Feline hygeine problems? Ask Ray!

Any advice on cat vomit? I live with two great cats. One cat vomits every once in a while, about every week or so. The vomit consists of any combination of food, saliva, plants, colored liquid (bile?), hairballs. The vet says she's healthy, and to use the hairball control food. We've used that food for years now, we tried that grass to chew on (she eats it, sometimes throws it up), chicken-flavored hairball-control paste stuff. The other cat never vomits; but he gets way curious and close-up-sniffy when she's heaving. She has to continually move to maintain her personal space, so the vomit ends up all around sometimes. It's sort of funny. I don't mind the vomiting b/c it hardly ever leaves a stain anywhere. I just want this cat to be comfortable. Thanks for your time, Ray.
K in PA

Dear K.,

Yeah, man, that don’t sound like too cool of a scene if you ask me. A vomiting cat being chased by kind of a “refluxophile” cat. I’m not gonna do the obvious thing and just go on talkin’ about bulimia, ‘cause that’s a cop out. But seriously, have you checked your liquor cabinet? It’s no trouble for a cat to open a bottle, and if your cat is a pretty bad binge drinker then yeah she’ll urp pretty often. Especially if she is smokin’ weed and stuff. Did you leave your weed out? I don’t know that you did, but it is one idea which came to mind. (more)

Ashcroft in Anchorage: USA PATRIOT Act "misconstrued." Yeah, General, Whatever. The Florida vote count was "misconstrued," too.

U.S. Attorney General Ashcroft defends Patriot Act

By RACHEL D'ORO, Associated Press Writer

ANCHORAGE (July 21, 5:50 p.m. ADT) - U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft defended the USA Patriot Act during a visit to Anchorage Monday, while dozens of demonstrators outside waved signs criticizing the anti-terrorism law and Ashcroft.

The Patriot Act has been "misconstrued," said Ashcroft, a former Republican senator and governor from Missouri who became attorney general in 2001. The act consolidates other laws long on the books that deal with drug dealers and other suspects of serious crimes, he said.

The law, passed by Congress shortly after the 2001 terrorist attacks, broadens government powers of surveillance and investigative methods.

"It's simply a way of extending a robust set of tools available in other settings to fight terrorism," Ashcroft said at a press conference at the Captain Cook Hotel.

Ashcroft was in Alaska to meet with members of the state's anti-terrorist task force and U.S. Attorney Timothy Burgess as part of his swing through Western states. Next stop was Seattle. Ashcroft has met with 40 of the 93 task forces set up nationwide since the terrorist attacks.

The nation is currently at a low terrorism alert level. The only recent development in Alaska has been the appearance of a Coast Guard boat at the Port of Anchorage earlier this month. Rear Adm. James Underwood, commander of the 17th Coast Guard District, said the boat's presence is in response to the general threat of terrorism, not to any specific event.

Ashcroft praised cooperation by law enforcement and justice officials in the fight against terrorism.

He listed efforts that have led to the death or capture of more than half the al-Qaida leadership worldwide. In the United States, hundreds of suspected terrorists have been identified and tracked and many have been arrested and detained as potential terrorist threats.

Protecting American soil would be difficult, if not impossible, without the Patriot Act, Ashcroft said.

"Using these tools secures the liberty of our citizens," he said. "Using these tools can save innocent lives."

Ashcroft's comments came on the same day the Justice Department said 34 credible claims were filed among more than 1,000 complaints stemming from anti-terrorism efforts under oversight provisions of the Patriot Act.(more)

Countdown to CHEAP TRICK

'Elo Kiddies! Tommorrow the Trickster's new website goes live, along with sales of their new album SPECIAL ONE. The title is a reference to their early popularity in Japan.'Looking for a preview? Go to cheaptrick.com and listen to Scent Of A Woman and My Obsession. I am wearing out my Windows Media Player for OS X playing Scent Of A Woman over and over again. It's GREAT.

Here's a recent report on a Trick gig:
Cheap Trick Live in Las Vegas

By Tokemaster General, Contributor
Tuesday, May 27, 2003 @ 4:33 PM

Cheap Trick Live at the House of Blues @ Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, NV on May 2nd, 2003

REVIEW BY: No Baloney Homosapien

Doors were opened at 5pm and around 6pm was when Magnify (the rock band that's formerly known as The Szuters) warmed up the eager crowds at the Guitarmageddon 2003 Grand Finals presented by Guitar Center. About a half dozen unsigned guitarists shredded away for judges of the Guitarmageddon event.

"We are the one, the only, Cheap Trick. Accept no substitutes!" ...finally the main headliner, Cheap Trick took to the stage at 9:15pm on Friday night (May 2nd) at the House Of Blues located inside of Mandalay Bay Casino on The Strip in Las Vegas, Nevada.

They played many popular & classic hits as well as a few numbers from Special One, (their newest album which is due to be released on July 8th.)

House Of Blues can hold a capacity of 500 people upstairs and 1300 downstairs, and the place seemed pretty full. Tickets for this concert went on sale during April Fool's Day and only cost $20.00 general admission (downstairs) and $30.00 for reserved seating (upstairs).

The group appeared to be in good spirits, interacting heavily with the crowd & each other. Band consisted of original members: Robin Zander (vocals & guitar) / Bun E. Carlos (drums) / Tom Petersson (bass & vocals) / Rick Nielsen (lead guitars).

Songs performed on this evening include: Hello There / Big Eyes / If You Want My Love / Wrong All Along / I Know What I Want / I Want You To Want Me / Best Friend / Never Had A Lot To Lose / Words / Downed / Tonight It's You / Heaven Tonight / Ain't That A Shame / Surrender

Tom Petersson sang "I Know What I Want (And I Know How To Get It)" and Rick Nielsen even played a five-neck during "Surrender." The band played an unusually fast version of "I Want You To Want Me" and also offered a couple of new numbers from the upcoming album, featuring "Best Friend" and a ballad "Words."

Despite the sound being a bit distorted, it seemed as if a really good time was had by all!

kobe link dead...too bad anyways

As if we're interested

http://www.geocities.com/kobewatch/

Would someone PLEASE reassure me that the social and financial elites serve a productive purpose?

This NYT article is one of the most disgusting things I have read in a long time.

At Bailey's Beach, the Ruling Class

By GUY TREBAY

NEWPORT, R.I.
The names drift through the air like fragments from a Social Register Genesis, not excluding the begats. Everyone is somehow connected to someone, Cushings to Ameses to Cuttings, and Slocums to Drexels to Wetmores and Browns. At a certain level of a certain segment of society, the one Gore Vidal calls America's ruling class, any conversation is destined at some point to become a narrative of tribal history. This is rarely more clear than on the buffet line for dinner here at Bailey's Beach on a summer Sunday night.

Bailey's Beach is the democratic-seeming name given to a rumpled but exclusive club located at the apex of the social order in this city of 27,000, long considered the queen of American resorts. The official name of the place is the Spouting Rock Beach Association, named for a geological formation, and membership in it tends to define summer life here in ways that are sometimes difficult to comprehend, even for insiders.

"People kill to belong to the beach," said Beth Pyle, whose twin sister, she added, has never quite made it into the club. "It has really driven some people crazy when they don't get in."

The beach itself is a crescent of coarse gray sand off Ocean Drive at the terminus of the famous Cliff Walk, the shoreside path skirting the opulent chateaus erected by men known in their day as tinplate or railroad or tobacco magnates. Of the Vanderbilts and Astors, whose marble and limestone palaces along Bellevue Avenue remain the city's largest tourist attraction, there is not locally "one living, breathing member left," said Eileen Slocum, a Republican Party stalwart and Newport's octogenarian doyenne. But this is not to suggest that their class is defunct. As tourists queue up along Bellevue Avenue every day awaiting admission to Gilded Age palaces turned museums, like the Breakers or the Elms, they are not likely to have much inkling that, behind the nearby hedges, there remains intact a world of emerald-barnacled dinosaurs attended by uniformed retainers and underwritten by ironclad fiduciary trusts. There are people still living in Newport who have not only never held jobs, but "literally never met people outside their class who didn't work for them," said Ennals Berl, whose family owns Seaweed, a 19th-century "cottage" overlooking Bailey's Beach. (more)

The Governor's "Plan" for Rural Alaska- ASK CONGRESS!

Office of the Governor, June 12, 2003
Governor’s Federal Efforts of Behalf of Rural Alaska
The State administration is taking a number of steps at the Federal level in Washington, DC to support the funding needs of rural areas and local
communities. These steps can be described briefly as follows:
Fiscal Relief to States and localities:
Pursuant to new Federal law, the State will soon receive $25 million in "Flexible assistance" for use in funding essential programs or to satisfy Federal mandates.
This amount will be followed by another $25 million at the beginning of the next Federal fiscal year, which begins on October 1, 2003.
State Appropriations Request for Rural Alaska
The State has submitted a number of appropriations requests to Congress for programs and services that benefit rural Alaska. These programs encompass a
broad spectrum of activities, including education, law enforcement, and economic development. Specific examples include:
· Rural Law Enforcement
· Alaska Frontier Health Initiative
· Various road projects
· TB Program
· Rural Diesel Fuel Health Assessment
· Rural EMS Training
· Suicide Prevention Program
· Rural Prosecution Support Team
· Community Health Aide Training
· Drug Abuse Resistance Education
· Rural Alcohol Interdiction
· Fishing Industry Assistance
State Appropriations Requests for Specific Communities
In addition, the State has requested Federal appropriations for projects and programs in particular communities. These include:
· Aleknagik
· Chandalar
· Chena Hot Springs
· Chignik Bay
· Chignik Lagoon
· Chignik Lake
· Dillingham
· Ketchikan
· Nome
· Seldovia
State Support for Budget Requests Submitted Directly by Local Communities
Staff of the DC Governor's office has met with representatives of a number of Alaska communities to discuss their local priorities and projects. In almost every
instance, the State has expressed strong support for these priorities and has communicated its support for specific projects to the Alaska Congressional
delegation. Because of the large number, particular projects are not mentioned here. These communities include:
· Aleutian Pribilof Islands
· North Slope Borough
· Ketchikan
· Sitka
· Nome
· Wasilla
· Kenai
· Wrangell
· Juneau
· Mat-Su Borough
· Kotzebue
· Seward
· Craig
· Metlakatla
· Calista/Donlan Creek
Federal Grants
In a number of instances, State agencies submit applications for Federal grants which benefit rural Alaska. In addition, upon request, the State often supports
grant applications submitted directly by local communities/organizations representing rural Alaska. These organizations include:
· Alaska Federation of Natives
· Kawerak, Inc.
· Norton Sound Health Corporation
· Tanana Chiefs

80.1 degrees in Bethel today!

I just LOVE that hot wind.

Cheap Trick to play Alaska State Fair!!!

Talk about exciting news!!!! The WORLDS GREATEST ROCK AND ROLL BAND will play in Palmer Alaska on August 23 at 7 p.m. ONE SHOW ONLY. Do I wanna be there? TAKE A WILD GUESS!!!

Japan ready to open continental shelf treasure chest

Tokyo making case for claim to rich sea floor
The Asahi Shimbun

The government plans to spend up to 100 billion yen on undersea research to establish its claim to the continental shelf around Japan in time for a 2009 U.N. deadline.
Land, infrastructure and transport minister Chikage Ogi said Tuesday Cabinet ministers had agreed to cooperate on the project. So far only the Japan Coast Guard has been carrying out the research.
Exploration of the seabed indicates the continental shelf area the government is eyeing contains possibly tens of trillions of yen worth of natural resources of the kind Japan currently has to import.
The government plans to cover the 100 billion yen cost of the project with state budgets, and may give the research work to private firms equipped with the appropriate research vessels.
A Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry ship that is capable of carrying out the drilling work will only be available for 70 days this year.
To make matters worse, the education ministry's two sonar mapping ships are not available for the research this year.
Under the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea, which took effect in 1994, a coastal nation can claim continental shelf up to 650 kilometers from its coast, provided it establishes that the shelf is geographically continuous with the country's land and shares a similar geological structure.
Japan must meet a May 2009 deadline to apply for U.N. approval of its claim.
The Japan Coast Guard's research so far suggests that Japan may be able to claim about 650,000 square kilometers of new continental shelf-an area 70 percent larger than Japan's land mass. But the United Nations' screening criteria is proving to be more strict than Tokyo had originally anticipated.
Ogi said Japan could possibly become a nation rich in natural resources if its claim to the continental shelf gets U.N. approval.
``There will be gold, silver and cobalt equivalent to 5,000 years (of domestic consumption) each, manganese equivalent to 1,000 years' consumption and natural gas equivalent to 100 years' consumption. In terms of money, the value will amount to tens of trillion yen,'' she said.
Ogi said Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi had accepted her request that he lead the government in carrying out the ``national project'' of researching the shelf.(IHT/Asahi: July 10,2003)

now, THIS just might work

As long as they train them to gore big game guides....

"$20 million...for radar upgades at Gakona" indeed- How do YOU spell HAARP?

Bill proposes $33 million for Greely airfield

The Associated Press

FAIRBANKS (July 13, 2:45 p.m. ADT) - A draft military spending bill in the U.S. Senate proposes to spend $33 million on the airfield at Fort Greely where the Department of Defense is building a missile defense system.

The money is one of many Alaska projects funded in the fiscal 2004 defense appropriations bill, which the Senate Appropriations Committee recently finished.

Alaska GOP Sen. Ted Stevens, committee chairman, said the bill fully funds the Bush administration's request for missile defense funds.

"This additional funding will greatly enhance the capabilities of the ground-based midcourse missile defense program in Alaska," Stevens said in a news release.

The bill also contains $22 million to continue work on Fort Wainwright's power plant and central heating system renovation.

The Army has been rebuilding parts of the plant and adding pollution control technology in recent years. Another $20 million would go to the Air Force for radar upgrades at Gakona.

Stevens said many of the projects in the proposed defense spending bill support the coming Stryker Interim Brigade Combat Team at Fort Wainwright and Fort Richardson. Such brigades, of which there are already two in Washington state, are supposed to be able to deploy anywhere in the globe within four days.

However, a recent Government Accounting Office report noted that the goal remains out of reach. The committee also added $3 million, above the Bush administration's request, for Alaska National Guard counter-drug work.

"Holy One-Armed Bandits, Batman"

Indian Country Today reports Indian Casinos are starting to kick the Maf's butt, in a frontpage story.

Boom times for Indian casinos, says Merrill Lynch
But watch out for rapid growth

Posted: July 10, 2003 - 9:09am EST
by: Mark Fogarty / Today Correspondent

NEW YORK - American Indian casinos will take in $15 billion, 36 percent of national gaming revenue this year, a figure that will rise to 40 percent by 2006, according to a major report by Merrill Lynch.

With this increase and further expansion on the horizon, Indian gaming has penetrated the bond market, with four financings since December, the investment banking company reported.

With stagnant markets in Las Vegas and Atlantic City, the dynamic growth in gaming is all in Indian country, wrote Merrill analyst Kurt van Kuller. But he also warned "rapid growth can be a mixed blessing."

Casino bonds often come with "a gusher of revenues," according to van Kuller. But, "investors need to ponder market saturation and the impact of potential new competitors in a fast-changing environment."(more)

New website from Alaska Legal Services- check it out

from their e-mail:
"This is a project of Alaska Legal Services Corporation and a number of
other justice community partners throughout the state. We would like
your help in letting your listeners know about the availability of the
site. We think this is particularly important in rural areas of the
state in which there are few, if any, sources of free or low-cost legal
help."

Good analysis of the Senate field by the News-Miner's Sam Bishop

Yes, kiddies, I KNOW he "announced."

Does anyone really care?
All this means is that we will see the REAL mean spirited, vindictive Tony Knowles. Do we REALLY want a (freshman) U.S. Senator who flies into rages that drive staff to hiding, literally hiding, under their desks?
I'm gonna take to calling him "Daschle's Dachsund."

Pity poor Dick Gephardt

The guy gives it up in the House of Representatives to take a swipe at the exalted Presidency.
Classic Liberal, bleach blond couif, the whole nine yards.
I would have held onto the Leadership gig. Nice pension and plenty of free tee vee time on weekends.
But no, he wants to be President of the Unted States.
Good Luck, hotshot.
In a desperate attempt to look hip, he's using the Internet, to no avail it would appear.
Today drudge shares that "Online supporters of Democratic presidential hopeful Dick Gephardt appear to have trouble organizing"
Ummmmm, yeah. I'd say so. Look at this pathetic attempt to harness the power of the World Wide Web.
Pick a zipcode, any zip code. I tried mine and was told that there just aren't enough dick g supporters in Anchorage to bother callng a "meetup" meeting to discuss the upcoming campaign.
The best part,though, is here.
Hey Dick- you don't need a campaign manager, you need a frickin' moderator hahahahahaha.
The dropdown menu is hilarious. I wonder how many supporters he has in Romania? Actually he appears to have some in Vancouver, B.C. Whats up with that?

First, some kind words for the City of Bethel Utilities Department

I ran out of water. Duh. Fourth of July Weekend. Wife, coupla kids, father in law, sister in law all here in the shack. Duh. "Can I take a shower?" every few minutes (well, not quite....). I knew I was running low and as soon as I walked in the house yesterday and heard my pressure pump and smelled it burning I KNEW I was low. Not just low, Mind you, bone dry!
So I called the Utilities Department this morning, asked for an extra fill-up and lo and behold not ten minutes later the water truck appears at my front door.
All I can say is, THAT's customer service.
Thanks, guys!

Good, accurate booze advice from Ray Smuckles

Lying on the floor of my bedroom is a bottle of Jim Beam my cousin gave me for my 21st. I'm not a drinker of wide experience but it turns out I hate bourbon. I'm now 22 and short on funds for what I DO like (scotch, guinness.) So how do I get this damned bourbon down me as pleasantly as possible?
Anonymous, Internet

A-ha! You say you hate bourbon, but you do like Scotch! I think we have the keystone which will unravel this puzzle.

Jim Beam is a good bourbon which you can drink straight, along with the other name brand American whiskeys such as Jack Daniels, Knob Creek, Ancient Situation, etc. I’m guessing that if you like Scotch but don’t like bourbon you are turned off by its relative sweetness. Certain palates find the extra sugar in bourbon medicinal. Drinking it over ice reduces this sensation somewhat, but if you still find that you can’t stomach its extra sugar we’ll do something counter-intuitive and mix it with three parts of cola. I think you’ll find that anyone on earth can enjoy a nice, sweet bourbon and Coke.

I DEFINITELY helped you with this advice.

I used to be a big vodka martini man (Belvedere or Grey Goose [are] my preferred labels) but I've moved to another country where it's tough to get anything better than Absolut, which I personally find very over-rated. I like gin and tonics, and am considering a move over to gin martinis, i.e., with Bombay Sapphire or some other top-shelf brand. Is it possible - or wise - to make such a big switch? I love the whole martini experience, but won't do it without top-flight hooch.
-JM, Sydney

Dear JM,

You would be surprised to hear how many people scoff at such a question. Not me, though. It’s all about the sugar, and boy do I hate a big-bodied gin or vodka. Crisp is the name of the game, and I am ready to slap anybody who does not belong in the game, completely slap them on their faces and the sides of their heads/ears. I will slap them.

It sounds like you’ll need to move over to an extra-dry gin martini, and the down-low on gin is that the ~80 proof Plymouth or Gordon’s are the best ones going. Tanq and Bombay are way too strong at like 95 proof, tasting too harshly of alcohol. Either way, take these shaken with a twist in a chilled glass.

Note from your Editor: Ray's Place, a weekly advice column (or column about whatever he feels like writing about) appears every Wednesday on Achewood.

Adventures in Spell Checking

I have fans, dear reader, I have fans. Believe it or not! In fact, I have one special fan who never hesitates to point me to spelling and grammar errors and for this I am always grateful cuz i am too darm lazy to proof my own work sometimes. Well, tonight I decided to try out the spell checker on the blog-o-matic and much to my amusement found that artificial intelligence can really be funnier than the regular kind.
When the blog-o-matic got to the name of our good, if old and addled governor murkowski, it suggested, accurately I might add, the seldom used but delightfully thoughful "morasses."
Better still, when it encountered the name of the high priest of pissing contests, massa limbaugh it suggested, wistfully perhaps, the archaic medical phrase, "lumbago."