On Saturday we got up early and went to Canberra for Floriade, which was a huge flower show, so of course we took lots of pictures. Came home later in the day, and had dinner at home, a kind of Vietnamese soup I hadn’t had before. Of course it was really good, with little chunks of tofu, and shrimp, and quail eggs. Going on vacation with Nhut and his family is always an eating adventure for me.
I started keeping a log of the stuff we did on this trip, and will edit and post as I have time. Since we didn’t have internet access on this trip, I just kept a off-line journal of the stuff we did.
We left Austin at around 6:00 PM on Wednesday, and arrived into LA at 7:30 PM local time. Our next flight out to Sydney wasn’t until 10:30 PM, so since we have Platinum status with AA, and we’re on an international flight, we hung out in the Admiral’s Club lounge for a couple hours. (Free munchies and soda and a TV lounge) They let both of us have a guest, so we were able to get Nhut’s mom and sister in too when they arrived.
The flight from LA to Sydney was 14 hours long, in coach. We got in to Sydney at 6 AM Friday morning, took about an hour and a half to clear customs, gather our bags and get out on the road back to Canberra with Nhut’s uncle. On the drive back to the house, we stopped off at a McDonalds for a bathroom break. Seems that McDonalds here has opened a McCafe in a bunch of their restaurants in Australia. Its basically a Starbucks like coffee outlet in each of their restaurants. Anyway, it looked pretty popular the morning we were there.
We hung out for a bit at Nhut’s Uncle’s house for a while, catching up with his cousins and aunt too and then napped before dinner. Dinner was good; we had asparagus with smoked salmon and polenta appetizer, followed by steak and potato wedges for dinner. We has this meringue with berries sort of tart for dessert called pavlova.
to Australia for vacation…
DeLay indicted in campaign finance probe
Charges could force House majority leader to step down
BREAKING NEWS
NBC News and news services
Updated: 12:39 p.m. ET Sept. 28, 2005
WASHINGTON – A Texas grand jury on Wednesday charged Rep. Tom DeLay and two political associates with conspiracy in a campaign finance scheme, an indictment that could force him to step down as House majority leader.
Military rep: Gays are being sent to war
Christopher Curtis, PlanetOut Network Tue Sep 27, 8:21 PM ET
SUMMARY: A military spokesperson has reportedly admitted that openly gay and lesbian troops are being sent into combat, despite the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.
A military spokesperson has reportedly admitted that openly gay and lesbian troops are being sent into combat in
Iraq, despite the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” ban on homosexual soldiers.
Kim Waldron, of the U.S. Army Forces Command at Fort McPherson, told the Washington Blade newspaper: “The bottom line is some people are using sexual orientation to avoid deployment. So in this case, with the Reserve and Guard forces, if a soldier ‘tells,’ they still have to go to war and the homosexual issue is postponed until they return to the U.S. and the unit is demobilized.”
Waldon’s comments confirmed the suspicions of Aaron Belkin, director of the Center for the Study of Sexual Minorities in the Military (CSSMM). Belkin noted that before Waldron’s acknowledgment, representatives often denied that the military intentionally sends gays and lesbians to fight despite the existence of a gay ban.
“The military has claimed for years that allowing openly gay and lesbian service members to serve in uniform would undermine unit cohesion. During wartime, however, when cohesion is most important, the Pentagon retains gays and lesbians,” Belkin said.
Well, I missed registering for the draft because it wasn’t required when I turned 18 in 1977, and so it goes…
It kinda makes you wonder, doesn’t it? I mean, Bush is out of town for a tropical depression hurricane… almost as though he were afraid of confronting the anti-war protesters. Maybe he’s just trying to shore up his image, you know, making reparations for ignoring the storm victims of Katrina by overdoing it on Rita. Hint: go a little further EAST.
Antiwar Fervor Fills the Streets
Demonstration Is Largest in Capital Since U.S. Military Invaded Iraq
By Petula Dvorak
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, September 25, 2005; Page A01Tens of thousands of people packed downtown Washington yesterday and marched past the White House in the largest show of antiwar sentiment in the nation’s capital since the conflict in Iraq began.
The demonstration drew grandmothers in wheelchairs and babies in strollers, military veterans in fatigues and protest veterans in tie-dye. It was the first time in a decade that protest groups had a permit to march in front of the executive mansion, and, even though President Bush was not there, the setting seemed to electrify the crowd.
Perry: Rita Damage Not As Bad As Katrina
By MICHAEL GRACZYK, Associated Press Writer 10 minutes ago
BEAUMONT, Texas – Gov. Rick Perry said Sunday that the damage inflicted by Hurricane Rita paled in comparison to Katrina, but urged evacuees stay where they are until local officials say it’s all right to return.
Oh, wait… that was the last Hurricane. This time he’s actually on the scene, well, err… sorta. I mean he was here in Austin today, even though we totally escaped the impact of the storm. Heck it was sunny, hot and breezy here, a typical Austin day. Maybe he came here for the ACL Festival? Or was it that maybe he was comparing hair products with Governor GoodHair Perry?
So, while he was “out”, the protest went on in Washington. Think he’ll get the message?
Antiwar Protests Commence in Washington
By Miranda S. Spivack
and Petula Dvorak Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, September 24, 2005; 6:18 PMThousands of protesters against the war in Iraq rallied today in Washington and other U.S. and European cities to demand the return of U.S. troops in what organizers hope will be the largest gathering since the war began more than two years ago.
Protest organizers estimated a crowd of about 200,000 rallied at the Ellipse, then marched around the White House and along Pennsylvania Avenue.
Bush’s Crisis Itinerary at Mercy of Weather, Even Nice Weather
By DAVID E. SANGER
Published: September 24, 2005
SAN ANTONIO, Sept. 23 – President Bush was supposed to land here on Friday afternoon on the first stop of a tour intended to make clear that he was personally overseeing the federal government’s preparations for Hurricane Rita’s landfall. But the weather did not cooperate.
It was too sunny.
But clearly someone at the White House reconsidered the President’s impact. When Mr. McClellan announced that the president had scrapped his trip, he said that with the search-and-rescue team preparing to move with the storm, “we didn’t want to slow that down.”
In other words, the Preznit didn’t want to GET IN THE WAY?
Another White House official involved in preparing Mr. Bush’s way noted that with the sun shining so brightly in San Antonio, the images of Mr. Bush from here might not have made it clear to viewers that he was dealing with an approaching storm.
Prosecutors, SEC Probe Frist Stock Sale
By JONATHAN M. KATZ, Associated Press Writer Fri Sep 23, 4:52 PM ET
WASHINGTON – Federal prosecutors and the Securities and Exchange Commission are looking into Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist’s sale of stock in HCA Inc. at a time when insiders at the hospital operating company were also selling off shares.
HCA, based in Nashville and founded by the Frist family, said Friday that it had received a subpoena from prosecutors for the Southern District of New York, asking for documents the company believes are related to Frist’s stock sale.
Prosecutors also have contacted the senator’s office, Frist spokesman Bob Stevenson said. He said neither the senator nor his office had received a subpoena.
Frist, a Tennessee Republican, has been considered a potential presidential candidate in 2008. Aides say he sold his stock to avoid any appearance of a conflict of interest.
Wonder if he’ll get the same treatment as Martha Stewart?
Up to 20 Dead in Fire Aboard Evacuees’ Bus
7 minutes ago
WILMER, Texas – A bus carrying elderly evacuees from Hurricane Rita caught fire early Friday on a gridlocked highway near Dallas, killing as many as 20 people, authorities said.
“We believe it’s going to be closer to 20 fatalities,” Dallas County sheriff’s spokesman Sgt. Don Peritz said.
Rita Sparks Exodus From Texas, La. Coasts
By MIKE GRACZYK, Associated Press Writer 20 minutes ago
HOUSTON – Hurricane Rita roared toward the Texas and Louisiana coasts early Friday, a major Category 4 storm that spurred a traffic-snarled exodus toward higher ground and fears it could cripple the heart of the nation’s petrochemical industry.
Forecasters said it appeared Houston and Galveston could avoid a direct hit as Rita veered slightly to the east, threatening its 140 mph winds at the Beaumont and Port Arthur area about 75 miles east of Houston. An 8 a.m. EDT advisory from the
National Hurricane Center said the winds remained at 140 mph.
The unprecedented flight from the flood-prone Houston area left clogged highways at a near standstill, frustrating hundreds of thousands of people whose cars and tempers were overheating.
“It can’t get much worse, 100 yards an hour,” steamed Willie Bayer, 70, who was trying to get to Sulphur Springs in far northeast Texas. “It’s frustrating bumper-to-bumper.”
Traffic in Austin last night when I arrived at the airport around 10:00 PM was unusually high. (the plane from Chicago was completely full too) As I was driving northbound on 183 towards home, there were flashing signs telling motorists to listen to AM 590 radio for updates, and the Amber alert system lights were directing people to shelters on NB 183. The radio announcer was saying, at that time, last night, that the shelters in Cedar Park were full… and they were sending evacuees further north to Leander.
![[ Yahoo! Maps ]](http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/us/mp/gr/mplogo.gif){kind=small}
Map of
Leander, TX
Looks like we’ll be getting some rain and high winds even as far inland as Austin this weekend. So, we’re planning to secure all the stuff on the deck, just to be sure.
Texas Coast Braces For Rita
1.1 Million Ordered To Evacuate Homes
By Ceci Connolly and Sylvia Moreno
Washington Post Staff Writers
Thursday, September 22, 2005; Page A01
NEW ORLEANS, Sept. 21 — Hurricane Rita, a massive storm packing 165-mph winds and destructive force equal to the might of Hurricane Katrina, tracked through the Gulf of Mexico on Wednesday, prompting evacuation orders for more than 1.1 million Texans and the few remaining holdouts in storm-ravaged New Orleans.
Closer to home, the Austin American Statesman has an article on the possible impact to Austin:
Hurricanes threaten inland residents, too
Flooding, tornadoes may not come with Rita, but both sometimes spin out of coastal storms.
By Stephen Scheibal
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Thursday, September 22, 2005
About 150 miles separates Austin from the Gulf of Mexico.
The distance becomes awfully slight during a hurricane.
Some of the worst storms to ever hit Central Texas spun out of hurricanes and tropical storms that made landfall far away.
The remnants of storms can swamp the region with moisture and create a vacuum that attracts more rain clouds, said Raymond Slade Jr., a hydrologist and former Texas surface water specialist for the United States Geological Survey.
“If you have a Category 5 hurricane hit the Texas coast, it could still be a strong hurricane and reach Austin,” Slade said.
Been on the road the past couple days, primarily on a recruiting trip to Cornell University in Ithaca, NY. But of course, while I was “in the neighborhood”, I dropped in on my mom and stepfather for a visit. We watched a Yankees game, and saw them beat the Orioles. You can imagine how much I enjoyed seeing the photos of George and Laura Bush in their house, or the calendar open to November 2004, with the first couple’s beaming faces on it. 
Oh well, on to happier thoughts, I’ll stop off on the way back in Monroe for some REAL bagels before I head back to Texas. It’s definitely a lot longer drive without the stopover at mom’s place. Check out the map.
NY Times Editorial
Published: September 17, 2005
There’s nothing like a touch of real-world experience to inject some reason into the inflammatory national debate over gay marriages. Take Massachusetts, where the state’s highest court held in late 2003 that under the State Constitution, same-sex couples have a right to marry. The State Legislature moved to undo that decision last year by approving a proposed constitutional amendment to ban gay marriages and create civil unions as an alternative. But this year, when precisely the same measure came up for a required second vote, it was defeated by a thumping margin of 157 to 39.
The main reason for the flip-flop is that some 6,600 same-sex couples have married over the past year with nary a sign of adverse effects. The sanctity of heterosexual marriages has not been destroyed. Public morals have not gone into a tailspin. Legislators who supported gay marriage in last year’s vote have been re-elected. Gay couples, many of whom had been living together monogamously for years, have rejoiced at official recognition of their commitment.
As a Republican leader explained in justifying his vote switch: “Gay marriage has begun, and life has not changed for the citizens of the commonwealth, with the exception of those who can now marry who could not before.” A Democrat attributed his change of heart to the beneficial effects he saw “when I looked in the eyes of the children living with these couples.” Gay marriage, it turned out, is good for family values.
Some legislators who strongly oppose gay marriages also switched their votes this year for tactical reasons. They realized that the original measure was headed for defeat, and they had never really liked the part that created civil unions anyway. They are now pinning their hopes on an even harsher proposal, endorsed by Gov. Mitt Romney, that would ban gay marriages without allowing civil unions.
We can only hope that this new appeal to fear and bigotry will stumble over the reality, already apparent, that gay marriage is no threat to the larger community. States that rushed to ban same-sex marriages after the Massachusetts court ruling were succumbing to misplaced hysteria.
Mayor says some residents concerned about gay activity.
By Camille Wheeler
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Wednesday, September 14, 2005
ROUND ROCK — Williamson County’s first known drag show generated more controversy Tuesday, as city officials ordered the first fire code inspection of the decade old coffee shop that hosted it and Round Rock Mayor Nyle Maxwell visited the shop’s owner to air residents’ concerns.
City officials said they were responding to numerous complaints about Friday’s show, which attracted an estimated crowd of more than 150 people to Saradora’s Coffeehouse & Cafe in downtown Round Rock. The comments centered on the size of the crowd and the nature of the show, Maxwell said.
Lovely, hatred and bigotry, right down the road in Round Rock. Well, that’s not really surprising, as I pointed out last week, there’s all kinds of “Red” leaning folks right around here.
Check out this Editorial posted on the Statesman today, in response to the action taken by the mayor of Round Rock:
EDITORIAL
A big show over a little entertainment
EDITORIAL BOARD
Thursday, September 15, 2005
Memo to Mayor Nyle Maxwell and Round Rock city officials bugging coffee house owner Sarah Roberts: Leave the lady alone.
Roberts sponsored a drag show at her Saradora’s Coffeehouse & Cafe on Main Street last Friday. As tame as it was, the show featuring male entertainers dressed as women still generated a slew of complaints — no doubt from people who weren’t there.
Maxwell could have told the complainers that Roberts has a right to run her business as she sees fit. Instead, he warned her about how she is endangering her business. At City Manager Jim Nuse’s urging, Fire Inspector Paul Ward surveyed the coffee shop for possible violations. Maxwell’s statements and the fire inspector’s visit are surprising, and they raise questions about the protection of Roberts’ right to hold the show.
No one was forced to attend the well-publicized drag show, and there is authentic sexually explicit entertainment not far down the road for those looking for that. Roberts was responding to her customers’ requests for entertainment, not threatening the community’s morals.
By STEVE LeBLANC, Associated Press Writer 1 hour, 7 minutes ago
BOSTON – The Massachusetts Legislature on Wednesday rejected a proposed constitutional amendment that sought to ban gay marriage but legalize civil unions, a year after the state performed the nation’s first government-sanctioned same-sex weddings.
It was the second time the Legislature had confronted the measure, which was intended to be put before voters on a statewide ballot in 2006. Under state law, lawmakers were required to approve it in two consecutive sessions before it could move forward.
After less than two hours of debate Wednesday, a joint session of the House and Senate voted 157-39 against the measure.
It was a striking departure from a year earlier, when hundreds of protesters converged on Beacon Hill and sharply divided legislators spent long hours debating the issue. In that session, in March 2004, lawmakers voted 105-92 in favor of the amendment.
This year, the crowds were tamer and some legislators who had initially supported the proposed change to the state constitution said they no longer felt right about denying the right of marriage to thousands of same-sex couples.
“Gay marriage has begun, and life has not changed for the citizens of the commonwealth, with the exception of those who can now marry,” said state Sen. Brian Lees, a Republican who had been a co-sponsor of the amendment. “This amendment which was an appropriate measure or compromise a year ago, is no longer, I feel, a compromise today.”
Tue Sep 13, 6:42 PM ET
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Stable marriage can increase the financial prosperity of couples and improves the lives of American children, including those being raised by same-sex couples, according to a report released on Tuesday.
Children already being raised by same-sex couples can also benefit when those couples marry, the study suggested.
“First, marriage may increase children’s material well-being through such benefits as family leave from work and spousal health insurance eligibility,” the report said. “Second, same-sex marriage may benefit children by increasing the durability and stability of their parents’ relationship.”
The report comes as the Bush administration proposes some $1.5 billion in spending over the next five years on marriage programs and as the debate over same-sex marriage hits a fever pitch.
In another somewhat related article:
“Same-sex couples have the same birthright to liberty and to marry the person they love as any other couple,” said Susan Sommer, Senior Counsel at Lambda Legal and the lead attorney on the case.
“The government harms them and their children everyday by excluding them from civil marriage.”
As Jon Stewart said (paraphrasing), “If someone says it’s not time to play the blame game, they are the ones to blame.” And he said this after showing several Bush surrogates repeating this exact same message point, including Poppy Bush.
BuzzFlash Editorial.
2 hours, 22 minutes ago
CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy – Pope Benedict XVI marked the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks Sunday, calling for a global renunciation of hatred and for men and women to build a world of justice and peace.
you first Benedict, mmm-kay? (hatred is OK if it’s against gays and abortionists, right?)
A new NEWSWEEK poll suggests President Bush could become Katrina’s next casualty.
By Marcus Mabry
Newsweek
Updated: 1:31 p.m. ET Sept. 10, 2005
Sept. 10, 2005 – Hurricane Katrina claimed her first political casualty Friday. Michael Brown, the head of FEMA, the federal disaster readiness and response agency, was sidelined from the largest disaster relief project in the nation’s history. Brown was recalled to Washington by his boss, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff. But a new NEWSWEEK Poll suggests the post-Katrina political storm may just be rising. And her ultimate casualty could be President George W. Bush.
Newsweek pegs Bush’s approval rating at 38%, wow. How low can he go?
