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Running away? You yellow . . .
What Monty Python Character are you?
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Disgusting. One more reason to drive the U.N. into the sea.
And if the quotes at the end don't make you say swear words and wish terrible things on that scumbag, you have problems.
My mom made an interesting statement a few weeks ago, and it's stuck with me. She was speaking in reference to someone else, but the statement affects me, too. Basically what she said was that it's a waste of time to try to figure out who you are; because once you figure yourself out, you're a different person. Instead, spend your time working towards becoming who you want to be. It's easier said than done. A long time ago, when this blog first started, I said that my most hated question was "Why?". I think my new most hated question is "Who am I?" It's far more trite than the question "why?".
Who do I want to be?
I don't know, but I have a pretty good idea. I couldn't figure out who I WAS, but I think I can piece together the kinds of traits I'd like to have. Sort of like RPGs. Do I want to put points into Strength or Dexterity?
I dunno. Life is strange for me right now--I thought I'd get a load off now that I'm out of school, but it turns out that I'm more stressed now than I was with numerous grades and tests to worry about.
One of the cashiers has a lead on a job for me: Six hours an evening at a convenience store. The only good part of that is that the store closes at 10, so there wouldn't be any kind of third shift hassles.
halfway through Rousseau's Confessions. I must say, it's a far better read than Destiny's Road; and I'm not a Rousseau fan.
He certainly led an odd life; and it's amusing to read the way they behaved back then.
Can't wait to be done with it, though... I start Stained Glass by William F. Buckley Jr. once Rousseau is done. I peeked inside, and it looks like it might be interesting.
that I've beaten the main mission in Freelancer. The game may be open ended from here on out, or there may be another story. I don't know.
I got into a funny habit, though. The other characters say "Dammit," and then go into a long explanation of what's going on. Well, the way they deliver their lines, it sounds like they say "Dammit" with a comma rather than with an exclamation mark. So, I shout out "THAT'S NOT MY NAME!" or "You know, I have a real name!"
For instance, they say "Dammit, the Nomads are attacking our base!" when they really should be saying "Dammit! The Nomads are attacking our base!"
I can't remember where the whole dammit/name joke came from; I wish it was original, but I want to say it was on "A Christmas Story" or something. *shrug* I'm having too much fun with Freelancer, though.
WorldNetDaily has reported that a group of Christians are looking to establish their own nation. I am of the opinion that is the duty of Christians to never pack up and leave when it comes to splitting a church--the heretical party must be the one to leave. The true believers must always stand their ground, as the Orthodox Christians did when the Papists split off and formed the Catholic church all those years ago. When it comes to nations, however, I am not opposed to the idea. I support the Free State Project. I have not committed to it, since I am already at a crossroads in my life; but I think it's a good idea.
I say Christian Exodus is an interesting idea. I'd sooner live in Free New Hampshire, but I wish them well on their efforts.
You are a GRAMMAR GOD!
If your mission in life is not already to
preserve the English tongue, it should be.
Congratulations and thank you!
How grammatically sound are you?
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Spray'n'pray--what you do with the pansy .223 round (which I hate.) Here, it's a smattering of random thoughts.
I dislike going to the doctor. I've been sick for a week, and I'm getting over it. I started to feel pressure in my eustacian tube (that tube from your ear to your throat) about midway through this weeklong bug, and it went away. Whenever I get that feeling, I feel queasy. I got really bad bronchitis; so bad that I had massive blockages, including in my eustacian tubes. The thought of going deaf really concerned me more than the thought of pneumonia (I'd rather die than lose either my hearing or my sight); so I finally went to the local doctor's office. I waited. Waited. Waited. The doctor sits me down in the examination room and I waited some more. A really, really cute medical school intern walked in, made me take off my shirt (back in my less-fit-than-I-am-now days, unfortunately) and said that my lungs were making noises like I had pneumonia. Kinda freaked me out, but her incredible cuteness assuaged my concerns. The real doctor came in, she checked me out, made me get X-rays. Unfortunately their machine was not working right, so I went to Athens and had large quantities of radiation pumped into my body (which I thought was cool, and was the second best part of my illness--the first being the cute med-school gal, of course.) They put me on some pills, and after about two more weeks of hacking up goo, I finally got better. The moral of this story is? A cute nurse and a few ol' X-Rays can make a guy feel good. (I'm sorry-I love radiation. I think we should all have more of it, except for the side-effects...)
The following is a paraphrase of actual workplace events. Yes, I am aware that I can be a jerk--but only to people that have really pushed me way too far over the course of time.
A girl at work, my arch-nemesis and the person whose name is too dark to be uttered here, brought a great deal on herself today. +Kyle was showing a picture of his wife (my sister) to some of the guys; and my nemesis wanted to see. She said that my sister and I looked alike. I simply responded "I should hope that we look similar! My parents had us both!" She got annoyed, but +Kyle got a good laugh out of that one. She then started asking about +Kyle if he had or wanted kids. He said no, and that he didn't want any.
She then made a mistake. She asked me if I wanted kids. I knew what she wanted my answer to be--yes. I smiled inwardly, told her no, and began antagonizing her all day about it. "I don't want kids; they're too expensive."
"That's why there's WIC and Food Stamps." She replied.
I didn't really comment, because that acronym and those words both fill my heart and mind with blind rage. I hate welfare to the core of my soul. +Kyle did say he'd never go on the dole. If I ever did have kids, I would work five full time jobs if I had to in order to feed and clothe 'em. I'd be a good father to 'em, but right now I just don't want kids. Heck, I'm not even sure if I want a *girlfriend* right now...but anyway, back to the fun.
She said something else about kids costing money, and I stated once again that they were expensive, then told her this just to make her mad: "More kids would mean that I would have fewer computers and guns." +Kyle enjoyed this one, as well.
"That's all you think about--computers." She went off on some tirade, but I was relentless in my attack on her foolish emotionalistic tendencies.
"No, not really." She and I went back and forth, and each time, I won (she said to drop it--after she started it.)
She went off, but had to come back and call her mom--she needed to find out where her little daughter was at. When she passed by me after using the phone, I heard her say "Where's my girl at?"
I jumped all over that one; "That's another thing I won't have to worry about if I don't have kids--I won't have to waste my time thinking about where they are." She said "Iaaann!" and went on her way.
I left the issue alone for a while, then made another comment after she said something. She then went off and said "Just think what would happen if people didn't have kids!" Oh how my mind wandered from that--I envisioned fields of green grass with shooting ranges as far as the eye can see. No "School Zones" to congest traffic, et cetera et cetera. "There wouldn't be anyone to buy groceries, or make money, or anything!"
"That's right, there wouldn't be ANYONE to do ANYTHING. The human race would be far better off not to exist--we are miserable creatures." I didn't think she understood, so I continued. "If people stopped having kids, there would be nobody around to CARE!" I still don't think she understood, but the look on her face was funny enough.
We took a few more shots back and forth, but my best one was this. I asked her to speak with me. "Alright, let me put it to you this way, M. Do you really want a small army of mini-Ians running around? Because I'll raise 'em to be just like me if I have 'em." I was kidding, of course. If I ever have kids, I'll raise 'em better than I am--more logical, better read, better marksmen, and better gamers.
That statement made her face turn white. "Really? You'd make 'em be just like you?" I could tell that she was starting to see things my way.
I nodded my head. "Mmmhm. Yep, if I have kids, I'll raise a little army of mini-mes." I then told +Kyle what I told her; he got a kick out of "mini-mes."
Nice things to say? Not really. If you knew her, you might understand. Just take every femenist saying about the superiority of womanhood and how bad men are, roll them into one large married person who fancies herself gorgeous and flirts with every man she meets (including myself--sometimes to the point of gross vulgarity)....and that's why I'm so hard on her when she starts conversations like this. Yes, I do treat her professionally otherwise, and yes, I do say "ma'am" to her.
Aw, Ian, I had to look up that word!!! Mensch..please...
^_^
Oh, guess what, I diss Canada too. It's one of my favourite pastimes. In fact, I have seriously considered calling my country 'Canuckistan' in my blog - as tribute to the fact that my country is quickly descending to second-world status.
What do you think? Sure, it's a tad bit of an exaggeration but then again, is it?
You Canadians can drink at 18, right? 'Nuff said. *grin* *I'm kidding*
I call Alabama "Alabamistan" or "'Bamastan" for short, so Canuckistan would work. I don't disagree that Canada is devolving, but... I have to wonder--are *all* Canadian gals cute? I've noticed a trend--there is a Canadian softball team that comes through the store every year (they came through today, incidentally), and I can honestly say that I've never met or seen an ugly Canadian gal, and I've met quite a few. And, I can't hold anything against a whole country that produces people with such wonderful voices as Teryl Rothery (I hope I spelled her name right), and Angela Costain.
By the way, I may have helped save the Canadian economy--I returned 53 Canadian cents to one of the softball players. She was amused.
Alright, really, Ian, thanks.
And thanks too for making me crack open a dictionary.
You're welcome, but I don't know for what. And I'm glad that I made you crack open a dictionary! I take pride in few things, but when people have to go look up words because of me, I am very pleased. :)
And well, I think your blog is cool, too.
I'm glad you enjoy it.
You see, you are much wider read than I am - you are better educated, you actually are writing seriously, you have ideas (solutions) whereas I tend to focus on the problems and you are plugged into the goings on around you in the world.
You sell yourself short, Sarah. I do read a lot, but you've read many things that I haven't (and vice versa, I'm sure). We read on subjects that interest us.
Writing seriously? I'm having too much fun. I get into serious issues, but only because I enjoy them. I enjoy writing about them so much, I don't think I write seriously enough. You write *very* seriously, and I admire that. I will agree that I try to focus on solutions; but people need to be aware of problems as well. Maybe we should tag-team on some issues--you lay out a problem on your blog, and I'll work on a solution. If you're interested, email me and we can discuss--it could be fun. We wouldn't necessarily need to do huge essay posts; maybe you could write a couple paragraphs laying out a problem, and I could write out a solution. It might make for an interesting excercize, at least.
Trust me on this though: I am way too plugged into the world around me. Being so hyper-aware can really overload a mind. I've been teetering on the brink lately, so I have had to stop reading WND (well, except for Vox) and turn off the radio. I already don't watch news on TV, so thankfully that's not an addiction I have to back away from.
I still stand by my original comment--you are definitely a mensch, and I really appreciate your kind thoughts and words. As long as someone is getting something out of my little corner of the 'net, it's worth doing.
There will not be another part of the Serial this month. I am going to do some major grammar, spelling, and continuity checking on the current episodes. I am not bad at either spelling or grammar anymore; I used to be awful with my grammar, but four months of Dr. S. has all but cured me of what passed for "my style" (the excuse I always gave for my grammar.) I type very quickly (I sometimes make Data from Star Trek look slow); thus I miss many of my errors. I will fix the errors in my little stories, so that you may better enjoy them...and so that The Editor will not fuss at me. :)
I am really falling behind on my notes for the nonfiction book. I have long forgotten most of what I learned at the Young Writers conference I attended a few years back. I should have paid more attention to one little part of the seminar--how to outline and prepare.
Well, I have posted enough for tonight. I am tired.
Goodnight, faithful readers.
My blogroll is rearranged. I've removed a few links. I've bumped a couple of links towards the top. I've added some new links. I'm going to tell you about a few of my favorites. I don't link to 'em unless I like 'em, but some blogs just stand out.
Vox Popoli, simply because I'm a Vox fan.
LSDiamond's Den is my sister's livejournal, but let's not hold the LJ thing against her. :) She used to be writing about Oklahoma. Now she's back here in Alabama.
Evonlith is my brother-in-law's blog. He went to school to be a gunsmith, but now he is back home. Right now he's working at the store with me (pity him), until he can find something better.
Memoirs of a Gamegod is a great gamer blog. I've known Gamegod for most of my life (indeed, he's known me longer than I've known him--my parents have known him for years). Gamegod has been gaming since there have been video games, so he has a wealth of knowledge at his disposal.
The PLUMBLINE is run by my dad, also known as the Aardvark. Infrequently updated, but fun.
Pink Kitty has a fantastic blog. I find it very entertaining, and well-written. She writes on a variety of topics, not just politics. I have only recently become a regular reader of her blog (though I would skim through from time to time), but I recommend it.
Heinlein Blog is very interesting. It deals with matters pertaining to Robert A. Heinlein, the science fiction author, libertarian, and former congressional candidate. I ran across it the other day, and I've become hooked.
The Ruminator is one of my faves. Sarah's a real mensch (can you use that word for a gal? My Yiddish is poor at best, so I just did--take it as a compliment). A lot of people diss Canada and Canadians, but I've never met a Canadian I didn't like. Sarah writes far better than I do, and is a lot more interesting to boot.
Kim du Toit. What else can I say? He's a gunblogger par excellance. He uses a lot of language, but after reading his blog, I decided that I was going to actually go out and buy my gun--and so I did. He'd be mad, though--it's a Commie Gun.
The last one for tonight is The Pan-Galactic Blogger Blaster. Why? Because of the title, and because it's Nate. Those two reasons are reasons enough.
I'm not sucking up or fishing for links--most of these blogs have already linked to me anyway. This is a service to those of you who may stumble upon this blog from my website or through Google, and want to read people who are:
1) Smarter than I am;
2) better writers than I am, or
3) are more Interesting than I am.
I'm still behind the FairTax proposal. I still think you should contact your congressmen about it. I don't think it's a good permanent solution, but I think it's better than what we have--simply for the fact that it will be a DAILY reminder of the taxes we are paying. Such a reminder will push the American People towards smaller government. I think that a %23 federal sales tax plus a 5-9% state sales tax on every receipt will work out nicely.
I kind of like how I complain about stupid people. I think it makes for some fun blogging, so here's a new one. +Kyle can confirm this little story, as he just started working at the store.
M.W. is a really tall black dude who works at the store. He's funny, and is at heart a good guy. His demeanor is, however, perplexing. Even when he is being respectful, he comes across like he has an attitude because of his vocal inflections and the way he holds his expressions. I've learned to tell the difference. However, pre-civil-rights era dinosaurs tend to think he really IS being disrespectful.
So, this couple is buying groceries, and comes through the express lane. It's their turn to check out, and this dinosaur (our idiot of the day) basically pushes past everyone else in the backed up line, throws his groceries down along with his money. M.W. tells him not to break in line, and that he doesn't have to throw money around. It is at this point that I hear what is going on. The dinosaur becomes quite curt, and says that he is with the young couple--apparently one of them is his spawn, er, offspring. So, the dinosaur gets very angry. M.W. remains calm, says he didn't know, but the old guy keeps at it. The younger guy says "are you the manager? Are you seeing this?" to me, and starts pointing at M.W.. The old guy then starts calling M.W. outside, to do his worst, etc. I then said that it was a misunderstanding, made a token apology for it, and ignored them otherwise, and simply counselled M.W. to let it go. The two youngers walk out the door, but the old guy remains. He stares at M.W., and M.W. turns around to see him there. "Yeah, boy. I can stare as LONG as you can." M.W., being the faithful employee that he is, continues to do his job, while staring at the old man. Eventually, M.W. ignores him, and he walks away.
I thought long and hard about it. At first I was going to fuss at M.W. about what happened, but as I thought about it, I determined that the dinosaur was entirely at fault. He barged in front of other customers (and annoyed them--one lady complained about Mr. Dinosaur's behavior rather vocally) and did not even bother to declare his intentions. He made, in the classical sense of the word, an ass of himself.
Now, I do know a bit about Mr. Dinosaur; he's a lawyer. Thus, he is on crony terms with everyone in the area (Alabama Justice at work). This is why he tried to call M.W. out to fight, because he knows it would basically end up with M.W. being railroaded under Assault charges.
Part of me hopes that the old man comes back and complains to me (or better, about me), so I can explain everything wrong with what he did. The other part of me hopes he, his spawn, and his spawn-in-law never returns.
There is now a Vox Day website, that archives some of his thoughts. Very cool.
Industrial rock! Just like Marilyn Manson, you
know what you have to say and you just say it!
I like you very much...just be careful you
don't scare me away...
What genre of rock are you?
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House Inappropriations Committee Suggests Nation's Women Dress A Little Sexier
WASHINGTON, DC—In a policy initiative released Monday, the chairman of the House Inappropriations Committee suggested that the women of America start to dress a little more provocatively. "Why don't they wear some shorter skirts?" U.S. Rep. Bill Young (R-FL) said. "They've got nice legs. They should show 'em off." Young said he could offer American females even more suggestions if Congress would underwrite a fact-finding tour to Miami Beach.
I'm 4 days off deadline on the story, but it's now up. Just click the link on the right.
Why has this happened?
+Kyle and LSDiamond are back home from Oklahoma, that's why! LSDiamond is my sister, and +Kyle is her husband, and I am extremely glad they're back.
I was actually only a day off as far as writing goes--I finished that on the 16th as promised. I just hadn't gotten around to posting what I had.
Why am I writing at 4am?
All nighter. I'm going to reset my circadian rhythm using a method taught to me long ago. What you do, is stay up ALL night and the rest of the following day (I may cheat and nap for an hour--I've done that before and it didn't interfere with my results), and load down on several caplets of melatonin 30 minutes before the bedtime you want. What happens is that the body will decide to start getting tired at THAT time.
Then, have an alarm clock set for the time you want to awaken. You'll start waking up at that time.
It's worked for me before, but check with your doctor before doing anything like this. I'm not responsible if you get hurt by following my steps.
Vox has built quite a community over at Vox Popoli. Nate put together a Cast of Characters--those of us who comment frequently Vox's blog.
I have already been "accused" of trying to look like Vox (at least I'm not alone--several others got the same thing). Anyone who knows me well at all will attest to the fact that I rarely smile for cameras. Period.
I find those accusations quite amusing.
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