Breakfast with the Brewers, and 10,000 of their closest friends

Pancake Breakfast
It’s always nice to be a big name-dropper on your blog. Today I crashed the Brewer’s place for breakfast. They had like 10,000 guests.

Pancake Breakfast

Notice how pleased Steve is to see me and my camera? Hi Steve! Whatcha havin? (BTW Steve’s thinking of using me in one of his books…crime novels need victims, you know)
Pancake Breakfast

Kelly took some shots too. There were a lot of people there. Hi everyone! Welcome to Redding. Let’s eat!
Pancake Breakfast
Erin’s got a plateful.
Pancake Breakfast
These are some hard working cowboys. All for charity. Our thanks go to everyone involved.
Pancake Breakfast
This kid was really cute.
Pancake Breakfast
A tip of the hat to this longtime Redding tradition. The Asphalt Cowboy’s Pancake Breakfast. A true Redding original. See you again next year!
Pancake Breakfast

I heard you! Shame on you for saying that. No, I did not find my cowboy hat in a dumpster.

More inevitable cat photos

Butch, the neighbor’s cat wandered by our backyard BBQ for Mother’s Day.
Butch the cat
The key to hunting is to look relaxed.
Butch the cat
When he spots something, he hits them with the ol’ hypnotic eye.
Butch the cat

Butch the cat!

Butch the cat
Hope you had a most excellent Mother’s Day.

Mr. and Mrs. Black Phoebe eat flies and have babies

An outdoor speaker under the pool shed eaves in our backyard has proven to be suitable housing for a family of Black Phoebes.
Nest
I put a small videocamera on a stick and gently shoved it in the eaves to see if I could see what was happening in the nest, a la Turtle Bay eagle cam. Last week there were a few eggs, and yesterday there were a couple of pink blurs with yellow beaks. It’s too close for my cheapo videocamera to really make much out, but in any event, there’s obviously a family here.
Black Phoebe
The Black Phoebes are a species in the family “Tyrant Flycatcher.” That’s something they do well.
Black Phoebe
Every so often, they fly off in a loop, to catch flying bugs I can’t even see. I tried to get an action shot, but good luck on that. They’re fast! These still shots will have to do.
Black Phoebe
Apparently, they like streams and ponds, but evidently they think our swimming pool is just fine too. Thanks to Karry for identifying the species for me.
Black Phoebe

Greeters Meeting at Win River is never a gamble. It's sure to be great.

WinRiver
Win River provides a lavish meeting area for the Chamber of Commerce weekly Greeters Meeting.
WinRiver
Their breakfasts are always good.

WinRiver

Especially fun is that their staff and management applaud you as you arrive. Sounds hokey maybe, but I must admit having professional people applaud at your arrival is an instant ego booster. It’s a nice touch, and typical of the thoughtfulness of Win River’s staff. A great way to start the day.
WinRiver

H1N1 Flu coming soon to a neighborhood near you (probably)

Old photo of flu patients
I don’t have any better insight into this subject than you do, but I have been watching the CDC website. The numbers make it look pretty inevitable that flu is headed our way. At this point there are no reported cases in Shasta County. I wonder how long that will last? When it does hit I imagine there may be a bit of a panic. I hope everyone stays safe in these upcoming, potentially trying times.

Progression of flu patients

The chart above was much shorter just yesterday. So. I need a plan. I figure I’m going to get it. Probably you are too. I’ve had the flu before, and lived to tell the tale. And I expect to do so again this time. Bravado perhaps. Not looking forward to it though. From reading the information available online, the flu virus has a nasty habit of mutating rapidly and into things we cannot predict. Obviously, some preparation is in order. You may want to get some Hand Sanitizer ready for the season, and stock up on other supplies as well in case anything happens. It could also be worthwhile wearing things like face masks in order to limit the spread of germs and viruses to those around us, check them out here – https://stringking.com/ppe/face-masks/3-layer-kids-face-mask/. I think I’m going to make some chicken soup. Enough to freeze until we need it, and I won’t feel like cooking much. In addition, it would be a good idea to think about the symptoms that come along with the flu and make sure that you are stocked up on the relevant pain relief treatments. For example, I will be making sure I have plenty of lozenges from places like Quantum Health (https://quantumhealth.com/shop/product/cough-relief-bagged-lozenges) for more natural remedies to treat a sore throat. The key is preparedness for this flu season. What are you doing? The CDC site has some suggestions:
Preparation logo

Pandemic. That sounds serious. When we feel like these things are serious hopefully that means our community can come back together and work to help us through it all and keep healthy. I hope the chicken soup helps! Best wishes to all.

Transcendant music video, by David Helpling and Jon Jenkins

One of the best parts of working with the artist-run music label Spotted Peccary Records has been meeting the other recording artists on the label. Check out this impressive new music video:

The Knowing (LIVE) – David Helpling and Jon Jenkins

On August 25, 2008, David Helpling and Jon Jenkins were joined by long time friend and collaborator Matthew Stewart for a rare live performance at the University Of California San Diego. Some of the best moments of that memorable evening were released on the BEYOND WORDS – RARE LIVE TREASURES limited edition CD – available at deepexile.com. This video footage, shot by Joe Abreu, documents the very same performance of “The Knowing” that appears on the BEYOND WORDS – RARE LIVE TREASURES disc

4-20 Time to consider legalization and taxation of Marijuana

Bee on Lupine
The time has come to consider legalizing and taxing Marijuana. Sure, it’s easier to ignore this problem and go along with the status quo, than to come out for change. But it’s my blog and I can say what I want. There are already a lot of states that have made it totally legal and medically legal. there are medical dispensaries in texas, medical marijuana texas is doing good work and no one is getting hurt. If you would like to try marijuana then you can by getting a ohio cannabis card, it may help for medicinal purposes but it may not. A lot of consumers that are looking to purchase a more raw product, would head to an online retailer like rocky mountain dispensary, but not use it entirely for the medicinal values others would.
Since what we are doing is costly and doesn’t appear to be working AT ALL, I think it makes sense to try another way. I imagine public figures everywhere struggling with this idea. It’s better to get along and go along. But that doesn’t make it the right thing to do. I sense a rising momentum for this idea from the blogosphere, but that may be all there is to it. Still, major newspapers are printing articles like this:
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/currents/43237522.html
which actually expresses my ideas about the subject better than I can. Even our own local newspaper has hinted at the idea. Which is something at least. It’s time to stop enabling organized crime in Mexico, and making criminals out of local potheads and medicinal users. The hypocrisy of allowing some intoxicants to be legal, and others out-of-fashion to be made illegal, harms our society more than the drugs. Sure the tax revenue would be fine, but the real good would be to reduce the damage to our civil liberties and societal fabric. I don’t advocate drug use, but I fear drunk drivers more than addled potheads, and this foolishness must end. We are harmed by the illicit grow operations in our forests, and by the costly criminalization and imprisonment of the people whose only crime is to themselves. Our current failed drug policy is turning the border into a narco-state. It has come to a point where the law is creating more problems than the subject of the law. California State Assemblyman Tom Ammiano wants to change the law. If you agree, you should tell our local Assemblyman Doug LaMalfa that you are open minded to new ideas to attack this old issue. But then, it’s always easier to go along and get along….

Extreme autos race one another at the Redding Dragstrip

Dueling jet cars
There is something utterly visceral about watching two jet powered cars race. You have to be there to feel it. Last night, these two “cars” spooled up, and took off down the track at over 200 mph. Afterwards, there was a moment of stunned silence in the crowd, like we all couldn’t believe what we just saw and felt. Then, an exhilarated cheer, almost in unison. We all turned and looked at one another as if to confirm “Did you see/feel that too?” I was laughing so hard. What sort of looney-tunes do you have to be to strap yourself onto a ROCKET, and then race somebody?
Dueling jet cars
You think your job is tough. The two track workers you can just see, crouched toward the left of this shot, are literally sandwiched between two plasma plumes of death!
Dueling jet cars