Halloween, The one religious Holiday ebraced by liberals.......

It all began in what is now France and the British Isles. It was started by the Celtic people long ago....

The Celtic people feared the night of October 31. It was the night of their festival of Samhain, Lord of the Dead. The Celtics feared Samhain and in order to please him, the Druids (Celtic priests) held cruel fire rites in his honor. They made huge bonfires every year at this time. The bonfires were usually made of oak and considered sacred.

At this festival, the Druids made sacrifices to the gods. They burned criminals, prisoners, and animals alive. By observing the victims die, the Druids saw omens of the future, both good and bad. The powers to make predictions of the future were thought to be strongest on this night. Why? It was because the Druids believed that the spirits were allowed to roam free on this night of the year. The Druids believed the spirits were powerful and wild on this night, and if they were treated right, they would help with predictions of the future. However, if the spirits were ignored, they would punish the Celtic community.

The Druids believed that, above powerful and wild, some spirits were evil. This is why the Celtic people wore costumes during the Samhain festival. The purpose of the costumes was to frighten the spirits. Plus, this way, the spirits wouldn't be able to recognize them.(This is the origin of costumes.)

To please the spirits, the Celtic people left food outside their houses on Halloween. If any hungry spirits came by, they could take the food and leave the Celtics in peace.(This is the origin of 'trick or treat'ing.)

DUI as Time goes By....................

I was at a friends Bar-B-Que tonight. While I was there, I had 2 beers over the course of 4 hours. I was being quite aware of the time required to metabolize 1 0z of alcohol. Today in Calilfornia, it's just suicide to take a drink and get behind a wheel. I recently heard a dui offender say that he'd rather take a Taxi from Reno to San Francisco, than get hit with a DUI.

FYI, it takes on the average: an hour to get the alcohol out of your system for each shot of hard liquor, 4 0z glass of wine, or 12 oz beer. So in other words, if you drink 4 shots of Tequila, don't plan on driving for 4 hours.

My wife and I were trying to decide which nights would be the worst nights to be drunk on the road. (any night is the correct answer) but your greatest risk of getting pulled over and cuffed would probably be:

1. New Years Eve
2. Super Bowl Sunday
3. The 2nd Friday in December (Office Christmas Party)
4. The 4th of July
5. The Saturday of Halloween

I'm sure in Texas, May 5th is probably among the top 10 high profile days. In Boston, Saint Patrick's Day and in Canada "Boxing" day. But the point being, there are days that the police are very motivated to seek strange driving behavior. Do yourself a favor and stay home or call a cab before you decide to drive yourself when your intoxicated. Or even better yet, don't allow your self to drink more than your body can process acording to the law.

ID Theft OnLine........................

I heard a recent report that over 55 percent of all homes are connected to the internet. ID theft has become a rapidly growing concern. Over 50 percent of internet users say they have altered the way they surf the net. 25 percent say they no longer buy on-line or have limited their on-line purchases.

Having heard this; I went to my credit card company to view my bill. I found a leach sucking my account for (thankfully only ) 9.00 a month. For nothing...... I clicked on a "coupon" at Allposters.com for an additional 10.oo off of my order. Unbeknown to me, I was signing up for a special "Reservations Reward" Scam. That was `16 months ago. Needless to say I had less than civil words for "Reservations rewards" who promised to reimburse me the 165 bucks they stole from me. But how in the hell did they get my CC #? It could have only have come from Allposters.com whom I presumed was being cautious with my CC info.

Do your self a favor and check your CC Statement thouroghly. In my case, my wife pays the bills. She doesn't question the 2 digit purchases here and there. But over the course of a year, it adds up.

Be sure and clear your computer of temporary pages and cookies. (especially the cookies)


Ace out.................

In every Culture.................

There are those who are willing to risk their lives for freedom. And in every culture there are those NOT willing to risk their lives for anything. Those who will NOT risk their lives owe everything to those who will and/or have risked their lives.

Those who will not have no problem abusing the privelidges that the risk takers provide for them. The "First Amendment" is usually a common one. But the non- risk takers are seemingly happy with "Mediocrity". They put down the concept of fighting for what you believe in because they are fearful of "fighting".

In every Culture there are those who want to take your freedom and success from you. In such instances you have 2 choices. Stand and FIGHT like our forefathers did, when they stood up to British Tyranny. Or; Be Submissive like most of the Native Americans did when European settlers came and took their land, culture and freedom.

Perhaps only those who have served in one way or another should be allowed to enjoy the freedom that comes with democracy. Freedom is NOT FREE.

Religion and Politics...............

Why are they the two most offensive topics ANYWHERE? Religion I can understand. People are investing their eternity or remaining days on earth in this topic. If I question your religion, I question your retirement account. I question your parents. I question perhaps the most important thing in your life.

Politics on the other hand is so very ODD. It's no secret that I'm a convervative. I grew up a Democrat in the 60's. Most of you know that Congressman John McFall was my next door neighbor. He was the majority house whip in the congress. He got me involved in the George McGovern Campagne in 72. I remember watching a republican telethon with Richard Nixon being kissed on the cheek by Sammy Davis Jr. This made me disgusted. I don't know why only it's like watching someone root for the Dallas Cowboys if you're a niner fan. However, as of late, Republicans and Democrats have become so much more filled with hate. I like to tell people that I became a republican when I started paying taxes. The first President I actually voted for was Ronald Reagan.

Winston Churchill is quoted as saying: " If you're not a liberal in your twenties, you don't have a heart. If you're not a conservative in your 40's; you don't have a brain."

Personally, I feel that both sides are essential for the survival of our country. Extreme conservatism leads to facism and extreme liberalism leads to mayhem. (see the Roman Empire)

When America is able to discuss Religion and Politics in a civil manner, we will move forward. I would think that just having respect for the other's "right" to their belief, would be a good starting point.

Best Umpires Money can Buy...............

I love Chicago. I feel for the Cubs and have nothing against the White Sox, however it seems the White Sox can not lose in spite of themselves. It's my theory that George Soros is paying the umpiring crew of whatever series the White Sox are in. Are the ChiSox destined to always be the Black Sox?

First it's Pierzinski's gift of 1st base in Game 2 against the Angels. Then Pierzenski's blatant interference ignored in game 3. Now Jermaine Dye's gift of first base on a fantom HBP which ultimately led to a 4 run shot by Konerko.

The Sox can't lose. The umps refuse to let them.

The WAVE MAGAZINE...............

AMERICAN INFIDEL www.aceandres.comWe rarely feature local musicians in this section, mainly because every dude with a garage band will suddenly send us his new CD – and, frankly, we have enough coasters here in the office already. But when we received a copy of American Infidel, the newest release from Los Altos-based guitar god Ace Andres, we knew an exception had to be made. The album is packed with crunching riffs and distorted hooks, and includes such instant classics as “I Need a Beer” and “Save Me,” which Ace claims he wrote “while watching Terri Schiavo die.” If you like musicians who play fast, loud and unapologetically confrontational rock – Ace is the man.

Apologies for the Absence......

I just relocated from the beautiful yet pretentious "Los Altos, California" to the less Ostentatious "Sunnyvale" California. Home of fine Asian cooking. I know if must be because 90 per cent of this city is Asian so there must be someone fixin somthin good somewhere.

But I finally got one of those houses with the big tall wall in the front obscuring the private courtyard from the public's view.

I would seriously reccomend allowing professionals to do your moving once you get over the age of 40. (not that I would be in that age category) But here's how it happens. First you start thinkin' " It'll be just like moving stuff to a gig". Then to finish that notion off, you say, I don't want gorillias moving my equipment (which I don't) so why not just make an extra trip for the couch, bed and desk. Because that crap weighs 50o pounds apiece. Needless to say, it was close to the dumbest thing I've ever tried, and after 7 days, we're still moving clothing, boxes and wine glasses.

Next time, call Mayflower, pay them 400 bucks and a little extra then go to Hawaii with the spare time.

Inside Ace 2

The 7 habits of highly effective people is probably one of the most influential books of ALL-TIME. Stephen R. Covey, the author, has been invited to speak at the whitehouse AND on the Oprah Winfrey show. (sorry)

What Stephen has managed to do in his works , The 7 Habits, First things first, and Principal centered leadership is teach that accountability is the key to success. He's discovered, that principals rule our lives. Universal principals. Such as "The customer is always right" or " Treat others the way you would like to be treated". (or even better, treat them the way they want to be treated)

An even better example of universal principals is the acknowledgment of true north. We can't vote on true north (not getting technical over magnetic north) we can't change the location of true north. True north simply exists for our guidance and direction.

ON a more pragmatic scale, we have the rule of the farm, and the rule of the classroom.

The rule of the classroom concerns us with how to get a grade, pass the course, and move on in life. In College, you can show up to the first class, find out how the professor grades. Is it on attendance? If so, do I really need to buy the book? Is it strictly on test scores? If so, do I really need to come to class? The Bottom line is; I can figure our a shortcut to get the grade I need to pass the class. But in doing so, I have deprived myself an education.

The rule of the farm concerns the principals of farming. In farming there are very few in any shortcuts at all. You can't just scratch the surface of the dirt in August, throw a few seeds out, then expect to harvest a huge crop in September. And such is how College should be. (The crop being compared to an education) We need to be attentive, (sew seeds) we need to do our home studies (weed, water and fertilize) Then we need to reap the fruits of our succes at test time (Harvest).

Cutting corners almost always leads to error or deminished results. Yet corner cutting is often surpassed by empowering your people. The minds of the masses can often create a better way to do business than the mind of the owner or his VP.

I could go on forever on Stephen's Teachings but I'll leave you with his 5th habit.

"Seek first to understand; THEN to be understood"

Meaning: When you are communcating; listen to the other person until you are at the point where THEY are convinced that you understand them. Go so far as to repeat their point back to them. (How many times does a woman say to her husband "You never listen to me"? This would never happen if the 5th habit is used.) Then make your point. The deepest form of desire in a human is to be understood. In Stephen's audio book "Beyond the 7 habits", he talks about the Indian Talking Stick.

The leaders of the Indian Nation would sit in conference and the only person that could talk; was the person holding the "Talking Stick". And it was his responsibility NOT to give up the talking stick until he felt that the opposition understood his POV.

So many times what we call communication is simply a "Collective monologue".


What Stephen teaches is nothing new. He says we already know what we should do it's "common sense" But "Common Sense" is rarely "Common Pratice".

Inside Ace's Head.....

Ace's Favorite Restaurant................

Mother's Restaurant
401 Poydras St.
New Orleans, LA
70130
(504)523-9656

Why? Mother's is probably the benchmark Standard for Cajun food in the State of Louisianna. Mother's is as close as you can get to someone's coonazz grandma out in the Bayou. The Redbeans and Rice are as authentic as you can get. The gumo is the ultimate without being pretentious.

It's the real thing. Cajun is my favorite food. Mothers is my favorite restaurant.

Pretentious and Ostentatious.......

Living in Vancouver Washington for a year made me appreciate the simple things in life. Things like good restaurants and Sunny Skies. I never dreamed that being back in California would make me resent the over abundance of "Pretentious or Ostentatious" restaurants that exist in cities that feel their residence make enough money to pay 40 cents a gallon more for gas.

Being the son of a great Chef; I know good cooking. Unfortunately that enables me to be very aware of bad or mediocre cooking. Since when did having tables on the sidewalk mean a restaurant could raise the price of a hamburger to 10 bucks?

I guess for every pretentious restaurant there is an insecure overpaid idiot that feels the need to pay 10 bucks for a hamburger.

A Favorite Quote..................

From the Movie Classic "White Men Can't Jump".

Rosie Perez: "Ju know Billy, Sometime when ju win, ju really lose. An sometimes when ju lose, ju really win. An sometimes when ju win or lose you actually tie".

Woody: " I hate it when you talk like that."

Whether it's winning the battle and losing the war, or winning an argument and losing someone's pride, Rosie has a point.