The skies are a perfect blue, the temperature and humidity low. A nice breeze makes me sublimely happy.

Sublime, of course, because of Isabel waiting off shore. Each tiny gust reminds me that soon things will be quite windy. For now though, I'm just grateful that the weather can be so perfect today. Lunch outside with co-workers was fun, I ran into Leto (randomly) and I soaked up some serious rays.

I feel damn good.

Anyone else wonder if the Bush administration will try to pin next quarter's lackluster economic report on Isabel? You know, just like they did with the terrorist attacks, the blackout, the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, etc.

When will they just admit that tax cuts don't cut it?

If only a giant hurricane would come and sweep all the grime out of the White House, Taxi Driver style. I'm rooting for Isabel.

So in the spirit of healthy competition I sent Brad a note that I had 32,635 friends connecting through 7 friends on Friendster. So he replies back to me that he's connected to 173,501 people through 16 connections. Damn.

If you haven't tried it yet, friendster is actually fairly cool. Almost as useful as Deanlink but with tons more people, so chances are a great bunch of your friends are already connected to it. Now I just have to find 9 people who will help push my total up by 142,000 connections.

Along those lines, what the hell are you doing Brad? You've got a brand new computer...so start putting your $.02 in. No more "technical problems" excuses.

Is it just me or is no one interested in both hearing and seeing picturss of John Stamos' mom? Why the hell do we have to keep hearing him blather on and on and on about how he calls his mother with 10-10-987? I mean, HELLO 10-10-987 EXECUTIVES!! It doesn't take a rocket scientist to take LARGE WADS OF CASH and use them to get John to get his UNBELIEVABLY HOT WIFE to appear in a commercial. No more Mrs. Stamos...unless Mrs. Stamos has a first name of Rebecca. Got it? Sheesh. Ad execs are so idiotic sometime. Can you imagine the board meeting for the 10-10-987 campaign?

"Um, let's get that guy...you know...John Stamos to hawk our product. And maybe he could start talking about Mrs. Stamos...you know, his mother? Everyone loves Mrs. Stamos...or so my teenage son says."

You see? Stupid, stupid, stupid.

On a different note, I'd like to point people over to the reviews side of the website where I just posted two new ones of "Matchstick Men" and "Once Upon a Time in Mexico". Surprisingly, the former sucked hard. I mean, some ads said it was like "The Sting". It was many things, but it was not even in the same league as "The Sting". Rodriguez, on the other hand, made a gem of a movie, even if it contains too many slow shots of Antonio Banderas crying over Salma Hayek.

My sleep situation doesn't seem to be improving much. Fortunately, though, thanks to a brief stilted conversation with Fincher this afternoon, I realized that I have my health, that I have an overly positive attitude towards life in general, and that I actually have a fairly sweet setup. When the most stress one encounters is carting home a roll of toilet paper, life is telling you that you have things set. Hence my little gratuitous grateful post a bit back. No, I'm not smoking crack or becoming family oriented.

And on that note, if this coming October is half as fun as last October, I'm going to actually tell some decent stories this time instead of pretending that the election fiasco was the most exciting thing around. Just warning you guys in advance...so don't do anything you'll regret, unless you won't remember doing it.

'werkz advice: skip it.

Calling Ridley Scott's "Matchstick Men" a movie to rival "The Sting" was a bad idea, because it sets very high expectations for a plot twist and a great caper. Instead, the viewer is treated to one of Nicolas Cage's best movies with great directing throughout, matched only by an absolutely awful screenplay. Cage turns in most of the best moments, which eliminates the buddy-guy fun of "The Sting". In addition, the cloying ending felt as if the Hollywood censors decided to make the film as gratingly family oriented as possible.

Do yourself a favor and skip this movie. I think every movie should be seen at least once, but if you do watch "Matchstick Men" remember that even a great director and actor can't make up for a bad plot.

'werkz advice: see it in the theatre.

"Once Upon a Time in Mexico" is the latest from Robert Rodriguez and the third installment of the El Mariachi trilogy. Like the Sergio Lione title it apes, OUATIM is an epic, full of long periods of soulful glances and past loves remembered. It has enough violence and good characters to keep things lively, however, and is definitely worth watching in the theater. Johney Depp's character almost singlehandedly carries the film, as Antonio Banderas once again makes his role seem somewhat cheesier than the original low-budget "El Mariachi". Nevertheless, it's a good film, and it doesn't take itself too seriously (excluding, of course, Banderas, who manages to overact in a campy rather than funny manner) which is de rigeur. If you want a movie that manages to spoof and homage simultaneously, OUATIM is your film.

I'm really tired right now, but you know what? I'm damn grateful. The fact that I can sit here in a nice house typing into a computer with a high-speed internet connection in the wealthiest nation in the world is the result of a long series of random events. I don't have big money problems, and I can sit here and listen to music without worrying about my next meal, or getting a job, or any of that pesky reality so many people have to deal with.

Just thought you should know. I'm never content with my situation but that doesn't mean I don't appreciate the good things I have going for me.

My weekend was significantly low on sleep. Not a good thing. On the other hand, I did manage to undo the damage that Mr. Squirrel caused to the internet. Leto and I did get to see what happens when you blow a man's kneecaps away with a shotgun. It's not pretty. Maybe a review will pop up later.

I put in some quality time with X and Y this weekend, which was both good and bad. Good in the sense that they are some of the few people that make life interesting. Never a dull moment around these two, understand? Bad in that as star-crossed as I like to think I am, these two seem to have some sort of cosmic grudge against our adventures. There's always something strange happening when we hang out, which makes things worthwhile, but also can be socially draining. I need a little X and Y detox, accordingly. But not too much. I can rally shortly.

Of course, the only real drain was on my SPECIAL CASE OF NUMBER NINE! Bad X, bad X! A favor was returned over the weekend, though, including transportation to and from a party very far from the metro. So most normal people would conclude that we were even (especially after a little crashtime was also offered) but we concluded that we each owe each other one. And to the special friend who brought said nectar south from a long distance, let me just say that I will make it up to you, but that it was enjoyed. Not responsibly, but enjoyed nonetheless.

I also put in a serious number of Fincher engagements, which was fun. No madness involved, but plenty of spontaneity in small packages (each occurrence was tiny; one occasion left a little to be desired). I hate planning, and Fincher manages to keep things fresh. Although, for the record, her neighborhood leaves a little to be desired. Last night around midnight I'm looking for some place for us to grab a bite to eat and the entire area is dead. We part ways and I run into a pizza joint a few seconds later (star-crossed, remember?) but still, that's the only place open.

I then walk back through the 'morg to my house. Every single place was open. Music was pumping, the smell of tasty grilled meat was all over the place and you could hear laughter and fun all the way back to the 'werkz. Even the places that are normally quiet up on U were rocking. Just not in the Woodley Park 'hood. I've therefore concluded that Fincher, despite having super-sweet digs, needs to realize her neighborhood is somewhat lame. But she probably already does.

It's almost time for me to jet. More later. Damn I need some sleep.

One: check out this great Tom Tomorrow cartoon.

Two: one of my co-workers just got her hair cut and something else done to it. (I'm not that good with remembering highly technical things that happen to hair other than cutting.) Now she looks just like this:

Three: now that the computer craziness is over, hopefully I can post about the rest of my sleep deprived weekend.

I'm not a doctor. I don't even play one on tv. With that said, however, I can empathize with them sometimes, mostly when I'm staring at a screen informing me that the server everyone depends on is near death.

People come up, make glib comments, and slink back to their offices, angry that the server is down and angry that YOU have caused it. Seconds become minutes, and as the number of solutions starts to dwindle, you begin to wonder if you'll actually fix it or if you'll have to say it's gone.

This morning was like that. Up until five minutes ago I didn't know if the server was going to make it. Sure, one could always restore from backup but that process is lengthy and painful. Far better to bring the server back from the dead. The feeling you get when you fix it isn't joy or elation, its merely relief. You know it'll happen again. It's just a matter of time.

The closest I got to walking was a couple years ago. The server was dead. The hard drives were toast. I thought to myself: I can just walk out the door and they won't notice I'm gone until it's too late... and then I slapped myself and kept going. It turned out to be a hardware problem: someone had cut a cable in half and then through sheer luck the wires lined up until one moment before it crashed. I replaced the cable and things were fine.

Today was worse. It clearly wasn't a hardware problem and it appeared the data itself might have been corrupt. I just wanted to take a lunch break. But instead I crept through the byzantine system to get it working again, with a minimum of downtime. Now comes the more painful post-diagnosis. In many ways, I can appreciate how a surgeon might love the latest procedure: it's a chance to make people feel better much more quickly. And when it comes down to it, that's the main goal: time. The quicker you get a patient in and out, the less chance of complications. The quicker you get a computer running again, the less time lost. Ideally both patients and computers would be proactive: they'd stay fit and healthy and avoid risks. In reality, that never happens.

I wasn't planning for this little computer digression, but then again, you can't choose when your servers crash, can you?

A little unusual, to be sure. Hopefully I'll keep this up, though. Weekend posts are always nice to read when one returns from.

So after catching a particular sterling episode of My Life as a Teenage Robot (Jenny has to talk in Japanese for the entire episode...nice!) I discovered that the friendly squirrel who's always been poking around my office window everytime I sit down at my computer had a side project going on at the same time:

He was gnawing through a pair of cat5 cables.

Last night I discover that the internet connection is down in both areas of the house, and I think it's something to do with the firewall. But no link light is on. This morning after climbing to the roof of the house and poking around some more I'm still mystified. Only an hour ago did I discover that both ethernet cables had been completely cut in two. A clean job, too.

Before I jet off to see the latest Rodriguez flick with Leto, I'll muse a moment. Most of my friends seem to fall into one of two categories. Those that need constant attention, and those that are low-maintenance and you don't hang out with all that much. Typically, I'd prefer most of my friends to be in the latter category, but it seems like you have to start people out in the former and then move them along to latter gradually. Frequently, the worst problem is that the friends you wish to hang out with the most are in the latter, so you give them short shift.

Still, the system is fairly easy to understand. Those friends you can call up at 11:00 pm to make a chili-cheese-fries run or a krispy-kreme run are super-cool. It's just understood. The ones who demand more attention (more planning, less spontaneity) aren't quite as cool. But you suffer a bit and eventually they get better.

It's the ones that don't fall into the normal spectrum that confuse and baffle me. You know the type: they act spontaneous but aren't that exciting; they hang out quite a bit but never seem happy; they are of the opposite gender and you just can't tell whether they're in to you or if they've just had too much wine. If someone calls me up after a couple weeks and hangs out just for a bit, I'd assume they were one of my low maintenance friends. But if they have little to say and don't seem terrifically excited to hang out, what then? One could run the risk of lowering the bar to the point where your "low-maintenance" friend ends up leaving town and not saying goodbye. Or getting married, or staying in the same place and never speaking to you again. Or telling you not to talk to them.

Whoa, there. Almost ventured into real life.

Along those lines, Mr. X and Ms. Y fall into a weird category. I'd explain further, but I think the lure of the celluloid is calling. And I think I'm going to introduce another special guest in my next episode: Fincher. Mull on that.

From a recent Ann Coulter column comes this gem:

In the wake of Dean's success, the entire Democratic Dream Team is beginning to sound like Dr. Demento. On the basis of their recent pronouncements, the position of the Democratic Party seems to be that Saddam Hussein did not hit us on 9-11, but Halliburton did.

As Atrios puts it: "Most Democrats I know think it was OSAMA BIN FUCKING LADEN, though I suppose we could be wrong."

When will the GOP tire of linking Saddam to 9-11?

New poll numbers are in and they're not good for Bush. Check out the raw data here.

From the tape:

WASHINGTON — President Bush's public standing, on a downward trend all summer, has slid to its lowest point since the September 11 attacks two years ago, a USA TODAY/CNN/Gallup Poll shows. (Related story:Poll results)

Due in large part to an economy that continues to lose jobs, despite positive indicators, and a situation in Iraq that is messier and more costly than Bush predicted, he is taking a big share of the blame.

A thin majority, 52%, approve of the overall job he is doing, down from this year's high of 71% in mid-April, when the war in Iraq still had a glow of victory.

It is an even farther fall for the president from the immediate aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks, when his job approval hit a high of 90%.

On the economy, Bush gets his lowest mark, 45% approval.

Democratic pollster Mark Mellman says, "Bush ... has benefited from circumstances beyond his control. Now reality is setting in."

Bush's slippage suggests that if the election were held today, he would have a tough fight. Among registered voters, he holds a slim 47%-43% lead over an unnamed Democrat. That's down from a more comfortable 51%-39% lead he held two weeks ago.

In a nutshell, Bush is looking very vulnerable and both Dean and Clark are making huge strides upwards in the national consciousness. Put the two together and 43 will go down easy.

The rumors have started to condense into the truth: Governor Dean and General Clark could team up! Time to roll the tape:

Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean has asked retired Army general Wesley Clark to join his campaign, if the former NATO commander does not jump into the race himself next week, and the two men discussed the vice presidency at a weekend meeting in California, sources familiar with the discussions said.

Clark, in a telephone interview yesterday, said he did not want to comment about the private meeting. Asked about reports that the two men had discussed a wide range of issues, including his endorsing Dean, joining the campaign, possible roles in a Dean administration and the vice presidency, he said only, "It was a complete tour of the horizon."

Later, an adviser quoted Clark as saying, "I have only one decision to make: Will I seek the presidency?"

It was the fourth time Dean and Clark have met face-to-face to discuss the campaign. No decisions were made at the California meeting because Clark is still considering a run for president. Clark is scheduled to make a speech Sept.19 at the University of Iowa, when many political insiders expect him to announce his intentions.

This killer combo would be difficult for anyone to stop, let alone George W. Bush. If Clark were to join the ticket early, before the end of the 3rd quarter, the fundraising implications could be huge. Let's examine the scenario.

If Clark declares he's on the Dean ticket on the 19th, he'd be in a position to exploit a week and a half until the end of the quarter. Immediately, hopefully most of the Draft Clark people (many of whom support Dean and vice-versa) would pour in their expected $1 million war chest they've been waiting to commit. Joe Trippi brings out the bat, and you could easily see a 3-5 million dollar haul over the final 10 days.

Assuming fundraising numbers over $15 million, Dean/Clark would then have the added impetus of being able to push aside lesser candidates. With another southerner in the race, Graham could pull out to focus on his Senate seat. Edwards would be in a similar situation, although his recent decision to rescind his Senate hopes would probably force him to stay in. If Gephardt's numbers looked shaky, he might be forced out. Right now Dick is counting on Iowa, although the latest poll has him in 2nd place, only 6 points ahead of Kerry. If Kerry closed the gap in Iowa and managed to snag 2nd place in fundraising, there'd be a lot of people looking for Gephardt, who had a horrible second quarter, to drop out. By siphoning off even more 'net savvy voters, Dean/Clark would draw more people away from Kucinich, which could keep him down despite his feisty debate performances. Likewise, should Moseley Braun report dismal 3rd quarter numbers, she might have to fold her tent simply due to high operating costs. She's already shelved most staff and any further would doom her campaign to get a place at the table.

So we're left with Lieberman, Edwards, Kerry, Sharpton and Dean/Clark. Lieberman has to get some big money in the 3rd quarter or he's toast. His poll numbers keep dropping across the country. Edwards can stay in if enough people drop out, but he needs to have some major momentum in one of the first two states. South Carolina simply won't cut it. And he needs major money as well. Sharpton just needs to raise enough to keep coming to the debates. He's running a shoestring campaign which helps him greatly in this pre-primary season. Kerry has to fight back against Dean soon before he becomes irrelevant.

Either way the Dean Clark Dream Team is going to kick ass.

So the debate was on Fox last night. The debate itself was lackluster, mainly because protesting people kept yelling at moments. Whoever did security should be fired.

Post debate, I watched Fox until I grew too nauseated to stand it. In addition to having Fred Barnes be the first post-debate speaker (he railed against the Dems for describing an America most people "disagree with"...as if everything was sunshine and lollipops right now!) the disgusting Sean Hannity came on afterwards and with alan colmes managed to provide no newsworthy comments.

I flipped back a few minutes later to find some Fox talking head describing the latest attacks in Israel as "Homicide Bombings". I'd never heard this spin before. For a few minutes I waited to see if they were describing a different technique, ie, if the bombers had placed bombs un unsuspecting civilians and then detonated them remotely. But no, they were just labeling "suicide bombers" a different name. What a joke. I mean, how many people hear the term "suicide bomber" and think to themselves "what a poor, misguided soul...if only we could've saved him!" Calling them "homicide bombers" is just another way to try and spin things.

As I'm flipping down the channels, I notice CNN is covering the bombings, so I quickly flip to MSNBC, which is airing a show involving one conservative host (Joe Scarborough) interviewing another conservative talking head (Ann Coulter) talking about how the Dems are salivating for Senator Clinton to get in the race.

I wanted to throw my shoe at the television, but wisely decided not to. Thank god this president will be gone in a year and a half. It's too bad the conservatives will start to demonize Dean as soon as he gets the nomination.