SITREP

Just didn't want the headlining entry on my blog to be a political rant from waay back before Super Tuesday. A few updates:

- Busy as hell on the current show. Had a great time wrapping up this summer's shows, Iron Man and Wall-E (very, very minor role on Wall-E). Took a few days out of my one week off to finally go check out tapings of the Daily Show and Colbert. A co-worker got me and a few other co-workers backstage for Colbert which was absolutely awesome. I took pictures, but I think they don't want me to put those up on the blog.

- I swear to God my body is just deciding to fall apart on me this year. The ankle thing from early on got re-aggravated three times through the spring/summer, putting me back on a cane for about a week or two each time. Now my back is acting up. I think a lot of it is the heavy work schedule resulting in lack of exercise and probably a bit too much 'comfort food'. Looking forward to spending time working out more and recuperating after the show wraps.

- I'm working with Milo to give up Tuna (the cat). I've got to say that folks really undersold the issues involved in getting a cat when I was originally making my decision. Contrary to what I was told, yes, I'm too busy, and yes, my apartment is too small. Maybe she's comfortable with the apartment's size, but even with daily litter changes, my apartment regularly smelled like poo. I also was never told about the kind of 'blame-the-victim' outlook on pee problems. If a cat pees somewhere, it's your fault, and there's no point in scolding or spanking them because they don't understand why you're upset. In my case it's probably the erratic schedule that upset her, which just can't be helped. I've seriously had a much easier time with dogs. While I still like cats, I can pretty firmly count myself as a dog person.

- A bit of a political rant: We're in the middle of the post-RNC bump for McCain, which is naturally disconcerting to see. Though I'm still somewhat confident for Nov. 4, I've got to admit that I've gotten pretty disappointed in Obama for not taking the offensive early and often. Like so many times before, it seems like the Democratic candidate is constantly on the defensive when the opponent has so much more to answer for. This campaign has managed to surprise me several times before, though, and we are still nearly two months out.

We're Super! Thanks for asking

Given my demographic, my location, and that I'm even writing in a blog, it's probably no surprise that I sent my mail-in last week with the little line filled in for one Mr. Barack Obama. Strongly so -- never has a mark been filled in as darkly or more completely and clearly!

As glad as I am that we're one of the headliners for Super Tuesday, looking at the polls now I can't help but wish that we had just a little while longer for people here in Cali to size things up and realize just how badly we could screw it up by throwing our many, many delegates behind the esteemed opponent. Of some solace is the proportional delegating system, so any momentum gained in recent days should be realized in the actual delegate count.

But still, I really want to shake people sometimes. There's so little substantive difference between what drives the policies of either candidate that electability becomes a perfectly reasonable thing to consider. And as such, you have to wonder how any Democrat old enough to have a fond memory (as I do) of the Clinton administration could forget just how much the GOP loathes the Clinton brand, particularly how well it endured all their attacks during that era. A rematch-by-proxy with the less popular half of the duo has been a wet dream openly expressed by most conservative pundits in the 24-hour news cycle. (As I said before, I'm watching *a lot* of this -- I can say that confidently.) With a base demoralized by the current presidency and a lethargic candidate pool, revenge could be just the motivation they need to bring out their vote.

Beyond the real enthusiasm that many in the Democratic party feel for Obama's message, one can't help but sense a tinge of exasperation in the flood of endorsements from the party leadership and interest groups this week. It's as if they can barely restrain themselves from screaming at the base, "WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE??? DO YOU KNOW WHAT WE'RE IN FOR IF WE SEND HER UP AGAINST MCCAIN???" Seriously.

I'd actually love to see her run again and win it, but now just doesn't seem to be the right time. With Obama we have a real opportunity to change the tone of politics in the nation and produce an environment in the future that may allow her to run without as much of the baggage of her hubby's admin. As Jon Stewart himself said, an Obama-McCain race would be "such a tonic for this country."

And if you think that's just a parroting of the Obama talking points, here's one thing to ask yourself: Do you think Thursday's CNN debate, by all counts the most substantive, civilized, and even fun presidential debate in the last several election cycles, would have even been possible if it wasn't for Obama and his commitment to taking the high ground through all of the abuse he took from his opponents? Imagine if we could sustain this through the General Election.

UPDATE: I guess it's a statement on just how fricking nuts this election is -- a Zogby poll released minutes ago shows him leading in CA 45%-41%. But, of course we know how good polls are this year...

I can stop anytime

It's an election year, and despite better efforts, I'm sure a political rant will crop up here every so often, starting with this one.

For most of last year, I wasn't paying much attention to the races. But then I hurt my foot and spent the days leading up to the IA caucuses stuck at home watching just enough CNN that, coupled with my NPR habit, pushed me from an ambivalent observer to a hopeless election news junkie. Over the past month, I've bookmarked political blogs, election '08 sections from the major news sources, and have been checking in on them far more often than I'd care to admit throughout the day. I'm watching CNN as much as your dad does. When Stewart lampoons network news clips, I've often seen the original broadcast. I turned down a night of drinking to watch the SC primary returns, candidate speeches, and analysis (okay, I was really tired too from a few 50+ hr work weeks).

Folks, if you're not paying attention, you really are missing something that at best will make history, and at the very least will be referenced heavily for years to come in discussions of politics and the nation. You could be experiencing all of it first hand, right now.

I can't conscientiously encourage the kind of habit I've developed, but research will surely show one day the benefits of recreational use!

Season's Triage

I've been a real frequent flyer at the ER this holiday season. On Xmas eve I finally got fed up with the cough I'd been dealing with for about two weeks and checked in, eventually picking up some fine Codeine syrup and antibiotics.

Then on New Year's even I went in for some odd foot pain that I originally woke up with on Friday. I had figured I maybe slept on it wrong or something and just needed to walk it off. By Monday it was excruciating so I was right back into the ER (couldn't find a Podiatrist open) and they figured it was some kind of ligament tear/partial tear in the foot. Raised a fuss and got some vicodin which even then only barely helped.

So I rung in the new year on my couch with my foot propped up and popping pain meds while watching the local news anchors cavort at various local festivities. Probably will have to take the rest of the week off from work too.

Quite a way to kick off '08. I'm really starting to wonder if, contrary to Chinese numerology, 8 is actually a bad number for me. I actually got laid off from my job back on 8/8/01 (though obviously I'm back now), dropped out of Cal in 1998, and probably my worst primary school year ever was 8th grade (but I hear that's the way it is for most people), which started in 1988.

Any way, happy new year, everybody! As for myself, I'm going to be busy watching my back!