I was hopeful but.....

I didn't get a chance to watch Michael Jackson's last show at Staples Center but I was really hoping the news would report that Michael popped out of his coffin and started singing his new song called "Life and Death" that he had been working on for the last few years.

IF ANYBODY WAS CAPABLE OF PULLING OFF THAT TYPE OF STUNT IT WOULD BE MICHAEL

BUT ALAS.....no stunts just more entertainment. I talked to a few people that watched it and they said it was a very emotional show.

Watching the aftermath of Michael's passing it's very easy to say that he was indeed an icon and one of the top five entertainers of all time. His popularity is equaled to Elvis and his world wide support far surpasses the other King.....but then one has to remember that Elvis had no video and no Internet exposure.

I'd like to imagine the King of Rock and Roll welcoming the King of Pop to the BIG KINGDOM and immediately asking him how he did that crazy backward walk....and then the King of Pop simply says to the King of Rock and Roll....."hey dude...how did you sing like that?"

AND THEN THEY STROLL OFF CASUALLY AND WALK DOWN BY THE RIVER AND CHIT CHAT ABOUT LIFE AFTER LIFE.

I appreciate having watched both of them in my lifetime.....

.....almost as much as watching ACDC....but not quite.

Michael Timothy McAlevey

HAPPY 233rd BIRTHDAY

Santa Monica decided not to have a Fireworks show this year off the Pier. The fun part of the previous events was trying to figure when they would have the show. Sometimes it was at 5 am and sometimes the night before and I think a few years ago they decided that one week before would be a good idea.

Something to do with crowd control.

This year I'm sure the economy gave them a great excuse to say no.

I know this might sound harsh but FIREWORKS really have nothing to do with celebrating 233 years of America. We are entering unique territory when it comes to longevity of a political system such as ours.

In truth when you compare previous free enterprise democratic judicial systems it's quite hard to find something like what we have here.

IT'S THE ULTIMATE EXPERIMENT and it's still moving forward 233 years later.

Not only do we have a unique political system but we are also regulated to being caretaker of world problems. Sometimes we aren't asked...but mainly we attempt, through economics or stronger methods, to fix wrongs.

Sometimes it backfires and pisses off the natives.

But that's just the cost of being America in a time when most other countries are trying to figure out who they are, what they want, and how they can get there.

WE ARE HERE

AMERICA KNOWS WHO SHE IS AND ON HER 233rd BIRTHDAY IT APPEARS THAT A LARGE PERCENTAGE OF PEOPLE, WHO DON'T LIVE HERE, WOULD GIVE ANYTHING TO ACHIEVE THAT GOAL.

Imagine for one minute that every government in the world announced tomorrow that anybody who wanted to leave could go anywhere they wanted.....FREE OF CHARGE.

VISUALIZE THE AIRPORTS OF AMERICA

compared to all other airports in the world.

SERIOUSLY.....no contest.

Enjoy your Birthday Bitch........you've done well

Michael Timothy McAlevey

MANUEL SHOULD CUT HIS HAIR

Tonight Manuel (Manny) Ramirez returns and the one thing he should have done was follow Vladamir Guerrero's lead and cut his dreadlocks.

I mean if you really want a fresh new start and you want to take the heat off....change the look.

It's only hair Manny.....it will grow back.

Unless of course it's not real.

Picture Manny starting to go bald about six years ago from the "Juice" and he starts buying these wigs every three months that are just a bit longer than the previous purchase.

SHOWBIZ DUDE!!!!! IT'S EVERYWHERE

And Manny is at the top of the SPORTS SHOWBIZ FOOD CHAIN.

THE VERY TIP TOP

Forget those wimps in New York.....and those bad boys in Boston. Manny is the news and has been for an extended period of time.

His story was the dominate news story of the 2008 Baseball season and I don't recall anything being a close second.

Philadelphia would to think they had the biggest story but in reality they just had the happy ending. Manny ruled the sport airwaves for the last four months of the season....and then lo and behold the 2009 season starts and Manny lowers the boom with a 50 game suspension.

NEWS HOG MANNY!

And now just imagine if he showed up tonight with a BUZZ CUT. He would be on the cover of Sports Illustrated.

But knowing a bit about Manny I don't see him getting a trim. How happy would Joe Torre be if Manny showed up with a shinny head?

*****
Anybody who is a Laker fan and doesn't think the team just got considerably better does not know the game of Basketball.

Kobe has got to be so freakin happy to get Ron Artest.

Two of the best defenders in basketball are now on the same team. Two of the top 10 defensive players will now be playing along side each other.

Nobody should worry about Ron going wacko....he was young and keep in mind someone in the stands did throw a drink on him.

Phil Jackson coached Dennis Rodman and compared to Dennis...Ron is like Mother Theresa.

It is another great move on the part of the Buss family and Mitch and Magic and everyone else involved.

WOW!

I still hope they can figure out how to keep Lamar Odom......he is a key because of his verstailty and because they guy is a perfect teammate.

Michael Timothy McAlevey

Whatever Works and Public Enemies

I've seen two movies in the last week and only one gets my recommendation.

Whatever Works, the new Woody Allen movie, is a typical Woody Allen movie and in my opinion that's a very good thing. No one else writing and directing comes close to supplying the amount of information that Woody pours forth during his 90 minute films. It's non stop social commentary and because of his comic genius he is able to present the bleakest sides of human nature with enough humor to make it not only bearable but extremely funny.

It's almost so rapid fire that the movie requires a second viewing just to digest the entire rant.

And the fact that he was able to use Larry David for the character he would normally play is incredible. Mr. David is a taller version of Mr. Allen and they both appear to be quite similar in their neurotic behavior. Of course I don't know either of them but the persona that they want us to envision is totally based on multiple forms of neurotic behavior.

AND IF THAT IS THEIR GOAL THEY FAR EXCEED THE TARGET.

Evan Rachel Wood should get a Oscar nomination for her role. She nails the character and I looked forward to every scene that she was in. Brilliant job.

I highly advise everyone to see this film....even though I know there aren't masses of Woody Allen fans. The majority of his fans probably reside in NY, Los Angeles and Chicago. Hopefully there will be enough viewers to cover the distribution costs.

THE NEXT FILM THAT I SAW WON'T NEED ANY HELP COVERING DISTRIBUTION COSTS

BUT

PUBLIC ENEMIES....

.....makes no sense and has no social value and says nothing about anything important.

If it wasn't for Johnny Depp this movie wouldn't do $25 million in box office but because of Mr. Depp it will probably go over a $100 million.....this weekend.

IT'S SILLY...and it just doesn't make very much sense.

Johnny Depp does less in this film than any film he's ever made.

Am I really suppose to empathize with John Dillinger because he fell in love?

Am I really suppose to understand why he doesn't think regular people's money is in the bank?

I've read reviews on both of the above movies and both reviewers completely disagree with my opinion of each movie....so I'm just humbly asking you to ALSO see the Woody Allen movie...because I know you will see the Johnny Depp film.

AND THEN ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS

Which film makes you think?
Which film gives you hope for the human race?
Which film has genius behind the camera and the script?
Which film has more machine gun fire than you ever seen in your life?

I'm really looking forward to seeing Johnny play the Mad Hatter in Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland so I can get the feeling once more that Mr. Depp is the best actor alive.

I think Larry David should have played John Dillinger but that's just flat out ridiculous.

Go see
Whatever Works!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Michael Timothy McAlevey

SNL finally hits the SENATE

Eight months after the election SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE is finally being represented in halls of our great governmental body.

Chevy Chase is now a United States Senator......I mean Dan...er John....seriously....Mike Myers is now in the Senate....I meant to say Adam Sandler....or Al Franken....or maybe Gilda.

One of those clowns from SNL is now a United States Senator

Funny thing about clowns....sometimes they graduate from Harvard with a degree in Government like Al Franken.

It's not quite like Mr. Smith goes to Washington but it is a compelling story and it gives the Democrats 60 votes in the senate. The last time that happened was during the Carter Administration.

I don't remember but how did that work out?

I suspect that Lorne Michaels feels a special pride this morning knowing that one of his boys has made the big time. I wonder if he will be calling for tickets to the next strategical hearing on ear marking in the senate?

I look forward to the SNL routines in the fall regarding this matter. They should have Al actually do an update from the Senate on a regular basis.

Life inmates art or art inmates life?......it doesn't seem to matter anymore with all the silly reality shows on TV.

And now that a SNL alumnus has joined the Senate it just makes reality even a bit more vague and bit less transparent.

Break a leg Al....and keep em rolling in the aisles.

Michael Timothy McAlevey

Michael

I'm not about to ramble on about how Michael Jackson was misunderstood...but he was.

That kid who got $20 million dollars from Michael is the only one who can tell us the truth and apparently he was more than willing to lie in court.

People absolutely want to believe the worst about unique people...especially people with talent, money and power. And then when you add the odd behavior regarding his appearance the guy had no chance among the media. The media loves to expose bumps in the road and then act like they invented the art of paying tribute.

His WE ARE THE WORLD concert in 1985 was the first of it's kind....except for the 1971 Bangladesh concert, and in 1971 everyone was so high that they didn't remember they had that concert until 1981

Michael entertained us since the age of 5. That's forty-five years of great music. I actually bought a few of his albums back in the album buying days and anyone who knows me knows the music purchasing list is pretty small in my life.

BLACK and WHITE is still my favorite song by Michael...and the beginning of that song where Malcullay Caulkin is playing the music too loud is still one of my favorite moments in recorded music. The song is unquestionably one of the great dance songs ever written.

I was really looking forward to seeing excerpts from his London shows. I hope they've recorded some of the rehearsals.

The real fact is that three children lost their father yesterday and my heart goes out to them. If DNA means anything than I suspect we will be hearing from them ( musically) in the future.

The only flaw I can see is that Lisa Marie Presley and Michael Jackson didn't conceive a child while they were married.

That seemed like a no-brainer.

And one last point....now that Michael has passed on there's no question that Prince is the greatest living entertainer.

Michael is now experiencing the only judge that matters and I have a feeling all the good deeds far outweigh the silly innuendo's and odd physical altercations.

Children in heaven now have the ultimate entertainer for those Sunday afternoon concerts down by the river.

Michael Timothy McAlevey

SHAQ BACK IN OUR GRILL

It looks like a roadblock is being established for the Lakers on the way to back to back titles. That roadblock is a huge man with a very fimilar mug.

It appears that LeBron James will have Shaq in the middle for 20 to 28 minutes a game. That should be a major problem for anybody. If they maintain his minutes throughout the regular season than he should be a huge factor when the playoffs start.

Obviously Boston will be very interested in re-establishing their position as the best team in basketball....but 2008 might have been one of those great years that doesn't get repeated.

Orlando has Superman Jr. but now Cleveland has Daddy Superman...and I anticipate a few spankings from the old man.

Injuries are the key to all successful endeavors in professional sports and anyone can go down at anytime.....but barring major physical problems it looks like Shaq and Kobie could be involved in a major tussle next June.

The question around town is what Phil Jackson plans on doing. The latest rumors have him coaching home games only during the regular season and doing the away games with his Blackberry.

If anyone could make that work it would be Master Jackson.

Picture yourself as a frog on a lily pad and now just breathe in....hold it.....breathe out....breathe in....hold it.....breathe out.

Michael Timothy McAlevey

BOEING 787

It's actually amazing when you consider the problems that Boeing is having with structural situations on their new Dreamliner 787.

With carbon fibers and carbon composites and robotic engineering advancing to incredible heights in all forms of manufacturing...why would the most competent airline maker be having extended problems?

The 787 was originally suppose to fly in 2007 and be fully integrated within the system by 2008.
Now they are hopping for sometime in 2010.

They should have never moved their corporate office from Seattle to Chicago. Everybody knows that while Chicago is a great city there are certain things that just take place which confuse people.......THE CUBS....THE CORRUPTION....THE GOOFY GOVERNOR....

The 787 was designed to weight much less than other planes and fly much further on less gas.

Maybe expectations by structural engineers who use medical marijuana created a false ceiling of achievement.

Delusions of grandeur can affect all walks of life and degrees in engineering don't always guarantee success.

MAYBE BOEING USES TOO MANY BOEINGBONGS.

I bet they are cool looking and don't weight very much.

Also perhaps one should look at the amount of layoffs in the last two years at Boeing and see if perhaps that could be part of the problem.

The Dreamliner is on hold and it's just another economic indicator that doesn't look good....but Transformers opens today so who really cares.

Michael Timothy McAlevey

GRACE and the BIG O

Grace Fairly and OREGON seems like a union made in heaven.

GRACE is like Oregon and has always traveled to the beat of a different drummer.

Oregon might be the most unique state in the union. They have always been at the forefront of ecological issues. The University of Oregon have the NIKE founder as their main benefactor and he seems to spare nothing when it comes to the school....espeically the athletic department.

Everyone is extremely proud of her and hopefully the experience of attending school at the University of Oregon will bring her much joy and tons of knowledge.

Go Ducks

Go Grace

Michael Timothy McAlevey

Happy Fathers Day

The guy in the front row with the white hat is the Dad. Since he doesn't read e-mails or belong to Facebook or Twitter I thought I'd just show a picture of some results ( a few MIAs) from his efforts. There are a few cousins and aunts and uncles but you get the idea.

Happy Father's Day to all dads.

Even the ones who are no longer here.

I'm off to the hospital to check on the guy in the white hat.

Hopefully we have a few more rounds of golf to play

Michael Timothy McAlevey

1988............again please!

Looking at the small banners (in LA TIMES) of 15 Championship years I noticed something that I had apparently forgotten.

1988 is the only year that the LAKERS and the DODGERS both won World titles in the same year.

Sean was 10 and played his first year of Majors in Little League.

Franklin Middle School was hopping.

Sean and I were at Dodger Stadium for the Kirk Gibson home run....

Ronald Reagan was ending his stay in the White House and George Senior was about to take over and we had no concept that a George Jr. even existed.

Rain Man won the Academy Award for best picture of 1988.

WE NEED ANOTHER YEAR WHERE THE LAKERS AND DODGERS BOTH WIN EVERYTHING AND THIS APPEARS TO BE A VERY GOOD TIME FOR THAT TO HAPPEN.

I realize there are some pitching questions with the Dodgers but it would help immensely if all Laker fans turned their attention to the Dodgers (after the parade) and stuck with them until late October.

There will be a few bumps in the road and the Giants ,with their pitching staff, might make it close but how great would it be for LA if we could have 2009 become the second year for duel championships.

I can't even finish enjoying one without wanting another.

oh well

Batter up!

and by the way......thanks Phil for being so mellow. He seems like a nice guy but Van Gundy's voice might make his players a bit tense.

Phil is so Zen but then again you already knew that.

Michael Timothy McAlevey

Crazy places and wacky people and mr. calm

Perhaps North Korea and Iran could square off and settle their nuclear issue once and for all.

WHO IS THE BIGGEST NUT NATION ON THE PLANET?

I think it's a toss up.

If anybody who follows world politics believes for one second that President Ahmadinejad was going to lose that election then I really do have some swamp land available. They allowed no independent overseers to monitor the polling places and that fact alone should be the only red flag needed in looking at this charade.

An amazing sidebar is that Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel is planning to announce today that Palestinians should be independent.

Where he thinks they should be independent is probably the real question. It will be interesting to hear what he has to say.

This seems like a very important moment in the ongoing tension between these two factions.

BUT NOW ON TO SOMETHING MUCH MORE IMPORTANT

It's so amazing to read and listen to sports writers discuss the talents of Phil Jackson.....especially the lack of certain talents.....like coaching.

Last week one of the goof balls claimed that Kobe is coaching the team.

I think the problem is that there are too many people covering major sporting events who have never played the game......maybe any game.

Phil Jackson's lessons of breathing and learning to meditate probably have more to do with his success than his basketball knowledge....and he might be a basketball genius.

I do know that he is an extremely well rounded person who believes that his players should read as much as possible.

He should start recommending books for the sports writers because it really is silly how they approach him.

THEY JUST DON'T GET HIM and that makes me think that he is the greatest coach in the history of sports.

HE HAS MANAGED TO RETAIN HIS INDIVIDUALITY and nothing seems to have altered his personality....except of course a few hip surgeries.

I'm pretty sure Jerry Buss appreciates Phil and his vote is the only vote that matters. I personally believe Phil can stay as long as he wants and hopefully this modern day Zen philosopher will decide that another five years would be acceptable.

Los Angeles has been truly blessed with great coaches over the years and Phil Jackson might be the absolute best of the lot.

And sports reporters need to quit predicting what they think is going to happen and stick to reporting on what has happened.

EVERYBODY ON TV AND IN THE NEWSPAPERS HAS TURNED INTO FREAKIN
NOSTRADAMUS

I don't care what any reporter thinks is going to happen....it's not their job to predict the future.

A REPORTER'S JOB IS TO REPORT ON THE EVENT THAT JUST TOOK PLACE

THEY NEED TO STOP ACTING LIKE BOOKMAKERS AND START ACTING MORE LIKE RESPONSIBLE JOURNALISTS.

They need to take some major pointers from Professor Phil but I doubt very much if Phil believes they are worth the effort.

WIN OR LOSE I'm extremely appreciative of the time we've had with the Dali Jackson.

I sincerely hope it continues for many more years.

I think Jeannie can make it happen as long as she doesn't insert the wrong Twitter at the wrong time.

Michael Timothy McAlevey

Excellent History lesson

ROBERT BARRERA McSHANE steps on the stage tomorrow at UCLA and receives his Bachelor of Arts degree in History.

I can imagine the immense pride that is rattling through the McShane household.

The accomplishment was a team effort and while it took focus and perseverance on Robert's part it also took extreme patience and belief on the part of Jack and Kelly....better known as his mom and dad.

This is a high water mark in the family and the only thing that could have made it better was getting the degree from USC.

Seriously I just want to tell Robert how proud I am and mention the following three words....

GRAD SCHOOL DUDE!

Why stop now?

GREAT JOB

The Other UNCLE TIM

Michael Timothy McAlevey

Don't want to jinx them

All baseball fans and most of the players are superstitious in very odd ways. I, of course, have my own oddities regarding the Dodgers and I'm not prepared to share them at this time because sharing them might jinx the season.

I have chosen not to write anything about them because they are playing better than any Dodger team that I can remember. Middle 70's saw some domination from time to time but I can't ever remember a 9 game lead in June.

Even during the Koufax/Drysdale era they never ran away with anything and always had to battle for every victory.

This team which I thought had major pitching questions seems to be responding well beyond expectations.

And it's not just the weak division. They play every team tough and that's all one can ask for when it's still basketball season.

Hopefully they will continue this through the summer and into the late weeks of October.

It's obviously been fun so far but for now let's focus on Orlando, Florida for a few more days.

Kobe officially enters the realm of MAGIC, JERRY, ELGIN, WILT and KAREEM...and athletically he might be the best of them all.

Michael Timothy McAlevey

GAY TIME ON BROADWAY

I happened to catch the TONYS last night on CBS. Always interested in the hot new musicals on Broadway and always interested in who is who in the world of stage entertainment...although I rarely attend live productions.



Watching the award show all I could determine was one definite conclusion. If I could sing and dance and was gay there is no other place to be in the world than on Broadway.



Even the guy who thanked his wife made me wonder if his wife's name was Edward.



Does Elton John have a proportionality large head or what? No wonder he's such a genius...his brain must be 25% of his body weight.



I still wonder why Doggie Howser gets to play a straight guy on TV...must be a trade off for the casting on Will and Grace.

I never understood how two straight guys got those roles...like there might be a shortage of gay actors working in Hollywood?

BUT BROADWAY SEEMS TO HAVE HAVE GONE FULL BORE INTO THE ALTERNATIVE LIFE STYLE...except for James Gandolfini and Elton John.

I mention Elton because didn't he give up the gay life style about 15 years ago?

I think the Queen insisted on it before making him SIR.

I think Bernie Taupin started spreading that rumor.

What does amaze me is that there are very few new musicals being created. Everything seems to be a revival.

I wonder why nobody makes early Elvis movies into musicals for the stage?

Does anyone have Priscilla's cell phone number?

Michael Timothy McAlevey

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MAYBE IT COULD ALSO BE LIFE

Replace GOD in the previous NEO-ILLUMINATION
with the word
LIFE
and
then deal with it

Michael Timothy McAlevey

NEO-ILLUMINATION #??????

"PEOPLE WONDER
HOW TO KNOW
GOD

IT'S NOT ABOUT KNOWING
GOD

IT IS
SIMPLY
ABOUT
LOVING
GOD

AND YOU WILL SOON
KNOW
AS
MUCH
AS
YOU CAN HANDLE"

*******
it really doesn't matter how you become aware
or how you discover the core or the center or the thread
just
as long
as you
discover it

I honestly believe it's beneficial to discover it during your physical reality experience......but that's just my belief

Michael Timothy McAlevey

ARNOLD, CARTER and BROWN

I remember quite vividly in the late 70's when almost every political pundit in America said that the job of President was just too big for Jimmy Carter to handle.

Jimmy Carter is a really intelligent man and has proved his humanitarian worth through his Carter Foundation.

I've yet to hear one word regarding Arnold and whether or not the job of Gov is just simply too big of a job for him.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is no Jimmy Carter when it comes to intellectual capacity even though he has had a very successful life and appears to be completely full of life and himself.

There comes a time when people must realize that because someone is a popular actor doesn't secure success in the political arena...other than the wonderful photo ops.

THE REAGAN EFFECT might have been once in a lifetime event and there are still excessive debates focusing on how GOOD he really was as President. He was popular and well-liked but his decisions on closing health-care facilities started a chain reaction of homelessness that has never abated.

Gray Davis was run out of office because no one seemed to like him and the state was facing a minor budget crisis.

TODAY IN CALIFORNIA WE'VE BEEN TOLD BY ARNOLD THAT
"we have run out of time"

I BELIEVE OUR BEST CHANCE AT RECOVERY IS TO WELCOME JERRY BROWN BACK TO THE GOVERNOR'S MANSION....actually it would probably just be a small condo or maybe something a bit larger because now he's a married man....keeping in mind that he slept in a one bedroom apartment across from the State Capitol while he was previously employed as Governor of California.

I THINK THE YOUNG PEOPLE OF CALIFORNIA WILL EMBRACE THE INTELLECTUAL CAPACITIES OF JERRY BROWN

The job is just too big for Arnold and it's about time that someone started bringing it up.

Maybe someone should invite Jimmy Carter out here and let him bring it up.

Does anyone have Jimmy's cell phone number?

Michael Timothy McAlevey

GENERAL MOTORS

Here are some interesting notes on GM (obtained from lead story in today's LA TIMES)

In 1985 GM had 400,000 union workers
Today 61,000

From 1942 to 1945 All production was devoted to military vehicles

In 1962 GM had 51% of the American car market

In 1979 GM had 618,365 employees and the next year posted their first financial loss since 1920

Roger B. Smith was CEO from 1980 to 1990 and it appears that in that decade GM misfortunes were secured.

THAT WAS THE TIME TO COMMIT TO IMPROVED MPG AND BETTER GOODS BECAUSE THAT WAS THE TIME TOYOTA AND HONDA WERE BENDING OVER BACKWARDS TO MAKE GREAT CONSUMER PRODUCTS.

I assume one of the problems is when you have obtained a certain size within your corporation there comes a time when the size prevents actions based on correct priorities.

That same problem exist when your corporation is very very small and decisions can no longer be based on priorities because survival is the only goal.

I know how it feels to be involved in one of those two scenarios.

Too bad some small branch of the government wasn't interested in saving an upstart Art publishing company.

The moral of this story

OBTAIN AS MUCH DEBT AS HUMANLY POSSIBLE IF YOU WANT THE GOVERNMENT TO HELP YOU SURVIVE.

But remember the debt has to be in the billions in order to qualify....so you better get busy.

Michael Timothy McAlevey

This guy just won't go away

By STEVEN R. HURST, Associated Press Writer Steven R. Hurst, Associated Press Writer – Fri May 22, 4:40 am ET

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama fought Thursday to retake command of the emotional debate over closing Guantanamo, denouncing "fear-mongering" by political opponents and insisting that maximum-security prisons in the U.S. can safely house dangerous terror suspects transferred from Cuba. In a unique bit of Washington theater, former Vice President Dick Cheney delivered his own address just one minute later, defending the Bush administration's creation of the prison camp as vigorously as Obama denounced it.

Obama, appearing at the National Archives with its immensely symbolic backdrop of the nation's founding documents, said shutting down Guantanamo would "enlist our values" to make America safer. Speaking a day after an overwhelming congressional rebuke to his pledge to close the prison, he forcefully declared the camp a hindrance — not a help — to preventing future terrorist attacks. He contends that the prison, which has held hundreds of detainees for years without charges or trials, motivates U.S. enemies overseas.

The president promised to work with lawmakers to develop "an appropriate legal regime" for those who can't be tried and are too dangerous to be released. Still, he did not provide the level of detail about his plans that lawmakers, including Democrats, demanded in a 90-6 Senate vote denying money for the shutdown on Wednesday.

Cheney, in his own speech, denounced some of Obama's actions since taking office as "unwise in the extreme" and "recklessness cloaked in righteousness," repeating his contention from a series of headline-grabbing appearances recently that the new president is endangering the country by turning aside Bush-era policies. The former vice president, a primary architect of the Bush approach, accused Obama of looking for "a political strategy, not a national security strategy."

I REALLY WAS AGAINST TRYING TO PROSECUTE DICK CHENEY FOR HIS OBVIOUS DISREGARD OF THE CONSTITUTION DURING HIS TERM AS VICE-PRESIDENT

BUT

IF HE WON'T GO AWAY THEN MAYBE IT'S TIME TO PUT THE PEDDLE TO THE METAL AND SHUT HIM UP ONCE AND FOR ALL

HE REALLY BELIEVES EVERYTHING HE SAYS AND HE TRULY BELIEVES HE IS THE SPOKES PERSON FOR REPUBLICAN RIGHT WING

.....and most of us thought it was Rush while all the time it's still the REAL DICK

Even if he is partially correct on his opinion of the situation it's just a bad moment when he starts jabbering.

I've just never liked the guy and the fact that he's still making noise seems staggering to me.

Can't someone call Dan Quayle and let him teach the Real Dick how to be a nice quiet ex-Vice-President?

Does anybody have Dan's cell phone number?

Michael Timothy McAlevey

WE NEED TO SEE

Basketball fans need to see a final with Kobe vs LeBron and Denver and Orlando are doing everything possible to spoil that dream match up.

It would be very interesting if both conference finals went seven games. We would all be quite exhausted. Of course the players could also be a bit tired but they make millions of dollars to stay in great shape.

There is so much talk about the greatest basketball players of all time and while Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson and Kobe and LeBron get mentioned...it seems everybody simply overlooks Kareem Abdul Jabbar when talking about the greatest.

Bill Russell simply counts his rings and laughs at all the speculation about greatness.

I have heard that its all about winning and Bill Russell did that the most.

Personally I still think Jerry West was the best. Skinny white kid who is simply known as
the LOGO.

But right now the two best players are Kobe and LeBron and we need to see that final confrontation.

Dwight Howard and Carmelo Anthony see a different outcome.

The playoffs are the real part of the NBA season.

This is fun and this is intense

KOBE VS LEBRON would make this one of the great seasons in recent history.

Michael Timothy McAlevey

Hubble Hubble

When I consider that the pictures from the Hubble telescope have been arriving from a BROKEN machine than all I can wonder about is....what the freaking bejesus will the new pictures look like?

I simply can't wait to see what a repaired Hubble will be able to see.

The best news is that they think that the Hubble is good for Ten more years. A new improved next generation telescope will be in place in a few years so everything thing looks great for stargazers.

This latest repair adventure has been an incredible story with spacewalks up to eight hours long.

http://hubblesite.org/

To follow the story and see incredible images just go to the Hubble site shown above.

Out of this world is an understatement
and the fact that the original Hubble was placed in orbit on Sean's 12th birthday is just another special part to this incredible story.

Michael Timothy McAlevey

Laura is 20

There are so many amazing facets to this young woman.....and there is no reason to start rambling on about those facets because each and everyone of you who know her probably have a different set of facets.

FACETS can be elusive
FACETS can be bold
FACETS can be funny
FACETS can be old

FACETS can be transparent
FACETS can be tiny
FACETS can be apparent
FACETS can be shiny

The only FACET that really matters is the one that connects hearts to hearts and souls to souls and that FACET is very very hard to see and almost always impossible to touch.

BUT WHEN ONE HAS THAT CONNECTING FACET IN PLACE AND IT IS SECURE, THEN ONE KNOWS FOR SURE HOW ONE FEELS

HOPEFULLY LAURA KNOWS HOW MUCH SHE IS LOVED
BY EVERYONE WHO GETS TO SEE HER
FACETS

and this concludes the one and only time in my life that I have used the word FACET
in reference to a human being

so HAPPY BIRTHDAY LAURA
and have a
FACETNATING DAY

and by the way be sure to read her blog
http://www.thefairlygreatbookadventure.blogspot.com

Michael Timothy McAlevey

Another 31

31 today
and
working on a future

Happy Birthday Seamus

Michael Timothy McAlevey

TRISKAIDEKAPHOBIA

So the other night, while the Dodgers were setting a MAJOR LEAGUE record for most wins to start a season at home, Vin Scully started talking about the number 13. He even went so far as to explain that the back of a dollar bill has numerous 13 ramifications and he actually spent 3 to 4 minutes on the subject.

During last night's game while the Dodgers were leading 6-0 after five innings Vin casually brought up that there probably weren't any TRISKAIDEKAPHOBIACTS popping up tonight.

I thought to myself that the number 13 damage had already been done with the Manny story but then remembered that the team is a team and winning is the name of the game. I was a little tired and decided to hit the sack early thinking that the 13 jinx was just another silly thing along the road of numerous silly things.

I woke up this morning and started reading the newspaper and was shocked to learn that the Dodgers had lost the game 11-9. And they lost the game to the team with the worst record in baseball.

I really don't think there's much more to say about this.
I really don't think there's much more to say about this.
I really don't think there's much more to say about this.

13
13
13

Now if the Dodgers lose 13 games in a row I think it will mean the end of civilization as we know it.

oh...by the way
I'm not writing anything about Manny for the next 50 games.

Michael Timothy McAlevey

THE LIGHT IS ON

---

May 6, 2009, 2:02 pm

Racing to Build a Better Light Bulb

By Leora Broydo Vestel

The Pharox LED bulb is among several vying to replace the incandescent.

Warner Philips, the founder of Lemnis Lighting of the Netherlands, is confident that his company’s new 6-watt Pharox LED Light isn’t just ready for the consumer market, it’s ready to take over the lighting market from both incandescents (increasingly being phased out in many countries) and energy-efficient compact fluorescent bulbs.

“C.F.L.s are officially an outdated technology,” Mr. Philips said during a recent conversation with Green Inc. “You can’t recycle C.F.L.s. You can’t get a fully dimmable product. That should make them obsolete.”

The Pharox bulb was introduced Wednesday at Lightfair International in New York, where lighting designers from around the globe are showing off their wares. According to Lemnis Lighting, the new Pharox can match the light output of a 60-watt incandescent, and it can be used smoothly and reliably with dimmer switches — unlike many C.F.L. bulbs. It’s also designed to be heat-resistant, the company notes and, also unlike C.F.L.s, mercury-free.

The packaging says the bulb will last 25 years given average use (four hours a day), or more than 36,000 hours.

Come July, the bulb will be sold on Amazon.com for just under $50 – still more expensive than dimmable C.F.L.s, but with a lifespan that the company says is eight times longer and with more incandescent-like dimming capabilities. The Pharox’s payback time at that price, according to Lemnis, is 3.5 years.

Mr. Philips says he sees the price dropping rather quickly, as it did with a 5-watt, 40-watt equivalent bulb the company introduced six months ago at $40. It is now selling for $35 — a decrease attributable in large part to assistance from the Clinton Climate Initiative, which is sponsoring a giveaway of 2.5 million bulbs in Europe.

(The fact that Google gave 25,000 bulbs to its employees in honor of Earth Day last month doesn’t hurt either.)

Mr. Philips said problems with heat build-up inside enclosed lighting fixtures, which cause L.E.D.s and C.F.L.s to fail early, has been addressed with a vented design that allows for better air flow.

Still, the company told us that the preferred use of the Pharox is in open fixtures. Using it in enclosed fixtures — like recessed ceiling cans — will reduce the lifetime of the bulbs by about 25 percent, the company said (a data point not evident on the bulb’s packaging, it should be noted.)

Indeed, as with many would-be replacements for the incandescent bulb, a bit of incongruity exists between performance claims that may well pertain in a laboratory, and a bulb’s performance in the real world.

For starters, the advertised light output of the Pharox is about 300 “lumens” — the metric used for measuring the light coming off a bulb. That places it somewhere between a 25-watt and 40-watt incandescent. A 60-watt incandescent emits up to 900 lumens.

The company explained that the light output is comparable to a 60-watt bulb, depending on where one uses the bulb and for what purpose. “There are 60-watt soft tone/flame bulbs that generate less light than a Pharox 6-watt,” the company said.

It’s also worth noting that an earlier version of the Pharox — a 4-watt, 40-watt equivalent bulb dubbed the Pharox LS — had some trouble when it was tested in a Department of Energy program that evaluates the performance of L.E.D. products.

While eight of 10 Pharox bulbs the agency purchased from a distributor between December 2007 and March 2008 had performed well, two of the samples died before the laboratory could run any tests. The energy department said at the time that it had “serious concerns about the reliability or robustness of the product design.”

In an e-mail message to Green Inc., a Lemnis representative noted that the Pharox bulb in question was “outdated” and no longer offered on the market.

“As with any nascent technology,” he said, “all manufacturers will have issues.”

IT'S HAPPENING

Does anyone have Warner's cell phone number?

and the answer to that question would be......YES

Michael Timothy McAlevey

78, 89 and no

Every Tuesday is a golf outing with my 89 year old father.

Normally my older brother plays but he is being a cowboy and hanging with his homies in Santa Barbara for a week. The group is called Ranchero Vistadores and apparently the organization goes back about 79 years. Members have included Ronnie Reagan and various other pillars of the community. They spend 8 days playing cowboy and rodeo games and from everything I've heard....they have the time of their lives. At least the time of their lives that don't include women. This is the 38 year that he has gone on the ride.


My father is taking a blood thinner and he gets very tired and dizzy around the 13th hole. Of course the fact that he is 89 might have something to do with it but my instincts tell me differently.

I had to take a blood thinner awhile back and it drastically reduced my energy level. Of course the doctor's have a reason....they always have a reason....for him being on Coumadin but I'm not so sure about the other eight prescriptions.

Of course asking questions about the interaction of certain drugs gets you absolutely nowhere. The side affects of many drugs is dizziness....but when you ask a Doctor they always say the same things. "All side effects are very rare."

ALL SIDE EFFECTS ARE VERY RARE

THERE'S NEVER A PROBLEM UNTIL THERE'S A PROBLEM

WE DON'T HAVE THE ABSOLUTE ANSWER ON WHY CERTAIN DRUGS DON'T WORK WELL WITH OTHER DRUGS.

ASK YOUR PHARMACISTS

Which makes my brain hurt and causes me to think about golfing with my father....after all the pharmacists didn't prescribe the medication but apparently they know more about the medications.....which means we might just need more pharmacists and less doctors.

Huh?

Did I really shoot a 78 today?

As we were walking off the course I said to one of the players..."I beat you by a stroke...you shot a 79 and I shot a 78."

He looked at me very calmly and said...."How many mulligans did you take?"

I had to think for a second and then softly said...."two."

The look he gave me was sufficient and I realized he doesn't take mulligans and therefore my 78 was really an 80 and he beat me my one stroke.

I announced then and there that I never liked taking mulligans and only did it because everybody else did it. He just grinned and started walking away knowing that in the real game of golf he had beaten me by one stroke. I also realized it and as he walked away I said..."from now on I will play the real game of golf whenever you are playing."

He stopped and turned and said "there's only one way to play the game of golf....and that's according to the rules...and all the rules are precise and there are no gray areas....except of course when dealing with unplayable lies...and then it usually takes a third party to clarify."

So from this day forward I will never take another mulligan and I will never give or take a gimme putt and I will never sleep with the starters girlfriend and I will never eat sushi for breakfast.

Rules are rules and when playing the game of golf all principles of self worth and self respect come fully into play....on numerous occasions during a round.

Now for my dad.....he can freaking do anything he wants just as long as he keeps showing up every Tuesday morning at 7:55. In fact I think I'll start giving him the twenty foot putts....but first the blood thinner issue needs to be addressed because it's screwing up his game. Today he only played 12 holes and then just kinda napped in the cart while we finished the round. He had shot a 45 on the front nine so he had a good chance of breaking 90.

He also informed me before he left that he voted no on all the May 19th ballot measures and mailed his ballot already.

Which now means I might have to vote yes on all the measures.

IT'S ALL ABOUT
BALANCE

GOLF
POLITICS
PRESCRIPTIONS
LOVE

And the difference between shooting a 78 and an 80 is a
HUGE
DIFFERENCE
as is not adding two mulligan strokes to the score

but the scorecard says 78 and we all know that anything written down is the absolute truth.

Except of course for prescription side effects and occasional golf scores.

Michael Timothy McAlevey

When someone asks

When someone asks who my influences are I usually think about these type of Celtic symbols.
Of course my designs take extreme liberties with the structure of these designs but I am who I am and I do what I do.

I'm working on a NEW ELEMENT in my "Free Flow Motion" technique but I keep throwing things away and that's so not me.

I have trouble throwing away newspapers so imagine what takes place in the Michael Timothy McAlevey personal ART library.

It can get "clustered"

But at the same time SOMETHING is developing
or
NOT

The beauty of being an artist is that it doesn't really matter as long as there is something pleasing to observe after the mental storm clouds have passed

Back to work

Michael Timothy McAlevey

May

As always the year is advancing rather quickly. Soon we will be celebrating 2010 and wondering what the heck happened to 2009.

While the economy is stumbling there are still wonderful stories happening on a daily basis. Some people are having banner years and some people are falling in love and getting married and some people are having babies and celebrating life in ways they never though imaginable. Some people are writing stories and making movies and some people are writing songs and some people are creating art...and some people are even playing golf on a regular basis.

Of course some people are studying very hard and other people are looking for jobs or at least wondering what jobs might be available....and some people are wondering about grad school.

No matter what anyone is doing 2009 is now five months in and moving quickly.

There is still time to make 2009 the most rewarding year of your life.

DIET, EXERCISE and PRAYER or meditation if you prefer
are the three methods for optimizing your existence and when you slow down and think about it
you know
it's true

Creativity flows from right thinking and right thinking flows from right living and the circle gets bigger and the goals get larger and the rewards become
huge

Today's "article" is my Hallmark birthday wish for Robert McShane

Happy Birthday Dude.

Love

Michael Timothy McAlevey