Let's Get Stimulated!

Prez Obama is finding some rough sledding, getting the 30- and 40-year career Washingtonians to get on board his economic stimulus package. Imagine that. The Good-'Ol-Boy Network fighting change. Regardless how loud the American people SCREAMED FROM THE MOUNTAINTOP that they were sick of the status quo, some statuses will always remain quo. Until they are booted from office. Sad, sad, sad. Anyway, I wanted to see Miriam Webster's take on stimulus:

Stimulus: something that rouses or incites to activity: a) incentive b) a stimulant c) an agent that directly influences the activity of a living organism or one of its parts, such as by exciting a sensory organ or evoking muscular contraction or glandular secretion. Now THAT sounds like something the Good-'Ol-Boys could get behind! The reality of America's future hasn't seemed to sink in to these talking heads, though. They're comfortable with the reality of politics, trying in the first 30 days to teach the voting public how wrong they were to disagree with their way of thinking. Again, it's sad. I'm rooting and cheering out loud for the Prez, and I hope he takes names and kicks some behind along the way!

Recent polls show that people are still cruising (rightfully so), but they are dramatically cutting back on some of the main onboard revenue producers. Casino revenues are in the ditch. Spa treatments and beauty salon have been halved. Beverage consumption is down almost 10%. Shore excursions, while still popular, have been downplayed as well, with more and more people researching the islands before they get there, then doing their own thing. It's true there are outside companies who can provide shore trips, sometimes for less money. But you don't know exactly what you're getting in many cases, and there are pitfalls. If there is an incident with one of the ship's tours, you have recourse as a paying passenger, and the cruise line stands behind their product. If you go elsewhere and there's a problem, have a nice time trying to work that out between you and Party X. Also, if you're on a ship tour and your bus breaks down an hour away from the pier, they know it. You're on a computer manifest, and they do a headcount before departing, and will hold the ship as needed until their tours return. Same scenario, if you did it on your own? Oh my! Best of luck getting a flight to the next island (often by flying at your own expense back to the USA to get a connection). Also, cruise line shore trips have a small amount built in for insurance, to cover them (and you) in case of a catastrophic accident or incident. So my suggestion is to gamble less if times are tight, cut back on grooming and spa services if you will, and (*gulp*) even cut back on alcohol if you must - but be wary of going too far out on a limb with private excursions. Nothing ruins a vacation faster than standing on the pier, watching your ship sail off, knowing she's not turning around. "Buh-bye!"

The Westminster Dog Show has been in the news. Some countries don't have anything quite like it, but they have other venues. Take for example Saudi Arabia. This oil-rich country is host to several camel beauty pageants each year. 2008 was the country's first goat beauty pageant, held in Riyadh, highlighted by the distinctive Najdi breed, featuring high nose bridges and silky, shaggy hair. In fact, most of the goats in the competition had the same father, Burgan, whose progeny typically fetch the equivalent of $25,000 and up. Prize-winning show camels can bring 10 times that amount, for the greater status they convey to their owners. But Saudis still enjoyed the first-of-its-kind goat beauty contest. Burgan himself did not appear, because his owner feared that a jealous competitor would have an "evil eye" cast upon him. I wonder if that's what happened to the Lassie-look-alike collie at Westminster last year?

Even though casino revenues are down world-wide, there is a newsworthy attempt to construct one in California that's created a stir. Numerous federal lawsuits tried to block it, but by the end of last month, a federal judge had dismissed the last pending lawsuit standing in the way of the new Indian casino in Amador County. Amador is where the Federally-recognized
Me-Wuk Tribe, of Buena Vista Rancheria, has its 67-acre reservation. A representative of the Tribe had filed an application to build a new Indian casino, and locals tried unsuccessfully to block it. Why did residents of the area object to the Me-Wuk Tribe's casino? Possibly because the Me-Wuk consists only of Rhonda Morningstar-Pope and her 5 kids. By coincidence, none of them lives on Tribal land. I'm not sure what constitutes a Tribe legally, but that sounds more like a Posse or Scout Troop to me. Federal judges are working on something like this, while the world around us crumbles. Somehow our priorities have run over the edge of a cliff...

"Living in China: So easy, a cave man can do it." That will probably never be a National slogan in the Great Land of Asia, but the idea itself definitely has a following. A large number of Chinese have their residences in caves, and often it's not a bad deal, according to a McClatchy Newspapers dispatch from Miaogou Village. In addition to advantages (such as no mortgage), some caves have been in the family for generations, and have electrical wiring, plumbing and cable TV. Some are even part of communities of connected caves. Cavaminiums! Researchers said that earthen insulation keeps the inside temperature from dropping below about 55 degrees Fahrenheit, even in the dead of winter. Like me, you're probably wondering how many people actually live like this. Because all things are bigger in China when it comes to numbers, my initial impression from the story would be they're talking about 30-thousand, maybe 40-thousand people. Not so much. According to the researchers, an estimated 20-million people in China could do Geico commercials from their caves! That's 20,000,000 as in 20 followed by 6 zeroes. And you thought you had it rough getting cable installed, outside the city limits.