Liar's Club

Or, how I spent my New Year's Day eve responding to yet another meme - Thanks, Robert, old buddy old pal-o-mine. . .

The shtick is that I'm supposed to create seven falsehoods about myself and my life, so, what better place to start than at the very beginning:

I was born into troubled times in our great country; to parents who couldn't even acknowledge my existence for the harm it would cause. It mattered not to me, as I lost them both in my earliest years. I never knew of my earlier connections to Robert Rouse until recently.


I was taken in by friends of mother, who raised me in a strict Mormon environment, and introduced me to show biz. Most people never even knew that there were two Jimmy Osmonds due to our striking resemblance. I still have my white leisure suit.

Having had a taste of the show biz way of life, I decided to venture out on my own, and soon landed my very own show here in Fort Wayne. Enough time has now passed that I can come clean and admit the following: yes, I was the famous Happy the Hobo on WFFT-TV!


Alas, the pressures of a show biz career put too much of a strain on my marriage. I could only take so many snide comments: "big shoes, so much for that theory" - "you taste funny" - "ram it, clown". Paula and I still stay in touch, and are much better as friends than as husband and wife.


In my efforts to reconcile my life after the breakup, I locked myself away in a secluded warehouse in the Sierra Nevada's, where I eventually perfected the prototype for the fuel cell vehicle shown here at the Bonneville Salt Flats. Little did I know what trouble I'd caused for myself!


Rightly believing that my new technology would cause great harm to his oil company profits, Dick Cheney had me rounded up and deposited in a black site prison in Yugoslavia. To add insult to injury, I was forced to work around the clock repairing old Yugo's.


I would have rotted there forever if not for the efforts of Russ Feingold - he dispatched a crack team of Badgers to free me and join him in his 2008 presidential run. How could I possibly say no after that? Please vote for the Feingold-Good ticket this year, and remember our platform: Beer and cheese for ALL Americans!!



God bless you, and God bless America!!

Thinking Blogger Award

Okay, Mary Ellen over at the Divine Democrat was gracious enough to award me the prestigious "Thinking Blogger" award. I'm not sure how worthy this humble blogger is of this honor, but I gladly accept and offer my sincere thanks to Mary Ellen for inclusion into such a fine group!

As a recipient of this award, it is now my duty to award five other bloggers who's work gives me pause and makes me think a little bit. There are many such individuals out there who meet this criteria; narrowing it down to just five will not be easy, but here goes:

Lew Scannon - This author of the weblog unbrainwashed, in addition to having a clever pseudonym, always makes me think. He puts alot of passion and energy into his writing, and always has lots of links to back things up.

Jeff Pruitt - While Fort Wayne Left is supposed to be a group effort between Jeff, Robert Rouse, and myself, Jeff has been the driving force behind what it has become over the last few months: A well-thought out progressive blog focused on local issues that has become a local favorite.

Paddy Kraska - Paddy Kraska helps out here in her (snork) spare time. Most of the time, you can find her at Cliff Schecter's place where it seems like she blogs 18 hours per day! Paddy has a nose for right-wing hypocrisy and always finds the great stuff.

John Q Public - JQP sort of defies category, but he always makes me laugh, even when his humor rises above my level. This dude can really write, folks! He's also a strong progressive voice, and a good guy to have a beer with. . .Umm. . .not in a GWB sorta way!

PeaceChick Mary - Mary has alot to write about, and she manages to do so very well in between contributing to several other blogs and visiting all the rest of us! Always a pleasure to read wherever you run into her. . .


Now, here are the rules:

1. If, and only if, you get tagged, write a post with links to 5 blogs that make you think.

2. Link to this post so that people can easily find the exact origin of the meme.

3. Optional: Proudly display the ‘Thinking Blogger Award’ with a link to the pos
t that you wrote.

My Magnificent Seven

The Magnificent Seven!

Okay, I've just been tagged by Barrett Laurie. . .

There are four simple rules--

1. Each player starts with seven random facts/habits about themselves.

2. People who are tagged need to write their own blog post with their seven things as well as these rules.

3. You need to tag seven others and list their names on your blog.

4. Remember to leave a comment for them letting them know they have been tagged and to read your blog.

Seven Random Facts About Me

1-In person, I'm actually very quiet.

2-I enjoy working with my hands and completing projects.

3-I hate bees and wasps.

4-I have visited 42 states.

5-My drink of choice is Budweiser Select.

6-I like to cook, and prepare most of our meals.

7-I collect old road maps and atlases.

Alright, I was able to pare that down to seven that weren't scary. . .;) Now to tag a few other unsuspecting souls:

1-Dave at Der Parson's Rant--Dave's an old friend who recently began blogging and is Fort Wayne's ONLY Amish blogger!

2-Chuck from Divided States of Bushmerica--Chuck is passionate writer with who shares many of my own interests.

3-Gary from Declarations--Gary's a true soldier for his cause and I'm proud that we're on the same team.

4-Donnie from the Katrinacrat--Talk about a guy who knows how to network; Donnie's the real deal.

5-Mary over at Knock Knock--Mary and I not only always agree on the issues, but she makes me laugh!

6-Pissed Off Patricia from Morning Martini--If you've never visited POP and her cat, go there NOW.

7-Sewmouse from Sew's Spot--Another blogger that always gives me a chuckle. And another one that I don't visit nearly enough (Like all of the above!).

That's a wrap on MY Magnificent Seven! Thanks to Barrett Laurie for adding me to his list. Now. . .off to warn the above "victims"!

Tagged Again!

SpadoMan included me in his tagged list today, and said some very nice things about me. As it turns out, we have quite a bit in common. I, too, started my blog in January of 2006. Like Spado, I have also been very busy lately, but try to make my rounds as much as possible. The work I do doesn't allow me to express myself creatively; blogging fills that void for me - sometimes too much! I recently added a laptop to our inventory so that I may roam around the house on WiFi rather than disappearing into the basement for hours on end.

I am truly grateful for all of the friends that I have made via the blogosphere, on all sides of the issues. It has been simply indescribable to hook up with so many great people with like interests on issues, as well as getting to know, understand, and respect people from across the aisle who are willing to do the same.

The meme that I have been tagged with by Spado asks me to name five of my favorite blogs and tell why they are my favorites, or list five that at least make me think. As noted by Spado, it's not easy to select five out of one's entire blogroll, and preferences change daily based on one's mood, so I'll try to pick out five that work for me at this given moment in time. That being said, if you are listed in my blogroll, you could be one of these five at any given time, depending on the mood I am currently in, what kinda day I had, etc.

One of the things Spado noted, and I fully agree with:

"My absolute favorite thing is when one of the bloggers goes through and reads the comments and then writes a personal note to each and every one of the people who left a comment. I realize that some discussions are for the sole purpose of provoking thoughts and ideas, and that the task would be overwhelming to accomplish, but when it happens and I see the blogger mention my name and say something directly to me, I am thrilled."

I couldn't agree more with that statement, and usually attempt to do exactly that! I appreciate that people take the time to comment - they deserve a response! Thank you to all of you who do the same! And now to my list. . .

1. Blognonymous - My froggy friend is always on top of things, and usually has an interesting take on what's going on around us. His work is always well-researched and he links to relevant articles. And Kvatch is one who responds to all comments on a regular basis - you always feel welcome there.

2. Hill Country Gal - She makes me laugh! She's up on the latest news and spins it in her own way like nobody else can with her unique sense of humor. Add to that the fact that she cares about her blogging friends enough to stay in touch via e-mail, and offers up personal support and reinforcement. She has a heart as big as her state of Texas! (Unlike that carpetbagging vile prick)

3. Dusty - I doubt that there is a left-coast blogger more on top of current issues than Dusty - I often have to come back several times just to digest it all! She's been an activist for longer than she probably cares to admit, and God bless her for all of her work! She sets the bar incredibly high for the rest of us. And she creates some damned fine video montages!

4. The Undeniable Liberal - What can I say? Every time I click over, he has THE post that *I* was gonna do - only better! We obviously listen to the same media sources, and the man does an awesome job of reporting the daily events as they should be told. Not to mention that he's a great family guy and fellow mid-westerner. Rock on, dude!

5. Craig - This author of the weblog "Reverent and Free" is, by my own label, "cerebral and sarcastic". Hard to go wrong with that combination! Even the victims of his venom generally respect him for his work, because Craig doesn't really care what you think - He's gonna give you his side of things regardless, and one can't help but follow along!

It's terribly difficult to leave this list at only five, but there they are. I doubt that you wouldn't enjoy any of the blogs that I link to here at Left in Aboite, but rules are rules, whims are whims, and moments are moments, so. . .here we are.