I, Me, Mine

Stupid and Stupider

Those who complained were annoying...Dunkin Donuts pulling the ad is just idiotic.

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Dunkin' Donuts pulls Rachael Ray ad after complaints
By MARK JEWELL – 4 hours ago
BOSTON (AP) — Dunkin' Donuts has pulled an online advertisement featuring Rachael Ray after complaints that a fringed black-and-white scarf that the celebrity chef wore in the ad offers symbolic support for Muslim extremism and terrorism.
The coffee and baked goods chain said the ad that began appearing online May 7 was pulled over the past weekend because "the possibility of misperception detracted from its original intention to promote our iced coffee."
In the spot, Ray holds an iced coffee while standing in front of trees with pink blossoms.
Critics, including conservative commentator Michelle Malkin, complained that the scarf wrapped around her looked like a kaffiyeh, the traditional Arab headdress. Critics who fueled online complaints about the ad in blogs say such scarves have come to symbolize Muslim extremism and terrorism.
The kaffiyeh, Malkin wrote in a column posted online last Friday, "has come to symbolize murderous Palestinian jihad. Popularized by Yasser Arafat and a regular adornment of Muslim terrorists appearing in beheading and hostage-taking videos, the apparel has been mainstreamed by both ignorant (and not-so-ignorant) fashion designers, celebrities, and left-wing icons."
A statement issued Wednesday by Canton, Mass.-based Dunkin' Brands Inc., however, said the scarf had a paisley design, and was selected by a stylist for the advertising shoot.
"Absolutely no symbolism was intended," the company said.
Dunkin' spokeswoman Michelle King said the ad appeared on the chain's Web site, as well as other commercial sites.
Amahl Bishara, an anthropology lecturer at the University of Chicago who specializes in media matters relating to the Middle East, said complaints about the scarf's use in the ad demonstrate misunderstandings of Arab culture and the multiple meanings that symbols can take on depending on someone's perspective.
"I think that a right-wing blogger making an association between a kaffiyeh and terrorism is just an example of how so much of the complexity of Arab culture has been reduced to a very narrow vision of the Arab world on the part of some people in the U.S.," Bishara said in a phone interview. "Kaffiyehs are worn every day on the street by Palestinians and other people in the Middle East — by people going to work, going to school, taking care of their families, and just trying to keep warm."
While some extremists and terrorists may wear kaffiyehs, "To reduce their meaning to support for terrorism has a tacit racist tone to it," Bishara said.
Malkin, in a posting following up on last week's column, said of Dunkin's decision to pull the ad, "It's refreshing to see an American company show sensitivity to the concerns of Americans opposed to Islamic jihad and its apologists."
Ray, host of the Food Network television program "30 Minute Meals" as well as a syndicated daytime talk show, began appearing in ads for Dunkin' Donuts in March 2007. When Dunkin' announced the partnership, it said Ray would be featured in TV, print, radio and online spots in a campaign running through 2010.

Trailer for a film exhibit I was part of last summer...fun!

And here is the main reason why we don't live in Why-OWA any more!

Today marks the two year anniversary of the Iowa City tornado. Below are two videos (one news, one home movie) that sum up what happened. We were suppose to move to NC in July 2006, but after the tornado we decide to move that date up and headed out of town on May 21.

Pause this one at 2:03 to see the size of this thing. It got close enough to my three story apartment building to shake us good and hard.

********Here's a Recent News Article about a few more tornados that struck down in the area two days ago*******

Tornado sirens wailed Thursday night between 6:30 and 7:30 p.m. after a tornado allegedly was spotted about 15 miles northwest of Iowa City.

John Haase, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said at 9:30 p.m. that the Iowa City area had been doused with three quarters of an inch of rain on Thursday. The rain began around sunrise and trailed off in the afternoon before picking up again Thursday evening.

There was some strong winds and hail as well.

The timing of the first tornado warning of the year probably was not lost on many Iowa City residents. Almost two years ago, on April 13, 2006, a tornado tore through Iowa City, heavily damaging many homes and businesses.

The day began, however, as a typical, albeit chilly, spring day.

Although the amount of rainfall was much higher than the tenth of an inch normal for this time of year, the winds during the day might have been the bigger problem. Haase said sustained winds during the day whipped through the area at 35 miles per hour and gusts hit highs of almost 50 miles per hour.

"It was really howling," Haase said.

The Johnson County Sheriff's Office said they didn't have any reports of storm-related damage Thursday night.

What a smart and cute little doxie - we've gotta get Dru one of these!

Carlyle B. Joy - You Will Be Missed

Because of our age difference it might have seemed like Carl and I would be unlikely best friends, but a love of cameras, Mexican food, corny jokes, classical music, and all things Austin, TX made us exactly that.

In the nearly ten years that I knew Carl he went from being a volunteer at the radio station where I worked (shout out to KMFA 89.5 Classical Austin) to being my adopted grandfather and dearest friend.

Carl had a life I admired, respected and envied. He had tons of family and friends and lived in one of the coolest neighborhoods in my favorite city in the world for more than 50 years. I can only hope to have the amazingly rich and diverse life that Carl had. RIP dear friend....with all my heart...and the hearts of so many others...You Will Be Missed.

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Below is his obituary from the Austin American Statesman:

Carlyle B. Joy Sept. 7, 1917 - Mar. 21, 2008 Carl Joy chose Good Friday to begin his next adventure, passing peacefully from this life to the next in Decatur, Alabama, with family at his side. He was born in Brockton, Massachusetts, attended schools there, and in spite of living and working for more that 50 years in Texas, never lost his New England accent. During his service in the Army in World War II, he married Elisabeth Stines, moved to Texas in 1951 and raised his family in Austin, Texas. He worked for the State of Texas as a purchasing manager and was certified by the National Association of Purchasing Managers. He was energetic and committed in everything he did, including his long service as deacon of University Baptist Church, as a volunteer with radio station KMFA, and over 60 years with the Boy Scouts of America. He was awarded the Silver Beaver Award; the highest award scouting can give. Among his many talents and hobbies were artistic leather craft, nature photography, silver smithing and jewelry making with semi-precious stones. After over forty years of marriage, Elisabeth passed away, and he married Anne Broman, enjoying another fourteen years until her passing in 2001. In 2006, he moved to Decatur, Alabama to be near his daughter Betty and her husband Billy Jeffreys, who passed away suddenly in February, 2008. He is survived by his brother, Bob Joy and wife Jean of Brockton, Massachusetts; his children James David Joy of Austin, Betty Marie Jeffreys of Trinity, Alabama, Duane Daniel Joy of Lubbock, and Margaret Broman Young of San Marcos; his grandchildren Lynette McMillin, Brian Giles, Maria Appolito, Carlyle B. Joy III, Eric Young, Wende Young, and David Young; and nine great-grandchildren. Viewing will take place at Wilke-Clay-Fish Funeral Home at 2610 South Congress Avenue, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, March 27, 2008. A memorial service will be held at University Baptist Church on Friday, March 28, 2008, at 1:00 p.m., the Reverend Dr. Larry Bethune officiating. In lieu of flowers contributions may be directed to the organ fund at University Baptist Church, 2200 San Antonio, Austin, Texas 78705, or Edwin Hodges Ministries, P.O. Box 1921, Decatur, Alabama, 35602. Memorials and guestbook online at http://wcfish.com

Click your heels three times...oh, sorry, but first you'll need those shoes

Etsy...Buy and Sell Handmade

Click on the title above to visit Etsy...my new favorite website.

What is Etsy?

Etsy is an online marketplace for buying & selling all things handmade. Their mission is to enable people to make a living making things, and to reconnect makers with buyers. Their vision is to build a new economy and present a better choice: Buy, Sell, and Live Handmade.

Its a really damn cool site!

Film Travel. Train Travel. Summer Short.

Devouring distance at the rate of fifteen leagues an hour, the steam engine, that powerful stage manager, throws the switches, changes the decor, and shifts the point of view every moment; in quick succession it presents the astonished traveler with happy scenes, sad scenes, burlesque interludes, brilliant fireworks, all visions that disappear as soon as they are seen; it sets in motion nature clad in all its light and dark costumes, showing us skeletons and lovers, clouds and rays of light, happy vistas and sombre views, nuptials, baptisms, and cemeteries.
--Benjamin Gastineau