Echoes in a Nomad's head

That's IT!

2005-03-15T08:16:00.000-08:00

I'm through. Had enough. Not gonna take it any more. After 2 more days of problems with Blogger, they're "second chance" is more than used up. I'm not going to be updating this blog any more. I'm fully moving over to BlogDrive. So, for my regular readers, please update your bookmarks to my new blog. There are a few things about BlogDrive I'd like to see changed/added, but the reliability issues here at Blogger are just plain and simple unbearable any more. See you in the new digs, and feel free to bring a house-warming gift.

New blog: http://nomadechoes.blogdrive.com

Peek-a-boo

2005-03-15T07:43:00.000-08:00

Every now and again, my goofball of a dog will flop down on the floor and cover his eyes with his paws. I'm not sure if he's trying to play "peek-a-boo" or "hide-and-seek". But he'll hold his paws over his eyes for a little while, then just kinda peek out from under one to stare at me. Then he'll cover both eyes again. It's just adorable.

Shh...quiet. He's hiding.

I finally got a picture of it last night. Usually, I don't have the camera in arm's reach. And even when I do, he usually stops doing whatever cute thing I want to take a pic of the moment he spots the camera. So, consider this a rare treat.

Hit parade

2005-03-14T08:25:00.000-08:00

I'm not usually into "reality" TV shows. About the only one I've ever found mildly amusing was Surreal Life . . . something about a group of hasbeen and wannabe stars trying to (re)claim their status through a show designed primarily to poke fun at them is rather amusing. And of course, the auditions phase of American Idol is always good for some laughs. But other than that, the only reason I would consider even giving a "reality" show half a chance is if it had some really cute girls on it. But even then, they usually suck so bad I can't stand to watch them. No offense to you "reality" addicts out there.

But I've caught 2 episodes of The Contender, and so far really like it. Definitely no cute girls, but watching the friendships, tensions/rivalries, "behind the scenes" of the boxers' family lives, the training, and yeah, the boxing itself, is pretty cool. This is doubly surprising since I'm not a boxing fan either. But they're doing a really good job on the show. "They" being both the contestants and the producers.

As a side note, I was very happy to see Ishe win his bought last night . . . that Ahmed guy was just a severe prick. Even his own teammates wanted him to shut his yap.

Dead men walking

2005-03-13T10:39:00.000-08:00

I rented Shaun of the Dead Friday night. For those who haven't seen this already, do so. Hillariously good time. You should actually probably watch the movie more than once. The first time so you can be exposed to the main humor. But after that, try to pay special attention to the "little things" . . . stuff going on in the background, special close attention to the dialogue, etc. There really is a ton of subtle stuff going on that deserves to be noticed

Double duty

2005-03-12T11:05:00.000-08:00

After checking out a few different blog hosting sites, I think I've settled on BlogDrive. I've set up a new blog over there, and transferred all of the posts. Unfortunately, I'm not sure how to copy the comments over, so for now they're just MIA. There's probably a way to do it, but to be honest I'm being lazy and don't feel like the hassle. At some point, I'll probably try to figure it out, but for now . . . meh. I'm still working on tweaking the BlogDrive blog too, and that's kinda my primary focus (blog-related-wise) for the time being.

Until I decide for sure that I'm sticking with BlogDrive, I'm going to be maintaining both blogs (at Blogger & at BlogDrive). So, you can hit either one and get the same intriguing, thought provoking, edge-of-your-seat reading pleasure. Let me know which you prefer (there are aspects of both services I like/dislike, so have not yet fully made up my mind which one I'll ultimately stick with). Thanks for any input.

Blogger version
BlogDrive version

The plunge

2005-03-11T15:28:00.000-08:00

So yeah, after the recent problems with Blogger (actually, most recent ones, as there've been problems for a while) I've decided to jump ship. As such, I may not be blogging much for the time being while I check out various hosts and begin the process of configuration (not to mention transferring all my archives). Once I'm up and running, I'll let y'all know of the new digs.

Gack! Annoyance

2005-03-10T13:03:00.001-08:00

Okay, so after not being able to log into Blogger until just now (hence, not being able to update comments or make a new post), 3 attempts at publishing this entry and several other quirky incidents and all around slow performance, I'm coming to the conclusion that I should move my blog off of Blogger. If anyone has any suggestions for a reliable, easy to use, free blog hosting site, let me know please (feel free to e-mail using the link at the right if the friggin' Blogger comments still aren't working). Thanks.

Quotables

2005-03-09T08:28:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the First Innagural Annual Semi-Bi-Monthly Movie Quotes Quiz (Disclaimer: The title is not a garuntee, expressed nor implied, of future quizzes). Okay, so basically I had no clue what to blog about today, so I grabbed 10 random DVDs from my collection, played a (somewhat) random scene and selected quotes. Your job is to identify the movies. Some are rather obvious, while others are fairly obscure quotes from even more obscure movies. Best of luck, and no cheating.

**Updated to include correct answers already given (assuming Blogger will actually work right!)**

1. Failure is not an option.
Apollo 13 (answered by Amie)

2. Alright you primitive screwheads, listen up! <------favorite
Army of Darkness (answered by Tom)

3. The laws are medieval down here. You know what the minimum age for execution is in Alabama? Ten!
My Cousin Vinny (answered by Dumb Poet)

4. We'll always have our memories. The Colonel's dead, and here we are enjoying his chicken."
Strange Brew (answered by K.Restoule)

5. I'm not busy and I'm not drunk. Fact is there ain't enough whiskey in the state of Georgia to get me drunk enough.
The Legend of Bagger Vance (answered by Goldberry)

6. Who else is gonna change the world, Marty? Greenpeace?"
Sneakers (answered by Dumb Poet)

7. I've broken juggers in half, smashed their bones and left the ground behind me wet with brains. I'd do anything to win. But I've never hurt a soul for any reason but to put a dog skull on a stake--and I never will."
Blood of Heroes (answered by Dumb Poet)

8. That's the second time I've had to watch that man sail away with my ship."
Pirates of the Caribbean (answered by Jin)

9. You don't frighten us, English pig-dogs! Go and boil your bottoms, sons of a silly person!"
Monty Python and the Holy Grail (answered by Dumb Poet)

10. Paulie was doing a year for contempt and he had this wonderful system for garlic.
Goodfellas (answered by Dumb Poet)

Bonus points of you can figure out which of the above is my favorite.

It's just cheating, I tell ya!

2005-03-08T08:09:00.000-08:00

Over the past few years, I've gotten into the habit of rather rapidly closing the door when various types of people come knocking. You know the ones . . . people selling magazine subscriptions, religious salvation, coupon books, court summonses, etc. I've contemplated putting up one of those "No Soliciting" signs, but honestly I don't mind it too much when the neighborhood kids come buy selling things to raise funds their school, band trips, etc. I figure in all other situations, the "Not interested " works just fine. But lately, the Mormons have been cheating. They've been sending around really cute girls. Do you realize how difficult it is to slam a door in the face of a cute, smiling girl? Damn near impossible, I tell ya. So it's just plain not fair for them to keep sending them to my house. It's dirty pool. Cheating. Not fair in the slightest.

Ah, childhood memories

2005-03-07T07:15:00.000-08:00

Probably every little boy growing up in America has gotten into an argument with his chums over "Who would win in a race? Superman or Flash?" Or "Who's stronger? The Hulk or Juggernaught?" Or "Who would win in a fight? Q (from Star Trek) or The Beyonder?" For girls, I imagine it was things like "Who'd win in a beauty contest? Malibu Barbie or Enchanted Evening Barbie?"

But reading this was just absolutely hilarious. I mean, everyone knows Snake Pliskin could never win a fair fight, and this Chopper guy got his butt kicked more than once by other thugs. So of course Max would wipe the floor with them both. And even if Snake tried to cheat, cuz Max knows how to fight dirty, too. Can you believe these nimrods? Thinking that Snake Pliskin or Chopper could take Max . . . fools. Seriously, though, it never ceases to amaze me what people will spend their time arguing about.

Channelling Homer

2005-03-06T07:57:00.000-08:00

Every now and again I seem to have the ability to channel Homer Simpson. Or, rather, Homer has the ability to possess me. Sometimes it's for just that split second while mowing the lawn that results in running my lawnmower rather violently rolling over a toy. Or once when I thought it perfectly acceptable to "mow" the lawn with the weed whacker. Sometimes it's for more prolonged periods, causing me to sit in front of the TV for hours with beer in hand. And sometimes it's just to yell "Doh!" after having a "Homer moment" that risks life and limb. But more often than not, it occurs while I'm grocery shopping, as it did yesterday. Believe it or not, it usually happens in the produce section. This may seem rather odd, considering Homer's aversion to produce. But you see, my local grocery is really sneaky. They've got the produce right next to the bakery. So, while I'm trying to be good, and picking out some yummy veggies (if I keep telling myself that, they'll become edible . . . that's the theory), I'll suddenly find myself opening the glass case and mumbling "Mmmmm . . . doh-nuts" while picking out a dozen little cardiac killers. Anyone have Reverend Lovejoy's number? I need him to perform an exorcism.

Bleh

2005-03-05T07:55:00.000-08:00

Ever wake up in the morning, and before you even shove the covers aside, you get the feeling it's going to be one of those days? You know, the kind of day where you regret getting out of bed in the first place? Sure you have. So then you contemplate getting out of bed at all. I mean, it is the weekend afterall, so it's not like you have to get up and go to work or something. But then you realize that it is the weekend and what's the point of having weekends if you're not going to get up and try to do something fun. And then your dog drives the point home by shoving his cold nose in your face and giving you that "Get up, cuz I'm hungry and you need to feed me" look. Sure you have. Of course you have. I mean, I'd hate to think I'm the only one.

Happy Anniversary!

2005-03-04T07:40:00.000-08:00

Wow. Can you believe it's been a full year since I started blogging? Amazing, ain't it? I realize that means I'm still a relative newbie to the world of blogging, but it's a milestone to me. I mean, it seems like just yesterday I was sitting down, logging into Blogger for the first time and thinking "What the hell am I doing? Do I really have anything interesting to say? Will this thing end up being just another waste of space on an already cluttered Internet?" Now, maybe it has been. I dunno. It's not like I'm a really objective and impartial judge of that in this case. But so far it's been fun--a way to meet a few new folks; vent frustrations; share humorous moments; etc. And after a full year of babbling away, I'm more addicted than ever to it.

Of course I saw Disney

2005-03-03T07:46:00.001-08:00

Yes, I realize that many folks feel the Disney Corporation is evil incarnate. Truth be told, I'm not entirely fond of them. They've screwed up many true stories, myths, legends and whatnot in their movie making, and have done/tried some incredibly ludicrous things (like wanting to turn Gettysburg into an amusement park). But, I'm not so entirely opposed to them that I won't visit their parks (especially when given a free ticket). And in my opinion, no trip to Orlando would be complete without at least a quick visit to the "happiest place on Earth". Since I've been told by numerous folks that Disneyworld and Disneyland are virtual clones, and I've been to Disneyland more than once, I opted out of that one. And since I visitted Kennedy Space Center a few days prior, I figured Epcot wasn't that great a choice. So, off to Animal Kingdom I went.

That elephant had even bigger ears than the famous mouse.

The Safarri "ride" was by far the best attraction there. Even though the animals weren't incredibly active (noon-time in Florida), I still saw quite a few of them. Cheetahs, gnus, zebra, antalope, gazelle, elephants, birds, lions, tigers and gorillas (oh my!) throughout the park. Fun, informative and just generally enjoyable. Lots of cool looking animals, and even more than one cute female workers.

Suesserheroes

2005-03-02T12:21:00.000-08:00

Thursday I met up with Llama Girl to go to Universal Studios' Islands of Adventure. Lots of cool rides like "The Hulk" (visible below) and "Dueling Dragons" roller coasters, "The Cat in the Hat" kiddy ride and "Spiderman" 3-D. Plus various characters like Wolverine, Thing 1 and Betty Boop wandering around.

You wouldn't like it when it's angry

The only bummer was that Llama Girl ended up leaving early because she wasn't feeling well. But it was so cool of her to take some time and keep me company for at least a little while. Anywho, despite the bummer of not getting to hang with her longer (and seeing her feel miserable), I still had a blast.

Ain't they cuuuute?

2005-03-01T07:46:00.000-08:00

Like I said before, I got to meet up with some friends on Monday night (and briefly on Thursday as well). They are such absolute sweethearts who spent more time with me than I was expecting, and just crazy enough to be entertaining without annoying.

Me, Llama Girl & Froot Loop

I just wish I had gotten a pic on Monday of the Froot Loop drinking a daquiri from a mug quite literally as big as her head--I don't think I've ever seen a cuter sight.

Now if I could just stop crushing on girls who are engaged or not into guys . . .

Half day

2005-02-28T07:00:00.000-08:00

Monday night I met up with some friends to have a few drinks. I know they claim I didn't drink enough, but I can assure you it was enough to feel it the next day (if the Froot Loop & Llama Girl are reading this, remember I told you I don't have nearly the alcohol tolerance you two have built up!). Anyhow, that and the staying up until around 4:00 am made for taking a half day of vacationing on Tuesday. So Gatorland it was.

Feedin' da gators

Gatorland is a relatively small attraction that focuses on (you guessed it) llamas. Oh wait, I mean gators. But they did have a llama in the petting zoo. They give gator wrestling demonstrations, feeding shows and plenty of info about the reptillian critters. Kind of a cheezy place, really, but fun nonetheless. For folks who live in Florida (or Louisiana and the likes) I imagine it's a non-attraction, as gators are pretty much all over the place (saw several at Kennedy as well). But for a punk from Cali, it was interesting.

3-2-1 Launch!

2005-02-27T07:50:00.000-08:00

After travelling the entire width of the country to see the Daytona 500, I of course had to go see the sights of Florida. First stop was the Kennedy Space Center.

Saturn V & Apolla Command/Service Module

Tons of cool stuff, including seeing various rockets, lunar lander, terrific information, the launch pads and component modules of the (planned) space station. It is, quite literally, awe inspiring. If you have any interest at all in the space program (and why wouldn't you?), then it's definitely worth the visit if you're ever out in Florida. The only bummer was that there wasn't a launch going on while I was there--now that would have been epic!

Vrooooom

2005-02-26T08:26:00.000-08:00

Well, as mentioned previously, I attended the Daytona 500 last Sunday. The seats were junk, but I knew that ahead of time. Here's a pic from the pace lap.

Pace Lap, turn 4

It was a cool experience . . . much different from races I have previously attended. The first several laps were rather cool. The cars would rumble by, this solid stream of 43 roaring V8s at full throttle for 2-3 seconds, then silence for 40-45 seconds, then r-u-u-u-u-m-m-m-m-ble again. But, honestly, the novelty wore off pretty quick.

I got stuck in a section full of a-holes, too. Now I know what you're thinking: This is NASCAR, the redneck sport . . . obviously there were a-holes there. This was worse than usual, though. The guy to my right was constantly trying to grab more room than he was entitled to in the bleacher seats, and doing so in a very obvious, rude and annoying manner. After I had slowly given up an entire seat's width (bleacher seating, mine was #33, and I had moved completely over to #34 by the time this happened) the guy actually had the audacity to say that I was crowding him and should move over. Fortunately, not long after this, Harvick was effectively taken out of the race, so they left (not surprisingly, this guy and his pal were Harvick fans, and as is typical of Harvick fans, they bail on the race the moment it's obvious he's not going to finish well).

Anywho, there was also a group of guys a couple rows behind me that were screaming throughout the race for someone to put Jeff Gordon into the wall. Now, I'm not a Gordon fan. I really hated to see him win on Sunday. I rather enjoy seeing him finish poorly. But despite the stereotype, most NASCAR fans do not want to see anyone get hurt. Wishing to see someone put into the wall, especially at a track where hitting the wall cost us fans the life of Dale Earnhardt just a few short years ago is, well, angering.

Well, despite the crappy seats, and the even crappier crowd, and the lameness of restrictor plate "racing", I had a grand old time. Don't think I'll ever pay for another Daytona race as I definitely prefer the 1-mile and under tracks, but it was still a worth-while experience. Actually, come to think of it, considering all the BS changes NASCAR has been making to things lately, it's probably the last Cup event I'll attend live ever again. But who knows--maybe they'll come to their senses some day and I'll go to more races again.

I'm baaaaaack!

2005-02-25T13:40:00.000-08:00

Yeppers. I have returned home only slightly worse for wear (more on that later). All in all, it was a good trip (again, more on that later). But I had a "WTF!?!" moment upon my arrival at home this morning. I landed in San Jose about 10:00 am--yes, AM . . . from Florida . . . you want to know what time my plane left, you do the math . . . I'm too friggin' tired right now. Anyway, by the time I got out to my folks' house to pick up my dog and got home, it was about noon. And boy, was I ready for some sack time. So, I let my dog (a Golden Retriever, which is an important detail, as you'll soon discover) into the house, then went back outside to move my truck so I could put my car in the garage. And through the side fence, I see a Golden Retriever staring at me.

Obviously, the first thing that went through my mind was "How the hell did Duncan (my dog) get into the back?!? Oh crap! If the back door's open, I must've gotten robbed!" So, charge back into the house. Where I find Duncan in the kitchen, and the back door closed. Turns out, there's another Golden Retriever in my back yard. Complete with green collar, just like Duncan's, only no ID tag. I've guessing that at some point during the week, one of my neighbors spotted this stray Golden and assumed it was mine, so (somehow) got him into my back yard.

So yeah, instead of getting to rack out and catch up on the ZZZZ's, I was dealing with two hyperactive Golden's who wanted nothing more than to playplayplayplayplay. I did a quick wander in the neighborhood, then called the local animal shelter to see if anyone had reported a missing Golden. Fortunately, they put me and the dog's rightfull owner in contact pretty quick, and the poor little stranger is currently back home with his family. Hopefully he's all okay . . . he seemed to be happy and healthy, but was definitely thirstier than can be imagined. He went missing last Tuesday according to the owner, so he may have been cooped up in my back yard with no food or water for a few days.

But, yeah, it's a strange thing to come home from a vacation to find that you're suddenly confronted with a virtual clone of your rambuctious, hyperactive, goofy, spastic dog, with no idea where it came from. And of course, I'm still trying to figure out how they got a 70-pound dog over the 6' fence in the first place . . .

Little break

2005-02-18T08:28:00.000-08:00

So, as I've been bragging about, I'll be attending the Daytona 500 this weekend. And, since that will entail travelling to the opposite side of the country, time will be taken to see the area sites, visit with friends and generally enjoy myself. And, while out and about, I don't really plan on going out of my way to gain Net access . . . maybe once or twice during the week just to check e-mail, assuming I come accross a convenient Internet Cafe at a convenient time. So, it's kinda doubtfull I'll be blogging. See y'all in about a week.

Oh, this is not good

2005-02-17T09:16:00.000-08:00

I leave for Florida the day after tomorrow, and I'm coming down with a cold. Colds themselves don't bug me too much--sure, they're annoying, but it's usually tolerable for me. The problem is flying when my sinuses are acting up or plugged. During the landings, instead of my ears giving a simple "pop", I suffer excruciating pain in my ears. And I do mean excruciating. Heck, coming back from Pennsylvania once, my brother had to help guide me off the plane and through the terminal, I was so disoriented. And I've practically blacked out from the pain at least once. So yeah, flying with a cold isn't a good thing for me. Hopefully a constant stream of NyQuil plus some Benadril before the flight will stave things off. If not, anyone in Denver (layover) and Orlando should be able to know exactly when my plane lands, from the scream of pain coming from the skies.

Here's to . . .

2005-02-16T10:10:00.000-08:00

. . . old friends, good friends, lost friends, new friends, and rekindled friendships.

Cuteness

2005-02-15T07:57:00.000-08:00

I didn't really watch the Grammys the other night. Not really interested, to be honest. But I did happen upon one bit with Lynyrd Skinner, Tim McGraw & Gretchen Wilson. On my trip to Colorado, I was subjected to a fair amount of country music, since my uncle was driving and he tends to like it. Now, I'm not really into country music, but have been known to tolerate it. Anywho, I recall this one song coming on the radio that really caught my attention . . . "Redneck Woman". While I don't really relate to being a redneck woman, I thought it was just a straight-forward fun song. Actually, that's the only kind of country music I actually enjoy . . . them country singer folk can surely put together some fun songs when they just kick back and enjoy themselves.

So, anyhow, there she was, the singer of "Redneck Woman", singing away during the Grammys. And what immediately popped into my mind? "Damn, she's cute!" That's another thing about country music . . . they sure do seem to have a lot of good looking female singers. I mean, good examples would be gals like Shania Twain, Martina McBride, Sara Evans and bunches of others. But there's just something about Gretchen Wilson that really, really caught my eye. I think it was the fact that she was looking so damn good without looking like she was trying to look so damn good. Y'know, she didn't look all dolled up . . . just dressed like a regular gal, and still looking terrific. So, I did a little Web-spelunkering to find out more about this little lovely. And how she can get away with singing a song like "Here for the Party" where she claims "I may not be a 10 but the boy say I clean up good" is amazing. Well, I certainly hope this post doesn't make me sound too much like a male pig, drooling over a pretty girl.

Love is in the air

2005-02-14T07:47:00.000-08:00

At least, that's what "they" claim. Personally, I've grown to hate V-Day. Not because I think it's a manufactured holiday created by the candy & greeting card industries. That's fine by me. The reason I have come to despise this day is that, in all my years, I have never had a girlfriend on this day. And that's rather depressing. There've been a few times I've "used" the day to try and start a relationship with someone I like. But it's never been a success (and even once was connected to a total disaster). Now I know what some of you are thinking . . . I should just go out, have fun, and maybe even meet someone, cuz "love is in the air". But you see, I'm not really into the bar scene, and live in an area almost completely devoid of social activities, it's easier said than done.

Sorry for the string of gripe/peeve posts lately. Maybe it's the time of year. But no worries . . . I'll be back to my fun-loving self in no time, since I'll be leaving for Florida (for the Daytona 500 and visit w/friends) on Saturday.

What are they thinking?

2005-02-12T09:22:00.000-08:00

Anyone who's read my blog for for any length of time knows my stance on President Bush. And anyone who knows me in person knows my disappointment with the Democrats is just as strong. To be honest, I don't see much difference between the two parties . . . neither one truly cares about the American people. They both put their own interests above everything else. But I do believe that the Democratic Party took an even bigger turn for the worse today when they announced that Howard Dean has been elected to lead them. During the Primaries, the thought of Dean making it to the Oval Office scared the bejeezes out of me. Granted, Bush scares the crap out of me too. But at least with Bush, we know what we're getting. Dean's objectives were always shrouded in mystery. I recall one debate (the 1st Democratic one, I believe) where Dean & Kerry got into an exchange . . . Kerry kept hounding him with a question that Dean flat out refused to answer. He'd give a typical political response that pretended to be an answer but wasn't. And Kerry kept pointing out that he wasn't answering the question, so would ask it again. Dean would just get that stupid looking, guilt-ridden smirk (it reminded me of a little kid who just messed his underpants and wasn't quite sure if it was funny or if he'd be in trouble) and refuse to answer the question again. He did this several times during the debates. Anyway, the point is, Dean is the stereotypical, two-faced, wouldn't-know-honesty-if-it-bit-him-in-the-arse, huckster politician, who'll do and say anything to get what he wants. I see bad things for the Democrats coming . . .

Pet Peeve #2

2005-02-11T07:51:00.000-08:00

Or maybe it's #3, if you include the SUV rant. Or maybe #4, if you count lack of honesty & courtesy in certain individuals. Or maybe #378, if you count all the peeves with politics. Wow, I guess I'm just in a peeving mood lately. Of course, now I've forgotten what the peeve was.

Oh, yeah! It's the blogs on BlogAzoo and BlogExplosion. Not the content of the blogs. Well, yeah in a way. You see, when I first started surfing those two, I thought it was really cool. It introduced me to a plethora of new blogs and people. But after using them for a while, I've become frustrated with the repetition and lack of updates. It seems that I am continually directed to the same blogs over and over and over and over. I've gotten kinda tired of seeing the same blog 4-5 times in a 20 minute span. But what's most aggrivating is that it seems that the majority of these repeaters apparently spend so much time building up credits that they neglect their blogs. Now, I'm not so anal as to expect daily updates . . . I mean, some folks actually have a life outside of blogdom, and that's fine. But if you're not going to post anything new for weeks, or even months, then take your frickin' blog out of the rotation!

We now return you to your regularly scheduled non-ranting programming.

Repetition

2005-02-10T08:05:00.000-08:00

Just got off the phone activating my new (renewed) credit card. The first thing I found utterly amazing was the fact that a real live person answered. I've never activated a credit card through anything other than an automated system before. Now if they could just get their Customer Service department to answer the phone on the first ring like that . . .

Anywho, after activation, the girl went into the normal sales pitch. Did I want to get another card for someone else? Did I want their payment protection insurance? Did I need a PIN number? And that's when my pet peeve alarms went off. Fortunately, it's not enough of a peeve to where I commented to her, but now I'm going to vent here. I find it incredibly annoying when people use acronyms incorrectly. Or, specifically, repetitively. You see, PIN stands for Personal Identification Number. So when someone says "PIN number" what they're effectively saying is "Personal Identification Number number". Same thing with ATMs, when people refer to them as ATM machines (Automated Transaction Machine machine). But the most annoying thing about it is that I hear these misuses so often, that I find myself bungling it on occassion. I'm considering writing my Congresspeople and lobbying for a new law that says anyone who is caught misusing accronyms in a repetitious manner should get fined $5 by the person who catches them. Who'll sign the petition?

Ziff! Pow! Boff!

2005-02-09T13:49:00.000-08:00

So I went out and rented Daredevil and The Hulk last night. Kinda pathetic really . . . the only reason I watched them was so that I could say (with honesty) that to the best of my knowledge I have seen every comic book movie made. And that not only includes the recent ones like X-Men, Spiderman, Elektra and their various sequels, but also slightly older comic book classics (like the entire Superman and Batman series'), plus the old campy made-for-TV comic movies of the '60's and '70's (Batman, Spiderman, Captain America, The Hulk). Actually, when one stops to think about it, there have been quite a few!

Anywho, I was actually somewhat pleasantly surprised with The Hulk. Really didn't seem all that interesting when it was in theaters. But it was actually quite good . . . at least, good enough to overlook the fact that the main character was entirely computer generated. Not to mention the fact that I was completely blown away with the gorgeousness of Jennifer Connelly. Don't get me wrong--I've known she was a hottie for ages. But I haven't seen her in a while and in this movie she was just plain and simple . . . WOW! Not sure what it was, but, yeah--WOW!

But I digress. I'm trying to verify that I have, indeed, seen all the comic book movies to date . . . if anyone knows of one not on the below list (in the random order I remember them), I'd appreciate you letting me know (note: I'm talking about movies based on an existing comic book, not just movies with a comic book feel/theme or based on superheroes created solely for the movie):

Superman (1 - 4); Batman (1 - 4, plus the TV movie w/Adam West, plus Mask of the Phantasm); Spiderman (1 & 2, plus the 2-3 TV ones in the '70's); Captain America (2 TV movies); X-Men (1 & 2); Catwoman; Elektra; Daredevil; The Hulk (plus the 6-7 TV ones); The Punisher; Spawn; The Crow; Blade (1 - 3); Hellboy; Supergirl; Wonderwoman (the TV stuff); Howard the Duck . . . am I missing anything that's been released yet?

Update: Forgot about The Shadow, The Phantom, the Dolph Lundgren Punisher, Flash Gordon, Barbarella, Conan the Barbarian (and Destroyer), Dick Tracy, Doc Savage, Josie and the Pussycats, Men in Black (1 & 2), Swamp Thing, Sheena, and TMNT (1 - 3), all of which I've seen. However, I also forgot about Mystery Men and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, neither of which I've seen. Dammit. Now I guess I have to go rent them.

When it rains, it pours

2005-02-07T12:56:00.000-08:00

Oh yeah, I'm having a good day. Did you know that raviolis can explode? Really, they can. This was discovered just a short while ago. Fortunately, no one was injured, as the microwave contained most of the explosive force. Now I'm wondering if putting the microwave outside to let the rain wash it out would be the easiest solution. Unless anyone wants a microwave with a cool red interior . . .

Even better than washing the car

2005-02-07T09:09:00.000-08:00

Hmph. Seems to never fail. We get a few days of nice, sunny weather here, so I turn the sprinkler timer back on . . . and it rains. I kid you not, every time I set the lawn sprinklers to automatic, it rains. And you can bet your bottom dollar that (no matter what the weather report says) if I turn them off, it'll be nice and sunny for the next week at least . . . but if I leave them on, it'll keep raining.

The Big Day

2005-02-06T09:44:00.000-08:00

Well, it's here. The day every red-blooded, apple-pie loving American looks forward to each and every year. Anticipation grows from even before the first huddle of the season. Grocery store shelves are now devoid of beer, pork rinds, potatoe chips and popcorn. Men sit down with their sons and fathers, or friends and other family members. It is a day of rejoicing . . . of bonding . . . of sorrow and disappointment for some.

So, in just a few short hours, I (like most every other true American) will sit down in front of a TV to view the biggest event of the year (aside from the Daytona 500, that is). And it is my sincerest hope that we all enjoy the spectacular Super Bowl Commercials as much as in past years.

No good deed goes unpunished

2005-02-04T16:27:00.000-08:00

Eeeesh . . . can you believe it? Two teenage girls decide to do something nice for their neighbors. No special reason. Give the neighbors some home made cookies just for the heck of it. Something that's not common enough in this country (the "doing something nice just because" part--we probably have way too many cookies), and what's their reward? A lawsuit. Personally, I think these girls should be applauded for their consideration and good deed, instead of forced to pay the medical bills of a hypersensitive paranoid twit.

A new record!

2005-02-03T16:39:00.000-08:00

My dog actually stayed clean for at least one full minute after his bath today! I swear that's gotta be a record for him. Of course, he was so proud of himself, he promptly found the biggest pile of dirt in the yard and rolled around in it. Y'know, the least he could have done was waited until I had changed into some dry clothes (funny how more water ends up on the dog owner than on the dog receiving the bath, ain't it?).

Mmmm...warmth

2005-02-02T10:57:00.000-08:00

My new slippers finally arrived yesterday. Whoo-hoo! My tootsie toes shall never freeze again. And of course they came just in time, too. Afterall, we all know how cold California Springtime is.

Warm tootsie-toes

Oh no! Now I gotta clean up!

2005-02-01T10:07:00.000-08:00

Welcome all of you from Michele's Scavenger Hunt. Though I really wish she had called ahead and let me know you were coming today, so I had time to clean up this mess! lol

Now off I go to see if I can figure out my own clue . . .

What State?

2005-02-01T08:36:00.000-08:00

Thought I'd do something really special for my 100th post to this blog (Holy guacamole! Have I really had enough to babble about for 100 posts!?! That's almost as amazing as the fact I've had over 2,000 visitors--never would've expected that ). But this was the best I could come up with on short notice. This is kinda neat, though nothing spectacular. Here's a graphic of all the States I've visitted (at least, ones I remember).

create your own visited states map

Those who forget the past . . .

2005-01-31T07:20:00.000-08:00

And here I was SSSOOOO proud of myself for going a whole week without any political garbage. Then, Bush has to go and delcare the Iraqi elections a "resounding success" before they're even over. I would think that he would have learned from his "Mission Accomplished" mistake. Aren't straight-talking-Texans like himself familiar with the old saying "Don't count your chickens before they're hatched"?

Even though the polls closed, there are still many things that could go wrong with the elections. Heck, look at all the problems vote tampering accusations have caused in the last 2 Presidential elections here! Couple that with the rediculous "inconsistencies" in the Afghan election, and does anyone honestly think the results of this election aren't going to be challenged? Plus, while I have no doubt that such a thing won't be allowed to happen, I just can't help but wonder: What if the winner of the election is someone the US really doesn't want in power in Iraq? What if whoever is elected tells the US to pull out? We've already publicly stated that we will pull our military out if asked to do so. So what happens if the newly elected gov't does exactly that? Especially since we've also already announced that we'll be there at least through 2006.

Bush is really getting ahead of himself (again). He's so incredibly eager to declare victory that he's not actually looking at reality. And he's just asking for something to occur that will require him to backpedal (again) and make up excuses (lies) to cover his arse, all the while making himself and our country look like foolish blowhards.

The Great Waffler

2005-01-30T09:57:00.000-08:00

Apparently my dog is in one of his waffle* moods this morning. Or maybe it's one of his snit moods. I'm not entirely sure. All I know is that he can't seem to make up his mind whether he wants in or out. He'll knock at the back door (yes, my dog actually knocks at doors--instead of barking, like normal dogs, he will tap twice on the door with his left front paw) to go out. So, I'll go open the door and let him into the back yard. And about 3 seconds after I close the door, he'll knock to get back in. And of course, when I open the door and give him a stern look, he prances on into the house like it's no big deal. Just to give you an idea of how frequently he's doing this, I have had to get up in order to let him in or out 4 times since starting to type this entry.

Now, I know what you're thinking. Why continue to indulge the little pest? Put him out and let him stay out. Well, then he'll start making noise. And it's not barking . . . he'll start whining. And crying. And generally make the neighbors believe that I'm torturing him. And if I still don't attend to his needs, he'll start jumping against the door. The sliding glass door. So anyway, yeah, I'm a pushover. I wonder how much of a door mat I'll become if I ever have kids. BTW, add 2 more to the "get up to open the door" list since beginning to type this.

*I use the term "waffling" a lot, but never could figure how it came about. I mean, I know what a waffle is, but how it relates describing a "flip-flop" mind set, I don't know. Anyone care to elaborate?

Oh, 1 more door opening.

Now ain't she the coolest?

2005-01-29T15:56:00.000-08:00

Flirt, from Flirt in a Skirt is going to donate $1 for each comment made on her blog on Monday, January 31, to charity. And the charity will be chosen by the commenters. So, everyone head on over there Monday and rack up that donation amount! Mmmkay?

Who spiked my beer?

2005-01-29T13:59:00.000-08:00

I had a beer with lunch today. That's actually unusual for me, btw. I'm not a big drinker. But I can handle my beer. And enjoy "harder" stuff every now and again. The only reason I had the one beer was because there's nothing else to drink in the house except water. And my Brita's broken. And trust me, drinking Salinas tap water is not going to happen. Anywho, my point is, I got buzzed. From one beer. One frickin' beer! How in the hell did that happen? And I'm serious . . . I can actually feel the buzz. Enough to where I don't feel comfortable getting behind the wheel. Usually takes a couple shots for me to feel like this. Maybe it was the combo of not eating all morning, then having the one beer with my pizza. I dunno. But if I find out one of you yay-hoos spiked my beer, I'm gonna be mildly irritated.

Update: Yes, I realize I was just at the grocery store yesterday, as per yesterday's entry. But I was so distracted by getting the last It's-It that I apparently forgot to purchse milk. And yes, I realize it was probably karma pay back for rubbing it in y'all's noses. But I stand by my "neener neener".

Last one

2005-01-28T21:06:00.000-08:00

Had to swing by the grocery store today anyhow, and I had this strange desire for It's-It (gee, I wonder why). Well, I wander over to the ice cream section and find that they only have one box left. I got the last one they had. The last one! Do you have any idea what that means? What the implications are? I can now say "Neener, neener, neener! I have a box of It's-It and yooouuu dooo-ooon't!" to all y'all poor lost souls who've never heard of them. Muahahahahaha

Update: I found out that It's-It have their own website (who woulda guessed in this day and age?) for those who don't know what they are.

It's what?

2005-01-28T07:35:00.000-08:00

I happened to mention to an Internet friend the other day how much I liked It's-It ice creams. They used to be our "special treats" as kids growing up. Especially any time we went up to The City (SF--where they originated). She responded with "WTF is an It's-It?!" Neither she nor any of her friends had ever heard of them. And it got me to wondering, since she lives in Florida, was it possible that these were a semi-local only treat? Nah, can't be. I mean, they sell the things in Albertson's, Safeway and just about every other grocery chain I can think of for crying out loud. They gotta be available nation-wide, right? So I'm curious, how many of you are familiar with these wonderfully delectible treats? Are they available all accross the US, or are we here in California just special?

The 100

2005-01-27T17:09:00.000-08:00

Okay, so as I've been randomly wandering through various blogs via BlogExplosion and the Blogger Navbar, as well as participating in Michele's scavenger hunt, I've noticed an awefull lot of folks have a "100 things you really didn't want to know about me but now that you've seen you'll never be able to purge them from your memory" list. Seems to be a common theme among bloggers (yeah, I figured that out all on my own--aren't you impressed?). So, in order to make my blog even more incredibly unique and different, I've added one as well. It's also available via the link near my profile on the right. Since I didn't want it to appear in the current entries (don't ask why, I'm just anal that way), I backdated it so it's on the March archive. Not sure why I'm explaining all this, rather than just post the link, but I tend to babble (you mean you haven't noticed that about me yet!?!)

How a nomad brain works

2005-01-26T05:04:00.000-08:00

Or, rather, imitates working. The forthcoming described events should give you some idea of the kinds of trials & tribulations I deal with every day as the owner of a nomad brain. It demonstrates a typical "train of thought" (which has been known to follow tracks from San Francisco to Honolulu via Gibralter) and why I do some of the things I do. And yeah, it's going to ramble a lot

About 2 months ago my sister moved into a new house. So, of course I got guilted into helping with the move. And of course, as with any time I'm involved with moving furniture and/or heavy objects, blood was drawn. Not much blood, mind you. I was actually impressed with the lack of severity. Really, it was just a scratch. It tried to bleed, but not very hard. Didn't even warrant a bandaid. But somehow it decided to become a scar. Yes, a scar. Here we are, 2 months later, and it's still visible. Which is amazing and perplexing. But it got me to thinking about various incidents of, shall we say, cranial ineptitude in my life that should have resulting in scars but didn't. Car cigarette lighters ("Is it hot?"); pocket knives ("Is this sharp?"); hot lawn mower mufflers ("I probably shouldn't pick this up bare handed..."); hiking excursions ("Why waste my time climbing down this drop when I can just jump?"); bicycles ("Betcha I can jump more garbage cans on my 10-speed than you can!"); and of course, all those combat frisbee laughs.

And that got me to wondering if I still had my old combat frisbee. Now, a combat frisbee isn't like your ordinary frisbee. Obviously, it has to be rather durable, since it needs to survive multiple impacts with nomad heads, pavement, walls, cars, and even the occassional police/security officer. But of course, it has to be lighter than, say, granite. Metal frisbees tend to dent easily. Plus, it's a game, so you don't really want to cause permanent injury to your friends or the occassional police/security officer. Since being able to see your target takes some of the fun out of combat frisbee, it's best played at about 2:00 am. So of course, the frisbee has to be glow in the dark, otherwise it might get lost. Plus, it's just so cool have a glowing green streak of light get flung past your head when everything is pitch dark.

Well, I didn't give it a second thought, since it's been years since I last saw that frisbee. At least, the second thought didn't hit me until about 1:00 this morning. That's when my nomad brain finally processed the question ("Do I still have that frisbee?") and decided to seek the answer. So yeah, my body relunctantly spent 3 hours at an ungodly hour of the morning searching my house for a frisbee. Which, I'm happy to report, I actually found. So, glow in the dark frisbee in hand, looking out the window at the darkness of 4:00 am, I just had to go outside and give it a few flings, for old time's sake. Yeah . . . playing frisbee, by myself, at 4:00 in the morning. Aren't you jealous?

And of course, now I'm wondering how many scratches I'll get when I fall off the roof trying to retrieve my combat frisbee in the rain. It really is amazing I don't have more scars.

Fuzzy picking

2005-01-25T18:05:00.000-08:00

As you may have noticed, I've been experimenting with facial hair lately. Actually, unless you personally know me, or had a recent out of body experience into my home (in which case, stop messing with my cell phone!), I suppose you wouldn't have noticed. Anyhow, I've contemplated growing a goatee for a few years, and finally opted to give it a go. So, 3 weeks into the experiment, I find myself rather constantly scratching my chin and pulling at the hairs. It doesn't itch, it's just different. I suppose it might be considered a healthier (or at least safer) neurotic compulsion than playing with knives and/or lighters.

Too long

2005-01-24T18:20:00.000-08:00

Today was "yard work day". Actually, I didn't get as much done as I had planned, mostly due to an unexpected bought of laziness. But, as I was out there pulling various weeds, grasses and undesirable big leafy green things that annoy me but can't seem to get rid of (which reminds me, if anyone knows how to obliterate an infestation of "elephant ear" plants, let me know . . . I've tried digging every scrap of root I can find, and dousing them with RoundUp, but it hasn't slowed them down), and I come accross several colonies of worms. I don't think they were true nightcrawlers, but similar. Anywho, it reminded me that it's been entirely too long since I last went fishing. Months. Several months. Actually, I don't even recall precisely when my last fishing expedition was. So yeah, I think I'm going to have to do some of that next weekend. Or maybe even sneak off during the week. Guess I'll have to get a license soon, then . . .

Incomming!!!!

2005-01-24T07:34:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I've noticed a rather large influx of traffic hitting my blog in the last few days. I'm not complaining, mind you. Heck, the whole point of a blog is to share one's thoughts with the world. But it's got me curious about why the sudden influx and where it's all coming from. So, if you folks would do me a little favor, let me know how you came to be here ("here" being this blog, not how you came into existance--your parents' private lives and indulgences are their own business). If it was through a web search, what engine and what were you looking for? If it was a referral, from who/where? Was it through BlogExplosion? or the "Next Blog" link at the upper right? And of course, let me know what you think of things here. Thanks

We are not alone

2005-01-23T09:21:00.000-08:00

My cell phone plays these annoying little tunes when it turns on or off. Honestly, it's part of the reason I never turn it off. The sounds just annoy me. But I haven't figured out how to turn them off yet. Anywho, Friday night it dawned on me that I hadn't charged the phone in a while, and should probably do that the next day. Me being me, I forgot. So it didn't surprise me yesterday afternoon when, from another room in the house, I heard the annoying little tune of the phone shutting off. So, I went and got the phone, along with the charger, with the intent of (obviously) recharging the battery. But then I noticed something. The phone was turned on. And the battery was showing a half charge. Just for the heck of it, I turned it off, then back on. And it dawned on me that the tunes I heard were the ones it plays when turning on, not off like I had thought. So, apparently the phone had shut itself off for absolutely no reason without my noticing (not surprising, since there've been a couple times when I left the house without it), then mysteriously turned itself back on!

Shortly after moving into my house some 5+ years ago, my dog (who never barks) started growling and barking at thin air in the front room one day. Something really had his hackles up, but I couldn't figure out what. My sister claimed my house was haunted, but I just laughed it off. Now, after years of unexplained noises, items mysteriously disappearing only to reappear somewhere I know I wouldn't have put them, and now the cell phone incident, I'm not laughing things off. Starting to think maybe I should hire an exorcist . . . or maybe just sell the house & let the next owner deal with it.

For the time being, I think I'm going to call the ghost George, just because George is a good name for a ghost. So nobody tell George I'm looking to evict him. Cuz then he might go all poltergeist on me, or hire a hit ghost.

Shouldn't all criminals be forewarned?

2005-01-22T08:35:00.000-08:00

Now doesn't it just make absolute, positive, logical sense to announce ahead of time that you're going to arrest someone? Maybe it's so that Chalabi will be a stand-up guy and make things easy on them by standing still and waiting for the police to show up and arrest him. I mean, that's what he's done every other time, right? Like when he was charged with (and convicted of) fraud in Jordan. Oh wait, he fled the country and has spent the last 13 years dodging the law on that. Okay, like when he was charged with counterfitting and passing highly classified US secrets to Iran. Oh wait, he fled the country on that one, too. I'm actually rather curious why it is we (the US) have not arrested him at this point, since he's back in Iraq, on the governing council, running for President in the Jan 30 elections and generally being publicly available. I mean, as far as I know, the espionage charges (leaking secrets to Iran, providing outright lies to US intelligence leading up to the invasion) and embezzlement (of millions of US taxpayer dollars) were never resolved. But regardless, now that Iraq's defense minister has done the public the courtesy of announcing ahead of time that Chalabi is going to be arrested, who's going to be surprised when Chalabi flees Iraq? Not me. Will be rather interesting to see where he flees to, though.

Rediculous!

2005-01-21T09:01:00.000-08:00

NASCAR has taken their stupidity to new heights. The whole "Chase for the Championship" introduced last year was lame enough, but now they're effectively doing away with qualifying. It used to be that if you weren't fast enough in qualifying to make the race, you didn't race. Simple as that. Then they started in with the provisionals so that certain "fans" wouldn't be disappointed if their driver didn't make the race (and one must seriously question how much of a fan they are of the sport if they want the rules changed so that their driver, who isn't good enough to make the race on speed, isn't left out). Then they kept expanding the number of provisionals in each race . . . last year I believe there were 7 provisional spots. Out of a field of 43, that's a pretty big chunk of competitors who were getting into the race even though they didn't qualify on speed. And now here NASCAR is changing things once again to garuntee the top 35 teams (from the previous season) will make the Daytona 500. Who cares if they're 10 mph slower than the next slowest car in qualifying? Who cares if they come in dead last in the qualifyer race? Gotta have them in the "big show" so the "fans" won't be disappointed. Heck, why don't they just award the trophy to whoever wins the popularity contest? Who needs or wants actual racing anyhow?

Y'know, next month I'm going to be at the Daytona 500 for the first time, and I can garuntee it'll be the last Cup event I ever attend. Heck, once Rusty retires at the end of this season, I probably won't watch another Cup race. NASCAR is really screwing the pooch, and I'm not putting up with it.

Bloated ego

2005-01-20T15:40:00.000-08:00

I had no intention of watching the Presidential Innaugeration at all. It's all just a bunch of pomp & circumstance and waste of taxpayer money, IMO. But, I did actually catch about 5 minutes of things by accident. And I found it utterly amazing how large Bush's ego has gotten. Don't get me wrong . . . I've known he was an egomaniac ever since he claimed it was God's will that he be President after September 11. But, there he was on TV, sitting with his family. And after apparently making the 100,000 or so people gathered there wait in the cold for several hours beyond the scheduled start time, Bush was (according to reporters) getting impatient that the parade hadn't started. So, I guess he wasn't so impatient that he wanted to get to things on time . . . nah, it's okay that he's a couple hours late. But how dare they keep him waiting! I guess he expected everyone to stand in the "ready" position, waiting anxiously for his overdue arrival so that they could start on a moment's notice.

Now, granted, it is not uncommon for Presidents to be late for this sort of thing. When my brother's high school band went back east for Clinton's innaugeration, it was a similar deal. They waited for a few hours in the cold as well. But my point is, Clinton didn't get impatient about it. At least, not to the point where it was obvious that he was getting ancey. Maybe if Bush wants things to move along quickly and according to schedule, he should make an effort to keep to the schedule!

Upchuck Airlines?

2005-01-20T07:03:00.000-08:00

So, wait a second. There's concern about the "drinking" water in airplane lavatories. Um, how many people actually go into an airplane bathroom so they can drink out of the tap? If you get thirsty, that's what the beverage service is for . . . they even have bottled water.

Linux bash

2005-01-19T09:52:00.000-08:00

I'm not really anti-Linux. Actually, I like it. But I do thoroughly enjoy this, even if some folks view it as Linux bashing. It's still fun.

Of course, if you're not weak of stomach, and feeling particularly viscious, you might try this version instead.

Bye bye pal

2005-01-17T17:41:00.000-08:00

Had to put the family dog to sleep today. Panda was a touch over 15 years old (pretty darn good for such a big dog), and unfortunately it was just "that time". He's been in for surgery a couple times recently for cancerous lumps, was at the point where he couldn't hardly even get up, and when he did get up he couldn't hardly walk more than a few feet.

The fluffy Panda Bear

He was a good dog, lead a good and loving life. He was a friend, and I'm going to miss him.

Family ties

2005-01-16T20:01:00.000-08:00

Ah, yes. There's nothing like giving up your weekend so you can drive 3 1/2 hours in order to stand around in a Lowe's store while your sister decides she really has absolutely no fracking idea what kind of closet organizer she wants, despite the fact that she was supposed to have one picked out a month ago, since installing said closet organizer is the whole reason you're there in the first place. Then, following it up spending most of the day hanging out with your trailer trash side of the family before making the 3 1/2 hour return trip. Isn't that exactly how everyone wants to spend their weekends?

Dufus me

2005-01-14T16:05:00.000-08:00

Yeah, so I guess I should have verified that the Serenity trailer really was opening with Elektra today. Turns out it's been pushed back to May. Grumblegrumblegrumble. Oh well. The movie was still worth it. Fun ride.

Aliases

2005-01-14T09:31:00.000-08:00

I've pretty much been a fan of Alias since the premier episode. About the only time I "strayed" was during the whole Rambaldi thing . . . just got too mystic & supernatural for my tastes. So, anyway, I was understandably in anticipation when the new season started a couple weeks ago. But I gotta say, I was a bit disappointed. And after this past Wednesday's episode, even more so. The opening scene of the season premier was done simply to have Jennifer Garner strut around in sexy lingerie. Now don't get me wrong . . . seeing Jennifer Garner strut around in sexy lingerie is a pleasant thing. But that's not the reason I enjoy the show (well, okay, not the main reason). I like the show because of the quality acting, intriguing story, and cool action. And when they start putting more of an emphasis on Ms. Garner's body than on the story, it just cheapens the whole show. And in this case, that's all it was. There was no need for the opening sequence. None. Especially since they showed it again (well, portions of it) later in the show. They easily could have opened with the chase sequence that followed. Actually, that would have been a better opening, from a story stand-point.

The other problem I've got with the new season so far is that it has now been 2 episodes in a row where Sydney (Garner's character) is captured, then rescued by her sister. I have a big problem with the capture bits, because Syd is a kick-ass, and they gloss over the capture. In both cases, she is "instantly" captured, as if she didn't even put up a fight, but the capture itself isn't shown. I say "instantly" because in both cases help was on-scene within moments, so her entire capture and spiritting away must have been accomplished within a minute or two. Then there's the whole Nadia issue. From what I recall, Nadia (Syd's half-sister) is brand new to the spy world. Yet she's apparently got all the skills necessary to be a top-notch agent and even save the life of her sister, who has years of experience and training . . . twice in a row! I have a feeling that the producers are doing this because they plan on having both Syd and Nadia strutting around in skimpy, sexy outfits on a frequent basis, in order to draw more of the sex-craved ogglers. Hopefully, the series will get back to its roots, and focus on solid, intriguing story lines.

And, speaking of Ms. Garner, Elektra opens today. Gonna have to go see it. Originally, I figured this would be a DVD rental for me, since I couldn't even sit through an entire viewing of Daredevil. But, since the Serenity trailer is supposed to be premiering with it, I guess I'll just have to find my way to a theater today.

Political Correctness

2005-01-13T09:02:00.000-08:00

Eeesh . . . PC has really gotten out of hand. When people are arrested for telling jokes, things have gone too far. The whole point of the "freedom of speech" in the First Amendment was to protect an individual's right to say things someone else may not like. These two men were not threatening anyone. They were not causing a situation that fostered danger (i.e., the yelling "fire" in a crowded room argument). They were telling lawyer jokes, that's it. And now they're up on criminal charges. I got news, folks . . . just about every joke ever told is offensive to somebody out there. Does that mean that we should declare joke-telling illegal, to protect everyone's feelings?

And if this isn't a case of oversensitivity, I'm not sure what is. Folks, it was a costume party for crying out loud! Prince Harry wore a costume for the party. It's not like he was participating in a neo-Nazi parade, or spouting Nazi propaganda. What the hell is so "offensive" about a kid wearing a Nazi costume to a costume party? At the time of this writing, the CNN poll shows that 69% found it "offensive" . . . to those 69%, I say get a life and learn not to be so overly sensitive about such non-issues.

Why dogs are better than cats

2005-01-13T07:05:00.000-08:00

This is like reason 10,463 why dogs rule and cats drool. Betcha'd never see a cat do something like this.

It's all so clear

2005-01-12T12:42:00.000-08:00

So, let me get the gist of this straight:

After a complete search, we've discovered that Iraq had no WMDs. They had no stockpiles. They had no capacity to manufacture them. They had no plan in place to resume building WMDs should sanctions be lifted. And any informal plans they may have had were "primarily for defense against Iran." So, given that Iraq wasn't a threat to the US (something most everyone except the US and UK agreed on), and that our "reason" for attacking Iraq was "pre-emptive self defense", and our gov't consistently defends Israel's actions with the "they have a right to protect themselves" argument, why is it that Bush is still claiming we were justified in invading Iraq? Apparently (according to the Bush Administration), we have the right to kick the crap out of anyone we want in the name of "self defense" even when they don't pose a threat at all, and our allies have the right to commit human rights violations and massacres in order to "defend themselves", but anyone else who wants to build weapons like ours in order to defend themselves is a "threat to the world" and needs to be obliterated. Not to mention the various times Bush outright lied (where are the cries for impeachment from the moral right-wingers?) when he claimed WMDs had been found, or that evidence of WMD production capability was found, when in fact according to our own investigators, no such evidence exists. And people wonder why the Administration is so loathed . . .

Llama llama duck!

2005-01-11T13:08:00.000-08:00

Hehehe . . . llama's is cool. Don't even try this without sound.

I just don't get it

2005-01-09T10:55:00.000-08:00

Why do some women think they're "in love" with guys who treat them like crap? You hear about it all the time. See it on talk shows, or on COPS. Read about it in the paper. And probably know one or two personally. My friend Liz is a perfect example. She's a truly beautifull young woman . . . incredibly pretty, usually smiling, smart as a whip, caring, an absolute sweetheart. But her boyfriend's a jerk. She's convinced that she's completely and utterly in love with him, and that he loves her too. But I don't understand how she can believe that. He's stated outright (to her and others) that they should both continue seeing other people--supposedly so they'll appreciate each other more [gag!]. I've seen him publicly bring her to tears, and then still not let up and keep arguing. And usually the argument in question comes about because of his own selfishness. When she's feeling down, or ill, he's nowhere to be found--off having fun with his friends. I and others have talked with her about things. But she's just convinced that we're all wrong and simply "don't understand" his love for her. I just hope she comes to her senses before making a huge mistake like letting him get her pregnant or something. But in the meantime, I just don't understand why she puts up with him.

Matrix Revoltings

2005-01-08T10:01:00.000-08:00

Way back when The Matrix came out, I was in awe. Plain and simple, it was a fabulous movie. Incredible action sequences, solid plotline, and just enough hint to get the viewer thinking philosophically. I saw it twice in the theaters (which is almost unheard of for me), and immediately bought it on DVD as soon as it was out. So, back when Matrix Reloaded hit theaters, I was really looking forward to another great movie. Unfortunately, for various reasons, I never made it to the box office for that one. And, of course, I didn't want to see Matrix Revolutions until I saw Reloaded. So, a few months back a friend of mine loaned me his Reloaded DVD. Wow, what a disappointment. Completely mindless action sequences designed entirely to "one up" the previous sequence; terrible "plot" (or, rather, what passed for a plot); numerous loopholes, contradictions and unanswered questions. All in all, a poor effort. Well, I figured it was about time I might as well rent Revolutions, just so I could say that I saw the whole trilogy. And wow, I had no idea it could have been worse than the second installment. The only portion of the movie that was even remotely fun was the APU scene . . . I'm even willing to overlook the incredibly lame-arse design of having a front-line, heavy armor unit with no front armor to protect the pilot. That sequence was just good fun. But that's it. No other redeaming qualities to that film at all. Really wish I had seen just the first one and left it at that. The Wachowski Brothers should be ashamed of ruining such a good thing.

Poster case

2005-01-07T07:49:00.000-08:00

Okay, now if this isn't a perfect example of a b.s. frivolous lawsuit, I don't know what it. Aitken has seen "Fear Factor" often, so he knows the show gets disgusting. But for some reason he decides that they were so out of line showing people eating pureed rats that he feels he's entitled to $2.5 million. He claims he's just "trying to send a message" and isn't interested in the money. What a load. The way you send a message like this is by turning off your TV . . . by sending your concerns to advertisers . . . by filing a complaint with the FCC. Filing a $2.5 million lawsuit means you want money, nothing more. He knew what to expect when he tuned into the show. He had the option of not watching it. And at most, his nausea and headache (from walking himself into a wall) is worth $10, if that. Not only should this case be thrown out, it is a prime example of a situation in which the plaintiff (Aitken) should be forced to pay any and all legal costs of the defandant (NBC/Fear Factor) because of the pure frivolity of the suit.

Double-speak

2005-01-06T08:23:00.000-08:00

From this article . . .

So, Gonzales says he's "sickened and outraged" by the torture photographs. Notice how he doesn't say he's outraged at the conduct of the soldiers, or the content of the pictures. He's outraged at the photos. Gonzales says he's "deeply committed to the rule of law", yet authored at least one memo to President Bush stating that the rule of law doesn't apply to prisoners in the War on Terror. Like others in the administration, Gonzales "absolutely [does] not" approve of torture. However, as has been demonstrated in the past, there's a wide variance on what the administration considers to be "torture" and what is just "acceptable interrogation tactics".

But, I think the most interesting & telling statement is his "explanation" of how his attitude will change if confirmed as Attorney General. Apparently, according to him, as White House Council his only concern when advising the President is to protect the White House, and serve its interests. As AG, however, he would have the "broader responsibility" of protecting all Americans. Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the White House's responsibility to serve the American public? So shouldn't any advisor to the President have the American public's concern & safety in mind at all times? Isn't it rather interesting that Gonzales says, essentially outright, that the White House's concern is the White House, and not America?

Just more political double-speak and b.s. Gonzales' only concern is facilitating President Bush's policies, no matter what the repercussions. And he's just saying what people want to hear (or, rather, something that resembles what they want to hear, without actually promising anything, so it's not technically a "lie").

Quote of the week

2005-01-05T10:33:00.000-08:00

"My toilet hurts. And my socks are wet."

Yes, there's a story behind it. But I'll just let the quote stand for itself.

Slip me something good

2005-01-04T19:05:00.000-08:00

I really need a pair of slippers. Actually, I need a pair that fits. I got 2 pair for Christmas, but they turned out to be the wrong size. Which is really annoying. Way too small. They're the same listed size as my hiking boots, but just way too annoyingly small. So, every morning, and even many evenings lately, my poor tootsie-toes are freezing, while 2 pair (TWO PAIRS!!) of slippers sit in their boxes unusable until I can get the receipts so I can exchange them. Yeah, slippers . . . need some.

Sensationalism at its finest

2005-01-03T12:13:00.000-08:00

So, the Feds announce that they think terrorists might use lasers to blind pilots during landings, even though by their own admission they have no evidence supporting the theory. And now the press is gobbling it up and reporting on it left and right. Apparently they seem to be overlooking the fact that morons have been doing this for several years--mostly it's jerkwaters who think it's a funny prank. And, of course, any stray light in the cockpit is immediately labelled as a "laser" and is assumed (by the press) to be a terrorist action. Who cares that there are perfectly reasonable explanations for stray light. Never mind the fact that any laser with a low enough diffusion to put a spot in the cockpit of a plane 1.5 - 2 miles away without lighting up the entire plane would be the size of a workshed (including generator) and cost a few tens of millions. Never mind the fact that even if someone could easily get their hands on a laser that was easily concealable/mobile, there's a pretty good chance that it's some morons or kids playing pranks after seeing the announcement about terrorists doing this. Never mind the fact that even if it were actual terrorists, they would have realized by now (after several years of trying with zero success) that it ain't working.

Just more sensationalism and hype designed to spread fear within our populace, so that more papers are sold and the government can hold a tighter grip in the name of "security".

Bliadhna mhath ur

2005-01-01T13:08:00.000-08:00

(That's "Happy New Year" for those of you who don't speak Gaelic)

In the New Year, may your right hand always be stretched out in friendship, but never in want.
~ Irish Toast ~

Rude awakening

2005-01-01T09:32:00.000-08:00

So, yeah . . . was up late last night (though not out as late as I wanted/planned--but that's not something I'm going to get into right now, as I'm just too friggin' pissed off about the reason), as I'm sure most of you were. And then, at 8 o'clock this morning, my wonderfull neighbor decides to wake up the neighborhood blasting mariachi music. Now personally I think this is pretty damn rude and disrespectfull on any Saturday morning. But to do it the morning after New Year's should be a hangable offense. Thank God I'm not hungover. Whatever happened to common courtesy in this country?

Repeat offense

2004-12-30T07:39:00.000-08:00

Got (among other things) seasons 1 & 2 of Sliders on DVD for Christmas. For those not familiar, it was a TV show aired in the mid- to late-90's about a group of 4 people who "slid" between alternate Earths, trying to find their way back home. The first 2 seasons were terrific. Early in the 3rd season, Professor Arturo (John Rhys-Davies) was killed off and replaced w/Maggie Beckett (Kari Wuhrer) to up the "sex appeal". The show started going down hill from there, and when the cute-as-a-button Sabrina Lloyd (as Wade Wells) left at the end of season 3 (when the show switched from Fox to Sci-Fi) things got even worse. I refuse to even acknowledge season 5 as being part of the same show, it was that lame.

Anyway, I happened to notice something about seasons 1 & 2 that I hadn't picked up on during the original airing. Watching the shows back-to-back as they were originally broadcast, I realized they weren't aired in chronological order. Apparently, even back then, Fox couldn't keep their meddling little hands out of the creators' and writers' way. The biggest example of this was the episode "Invasion", which ended as a cliffhanger and was supposed to finish of season 2. But it was aired several episodes before the end of the season, so after the cliffhanger there are several new episodes which had nothing to do with the Kromaggs. Rather confusing. So, they dink with Sliders, dump the show because the ratings aren't where they want them and tick off millions of fans. More recently, they did the same thing with Firefly (covered in a previous rant). And they screwed up Wonderfalls (again, as ranted about here), though at least they changed their M.O. on that one. I have no doubt they've done it other times as well, though can't recall what right now.

You'd think they'd learn by now. I mean, they took at least 3 fantabulous shows, screwed up the advertising, overruled the creators & writers, thoroughly screwed them up, then wondered why the ratings weren't where they wanted. Putzes.

Rain, rain go away!

2004-12-28T17:26:00.000-08:00

While I'm sure my new lawn is very happy to be getting the extra water, the cold and wet makes it rather difficult to get any yard work done. Not to mention hinders walking my dog. Bbboooooooooo rain!

Giddy with anticipation? Me?

2004-12-27T22:30:00.000-08:00

Very cool. Looks like Serenity is getting some really good reviews. Granted, quite a bit from folks like me who absolutely loved Firefly, but there's some good stuff being said by folks who never even heard of the show. Dang, I wish September would get here already

And on that note . . .

2004-12-23T09:21:00.000-08:00

Here's wishing each and every one of you a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS.

Civil Liberties?

2004-12-23T09:07:00.000-08:00

Why is it that certain individuals seem to interpret "seperation of Church and State" as "the State must be anti-Christian"? Take a look at Richard Blank's statements and actions here. The Polk County Commission voted to allow displays by any and all organizations (religious or not) on the lawn accross the street from the courthouse. The only condition is that they write a simple letter requesting permission. No fees. No stipulations on the content. Nothing. Yet here Blank is threatening a federal suit to remove only the manger scene. He's not concerned about the Zoroastrianism display. Not concerned that he and everyone else is allowed to put up displays promoting any other ideologies. He just wants the Christian one removed. Now, that's not enforcing "seperation of Church and State" (which, btw, was never intended by the Founding Fathers nor implemented in the Consitution--if you don't believe me, actually read the 1st Amendment sometime). Blank is nothing more than an anti-Christian bigot trying to use our legal system to beat down Christians. If the guy was complaining about all the displays, and wanted all of them removed, then I could believe he truly was seeking seperation of Church and State (even though he'd be misguided). But he's not . . . he's singling out the Christian one, and that's it.

Strange how some people go around crying "you're violating my rights!" while trying to take away and trample on the rights of others.

Cha-ching!

2004-12-22T08:27:00.000-08:00

Every time someone brings up the issue of gas price gouging, it is inevitable that some diluded individual laughs at the "conspiracy nuts" and states matter-of-factly that supply and demand is the only factor determining prices. They'll almost always use the "if there's collusion or gouging, give me names and places and dates as proof" statement, feeling that will put an end to it. But it never does. And why doesn't it? Because the "supply and demand" argument doesn't hold water either. Let's take a look at a couple pieces of information, shall we?

According to Reuters the national average price for a gallon of gas is 33 cents higher than it was a year ago (and this is after some seven straight weeks of price declines--the gap was much larger a month ago). Now, that equates to about an 18% increase in a year's time.

Now, in order for prices to rise in a purely supply/demand driven situation, either the supply must decrease or the demand must increase. That's really, really basic economics. So, which of these (or combination) has resulted in the 18% price increase? I am, unfortunately, unable to find hard numbers showing worldwide barrels per day of crude oil. However, every source I do find says that production is up in 2004, and Kuwait is even stating publicly that there is an overproduction. So, we know that a reduction is supply of crude isn't the culprit. So, could it be a shortage of refined gas? Nope. Refineries, while at their production limits, are pumping out virtually identical numbers as last year. So, we know there has not been any reduction in supply to account for an 18% price increase.

Well, then it must obviously be that we've encountered an 18% increase in demand over the past year, right? Various sources have reported an increase of anywhere from 3% to 5%. Overall demand for crude has increased a mere 7.5% over the past 2 years.

So, to all you "it's entirely supply and demand" believers . . . can one of you kindly explain how a 5% (being generous) increase in demand can account for an 18% increase in price?

Deep pockets

2004-12-21T18:15:00.000-08:00

Well gee, I guess Wal-Mart has gotten a little too big for its own good and has become a ripe target for frivilous lawsuits. I read about this one a few days ago, and wasn't sure if I should laugh, or be thoroughly disgusted with our society. What ever happened to personal responsibility? Or parental responsibility? It is not Wal-Mart's responsibility, duty or obligation to screen each and every song on each and every CD for "objectionable" material. Wal-Mart's policy is to not sell albums which have a parental advisory on them. If such a label isn't put on, it's not their fault. They aren't the ones who put the labels there, or remove them, or determine the criteria for them. If you're so concerned about the music your kids listen to, take it upon yourself to screen the album--you know, like a good parent is supposed to do. But, our society (specifically, our legal system) seems to expect everyone else to be perfect, not make mistakes, and do our work for us. When something doesn't go our way, it must be someone else's fault.

Then, today, I happen accross this. Once again, why is it Wal-Mart's responsibility to ascertain every detail of a person's history before selling them something? Don't get me wrong, I fully support background checks for firearm purchases. But to say that Wal-Mart "should have known" about this girl's psychological problems is rediculous. If anything, Ms. Bracy herself (the girl's mom) should have known about her daughter's problems and taken a more active role in protecting/supporting her. A retailer is not allowed (and rightfully so) to delve into a customer's personal medical records, so they had no way of knowing about Ms. Stewart's psychological problems if she chose to lie on the application. But again, it gets down to the "when something bad happens, it must be someone else's fault" mentality . . . and of course, it must be the fault of someone with deep pockets, so we can sue the bejeezes out of 'em.

Personally, I wish more of these types of cases would get thrown out of court and the plaintiffs forced to pay legal fees due to the absolute absurdity of the suit. And/or start debarring or punishing the lawyers that repeatedly represent moronic cases. Maybe then we'd see a reduction in this kind of garbage.

Note: I'm not even a big fan of Wal-Mart, and only shop there when absolutely necessary. Their employment record and detrimental effect on smaller local businesses doesn't sit well with me. But that shouldn't make them targets for b.s. lawsuits and idiotic complaints.

Am I missing something?

2004-12-21T07:52:00.000-08:00

I'm by no means a legal expert, and have never been put in this situation, but it seems to me that Snipes would welcome a DNA test, not fight to supress it. I mean, if a woman whome I had never met claimed I was her child's father, I sure as shooting wouldn't oppose a DNA test--it would prove her case a categorical lie. And it's not like the test would cost Snipes any money, nor a huge amount of his time (just go on down to the office, they take a swab from your mouth--that's it). By fighting a DNA test, Snipes is (at the minimum) giving the impression that he believes there's the possibility he is the father. That, of course, implies that he's straight up lying about never meeting the woman. It also implies that he was at the mentioned crack house, or frequented/frequents crack houses. It seems to me the more logical approach--if his version is actually true--would be to take the DNA test, prove the woman a liar, and put the situation behind him. By fighting, it's going to drag it out, give the public a possibly false impression of him (i.e., that he's a lying, crack addict, dead beat dad). Then again, he's probably doing it based solely on his lawyer's advice, who of course will profit much more in a prolonged fight than if it's nipped in the bud right away.

Homecoming

2004-12-20T17:06:00.000-08:00

So, way back in October I had some folks come out to put in a sprinkler system and new sod in my front & back yards. Trust me, it was necessary. The weeds were knee high or taller, and the lawnmower flat out refused to do anything in the back yard. Anywho, they started work in early October, and were supposed to be done just before I left on my Colorado trip. Since they were going to be doing a bunch of work in the back, I obviously had to arrange for other accommodations for my dog. Figured it would all work out fine having him stay at my folks' house, since he'd be staying there while I went vacationing anyhow. Well, due to weather and other issues, things took a little longer than expected. And, well, upshot is that the puppy dog finally got to come home today. Very happy day . . . the place didn't seem the same without him.

Choo-choo

2004-12-19T08:53:00.000-08:00

A friend of mine spends a fair shake of his weekend time volunteering over at the Niles Canyon Railyard. So, after hearing him hype it up for months, another friend and I took a trip on up there to check things out. Pretty darn cool. Basically, they (meaning the entire volunteer group) spend their time rebuilding/restoring old trains.

No. 2 engine is more put together than No. 3

They work on not only the engines, but the cars as well, and operate an actual functioning rail line. They're even working to extend the line in various places. Yes, you can ride the trains--though only the ones that are completely refurbished, of course. As a matter of fact, this time of year, they run their "Train of lights", which is a holiday decorated train with both standard, covered/enclosed passenger cars as well as open air seats. They were already sold out, so we didn't get to ride, but it was still a pretty sight.

The dining car is going to look totally awesome when done!

As you can see, they've got a lot of work to do, but are coming along nicely. And of course, being the enthusiasts they are (translation: a little off center in the mental health area ) once they finish with one project they just move on to another. And, as you can also see, it's more than just welding, cutting, engine work, etc. The carpentry they're doing in the dining car is really impressive!

Anywho, check 'em out if you get the chance. Not sure how much tourism they allow/want in the work areas, but the completed trains and information is worth the trip. Really neat place.

Grumpified Nomad

2004-12-17T08:24:00.000-08:00

There I am, sound asleep, when I am rather rudely jolted awake by a ringing phone at around 6:45 am. Since I've been receiving an inordinate number of hang-up calls in recent weeks, I am disinclined to move my bod from the warm, comfy embrace of the covers. So, the answering machine kicks in, does it's little greeting, and beeps. From my room, I can barely hear the caller . . . not enough to understand what they're saying, but it's audible. And it's then that my mind says "Shit, that sounds like my dad." Now, if my dad's calling at 6:45 am it's got to be for something important. I'm talking emergency here. All kinds of bad scenarios start popping into my head. Did something happen to mom? To my uncle? To my dog (who's staying with my folks while I have new sod laid in the yard)? To the family dog (who was recently diagnosed with cancer)? To their house? Understandably, at this point, I'm moving out of bed pretty fast, and get to the kitchen just after the caller hangs up. So, I hit the answering machine (twice, actually--I missed the button the first time, since I'm not terribly coordinated at 6:45 am, as further evidenced by the "toe vs. door frame" incident which occurred leaving my room) and listen to the message. And wouldn't you know it . . . it was some jerk off telemarketer! Some dingleberried smeghead from American Intercontinental University wanting to sell me their on-line degree program. Yeah, like I'm really going to pay thousands of dollars to a "university" that wakes me up from a sound sleep to give me a sales pitch at six-fricking-forty-five in the morning! Really shows what kind of quality institution they run. So yeah, my grumpiness levels are going to be pretty darn high today.

Blank stare

2004-12-16T17:48:00.000-08:00

Well, I've got this strange urge to blog something. But have absolutely no idea what. It's a strange sensation, really. This nagging feeling and desire to sit down and write, but the only thing that comes to mind when I actually do so is "duh, hmmm". I'm not even sure why I have this urge . . . it's not like I've traditionally had this habit of blogging every single day. Yet here I sit, typing away about absolutely nothing. Strange. Maybe it has something to do with me recently thinking about picking up writing again. It's been a long time since I tried my hand at some prose. Dunno. But I imagine anyone reading this is feeling something similar. Afterall, why else would you be sitting through this drivel if you didn't have some kind of undeniable, irresistable urge to read a blog, even though nothing of interest had been posted. I suppose it's somewhat like flipping through the channels on the TV and finally settling on watching the same re-run of some Step by Step episode you've seen a thousand times before, just because there's nothing else on but you can't seem to tear yourself away from the set . . . not that I've ever done that, mind you.

I don't wanna wait!

2004-12-15T22:16:00.000-08:00

Wouldn't you know it. I get all happy, happy, joy, joy feelings thinking about how close April is, and then I find out that Serenity's release date has been pushed back to September 30. No doubt it'll be worth the wait, but dagnabbit! I want to see it now.

Hi Everybody!!

2004-12-14T11:43:00.000-08:00

Over the weekend, while taking a gander at the statistics for this blog, I noticed a rather large influx of hits originating from my former employer's domain. This unusual source of traffic, along with "coincidentally" receiving more than one e-mail on the same topic from multiple new readers (in and out of that company) draws me to the inevitable conclusion that the two are related. Whether all the hits are being generated from the same little girl and her immediate co-workers, or if the hits are from a broader base at the company, I'm not entirely sure.

Anywho, in case at least some of that traffic is from folks I got along with over there (which would actually be most of the employees), but haven't talked to in a while--Hiya! How're things going? Feel free to drop me a line and catch up!

The right thing?

2004-12-14T10:53:00.000-08:00

So, the jury is in on the Scott Peterson case, and they've recommended death. Now, in general I've got mixed feelings on State Sanctioned Executions (yeah, I've also got issues with terms like "Death Penalty" or "Capital Punishment"--a penalty is designed to teach a lesson, and someone can't learn from a punishment that kills them). On the one hand, there are some people who commit crimes so heinous that it demonstrates an inability to function in a civilized society. These people need to be permanently removed from the population for the good of society. And the only way to fully ensure that they will never again be re-entered into the populace, nor influence others into immitating their behavior, is to execute them. People like Charles Manson and Jeffrey Dahmer are shining examples of this. And, IMO, anyone capable of murdering an 8-month pregnant woman and dumping her body in the ocean is a fairly decent example of this as well . . . especially if that person was the woman's husband.

On the other hand, the best argument against execution as far as I'm concerned is "what if we're wrong?" There have been several instances in the past where people previously condemned to death were later proven to be innocent of the crime. While there is no way we (as society) would be able to give them back 10, 20 or more years of their life, it would at least allow them the opportunity to pick up the pieces and continue on with their life, should a mistake have been made. Execution does not allow for that possibility.

Now, deep down, I do believe that Scott Peterson is the perpetrator of this heinous crime. But that's just what my gut and heart says, based entirely on circumstantial evidence. I am unable to shrug off the posibility that the wrong man has been condemned. If there had been hard evidence that he was guilty, then I'd absolutely agree with the jury's recommendation. But no hard evidence exists (at least, none that we the public have been made aware of). And while I firmly believe he's guilty, that's all it is: belief, not irrefutable fact. In this particular situation, I can't help but feel that justice would be better served sentencing him to life in prison without posibility of parole.

I know that may sound contradictory--that I'm convinced he's guilty, but don't want him executed because he might be innocent. But our legal system (supposedly) is based on laws, fact, proof. While my doubt would not be sufficient to meet the "reasonable doubt" test which would have me vote not guilty were I on the jury, I believe there is enough question about his guilt to warrant forgoing an execution. All I can say is that I'm very glad this decision is not on my shoulders. And whatever decision is made, I sincerely hope that this tragedy is not compounded by a mistake.

Minor changes

2004-12-13T11:56:00.000-08:00

Well, as you may or may not have noticed, I've made a few cosmetic and functional changes to my blog. I think there have been no adverse affects on the various links and readability and such. But, if you find any problems, or perhaps wish to put in your 2 cents on layout/colors/etc., shoot me an e-mail or drop a comment on the affected entry.

Trouble in the Pits

2004-12-12T09:16:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I obviously sat down and watched 3: The Dale Earnhardt Story last night, and must say I was rather disappointed. Truthfully, my hopes weren't all that high to begin with--it's pretty hard to tell anyone's life story in a 2 hour TV movie, let alone someone as famous and accomplished as Dale Earnhardt. But even still, this could have been so much better.

Lobby of DEI

Too many of the scenes were simply little snippets . . . disjointed clips of events in his life without any kind of leadup and limitted explanation. Granted, I'm betting that most viewers were people already very familiar with Dale's accomplishments and life. But for anyone who was thinking this movie would give them an insight into the man's life, who wasn't already knowledgeable of the events in his life, it would have been rather confusing.

There were a couple of annoyances throughout the film as well. For about the first half of the movie (which took us to just after Dale's first Winston Cup in 1980), apparently the only people who called him "Dale" were his parents. Everyone else, including his first 2 wives, Teresa (his future 3rd wife) and Neil Bonnet (his best friend) always called him "Earnhardt". I have to believe this was an attempt by the writers and director to perpetuate the "legend" status. Afterall, hearing people call him "Dale" makes him sound too human.

The other major annoyance was the overplaying of Earnardt & Waltrip's rivalry. Yes, there was a definite rivalry there . . . even some hostility. But the movie made it out to be an absolute obsession on Earnhardt's part. It seemed that every time he was out on the track, all he wanted to know was "where's Waltrip" so he could wreck him. That's not how it was in reality. The movie even went to far as to take at least 2 of Dale's most famous quotes, pull them out of context and apply them to his animosity towards Waltrip, even though in reality he was talking about an incident with Terry Labonte and restrictor plate racing in the two quotes.

Of interesting note as well was the fact that footage used to represent the start of the 2001 Daytona 500 (where Dale lost his life) was obviously not from that race. The reason this was apparent was because that particular race was one of the few times that NASCAR mandated roof & spoiler wickers on the cars in an attempt to add excitement (via increasing the "hole" the cars punched in the air). Now, it could have been a simple oversight on the producers' part. But the reason I found this interesting is because of the controversy surrounding these wickers and Dale's crash. Many people felt they were a contributing factor. It was even reported that Earnhardt himself came on the radio at one point during the race and said (roughly) "NASCAR needs to do something about these wickers or they're going to kill someone."

All in all, it was an interesting movie, but fell far short of being "good".

Remember this reminder

2004-12-10T09:39:00.000-08:00

Or, more aptly, these reminders. First is that if you happen to find yourself in the Monterey area, now is an even more wonderfull time to visit the Monterey Bay Aquarium. I visitted it most recently back in late September, shortly after the arrival of the only great white shark in captivity. It's good to see that she's still doing well. While she is just a young thing, and rather small, it's still an experience worth having . . . especially watching the 100+ lb tuna scury to get out of her way

Yeah, I know this ain't a great white, but this pic came out better!

Second is that 3: The Dale Earnhardt Story will be airing tomorrow night (Saturday, December 11) at 9:00 EST. So, that's 6:00 PST for us on the left coast. And, if you miss it there, it'll be airing again at 9:00 PST. I have no doubt that the movie will portray Earnhardt as an absolute saint, which he wasn't. But it should still be an interesting, inspiring show (at least I'm hoping it will be). I was never an Earnhardt fan, but always had respect for him both as a driver and a person. It's hard to believe it's been almost 4 years since his fatal crash.

No Tolerance for Zero Tolerance

2004-12-08T17:26:00.000-08:00

Okay, this has the potential to be completely stupid. Now, if these were actual, factual, alcoholic Jello Shots, then I absolutely agree that the little girl should be suspended (and a serious look taken at her mother's ability to properly raise a child). But to have a policy that this little girl should and will be suspended even if there was no alcohol involves is assinine. What the school is effectively saying is that gelatine cubes, cups, anything aren't allowed, because no matter what specific shape it takes it could be mistaken for an alcohol-containing item. Y'know what . . . water looks an awefull lot lot Vodka, so I guess kids better get suspended for bringing water to school, too. And hey, that cup of Coke might be mistaken for a rum & Coke!!

Come on folks. If the Jello this girl didn't have alcohol, and she wasn't selling it under the pretext of being "Jello shots", then what the heck did she do wrong?!? Why is she being suspended for something completely harmless and innocent? I guess the school board better be hoping they contained alcohol, because otherwise the community would be 100% right in raising a major ruckus.

BTW, rum & pineapple Jello make a great shot . . . as does lime & Triple Sec

Vroom Vroom

2004-12-07T11:27:00.000-08:00

So, have I mentioned yet that I'm going to the Daytona 500 in February? Cool huh? Granted, I won't have the best seat in the house, and I'm not a huge fan of restrictor plate events, but it's The Daytona 500!! I try to go to at least one NASCAR Cup race a year, and target tracks where I've never been before so I can take some time and see a different part of the country. Daytona wasn't really all that high on my list, but since it'll be Rusty's last Daytona 500 (and probably Mark Martin's as well) I figured it'd be a good one to see. 'Sides, there's a Titan missile launch scheduled at Kennedy that week too, so that'll be totally cool to witness (assuming they don't schedule it on the same day as the 500!). Yeah, I'm looking forward to it

Gobble Gobble!

2004-11-25T10:04:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving to all! Here's to turkey that's not too dry, and your company is pleasant.

Off-Key Singing Required

2004-11-19T15:28:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday to ME! Happy Birthday to ME! Happy Birthday to MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! Happy Birthday to ME!

Feel free to send cash gifts

Incredible Edible Incredibles

2004-11-10T17:10:00.000-08:00

Went and checked out a showing of The Incredibles yesterday, and was damn impressed. The cgi was fabulous, but more importantly the story itself was great. Good mix of '60's spy flick and superhero camp with a fair shake of social comentary. Not to mention the laughs Good flick for all ages, and leaps and bounds better than Shark Tale. If you like the Pixar-type computer animated movies, or have kids, definitely go see this one--you won't be disappointed!

If You Find My Ass, Please Return It

2004-11-08T09:14:00.000-08:00

Bbbbrrrr

It got frozen off somewhere in northwestern Colorado. Took a little trip over there these past 2 weeks. Actually, it took 3 days to get there, then we spent 5 days tromping around in the ice and snow (had a few sub-zero degree nights up there at ~10,000 foot elevation), then another 2 days to drive back. The point of the trip? you ask. I guess you could say we went shopping for a few food items not available in the local grocery lol. Okay, to put it bluntly, we went deer and elk hunting. I had a blast! Bagged a nice 4x4 buck, and the group came back with all the tags filled--6 deer, 5 cow elk and 1 bull elk. Plenty of meat to last quite a while. Of course, now I need to find a freezer at a reasonable price before the butcher has everything ready lol. Good news is, I did pretty good at the tables during our transit through Nevada, and the winnings will pay for most of a freezer.

Wish I could go hunting more often, but the pickings in Cali are pretty slim. Deer are small, hunting areas are over crowded with hunters, and the animals are almost always infested with ticks and fleas. Depending on my employment situation, and how much vacation time I get, etc. I'll probably try to head out to Colorado again next year. In the mean time, I'll just hope the meat lasts the full year

My Condolensces

2004-10-24T21:47:00.000-07:00

Sad news today for NASCAR in general and Hendrick Motor Sports in particular. My personal opinion of Rick Hendrick and some of his drivers aside, my deepest condolensces to the Hendrick family and organization.

Learn To Drive

2004-10-24T20:30:00.000-07:00

Is there something about owning a large 4-wheel drive vehicle which causes one to become an utter moron while driving? Don't get me wrong--I'm not one of those "SUVs are destroying the environment and should be outlawed!" types. But, I just can not fathom why it is that some people feel the need to purchase a massive off-road capable juggernaught when they drive like the proverbial little old lady on her way to church. 99% of the time, the people driving these things wouldn't even dream of taking them on a well maintained dirt road, let alone actually off road.

What brings up this rant? you ask. Yesterday, I had to make a quick stop at the local mall (a scarey enough prospect). Travelling through the parking lot, I got stuck behind some yutz dring a Ford Excursion who came to a full and complete stop before inching over each and every speed bump. Now, the speed bumps I'm talking about here aren't your car killer bumps that stand a foot high (and even if they were, I believe a 4-wheel drive vehicle with re-enforced suspension could handle it). Just to give you an idea here, I used to hit these very same speed bumps in my Ford Escort at ~10-15 mph without a worry in the world. They're wussy speed bumps, really. Yet here this bozo was stopping at each one, then creeping forward ever so slightly to ease over the bumps. Then, the driver apparently got rather confused at an "intersection" in the lot, where she again came to a complete stop (no stop sign for us, but stops for the other 2 directions), started to turn left, got half-way through the intersection then suddenly veered right, then finally opted to complete the left turn she originally started.

Hey, people . . . if you're going to drive an off-road capable machine, don't drive it like a subcompact. Don't become a wuss at the sight of a speed bump or crack in the pavement. I'm not saying you have to go gung-ho and try to catch some air, but learn to take them at least as fast as us econo-car drivers. And, for Pete's sake, grow a brain.

Holier Than Thou

2004-10-17T10:06:00.000-07:00

Apparently some Bible thumpers are rather ignorant, not to mention hypocritical. I know that's a fairly obvious observation, but specifically I'm referring to this issue. Some folks are all up in arms because Halloween is going to be on a Sunday.

This quote pretty much sums up the whole idiocy of this attitude right here: "'It's a day for the good Lord, not for the devil,' said Barbara Braswell, who plans to send her 4-year-old granddaughter Maliyah out trick-or-treating in a princess costume on Saturday instead."

First things first. Halloween has nothing to do with the devil. Never has. What we call Halloween orinally began as the Feast of Samhain, an Irish harvest festival. It was later incorporated into Christian culture as a part of the All Saint's Day celebration (November 1). The reasoning was a practical one . . . the Church annually saw many converts revert to their pagan ways during certain times of the year, due to various pagan celebrations. So, the Church began incorporating elements of those pagan rituals into their own calendar in an attempt to keep converts from straying. The Easter Bunny, Easter eggs and timing of Easter were "borrowed" from the Feast of Esther, a pagan fertility celebration. Anywho, the point is, the Feast of Samhain and Halloween never had anything to do with the devil (Paganism and Satanism are mutually exclusive--pagans do not believe in the devil and devil-worshippers don't believe the polytheistics of pagans--nor is paganism inherently "evil"), never celebrated the devil, and the claim that it is "a day for the devil" is based in pure ignorance.

But more importantly is the hypocricy displayed. Apparently, Halloween is "too evil" to be celebrated on Sunday, but "not evil enough" to forgo celebrating on Saturday. I mean, if Ms. Braswell believes that Halloween is a day "for the devil" and therefore shouldn't be celebrated on a Sunday, why will she let her granddaughter celebrate Halloween on Saturday (and presumeably on any other day of the week, Monday through Friday)?

Plus, I'm betting that quite a few of these folks who are proclaiming Sunday as "the Lord's day" and therefore too holy to celebrate Halloween on have absolutely no problem "dishonoring the Sabbath" each and every week by performing household chores, watching football/baseball/auto racing, drinking beer to the point of drunkenness and cussing at the TV or in the sports stadiums. And I won't even get into the whole argument about Sunday not really being the Sabbath (if it is, then we celebrate Easter on the wrong day of the week!)

Sushi

2004-10-14T21:34:00.000-07:00

So, I went out and saw Shark Tale the other day. Yeah, yeah, I know . . . kids movie, right? But I generally have enjoyed the animated flicks like Antz, Bug's Life, Shrek and Toy Story. This one definitely didn't live up to those. Much of the humor was out of place snippets that were just too forced & corny. The story-line was overly simplistic.

Most annoying, the animation was actually a bit sub-par. There were several shots where the movement of the fish (sharks especially) was way off . . . were they would basically swim sideways. More than once, I could swear they were using puppets instead of CGI . . . well, more accurately, puppets with some CGI additions. The look & movement of the characters truly appeared to be puppetry, and I even caught myself looking for wires once or twice.

Anywho, if you got kids, it's worth taking them to it . . . I'm sure they'll enjoy it tremendously. But if you're like me (a grown up geek who usually likes the Disney, Pixar, etc. flicks) I don't think I can recommend it.

Simply Laughable

2004-10-07T14:41:00.000-07:00

Okay, now if this doesn't display an absolute sense of arrogance (as well as lack of responsibility) then I'm not sure what does. Alquilar apparently feels that (a) "true artisans" are either not intelligent enough or not caring enough to spell correctly; (b) it's not her responsibility to spell names correctly in her artwork; and (c) she should get paid additional moneys to correct her own mistakes.

Now, I'm not a spelling snob . . . Lord knows I'm not the best speller. But I (and every other reasonable person) do take the time and care to minimize mistakes similar to this when I'm putting together a public display, viewable report, professional document/work, etc. And I don't fault her for making the mistakes to begin with (though, in honesty, to make 11 spelling errors as she did, one must really call into question her professional integrity as well as spelling capability). But her response is absolutely laughable. Basically, she's trying to make herself seem superior, by denegrating and ridiculing the people who want the mistakes fixed. She feels that she, as an "artist", is above proper spelling, above professional integrity, above admitting mistakes; and that anyone who notices the mistakes & wants them corrected is just an inferior, nitpicking, un-enlightened dolt who is incapable of appreciating or understanding "art".

No wonder it's costing $6,000 to fix . . . they'll have to rent an entire cargo plane just to fly her ego out to correct her mistake. Personally, I think the City should tell her to fix the mistakes on her dime . . . it was her error, and as a professional she should correct her own mistakes in her contracted work. I mean think about it--if someone hired me to build them a new computer with Windows XP installed on it, and instead I installed Windows 2000, do you think I'd be able to get away with charging them extra to come back out and re-install the operating system? Heck no! I'd be expected (rightfully so) to correct my mistake at my cost.

But this is yet another fine example of how our society promotes a lack of responsibility. Alquilar made 11 spelling errors in her work, yet she goes on to somehow blame the City, insinuating that because the work was in storage for 2 years, and because there were several other people around during the installation that "could and should have seen" the errors, it's not her fault. Got a couple news flashes for you lady . . . if you're not sure of how to spell a name, look it up; and you're responsible for double-checking your own work! Don't try to blame others for your own mistakes and shortcommings.

Personally, I think it'd serve her right if the City spelled her name incorrectly (on accident, of course) in the credit & publicity & such. I bet she'd throw a major fit at that, though, and insist that they correct it at their cost . . .