District 9 Poster

I am looking forward to the District 9 movie. Crossing my fingers...


click to enlarge
---o0o---

digital art: Zombie double portrait

click to enlarge

---o0o---

Happy Father's Day to all my fellow progenitors...

Hey Liz! Someone mistakenly called Elizabeth Becton, my Congressman, Jim McDermott's, assistant by the wrong name. There was hell to pay.

[Don't call me Liz Becton]

This sad and pathetic exchange took place between my Congressman Jim McDermott's chief aide, and another functionary. If Liz worked for me, she would no longer be employed. I'm pretty sure that we, the people/taxpayers/voters are not exactly getting much bang for our buck from Elizabeth Becton. The back-and-forth went on for 19 e-mails, with the assistant apologizing six times because she had inexplicably “offended” the obviously deranged and megalomaniacal Becton. . . I'm not being feceitous here--hey...I minored in psych, which on this blog's budget, puts me in the top tier of world authorities on psychology and behavioral science.

Liz Becton is literally off her rocker, and should be immediately be transported to the rubber room at the nearest laughing academy.

From: XXX
Sent: Friday, May 22, 2009 11:38 AM
To: Becton, Elizabeth
Subject: JPMC Meeting Request


Elizabeth,

Attached is a meeting request for JP Morgan Chase who will be in DC June 3rd-4th and would like to request a brief meeting with the Congressman.

Let me know if you need any additional information.

Thank you!

Best,
XXX

________________________________

From: XXX
Sent: Wednesday, May 27, 2009 5:05 PM
To: Becton, Elizabeth
Subject: RE: JPMC Meeting Request


Hi Liz,

just checking in on whether the Congressman is available next week. [REDACTED] can confirm a meeting time for you - she is available at [REDACTED].

Thank you!

Best,
XXX


________________________________

From: Becton, Elizabeth
Sent: Wednesday, May 27, 2009 5:07 PM
To: XXX
Subject: RE: JPMC Meeting Request
Importance: High


Who is Liz?

Elizabeth Becton
Executive Assistant/Office Manager
Office of Congressman Jim McDermott
XXXX Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
XXX phone
XXX fax
________________________________


From: XXX
Sent: Wednesday, May 27, 2009 5:07 PM
To: Becton, Elizabeth
Subject: RE: JPMC Meeting Request


Hi Elizabeth, I thought you went by Liz - apologies if that is incorrect. Best, XXX



________________________________

From: Becton, Elizabeth
Sent: Wednesday, May 27, 2009 5:08 PM
To: XXX
Subject: RE: JPMC Meeting Request



I do not go by Liz. Where did you get your information?
________________________________


Sent: Wednesday, May 27, 2009 5:10 PM
To: Becton, Elizabeth
Subject: RE: JPMC Meeting Request


Hi Elizabeth, I'm so sorry if I offended you! I thought you had gone by Liz at Potlatch, this was my mistake. Best, XXX

________________________________
From: Becton, Elizabeth
Sent: Wednesday, May 27, 2009 5:11 PM
To: XXX
Subject: RE: JPMC Meeting Request


NEVER. I hate that name.


________________________________

From: XXX
Sent: Wednesday, May 27, 2009 5:13 PM
To: Becton, Elizabeth
Subject: RE: JPMC Meeting Request


Hi Elizabeth, I'm so sorry if I offended you! I must have mis-heard. My mistake! Best, XX

________________________________

From: Becton, Elizabeth
Sent: Wednesday, May 27, 2009 5:20 PM
To: XXX
Subject: RE: JPMC Meeting Request
Importance: High

XXX:

If I wanted you to call me by any other name, I would have offered that to you. I think it's rude when people don't even ask permission and take all sorts of liberties with your name. This is a real sore spot with me. My name has a lot of "nicknames" which I don't use. I use either my first name or my last name because I row with a lot of other women who share the same first name. Now, please do not ever call me by a nickname again.

As for your meeting request, who is the point of contact for this meeting? If it's not you, then I need to know who because it's very time-consuming to deal with a lot of people for one meeting.

Thanks,

________________________________

From: XXX
Sent: Wednesday, May 27, 2009 5:23 PM
To: Becton, Elizabeth
Subject: RE: JPMC Meeting Request


Hi Elizabeth, I'm so sorry I offended you! My mistake!

XXX can confirm a meeting time for you - she is available at XXX XXXX.

Thank you!

Best, XXX


________________________________
[UNRELATED EMAILS REDACTED]


From: XXX
Sent: Wednesday, May 27, 2009 5:33 PM
To: Becton, Elizabeth
Subject: RE: JPMC Meeting Request


Of course! Again, I am sincerely sorry for offending you. I must have mis-heard and it was in no way my intention to make you upset. I always enjoy working with you and seeing you at the WSS events J

Best,
XXX


________________________________


From: Becton, Elizabeth
Sent: Wednesday, May 27, 2009 5:37 PM
To: XXX
Subject: RE: JPMC Meeting Request


Sounds like you got played by someone who KNOWS I hate that name and that it's a fast way to TICK me off. Who told you that I go by that name? They are not your friend...


________________________________



From: XXX
Sent: Wednesday, May 27, 2009 5:38 PM
To: Becton, Elizabeth
Subject: RE: JPMC Meeting Request


Hi Elizabeth,

Again, I am sincerely sorry for offending you. I don't want to cause trouble as I clearly must have mis-heard the person at Potlatch. It was in no way my intention to make you upset.

Best,
XXX

________________________________

From: Becton, Elizabeth
Sent: Wednesday, May 27, 2009 5:41 PM
To: XXX
Subject: RE: JPMC Meeting Request
Importance: High


I REALLY want to know who told you to call me that.



________________________________

From:XXX
Sent: Wednesday, May 27, 2009 5:44 PM
To: Becton, Elizabeth
Subject: RE: JPMC Meeting Request


Hi Elizabeth,
Again, I am sincerely sorry for offending you. I don't recall who I overheard. It was in no way my intention to make you upset.
Best,
XXX

________________________________
From: Becton, Elizabeth
Sent: Wednesday, May 27, 2009 6:04 PM
To: XXX
Subject: RE: JPMC Meeting Request

Let me put it this way, they don't know me and perhaps they were PRETENDING to know me better than they do and pretended that I go by Liz. They did YOU a disservice.

In the future, you should be VERY careful about such things. People like to brag about their connections in DC. It's a past time for some. It's also dangerous to eaves drop, as you have just found out.

Quit apologizing and never call me anything but Elizabeth again. Also, make sure you correct anyone who attempts to call me by any other name but Elizabeth. Are we clear on this? Like I said, it's a hot button for me.

And please don't call the office and not leave a message. My colleague told me you called while I was away at the Ladies' room. I do sometimes leave my desk.

The return of The Young Fresh Fellows

The Young Fresh Fellows roared back to life Friday night in my neighborhood--at Ballard's Tractor Tavern. Scott McCaughey[1] was in fine form, wearing his usual sunglasses and a big fur hat. He was just as hilarious as ever, and has written a new song album of funny, tight, rocking tunes. The show focused on their new album released that day--I Think This Is. They did play their great tune "Amy Grant" as an encore, and performed an excellent cover of "Hang On Sloopy." I have only listened to "I think This Is" once so far, but it is excellent, and about as good as anything YFF have ever released. A track listing only hints at the genius contained in this new album:

The Guilty Ones
Lamp Industries
Suck Machine Crater
Let The Good Times Crawl
Never Turning Back Again
New Day I Hate
Go Blue Angels Go
Used To Think All Things Would Happen
YOUR Mexican Restaurant
Shake Your Magazines
After Suicide
If You Believe In Cleveland
Ballad of the Bootleg

Everyone was in fine form, especially Kurt Bloch, the longtime band member and former lead guitar in Seattle's Fastbacks. It was great to see them again, and I hope we get the chance again soon. I suspect we'll get to see Scott's other band (with Peter Buck, Ken Stringfellow, Wilco, and various other rotating members) soon--they also have a new album coming out shortly. I just heard their cover of Little Black Egg--wow.

Photo by Dean Ericksen from The Tractor show - click to enlarge

[1] Scott's Wikpedia listing:

As a singer and songwriter, Scott McCaughey is the leader of the Seattle-based bands The Young Fresh Fellows and The Minus 5.
He is also bassist for Robyn Hitchcock's most recent touring band, The Venus 3, along with Bill Rieflin and Peter Buck.

In 2008, McCaughey formed the side band The Baseball Project with Buck, Steve Wynn and Linda Pitmon. Their first album, Volume 1: Frozen Ropes and Dying Quails, celebrates many aspects of baseball culture, and includes a song in tribute to Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Harvey Haddix.

Since 1994, he has worked with R.E.M. both on stage and in the studio. While originally brought on as a second guitarist for the Monster tour, McCaughey has remained with R.E.M. in various capacities since then, contributing to the band's studio albums New Adventures In Hi-Fi, Up, Reveal, Around The Sun and Accelerate. Additionally, he has received credits for his work on the R.E.M. Live album as well as their 2003 greatest hits collection, In Time. When working with R.E.M., McCaughey plays guitar, bass, keyboards, and adds backing vocals.

---o0o---

Poem: Ephemeral Communication

Ephemeral Communication
by Jack Brummet

Native American smoke signals
May be the most transitory
And ephemeral communication of all,

Next to the voice
—A Jiminy Cricket whisper
In your ear—

That transmogrifies instantly
Into memory,
While a smoke signal

Takes its own sweet time,
Rises in a langorous backstroke
And drifts slowly and inexorably

Toward Heaven,
Achieving evanescence
Somewhere in the troposphere.
---o0o---

[revised June, 2009 - originally published on the poemsNOWpoems web site]

Teri Smith TYLER, Plaintiff, v. James CARTER, William Clinton, Ross Perot, American Cyanamid, et al -- one wacky lawsuit...dismissed

A federal court decision, in the District Court for the Southern District of New York, 1993. It's always interesting when these clearly deranged lawsuits wend their way through the courts. You think about the dozens and dozens of people who worked on the case at law firms, in the courts, and how much money it cost us to allow Teri Tyler to attempt to exorcise her demons.

Teri Smith TYLER, Plaintiff,
v.
James CARTER, William Clinton, Ross Perot, American Cyanamid, Iron Mountain Security Corporation, Defense Intelligence Agencty, IBM, David Rockerfeller [sic], Rockerfeller [sic] Fund, BCCI, NASA, Defendants.

Plaintiff Teri Smith Tyler, appearing pro se, filed a
complaint in December 1992 alleging a bizarre conspiracy involving
the defendants to enslave and oppress certain segments of our
society. Plaintiff contends she is a cyborg, and that she
received most of the information which forms the basis for her
complaint, through ``proteus,'' which I read to be come silent,
telepathic form of communication. ... She asserts that the
defendants are involved in the ``Iron Mountain Plan,'' which
provides for the reinstitutionalization of slavery and
``bloodsports'' (which she identifies as death-hunting and
witchhunting), and the oppression of political dissidents, herself
included. Plaintiff's complaint alleged a number of personal
indignities visited upon her by defendants: ``strafing of my
dormitory room by planes and helicopters, the electronic bugging
of my student rooms and apartments, deliberate noise harassment,
blasting of loud rock music with lyrics designed for witch-hunts
(music about social pariahs) ... students following me around to
prevent me from studying, whispering campaigns and social
ostrification ...'' ... Plaintiff also makes the following allegations
against the defendants. Former President Jimmy Carter
was the secret head of the Ku Klux Klan; Bill Clinton is the
biological son of Jimmy Carter; President Clinton and Ross Perot
have made fortunes in the death-hunting industry, and are
responsible for the murder of at least 10 million black women in
concentration camps, their bodies sold for meat and their skin
turned into leather products. The defendants are also responsible
for breeding farms, which turn out 2,000 black girls a year, who
are then sold for recreational murder or as human pets.
Additionally, the defendants utilize weather control and
earthquake technology to threaten other countries that object to
the Iron Mountain Plan.

Plaintiff asks the Court to grant her the following relief:

$5.6 billion in compensatory and punitive damages;

A physical accounting of all black women born since
1940, including their present, whereabouts, and for those who have
died, an investigation into how they died;

The purchase of land in Africa for the emigration of
abused black women;

The bringing to justice of those responsible for the
American holocaust;

An investigation into the foster care system, and a
physical accounting of all black children placed into foster care;

An end to slavery in the United States;

The end of the cyborg program run by NASA, the Defense
Intelligence Agency, American Cyanamid and IBM;

An end to the organ donor program

While plaintiff was trying to effect proper service of the
summons and complaint on the defendants, she made a number of
appeals to the Court for interim relief in the form of Orders to
Show Cause. On January 20, 1993, she asked the Court to enjoin
the inauguration of President Clinton. The Court denied her
request as moot. In August, 1993, she moved to enjoin the
installation of Louis Freeh as Director of the FBI on the ground
that Clinton appointed Freeh only so Freeh could cover up evidence
of Clinton's wrongdoing. That motion was denied, as it lacked a
sufficient evidentiary basis.

Presently before the Court is an Order to Show Cause why the
Court should not enjoin the trial in the World Trade Center
bombing case, now proceeding in this Court before Judge Duffy.
Plaintiff alleges that President Clinton ordered the bombing of
the World Trade Center in order to justify war with Iraq. In
support of her application, plaintiff describes certain ``proteus''
communications she had with other individuals. Plaintiff alleges
that the United States invaded Panama and arrested General Noriega
because Noriega objected to United States soldiers raiding Indian
tribes in Central America for child sex slaves to torture in
American cocaine based thrill-killing rackets. Plaintiff contends
she wrote to Noriega asking him to join in her lawsuit, but that
United States soldiers holding Noriega beat him when he asked for
his mail.

Plaintiff asserts that in 1988, Rajiv Gandshi spoke to her
through ``proteus'' and informed her that he was being held prisoner
and sexually abused by a man whom he had caught stealing from the
funds generated by the Bhopal disaster settlement. According to
plaintiff, Yasser Arafat tried to confirm Ghandi's tale of abuse
on behalf of the plaintiff, to no avail.

Plaintiff additionally contends that Gulf War against Iraq
was undertaken so that American could restock its sexual slavery
camps, which had been depleted. 40,000 Iraqi soldiers captured by
the United States, selected for their physical attractiveness,
have been brought to this country where they were ``being beaten,
forced to run gauntlets and homosexually gang-raped by American
soldiers.'' Plaintiff claims to have confronted Secretary of
Defense Cheney with evidence of this allegation. Cheney, through
``proteus,'' purportedly told the plaintiff, ``Well, we were so sick
and tiered [sic] of killing black girls. We just had to put some
variety back into our death-hunting industry. And they [Persians]
are incredibly beautiful. The beauty of the face heightens the
pleasure of the kill. I know of no higher pleasure than the
gang-rape of exceedingly beautiful people.''

_______________________


Additionally, the plaintiff alleges that the Serbian government, the ``Nazi Bund,'' the Bank of Commerce and Credit International (``BCCI'') are also involved in the conspiracy.

Attached to plaintiff's papers, and apparently offered to support her claim, are a number of exhibits. Most prominent among the exhibits is a book by Robert Ellis Smith entitled ``Privacy: How To Protect What's Left Of It'' (1979), and a four page illustrated pamphlet advertising pornographic movies starring young men. Plaintiff has circled a number of photos of naked men who appear to be of Mediterranean or Latin American descent, which I interpret as her evidence that Iraqi and Central American men are enslaved in pornographic ``rackets'' ...

The Court's Memorandum and Order goes on to explain why the Court is ordering the case dismissed ``sua sponte'' (meaning of the Court's own volition, without prompting by the defendants): because the plaintiff is barking mad and must not be allowed to waste public time and resources in this way.
---o0o---

The Girl Without Hands...one of the great, and lesser known Grimm's Fairy Tales

The Girl With No Hands
by The Brothers Grimm

A certain miller had little by little fallen into poverty, and had nothing left but his mill and a large apple-tree behind it. Once when he had gone into the forest to fetch wood, an old man stepped up to him whom he had never seen before, and said, why do you plague yourself with cutting wood, I will make you rich, if you will promise me what is standing behind your mill. What can that be but my apple-tree, thought the miller, and said, yes, and gave a written promise to the stranger. He, however, laughed mockingly and said, when three years have passed, I will come and carry away what belongs to me, and then he went. When the miller got home, his wife came to meet him and said, tell me, miller, from whence comes this sudden wealth into our house. All at once every box and chest was filled, no one brought it in, and I know not how it happened. He answered, it comes from a stranger who met me in the forest, and promised me great treasure. I' in return, have promised him what stands behind the mill - we can very well give him the big apple-tree for it. Ah, husband, said the terrified wife, that must have been the devil. He did not mean the apple-tree, but our daughter, who was standing behind the mill sweeping the yard.

The miller's daughter was a beautiful, pious girl, and lived through the three years in the fear of God and without sin. When therefore the time was over, and the day came when the evil one was to fetch her, she washed herself clean, and made a circle round herself with chalk. The devil appeared quite early, but he could not come near to her. Angrily, he said to the miller, take all water away from her, that she may no longer be able to wash herself, for otherwise I have no power over her. The miller was afraid, and did so. The next morning the devil came again, but she had wept on her hands, and they were quite clean. Again he could not get near her, and furiously said to the miller, cut her hands off, or else I have no power over her. The miller was shocked and answered, how could I cut off my own child's hands. Then the evil one threatened him and said, if you do not do it you are mine, and I will take you yourself.

The father became alarmed, and promised to obey him. So he went to the girl and said, my child, if I do not cut off both your hands, the devil will carry me away, and in my terror I have promised to do it. Help me in my need, and forgive me the harm I do you. She replied, dear father, do with me what you will, I am your child. Thereupon she laid down both her hands, and let them be cut off. The devil came for the third time, but she had wept so long and so much on the stumps, that after all they were quite clean. Then he had to give in, and had lost all right over her.

The miller said to her, I have by means of you received such great wealth that I will keep you most handsomely as long as you live. But she replied, here I cannot stay, I will go forth, compassionate people will give me as much as I require.

Thereupon she caused her maimed arms to be bound to her back, and by sunrise she set out on her way, and walked the whole day until night fell. Then she came to a royal garden, and by the shimmering of the moon she saw that trees covered with beautiful fruits grew in it, but she could not enter, for it was surrounded by water. And as she had walked the whole day and not eaten one mouthful, and hunger tormented her, she thought, ah, if I were but inside, that I might eat of the fruit, else must I die of hunger. Then she knelt down, called on God the Lord, and prayed. And suddenly an angel came towards her, who made a dam in the water, so that the moat became dry and she could walk through it. And now she went into the garden and the angel went with her. She saw a tree covered with beautiful pears, but they were all counted. Then she went to them, and to still her hunger, ate one with her mouth from the tree, but no more. The gardener was watching, but as the angel was standing by, he was afraid and thought the maiden was a spirit, and was silent, neither did he dare to cry out, or to speak to the spirit. When she had eaten the pear, she was satisfied, and went and concealed herself among the bushes. The king to whom the garden belonged, came down to it next morning, and counted, and saw that one of the pears was missing, and asked the gardener what had become of it, as it was not lying beneath the tree, but was gone. Then answered the gardener, last night, a spirit came in, who had no hands, and ate off one of the pears with its mouth. The king said, how did the spirit get over the water, and where did it go after it had eaten the pear. The gardener answered, someone came in a snow-white garment from heaven who made a dam, and kept back the water, that the spirit might walk through the moat. And as it must have been an angel, I was afraid, and asked no questions, and did not cry out. When the spirit had eaten the pear, it went back again. The king said, if it be as you say, I will watch with you to-night.

When it grew dark the king came into the garden and brought a priest with him, who was to speak to the spirit. All three seated themselves beneath the tree and watched. At midnight the maiden came creeping out of the thicket, went to the tree, and again ate one pear off it with her mouth, and beside her stood the angel in white garments. Then the priest went out to them and said, "Do you come from heaven or from earth? Are you a spirit, or a human being?" She replied, "I am no spirit, but an unhappy mortal deserted by all but God." The king said, "If you are forsaken by all the world, yet will I not forsake you." He took her with him into his royal palace, and as she was so beautiful and good, he loved her with all his heart, had silver hands made for her, and took her to wife.

After a year the king had to go on a journey, so he commended his young queen to the care of his mother and said, if she is brought to child-bed take care of her, nurse her well, and tell me of it at once in a letter. Then she gave birth to a fine boy. So the old mother made haste to write and announce the joyful news to him. But the messenger rested by a brook on the way, and as he was fatigued by the great distance, he fell asleep. Then came the devil, who was always seeking to injure the good queen, and exchanged the letter for another, in which was written that the queen had brought a monster into the world. When the king read the letter he was shocked and much troubled, but he wrote in answer that they were to take great care of the queen and nurse her well until his arrival.

The messenger went back with the letter, but rested at the same place and again fell asleep. Then came the devil once more, and put a different letter in his pocket, in which it was written that they were to put the queen and her child to death. The old mother was terribly shocked when she received the letter, and could not believe it. She wrote back again to the king, but received no other answer, because each time the devil substituted a false letter, and in the last letter it was also written that she was to preserve the queen's tongue and eyes as a token that she had obeyed.

But the old mother wept to think such innocent blood was to be shed, and had a hind brought by night and cut out her tongue and eyes, and kept them. Then said she to the queen, "I cannot have you killed as the king commands, but here you may stay no longer. Go forth into the wide world with your child, and never come here again." The poor woman tied her child on her back, and went away with eyes full of tears. She came into a great wild forest, and then she fell on her knees and prayed to God, and the angel of the Lord appeared to her and led her to a little house on which was a sign with the words, here all dwell free. A snow-white maiden came out of the little house and said, welcome, lady queen, and conducted her inside. Then she unbound the little boy from her back, and held him to her breast that he might feed, and laid him in a beautifully-made little bed. Then said the poor woman, "From whence do you know that I was a queen?"

The white maiden answered, "I am an angel sent by God, to watch over you and your child." The queen stayed seven years in the little house, and was well cared for, and by God's grace, because of her piety, her hands which had been cut off, grew once more.

At last the king came home again from his journey, and his first wish was to see his wife and the child. Then his aged mother began to weep and said, "You wicked man, why did you write to me that I was to take those two innocent lives," and she showed him the two letters which the evil one had forged, and then continued, "I did as you bade me, and she showed the tokens, the tongue and eyes." Then the king began to weep for his poor wife and his little son so much more bitterly than she was doing, that the aged mother had compassion on him and said, "be at peace, she still lives, I secretly caused a hind to be killed, and took these tokens from it, but I bound the child to your wife's back and bade her go forth into the wide world, and made her promise never to come back here again, because you were so angry with her." Then spoke the king, "I will go as far as the sky is blue, and will neither eat nor drink until I have found again my dear wife and my child, if in the meantime they have not been killed, or died of hunger."

Thereupon the king traveled about for seven long years, and sought her in every cleft of the rocks and in every cave, but he found her not, and thought she had died of want. During the whole time he neither ate nor drank, but God supported him. At length he came into a great forest, and found therein the little house whose sign was, here all dwell free. Then forth came the white maiden, took him by the hand, led him in, and said, "Welcome, lord king," and asked him from whence he came. He answered, "Soon shall I have traveled about for the space of seven years, and I seek my wife and her child, but cannot find them." The angel offered him meat and drink, but he did not take anything, and only wished to rest a little. Then he lay down to sleep, and laid a handkerchief over his face.

Thereupon the angel went into the chamber where the queen sat with her son, whom she usually called Sorrowful, and said to her, go out with your child, your husband has come. So
she went to the place where he lay, and the handkerchief fell from his face. Then said she, "Sorrowful, pick up your father's handkerchief, and cover his face again." The child picked it up, and put it over his face again. The king in his sleep heard what passed, and had pleasure in letting the handkerchief fall once more. But the child grew impatient, and said, "Dear mother, how can I cover my father's face when I have no father in this world. I have learnt to say the prayer - Our Father, which art in heaven - you have told me that my father was in heaven, and was the good God, and how can I know a wild man like this. He is not my father." When the king heard that, he got up, and asked who they were. Then said she, "I am your wife, and that is your son, Sorrowful". And he saw her living hands, and said, "My wife had silver hands." She answered, "The good God has caused my natural hands to grow again," and the angel went into the inner room, and brought the silver hands, and showed them to him. Hereupon he knew for a certainty that it was his dear wife and his dear child, and he kissed them, and was glad, and said, "A heavy stone has fallen from off my heart." Then the angel of God ate with them once again, and after that they went home to the king's aged mother. There were great rejoicings everywhere, and the king and queen were married again, and lived contentedly to their happy end.

Music video: Seattle's Telekinesis! perform Awkward Kisser (with Awkward Kisser lyrics)

A pretty funny video...and there's something to be said for that. The music, by one of my favorite local bands, Telekinesis!, who released their first album this spring, is great.



Awkward Kisser

You once said I was an awkward kisser
And I said it was a lie
We booked a flight to another country
Tell my friends I said goodbye hiii ow-whoa
We walked for miles with no end in sight
Hand in hand we will grow old ow-whoa
Singing songs of our summers' past
I will never let this go, no no no

Chorus
And when I woke up,
You were by my side
And when I woke up,
You were by my side

Cherry blossoms and a cherry soda
Picnics in the country side
I said I love you, do you think I'm crazy?
Yes, you said, but I don't mind hiii ow-whoa
And we sat around for several hours
As the sun began to fall, no o-whoaa
And I looked you straight in the eyes
And nothing really mattered,
Nothing really mattered at all

And when I woke up
You were by my side
---o0o---

More courtroom antics: Disorder in the court

This is a follow-up to our earlier piece "Witnesses tangle with lawyers, from "Disorder in the American Courts" I recently bumped into a few more courtroom transcriptions. Here are the best of them...

Q. What is your brother-in-law's name?
A. Borofkin.
Q. What's his first name?
A. I can't remember.
Q. He's been your brother-in-law for years, and you can't remember his first name?
A. No. I tell you I'm too excited. (Rising from the witness chair and pointing to Mr. Borofkin.) Nathan, for God's sake, tell them your first name!
__________________________________

Q. Did you ever stay all night with this man in New York?
A. I refuse to answer that question.
Q. Did you ever stay all night with this man in Chicago?
A. I refuse to answer that question.
Q. Did you ever stay all night with this man in Miami?
A. No.
__________________________________

Q. Doctor, did you say he was shot in the woods?
A. No, I said he was shot in the lumbar region.
__________________________________

Q. What is your name?
A. Ernestine McDowell.
Q. And what is your marital status?
A. Fair.
__________________________________

Q. Are you married?
A. No, I'm divorced.
Q. And what did your husband do before you divorced him?
A. A lot of things I didn't know about.
__________________________________

Q. And who is this person you are speaking of?
A. My ex-widow said it.
__________________________________

Q. Mrs. Smith, do you believe that you are emotionally unstable?
A. I should be.
Q. How many times have you committed suicide?
A. Four times.
__________________________________

Q. Were you acquainted with the deceased?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. Before or after he died?
__________________________________

Q. Officer, what led you to believe the defendant was under the influence?
A. Because he was argumentary and he couldn't pronounciate his words.
__________________________________

Q. What happened then?
A. He told me, he says, "I have to kill you because you can identify me."
Q. Did he kill you?
A. No.
__________________________________

THE COURT: Now, as we begin, I must ask you to banish all present information and prejudice from your minds, if you have any.
__________________________________

Q. Did he pick the dog up by the ears?
A. No.
Q. What was he doing with the dog's ears?
A. Picking them up in the air.
Q. Where was the dog at this time?
A. Attached to the ears.
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Q. When he went, had you gone and had she, if she wanted to and were able, for the time being excluding all the restraints on her not to go, gone also, would he have brought you, meaning you and she, with him to the station?
MR. BROOKS: Objection. That question should be taken out and shot.
__________________________________

Q: What is your relationship with the plaintiff?
A: She is my daughter.
Q: Was she your daughter on February 13, 1979?
__________________________________

Q: Now, you have investigated other murders, have you not, where there was a victim?
__________________________________

Q: Did you tell your lawyer that your husband had offered you indignities?
A: He didn't offer me nothing; he just said I could have the furniture.
__________________________________

Q: So, after the anesthesia, when you came out of it, what did you observe with respect to your scalp?
A: I didn't see my scalp the whole time I was in the hospital.
Q: It was covered?
A: Yes, bandaged.
Q: Then, later on.. what did you see?
A: I had a skin graft. My whole buttocks and leg were removed and put on top of my head.
__________________________________

Q: Could you see him from where you were standing?
A: I could see his head.
Q: And where was his head?
A: Just above his shoulders.
__________________________________

Q: What can you tell us about the truthfulness and veracity of this defendant?
A: Oh, she will tell the truth. She said she'd kill that sonofabitch--and she did!
__________________________________

Q: Do you drink when you're on duty?
A: I don't drink when I'm on duty, unless I come on duty drunk.
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Q: ...any suggestions as to what prevented this from being a murder trial instead of an attempted murder trial?
A: The victim lived.
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Q: The truth of the matter is that you were not an unbiased, objective witness, isn't it. You too were shot in the fracas?
A: No, sir. I was shot midway between the fracas and the naval.
__________________________________

Q: What is the meaning of sperm being present?
A: It indicates intercourse.
Q: Male sperm?
A. That is the only kind I know.
__________________________________

Q: Was that the same nose you broke as a child?
A: I have only one, you know.
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Can anyone explain why so many people are coming here looking for Jeri Kehn Thompson photos?

There are dozens of photos of Jeri Kehn here, from the 2008 election. Yeah, we admit it became a bit of an obsession. But why, for the last month, are 300-500 people a day coming to All This Is That to look for them? We're utterly stumped. We know we're high on the Google Kehn search results--but that only brought in a couple dozen of people a day...until recently.



When traffic suddenly went up, we figured she'd died, or filed for divorce, or had been somehow plunged back into the headlines. But that doesn't seem to be the case.

If you can, let us know why--and how--you stopped by to see the Jeri Kehn photos. It's a puzzler for us. And, hey, while you're hear, check out the archives, and become a regular, or subscribe to our RSS feeds. . .


By by the way, this posting lists all of the Jeri Kehn photos published here.

Jack Brummet, Editor in Chief
Pablo Fanque, National Affairs Editor
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Photos: Cats at rest

None of these photos are attributed any photographers, on the sites where I found them. If they're yours, let us know!
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