So, Bush has announced his Supreme Court nominee. I must admit, the right-wingers might have had a point when they said the left would turn nasty against anyone Bush put forward. I mean, no, I don't like the guy, but for someone W picked, it could have been a lot worse. He's a solid conservative, and when he worked for Bush I, he argued against abortion rights (which was part of his job). My main complaint is he's so young; knowing Bush would pick someone I don't like, I'd like to have some comfort in the fact that they will be dead long before myself. In any event, though, I can settle for this guy, whom at least doesn't appear to be mentally ill, like a few of the people W has put forth for judgeships.

Of course, the announcement of the nominee was overshadowed here in San Diego by the announcement of Councilman Zucchet's resignation after he and that jackass Inzunza were convicted of extortion and corruption on Monday (Inzunza is so full of himself, he was refusing to resign, and only caved after Zucchet resigned). It seemed pretty obvious they were guilty of something, but it's hard to draw the line between a bribe and a campaign contribution these days, so I was just waiting to see what the jury decided. Hopefully this will have a sobering effect on local politicians, and perhaps give Donna Frye a boost, considering her sometimes adversarial role on the council. The best part, though, is that this is a huge boost to U.S. Attorney Carol Lam, whose next target is Randy "Duke" Cunningham.

In further local news, it's hot as fuck. It's been hot for awhile, but today some tropical monsoon or something brought rain and hellish humidity today, making it the first really miserable day. I spent part of the afternoon in Solana Beach, which wasn't too bad. I went up to buy tickets for Pink Martini at the Belly Up Tavern. I had thought of going up to see them in San Jose, but as my sister will be 8 1/2 weeks pregnant at the time, I thought maybe I better not get underfoot. But then last night, I got an e-mail newsletter from the band, which mentioned that the San Diego gig was almost sold out. That there was a San Diego gig was news to me, so I decided to drive up and buy the tickets, to save the service charge, and scout out the place (I've never been, nor do I think I've ever even been in Solana Beach). Grabbed a bite to eat in some hole in the wall place, bought my ticket, and went to some pet store, and bought tanner a thing to chew on that's supposedly good for his teeth (he sniffed it for awhile, then hid it, first underneath my pillow, then, when he saw me find it, under a chair cushin). Unfortunately, I forgot that today was opening day at Del Mar for the horseraces, so it was not a pleasant drive. Not as bad as it could have been, though. So I'll be seeing Pink Martini in September, which is very exciting.