I really enjoyed the sunset tonight.Usually I post sunset photos in Top Comments but there are just too many to choose from tonight.

So if you would like to see the view from my window this evening than check out the fifteen photos below.

Those of you who already either know me or know of me know that I am a massive pootie person. We are currently unable to have a cat, due to living in a motel; however I grew up with both cats & dogs and I love both. I do not discriminate against any animal & love animal photos of all kinds. Please enjoy the following and add any photos that you think the community would like to see.
Just two things to remember:

Now, enjoy the photos & have some fun. :)

I'm a big fan of technology.  A big fan of cool things.  A big fan of large structures.

And, as it turns out, a big fan of big fans.  Or windmills, as they are known to some.

Driving across Kansas last week, I saw for the first time the future of the American energy industry change, and change dramatically.  I believe in the coming years we will probably be calling that area the Wind Belt, if someone hasn't named it that already.

Here is what that future looks like:

Hello and welcome to my second annual hijacking of Got a Happy Story to tell a story of ecstasy and share many photos from Netroots Nation. This is still a place for you to say what is making you happy and please chime in below in the comments about whatever is making you happy.

I'm coming off a very happy week.

I actually met the founder of this series and to prove to Carnacki that I actually get that this is happy story not happy photo, I'll start off with and end with happy stories in between my photo bomb.

Just a note, all of the thumbnails expand to bigger photos when you click on them and I name names.

What, no birds?

A few weeks ago in another diarists creation I sort of hinted that I had tons of flower and cat photographs, and I might be stupid enough to do a diary on them.  Well with about 8000 photographs scattered through two computers and several disjointed external hard drives, I knew that doing a seriously complicated diary on the subject would take hours and hours.

So I cheated.  I went for one photo session taken in the past, with a subtle little hint of the future.

Those of you who already either know me or know of me know that I am a massive pootie person. We are currently unable to have a cat, due to living in a motel; however I grew up with both cats & dogs and I love both. I do not discriminate against any animal & love animal photos of all kinds. Please enjoy the following and add any photos that you think the community would like to see.
Just two things to remember:

1. NO INFIGHTING WITH OTHER COMMUNITY MEMBERS

2. NO DISCUSSION OF ANY ISSUE FROM ANY OTHER DIARY

Now, enjoy the photos & have some fun. :)

This morning approximately 110 people lined up outside Rayburn 2141 hoping to get into the hearing. We were initially told that there were 40 seats available to the public, but ultimately only SIXTEEN people were allowed inside. There were two overflow rooms, both of which were rendered standing room only as staffers and interns also attended in force. There has been one hallway arrest so far. Here are Laurie Arbeiter from World Can't Wait and Jenny Heinz of CodePink, who both came down from NYC to attend the hearing.

Cross posted from Docudharma.

The fact that we welcomed Nancy Pelosi to Netroots Nation, purportedly a gathering of leftists and progressives, has to make you wonder.  For the most part we sat there with our thumbs up our asses, drooling like idiots and lapping up the ‘respect’ we were shown by the mere presence of this illustrious traitor to everything I thought we stood for.

I left the Scottish Lowlands this morning and flew to Berlin to see the man. And let me tell you people that it sure was great! Lots of people were there, lots of different nationalities. There were many Germans and many Americans of course, but people had come from all over Europe to see Obama. I met Spaniards, Italians, Romanians, French, Czechs and British all very enthusiastic about Obama and the future he represents for all of us. I got lots of things to say about what I thought of the speech and about the reactions it inspired in the people around me, but I'll leave that for a more substantial diary that I will try to get together shortly. I'm completely shattered now so I just wanted to share some of the pictures I took with you. Hope you enjoy them!

Obama’08 flies high...

Cross posted from Docudharma.

NN08 was everything I hoped it would be and considerably more.  I saw many old friends from last year, met face-to-face many old friends whom I had not met before and made many new ones as well.  There is something totally amazing about meeting an online friend in meat space for the first time.  In the Paradise restaurant on 6th Street in Austin on the first night of the conference I witnessed it happen five times back-to-back one right after another.  It was pure magic.

We went to Berlin to volunteer to work with the campaign to find and register American voters.  What follows is a photo blog of our experiences.

The Brandenberg Gate - not where Obama spoke.

They chanted

USA! USA! USA!

They chanted

USA! USA! USA!

They chanted

USA! USA! USA! ...

Although your comments helped me get the gist of it, being deaf, I'll have to wait for the transcript or Closed Caption

But I can give you some pictures.

"Jetzt ist die Zeit, neue Brücken zu bauen" - Now is the time to build new bridges.

So let's get started - we've got work to do!

[Thanks to the many kind kossacks who've giving me some great heads-up to resources.  Even without asking, I guess I knew you'd guys would lend a helping hand.  Thanks!]

Here are my pictures and stories from Netroots Nation.
Thank you so much to Democracy for America for the scholarship and every single person who donated.  I hope we can take even more people next year.  I couldn't have attended without the support of people like you all.

► With Defense Minster, Ehud Barak

*

BOOOO-YAHH!!  Let the smackdown begin.

► Whiner!!

► Too Old!!

► Too Angry!!

► Smear Merchant!!

The Village™ elders dropped an anvil on his head.

► Update: He's Losing it.
*

► First up: Jack Cafferty knee-caps McWhiner.

I've been to many conferences, and this was definitely one of the best - great speakers, friendly participants, amazing surprise guests - and Austin, TX is definitely a cool city to visit. Since I was sent there on a DFA scholarship, thanks in no small part to the help of New Jersey voters - I tried to keep the New Jersey-bound in the loop as much as possible, with a series of Netroots Nation diaries during the conference.

Now, I took a bunch of pictures, but I'm certainly no photographer. Still, flip on over to the other side to see some of them. It will definitely help me fill in some of the blanks left out in the earlier diaries, and recap some of the highlights of the conference.

So, I'm taking all these foot pix.  And out at the Howard Dean bus launch, Thursday, I see George Lakoff.  "Can I photograph your feet?"  Done, but he says "You better photograph her feet, too."  Pretty woman in a dress?  Sure, why not?  "What's your name?"  Debbie Cook!  OK.  I like candidates as subjects.  And whups!

Turning to move on, a voice behind me says, "Hey!  Aren't you gonna photograph my feet?"  If ya wanna know who it was, you're gonna hafta click again...

In my view, Netroots  Nation 2008 was, simply put, the best so far, and future conventions will have a hard time surpassing it.  It is certainly true that YearlyKos Las Vegas will always bring back nostalgic memories because it was the first time that we truly announced our presence in the real world.  And Chicago, I must say, had more than its fair share of unforgettable moments that must never be minimized.

But in terms of the convention experience, the festivities, the speakers, the quality of the panels, and all the other intangibles, I think that the experience we all had in Austin is unmatched.

Part of it, I think, is a particular fondness I have for the city of Austin.  NN2008 was my third time in the city--I was there once for Crashing the States in 2006, and was more recently seen crashing on Kath25's floor campaigning for Obama in the Texas PrimaCaucus.

What follows below is some photos from Netroots Nation, as well as some further observations of what made this convention great.