Friday at 4:15 pm,  Paul Katami and Jeff Zarrilo, the Prop 8 plaintiffs, were married in Los Angeles, shortly after the 9th District Court lifted its say against same-sex marriages in California.  What a great day!!!

I rode from Anaheim Stadium to the Huntington Beach Pier Friday.  (34 miles round trip) Boy my bike is just hummin' with its new chain and all the adjustments my mechanic made.  Anyway, about a half mile from the beach it got foggy and stayed that way to the pier.  Because of the expected heat, I was on my bike by 9:00 am which is early for me and was leaving Orange Co. by noon. 

When I left  the stadium it was 74 degrees.  When I got back it was 84.  When I got home it was 100 degrees!!!  Its gonna be 107 degrees today.

I read an article today that said that its estimated that 37,000 same-sex couples are expected to marry in the next three years in California which could generate approx. $492 million in revenue to the state's businesses.  This in turn could generate $40 million in state taxes. 

I'll bet that some wedding related businesses  will originally balk at servicing gay couples, but the "all mighty dollar" will win them over.  We'll have to wait and see.

The Supreme Court threw out California's Prop 8 and same-sex couples will be getting married within 30 days.  They also threw out part of the Defense of Marriage Act which will  provide benefits for same-sex couples in the 12 states that currently allow them to marry.  One step closer to nation wide equal rights.

Consider that you can see less than 1% of the electromagnetic spectrum and hear less than 1% of the acoustic spectrum. As you read this, you are traveling at 220 km/sec across the galaxy. 90% of the cells in your body carry their own microbial DNA and are not ‘you’. The atoms in your body are 99.9999999999999999% empty space and none of them are the ones you were born with, but they all originated in the belly of a star. Human beings have 46 chromosomes, 2 less than the common potato.
The existence of the rainbow depends on the conical photoreceptors in your eyes; to animals without cones, the rainbow does not exist. So you don’t just look at a rainbow, you create it. This is pretty amazing, especially considering that all the beautiful colors you see represent less than 1% of the electromagnetic spectrum.

--NASA Lunar Science Institute,  "We Originated in the Belly of a Star" (2012)

 

The debate over gun control has certainly cooled since the school shooting in Newtown, Ct, six months ago.  But the death and injury continue.  Here is one of forty-two stories of gun accidents or mishandling that occurred in the month of June.

 

Ybor City, Fl. 6/16/13: A 9-year-old boy found a loaded handgun inside an Ybor City movie theater bathroom on Father's Day. The gun was a Glock 26 9-mm. "My son opened the door and immediately said dad there's a gun in the bathroom," recounted Wesley Noland, the boy's father. Noland was at the Muvico theater in Centro Ybor with his two sons to see the new Superman movie. He said the weapon was sitting on top of the toilet paper dispenser. UPDATE: The "Responsible Gun Owner" who left it behind? A cop!!  OOPS!!! http://www.wtsp.com/news/local/article/321143/8/Boy-finds-loaded-handgun-in-movie-theater-bathroom

 

To read the other forty-one stories you can go to: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/06/22/1216658/-GunFAIL-XXIII?showAll=yes

 

 

 

Let's not forget we are still at war in Afghanistan.  We lost five brave soldiers last week bringing the Afghanistan war casualties total to 3,341.

 

US Marines Cpl. Jared W. Brown, 20, Youngstown, FL.

US Army Sgt. Justin R. Johnson, 25, Hobe Sound, FL.

US Army SPC Ember M. Alt, 21 Beach Island, SC.

US Army SPC Robert W. Ellis, 21, Kennewick, WA.

US Army SPC Willian R. Moody, 30, Burleson, TX.

They weren't as lucky as this young man who got to see his new daughter for the first time after a year on deployment.  I say bring 'em all home!! 

My fantasy baseball team is going to bed the death of me. I lost another close one last week by four points.  I was cruising along in the lead yesterday when my "closers" couldn't pitch and lost their games and cost me 18 points. 

But I was still ahead by two points going into the last game of the evening, St. Louis vs Texas.  The game was delayed for almost three hours and I was hoping it would be called.  But nooooo!!!!!  It started at 8:00 pm our time.  I didn't have any players in the game and Brian had one position player and the closer, Joe Natham.

The position player, Nelson Cruz, went 1-4 with a strikeout so that didn't hurt me.  I entered the bottom of the ninth still ahead by two points.  In comes Joe Natham.  St. Louis gets runners on first and second base with one out.  The next batter hits a screaming line drive down the third base line, headed for the left field corner.  We're gonna tie the score!!!  But noooooo!!!!  Adrian Beltre jumps up and snares the screamer and doubles up the runner on second base.  Game over.  Natham gets the save and five points.  I lose by four points. 

 

This incredible statement is said to have been made by a female Texas legislator in a debate last night over an abortion bill.  I guess that's what you get when your state has abstinence only sex education.  http://crooksandliars.com/karoli/texas-legislator-claims-rape-kits-prevent-p

 

Yesterday (Friday) was the first day of summer.  I took my bike to my mechanic for a summer tuneup.  He replaced the chain, both pedals, and tweeked and adjusted some stuff.  I'm ready for a summer of riding.  Thanks Jack.

 

Go towards the light

 

Saw this beauty on the freeway Tuesday coming home from work.

Happy Birthday wishes go out to twins Erin and Diane Murphy who played "Tabitha" in the television series "Bewitched" in the mid 60's and early 70's.  The more I do this blog, the more I learn.  I didn't know "Tabitha" was played by twins.  It turns out "Tabitha" was played by two sets of twins before the Murphy's.  Erin took on the part alone when she and her sister began to look less and less alike in season 4.
 

 

Erin and Diane were born in Encino, California, and went to El Toro High School.  Erin was a cheer leader and homecoming queen.  After "Bewitched", Erin guest starred in the series "Lassie" and did over 100 commercials.

 

As an adult,  Erin has worked as a casting director, makup artist, fashion stylist, acting teacher, motivational speaker, and stunt double for actress Virginia Madsen.  Erin did some modeling as well, with, among others, "Hang Ten" swimwear.  Erin is married to her third husband,  Darren Dunknel, and has six sons.

 

Diane dropped out of acting in her teens and there isn't much else written about her.