Can you believe I'm posting this early in the day? It's b/c I may be hanging with friends later on.
Here are some photos of what went on last night at Chez LT.
The "Simon's Cat" book was delivered and Tuxboy was not about to give up his sprawls on my lap for me to read it.
I came across an appropriate page for both TK and lauowolf's NikitaKitten (embiggen to see comics):
Tortie had been on the couch before TK hopped up. Since we didn't stop him, and he's just too icky to deal with, she gave us all this:
And there's your average Tuesday night at our house.
One hundred years ago today the fastest pacing race horse of the day, DAN PATCH, ran his last race. Dan was fleet footed and quick as hell. You can watch his story - The Great Dan Patch at the Internet Archive.
Learn more about Dan at the Dan Patch Historical Society.
Love:
- Art & Tea (aka: Alice in Paris), upon hearing that I had not rec'd a package in the "15 Things Swap" took it upon herself to put together a package (after already having assembled & sent the one she was assigned to), so that I would not be left out of the exchange. Not only was this extremely generous spiritually but also financially - shipping alone was $20!!
- Pics of the "15 Things" to follow - my web enabled phone is MIA at the moment so I had to take them with the old phone
- Said package arrived at a perfect time as a lot of events and experiences had combined so that my mental status was (is?) 90% negative and I had recently decided NOT to give to charities this holiday season. Not a penny!! Her act of kindness restored my faith in (some of) humanity enough so that, today, I donated Tday dinners for 6 local families.... that's 24 people getting a free meal thanks to her.
- Some of the items she sent were just perfect for me (I've been planning to buy a new, heat-resistant spatula - but she sent one!). One made me laugh cause it was so off base (a kitchen scrubbie... we all know I don't clean!! lol (I'm sure the housekeepers will put it to good use.))
|
12/06/09 Disney Hall Los Angeles, CA
Read More
12/07/09 Casbah San Diego, CA 12/08/09 Detroit Bar Costa Mesa, CA 12/09/09 Cafe Du Nord SF, CA 12/10/09 Humboldt Brews Arcata, CA 12/11/09 Mississippi Std Portland, OR 12/12/09 Media Club Vancouver, BC 12/13/09 Wild Buffalo Bellingham, WA 12/14/09 Chop Suey Seattle, WA 12/16/09 Brookdale Lodge, CA 12/17/09 Cellar Door Visalia, CA 12/18/09 Bootleg Theater LA, CA |
|
|
Songs range from borderline country music to Dylan-type folk. The later is especially true when one of the band member breaks out the harmonica.
They ended their set with "Wishes and Stars", my favorite song from Harper that I've heard. Instead of doing that fake-leaving-the-stage, they just stayed on stage and played some encores. The last song is a cover of "A Message to You, Rudy", who you & I probably know as a ska song by the Specials (but it's originally by Dandy Livingstone).
So this was the last night of their national tour. It sounds like they've been very tired, some even looked relieved, but they were certainly very happy to be playing in front of an audience. The band admitted that this was one of the better crowds, considering that they've played a few shows to "five people".
Trivia: Touring drummer Russell Simins, best known for being in Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, is from Minnesota.
11/25/2009 01:12:04 ♥ vu (
) ♥ myspace.com/harpersimon
Which is pretty good.
Got some different prescription wet fud for TK. He seems to like it much better. He's sleeping on my bed.
HRTortie is sleeping in FDaddy's lap, all adorably floofy, with one white paw sticking out.
TK has an appointment Saturday afternoon to get de-coned. We'll all be glad of that.
A short vacation gives me a chance to write about a topic that has been on my mind for the last couple of weeks. I got a new client a few weeks ago. He is 20 years old, a first time offender, and accused of a felony. I did his arraignment at around 11 pm one night about a month ago. I was surprised when I got his paperwork and it contained a big ink stamp stating STEP ELIGIBLE. I had seen a courtroom in the Brooklyn Criminal Court that said STEP on it, but the reality is that I had little idea what it was or what it was for.
As I came to learn, STEP stands for Screening & Treatment Enhancement Part. It is a courtroom for first offender accused of felony drug offenses. It offers substance abuse treatment as an alternative to incarceration. Because my young client was not accused of a drug crime, I did not think he would qualify, but I was surprised to learn that someone whose drug or alcohol addiction contributed or caused their alleged criminal conduct, even if the crime was not drug related, could be eligible for the program.
First of all, the STEP program is important from a criminal justice standpoint. Many non-violent drug offenders are poorly served by incarceration. Incarceration for non-violent drug offenses crowds our jails, stigmatizes people with a criminal record making it harder to break the cycle of drug abuse, and does nothing to treat the underlying addiction. The program not only offers drug counseling, but, in later stages, offers skills and job training. Thus, graduates, who are in the program for a minimum of a year, ideally come out clean and better prepared to contribute to society and earn a living.
Second, many of the plea bargains offered in STEP result in the complete dismissal of the charges against the defendant. This is crucial for first time offenders as a criminal record is catastrophic to future employment opportunities. Take my client, for example. He is 20 years old, has 2 years college education and had a decent job. New York does not expunge criminal records, so if he pleads guilty to a felony, it will be with him the rest of his life. He can never recover from a mistake made when he was 20 years old. Instead, through STEP, he pled guilty to a felony, with sentencing held in abeyance. If he graduates from the STEP program, the charges against him will be dismissed and sealed. This restores him to his pre-arrest condition so that he will never have to disclose it to future employers and will not be at risk of losing whatever certifications he has or wants. The next year will be tough as the program has strict requirements and, for now, he has the felony on the record. But it will be well worth it for the rest of his life as he can do what other criminal defendants can't do, truly put the incident behind him.
Finally, and most importantly, the vibe of the STEP courtroom is simply different. Lawyers and defendants are treated with dignity. There is the same Legal Aid lawyer every day, and all his clients walk in and give him a warm greeting. When the judge comes into the courtroom she says hello to everyone and "reprimands" defendants and lawyers alike if our return greeting is not hearty enough. She takes the time to talk to the clients, to scold them when necessary and praise them when appropriate. When a participant graduates to the next level of the program, she leads the courtroom in a standing ovation. She smiles, is patient (sometimes too patient for those of us with other cases to get to) and gives everyone the sense that just because they are criminal defendants, and just because they have problems with drugs and alcohol, does not mean that they don't deserve to be treating with dignity.
My most huggable Kemi!
This is a little gallows humor that I whipped up and sent to Scott Kurtz and my friends at Penny Arcade when we all knew that Aeofel was dead, but couldn't tell anyone else in the world.
Black Friday is the unofficial kickoff to the holiday shopping season. When are you planning on beginning your holiday shopping?
Sponsored by Best Buy. Find holiday gifts for everyone on your list.
Never... I'll be visiting Reverend Billy and the Church of Life After Shopping (formerly known as the Church of Stop Shopping) and Buy Nothing Christmas instead...
Wow. The title of this book is too long for blog header title...
Letters from a cat: published by her mistress for the benefit of all cats and the amusement of little children (Helen Hunt Jackson: 1880, c1879).
but the printing was pretty bad, and they were signed by
Pussy's name ; and my mamma always
looked very mysterious when I asked about
them, as if there were some very great
secret about it all ; so that until I grew
to be a big girl, I never doubted but that
Pussy printed them all alone by herself,
after dark.
I haven't read it yet, I did leaf through it yesterday and was so enchanted, but I didn't have the time to actually read it, but now it's first on my list
