If I understand Obama correctly failing to raise the debt limit would be horrible and catastrophic, but apparently even that level of calamity is not worse than the results of Boehner’s fiscal plan, whatever it is today.

And, if I understand Boehner correctly, failing to raise the debt limit would be horrible and catastrophic, but that level of calamity would not be worse than the results if Obama’s fiscal plan (whatever it is today) were implemented.

So, they both seem to agree that failing to raise the debt limit would be horrible, but is not the worst possible outcome of this mess.  Unless one or both are just bluffing and playing a gigantic game of chicken.

But assuming they’re both telling the truth as they see it, and accepting their ranking of priorities, it looks like I have to accept that ten years of bad budgeting and unchecked spending have left the federal government with no good way back to fiscal responsibility, and that maybe not raising the debt limit ceiling is the best outcome they can agree on.

But then I just have to wonder why we’re delegating the resolution of this problem to the same people on both sides of the aisle who put the country in this situation.

After many years of Comic-Con, we finally went in costume.  We weren’t insane about it.  Even in San Diego, head to toe neoprene is just way too much for me.  And while it might hurt to admit it, I just don’t have the abs of a Spartan warrior/Roman gladiator.  But it certainly brought the experience to a new level: it was a conversation starter and a point of reference.  We were asked to pose for photos and brought smiles to a lot of over-30 faces as they remembered their first Akbar and Jeff moments and we had some nice chats with the folks at the Bongo Comics booth.  Randy even got to meet the Creator, Matt Groening, himself.  While I think returning as Akbar and Jeff next year would get stale, I think we both agree we need to keep going in costume when we return to Comic-Con – the experience is not just different, but seriously better.

At a Comic-Con panel this morning I had the pleasure of hearing Deepak Chopra, Grant Morrison and Deepak’s son Gotham Chopra discuss the concepts of superheroes.  As part of Deepak’s introduction to the panel’s discussion he listed a variety of synonyms for the concept that good and evil are necessary adversaries: angels and fallen angels, particles and anti-particles, and finally change and inertia.  Every time during the day that I caught another news update about the budget show in Washington I kept flashing back to that line, and while I believe Deepak’s logic is correct, am having a lot of trouble seeing anything coming out of Washington, or government in general, to play ‘change’ and take the side of good in the current story.

No one seems to be getting back to me on anything today, which makes for a nice recovery day.  We made the midnight showing of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 last night, which was a very good movie, but it kept me up until 3ish, and then Diego alerted us to a ninja intruder at around 6ish.  Siesta will necessarily be longer than usual.

Pride is this weekend, and so is the San Clemente Ocean Festival, and then Comic-Con starts on Thursday.  So much for July productivity.

Prostate cancer, eight years and counting.

Skipped the fireworks shows and beaches for the long weekend this year to do the suburban homeowner stuff.  Got a little behind schedule when I lost Saturday to attend the funeral of a friend-of-the-family-in-law.  I never met the honoree, but based on the eulogies I wish I had.  Sunday was spent scraping the popcorn ceiling out of my office, then drugging up my left shoulder to the point of nirvana.  Finally, on Monday, I slapped a couple of coats of fresh paint on that same ceiling and installed a very pretty ceiling fan smack-dab in the middle of it.  Then drugged myself back to nirvana.

Someone seeing a picture of the new fan on Facebook commented they were jealous.  Not of this weekend, I assured them.  I was sore and tired and sweating like a pig (especially on Saturday when the plastic sheeting to catch the dust was blocking any chance at all on a cross breeze).  Next weekend you can all be jealous, because I will be rested and ignoring my domestic responsibilities in favor of watching Netflix stuff in my comfortable little upstairs cave.

We did wind out the weekend with some great Tri-Tip and corn off the grill cooked by Master Chef Bestest Husband Randy, and drinkees on the porch while the dog cowered in terror at the noise from distant explosions.  Despite not driving across town to watch the explosions live, we’re still free, and very happy to be here/

Is more or less glad that California finally has a budget.  A bit sad that I’ll lose the pennies a day the sites earned from Amazon referrals, not to mention the prospect of having to pay sales tax on Amazon purchases, but I’ll survive and adjust my spending accordingly.  I wonder if I have to list on my resume that I was TERMINATED as an Amazon Associate?  Did that small coffee every month or so in earnings constitute a job?

On a related note, I’ve been trying to find some actual credible sourcing for the conclusion that the $350 million cuts to the state court system could/may/whatever lead to two court day closures per month for the fiscal year.  All I see is a lot of circular reporting from reporters who report on what other reporters report on concluding this could or would happen.  Any help via the comments would be appreciated.

Looks like we’re snipping one of the wires coming into the condo, dumping Cox’s cable TV in favor of DirecTV.  We’d been looking at the option for a while, and while talking to their rep at the Fair last night decided that paying 60% less per month for more channels was a good thing.  Still have the wired Internet, and at least for today, the landline, but as of next Tuesday I’ll be back on the dish, enjoying service I’ve missed since I left Monterey in 2001.

After all the commentary in May about how Osama bin Laden absolutely unequivocally most certainly had help from local Pakistani authorities in living there as a fugitive, just wondering a bit why the same logic doesn’t apply to fellow FBI most wanted listee Whitey Bulger. Living sixteen years in Santa Monica? Regularly crossing the border with Mexico on foot to obtain prescription drugs? Something just doesn’t seem right here.

Spending a Friday evening watching legislative “debate”, and I’m using that term very loosely, probably isn’t something I’ve ever done before last night.  If I did do it before last night, I’ve successfully repressed the memories with good cause.

The outcome of last night’s New York Senate session however was fascinating and exhilarating.  I wasn’t sure until very near the end if I was watching a train wreck or photo-finish win.  For me it was Senator Grisanti’s speech explaining his vote that convinced me  it would be the latter.

The man gets it. Marriages like mine and Randy’s do not hurt either his own marriage or his faith. The question is about the legal rights and obligations of citizens, not who will call him a flip-flopper, and no politician should be so afraid of evolving they become an impediment to progress.