The other day, I came across a very unusual 1 Dollar bill.



The colorful stamps with the writing "Track this bill: www.wheresgeorge.com" and
"See where I've been and Track where I go next!" piqued my interest.

So I went to the tracking site, entered the serial number of the bill, my zip code and - bam! - it gave me the history of the bill. It said:

This bill has travelled 264 Miles in 117 Days, 23 Mins at an average of 2.3 Miles per day. It went from Springfield, OR to Vancouver, WA and finally landed here in La Pine.

How cool is that?

But. Is it an utter waste of human time and resources - or the most clever and pervasive marketing idea to ever hit this universe? (the site has various ads, but for a small contribution, you can become a member and see the site without ads).

I can't decide. One part of my brain says "Man, this is soooo freaking pointless." The other part says "Man, this is so freaking cool."

What do *you* think? And have you ever found a marked bill like that?

For anybody who thinks I've recently embarked on a George-bashing expedition - well, almost.

Sure, I don't have much love for the man who started a war for no reason, seems to freeze like a deer in the headlights in the face of adversity (go watch "Fahrenheit 911" again, people. Sundance Channel is currently rerunning it. Or better - Tivo it, and watch it every 6 months or so to remind yourself how really fucking wrong things can go ...) and is in general utterly unqualified to run this country.

But - I don't seek out the opportunity to bash George. Rather, this stuff seems to just fall into my lap (i.e. people email it to me). And while much satirical fun has been had with Bill Clinton and Monica back in the day, it pales in comparison to the stuff people seem to come up with in regards to George.

So here, my fellow citizens, are two links I just couldn't resist passing on:

- George on Global Warming (Will Ferrell really nails the accent ...)
- George is Falling (hit refresh to see him falling over and over again, each time in a different fashion...)

Enjoy.

PS: I almost forgot. Don't miss Martin Random's Threefisted Tales of White House Horror. Hilarious.

Update: After watching George tumble for a while, I figured out that you can grab him and really toss him around by clicking and dragging on him. I've thrown him completely off the screen into free floating space, grabbed him and repeatedly banged him against a big ball, and also pulled him through ringer-tight spaces. Fun, fun, fun.

Last Saturday, hubby and I celebrated our 11th wedding anniversary.

And really - what's a better date than a good movie and a great meal.

The Movie? The World's Fastest Indian. Seeing as we both love motorcycles, this was the perfect date movie for us. It's the true story of Burt Monroe who (at an advanced age) travels from New Zealand to the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah to race his modified 1920s Indian motorcycle and set a new land speed record.

There are several factors that contributed to the reason why this movie was so satisfying: For one, Anthony Hopkins is perfect in it. While I'm usually only able to see him as a mere deviation of the Hannibal Lecter character (in lesser roles), the minute he opened his mouth and that Kiwi accent came pouring out, I forgot all about Hannibal.

Two - Burt Monroe is probably as close to a "crazy old coot" as any character I've ever seen, but that's what makes him so irresistibly charming. While he spends the entire movie in the single-minded pursuit of his goal, he is also able to relish the journey in itself, embracing all people he encounters on his travels without prejudice (drag queens, used car dealers, and lonely old ladies alike), and with an utter lack of pride that allows him to ask complete strangers for help and become their instant friend. It was truly refreshing to see a character like that on screen.

Three - the movie gets away with zero special effects or gimmicks. It has a raw quality that you can relate to, lent by an exquisitely told story, but without the usual cheesy tugging-at-the-heartstring crap.

Verdict: Highly recommended.

The Meal? Staccato's at the Old Firehall.
Expensive? Yes. But worth every penny. And I just *love* that I can show up at a really nice restaurant in downtown Bend on a Saturday evening without reservations - and still get a table without having to wait even a few minutes.

As a starter, hubby and I shared a plate of the delicious young spinach with toasted pine nuts, goat cheese and crispy onions, tossed with warm bacon vinaigrette (although I don't remember encountering any pine nuts).

For the entree, I had really wanted either the Wild Boar Pappardelle or the Osso Bucco, but unfortunately both came laced with celery, a vegetable I'm highly allergic to (props to the waitress though who was diligent in checking on the ingredients for me). So instead, I settled for the Halibut Special, with purple mashed potatoes on a bed of spinach (you can never have enough spinach...), while hubby indulged in the Culotte Steak - grilled to perfection with gorgonzola cheese and a roasted garlic risotto cake, sautéed forest mushrooms and port reduction. Both dishes were flawlessly complimented by the glasses of Barbera and Chianti wine.

Are you salivating yet? You do so with good reason, believe me. It was utterly delectable.

Alas, our stomachs were too full for dessert - although I just about *died* when I saw the desserts they served to our neighboring table....

Verdict: Very Highly Recommended.

Life is good.

5. All Central Oregon motorist have once again the pleasure of being able to engage in Spring's most fun and challenging waste of time: dodging pot holes. Courtesy of ice, cold and the ODOT.

4. The stuff falling from the sky is liquid again, and only a few, random bastions of die-hard snow are hanging on for dear life in the shadows of deep forest. Yes, even here in La Pine.

3. My pets - one dog and two cats - have in unison decided that now would be a good time to shed.

2. People have yet again the unique opportunity to waste endless hours of their precious time at Les Schwab - waiting for their tires to get changed over from studs to regular.

1. I saw two grey squirrels yesterday, playing what I thought upon first glance was a game of tag. When the bigger one suddenly mounted the smaller one, it dawned on me that maybe it wasn't tag they were playing - and that indeed Spring now has arrived in Central Oregon.

Yeah.

A few days ago, I got below email from my friend Pauly in Olympia, WA, who was describing his son Chris' recent trip to France.

Chris just got back from a couple of weeks in France. He went to visit his lifelong friend Jeff who married a French woman. He went to Lille and pretty much stayed there. According to Chris, Lille is a bit smaller than Seattle. Jeff lives in a flat in the heart of town, they walked everywhere, and the food was great.

There were lots of demonstrations by people regarding how young workers are treated. Jeff wanted to go to the Muslim part of town because there is a good butcher there. He told Chris if he wanted to come, he needed to let Jeff dress him so he didn't look like an American, and he should not speak, and make believe he was a visiting Italian. [Note: Chris actually is of Italian heritage.] Chris went along with this. Jeff can get away with it, because he looks German and can speak fluently French. Thank you George Bush.

I have no words.

For the love of christ.

Please.

Somebody.

Take that mic away from Britney.



Or better yet - ban her from every recording studio on the face of this planet.
Things like this should never, ever, ever be allowed to happen.



But really, jwz put it best: I do not at this time have words to describe the audio-visual horror that is Britney Spears covering "I Love Rock and Roll".



Blasphemy.