the blue hell is there even a bill that will allow this?

Second, is there no such thing as privacy, anymore? I mean, if you tell someone "Happy Birthday" and play "Words with Friends" on Facebook, it shouldn't hinder you getting a job!

Also, if you don't give your password to the potential employer does that automatically disqualify you, kind of like if you don't give out your credit history and what not?

I seriously wonder what this world is coming to!

What makes it even worse is that employers are totally in their rights to do this, since the FCC has no rules/laws regarding social media. However, one would think they'd have some kind of ethical issue with asking for people's passwords. Don't you agree?

So, what do you think about all of this? Would you give an employer your password? Why or why not?

Sunday, March 25, 2012

Musical Monday

Happy Musical Monday, everyone!

First off, I want to apologize to everyone who has been leaving comments. Normally, I reply by the end of the week, but I've been so busy the past few months that I barely even get any posts up. Hopefully, I"ll get to them all this week, so feel free to leave comments early and often!

Second, I feel like giving all you lovely readers a two-fer this week, so let's have at it, shall we?

First up, is the immortal hit by the Jackson 5 "ABC". Enjoy their performance on American Bandstand (and notice how they sound better live than they do on most recordings...totally opposite of today's "artists")



My other selection for this week comes from the good ol' 80s. Words can't describe this, so please enjoy "Sweet Dreams (are made of this)" by the Eurythmics.




Come join Music Monday and share your songs with us. Rules are simple. Leave ONLY the ACTUAL LINK POST here and grab the code below and place it at your blog entry. You can grab this code at LadyJava's Lounge Please note these links are STRICTLY for Music Monday participants only. All others will be deleted without prejudice.



PS: Because of spamming purposes, the linky will be closed on Thursday of each week at midnight, Malaysian Time. Thank you!

Saturday, March 24, 2012

Quote of the week

The memory of things gone is important to a jazz musician. Things like old folks singing in the moonlight in the back yard on a hot night or something said long ago. - Louis Armstrong

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Musical Monday

Happy Musical Monday, everyone! This week, in honor of St. Patrick's Day yesterday, how about a little House of Pain, shall we? Please enjoy "Jump Around"





Come join Music Monday and share your songs with us. Rules are simple. Leave ONLY the ACTUAL LINK POST here and grab the code below and place it at your blog entry. You can grab this code at LadyJava's Lounge Please note these links are STRICTLY for Music Monday participants only. All others will be deleted without prejudice.





PS: Because of spamming purposes, the linky will be closed on Thursday of each week at midnight, Malaysian Time. Thank you!

Saturday, March 17, 2012

St. Patrick's Day

Quote of the week

As long as the world is turning and spinning, we're gonna be dizzy and we're gonna make mistakes. - Mel Brooks

Friday, March 16, 2012

Do you remember...

Retro commercial Friday

My governor hates teachers!!!

Here in Louisiana, we just learned of our beloved (note the sarcasm) governor's education "reform". Like most people, I can't exactly tell you what they say, but from what I know one totally screws up our retirement, but the big one is that he wants to tie teacher pay to student performance on test scores. Now, as a band director, I don't believe this affects me, but for my friends that teach subjects that are actually tested, they are none too happy.

It has long been said that we, not just as a state, but a country, as well, are too dependent on test scores. You can't tell the governor, though. Of course, he doesn't listen to anyone other than the people who are trying to get him up into the White House, which is what I suspect the reason he is trying to force this through without debate or votes.

The outrage was so big about this that colleague from around the area came down to Baton Rouge to protest. Unfortunately, I couldn't because my school district still had school that day

Hundreds of Louisiana teachers converged on the state Capitol on Wednesday to try to give state lawmakers and Republican Gov. Bob Jindal a lesson in education reform.

They were protesting Jindal's proposed changes to teacher evaluations, tenure and retirement plans, as well as charter school creation and regulation. Three bills encapsulating the changes were to be taken up by the House Education Committee.

At least four public school systems – Baker, St. Martin, Vermilion and East Baton Rouge – and several Baton Rouge charter schools canceled classes because teachers will be rallying at the Capitol today and tomorrow, according to local media reports. In other parishes, many teachers said they still planned to make the trip using personal days even though school won't be cancelled; substitute teachers would be filling in.

Steve Monaghan, president of the Louisiana Federation of Teachers, said he expected between 500 and 1,000 teachers at the Capitol on Wednesday.

He accused the Jindal administration of trying to rush through legislation that harms teachers without giving sufficient time to closely examine the impact.

“The governor lit this fuse," Monaghan told The Times-Picayune on Tuesday. "The governor chose to run his bills this week, not us. How can you expect, if we want to have a democracy, for people not to show up? The problem is not teachers exercising their rights; the problem is government trying to keep them from doing so."

Jindal’s office questioned why teachers would come to the Capitol to protest a week before standardized tests are administered to decide whether some students advance or graduate.

"The reality is that action is needed now,” the governor’s office said in a statement Tuesday. “Forty-four percent of Louisiana's public schools received a grade of D or F last year. Louisiana's 4th and 8th graders ranked among the bottom in English and Math when compared to other states. In 2010 there were 230,000 students in Louisiana below grade level - one third of all students in public school.”

Jindal’s office issued a press release last week that said more than 100 local elected officials, including school board members, sheriffs, parish presidents, mayors and city council members endorse his school reform plan.

According to the Times-Picayune, the package of bills would:


"dramatically curtail tenure protections for new teachers and make it easier to fire existing ones; shift hiring and firing power from school boards to superintendents; pave the way for a significant increase in public charter schools; and create a program that uses the public school financing formula to pay private school tuition for certain low-income students."


Pray that your state doesn't go through this and that ours doesn't go through with this. It is hard enough for us to keep or bring in teachers, this is sure to send some of us away. I've already started putting feelers out there in Texas and Florida if this goes through. No way am I staying here with this on the books!

Wrong!!!

Some things are just wrong, like this...



I don't care what your political views are, what you think of the guy, etc., but there is no reason for these kind of stickers to even have been made, let alone being sold!

Good thing is, though, the retailer that was selling these in Dallas was shut down, according to my friends that live there. Apparently, it made the 10pm news.

Any of you have any thoughts?

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Musical Monday

Happy Musical Monday, everyone! How about a little funk groove to get you going this week? Please enjoy The Jacksons' "Can You Feel It"!







Come join Music Monday and share your songs with us. Rules are simple. Leave ONLY the ACTUAL LINK POST here and grab the code below and place it at your blog entry. You can grab this code at LadyJava's Lounge Please note these links are STRICTLY for Music Monday participants only. All others will be deleted without prejudice.





PS: Because of spamming purposes, the linky will be closed on Thursday of each week at midnight, Malaysian Time. Thank you!

Saturday, March 10, 2012

Quote of the week

A woman's dress should be like a barbed-wire fence: serving its purpose without obstructing the view. - Sophia Loren

Sunday, March 4, 2012

Musical Monday

Happy Musical Monday, everyone! This week we're gonna rock out with a little Van Halen. Please enjoy "Panama"!





Come join Music Monday and share your songs with us. Rules are simple. Leave ONLY the ACTUAL LINK POST here and grab the code below and place it at your blog entry. You can grab this code at LadyJava's Lounge Please note these links are STRICTLY for Music Monday participants only. All others will be deleted without prejudice.





PS: Because of spamming purposes, the linky will be closed on Thursday of each week at midnight, Malaysian Time. Thank you!

Saturday, March 3, 2012

Quote of the week

The problem with many high ranking politicians is the fact that they are more concerned with making a bid for the White House rather than concentrating on the job they were voted in to do!