Where are they now? #2

One popular character on the television show Eight is Enough was Susan, played by Susan Richardson (picture below). On the show Susan married Merle "The Pearl" Stockwell, a minor league baseball player.

After Eight is Enough ended, Susan Richardson spent some time in a rock band and also battling drug addiction. However, most importantly, in 1987, she claimed she was the victim of a kidnapping and attempted murder in north Korea* by greedy filmmakers. It is unclear whether the filmmakers were themselves north Korean and/or whether they were working on behalf of the DPRK government; however, the north Korean government has allegedly been involved in many kidnappings, often of Japanese citizens, and has been believed at least once to have kidnapped a movie director to help with north Korean movie productions. Nevertheless, Ms. Richardson's claims do not appear to have positively impacted her acting career, as she currently works in a nursing home in Pennslyvania.

Former north Korean leader Kim Il-Sung

DPRK flag

The DPRK has a long and rich tradition of military parades. Enjoy the video below!




* The Korean peninsula is currently artificially divided into two separate countries - the ROK and the DPRK. The editors of Ape Canyon News Service have chosen to follow the common practice of labelling these two nations south Korea and north Korea using lower case "s" and "n" in recognition of this temporary division and in the hope that some day soon, the two Koreas will be united once again.

Taking Tiger Mountain by strategy

The West Tiger Trail #3 is approximately 3 miles long and gains 2000 feet. When you get to the top you have to turn around and come back down the same amount. The whole trip took me over three hours - I wasn't rushing - and on the way I saw a lot of people with dogs, little brown birds, a big yellow slug, and even a work crew clearing brush from the trail. There was also an old man with a lot of white, furry chest hair who ran the whole thing and made me feel weak and feeble.


When I got back I found out that the soles of my boots had fallen apart - notice the holes in the heels.

Favorite television shows from the past #1

There don't seem to be too many folks watching Greatest American Hero these days...

Where are they now? #1

Grant Goodeve (pictured then) used to play the role of David, the oldest son, on the popular television program Eight is Enough in the late 1970s and early 80s. For most Americans, Goodeve is just a fond, distant memory. However, if you are lucky enough to live in the Seattle-area, you can still see Goodeve on the local NBC affiliate King-5, where he appears regularly on such programs as Evening Magazine and Northwest Backroads.

Grant Goodeve (pictured now)

What I have been listening to lately #12

This song can be combined quite well with Camper Van Beethoven's Ambiguity Song in a medley.

What I have been reading lately #5

Rather than read the book about snowmobile racing, I decided to read Gary Paulsen's book Winterdance, which is about his dogs and running the Iditarod in Alaska. I am finding the book to be quite enjoyable, and I don't even really like dogs all that much. If you are interested in reading this book, your local bookstore or public library might have a copy. If I know you really well, I might lend you my copy, but you have to make sure to give it back. Below is a picture of Gary Paulsen.






The picture below I am not so sure of. It's from a website that I have reason to believe is written in Estonian and has a lot of pictures of a woman training her dogs. If you can read Estonian, please contact Ape Canyon News Service as we could use your services.

Seattle Seafair Torchlight Parade 2008

Last night was the Torchlight Parade through downtown Seattle. There were pirates, Sikhs and Koreans doing martial arts, motorcycle cops, bicycle cops, runners, drill teams, pirates, a Chinese dragon, clowns, a great float from the Tulalip casino, pirates, and more. Here's the Seattle Public Schools All-City Marching Band:



The pirates had their own boat and it had sirens and a really loud cannon. The explosions reminded me alot of when the Seattle police were throwing concussion grenades at demonstrators during the WTO protests in 1999.



This pirate may or may not escape from the clutches of the police...

What I've been watching lately #2

In no particular order:

Deadliest Catch

Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations

The Office (both UK and US versions)

Baseball Tonight (ESPN)

Doctor Who

Star Trek: Next Generation

All of them, with the exception of The Office, are basically boring, and I should stop wasting my time.

What I have been listening to lately #11

This was one of my mother's absolute favorite songs, and she, just like the folks at the Lawrence Welk Show, missed the point altogether. I think she thought the word was "toe".

I have very fond memories of going over to my dad's parents' house every Saturday night to spend the night. We would watch Lawrence Welk and my grandma would peel an orange with a knife and turn the peel into one long corkscrew. In the morning, we got to have Lucky Charms for breakfast, back before they added all the crazy, new-fangled shapes and colors (like purple!).

Maybe I'll read this next #1

I've had this book lying around the house for a while now - maybe it's finally time to read it.

What I have been listening to lately #10

Those were the days - I'm almost old enough to remember them...

What I have been listening to lately #9

From the 2007 Labor Day parade in Rochester, NY -- enjoy!

What I have been listening to lately #8

One of the drawbacks of having had to work much of my adult life is that I didn't get to watch this every single day.

What I have been reading lately #4

Dishwasher: One Man's Quest To Wash Dishes In All Fifty States by Pete Jordan is an outstanding book, and I highly recommend it. It reminds me of the three places in which I have washed dishes professionally - the Perkins Pancake House on St. Charles Rock Road, Mocon dining hall at Wesleyan University, and The Eatery in Windsor/East Windsor (whatever) Connecticut. If you added up all the days I spent washing dishes in those three places, it would probably total less than one whole month. Here's a link to Dishwasher Pete's website. http://www.dishwasherpete.com/

I'll have to tell you all about my days washing dishes some other time. Right now I have softball practice, and my team needs me.

Taking down a chain link fence

Lately I have been hard at work in the backyard removing a chain link fence. In some places the bushes and trees had grown through the fence, which was kind of a pain - I either had to cut off the parts of the bushes that were growing through, or, if that didn't work, clip the fencing from around it. Another difficult part has been cutting the metal tubes that go along the top of the fence into pieces that are small enough for me to fit into the back of my pickup truck to take to the dump or scrap metal yard. I only have a hacksaw, so this process is a bit tedious. But by far the hardest part has been removing the fence posts, which are set in several feet of concrete. Because of where they are in the back yard, the only feasible method has been digging them up, by hand, by myself. So far I have four out of nine removed. In some places the ground itself seems as hard as concrete and, in others, it doesn't. For a very different perspective on one family's battle against an old fence, read the link below. They had real tools and machines to help them out.




http://diydiva.net/2006/06/in-the-world-of-fence-installation-my-mother-and-i-are-rockstars/

What I have been reading lately #3

The last few days I have been reading Mike Cherry's On High Steel. It was written in 1974 and is about his job working as an ironworker (the folks who build skyscrapers. The ones who make steel are called steelworkers...) This book is excellent - everyone should read it if they have a chance. You can't borrow my copy, though - it's falling apart and would be expensive to replace.

Soccer can be Dangerous

A 6.5 foot long catfish was found dead in a Bavarian canal on Monday. It choked to death after trying to eat a blue-and-white soccer ball, which was found in its mouth. According to police spokesman, Karl-Heinz Kuberlein , "He tried to eat the ball and it got stuck."

Milan Fans' Anti-Berlusconi Petition

AC Milan's owner, Silvio Berlusconi, took over the club in the late 80's, and pumped in lots of money. As Italy's richest man (and just by chance, the Prime Minister) he was able to buy many great players. Under his leadership (as the club's president) there were many winning seasons.

However, after Milan's abysmal season, the fans are not happy. As a result, an online petition has been written and signed by at least 2,000 fans, demanding that Berlusconi sell the club to someone more willing to spend their euros. Galliani, Milan's current president, has been saying lately that clubs in Italy don't have enough money. I think this is ridiculous and Berlusconi should have no problem forking over 45 million euros for some more decent players!!!

In case you are interested, go here to sign the petition. At the bottom of the page, click on FIRMA, and then it asks you for your name, email, comments, etc. I didn't sign it, because, I don't really care, it's not really my business, and a new owner might not want to spend his money either...

*Please note, that no matter how it sounds, I am NOT a Silvo Berlusconi fan. The only thing that is like-able about him is that he is really, really rich, and sometimes spends his money on good footballers.

Cristiano Ronaldo's Own Clothing Boutique

Just in case you cared, Manchester United's, Cristiano Ronaldo has his own clothing store. It is located in his home town, Funchal, Madeira (Portugal). The shop is called CR7, and actually he bought it for his sister Elma.

Elma and Cristiano:

Schweinsteiger's Post-game interview

Here is a video of the German midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger trying to answer questions after the Euro 2008 final (which Germany lost). Unfortunately for him, the Spanish team chose that place to have their celebrations, so behind Bastian you can see the Spaniards singing and parading... If this was any other German, I wouldn't be bugged, but Schweinsteiger is my favorite... So I am bugged...



Translator's note: It's unclear what the reporter is asking before the happy Spaniards come bouncing through, but he then asks Schweinsteiger (twice) if their celebrations are "hard to bear." Schweinsteiger kind of shrugs him off and says that the Spanish "can do what they want."

Fernando Torres when he was 12

Here is a video of Fernando Torres at age 12 when he played for the Atletico Madrid youth team. They are playing the AC Milan youth team. I feel bad for Milan's goalie because he keeps making mistakes.