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Bubba the Love Sponge fired for 'inappropriate' showAssociated Press TAMPA -- Radio giant Clear Channel Communications agreed to fire popular radio talk show host Bubba the Love Sponge after deciding his raunchy radio show didn't fit its standards, company president John Hogan said Tuesday. In a statement, Hogan said Clear Channel Radio supported the decision of the local managers of WXTB-FM in Tampa in severing its contract with the talk show host, whose sexually explicit morning show prompted a proposed $755,000 fine from the Federal Communications Commission last month. The firing of the top-rated morning talk show host -- whose name originally was Todd Clem before it was legally changed to reflect his radio moniker-- was announced by WXTB General Manager Dan DiLoreto Monday night. "After conducting an internal investigation, we concluded that Bubba's show will no longer be carried on any Clear Channel Radio station," Hogan said in his statement. "This type of content is inappropriate and not reflective of the way we run our local stations or Clear Channel Radio." Messages left for the disc jockey with friends were not returned Tuesday. The FCC is seeking to fine Clear Channel for segments of the Bubba the Love Sponge show, which aired on four Florida radio stations between 6:30 a.m. and 9 a.m. It was the single largest fine ever proposed for indecency. The segments -- which aired in Callahan, Clearwater, Port Charlotte and West Palm Beach -- included graphic discussions about sex and drugs that were "designed to pander to, titillate and shock listeners," the FCC said. One segment featured the cartoon characters Alvin the chipmunk, George Jetson and Scooby Doo discussing sexual activities. The segments ran 26 times and the commission proposed fining Clear Channel $27,500 for each airing, or $715,000. The disc jockey was acquitted in 2002 of animal cruelty charges stemming from the on-air slaughter of a feral pig. The animal was castrated and slaughtered during a show in February 2000. The syndicated show also can be heard on satellite radio. Current Mood:  ecstatic
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Last summer I started IM-ing with a woman in Miami who contacted me through a dating site. The IMs turned into phone calls occurring several times a week and lasting for hours. To say we really "clicked" is an understatement. I started dropping hints about her coming up to visit me. In August she lost her job, but was optimistic about finding something new fairly quickly. I was about to suggest visiting her when she dropped off the face of the earth. Phone calls and emails were not returned. I didn't have her home address nor any way to reach her friends. I didn't know if things had really turned sour or she'd simply decided she didn't want any contact with me any more. Last week I found out which. Thursday I got a call on my cell phone from a number I didn't recognize. When I answered, I heard was silence. I "Hello!"-ed a time or two with no response and was just about to hang up when I heard "Larak? It's Heather." OMG! To say the cellular reception at my desk is shitty is being kind. Had I recognized the number I would have headed for better reception before even answering the phone. I made a dash for the patio, repeating "Heather? Hang on, reception is bad here" hoping she heard. But by the time I got outside, the call had gotten dropped. Thank the Gods of Technology for Caller ID! I called her back and we spoke for a few minutes before I had to get back to work. I learned that after losing her job she was unable to find another and had also lost her car and apartment. She was one step away from the homeless shelter last October when her dad rescued her. She'd been staying with him in Bradenton since. She told me she had been thinking about me for weeks but didn't have my number. That day she called her old cellular provider and had them read off numbers from her bill until she recognized mine. She didn't waste any time in calling me. I didn't waste any time either. I suggested a visit that weekend, which she enthusiastically agreed to. She, the kids and I spent Saturday doing kid stuff... A movie (Teacher's Pet) and Chuck E. Cheese's. Sunday we all had brunch at IHOP (I phoned, not nudged. Another time.), then hung around the mall before going to dinner at Hops. And we talked. And touched. And talked. And took pictures. And talked. And kissed. And talked. We have so much in common, yet have such wildly different life experiences. We broached topics that some dating couples never get to. And when I left Sunday evening, there was still so much left to say. We're making plans for her to relocate here soon. In the meantime, I'm going to be driving back and forth to Bradenton quite a lot. Current Mood:  happy
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I had the best weekend I've had in a long, long time. PolyCentral was Saturday, and I always look forward to that, but there was more. Candis Cayne was appearing Friday and Saturday at Southern Nights! ( Candis Cayne History )I had decided to get a motel and stay overnight in Orlando so I could attend the Saturday night show. Early Friday afternoon ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) animatra posted an announcement that the gallery she manages will be opening its first showing that evening and all were invited to attend. I thought about it for a moment and decided to attend the opening. But instead of driving to Orlando and back on Friday, then to Orlando again the next day, I decided I'd stay Friday night as well. And as an added bonus, I'd be able to see Candis perform both nights! I had a fine time at the art gallery. animatra was "on" and I could see she was fitting in real well in her new job. She really looked happy, and I'm happy for her. A handful of her friends had showed up and she gave us all a tour of the place. Very interesting building. I was noticing while at the gallery that I was feeling better than I have in some time. More energetic, less "old man-y" than what seemed to be the norm of late. I didn't understand it, but neither did I question it. I just went with it and rode it for all it was worth. I arrived at Southern Nights at about 9:30, after having stopped by an ATM to make sure I'd have plenty of $1 bills. I watched both shows, and in a word, "Fantastic!" Not just Candis either, although she was by far the cream of the crop. Guess who I saw at the bar between shows? Guess who couldn't find a support column to hide behind? So I hid behind another patron instead, but only for 30 seconds or so. And then, I did it. I actually walked up to her, opened my mouth, sounds came out that were recognizable as words, phrases, whole sentences, and she didn't laugh or anything. I was ecstatic. I even got to talk with her boyfriend. :-/ And, I got her ( autograph! )The second show was even better than the first. Her first number was to Heartbreaker by Pat Benatar. Now, Pat Benatar is only my most favorite recording artist of all time, period. I nearly had an orgasm. I actually bummed a cigarette after it was over. Saturday at PolyCentral I had to tell everybody all about Candis Cayne. They were very indulgent and I love them for it. While I was there I had the idea that it would be great to fold $1 bills into roses to give to her when she performed, but nobody knew how to do that. That night I was back at Southern Nights with another pocketful of $1 bills. I was determined not to be Stalker Boy, but I did have an urgent desire to speak to Candis between shows. I knew she had guested at Southern Nights in the past, and I was wondering what brought her to Orlando. (The answer: She's friends with the owners and/or managers of the club.) And I really, really wanted to get a ( photograph of the two of us. )animatra and CP joined me for the second show, which was surprisingly short. But Candis was especially stunning so it was worth it. I didn't hang around afterward because I was nearing the crash-and-burn point, but it was worth it. Even so, it seemed hours before I could get to sleep. Current Mood: ecstatic
Current Music: Pat Benatar - Heartbreaker
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If you can start the day without caffeine or pep pills... If you can be cheerful, ignoring aches and pains... If you can resist complaining and boring people with your troubles... If you can eat the same food everyday and be grateful for it... If you can understand when loved ones are too busy to give you time... If you can overlook when people take things out on you when, through no fault of yours, something goes wrong... If you can take criticism and blame without resentment... If you can face the world without lies and deceit... If you can conquer tension without medical help... If you can relax without liquor... If you can sleep without the aid of drugs... If you can do all these things... Then you're probably the family dog. Current Mood:  amused
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It's official. My coworker WB and I officially don't like our new boss. The way we learned we had a new boss may have something to do with it. There's almost as much back-story here as in the Incredible Hulk movie, so I'll put that part behind a friendly ( LJ-Cut )So, Tuesday morning I have a voice message. Somebody named MP from the Ridgefield office wants me to call him regarding a project WB and I have been working on. It's not that the message was nasty or anything like that. It was a perfectly appropriate message from a manager to an employee, where that relationship had already been established. But I had never heard of this guy before! Anyway, I called him to see what was up and we brought him up to date on our status on this project we've been working on. I still didn't know who he was. I knew his name and nothing more. During the course of our conversations, I got the feeling that he's a manager of some sort. Furthermore, it seemed the people he's managing are the developers in Ridgefield. The ones in R&D. Like WB and me. Later that morning I sent an email to the CTO asking who MP is and do we report to him now? He answered that MP is the new Development Manager for RIS (Radiology) and yes, WB and I will be reporting to him. Thanks for the news flash! Later in the day I learned that the Support Department had just had their weekly meeting, during which they learned about the new Development Manager and that WB and I would be reporting to him. Yes folks, had I not asked the CTO directly, the Support Department would have known I had a new boss before I did. As it was, it was a close race. Over the course of Wendesday and Thursday we got to know our new manager a little better. He's a micro-manager and he seems to feel that he needs to tell us how to do our jobs. I'm sure he thinks that WB and I are incompetent. We made a game of dissing him at every opportunity, including non-verbally while on the phone with him, which was all too frequently. Friday was the worst. We wasted two hours on the phone with him over two phone calls. And it wasn't just the three of us, he pulled two other people off their other tasks as well. About 35 minutes into the first conversation I said point-blank that WB and I didn't need to be told how to proceed and tying up 5 people for all this time was a waste of time for everybody involved. WB was silently giving me the fist-in-the-air salute and grinning from ear to ear as I was saying this. His response? He was "disappointed" that I felt that this time was a waste. He kept us on the phone for another 15 minutes. We did eventually finish the project in time for the code to go into the Friday night build. But had it not been for all that was-- er,I mean, "quality time" with the boss, I could have left a little before 6:10. Current Mood: subversive
Current Music: Loreena McKennitt - The Mummers' Dance
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It's a sad, sad state of affairs when the best you can realistically wish for regarding your job is suffering an on-the-job injury that will put you on disability for a month or so. I would wish for a new and better job in Orlando, but I tried for any kind of job in Orlando for 5 months before ending up here, so I don't think there's much chance of that happening. The IT market is still brutal. Changing employers does not look like a viable option at this time. As for hoping that things improve around here... Well, I encountered my new boss today. Note that I didn't say "met" but "encountered." I had a voice message this morning from somebody I had never heard of asking me to get back to him regarding a problem a client was having. Over the course of being assigned to this task along with a Java developer, I eventually determined (via an email query to the CTO) that this fellow is the new Manager of Product Development and that I'll be reporting to him. Yes, he's my new boss. No introductions, no email, no nothing. My one great hope was that once this manager was hired, the lines of communication would improve. We are not off to a good start.
EDIT: I just learned that the Support team had their weekly meeting today, during which they learned all about my new boss, including the fact that he is my boss. That means had I not emailed the CTO and asked, they'd have known I got a new boss before I did. Current Mood:  cynical
Current Music: Office Noise
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I want my money back I want my money back It's all or nothing And nothing's all I ever get Every time I turn it on I burn it up and burn it out It's always something There's always something going wrong That's the only guarantee That's what this is all about It's a never ending attack Everything's a lie, and that's a fact Life is a lemon and I want my money back! And all the morons And all the stooges with their coins They're the ones who make the rules It's not a game it's just a rout There's desperation There's desperation in the air It leaves a stain on all your clothes And no detergant gets it out And we're always slipping through the the cracks Then the movie's over fade to black Life is a lemon and I want my money back! I want my money back I want my money back What about love? It's defective! It's always breaking in half What about sex? ! It's defective! It's never built to really last What about your family? It's defective! All the batteries are shot What about your friends? They're defective! All the parts are out of stock What about hope? It's defective! It's corroded and decayed What about faith? It's defective! It's tattered and it's frayed What about your gods? They're defective! They forgot the warranty What about your town? It's defective! It's a dead end street to me What about your school? It's defective! It's a pack of useless lies What about your work? It's defective! It's a crock and then you die What about your childhood? It's defective! It's dead and buried in the past What about your future? It's defective! And you can shove it up your ass!! I want my money back I want my money back It's all or nothing And nothing's all I ever get Every time I turn it on I burn it up and burn it out It's a never ending attack Everything's a lie, and that's a fact Life is a lemon and I want my money back! And we're always slipping through the the cracks Then the movie's over fade to black Life is a lemon and I want my money back! Current Mood:  discontent
Current Music: Life Is A Lemon And I Want My Money Back by Meat Loaf
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10. Being told to "think outside the box" when you're in a freakin' box all day long! 9. Not being able to check e-mail attachments without turning around to see who's behind you. 8. Cubicle walls do not offer much protection from any kind of gunfire. 7. That nagging feeling that if you press the right button, you'll get a piece of cheese. 6. Lack of roof rafters for the noose. 5. The walls are too close together for the hammock to work right. 4. 23 power cords - 1 outlet. 3. Prison cells are not only bigger, they also have beds. 2. The carpet has been there since 1976 and shows more signs of life than some coworkers. And...the number 1 drawback to working in a cubicle... 1. You can't slam the door and walk out when you quit. Current Mood: amused
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tired
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excited
indescribable
geeky
bouncy
curious