Open Thread – 8/21/2010

Yesterday I oopsed!  I spent a longer time at the grocery store than I intended and bought more.  The result was that I was carrying a heavier load than normal, and my oxygen bottle ran out just before I returned home.  Lugging a heavy load up a double flight of stairs was no fun.  I was wheezing so hard, I feared I might cough up my own butt.  After some recovery time, I attached the huge backlog of comments and replied to all.  Today my plan is to visit the blogroll.  The only other major item I have on tap is to play with a software utility I agreed to review here in return for a free copy of the software.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today it took me 4:04.  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Short Takes:

From Business Week: Continued weakness in housing construction sent the Oregon timber harvest to near historic lows last year, the state Department of Forestry said Friday.

The timber industry is huge in Oregon, so the GW Bushwhacking of the housing market is one of the principal reasons our unemployment is a point above the national average.

From Alternet: Xe, the private security company formerly known as Blackwater Worldwide, has agreed to pay a 42 million dollar fine for violating US export regulations. [weapons smuggling]

It’s chump change.  This represents less that 5% of annual revenues.

From Daily Kos: Rasmussen, Arkansas Senate, 500 LVs, 8/18 (July numbers)

Boozman: 65% (60%)

Lincoln: 27% (35%)

Rasmussen polls are notoriously skewed right, but even they couldn’t produce results like this.  My prediction that it would cost us the seat, if Backroom Blanch, DINO extraordinaire, won the primary, is proving correct.

Cartoon: homegrown today

Enjoy your weekend!