A long time ago, I wrote a brief note about my tinnitus and got a host of comments in return.

Well, the tinnitus is still with me (though some commenters may no longer be reading), and its latest incarnation sounds like—well, a train. In my left ear, I hear the “whoooooooo” sound you hear when a train is coming down the tracks. And it’s gotten louder. It’s actually kind of distracting when you’re trying to fall asleep.

During the summertime, I have a box fan that I run all night long for better air circulation upstairs. It’s a great white noise machine once I get used to it, and I can’t hear the tinnitus over the fan. Now that it’s autumn and no longer needed, I can hear the tinnitus. Big-time. Through earplugs, too. Actually, the last time I wore earplugs, I was getting annoyed because I could hear my pulse too loudly, so I took them out.

These days, I run my Brookstone white noise machine as I fall asleep. (If you’ve ever wondered whether a white noise machine is worth it, it is.) I’ve been listening to ocean waves for a while, alternating with the rainstorm. I don’t think I’ll use that one tonight, what with central VA getting about four inches of rain this weekend. But the rain’s stopped and I think I’ll listen to the waves again.

The machine has a timer, and gets quieter as time goes by, to help you doze off. Not that I need it most nights. I have got to stop going shy on sleep during the work week and catching up on the weekends.

I wonder if they’ll ever find a cure for tinnitus. I’m guessing not in my lifetime.

So far, I’ve found a Frito-Lay plant near Roanoke (high on my list of plants to tour if they give one, as Lay’s potato chips have long been my favorite chips), various smaller chip companies in the area, and, find of finds, a PDF that details the names and breeds of chipping potatoes.

Now all I need to do is find a produce shop that can order them, or that stocks them.

Oh, and then I need to find the fry basket I’ve been looking for for years: One that has a metal screen that will hold the chips under the oil. That’s how Utz does it. I knew I was right all along about that.

If this keeps up, I’m going to have to add a food category.

It’s AP, and hence the cluelessness:

Palestinian sources said an explosion collapsed a tunnel under the Gaza-Egypt border early Friday, trapping five militants inside and killing at least two.

The Al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, a violent offshoot of the Fatah movement of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, said the five were members. The group refused to say what they were doing.

Gee, fellas, why don’t you ask the IDF to help dig them out?

The militant group said the explosion was not caused by an Israeli air strike, after first blaming Israel. The Israeli military said it had no forces inside Gaza and denied involvement in the incident.

Yeah, here we go, cast doubt.

In other news: Damn, he missed.

Oct 5, 2006 — GAZA (Reuters) - Unidentified gunmen fired at the home of a Hamas lawmaker in the south Gaza Strip on Wednesday, witnesses said, wounding one of his bodyguards in what appeared to be the latest attack in a Palestinian power struggle.

The lawmaker, Younis al-Astal, was not hurt in the shooting in Khan Younis town. He is considered among the more hard-line figures in Hamas, an Islamic militant group that ousted the more moderate and long-dominant Fatah faction in January elections.

Omri is of the opinion that the civil war will never happen. You know, right about now is when the Israeli intelligence services need to assassinate a major Hamas figure and make it look like Al Aqsa did it. Then we’d see if Omri’s right or not.

Say, remember back when Arafat was first given control of Gaza and the West Bank, and we sent the CIA in to train his people in the use of the weapons we gave them? And do you remember what they did with that knowledge and those weapons?

The killed Jews.

Now, the Bush administration proposes giving Mahmoud Abbas funding and weapons—and I presume, training—to beef up the “Presidential Guard.” So, what do you think they’re going to do with the weapons and training?

That’s right. Kill more Jews. And check out this puff-piece from the AP:

On a recent morning, Abu Fahem paced at the border crossing, barking orders at his men to prevent a group of impatient passengers from pushing their way into the gated compound.

European monitors praised their Palestinian colleagues as professional and disciplined. “They accept (orders) and carry them out,” said Lars Bertil Johansson, a European police team leader at the terminal.

Wow. Imagine that. They take orders. High praise!

Under a $20 million U.S. proposal, guardsmen would be the only Palestinian security force deployed at the main cargo crossing between Israel and Gaza, under international supervision. Currently, other security branches are also present at the Karni cargo crossing.

[...] Israel has shut down Karni for extended periods, saying Palestinian security there remains lax despite repeated attacks on the crossing by Palestinian militants. Getting Karni reopened is a U.S. priority, to ease the economic distress in Gaza.

How is it that nobody ever seems to mention that there are crossings into Egypt? Why don’t their Muslim brothers let the palestinians work there?

Oh, right, I forgot. The Arab and Muslim world despises the palestinians, except as victims they can bash Israel with.

It’s good to know that the Bush Administration is just as stupid as the ones that went before. Because, it’s not like we’re in a war or anything. With terrorists. Like the ones that surround Abbas.