I don't really have any deep thoughts to discuss right now. It's been a really busy week, and my head's all over the place with the things I have to do before we head home to the Show Me State for the wedding of one of our college buddies. That's why you're going to get another Brain Stew.

South Cackalacki's former State Treasurer Thomas Ravenel pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute cocaine in court today. T-Rav said he's been snorting coke as often as once a week. He admitted to buying coke once a month or once every other month and sharing it with friends at parties.

Here's my favorite part: Ravenel said he didn't have any symptoms of withdrawal while at his fancy rehab joint in Arizona, so he wasn't actually treated for drug addiction. He got counselling for "issues relating to his childhood" that led to "immature and reckless behavior." Although it doesn't say it on the station's web site, the reporter covering the story for WYFF 4 said on the air that Ravenel claims those "issues" were related to his parents' divorce, which happened when he was 10. He's 45.

Ravenel told reporters, "I pled guilty today because I am guilty and I want to let you know that from the start, I accepted responsibility. I am cooperating with the government and I am looking forward to putting this bad chapter behind me and moving forward. I am very remorseful."

This case has taken on a bit of international intrigue as well. One of Ravenel's co-defendants didn't show up for court yesterday. Pasquale Pellicoro apparently talked to the Charleston Post and Courier on his cell phone. He reportedly told the paper he couldn't find an attorney to take his case, so he packed his shit and went to Switzerland. He says he will only come back to the U.S. if he feels his rights will be protected. Pellicoro is from Italy, but he was working as a wine merchant in the Charleston area.

Pellicoro reportedly told the paper he has known Ravenel for seven years. They met at a language school where Pellicoro taught Ravenel French. Pellicoro reportedly told the paper Ravenel enjoyed getting different mixes of people together at his house after the bars in Charleston closed. He said people would go to the bathroom in groups of two or three, and that he never "really saw" Ravenel doing coke.

This morning when my husband told me Pellicoro didn't show up for court, I briefly wondered if Ravenel or some other rich and powerful person had him wacked. It makes more sense that he fled, but it would have been an insane twist if they wacked him before he could spill his guts.

The Ravenel case has been good entertainment, but I'm now much more pumped about the entertainment I'm currently enjoying: Kickoff of the 2007 NFL season. Hell yeah, folks. It's football season. Thank you, DirecTV NFL Sunday Ticket. Party at my house every week. All you pathetic people who don't have The Ticket are invited. I serve cold beer and fat-on-a -stick. You'll have to tolerate a lot of yelling, all-offense three-year-old football hijinx, and yippie dog fetch with a half-eaten miniature football. Heaven, I say. Heaven.

Speaking of the kid, he didn't beat the hell out of anybody or shit his pants at school today. That was welcome news. I've adopted the Progress Not Perfection mantra for My Little Sunshine and me. It makes for a much happier household.

By the way, I'm totally jealous of the mom who threw her kids' toys into trashbags and drove them to Mattel's El Segundo headquarters. She was so fed up and overwhelmed about figuring out which of her children's toys she had to take away that she packed that shit up and made a statement. Dana Laine Parker says she's just a regular mom who had had enough. She, like many of us out here, says she had a false sense of security. She assumed that it was OK to allow her kids to "gnaw on" any toy bought in this country. None of Parker's toys happened to be on the recall list. She says she's going to make an effort to be a smart consumer in the future.

Congratulations, Dana Laine Parker, for at least doing SOMETHING. Perhaps seeing you on CNN will spark a larger movement among parents. I wish I had thought of that. I am glad you did, and I hope it makes a difference.

For more information on the latest round of recalls, click on the links below. You can always find information on all product recalls on the Consumer Product Safety Commission web site.

Fisher-Price Recalls Bongo Band Toys Due to Violation of Lead Paint Standard

Fisher-Price Recalls Geo Trax Locomotive Toys Due To Violation of Lead Paint Standard

Mattel Recalls Various Barbie® Accessory Toys Due to Violation of Lead Paint Standard

Note: Ravenel picture from WYFF 4
Pellicoro picture from Post and Courier

Labels: Football, Mama Rant, Mattel, My Little Sunshine, Thomas Ravenel, Toy recall