Δαφνη Ευτυχια Αρθουρος

Since twistedchick is on the injured list, I'll do my tiny, disorganized part to help spread news. I subscribe to a convenient email service called "Megavote" which drops a weekly summary of how my representatives in the House and Senate voted in the past week (and a little info on what's coming up in Congress next) into my mailbox. From this afternoon's mailing (abridged):

Congress has completed its work for the year. The Senate is scheduled to reconvene on January 18, 2006. The House is scheduled to reconvene on January 31, 2006.

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Recent Senate Votes:

[...]

Cloture Motion; ANWR Drilling -- Vote Rejected (56-44)

The Senate fell short of invoking cloture on the Defense spending bill that contained a provision allowing for drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
Sen. Paul Sarbanes voted NO
Sen. Barbara Mikulski voted NO

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Defense Appropriations Act, FY2006 -- Vote Agreed to (93-0, 7 Not Voting)

Following the removal of the ANWR provision, the Senate passed this $453 billion bill funding the Department of Defense for the 2006 fiscal year.
Sen. Paul Sarbanes voted YES
Sen. Barbara Mikulski voted YES

Uh oh.

Noises (1):

[siren]
[siren] (sounds like an abulance
[siren] based on siren style,
[siren] speed, and engine noise)
[siren]
SCREEEEEEEEEE[siren]EEEEEEEE[siren]EEEEEEECH
(wait for the thump, wait for a crump, wait for a crash) [siren]
(no crash ... exhale) [siren]
[siren]
%whew%

Repeatability Problem:

Today's breakfast was couscous with red lentils and frozen mixed vegetables. As usual, I measured the couscous and the water and eyeballed everything else. (Actually this time I measured the lentils as well.) I didn't chop the garlic as finely as I usually do. I did not measure the butter, salt, curry powder, or crushed red pepper. And I'm not sure I remember what other spice I threw in on impulse.

It was perfect. It was "I didn't realize I'd never had it perfect before, until I tasted this" perfect. Now I wish I'd measured and written down amounts. The balance of flavours, the spiciness, just right. And I swear I tasted a spice I don't remember putting in.

Health:

I woke up with a headache. I drank Gatorade, I ate breakfast; it's worse. So it wasn't dehydration or hunger. I really need to manage to get out of the house today, but my head is killing me.

Noises (2):

Apparently there was a police-involved shooting two blocks from my house a couple of nights ago. (If I recall the television news description correctly, officers approached a man sitting in a parked car, he drew a gun on them, they shot him. "Suicide-by-cop"?) I didn't hear a thing. Makes me wonder just how far away shots I do hear are. (Of course, anything positioned to echo down Lombard is going to be more audible than sounds that have to cross a bunch of back yards and rows of rowhouses to reach me.)

About Those Snipers Shooting At Rescue Helicopters:

From an ABC News story (bottom of first page):

Laura Brown, a Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman in Washington, said she had no such report. "We're controlling every single aircraft in that airspace and none of them reported being fired on," she said, adding that the FAA was in contact with the military as well as civilian aircraft.