I've been trying to ignore the story about the football player arrested over dog fighting - not because there is any love lost between me and football (I didn't even know who Vick, much less the Falcons were before this), but because it upsets me too much.

My mother always says, on animal welfare issues, that you can't have your head in the sand and be in denial. Right now, AOL has a picture of a starving Pitbull on a chain as the headline so there is simply no way to avoid it. Of all the terrible, heartbreaking things in this article, I found this sentence to be the most appalling:

"After a meeting involving NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and the Falcons, the league will let Vick keep playing, the Associated Press reported."

Wouldn't want anything to get in the way of weekend beer sales, I guess.

If I was a Falcon - or even a football - fan, you better believe I would be taking action of some sort so they knew my views, and following it up with a boycott if nothing was done.

Update: I may not be a fan, but I am a consumer. So I did a little searching, and sent off my letters of protest. Here is the HSUS link, with information on how you can email the NFL to demand that they suspend Vick. And here is Nike's website, where you can email them about their sponsorship of Vick.

Update 2: Wow, Nike's spambot already responded. Here's my original letter, borrowed somewhat from the HSUS:

As an animal lover, I had to write to you to demand that you please immediately stop sponsoring Michael Vick for his alleged involvement in dogfighting. Vick's recent indictment by a federal grand jury for crimes related to dogfighting is a certain sign that you must treat this matter seriously. Reports of extreme cruelty to dogs who didn't "perform" to the fighters' satisfaction only add to the disgrace Vick brings to Nike.

Dogfighting is cruel and criminal, and football players must be held accountable like anyone else. Please drop your contract with Vick immediately--anything less would reflect very badly on your judgment, and on the Nike brand.

I was disgusted to read in the paper today that he was going to be allowed to continue to play, and that Nike was continuing to support him. I intend to boycott all of his, and the NFL's sponsors until he is suspended from the NFL, and until the sponsors drop him.
Thank you.

And here's Nike's response:

Response (Caryn) - 07/19/2007 02:33 PM
Thank you for contacting Nike regarding Michael Vick.

Nike is concerned by the serious and highly disturbing allegations made against Michael Vick, and we consider any cruelty to animals inhumane and abhorrent. We do believe that Michael Vick should be afforded the same due process as any citizen; therefore, we have not terminated our relationship. We have, however, made the decision to suspend the release of the Zoom Vick V and related marketing ommunications. Nike will continue to monitor the situation closely and has no further comment at this time.

We appreciate that you took the time to contact us and your feedback will be passed along to the proper department.

Sincerely,
Nike

They give you the opportunity for more feedback, so I wrote back:

OK then. Plenty of people have had lucrative contracts terminated while waiting for "due process" to play out. Some even spend time in jail, without bail. I (and, I suspect, all other animal lovers) find your position unacceptable, and will simply vote with our feet (not Nike-wearing feet, I might add). What that means is we'll terminate our relationship with you immediately. That's not due process - that's called the market. Thank you Caryn.

And here's Nike's next response (btw, I sent that follow-up by hitting "reply" and typing into a specific area that was designated for my comments):

Your e-mail was submitted to an Internet address that cannot be processed.

Oh wow. Sometimes people at big corporations can be so stupid, PR-wise. Like they are so powerful and we are all clueless drones who worship their brand and will be brainwashed by television commercials into forgetting how much they suck. Newsflash: big mistake to piss off animal advocates, Nike.

So - it looks like the final message is boycott Nike, and all of the NFL sponsors! (And I never slip up. You know I still have not set foot in Target.)

Booking Through Thursday: Just Wild About Harry

1. Okay, love him or loathe him, you’d have to live under a rock not to know that J.K. Rowling’s final Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, comes out on Saturday… Are you going to read it?

No.

2. If so, right away? Or just, you know, eventually, when you get around to it? Are you attending any of the midnight parties?

No, no, and no.

3. If you’re not going to read it, why not?

Because I haven't read any of the other Harry Potter books (nor have I seen any of the movies). They aren't the type of stories I enjoy. Even as a kid I didn't care for magic, wizards, or that sort of foolishness (borrowing the term from my grandmother). I also almost always avoid anything that is surrounded by so much hype. (The alliteration in that sentence was unintentional.) However, I do think it is good that these books have encouraged kids to read.

4. And, for the record… what do you think? Will Harry survive the series? What are you most looking forward to?

I have no idea, but if I had to guess I'd say why would she kill him off? I know it is supposed to be the the last book, but why would she ruin her gravy train when she could just keep cranking them out, raking it in and the series fans will eat it up? It would probably be much easier to continue after taking a break, than coming up with new ideas and facing the risk that reviewers will compare them unfavorably to her past work. On the other hand, you'd think she'd have pretty much run out of new material at about book two. Of course, having read none of the books, my opinion on the subject isn't worth a lot!

I think this is a good year for petunias.

About yesterday's book rant: well, something bad did happen to one of the characters. Unfortunately, it wasn't one of the main characters.

On Sunday, I was finally able to fix all of my computer problems in Samsonville. I replaced the ethernet card, the graphics card, and the router, and I am officially back in business. (I was able to fix my mother's computer a couple of weeks ago.) It took a lot more time than I anticipated - it always does, so I'm not sure why I expected it to be easier. Netgear sent me a new router since my old one was still under warranty, and yesterday I sent the damaged one back to them. I can't say enough good things about that company!

I am reading The Rescue by Nicholas Sparks. I don't like it very much. It isn't completely awful - I enjoyed it at first. Aside from a few "telling not showing" episodes, and an occasional duplication of the same phrase (ie, "roll in the sack"), the writing is fine - he mostly writes well, so in that respect it is easy to see why his books are often bestsellers - but I don't identify with, or even like, the characters.

I took the book out of a box in my department on campus. When people retire or leave the job for another reason, often when the office is cleaned out some of the books wind up in the common area, free for the taking. I always go through them, and take whatever interests me. Usually they are academic books, or at least education-related, such as something by Kozol. But last time there were quite a few fairly recent popular novels. I took the Sparks book because I'd seen (and liked) The Notebook, and have read good reviews of his writing.

This has nothing to do with my frustration with the book, but it's pretty hard to believe that a man is writing this book, or for that matter, wrote The Notebook. I suppose that is kind of a sexist remark, I mean why can't a man write a romantic story?, but they are not simply romantic, they are the ultimate "chick lit" or "chick flick." (I hate those terms, BTW, and usually I am not thrilled with that genre either, at least not as done by a contemporary author. [Bronte, Austen, etc. are fine.] I also dislike movies such as "You've Got Mail" and "Sleepless in Seattle" so I am probably not the best audience for Sparks' books.)

Anyway, I am about halfway through this book and I'd like to reach into the pages and slap the main character because she is so whiny and "poor me," and then slap her love interest just for good measure. Not that he doesn't deserve a good slap for his own tiresome nature. It seems the reader is supposed to view him as heroic? I don't think so; I think he is a glory hog. I keep hoping something really bad will happen to one of the characters and the book will wind up surprising me and being worth the effort! I don't know if The Notebook read like this, maybe. But even if it did, the looking back through Altzheimer's Disease theme made the story much more charming. With this book I am so annoyed that the so-called hardships these two characters have faced are either 1) self-inflicted, 2) not all that difficult, yet they act like such martyrs or 3) sad, but get over it already.

One other thing that is bothering me is the issue of the little boy. Many of the choices the main female character makes strike me as harmful. And the things they eat, because they don't have a lot of money, would make her fat, not thin. Plus that sort of diet would not help the son's learning disabilities. If his mother is supposed to be making such sacrifices for him, and has researched his disorder so much, you'd think that would be a no brainer. Hey, but why be concerned - a man swoops in and magically the kid improves!

It's too bad this was the first book of his that I read, since it is possible the others are better, and now I am turned off. But at least I know why I found it in a box for free!

OK. Enough said on that. I took some more flower and garden pictures, which I will post eventually. We had wonderful produce this weekend, as I struggled with the machines: fresh zucchini from the garden, and fresh local sweet corn from the Hurley Flats.

That's a nice segue to something I wanted to link, but couldn't find again when I actually started writing: I read a story about how difficult it is to find food that is produced in the USA, and also that it is more expensive when you can get it. The article mentioned that sometimes bad weather means there are not enough California or Florida orange crops, and so citrus fruit has to be imported; there is no choice, regardless of price. I wanted to link to that particular story because the essence of buying local whole foods means that you have to make a lifestyle change. If the produce isn't locally grown in your area, or it is out of season, you just don't buy it. It was strawberry season, so we picked, and ate strawberries nonstop. Now they are done - no more strawberries for a year. It was cherry season, same thing. Now it is sweet corn season, and we are eating our fill. (And I must add that we grow the best around here.) Peaches are coming soon, zucchini is here now, and within the next couple weeks so many other things will be, too. I grow as much as I can, but I also visit farm stands and the co-op. If you want green beans in the winter, it's quite simple: you have to freeze or can them when they are in season!

Booking Through Thursday: Celluloid

1. In your opinion, what is the best translation of a book to a movie?

I don't know about "best;" I suspect if I thought about this long enough I'd come up with a lot of possibilities. So I'll go with the first thing that popped into my mind, the recent War of the Worlds. Now I know a lot of people hated that movie (I liked it), and there were some important differences between it and H.G. Wells' wonderful story, but I think the spirit of the book was captured in the movie, as well as in the amazing technology.

Another recent example that I remembered: The Freedom Writers Diary. I thought the movie The Freedom Writers did a good job at capturing the book. (And Hilary Swank even resembles Erin Gruwell.)

2. The worst?

Again, I'm not sure about the "worst;" and since I almost always think the book is way better than the movie, there would be even more possibilities for an answer to this one than there are for the "best" if I thought about it for a while. So - the first thing that popped into my mind: The Firm. Oddly, that is also a Tom Cruise movie!! Not that it's a classic novel or anything, but the changed ending in the movie irritated me so much! Why can't Hollywood leave such things alone? Or is it that movie audiences couldn't handle how the book ended?

In the interest of having two and two - another example of "the worst" adaptation that I am thinking of is not books and movies, but plays and movies. I just have to mention it because I think it really was "the worst." I thought Phantom of the Opera as a movie was so bad they should snap every DVD of it in half, and erase the master. What an abomination.

3. Had you read the book before seeing the movie, and did that make a difference? (Personally, all other things being equal, I usually prefer whichever I was introduced to first.)

Yes, in all three cases I'd read the book first, and I saw Phantom on the stage before seeing the movie. I agree that whatever you are exposed to first probably seems best, although I'm trying to think of an example where I saw the movie first and liked it more, and I can't! Maybe because I almost always read the book first, and in most cases, may or may not see the movie. Even in the case of the two movies I listed as "best," I didn't like them more than the books - I simply thought the movie versions were respectable adaptations.

Added 1: OK, I came up with one. I didn't see the movie first, but I think I enjoyed it more than the book: Last of the Mohicans. James Fenimore Cooper's books are great - but they are also kind of difficult reads.

Added 2: Here's another great book to movie adaptation: The Scarlet Pimpernel. Though I still liked the book more, and so much had to be left out, the 1934 movie was very good (the 1982 TV movie wasn't bad, either).

Added 3: For a hilarious take on James Fenimore Cooper's writing, read "Fenimore Cooper's Literary Offences" in How to Tell a Story and Other Essays by Mark Twain (1897).

How bizarre. But there's no doubt he'll have a license before I do.

Wow, it is hot (and humid) here! I had my first swim of the season on Saturday. I also went swimming on Sunday. The water temperature was in the 80s, the pool is crysal clear, and it was lovely. The flowers and veggies are thriving at both houses.

I visited the State Museum when the exhibit that this book is based on was on display. Powerful, interesting, sad stuff; good that it will be published.

I've been meaning to link to two stories from the Times Union. First, from July 4, these three essays on what it means to be an American. Impressive writing, especially considering they are kids. I am using the piece in my class, since right now we are discussing the meaning of culture.

Then, this bittersweet essay. Sniff. Reminds me of all the dogs I love (Sophie, Sam), and have loved (there have been so many! Rudy, Penny, Howie, Hobo, Pud, Pepe, Duke, et al) but especially Howie, since he was half-Schnauzer, lived to be 15, and he was the first dog I got after moving away from home.

Unrelated, but something that occupied some time this week: last week we had a terrific thunderstorm that must have struck near my house in Samsonville. It zapped my mother's ethernet card, and she thought it killed her monitor too. She was unhappy with using her old spare, so I got her a "new" one (really it is used, but it is a decent 17" Dell, amazing how cheap they are). When I was there last weekend, I replaced the NIC in her computer, and discovered that her monitor is fine (luckily my nephew needs the used monitor I bought), but that the lightening also burned out my ethernet and on board video, and it ruined two of the ports on my router. It's an old machine, but since I have a wireless laptop and the desktop is for light use only, I didn't want to buy an entirely new computer. So I took the CPU back to Castleton, and earlier this week I replaced the NIC and video card. Luckily, that worked, since I hated the idea of spending too much on that old machine. I also learned that the router is still under warranty, so I will be able to get a replacement. Luckily the wireless and two remaining ports are working, so we are still in business there. We both had surge protectors, but they aren't foolproof, so from now on my mother will unplug everything when there is a storm.

Booking Through Thursday: Great _____ Novel

What, in your opinion, is the (mythical) Great American Novel?

Since he is my favorite author, it just has to be one of Mark Twain's. I know the standard answer is Huck Finn, and that is a great novel for sure, but my vote would be for An Innoncent Abroad. It is laugh out loud funny ("but is he dead?"), and so American.

Tell us where in the world you are!

New York, USA.

From my button collection.

Since I have more time this summer, I thought I might try a new meme. But when I Googled to find some to sample, I wound up spending a lot of time reading this at Wikipedia. I finally did get around to checking out a few memes, but never chose one. Instead, via Sya, I'll try this one, at least for today:

Booking Through Thursday: Desperation

What’s the most desperate thing you’ve read because it was the only available reading material?

That would have to be magazines in the waiting room at the dentist's office, or the hair stylist's.

If it was longer than a cereal box or an advertisement, did it turn out to be worth your while?

Any of the popular women's magazines that I've read in those circumstances: Absolutely not. But sometimes Hudson Valley is available, and that is great (I just subscribed yesterday, in fact).

This column in the Sunday Troy Record bothered me. I only read this columnist's writing occasionally. The few times I have read it, the focus has been on being pregnant and having kids, subjects that don't interest me. I'm not sure why I read the column this week, but last time I read it was when she announced the naming contest for her second baby. Readers won't actually be choosing the name; they will be recommending what she should call the baby in her column. I see she is referring to the baby as "Thing 2" in this column, which I guess is only the placeholder until the contest results are in. Still, it strikes me as dehumanizing. But maybe that shouldn't be a surprise. This column is about her anxiety over the baby's health shortly before he was born, since there was a chance he would have a chromosome disorder. You'd think that would be deep, but in what I suppose is an effort to be funny, instead it comes off as trite.

She writes that she'd been sent an article from the New York Times that "claimed that roughly 90 percent of mothers who are given this information early on abort the fetus." I remember reading that article and thinking "how sad." Does everyone in society have to be the same? It is as scary as the movie Gattaca. The Record's columnist writes "It makes sense, but it also does something else. It changes the face of our society. With fewer children born with Down syndrome, there will likely be implications such as fewer services available to those individuals as well as a shrinking social circle." She believes "it makes sense?" (I guess she is living in the plastic, shallow 90 percent world. Once again, I think "how sad.") Her only thought was about the fewer services available to people with special needs since most are now aborted? Faced with the prospect and the article, she must have something more philosophical, more thought-provoking than that to say. She continues "I'm not sure which made me more melancholy: that we could have a special needs child in a few hours or that this child's circle of support would be shrinking from year to year." Melancholy? Is that really an apt description of the emotion? Maybe so, in the land where going to the mall is a good way to spend Sunday, watching TV is a good way to spend every evening, WalMart is a good place to shop, and fast food is a good thing to eat.

Added: One more thing from this column is bugging me. She writes, on the subject of the uncertain health outlook for the baby, and the fact that her new furniture hadn't arrived "...the lack of furniture doesn't rise to the level of "bad" anything. (Unless of course the dresser or bookcase falls on you, and then THAT WOULD be bad.)" That rubbed me the wrong way, so I did a little hunting around. "From 2000 through 2005, CPSC has reports of 36 TV tip-over-related deaths and 65 furniture tip-over deaths. More than 80 percent of all these deaths involved young children. Additionally, CPSC estimates that in 2005 at least 3,000 children younger than 5 were treated in U.S. hospital emergency rooms because of injuries associated with TV tip-overs." I'd say that is more than just "bad." And it certainly is no joke.

I'm steamed. And not only because it is hot outside. In answer to the question I posed last week about whether it was better to just forget about it - or to expend energy: "just forget about it." I called the collection agency listed - a legal firm. All I can say is this interaction did nothing to reduce my hatred of lawyers. Well, that's not all I can say. The agency is in the most plastic town in the capital district, a northern suburb that I hate. This interaction did nothing to reduce my hatred of plastic 'burbs, or of that particular plastic 'burb. The creditor is a medical group. This interaction did nothing to reduce my hatred for the medical model. The nasty woman I dealt with (and who else but a nasty loser would work for a collection agency run by lawyers? One that probably specializes in collecting medical fees, I'll bet) eventually said there is nothing I can do about it except pay it. She said it goes against me that I have never contacted them before. I protested, you've never sent me a letter! I have never received a bill! She insisted they had sent me numerous letters. What could I do to combat such untruths? Suffice to say the call ended on a very unpleasant note.

I then called the credit reporting bureau (only TransUnion has the items listed) to see what I could do. Essentially, nothing. Oh, they are opening a dispute, but if that no-good collection agency in the plastic town says the charge is true, it's tough luck. He said I should do whatever I could to dispute the charges, but he wasn't willing to tell me exactly what that means. Write to the attorney general? Think bad thoughts about the scum law firm and jerk of a doctor who fabricated the charge? I could tell the guy on the phone at TransUnion wondered why I cared. It is only $153 combined for the two charges, and they will drop off in a year. There is nothing else negative on my report, and it certainly hasn't hurt my ability to get credit. Big deal, right? But it is the principle of the thing!! At the end of the call to TransUnion, he tried to sell me identity theft protection! I said, no thanks. I wish I never received this credit report. Ignorance was bliss!

I'm off to go strawberry picking! That's the best thing about June. It's been a few years since I've gone, it was too rainy last year and I don't remember why I didn't go the year before that. I can't wait.

I probably say this every year, but my garden and flowers have never looked better.

More pictures. Too cute for words. The bottom one is Edna, unfortunately she does not like to pose and always moves shortly before the picture is snapped. I tried three times and this was the best I could do.

Yesterday, as I was paying my credit card online, I noticed an $84 charge for Hoodia! When I called to dispute it, the customer service representative said they have had many complaints about this company recently. So check your bills!

Somewhat related, a few weeks ago a salesperson called me to hawk identity theft protection. He spoke so fast, I was busy, and somehow I guess I wound up buying it. So I called yesterday to cancel it. Today they sent me a copy of my credit report, and there are only two bad things on it: both wrong! From 2001, they are from a health organization I have never visited, and they are now at a collection agency (that has never contacted me). I don't know whether to say, "so what?" because in one more year they will drop off, or whether to expend the time and energy to have it fixed now.

To Delight and to Instruct has created a great compendium of posts about the many aspects of going to graduate school.

The day we went to Springwood (FDR's home in Hyde Park) happened to be the day a statue of Winston Churchill was being unveiled:

Here's the beautiful view from the house, looking toward the Hudson River:

And, in keeping with my interest in all things dog, here is the sundial in the rose garden where Fala is buried (the big monument marks FDR's and Eleanor's graves):

The site is a lot more organized than I remember from my earlier visits. I also don't remember the visitor's center. Our tour guide for the house was a wonderful park ranger. She had the patience of a saint. Our group was very large, maybe too large. Then there was a couple there with two young children whose behavior was just awful. Why would anyone think a baby and a toddler would be interested in a historic house?

It would take much longer than a day to go through the house, visitor's center, and library. Something I noticed, and I can't remember whether this was true in the past, was that there were many exhibits that attempted to address internment during WWII, the conspiracy theories surrounding Pearl Harbor, etc. Although I'm not sure, I suspect this is a reflection of contemporary sensibilities and criticisms, and it was not there on my last visit. I also noted that while they still mention it, they seem to be a little gentler on the subject of FDR's mother and her relationship with Eleanor than they did in the past. Or maybe it was just me and I focused more on that when I was younger.