Day Trip to Volo

Less than two weeks ago I read an article stating the corn crop was at its ideal picking. We had other plans that weekend and could not get away to sample the corn. Yesterday, Donna and I made the trek to Volo, Illinois, where the article stated the corn was especially good. Volo is less than an hour away, yet we made a day of it. The tiny town has an automotive museum and a large antique mall. The museum was not up to the standards of the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles or the Imperial Palace Hotel's automobile collection in Las Vegas, but considering it is in the middle of nowhere, it was a pleasant surprise. We found the cars too tightly packed for us to fully appreciate them. The acoustics were awful and we could not listen to any of the audio video displays. Yet the collection was nice, particularly if you have an interest in late-1960s and early-1970s American muscle cars. The picture is of Donna next to the Lotus Esprit used in Pretty Woman, starring Julia Roberts, and Donna's favorite, Richard Gere.


Aside from being next to a spot where Richard Gere had been, the antique mall was the highlight for Donna. She was unable to make it through each of the buildings but she added to her collection of tea cups. Amazingly, I made it through the mall without spending any money, although the temptation was great.

On the way out of town as the vendors were packing up, we remembered the reason for the trip and got a few ears of corn. The selection was fairly well picked over. I suspect we missed the prime time, but we are looking forward to trying the fresh corn tonight.

Summer Evening in Americana

Occasionally the America I knew when I was growing up can still be found. Last night was such an occasion. Donna and I went to a Summer Breeze concert at the Atcher park in Schaumburg, Illinois. The performance was by Frank Winkler and the Symphonic Pops Orchestra. They played Broadway favorites and light classics. It was also the premier of a nice work titled America's Hope. The weather was comfortable in the low 80s, with just a light breeze, and amazingly bugs were not a problem. Yesterday was a wonderful evening in the Midwest.

Hot Do(u)gs

I noticed Hot Doug's is closed through August 24 for vacation. Those of you outside of the Chicago area may ask why it is notable that a smallish, out of the way, hot dog stand is closed for a couple of weeks. To understand, you have to know the best hot dogs in the world are in Chicago. Forget Coney Island, New York, the arguments center around which stand in Chicago. I am not fond of Chicago-style dogs and regularly violate the cardinal rule of Chicago hot dogs by eating them with ketchup. That said, I am a fan of Gene & Jude's, where ketchup is not available and customers are thrown out if they bring it in. Yes, I am confined to eating in the parking lot and I hope this confessional does not put that at risk. I also enjoy the hot dogs and ambiance of Superdawg Drive-In even if Playboy's Girls Next Door are not there. Years ago when I first visited Chicago with my best friend, we ate at Gold Coast, yes, the hot dogs were so good I remember the place from more than thirty years ago. Nonetheless, they all fail in comparison to Hot Doug's.

In her last visit to Chicago, my daughter made me take her to Hot Doug's even though it meant driving past Gene & Jude's and Superdawg. We ended up waiting in line for 2 hours, 20 minutes for hot dogs! No one in line complained - neither the locals nor those who traveled from out of state just to eat there. Simply put we had the best hot dogs of our lives. We each ate two. I ate:
1) The Elvis Polish Sausage: Smoked and savory - just like the King;
and
2) The Marty Allen (formerly the Don Rickles) Thuringer: Hello der beef, pork and garlic.


Chelsea's selections were more exotic. She ate:
1) Hot Doug's BLT: Bacon Sausage with Avocado Mayonnaise, Iceberg Lettuce, Cherry Tomatoes and Hickory-Smoked Sweet Swiss Cheese;
and
2) The Thomas McKean (Celebrity Sausage for the day): Cherry and Apple Pork Sausage with Sweet Curry Mustard, Cocoa Cardona Cheese and Vodka-Infused Dried Fruit.

The fries look greasy, but they were fried in duck fat and were crisp. They did not even leave a hint of a grease stain.

Enjoy your vacation Hot Doug, you will be missed.

Among the Beautiful People

Thursday evening after work, I went with two colleagues to Javier’s Cantina and Grill at Crystal Grove in Newport Beach, California (http://javiers-cantina.com/). I am not saying I am cheap, but I am not one to spend four dollars for valet parking when there is free parking forty feet away. Biologists say cars are inanimate, yet I sensed my rental Toyota Corolla would feel inadequate if they positioned it next to the Phantom Drophead Coupé in the valet parking. The maitre d' pleasantly surprised me by allowing us to eat at the restaurant. I am sure I had nothing to do with our getting in. Perhaps he heard the hint of European accent in Sandy’s voice. Maybe the much younger Megan was sufficiently hip, in an Illinois way. Regardless, he chose to seat us instead of directing us to Taco Bell. Thankfully I did not blind anyone with the sun reflecting off my milky pale skin. Yes, I had on a long sleeved shirt, but if I sat at a different angle my balding head could be dangerous. I did not see a sign posted with the dress code but I am confident my party was the only one in which no one had plastic surgery. I suspect Javier’s selected us for an outreach program to those less fortunate in the community. The food was good and the atmosphere was relaxing, in an awkward way. As for the other clientele, at least physically, some of the beautiful people really are beautiful.

Type 3 Lie

This week the Executive Branch of the U.S. federal government claimed the economic stimulus of February 2009 "created or saved" between 2.5 million and 3.6 million jobs and raised GDP by 2.7% to 3.2% through June 30. (The Wall Street Journal) Rather than using established, accepted, non-partisan data on jobs, the Administration created an arbitrary, non-existent scenario against which they are to be evaluated - what would have happened had the stimulus not passed. Because the scenario is fictitious, it is only a matter of conjecture how many jobs may have been saved or loss. The Administration though has set a maximum threshold of 3.6 million. Given the stimulus was $862Billion, that means our government spent a minimum of $239,445 per job saved or created! Even when choosing to make up data, our government seems unable to do a credible job.

There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.
Benjamin Disraeli, British politician (1804 - 1881)

References:
The Wall Street Journal. "Three Million Imaginary Jobs - WSJ.com." Business News & Financial News - Opinion. Dow Jones & Company, Inc., 15 July 2010. Web. 17 July 2010. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703394204575367421573463984.html.

"Quote Details: Benjamin Disraeli: There Are Three Kinds... - The Quotations Page." The Quotations Page - Michael Moncur's (Cynical) Quotations. Ed. Michael Moncur. QuotationsPage.com and Michael Moncur. Web. 17 July 2010. http://www.quotationspage.com/quote/487.html.

Post-Racial Era?

During 2008 a question often raised with a mixed-race candidate successfully campaigning for the presidency was whether the United States had evolved to a post-racial political status (Schorr). Four recent incidents clearly show such evolution has not taken place.

• U.S. Department of Justice decision to file suit against Arizona and its new immigration law. (Schnur)
• U.S. Department of Justice decision not to pursue significant voter intimidation charges against the New Black Panther Party (Crawford)
• The NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) condemnation of the Tea Party movement on the basis of alleged racism (Carnevale)
• Jesse Jackson's invective against the foolish comments by Cleveland Cavaliers owner Daniel Gilbert as racist after star player LeBron James chose to play for the Miami Heat (Jones)

Interestingly, it is the so-called progressives in each of these situations who appear to have made race a central issue. Ironically, it has been almost a year since President Obama held the so-called "Beer Summit" to create a "teaching moment" following the arrest of African-American Henry Louis Gates Jr. after he was supposedly a victim of racial profiling. Remember, our President, renowned for his lengthy consideration of issues before making a decision - whether it be Afghanistan strategy, waving the Jones Act, getting a dog, or choosing a church - impulsively proclaimed the Cambridge police acted "stupidly." No, unfortunately, we are not in a post-racial era.

References:
Carnevale, Mary Lu. "Political Wisdom: NAACP vs. Tea Party, Round 2." Wall Street Journal Blogs - Washington Wire. Dow Jones & Company, Inc., 16 July 2010. Web. 17 July 2010. http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2010/07/16/political-wisdom-naacp-vs-tea-party-round-2/.

Clark, Vernon. "Charles Ogletree Tackles Henry Louis Gates’ Arrest in New Book." The Edge. Boston Herald and Herald Media, 14 July 2010. Web. 17 July 2010. http://www.bostonherald.com/entertainment/books/view/20100714charles_ogletree_tackles_henry_louis_gates_arrest_in_new_book/srvc=home&position=recent.

Crawford, Jan. "New Black Panther Case Spurs Civil Rights Commission to Challenge DOJ." Breaking News Headlines. CBS Interactive Inc., 14 July 2010. Web. 17 July 2010. http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504564_162-20010581-504564.html.

Jones, Betsy. "Jesse Jackson Stands By LeBron - and 'Slavery' Slam of Cavs Owner." BET.com News. Black Entertainment Television LLC, 15 July 2010. Web. 17 July 2010. http://www.bet.com/News/National_Jesse_Jackson_Stands_By_LeBron_and_Slavery_Slam_of_Cavs_Owner.htm.

Schnur, Dan. "The Politics of Suing Arizona." Washington Post - Opinions. The Washington Post Company, 11 July 2010. Web. 17 July 2010. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/09/AR2010070904719.html.

Schorr, Daniel. "A New, 'Post-Racial' Political Era in America : NPR." NPR News Analysis. National Public Radio, 28 Jan. 2008. Web. 17 July 2010. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=18489466.

NASA Mission

It only took a week, and even then the refutation was tepid, but the executive branch of the federal government through White House spokesperson Robert Gibbs has finally acknowledged it is not a task of NASA "to reach out to the Muslim world and engage much more with dominantly Muslim nations to help them feel good about their historic contribution to science, math, and engineering." That is one of three things NASA administrator Charles Bolden stated he was charged to do by President Obama. The other two were to: 1) help re-inspire children to want to get into science and math; and 2) expand our international relationships. Conspicuously missing is anything directly related to aeronautics or space. Thankfully NASA's official mission statement remains straightforward and succinct: To improve life here, to extend life to there, and to find life beyond.

References:

"When I became the NASA Administrator — before I became the NASA Administrator — [Obama] charged me with three things: One was he wanted me to help re-inspire children to want to get into science and math, he wanted me to expand our international relationships, and third, and perhaps foremost, he wanted me to find a way to reach out to the Muslim world and engage much more with dominantly Muslim nations to help them feel good about their historic contribution to science, math, and engineering."

NASA administrator Charles Bolden

York, Byron. "Obama’s New Mission for NASA: Reach out to Muslim World." Beltway Confidential. Washington Examiner, 05 July 2010. Web. 13 July 2010.

Gibbs, at his daily news briefing, was asked why Bolden had made the comment.

"It's an excellent question, and I don't think -- that was not his task, and that's not the task of NASA," Gibbs said

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs

Reuters. "White House Corrects NASA Chief on Muslim Comment | Reuters." Business & Financial News, Breaking US & International News | Reuters.com. Reuters, 12 July 2010. Web. 13 July 2010.

NASA Mission Statement

· To improve life here,

· To extend life to there,

· To find life beyond.

NASA Vision

To understand and protect our home planet, To explore the Universe and search for life, and To inspire the next generation of explorers... as only NASA can.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration. ".: NASA Mission Statement Nasa Information-Nasa Informations-Nasa Info-Nasa Images-Space Shuttle Space Station-Nasa Tv -Nasa News-Space Station Informations." . Nasa Information-Nasa Informations-Nasa Info-Nasa Images-Space Shuttle Space Station-Nasa Tv -Nasa News-Space Station Informations. National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Web. 13 July 2010.