... before somebody spoofed Bob Dylan's classic "Hurricane." Check out Mister Snitch's version. It's crazy good.

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This week's Cotillion Ball is hosted by Beth at My VRWC, Sadie at Fistful of Fortnights, Soldier's Angel Holly Aho, SondraK at Knowledge Is Power and Jody at Steal the Bandwagon. There are many pictures, go to it!

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When a blogger feels like she's down for the count, she should:

a) pick herself up, dust herself off, start all over again;

b) finally edit and post that Kill Bill 2 symposium she's been sitting on for-fucking-ever;

c) recycle old posts;

d) realize that she'll never be quite so charming, funny and cynical all at the same time as her idols Ginger, Candace or Dawn, then give up;

or

e) two words: sex blogging.

Posted by: annika at 08:49 PM | Comments (24) | Add Comment
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1 darling, you have always been all that and more. don't give up! then we'll be almost all gone! and really, when we think of our sadness at no longer living in the blogosphere, you are one of those we think of first. really. in the meantime, my vote goes for kill bill 2, or gun stories.

Posted by: candy girl at September 19, 2005 08:55 PM (Cp+JE)

2 Well, that makes it 1 to about 200 for sex blogging (with pictures). Whatever you do, forget about picking football; it is definitely not your thing.

Posted by: shelly at September 19, 2005 09:52 PM (M7kiy)

3 Vintage boxing photos like that will keep me coming here.

Posted by: Chris at September 20, 2005 04:02 AM (fdN2d)

4 Only Democrats quit when they're down.

Posted by: Victor at September 20, 2005 04:36 AM (L3qPK)

5 pick self up and start blogging again. +1 only demonrats quit when they are down. keep pluggin along something will click. r

Posted by: r at September 20, 2005 06:14 AM (nVuk6)

6 Do what you have always been doing. I have always been impressed with your breath of your knowledge and interests. And that has brought me to your blog often. Please keep giving us pleasant surprises.

Posted by: Jake at September 20, 2005 06:36 AM (r/5D/)

7 Annie, Your usual alacrity is not necessary; I would read a shopping list posted on your site, and be sufficiently entertained. Please keep blogging and know you have die-hard fans. Mark W

Posted by: Mark W at September 20, 2005 07:01 AM (yTuVc)

8 f) Realize that she's already as charming, funny and cynical all at the same time as her idols, and keep on truckin'. Take a break to recharge batteries if necessary.

Posted by: Matt at September 20, 2005 07:39 AM (10G2T)

9 Hey is it time for another Annika Jepordy??? (that is once you get some new batteries or your batteries recharged or whatever the current holdup is...) After all I almost got one of the last ones right.

Posted by: Drake Steel at September 20, 2005 08:04 AM (M2tSh)

10 Nice one Shelly. Kick the girl when she's down. If anything we need MORE football. I live for the weekend just around the corner when the clay feet of the Trojans will be exposed. Yes, we need more boob shots.

Posted by: Casca at September 20, 2005 08:22 AM (qBTBH)

11 Your breasts of knowledge have kept me coming often. Please keep it up.

Posted by: d-rod at September 20, 2005 08:23 AM (o2s7U)

12 Write about anything... and don't worry about going through a dry patch. All bloggers do. I just blither on about my injuries until I feel suitably inspired. You are witty and charming and playful. You were the first person to comment on my blog two years ago, and the first person I linked to. And if you do do sex blogging...

Posted by: Hugo at September 20, 2005 08:49 AM (MG0tp)

13 Miss Annika, Write about whatever you wish, as often or as seldom as you wish. Don't worry about us; if you have fun writing that's all that really matters. One thing though; if you can blog while having sex then we really need to get you some more creative (& physically active) partners.

Posted by: Publicola at September 20, 2005 10:44 AM (vC8Ev)

14 Is Heather in the Cotillion? She pulls down about $5 million a year: [deleted]

Posted by: Casca at September 20, 2005 04:53 PM (qBTBH)

15 Just find something new to obsess about, like the upcomeing Serenity movie and the show that spawned it, Firefly.....I'm just saying..... Seriously, that's my current obsession so you should feel free to pick your own. We will follow you down whatever strange or dark path you choose.

Posted by: TBinSTL at September 20, 2005 06:47 PM (Vq/8g)

16 I LOVE it when I'm censored! Who knew that you'd draw the line at linking to Heather Brooke's very tasteful website?

Posted by: Casca at September 20, 2005 09:55 PM (qBTBH)

17 i can't allow any links to someone with bigger tits than me.

Posted by: annika at September 21, 2005 01:24 AM (j+KCy)

18 "Tasteful" get it? Don't worry, she got them out of a box.

Posted by: Casca at September 21, 2005 07:21 AM (qBTBH)

19 Um.... I'm new here, is this something we get to vote on?

Posted by: Mr. Snitch at September 22, 2005 11:21 AM (2CNDQ)

20 I obviously missed something. Slump? No slump is forever. As Chuang-tzu said, "When the dick flaps in one direction, it must eventually flap in the other." Kevin

Posted by: Kevin Kim at September 24, 2005 08:51 AM (1PcL3)

21 I checked out Heather Brooke's site - great, now I have another stretched out pear of underwear.

Posted by: Radical Redneck at September 24, 2005 10:40 AM (7XTy8)

22 Well... There IS something to be said for sex blogging. Remember that bit I posted about the effects of semen on women's happiness that you linked to? I'm STILL getting hits on that post via your link, months later. So...make of it what you will.

Posted by: Desert Cat at September 24, 2005 11:23 PM (xdX36)

23 that makes me happy. : )

Posted by: annika at September 25, 2005 12:08 AM (Ez/ng)

24 What kinds of comments are these?

Posted by: www.free sex stories at November 12, 2005 03:09 PM (AqDGi)

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i took on a project at school that will me keep me very busy over the next several weeks, so posting will be sporadic. If you're hungry for poetry i'd suggest visiting the following fellow poetry lovers: Sarah or Sheila or Dymphna and the Baron (Get well soon, Dymphna) or CBass (The Mark Russell of the Blogosphere) or my buddy Matt or Jeff's Protein Wisdom, none of whom have any poetry posted today. However, you can always count on Hugo for great poems on Thursday. If you're coming here for a gun nut update, i should have one soon, but you might want to check out this gun quiz at Risawn's blog. (i recognized the BHP.)

Posted by: annika at 09:51 AM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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Blogger has instituted a quasi-censorship program.

When a person visiting a blog clicks the "Flag?" button in the Blogger Navbar, it means they believe the content of the blog may be potentially offensive or illegal. We track the number of times a blog has been flagged as objectionable and use this information to determine what action is needed. This feature allows the blogging community as a whole to identify content they deem objectionable.

Blogger excuses this quasi-censorship by referring to the "Wisdom of Crowds" concept. That's complete bullshit. They might have an argument if they gave readers the option to designate a blog as "unobjectionable." But even that would be problematic, because it's always more likely that a offended person would be motivated to click on a flag than someone who's not offended by content. You're going to see a situation where hypersensitive people or those with intolerant political viewpoints will have a kind of "hecklers veto" on blog content.

This is a bad idea, and totally goes against what i thought was Blogger's most important asset, the total freedom it gave to its users. It's also an unnecessary idea. Blog readers have always had a remedy for objectionable content they might happen upon. It's called the back button. Blogger's "Flag Button" is the blogging equivalent of yelling "Mom!" everytime your brother calls you a ninny.

If someone doesn't like what i write for instance, they can always leave a comment, or email me, and then never visit again. If i want to post a picture of my left tit, i'm glad i have the freedom to do so without becoming some kind of second class blog-citizen.

Posted by: annika at 11:44 AM | Comments (22) | Add Comment
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We are up to $2,150 for hurricane relief, and the TTLB Board reads over 1.3 million dollars!

If you haven't contributed yet, jump on the bandwagon!

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This week's Cotillion Ball is being held in four ballrooms at the very top of the Hotel Blogosphere. Besides this room, where i am your humble M.C., we have RightGirl, Merri Musings and Stacy, each of whom have wonderful festivities planned for today. As you stroll around the dance floor, i'd like you to imagine listening to the music of some great musicians from the city of New Orleans and the state of Louisiana. Foremost is of course Sachmo, whose version of "A Kiss To Build A Dream On" is one of the great classics of all time.

Crystal Clear deserves congratulations for having landed a dream job in Hawaii, not an easy state to make a living in. And she'll be doing good work, too.

[A]fter a great deal of soul-searching it really seemed to me that the consistent pattern and passion in my life has always been children and likely always will be serving the underserved children and watching out for the kids many people consider "throw aways".

Darleen has a provocatively titled post, "Jesus Was Not A Socialist."

No where in [Jesus'] teachings does one find a call that GOVERNMENT must use its power to redistribute property from the earners to the needers. Indeed, Jesus preached about the difference between the Government and individuals.

. . .

Socialism is not about individuals giving of their own earned property. It's about self-selected people of power deciding to fulfill their own desires with someone else's property taken by force.

Morality assumes choice. Socialism is a matter of, at best, amorality, because it robs people of choice.

Dr. Sanity discusses a common phenomenon many of us observe when trying to understand the leftist mind at work. It's called "denial."

When belief in any idea become a matter of faith--and one's own identity is defined by that faith--then the psyche will do anything necessary to distort or deny any truth that contradicts that belief.

. . .

I fear that is the choice that those on the Left are making right now, although they like to imagine that those of us who are fighting against the new threats to human freedom and dignity are the ones suffering from delusion.

When all hell breaks loose, for some the niceties of self-disciplined social interaction disappear in a wash of mind-numbing fear and desperation. Others, realize that desperate times call for even more rigorous commitment to the principles of civilized behavior—that set of Values which makes a hellish situation infinitely more manageable.

Sadie: You believe that Joran Van der Sloot emailed you hours before he was arrested. What made these emails seem authentic?

Dan: Joran or someone close to him - why else would someone go to the trouble? I thought maybe him and his Father together Â… the emails were written with some awareness of the law, as well as forming public opinion. That isnÂ’t your average seventeen year old on his own.

RightGirl has a beautiful post about the friends we make on-line, and the limitations of those friendships.

[E]very once in a while, you come across a person who touches you. You make a friend, and the boundaries of real life vs. internet blur a little at the edges. . . . You get caught up in their dramas: their joys and sorrows. Sometimes you prefer them to those real friends, because you don't know them well enough to know their ugly habits. . . . But when these people that you have come to hold as real suffer something large and devastating, you feel that pain, too. But because they are only 'imaginary,' there often isn't anything you can do. You can pray. You can try to reach out. But miles and boundaries get in the way. Sometimes, you just have to let them drop.

For the last time: You have a participatory form of government. PARTICIPATE. Or:

"When you have made evil the means of survival, do not expect men to remain good. Do not expect them to stay moral and lose their lives for the purpose of becoming the fodder of the immoral. Do not expect them to produce, when production is punished and looting rewarded. Do not ask, 'Who is destroying the world?' You are."

But then, the woman who wrote that was not a progressive, so we can ignore her.

Here's the largest, most profound problem recognized by all medical personnel yesterday: People needed to get prescriptions filled. Many are already in the system for state medicare or had private insurance - but didn't have 3 bucks for the co-pay. I see all of these corporations giving a million bucks in cash which is a good thing-but for at least one corporation out there I know of a great need that has not been met yet. But what we really, really needed was for a drug chain to step forward and volunteer to cover peoples co-pay for refugees. Can you imagine how many prescriptions could be filled with a one million dollar donation for co-pays?? Many, many of our problems would have been solved.

P.S. i almost forgot everyone's favorite Louisiana musician/mom-to-be!

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As a young Catholic School girl, i was taught that donations to charity should be made with humility. So, when i asked you all for help with the Blogathon for Hurricane Relief, i didn't put up a link to N.Z. Bear's Weblog Leader Board (which has tallied over $650,000 in contributions as of this writing.).

But, checking that leader board today, i was shocked to find that my name is on it, and that five of you have recorded your contributions with my blog as a reference! The total for annika's journal is $425!

It still amazes me that anyone even reads my bullshit, so i can't tell you how happy and grateful and proud i am, that in some small way this blog might be responsible for that kind of graciousness. Thank you so much! i think the Blogathon is clearly one of the true success stories to come out of this hurricane tragedy.

Let's keep it going!

Update: We're now up to $650!

Update 2: Wow, $1,150! You folks are incredible!

Remember that the crisis is not over. In fact, it's really just beginning. The population of a major city has picked up and scattered itself around the country. If you've ever lived on somebody's couch for an extended period, you know how unsettling that can be for all concerned. After a few weeks, these folks will really need the kind of help that charities like Catholic Relief can provide. So let's not forget about them, even if the media starts to lose interest.

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"Poor Mike Myers. Look at his face. He looks like he's gonna hurl."

i wish i'd thought of that. The subtly obscure movie reference is supposed to be my bailiwick.

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i'm reprinting the following request by Ken Wheaton in full. Please help if you can.

Understandably, sitting on the sidelines in New York and watching fellow Americans suffer is as frustrating as it is heart-breaking. Especially for those of us from Louisiana and living elsewhere, we want to do something more than just send money to the American Red Cross, with the vague sense of unease that it may get spent on a company car or a press release or a box of donuts at headquarters. And hopping in a rental car or on a plane is not only a direct violation of FEMA orders, but at this point, with gas as high as it is, it's prohibitively expensive, possibly dangerous and THAT money might be better spent on relief efforts.

So here's your chance to help one specific group of people. My friend Felicia, who you've read about in previous posts, is on a task force in St. Landry Parish, in Opelousas to be more precise. Opelousas, as many of you know, is my home town. There are currently a great deal of refugees who've ended up there--in the churches, in the shelters, in the Yambilee building, camping out in the parks--and they're going to need things.

For a closer look at what's going on in Opelousas and St. Landry Parish, check out The Opelousas Daily World.

So... Felicia is providing me and you with her home address. Care packages and checks specifically to help this group of people can be sent to her. Be sure to include a return address and your name.

St. Landry Katrina Relief
c/o Felicia Mouton
1022 Eddins Avenue
Opelousas, LA 70570

Things that are needed

Felicia says that while you can send clothes and food, those things are generally accounted for. Instead, she says, send

baby wipes, diapers, tampons, sanitary napkins, underwear, undershirts, Q-tips, cotton balls, dental floss, toothpaste, toothbrushes, deodorant, shampoos, soaps, etc....basically, anything you and I would by at Walgreen's for personal upkeep. These things are rarely thought of. The best way to purchase this kind of stuff is to actually in travel size so that individual packets can be given to people, and they don't have to share.

Also, anything for children, such as toys that don't necessarily have to be shared or want to be stolen, art paper, colors, coloring books, reading books...easy stuff. AND SCHOOL SUPPLIES! DON'T FORGET SCHOOL SUPPLIES!

In general, don't send anything worth money because in these type of shelters (well, in any that I've had to stay in/work in) things will be taken.

If you do want to send money, make checks payable to "Hurricane Katrina, St. Landry Parish Fund." From here on out, any money put into my PayPal account will go to this relief effort.

I would ask that anyone and everyone who reads my blog, who links to my blog, who has a home on my sidebar either contribute or at least provide a link to this post. Please. I'm begging here. Thank you all very much.

. . . Have a great Labor Day.

Posted by: annika at 07:14 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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As you can see at the top of my sidebar, i have selected Catholic Charities for hurricane relief donation. Here's why i like them.

Louisiana is heavily Roman Catholic and i expect that many victims will rely on the Church for all sorts of help.

The Catholic Church is 2000 years old, it ain't going anywhere.

As i posted on Monday, Catholic Charities emphasizes long term recovery aid, and this disaster recovery will take a long time.

Catholic Charities is a separate entity from local archdioceses, and therefore there's no danger that my money might possibly be skimmed to pay for any scandal settlements. i would be uncomfortable donating through my own local parish's collection basket for that reason.

You don't have to donate to my chosen charity, but i'd encourage you not to wait if you haven't helped out yet. Pick a charity from N.Z. Bear's, Instapundit's, The Cotillion (Jody's), or The Bear Flag League's list and do what you can today.

Technorati tags: flood aid, Hurricane Katrina

Update: My Cotillion sister Sadie at Fistful of Fortnights is auctioning off two blog designs from Apothegm Designs, to benefit the American Red Cross or the Hurricane oriented charity of your choice.

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Just scooting around the blogosphere this morning i have seen quite a contrast in approaches to the Hurricane tragedy. One group of bloggers, a large one, led by Hugh Hewitt among others, is concentrating on helping those in need. Another group of bloggers is holding another less organized blogburst, which can only be described as a "Blame Bush" blogburst.

Why am i not surprised.

Could this map provide a clue as to why certain bloggers don't seem to care about the victims of Hurricane Katrina?

Like they say, adversity reveals character. If the blogosphere is any indication, i think we're seeing a distinct revelation of character in the response to this disaster, and lack thereof.

It's all about priorities. Some see people in need, and their first thought is to ask "Who can I blame?" Others see a tragedy and immediately ask "How can I help."

Posted by: annika at 07:54 AM | Comments (11) | Add Comment
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