(11:29:59 AM) Me: Wow, McCain announced his VP pick, and it’s a woman
(11:30:20 AM) Me: He’s going after those Hillary voters something fierce
(11:30:21 AM) Roommate: That is kind of surprising to me.
(11:30:35 AM) Me: From what I’ve read she’s all kinds of sharp and sane
(11:30:50 AM) Roommate: Well that’s good.
(11:30:52 AM) Me: But not a lot of experience outside of being governor of Alaska
(11:31:18 AM) Roommate: Dude, I might have to vote in this election.
(11:32:18 AM) Roommate: Governor of Alaska? That lady has got to be hardcore. Even if McCain dies of being super old we’ll have a badass president.
(11:33:01 AM) Me: Yep
(11:33:14 AM) Me: Pretty great pick in my opinion
(11:33:52 AM) Roommate: She was governor of the most anarchic state in the Union. Those people are crazy up there!
(11:34:45 AM) Me: Cap’n Change went and picked a windbag old senator for his VP
(11:35:14 AM) Me: McCain basically said, “Oh yeah? I’m picking a woman who is younger than you. Eat it.”
(11:35:25 AM) Roommate: Fairbanks is like the damn Halls of Valhalla. It can barely be considered civilized.
(11:37:08 AM) Me: “She had earned stripes — and enmity — after Murkowski made her head of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission. From that post, she exposed ethical violations by the state GOP chairman, also a fellow commissioner.”
(11:38:38 AM) Me: Basically Mrs. Palin here knocked off an incumbent Republican and has been taking the names and kicking the asses of shady buereaucrats ever since
(11:39:31 AM) Roommate: That is some impressive stuff.
(11:40:10 AM) Me: And she ain’t bad-lookin’ for a middle aged woman, which sadly is a big deal
(11:40:43 AM) Me: Especially against a candidate who routinely brings hippies to tears at his speeches
(11:40:49 AM) Roommate: I didn’t even think about that part. It is a shame that is a big deal.
(11:41:29 AM) Me: And whose VP I’m pretty sure has his teeth buffed weekly by a team of DuPont engineers
(11:42:01 AM) Roommate: DuPont engineers are smart dudes.

Obama-Biden ‘08: Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah

The Corner has been laying into Barack Obama pretty hard this week, which is important in order for the folks at National Review to get their checks from Karl Rove and Eeeevil Republicans, Incorporated. Or, more realistically - but no less ridiculously - it’s important because the major news outlets appear set on running interference for the Obama campaign from now until November.

Peter Kirsanow has posted a couple of simple but devastating bullet lists covering issues that a whole lot of people besides the usual suspects (yours truly, McCainiacs, board members at Rove Corp.) should be concerned about. Or would be concerned about if the major networks would cover anything substantive with something resembling even-handedness.

Going in reverse order, yesterday Kirsanow broke down Obama’s extremism and excuses with regard to the Born-Alive Infant Protection Act. It’s obvious that Obama is far, far to the left of most Americans on this subject. That, or he’s so beholden to the far left when it comes to abortion that despite his beliefs - whatever they may be - he voted against a bill based on the fear that it could potentially be perceived to conflict with Roe v. Wade. Never mind the fact that he could have allayed said concern by adding a single phrase, which is something you’d think a law professor might consider.

Tuesday Kirsanow listed some of the things that should indicate, to any sober observer, what a radical Obama truly is. Not based on assumptions, distortions, or exaggerations, but on Obama’s stated positions and voting record. If you disagree with the Iraq war (while agreeing with the Afghanistan war) so strongly that Obama’s War on Terror position makes up for his numerous zany socialist stances in your mind.. then I guess you decided long ago who you were voting for. Otherwise, please don’t take His Obamaness at face value.

This is one of those house-related entries you were promised and have been awaiting with bated breath. As common sense and common knowledge suggested, I got the nicest place I could comfortably afford. All things considered it’s a nice place indeed, thanks to a quarter century’s worth of outlandish and unwarranted generosity from my family. In fact, I bought it thinking I would not need to do anything for a few months at the very least. No small feat, given my perfectionism.

Well, since early June I’ve spent over a grand at Lowe’s and nearly as much at Home Depot. The front flowerbed sits higher than the sidewalk, so I put in edging blocks to keep the topsoil from washing away.

The grass directly behind (and south of) the house was dead (as opposed to the rest of the yard, which is only mostly-dead), which seemed a great excuse to turn the space into a flowerbed.

The deck, I realized, looked as if it hadn’t been stained or sealed since the house was built 12 years ago. And I wanted a grill. And some patio furniture.

One evening before I coughed up a wad of cash to have Sullivan Tree & Yard Service (their work is mediocre given the price - take your business elsewhere) trim the tree nearest the house, I was locked in an epic struggle with the garden hose and hose reel. I heard a small but frantic fluttering and could not find the source. Then, I looked up - there in the tree was a small grey bird with orange wing tips, hanging upside down. I worked my way up the (at most 25 foot tall) tree with my trusty side cutters and trimmed away whatever stringy plastic stuff the little guy was tangled in. For the first time ever, a use for my carefully honed tree-climbing skills!

And not the last time my neighbors will look outside and ask “What on earth is that boy doing?”