ANGRY

Bedford, NY sex sting nabs 20
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Article Last Updated: 10/30/2007 06:12:01 AM EDT

BEDFORD, N.Y. -- Twenty men have been arrested in a sex sting at a Westchester County highway rest stop, including a Catholic priest*, a registered sex offender and a local Rotary Club president.

The state police says the monthlong sting was prompted by a complaint from a man who stopped at a rest area off Interstate 684 with his 10-year-old son. Police say men cruise the area looking for sex.

Most of the men have been charged with either loitering or trespass violations or both. One was charged with forcible touching, a misdemeanor. Four were charged with exposing themselves and two with public lewdness.


*The priest, Fr. Gary, used to be assigned to my parents parish. He seemed to be a really great guy.

Hey, did you feel that?

You know, that shaking. Some might call it quaking. And what was that loud crashing noise. And why are the posters hanging on the wall of the choir room shaking? And my music stand doesn't generally wiggle like that.

That was an earthquake measuring 5.6 that struck tonight - while I was in the basement of a very large, very solidly reinforced church. It has beautiful flying buttresses (if you like that sort of thing) as a result of 1989, and today, I was assured it's a very safe place to be during an earthquake.

As a reminder, in the event of an emergency, you can call my parents for information on my whereabouts and wellbeing. My mom said she really appreciated the 11:20 pm phone call tonight. But in the event of a real emergency, maybe you should wait until morning to call my parents. They really like their sleep.

Gearing up

November is National Blog Posting Month. You might remember my mostly successful daily posting from November of last year. I'm ready to try again - with the intent to make it through the ENTIRE month with a post a day. We'll see how it goes.

There's no bonus in government work

The workload at my job lately week has been tremendous. For the past few weeks, I've been simultaneously planning a large event with horrendously uncooperative event planners and completing the first stage of research in preparation for a big meeting today. And all the while, I'm still doing all the regular tasks of my job. Basically, I've been doing the work of three people lately.

The event was yesterday, and it went really, really well. In this job, one well executed event can have huge financial implications, so making sure everything's well orchestrated is important. One of the requests of the group we were hosting was that we provide to go boxes so that they could take away any substantial uneaten food. Knowing that two of the nine lunches might not be eaten, I thought this a reasonable request.

Dealing with the event planner was a horrible experience. So, armed with my request for to go boxes (and many other last minute details), I told my boss I'd happily ask, as long as I was guaranteed one of the extra desserts. Chocolate mousse. She agreed this was a great idea - in light of the trials of getting this event together - and promised to bring one back to the office with her for each of us.

Well, the horrible event person told me that the conference center didn't allow to go cartons because of the city health code. THIS IS BULLSHIT. And everyone knows they're lying, but they seem to be able to get away with it.

Without the to go cartons, I was out of a free dessert. I worked really, really hard this week, and while recognition from my team that I've done a good job is great, I WANTED DESSERT! I don't get a year-end bonus, and there's no provision in my contract for any sort of merit raise. I don't get extra vacation days or an employee of the month certificate, and I WANTED CHOCOLATE MOUSSE, DAMN IT!

And all I got - which doesn't nearly compare - was a lousy cookie after our big meeting today. That also went really well, but chocolate mousse would have made it much better.

Lost

About seven years ago, I was my cousin's confirmation sponsor. As a thank you for, well, basically just showing up, since I lived across the country and didn't attend any of the classes, she (or perhaps her parents) bought me a small lapel pin.

It's a white dove with a blue eye, small and delicately carved with a fan tail and a little plume atop its head. I wear it often, usually on the lapel of my jackets. In fact, I was wearing it yesterday, and a co-worker noticed it as we were descending the 22 floors to the lobby for lunch. He asked about it and I told him the story of its acquisition and how much I like it.

And then, the next time I looked towards my lapel, as I was walking home at the end of the night, IT WAS GONE! It's not anywhere in my gym bag or tucked in the clothes I wore yesterday. It's not anywhere around my desk, and nobody's dropped it off at our reception desk. I've called lost-and-found at the gym and the campus shuttle service (my ride home) and nobody's turned it in. I still have to call the campus pub where I had dinner last night, and perhaps retrace my steps from Sutter and Divisadero home, but that's really a long shot. I'm so very sad.

Irony

I'm in the process of setting up interviews for a vacant job within my department. There are four candidates I have to contact about interview times. One of them is myself. My name's on the top of the list. But my boss said I didn't have to call myself about an interview. Good thing, because I wouldn't be home early enough to return the call.

Anybody but Boston

The above has been my mantra all season. The Red Sox advancement last night to the World Series really makes me ill. I hope the well-rested Rockies knock them around before taking the series in four games.

Devastated

Joe Torre declined a one-year extension as manager of the New York Yankees. He led one of baseball's greatest dynasties, and his departure is just devestating.

Look, updated links!

Check out some of my favorite blogs, learn about my friends' triathlon training experience, and read about the Hike for Discovery, a fundraising challenge for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society that I'll be participating in next year. Happy reading!

Begging the question: If your boots are soaked through, does a spare pair of dry socks make any difference?

I went on a spectacular hike on Saturday. An old friend has decided to periodically come into the city, so we can hike or walk in the Presidio. She's using it as a day's escape from some difficult family matters, and I never need a reason to hike.

Saturday the sun shone brightly and a slight breeze cooled the rather warm air. We started off from 15th and Lake Streets, entered the Presidio near the Public Service Hospital, and walked from the hospital down to Baker Beach.

We walked along the beach, way too close to the waves, and at one point, a strong wave pushed ashore and soaked me almost to my knees. My wonderful new hiking pants are water-resistant and quick drying, so my legs were fine. My boots, however, are another story entirely.

These boots must be about five years old, and they're waterproof, but only on the outside. They're great for hiking in the rain or walking through puddles, because while the outside of the boots get damp, the insides, and my feet, stay nice and dry. But when the water rushes over the top of your boot, into your sock, and settles around your toes, even perfect waterproof-ness won't make much difference. I had considered bringing an extra pair of socks (a requirement on any long hike) but for a day trek in the city I decided against it. My socks and boots stayed wet all day, but I don't think a change of socks would have mattered. We continued our wonderful hike around the edge of the city - to the Golden Gate Bridge, under it to Fort Point, and along Crissy Field to the Marina District, where we headed home via the very steep uphill trudge of the Lyon St. Steps.

When I investigated the boots upon returning home, I found a small pool of water and very, very damp insides.

The boots are finally dried out, but the moleskin - protecting some areas that were prone to rubbing - has lost some of its adhesive and is peeling off in places. And I don't think I mentioned that, despite new, very supportive, insoles, I could really feel the ground under some parts of the boots as we hiked. That's not a good sign. It might be time to start boot shopping. I need to be well prepared by spring, when training starts for the Hike for Discovery.

Neighbors and friends

I woke up all sorts of cranky this morning - not enough sleep, the weather was questionable, my apartment wasn't the right temperature, and I didn't like my breakfast options.

I got my act together, left my apartment, and encountered three neighbors from my floor waiting at the bus stop. It was almost a party. Then the girl who lives across the hall from me showed up, and we all laughed about the chances of this ever happening. We chatted amicably until the bus arrived, and we all got on. The girl across the hall and I sat together, while the others took the sideways seats in the back. I think we were the loudest group to ever sit on an early-morning bus.

I don't generally like to talk during my morning commute. I'd prefer to listen to my music and prepare for the day. But this morning, GATH and I talked about work and working out and all sorts of stuff. It was a really nice start to a very wet, dark day.

Musings

New photos are up at Flickr. Check out my Yosemite adventure.

A very understated shout out to a good friend who started a new job today. Please send happy co-worker and wonderful commute thoughts her way.

The rain has started again, and it looks like it'll be wet and grey all week. And I'm going swimming in the outside pool tonight. I haven't been swimming in the rain in years.

Dark

It's 2pm, but it's so dark and foggy out that it looks more like 2 am. And it's wet too. I like winter, and I like the rain, but it's mid-October, and I'd hoped for another month of summer first. I know tomorrow's weather report is promising, but if this continues I'll never be able to get out of bed in time for my 10:30 am hike, and I fear my friend will choose to stay home too.

Genocide by any other name is still the mass annihilation of millions

This morning, the US House Foreign Relations Committee passed a resolution recognizing that the Armenian Genocide did actually happen in 1915. The killings were part of a Turkish attempt to drive Armenians out of the Turkish empire. It pretty much succeeded, but thousands of refugees sought safety in the U.S., and support for the resolution came from states - CA among them - with large Armenian American populations. The resolution is nonbinding, and therefore largely symbolic, and it definitely does not have enough support to get before the full House of Representatives.

The fact is, the genocide happened. At least a million and a half Armenians were targeted for killing by the Turkish government, and waiting nine decades before recognizing this atrocity is just appalling. But there's not a large Armenian survivor population bearing witness to their experiences, and without that, making a 90-year-old event relevant today is difficult. In the decades following the genocide, Adolf Hitler used it as an example of how easy extermination of Europe's Jewish population should have been - because nobody remembered the Armenians.

Hopefully, later is better than never, at least for the Armenian Americans who survived, or whose relatives were survivors.

Still no construction

But the scaffolding persists and my bathroom remains in tact.

Post 501 - an update to the problem

A second note appeared under my door last night. It read (in part):

"In coming days I will need access to your bathroom, and outside work may be happening."

I think this spells trouble, but the landlord's a little vague. Maybe he just likes my bathroom design scheme.

When Barry Bonds hit 500 homeruns there was a small celebration and fireworks. What do I get for crossing the 500 post mark in less than two years?

Say it ain't so, Joe.

The Yankees season ended last night in a loss to the Cleveland Indians. Among other tragedies, this probably marks skipper Joe Torre's last night in pinstripes.

A problem

"I'll need access to your bathroom in order to assess a problem."

This was the alarming sentence in a note left by my landlord on Friday. On Saturday morning, a man came to set up scaffolding along the outside of the building facing my kitchen and bathroom. But no work was performed on said scaffolding. On Saturday afternoon, my landlord came for the inspection of my bathroom. I only know he was there because he was nice enough to bring in my mail and leave it in the hallway.

Then came Sunday, and still, no work being done on the scaffolding.

I have yet to hear about "the problem," and any involvement of my bathroom in the construction. I fear I'll get home tonight and be unable to use the sink or shower.

This morning, still no work. No crews, no plumbers, no early morning construction noise. I'm hoping this morning did not herald my last shower at home, because the showers at the gym just aren't as nice as my little bathroom. But the upside would mean forced morning workouts. That could be good.

In the elevator

I enter on the 22nd floor. Two people are already in the elevator; they're colleagues, and when I enter they're talking about his daughter. He's telling her how his toddler sings.

"It's really cute," he said. She starts this song "takin' home a baby bumble bee... Wait. I forget how it goes."

He hums a few bars.

"Actually," I said, "I think it's bringing home a baby bumble bee."

Surprised yet blank stares follow this comment.

"Oh, maybe it is," said the dad.

Again he hums a few bars before remembering the rest of the song. He sings it for his coworker.

I decide not to mention the accompanying hand motions.

God loves the Yankees

NEW YORK—Saying the American League wild-card bid is "beneath the dignity of the Yankees organization" and "an affront to everything [we] stand for," New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner and manager Joe Torre told reporters during a press conference Wednesday that the Yankees have respectfully declined the opportunity to participate in Major League Baseball's postseason if they have to do so as the American League's wild-card team.

"On behalf of the entire Yankee team: Thanks, but no thanks," said Steinbrenner, adding that the Yankees would only play in the 2007 playoffs if they were able to take their "rightful place" as the American League East representatives. "Please don't patronize us with by making us the wild card. The New York Yankees aren't wild cards. We're the New York Yankees, for God's sake. The New York Yankees. And we have our dignity."

"Wild card?" Steinbrenner added. "Please."

The announcement came following a three-hour meeting between Steinbrenner, Torre, and baseball Commissioner Bud Selig, in which both Torre and Steinbrenner attempted to convince the commissioner that the Yankees were anything but wild cards—a position Steinbrenner later called "demeaning and pathetic."

"We're not an unproven, intermediate expansion team whose qualities are unknown and whose team character has not been established," said Steinbrenner, referring to the strict definition of a wild card. "The wild card is for those lesser organizations, teams like the Colorado Rockies, or—ugh, I can't believe I am actually going to utter their name—the 'Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.'"

"You have to consider the elite pedigree of this historic franchise," Torre added. "The Yankees have won 26 World Series titles and 39 American League pennants. To even think we would reduce ourselves to such an embarrassing position is an absurdity bordering on insanity. We might as well drop down to Single A."

The Yankees, who finished the season with a 94-68 record, leaving them two games behind the Boston Red Sox in the AL East standings, are in fact statistically the American League wild-card team. Torre maintained, however, that the Yankees are above statistics, and answer to a "much higher calling."

"We have family, friends, and billions upon billions of fans who deserve much more than for us to just submit to being spat upon," Torre said. "The fact that we have, in the past, even participated in divisional series and league championship series is beneath us. I've been saying for some time that the Yankees should only have to play in one game the entire year: an intrasquad match to decide the world champion."

Though the Yankees did accept wild-card births in both the 1995 and 1997 seasons, Steinbrenner said he was not made aware of it at the time. Had he been, the Yankees' controversial, often polarizing owner stated, he would have most assuredly pulled his team out of the playoffs to show respect for Yankee greats such as Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, and Mickey Mantle—none of whom, Steinbrenner said, ever donned the pinstripes as a wild-card team.

The wild-card system was introduced by Commissioner Selig in 1995.

"I'm not even sure how this, what do you call it, 'wild card?' Right…how this wild card even works," said Yankees shortstop and team captain Derek Jeter, who made "air quotes" gestures every time he uttered the phrase. "Can a team even make it to the World Series from such a position? Seems like charity to me. And the Yankees are nobody's charity case."

"Try to remember that the Yankees are blessed by God himself," Jeter added. "If God wanted us to be a wild-card team, He would have done so when He created the Yankees over 100 years ago."

When informed three of the last five World Series titles were, in fact, won by wild-card teams, catcher Jorge Posada stated that it was because other Major-League clubs acted out of the weakness of false sentiment, having felt sorry for "those lesser teams' lowly, disgusting, and frankly wretched position."

"How do you think Florida beat us in 2003?" Posada said. "Because the Yankees are too classy a ball club to beat up on a clearly inferior team."

Though the majority of the Yankee team affirmed their commitment to boycotting the playoffs if their wild-card status is not "corrected," third baseman Alex Rodriguez stated he would still play, adding that with so many Yankees out of the lineup he would get more at-bats, more balls hit to him in the field, and would finally get a chance to pitch, a position Rodriguez said he is "probably pretty good at."

Copyright The Onion 10/4/2007

Cocoon

I was dreaming about my sleeping bag last night. Possibly because I had to contact L.L. Bean to find out how to repair a tear in the lining, and then spent some time last night sewing up the hole.

In any event, in my dream, I was in my sleeping bag and talking with people (also in sleeping bags - and in bunks, probably a holdover from my recent Yosemite trip) about how my sleeping bag - with it's hood and mummy shape and all-over warmth, must feel like a cocoon feels for a butterfly.

The mind is a strange thing, and when I awoke from this dream, very cold and with the covers all over the floor, I remember thinking that I'd probably sleep a lot better, and be much warmer, if I slept in my sleeping bag every night.

Divorce

I've taken the step of no return. I've made an appointment with a new hair stylist, and I'm divorcing Paul, the crazy Irishman who's been cutting my hair for over a year. Admittedly, my hair has never looked better. He's incredibly talented, but he lacks the ability to keep an appointment. And really, I make appointments so I don't spend half an hour waiting while he cuts the hair of two guys who showed up unscheduled to primp for a Saturday night on the town.

He also loudly blasts bad Morrissey from the stereo, and dances while he cuts. I'm pretty sure I almost lost an ear last time.

I think the new salon is a step up. It's cleaner and quieter, and much closer to home. And the handy on-line appointment feature has me pretty pleased. My appointment's on Oct. 20, and I'm very excited.

Baseball blues

It's 8 pm on Oct. 1, and I'm not quite sure what to do with myself. All season, I religiously tuned into the Giants games on the radio. And now, after an 11-2 rout of the Dodgers last night, the season has ended. The 2007 Giants finished their worst season since 1996, the Barry Bonds drama has ended (finally!), and the 2007 team will drift into obscurity, with very few of them assured a return next year.

I'm a little blue, and there are no Yankees games in the near future to cheer me up.

Tortugas can run, too. And swim and bike

Hey everyone, some friends of mine competed in a triathlon yesterday. You can see photos and read about their training here.

I don't know if she was serious, but one of the tortugas invited me to join them next year. I looked into it, and I could compete with a relay team - with each of us doing one portion of the race. And the swim portion is less than what I swim during a regular workout. Hmmmm....