Kat at CatHouse Chat has done the most exquisite job of documenting the affair. So far, everything she’s presented is organized chronologically, makes perfect sense and serves as a wonderful memento from a time to be remembered. We would expect nothing less from her.

For the sake of “equal time” I’m going to present my “memento” to you in an unorganized hodgepodge of photos and words. You’d expect nothing less from me!

Humor disclaimer: Since our Commonwealth has yet to hold a referendum on what constitutes humor, someone may be offended by the following comments. Don’t run whining to the local newspaper. Simply e-mail me so that I may forward your e-mail to the biggest gossip monger in your party as an example of how weak your party is.

Judging from the photo above,  Norm loves the BEER GUY! But look what happens when he learns that the Beer Guy is also the THE BLUE DOG! Where’s the thumbs-up, now? Greg’s getting the doggy scoop for his site. Speaking of Greg, I don’t recall ordering cheesecake….Black Velvet Cheesecake. When’s breakfast?

AND, Speaking of love and beer, Josh and Jay BOTH told me the old adage is true:   Bedfellows do indeed make strange politics. Ask Queen Megan! I wonder how she got her crown to light up? The illuminated crown was the prize for being the best dressed AND getting her husband to wear a matching tie!  Mr. Blackwell has nothing on these bloggers.

Now while I’m on the subject of love, beer and pantyhose, did you know that……  

Jim needed some pantyhose for a pre-dinner “poof deflector.” Tucker said, “Just a second, kid, I’m working on it!” For those of you scratching your heads, a poof deflector is a nifty Podcasting creation by Jim. Come to next year’s blog conference and see it for yourself!

Mary Rives was all smiles until her dirty little secret slipped out. . . She wanted Badrose to make the name tags so she FAKED a broken arm. I promise to make the names bigger next year.

 Jim Patrick seems mighty happy…especially for a man sitting at a table with no legs. No legs? Yes, according to Eileen, this was the table that wouldn’t stand!

“So forgive me when myself and a few others at my table Friday night failed to give standing ovation to LG Bolling concluding his remarks. I thought I was being civil and respectful enough by just clapping.”~ Eileen Levandoski

Well, thanks for trying, Eileen.

    Now that the affair is over, I’m feeling a little sad, very fatigued, relieved that we “pulled it off” without getting caught and just can’t wait to do it again!

    I made more memories than I knew I could in such a short time - some captured on film that I hope to post soon. Especially the one that proves I was kissed by the Truman Capote of Blogdom.

    I gathered some quotes that may very well end up on tee-shirts, met people that I have no doubt someday (soon) I’ll be proud to say, “I knew them when.” Hell, I’m proud to know them now! The creative talent, intelligence, wit and vision, combined with the wisdom of experience and the enthusiasm of the inexperienced, created an indescribable synergy. I hope to describe the indescribable after the thoughts have a little time to settle and I’ve had a little more sleep. In the meantime, I now have at least 30 new people to call when I run out of gas - even if it means I have to carry a blue gas can…..

    Regrets, I have a few….the biggest of which is not gathering all the bloggers together to sing Martinsville’s “We Love This Place” jingle and posting it on Youtube. There’s always next year, though. Speaking of which, please let me know how we can make next year’s better.

    More to come….

Despite my friend, Nicholas, throwing out the first pitch, the Martinsville Mustangs lost 9-6 to Wilmington. This makes them 14-5 for the season. Win or lose, it’s always fun to be at a Mustangs game.

Marty, the team’s mascot, is always willing to give autographs, so take a Sharpie and head to the field. See ya there!

Two oxymorons in two days. My intuition, as well as my cable internet, must’ve been impacted by one of the many storms we’ve entertained of late. While I was reading this post over at Raising Kaine, and it’s subsequent comments, I envisioned the author of the post, Lowell, to be a lot like my dad. Maybe it was because I thought only my dad could combine communism and underage drinking, stir it for a couple of minutes with his sarcasm swizzle stick and try to serve what he thought was a lucid conclusion. The guy HAD to be about my father’s age, seventy-five, I thought. Maybe, like dad, his “cheese was beginning to slip off his cracker” a little… Lowell IS a Democrat, maybe he’s just so old and senile that he still thinks Virginia Democrats are conservative! That had to be it. Someone needed to tell the old coot that Governor Mills Godwin became a Republican AND that he was no longer residing in the Governor’s Mansion.

Lowell is Lowell Feld. I learned this while reading Conaway’s interview with him at Bacon’s Rebellion, just before the sixteen inch descent from my captain’s chair onto the floor. Lowell Feld was born in 1962! He’s only four years older than Badrose! That’s not old enough to have these Draconian opinions regarding underage drinking - or anything else. Obviously he posted about Jacqui Newman to embarrass her and because she’s a woman. A Republican woman. That’s tacky, Lowell. Especially from a self-appointed spokesperson for the “normal people.”

If you’ve read Lowell Feld’s post already, you probably noticed that he refers to our Attorney General as “Taliban Bob.” Regardless of his intent or how long he’s been doing it, it’s tacky, too. When you consider the inhumane, brutal treatment that women have endured at the hands of the Taliban, it’s much more than tacky, it’s offensive.

Over at TooConservative, the debate rages on over whether Bob McDonnell should be called, Taliban Bob, Sodomy Bob or Crimes Against Nature Bob. Here’s an idea, boys…. How ‘bout Attorney General McDonnell? Or just Bob? Let’s leave the name calling in the sand box where it belongs. I don’t care who started it, either.

All of this reminds me why I turned off to politics for ten years in the first place. I hope the tacky, testosterone-powered one-ups-manship doesn’t cause Jacqui to turn off, too. She is a rising, shining star in a dark vortex of mean-spiritedness and we could all benefit from her light, if she’s allowed to continue her ascent. Republicans would be foolish to distance themselves from her for having a social (online anyway) life outside of politics. I hope they see this as an opportunity to strengthen and stretch a rapidly growing bridge to the people of Jacqui’s generation. They have myspace pages, and they vote.

I guess that’s why I’ve decided to get back in. I still have hope.

From an article in the Richmond Times-Dispatch this morning, I learned that at least two areas in Virginia: Hampton Roads and NOVA aren’t prepared for a major disaster such as a Category 3 hurricane. The article stated that roughly 90% of Norfolk could be under water. That scenario deserves a blog of it’s own ( Yourenotemeril? ) but I’ve decided to focus on Nova - Arlington County, specifically. I also deserve credit for not making the obvious analogy between wealthy neighbors being flooded out of their mansions and seeking refuge in the “economically discouraged - not depressed” trailer parks of Henry County.

Send them all here. Especially the ones from Arlington County. Why single them out? Because I’ve been expecting them. Before I moved here in July 2004, I read a press release from March of 2004:

Granted, March 2004 was at least two Directors of Economic Development ago, but wouldn’t this be another “tool” in the economic development “toolbox” about which our new Director, Mark Heath has spoken? Do former directors take all of their tools with them or leave some behind for subsequent directors to use?

With Will at the beach, I felt secure in the comfort of having a “jingle-free” week. Not so.

I feel a jingle coming on:

Oh Arlington County, Arlington County -

Don’t wait for disaster to come see our bounty!

We have big buildings, we have open spaces -

We have tanning beds - just look at our faces!

Our people need jobs and you need employees -

Give them a shot and they’re sure to puh-lease.

They’ve plummeted into an unemployment hole -

But the sturdiest have survived and they’re ready to roll!

After seeing the trouble Will Vehrs got into with his blog, I knew I had to have one. If for no other reason, I needed a place to defend people that had been wronged. I linked my defense of Will to my myspace.com page but it didn’t seem very dignified. So here I am….

I don’t intend for this to be entirely about Virginia politics, really….I hope for it to be more of an online journal. A way to hone my writing skills, let friends and acquaintances know what I’m up to, reminisce about “growing up” in Richlands, and of course, defend those who deserve it as well as offend those who deserve it.

I realized that I had unintentionally taken a ten-year sabbatical from my interest in politics. Why? One reason is the media. I attended the Republican National Gala in 1996. I was privileged to hear an inspirational, thoughtful and highly informative speech given by Newt Gingrich. Later that night, on my hotel television, I saw small snippets of his wonderful speech twisted and manipulated to make him sound like the evil Newt they would want us to believe him to be.

Forget the will of the people, it is the will of our spoon-feeding media that shapes our perspectives and perceptions. Media hated him…he’s gone. There is also a testosterone factor to Newt’s story that I’ll tie into later. Testosterone in politics is another reason for my self-imposed sabbatical.

On a higher note, hearing then Governor George Allen give his speech made me want to climb on top of the table and cheer, “Yea Virginia!” Part of his speech pointed out that the three plans President Clinton was hoping to implement in his State of the Union Address had already been implemented in Virginia. Funny how he was more supportive of states’ rights when he was a governor….

That’s probably enough for a first blog. Later, I hope to continue with the rest of my reasons for jumping out, testosterone, moving to Martinsville, Will Vehrs, Blondes in the Basement, Ward Armstrong, Jack Russells, why Imnotemerileither and maybe most importantly, why I’ve decided to jump back in . . .