I haven't blogged much lately, so I'm just checking in to say "Hi," "Thank you" and a few expletives.

First: Hi, TPM Cafe dwellers. No, my name is not Paul, and yes, despite my unusual absence here of late, I'm still alive. As evidenced by this post.

Second: THANK YOU, FLOWERCHILD! I received your gift of a Logitech keyboard in good condition and plan to hook it up soon. However, because doing so will require re-mapping certain characters and functions to the new keyboard, I plan to finish my movie before I hook it up. Yes this will take extra time to complete with my current, sorry, busted-down, piece-of-shit keyboard, but it seems like a better plan than losing time if the keyboard re-mapping doesn't go well. In any case, flowerchild, your gift is appreciated and so are you. I will put this to use shortly.

Third, a few random yet coherent thoughts:

• Joe Lieberman is a murderer.

• The public option will prevail, somehow.

• Obama needs to push mortgage relief NOW. Too many people are losing their homes, their possessions, their marriages and the future for which they have worked their fingers to the bone.

• Republicans pretty much suck. That's all. No apologies, JEM (you're excluded from this characterization). It's just that Republicans pretty much suck. Hard on big ones.

• I like that NASA is testing a new rocket system and wants to take us places. I hope the space agency will soon set up a colony on the moon for all Republicans, so they can suck hard ones together and leave Earth for those of us who still care about this planet. Then, it's on to Mars and Alpha Centauri.

• Screw people who want Obama to make a fast decision on Afghanistan. Where was the outrage and urgency for the last eight years of stalemate and failure?

• Health Care in Black & White is progressing and will be completed soon. 'Nuff said.

• Did I mention that Republicans pretty much suck, Fox News is a whiny barker at the media sideshow and that Joe Lieberman is a child molester and pig fucker?