Friday, April 27, 2007
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Morristown Nurse Found Guilty of Murder
The story in the Daily Record is pretty self-explanatory.
Since the jury has decided, I'm not going to make any commentary except (ah hah!) for one thing: How come they found no trace evidence of her husband's dismemberment in the townhouse? No one is THAT GOOD a housekeeper. Okay, maybe she did chop him up somewhere else, but even a nurse would be squeamish quartering her husband into three different suitcases. Plus, a 115 pound nurse in a fertility clinic knowing how to butcher a 200 pound man?? She's not a surgery nurse, she's practically OBY/GYN. I don't know, I have reasonable doubt. Fortunately for the prosecutors, I was not in the jury pool!
It is amazing how much work goes into prosecutions. The prosecutors had about two days off in the past six months. Kudos to them, if Melanie M. did kill her husband, than the Deputy Attorney General and Associate Attorney General succeeded in making a mound of circumstantial evidence take shape in order to convict the nurse. I was laughing when I read the following paragraph concerning the lead prosecutor:
"For the first time since the trial began on March 5, Prezioso was not dressed in black. Asked whether dressing in green was because she had a premonition that the jury would render a guilty verdict on the murder charge, Prezioso said no. "I was behind on my dry-cleaning," she explained." Daily Record, April 24, 2007
She and I have the same attitude concerning office attire. You know you are dressed appropriately when you can attend a funeral after work without having to change. I think we must have been separated at birth!
Since the jury has decided, I'm not going to make any commentary except (ah hah!) for one thing: How come they found no trace evidence of her husband's dismemberment in the townhouse? No one is THAT GOOD a housekeeper. Okay, maybe she did chop him up somewhere else, but even a nurse would be squeamish quartering her husband into three different suitcases. Plus, a 115 pound nurse in a fertility clinic knowing how to butcher a 200 pound man?? She's not a surgery nurse, she's practically OBY/GYN. I don't know, I have reasonable doubt. Fortunately for the prosecutors, I was not in the jury pool!
It is amazing how much work goes into prosecutions. The prosecutors had about two days off in the past six months. Kudos to them, if Melanie M. did kill her husband, than the Deputy Attorney General and Associate Attorney General succeeded in making a mound of circumstantial evidence take shape in order to convict the nurse. I was laughing when I read the following paragraph concerning the lead prosecutor:
"For the first time since the trial began on March 5, Prezioso was not dressed in black. Asked whether dressing in green was because she had a premonition that the jury would render a guilty verdict on the murder charge, Prezioso said no. "I was behind on my dry-cleaning," she explained." Daily Record, April 24, 2007
She and I have the same attitude concerning office attire. You know you are dressed appropriately when you can attend a funeral after work without having to change. I think we must have been separated at birth!
Friday, April 13, 2007
In Defense of Grindhouse - The Movie
Last weekend, I was looking for something interesting to do for the weekend. My husband looked at me guiltily and mentioned, "Um, I'd kind of like to see Grindhouse..." (wince).
"Ah," I said, " you mean Grindhouse, the double feature with large swaths of uncovered Rose McGowan?"
"Uh huh... If that's okay with you..."
"You mean the movie where she pole-dances like a stripper for the first ten minutes and then fights zombies while she's partially clad for the remaining 40 minutes?"
"Uh yeah..."
"Sure, it's cost effective, we get TWO MOVIES (Planet Terror and Deathproof) for the price of ONE!"
I LOVED GRINDHOUSE - and I'm a woman! This movie is best viewed in theatres in that it is more of a "movie-viewing experience" than an actual movie. The best part of the movie are the pseudo-trailers that bookend the first "Zombie Movie", Planet Terror. Check this link for times that Grindhouse is shown at Loews.
"Ah," I said, " you mean Grindhouse, the double feature with large swaths of uncovered Rose McGowan?"
"Uh huh... If that's okay with you..."
"You mean the movie where she pole-dances like a stripper for the first ten minutes and then fights zombies while she's partially clad for the remaining 40 minutes?"
"Uh yeah..."
"Sure, it's cost effective, we get TWO MOVIES (Planet Terror and Deathproof) for the price of ONE!"
I LOVED GRINDHOUSE - and I'm a woman! This movie is best viewed in theatres in that it is more of a "movie-viewing experience" than an actual movie. The best part of the movie are the pseudo-trailers that bookend the first "Zombie Movie", Planet Terror. Check this link for times that Grindhouse is shown at Loews.
Bizarre New Jersey
So... what's been going on in Jersey this week? Let's say a flying saucer whisked me away last week to the home planet and beamed me back this morning.
I check out the internet:
Our governor, John Corzine, was in a car accident last night on the Parkway. Bonus points to Corzine for neglecting to wear a seatbelt and demonstrating (once again) to the citizens of New Jersey why we have New Jersey’s Seat Belt Law (NJS 39:3-76.2f) on the books. A short rundown of this law:
We all wish Governor Corzine a speedy recovery and hope that he can be taken off of the ventilator soon.
Acting Governor Codey requests that families and churches in New Jersey (except for those heathen atheists among us) pray for his recovery this weekend. Those heathen, non-praying, atheists among us are requested to sacrifice a small animal no smaller than a squirrel but no larger than a chicken for the Governor's recovery.
Don Imus has been summarily fired by WFAN and MSNBC after his remarks in regard to the Rutgers Basketball Cinderellas. However, Imus' career will regenerate itself and like a gray-haired septugenarian cockroach, he will overcome the detritus of his remarks to regain some sort of "elder statesman status" by this time next year. Look for this magical regeneration to occur some time around St. Patrick's Day perhaps in conjunction with a rehab stay. In the meantime he will write a million dollar, best-selling, memoir and show up on Larry King full of piss and vinegar.
In the meantime, idiots are still sending hate mail to the Rutgers Basketball Coach.
As a former teacher, I'd like to give one quick lesson to all those white boyz/girlz out there. Your parents didn't feel they needed to mention this in a post civil-rights society, but since most suburban, white 80's/90's babies bought millions of rap CDs, wore oversized pants whose crotches grazed their knees and attended many concerts headlined by black gangsta culture afficionados/rappers, etc. you need to hear this.
IF YOU ARE NOT BLACK, IT IS NOT COOL TO CALL BLACK PEOPLE RACIST NAMES. I know Snoop Dog, Nelly, ODB, Kanye West etc. use that language BUT if you are NOT BLACK you DO NOT USE THE LANGUAGE.
Sure, I listen to Kanye West's "Gold Digger" (the "Explicit" iTunes version which drops the N-bomb about 200 times) in the New York City subway. ie. "Now I ain't saying she's a Gold Digger, but she ain't playin' with no broke (N-bomb plural)." As a conservative-looking 39 year-old white woman in a cashmere twin-set and pearls, that garners me alot of surprised glances from people who have the misfortune to sit next to me and overhear my iPod selections. However, when I catch the eye of the black Grandmother from the Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem, I immediately apologize and switch over to Justin Timberlake's SexyBack (or some other "Harmless White Song With Too Much Synthesizer").
The N-bomb, while enjoyable for Kanye West to use over and over (and over) again - given that he is a post civil-rights baby - still stings the Grandmother. Yes, it still stings, even though this is a rap song sung by a black, former college student who has made millions of dollars off of this song (and that word). Ladies and Gentlemen, if you are not black, you do not use the N-Bomb and you do not refer to black women with terminology used by black rappers. Yes, you have freedom of speech. Yes, you have license to say anything that you want. However, that will not protect you from the beat down that will be visited upon you by black, white, yellow and beige people who recognize that you are just hiding behind the First Amendment as a cover for overt hate language and inveterate racism.
White parents, it is your responsibility to teach the proper utilization of language and racial respect to your children. My nephew is black. I do not want him to grow up afraid to make something of his life because he doesn't want to be targeted by some shock-jock hiding behind the First Amendment to conceal inveterate hate language. Someday, your grandchildren or great-grandchildren or great-great grandchildren could be black or beige or yellow. Do you really want them to be subject to this kind of racist commentary? Let's end this bullshit now.
I check out the internet:
Our governor, John Corzine, was in a car accident last night on the Parkway. Bonus points to Corzine for neglecting to wear a seatbelt and demonstrating (once again) to the citizens of New Jersey why we have New Jersey’s Seat Belt Law (NJS 39:3-76.2f) on the books. A short rundown of this law:
- Applies to all passenger vehicles including vans, pickup trucks and SUVs, that are required to be equipped with seat belts.
- Applies to all passengers, who are at least 8 years of age but less than 18 years of age, and each driver and front seat passenger of a passenger automobile, operated on a street or highway. All occupants are required to wear a properly adjusted and fastened seat belt system.
- Makes the driver responsible for proper seat beltuse by all occupants who are under the age of 18.
We all wish Governor Corzine a speedy recovery and hope that he can be taken off of the ventilator soon.
Acting Governor Codey requests that families and churches in New Jersey (except for those heathen atheists among us) pray for his recovery this weekend. Those heathen, non-praying, atheists among us are requested to sacrifice a small animal no smaller than a squirrel but no larger than a chicken for the Governor's recovery.
Don Imus has been summarily fired by WFAN and MSNBC after his remarks in regard to the Rutgers Basketball Cinderellas. However, Imus' career will regenerate itself and like a gray-haired septugenarian cockroach, he will overcome the detritus of his remarks to regain some sort of "elder statesman status" by this time next year. Look for this magical regeneration to occur some time around St. Patrick's Day perhaps in conjunction with a rehab stay. In the meantime he will write a million dollar, best-selling, memoir and show up on Larry King full of piss and vinegar.
In the meantime, idiots are still sending hate mail to the Rutgers Basketball Coach.
As a former teacher, I'd like to give one quick lesson to all those white boyz/girlz out there. Your parents didn't feel they needed to mention this in a post civil-rights society, but since most suburban, white 80's/90's babies bought millions of rap CDs, wore oversized pants whose crotches grazed their knees and attended many concerts headlined by black gangsta culture afficionados/rappers, etc. you need to hear this.
IF YOU ARE NOT BLACK, IT IS NOT COOL TO CALL BLACK PEOPLE RACIST NAMES. I know Snoop Dog, Nelly, ODB, Kanye West etc. use that language BUT if you are NOT BLACK you DO NOT USE THE LANGUAGE.
Sure, I listen to Kanye West's "Gold Digger" (the "Explicit" iTunes version which drops the N-bomb about 200 times) in the New York City subway. ie. "Now I ain't saying she's a Gold Digger, but she ain't playin' with no broke (N-bomb plural)." As a conservative-looking 39 year-old white woman in a cashmere twin-set and pearls, that garners me alot of surprised glances from people who have the misfortune to sit next to me and overhear my iPod selections. However, when I catch the eye of the black Grandmother from the Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem, I immediately apologize and switch over to Justin Timberlake's SexyBack (or some other "Harmless White Song With Too Much Synthesizer").
The N-bomb, while enjoyable for Kanye West to use over and over (and over) again - given that he is a post civil-rights baby - still stings the Grandmother. Yes, it still stings, even though this is a rap song sung by a black, former college student who has made millions of dollars off of this song (and that word). Ladies and Gentlemen, if you are not black, you do not use the N-Bomb and you do not refer to black women with terminology used by black rappers. Yes, you have freedom of speech. Yes, you have license to say anything that you want. However, that will not protect you from the beat down that will be visited upon you by black, white, yellow and beige people who recognize that you are just hiding behind the First Amendment as a cover for overt hate language and inveterate racism.
White parents, it is your responsibility to teach the proper utilization of language and racial respect to your children. My nephew is black. I do not want him to grow up afraid to make something of his life because he doesn't want to be targeted by some shock-jock hiding behind the First Amendment to conceal inveterate hate language. Someday, your grandchildren or great-grandchildren or great-great grandchildren could be black or beige or yellow. Do you really want them to be subject to this kind of racist commentary? Let's end this bullshit now.
Tuesday, April 3, 2007
How to Be a Second Generation Slovenian-American
I'm German-American/Czech-American and my brother and sister are German -American/Hungarian-American. When I read this on "The Glory of Carniola Blog" (Slovenian Blog), I almost split my sides laughing because MANY of the items are extremely accurate when pertaining to second generation Americans of Eastern (and European) ancestry.
For example, who will ever forget Eliza-the-Obsessively-Perfect's father and I chugging Slivovich at Christmas? How can we forget about Hurka in all of it's glorious liver, blood and intestinal manifestations? Remember he pilgrimages to the Hungarian butcher (Toth's) in New Brunswick which were part biology lessons part gourmand offal tours? How can we forget getting dragged out of bed every Saturday morning, at the crack of dawn, to conjugate verbs of illegitimate germanic descent. As for my brother and sister, ten years of enforced Hungarian folk dancing school, and they groove to an accordian at the slightest provocation. Very funny!
From: http://www.carniola.org/2007/04/35-facts-about-slovenes.htm
Here they are:
1. Slivovica cures everything from a stomachache to paper cuts.
2. You are well acquainted with “sarma” (cabbage rolls)
3. You eat everything with “ajvar” (eggplant spread)
4. Your profanity consists of Croatian and Serbian phrases because Slovenija is too pure to have swear words. (Substitute any neighboring country of Hungary and Germany for Croatian and Serbian)
5. There is nothing gross about blood sausages (krvavice). (or Hurka!)
6. Drinking with your parents is normal. (and encouraged - especially when you are buying!)
7. Your relatives, especially in Slovenija, do not believe in opening the car windows on a sweltering hot day because of “prepih” (drafts).
8. When outside of Slovenia, you fight an irresistible urge to kiss the person you’ve just shaken hands with. (it is still embarassing when I lunge after my non-European friends post-handshake and plant one on them - it was drilled into us every Sunday to do this when meeting fellow Church members)
9. You’re not allowed to leave the house with damp hair because you’re going to become bolan(a) (sick).
10. You have to wear copate (slippers) around the house, even if you have carpeting and it is 95 degrees outside. (My mother still insists upon this)
11. Your family makes their own vino, medica, or Slivovica. (We made wine in our basement - in freaking New Jersey!)
12. You never got to sleep in on Saturday because you had Slovenska Sola (Slovenian School)
(...or German School)
13. Mami is always making you eat.
14. You know how to dance polka and you’re proud of it.
15. Someone in your family can play buttonbox or accordion and is always bothering you to learn. (Our family comes from the one tiny town in Germany that actually makes the damn things so we have 20 in our attic)
16. You’ll still drink Cockta to please your family in Slovenija even though it makes you sick to your stomach (their version of Coca-Cola) (we had Almdudler - Austrian Soda)
17. English verbs are acceptable if used with the ending “-ati”, which makes them Slovenian: “play-ati”, “study-ati”, “clean-ati”, or the best one “walk-ati” - pronounced: vakati!
18. At the age of 13 you are only allowed to go out of town with your friends for folklore festivals, drinking binges, and dances.
19. Your parents were at the party where you first got drunk and maybe even offered you a drink. (We call that "Christmas," "Easter," and "Thanksgiving")
20. Then they waited until the ride home to beat the crap out of you for getting drunk and embarrassing them.
21. The majority of your friends are also your relatives, even if they aren’t your relatives; because you refer to their parents as “teta” and “stric“. (aunt and uncle)
21. “Kuhovnice” (wooden spoons) are not only used for stirring when cooking… they are also used by mami to beat you when there is no “Siba” (stick) handy.. (So true, nowadays, I'd be able to call NJ DYFS)
22. At least once you’ve told your parents that you’ll call the police to report “child abuse” and your parents said “Ja! Samo probaj…” (just try!)
23. Lunch on Sundays has more courses than Amerikanci have for Christmas or Thanksgiving dinner.
24. Your 13 year old sister can out-drink any Amerikan’c or Irishman. (and still does)
25. You love “Golaz”, (beef stew) but don’t like bringing it to school or work for lunch because you’d be embarrassed if someone asked you what it was.
26. Vegetarianism is not a concept your parents understand. (Meat is more than a food group - it is a lifestyle)
27. All other action stops when you hear people speaking Croatian or Serbian somewhere. (shrug - I have no frame of reference here.)
28. You smell garlic or alcohol on the old man’s breath behind you sitting on the pew in church on Sunday mornings. (we went to St. Ladislaus-nuff said)
29. You never got the “Birds and the Bees” talk from mami or ati when growing up.
30. You are only allowed to vacation in the homeland for a minimum of 4 weeks.
31. Your relatives alone can populate a small city. (and still do, in several different countries)
32. You’ve worked in the “Stale” (barn) at your relatives house in Slovenia and the cow smell didn’t even bother you. (we worked at the expatriated family lodge in the Catskills)
33. (left blank)
34. You think mixing Coke and red wine (bambus) is an extremely tasty drink. (Germans and Hungarians drink mighty weird things, let me tell you...)
35. You’re still laughing your ritka off because you know every single one of these are true.
For example, who will ever forget Eliza-the-Obsessively-Perfect's father and I chugging Slivovich at Christmas? How can we forget about Hurka in all of it's glorious liver, blood and intestinal manifestations? Remember he pilgrimages to the Hungarian butcher (Toth's) in New Brunswick which were part biology lessons part gourmand offal tours? How can we forget getting dragged out of bed every Saturday morning, at the crack of dawn, to conjugate verbs of illegitimate germanic descent. As for my brother and sister, ten years of enforced Hungarian folk dancing school, and they groove to an accordian at the slightest provocation. Very funny!
From: http://www.carniola.org/2007/04/35-facts-about-slovenes.htm
Here they are:
1. Slivovica cures everything from a stomachache to paper cuts.
2. You are well acquainted with “sarma” (cabbage rolls)
3. You eat everything with “ajvar” (eggplant spread)
4. Your profanity consists of Croatian and Serbian phrases because Slovenija is too pure to have swear words. (Substitute any neighboring country of Hungary and Germany for Croatian and Serbian)
5. There is nothing gross about blood sausages (krvavice). (or Hurka!)
6. Drinking with your parents is normal. (and encouraged - especially when you are buying!)
7. Your relatives, especially in Slovenija, do not believe in opening the car windows on a sweltering hot day because of “prepih” (drafts).
8. When outside of Slovenia, you fight an irresistible urge to kiss the person you’ve just shaken hands with. (it is still embarassing when I lunge after my non-European friends post-handshake and plant one on them - it was drilled into us every Sunday to do this when meeting fellow Church members)
9. You’re not allowed to leave the house with damp hair because you’re going to become bolan(a) (sick).
10. You have to wear copate (slippers) around the house, even if you have carpeting and it is 95 degrees outside. (My mother still insists upon this)
11. Your family makes their own vino, medica, or Slivovica. (We made wine in our basement - in freaking New Jersey!)
12. You never got to sleep in on Saturday because you had Slovenska Sola (Slovenian School)
(...or German School)
13. Mami is always making you eat.
14. You know how to dance polka and you’re proud of it.
15. Someone in your family can play buttonbox or accordion and is always bothering you to learn. (Our family comes from the one tiny town in Germany that actually makes the damn things so we have 20 in our attic)
16. You’ll still drink Cockta to please your family in Slovenija even though it makes you sick to your stomach (their version of Coca-Cola) (we had Almdudler - Austrian Soda)
17. English verbs are acceptable if used with the ending “-ati”, which makes them Slovenian: “play-ati”, “study-ati”, “clean-ati”, or the best one “walk-ati” - pronounced: vakati!
18. At the age of 13 you are only allowed to go out of town with your friends for folklore festivals, drinking binges, and dances.
19. Your parents were at the party where you first got drunk and maybe even offered you a drink. (We call that "Christmas," "Easter," and "Thanksgiving")
20. Then they waited until the ride home to beat the crap out of you for getting drunk and embarrassing them.
21. The majority of your friends are also your relatives, even if they aren’t your relatives; because you refer to their parents as “teta” and “stric“. (aunt and uncle)
21. “Kuhovnice” (wooden spoons) are not only used for stirring when cooking… they are also used by mami to beat you when there is no “Siba” (stick) handy.. (So true, nowadays, I'd be able to call NJ DYFS)
22. At least once you’ve told your parents that you’ll call the police to report “child abuse” and your parents said “Ja! Samo probaj…” (just try!)
23. Lunch on Sundays has more courses than Amerikanci have for Christmas or Thanksgiving dinner.
24. Your 13 year old sister can out-drink any Amerikan’c or Irishman. (and still does)
25. You love “Golaz”, (beef stew) but don’t like bringing it to school or work for lunch because you’d be embarrassed if someone asked you what it was.
26. Vegetarianism is not a concept your parents understand. (Meat is more than a food group - it is a lifestyle)
27. All other action stops when you hear people speaking Croatian or Serbian somewhere. (shrug - I have no frame of reference here.)
28. You smell garlic or alcohol on the old man’s breath behind you sitting on the pew in church on Sunday mornings. (we went to St. Ladislaus-nuff said)
29. You never got the “Birds and the Bees” talk from mami or ati when growing up.
30. You are only allowed to vacation in the homeland for a minimum of 4 weeks.
31. Your relatives alone can populate a small city. (and still do, in several different countries)
32. You’ve worked in the “Stale” (barn) at your relatives house in Slovenia and the cow smell didn’t even bother you. (we worked at the expatriated family lodge in the Catskills)
33. (left blank)
34. You think mixing Coke and red wine (bambus) is an extremely tasty drink. (Germans and Hungarians drink mighty weird things, let me tell you...)
35. You’re still laughing your ritka off because you know every single one of these are true.
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