Yesterday, Fausta of The Bad Hair Blog linked to an article about a recent poll showing that Senator Kerry is considerably ahead of President Bush in the Garden State. Today, the Star Ledger reports that, since 2002 (the year Governor McGreevey took office), New Jersey has the dubious distinction of having a per capita tax increase larger than that of any state except for New York.

Will the large tax increase matter in November? Will the amply documented corruption at the highest levels of state government matter in November? I hope so, but I doubt it. After all, this is the state that has made corruption a fine art, and this is the state thathas elected people like Robert Torricelli, Frank Lautenberg, and John Corzine. This is also the state that went for Bill Clinton, big time.

It’s depressing as hell.

The wedding was great. The bride was seriously beautiful. The groom was very handsome. The priest was very Irish. The reception was terrific, the food was good and the drinks were plentiful…very plentiful.

Of course, when someone at the wedding said, “Hey, when we get back to the hotel, let’s all meet at the bar,” you just know who stepped right to the front of the line. All of that has left me extremely tired and more than just a little toxic. I’m going to spend the balance of the evening re-hydrating and renewing my friendship with Mr. Recliner. I think it missed me.

Well, not really, as I will be attending the nuptials of a family member. Probably see ya some time on Sunday.

Although I had gotten a few hints that it might be coming, today I see that my friend Craig at mtpolics is bagging it taking a blogging hiatus. I truly hope that he only needs a battery recharge and that he will back sooner rather than later.

As I have said before here, here, here, here, and here, Craig is, quite simply, the nicest guy in the blogosphere.

I owe him a truckload of beer for all the acts of kindness he has shown me, and I only hope I get the chance to deliver the suds.

Take it easy, buddy. You have my e-mail address. Please use it often.

Oh, and one more thing. If you decide to shut the server down, please gimme enough time to write one more post about my great farookin’ hair before you flip the switch. 🙂

I am a huge fan of Jeff Goldstein’s Protein Wisdom. I read it every day, and I continue to marvel at Jeff’s seemingly boundless creativity. In truth, I sometimes suspect that he has some really gnarly snakes crawling around in his head, but I wish I knew where I could buy some just like them for my cruller.

One thing that never ceases to catch my interest is his uncanny ability to carry on a conversation with inanimate objects (or, at least, I had always thought they were inanimate objects). For example, he has had conversations with a McIntosh Apple and with his Levis.

Well, because, as they say, “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery,” and also because I have often wanted to talk to my pants, I decided to give it a try.

Me: “Yo! Dockers! Hayadooin’?”

Dockers:

Me: “Perhaps you didn’t hear me. I said ‘hello’.”

Dockers:

Me: “So, what are your thoughts on the upcoming election? Kerry? Bush? What?”

Dockers:

Me: “What’s up? Have you signed some kind of exclusive deal with that Jeff guy?”

Dockers:

Me: “Bastard! I hope you’re around for my next beer fart.”

I guess I just don’t pack the gear.

A conservative living in Berkeley (talk about tough duty), MMM left the blogosphere about a year ago.

Now, he’s back.

Excellent.

Thanks to Russ at TacJammer for the heads up.

I have been e-mailing with a good friend who is considering buying a new electric guitar. As a result, I have been thinking a bit more about electric guitars than I usually do. That caused me to pay particular attention to a post I saw over at J-Walk Blog about Afri-Can guitars. These are electric guitars, the bodies of which are not made of wood, but rather they are made from oilcans.

At first, I considered that such an “instrument” was either a gag or a gimmick not to be taken seriously. However, after checking out the Afri-Can Guitars site, I am convinced that these things are the real deal. What sealed it for me was a cyber-trip to the Listening Room to hear these instruments in action. In one sound clip, the player ends the riff with a couple harmonics that are really sweet. The blues also sound great.

From an oilcan??? Who knew?

Imagine a wonderful dinner party with friends or family – perhaps even a holiday dinner, complete with all the trimmings. Imagine how you will delight your guests when, for dessert, you serve a Thorax Cake. The baker’s goal was to create an authentic looking thoracic cavity, containing all the parts as shown in Gray’s Anatomy. In addition, “The plan was for each organ to be made out of a different kind of cake and to secrete a different color of fluid when it was cut into.”

Check out the Thorax Cake here, and don’t miss the following two pages that detail its creation.

And, if that doesn’t float your boat, the site owner and baker, also has created a Zombie Cake. I know of a fellow in Colorado who might be interested in commissioning one of these babies.

Emeril, eat your heart, lungs, liver, spleen, kidneys and digestive tract out.

Via The Presurfer.

I find that it is becoming more and more difficult to blog about things that are amusing (at least to me), because, lately, the politics of the day occupies my mind. Today, for example, I was stewing over Howard Dean’s reckless “questioning” of whether (although he clearly has made up his mind on this) and to what extent (he’s made up his mind on this one too) the terror alerts in Washington, New York and Newark were politically motivated. It troubles me to think that anyone would think this about any president, never mind that such a scheme would require a massive conspiracy involving any number of federal, state and local governmental entities.

Memo to Howard Dean: If President Bush were doing this for political gain, he absolutely would not waste his time concocting a phony alert in NEWARK, for Chrissake, where Joseph Stalin or Elmer Fudd would win an election if they ran as Democrats.

I was also stunned by John Kerry’s bitching that the President is not acting swiftly enough in dealing with the War on Terror, and arguing that the President should seek to adopt all the 9/11 Commission’s recommendations immediately. This is the same guy who in January, 2003 claimed that the terror threat was “exaggerated.” It makes my hair hurt.

I really don’t like blogging about these things, for the reasons stated here. In addition, I absolutely lack the patience exhibited by Zombyboy in dealing with wackos such as those who responded to one of his posts.

I, therefore, will do my best to avoid talking politics here and to try to keep the daily political combat from destroying my will to write about other things.

It ain’t easy.

Yesterday was another great day on The Deck. The water was perfect, and the food was delicious (which included do-it-yourself sundaes), all of which will pose a formidable challenge to today’s Lipitor.

Ken, the Anal Cruise Director, played a CD that I had not previously heard. It is called “License to Chill,” on which Jimmy Buffett does sixteen tunes with country singers such as Clint Black, Kenny Chesney, Alan Jackson, and Toby Keith. My two favorites were Hey Good Lookin’ and Sea of Heartbreak. I just placed my order with Amazon.com.

In related news, we played Crosby’ Stills, Nash, and Young’s Southern Man, the live, LONG, version (recorded, I believe, at the Filmore) at the appropriate volume (i.e. loud), at least three times, which made Original Bill crazy. We love when that happens.