Yesterday, morning, after walking the legs off the dog, we went bowling. After a couple of lame games, I did have a good one.

I took Casey treasure hunting along the Sacramento. It was a great day for a 2-mile walk. We did find the cache, too.

Today Rich went to donate blood, then we went to the Home and Garden show. Usually I find this semi-frustrating, so many nice things that we can't use, but this time we talked to two people we may want to find out more from... the roll-up screen doors, including one that recovers from cat's claws, and Rox, a rock veneer which you put on fireplaces that idiotic former owners have painted.

I actually fell for a lot of the rock stuff... kitchen counters, a beautiful fossil fish wall, more, but I can restrain myself.

We went around the south area to get more caches. We chickened out on one as there was a gate guard. Turns out they know about the cache. The others were fun, though, including the one out by a defunct restaurant sign. There we got right in the way of an eighteen-wheeler.

We were going to go to the Jesuit-Sheldon game, which features one of the top players in the US, but we went an hour early, only just found a parking place, walked into the over-crowded gym and Rich decided it was too much trouble to find somewhere to sit and deal with the crowds, so we stopped at KFC and then came home.

I guess the Palm Beach prosecutors don't like being compared to Rio Linda by Rush Limbaugh. That would explain why they're so intent upon GETTING him.

Spirit's problems are not Vince's fault. His job was to get it there to Mars. From now on, it's on its own.

It's a shame that, considering how the president failed to scold the Senate for holding up his judicial appointments, he devoted so much time talking about judges and gay marriage. He warned activist judges to cool their heels on this issue or he would favor some kind of constitutional marriage amendment (though not necessarily the one presently being considered).
...
As for Tommy Daschle, well...he still seems "saddened, saddened." What a lame-o. If this is the best the Democrats can come up for leaders in the Congress, no wonder the best they can come up with for presidential candidates is an off-his-rocker doctor, a French-looking dude (who, by the way, served in Vietnam), a fired general, a trial lawyer, a peacenik, a race-baiter and she-who-shall-not-be-named (yet). Oh, and Joe Lieberman.
--- Chuck Muth

On the State of the Union, I just wish Bush could pronounce nuclear!! On the other hand, mike the analyst sez-

I used to feel the same way but then I figured:
Did anyone try to make Kennedy stop saying "Cuber"?
Did anyone try to keep Reagan from beginning every sentence with "Well.."?
Let's call it an idosyncracy, and in our golden years, when we look at the Bush 43 Presidency, smile and say "remember how he used to say 'nook-u-lar'?"

I have two quotes whose attributions I forgot (oops):

Bush looks better now that the Democratic reply is on. Nancy Pelosi's unblinking, wide-eyed stare-into-the-camera delivery is just creepy. ("Please meet my captors' demands.") But judging from what she said -- and from the fact that every member of the CNN focus group, Democratic and Republican, thought the war was worth it -- I think that Ed Cone was clearly right to say that criticism of the war is approaching its sell-by date.

Prescription for the Democrats: Howard Dean needs more Valium; John Kerry needs more Ritalin; Richard Gephart needs more Prozac; Nancy Pelosi needs less Botox; John Edwards needs less Brylcreme; Joe Lieberman needs more blood; Wesley Clark needs more Truth Serum.
Posted by Stephen @ 01/20/2004 09:46 PM PST

(This is me again)Kennedy made a drowning allusion? I think the raddled old drunk is losing it even more.

SoTU analysis.

Kerry is now changing position on gay marriage. He changes his mind more than his underwear!

Democrats are mad, but they're not crazy.

Sanity breaks out among Democrats: Mad How disease is contained in Iowa. Heh. Also, this.

The Corner:

PEGGY NOONAN ON HOWARD DEAN [Kathryn Jean Lopez]
I paraphrase from memory: There's an old joke that Goerge Bush 41 reminds women of their first husband. Howard Dean last night reminds women of their first husband against whom they had to take out a restraining order.

Lee Harris: "Anyone can win, just as anyone can be defeated, and still not give us a clue to their true metal. But for a man to be badly defeated when he expected to win handily, that is certain to be a moment for the revelation of character, and in Governor Dean's case, it offered him a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to let the American voters know whether or not he possesses those otherwise hard-to-detect long term virtues so necessary to lead our nation in a time of crisis -- virtues such steadiness and magnanimity, endurance and wisdom.

"This last week, unfortunately for his electoral prospects, Howard Dean revealed the stuff that he was made of and did so in a matter of minutes; and -- fairly or unfairly -- many of those who watched his performance found themselves convinced that they now knew what Governor Dean would act like in a moment of genuine national crisis, and were not assured by the insight that had been inadvertently given them. "

Polipundit, it might have been. Krauthammer opines:

As Dean began to slide, I was hoping against hope that he could just hang on -- project sanity -- long enough to win Iowa and New Hampshire and wrap up the nomination before the Democrats could come to their senses. Alas, the democratic process worked.
...
When the late-night comics call you "a hockey dad" (David Letterman) and "the Incredible Hulk" (Conan O'Brien) and "Mr. Rogers with rabies" (Jay Leno), you've got trouble. The most difficult thing to recover from in politics is ridicule.

"I Have a Scream". Heh.