I'm out of the loop, distance and registered voter-wise, but if you are a registered voter in St. Paul, MN, consider a visit to RecallRandy.org. Randy decided to endorse Bush in the upcoming election, and concerned St. Paulitans (and friends of mine) didn't think that was such a great move.

Here's my current knitting project:



It's just the ribbing edge of a stocking cap, but I have a different type of green yarn in the same color that I will try alternating stripes of for the body of the cap. Stay tuned.

I've decided to start a new campaign. Not political in nature, just a good idea in my mind. It's called "Bands Not Brands" and it encourages everyone, especially the youth of today, to take up wearing clothing emblazoned with band names rather than clothing line names, if you have to wear something emblazoned at all. I'd rather wear an Avril t-shirt than an Abercrombie t-shirt, though I can't really stand either one.

This goes for most anything you feel an actual affinity for, not just bands. Some might argue that they do feel a genuine affinity for the GAP, or Nike, or whatever, to which I say, I weep for you. I'm not telling you not to shop there, just don't buy the $25 t-shirt (which is actually a $5 t-shirt, you're just paying to advertise for them) with the billboard on the front or back or wherever.

Hmm...seems there is a band called "1000" with the web address bandsnotbrands.com, but they have little info up as of this writing. Maybe .org...

I am honestly working on a new layout for this site, and still contemplating message boards. The software to run the boards that I originally tried to install has defeated me so far, but all is not lost. There are always board hosting services available if I can't get it running on my own.

I have also taken up knitting, as a productive and stress-reducing hobby. I have yet to complete even a small project yet, but I have learned a great deal and even checked out a "History of Knitting" book from the library, complete with photos of recovered Egyptian knit socks and things. Crazy.

It will come as no surprise to those that know me best that I am knitting hats.

Approximately 72 hours ago, Val and I arrived on Ocracoke Island, after a seven hour drive from Carrboro. Approximately 24 hours ago...

On Friday the Hyde County Emergency Mangagement Office issued a State of Emergency Proclamation and a mandatory evacuation order for Ocracoke Island, beginning at 5:00 pm.

We're home, we're safe, we're pissed. Our Ocracoke trip was cut (very) short. We had planned on being there until Tuesday morning.

We enjoyed one perfect morning on the beach, two trips to the Ocracoke Coffee Company, a rare view inside the lighthouse, one sunset from the third floor deck of Howard's Pub, one ridiculously windy visit to the beach, a visit to the Ocracoke Preservation Museum, and a final meal of beer and 50 steamed shrimp before the evacuation. Accomodations provided by Crews Inn.

DAMN YOU CHARLEY!!!

Sigh.

Greetings from the Ocracoke public library, on scenic Ocracoke Island, NC. We spent the morning at the beach, and now are leisurely idling away the afternoon.

Ocracoke Island reopened this morning to non-residents. That means we can still take our planned vacation this week, even though the island might still be a bit messy. WOO-HOO!

There are still cars bursting into flames on Ocracoke. I guess after your car has been seawater flooded, there is a good chance that the electrical system will be shorted out somewhere, and when you try to start the car, it will catch fire and burn right up.

I got two books from the library this morning about the Outer Banks and Blackbeard, for reading on this trip. I also got a book on the history of hand knitting, which I am learning how to do, and a book about Caribbean Islands by Mark Kurlansky, author of such hits as Salt: A World History, and Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World. Sounds dull, but I assure you, it is not.

Oh yeah, and Henri died.

Well, well, well, here we are, AUGUST. That means summer vacation, for some reason, so Val and I made plans to go back to Ocracoke Island (http://www.ocracokevillage.com/). Then there was MY hurricane last week, and the island got flooded. We're hoping that things are back in order by next Wednesday, when we're scheduled to head for the coast.

The water rose 3 feet in 30 minutes, according to some reports, and the level was 9" over the Hurricane Isabel level. Most of the island has been built (or rebuilt) for this kind of thing, but the tourist season is in full swing, and there are between 4,000 and 6,000 tourists being evacuated as I write this. There is a lot of debris, and the flooding causes wood, propane tanks, ice machines, cars and boats, among other things, to float around. If the tourists get out of the way, county officials say, residents and the disaster relief folks can take care of things. We hope so, the latest reports say return to the island may be possible by early next week.

Whatever happens next week, this weekend is supposed to be PERFECT summer weather. highs around 80?, overnight lows in the 60s. Good motorcyclin' weather, no rain for once. We've had about a month of hot mornings with rainy afternoons. ANY weather is bad if it's the same for a month. Or at least boring.

We're having our first houseguest this weekend, not counting my dad sleeping on the couch after her helped us move to Carrboro. Naomi, who went to UNC and lived in Carrboro is coming for a wedding this weekend. We kind of knew her when we all lived in Minneapolis, but when she lived here we all hung out and even vacationed together in Charleston. We're happy to be able to host visitors in our small apartment (hint, hint).

I heard that 3 banks were robbed in Davenport, IA while BOTH Bush and Kerry were campaigning there. Suspicions are that more than one person or persons had the bright idea that the authorities might be kind of busy and not able to respond to something as trivial as a bank robbery, as they don't think all the robberies were performed by the same people. That's some thinking.

That's all folks...