It's Halloween! / aka Crass Commercialism

The only thing I feel I can say about today...blah!

It would be different if I could eat the candy, the chocolate and other sweet things. But, I'm not gonna do it. So, there goes one of the few things that makes it worth it.

I know there are others who will decry my lack of sentiment about this 'fun' holiday. But I feel that it is a child's holiday, tailored to them, their wants and desires; gorge on candy for free, dress up in ninja outfits, parties at school with cupcakes and stuff. Overly commercialized, and definitely NOT vegan.

I can't stand putting things like makeup on my face. I feel like a moron dressing up in anything other than my normal clothes.

There are only a few good things about Halloween: seeing the little ones from Nursery in their cute outfits, and carving pumpkins. My pumpkin this year is a cutout of Coach Z. Val's is the 'Eh, Steve!' guy.

I'm sure you're all gonna tell me why I shouldn't be so grumpy, but it's difficult for me to find any reasonable rationale for getting hyped over it.

I like Ben's links

Here it is.

Basically, this article's points are difficult to oppose.

The Internet has failed to meet the expectations foisted upon it at its inception, and has only succeeded in reaching the lowest common denominator of human depravity, for the most part.

Of course, as with anything else, there are pros and cons. I just put books on hold over the 'net, and I can pick them up tomorrow. Sweeeet.

The internet is very helpful, but not ground-breaking.

Stupid Blogger...

I tried to post last week, but there were...'outages'. So, I'm sorry for not being able to provide you with your daily fix. I hope you survived.

No link yet, but if something comes along, I'll let you know.

23 Thousand reasons to go back to school...

This says that people with a BA make at least $23k more than someone with a high school diploma.

Good reasons for trying to make another go at college.

I am thinking about going into nutrition or something like that. Maybe I could help advise people on how to eat better...

Feh...

Stupid Blogger. Down all day.

Nothing to post.

*blah*

At least my sidebar is back. Be thankful for small things.

Who says they are all slack-jawed troglydites...?

Your link for the day.

Brian May is the guitarist for Queen, but he was doing his PhD in astronomy before Queen bacme popular.

This shows me that not all rockers are unintelligent. I thought that most of them were relatively uneducated and unsophisticated. I am glad to see that I am wrong.

Of course, I realize that I have a miniscule amount of musical genius, and that I can't play burning guitar riffs like Slash, write excellent lyrics like Roger Waters, or sing as well as David Gilmour. To be able to do those things requires a more extensive musical education than I have.

So, I suppose I have bought in to the stereotype that 'rockers' are merely sex-crazed, coke-driven, drooling slobs.

I know that there are still those sort of people in rock, but not the overwhelming majority that I had envisioned.

I was wrong.

Back from the land of the living...

"Hallelujah brother! I am here to comfort the sinner and return the stray lamb to the fold..."

Your Cat Ballou fix for the day...

I'm back from vacation. It was great to see Leah and Joel, and Eric. I wish I'd been able to get pictures, but we have no digital camera. Some day soon, though, we will.

Not much to report. A few complaints, but I'm not gonna voice them here or now.

I'll post a link later on today if it is warranted.

Bye!

Happy birthday, my Goo!

She's so cute! I <3 her.

Happy birthday, my precious!

Happy, happy birthday from all of us to you...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEAH!!!!!!

We <3 you, Lemur!

By the way...

I'm gonna be gone the rest of this week and all of next week. We're gonna be in IF until Monday, and we'll be back at home for the rest of the week.

Ah, a nice relaxing week, playing games, sleeping in....I can hardly wait.

I'm out!

P.S. 1 year ago, yesterday, I started this blog. I think I like it a lot.

Have fun while I'm gone!

Crazy, like a fox...

Link

In short, the article states that N.Korea's nuke test may have the effect on the U.S. that the N.Koreans wanted: a normalization of relations and a non-agression treaty. International consensus may force the U.S. to recognize the government of N.Korea, especially if Kim Jong Il is willing to dismantle his new nuclear arsenal in order to facilitate a relationship with the U.S.

I'm not sure where I stand on this issue. I think the dictator is treating his people poorly, but how can we change it? Sanctions, in my opinion, hurt the common people, not the leaders who govern them. Short of a .50 caliber bullet from 1 mile away, what else can we do? Do we go in, topple the leadership and start another Iraq? How can we MAKE him treat his people well?

I guess we can't.

I can hear the legions saying...'DUH!'

Your link for the day.

So, let your kids be kids. Try asking them what they would like to do instead of making them play T-ball, play violin and piano, learning Spanish, Mandarin, German and C++, and algebra.

Childhood is fleeting. Adulthood is permanent.

And ask yourself WHY you want them to excel. Is it because of your insecurities or inadequacies?

Faceless serenity...

No, this isn't a post about the band Godsmack...

Your link for the day...

I think the last 2 paragraphs are indicative of the whole article:


"Back in Iowa, Henderson is enjoying spending more face-to-face time with his friends and less with his computer. He says his decision to quit MySpace and Facebook was a good one.
"I'm not sacrificing friends," he says, "because if a picture, some basic information about their life and a Web page is all my friendship has become, then there was nothing to sacrifice to begin with."

I suppose that friendship is a subjective term. Someone else might consider a photo, a web page and a brief description the basis of a friendship.

I prefer a deeper level of interaction from myself for those I call my friends...

Quick Friday post...

I'm super busy today, so this will be quick.

Talked to Joel yesterday. He sounds fine, if a bit disoriented. Still the same person, if quite a bit more mature. Uhhh....OK, not the same person, since he has changed. Ummmm. Yeah....

Leah's excited to be going to MT and IF with Eric (her uncle).

Not much else to report. If you wanna talk to Joel, call me and I'll give you either Mom or Dad's cell # so you can talk...

I'm out. Sorry for not having a link today.

Have a great weekend!

What!?! I'm only 55 minutes late...

Last Saturday, 23Sep06, Val and I found that one of my stitches had been left behind/ forgotten/overlooked. It was the one at the bottom of my right scapula (shoulder-blade). So, we had it taken out.

Well, this morning Val found another stitch in my lower back. I don't understand how she knew it was there, since it felt like a bump to me. But, the doctor pulled it and it was a stitch. As a precautionary measure we had him check all of the other places I got sewed up, and there were no other lingering stitches.

Now, before you send comments telling me to drop/sue my quack physician, I will tell you that he wasn't the one to take out the stitches. There was a med-school student who was helping him that day.

So, she missed some.

Annoying, but I'm not gonna scream about it.

And, happy day, my blood pressure is 110/80, which r00x0rz!

So, I was 55 minutes late.

T minus 6 hours, or so...

Joel arrives in IF at 6:22 pm on Wednesday, 04 October. That's what Mom said a month ago. I wonder if she and Dad have butterflies...

I don't think I have a link worth anything today, but Ben's atomic bomb dismantling link deserve a looksee.

I'll post again if something comes up.

I'm out...

T minus-1

Joel comes home tomorrow. Happy, happy!

Your link for today. It's the first post on the page.

Basically, Tycho examines the fallcy of the government trying to regulate the regulators of the ESRB, which is the review board for video games. Legislation is in the works to make the ESRB play completely through every game it reviews. Not to mention being impossible time-wise, considering the amount of new games that come out every month, Tycho makes the point that it is futile to try and rate player-added content that is not shipped with the game. Another point: Why should the ESRB be held responsible for what a player finds in his already sex- and violence-filled copy of Grand Theft Auto- San Andreas? Haven't they done their job by posting a Mature rating on the game? If you object to violence and/or nudity, why the HELL are you playing GTA:SA in the first place? Or letting your children play it, even IF there are nastier things hidden away on the disc?

I can hear it now: "Yes, son, I'll buy this game for you, even though it is named GRAND... THEFT... AUTO! And has a woman in revealing clothing on the cover."......"What? You kill people in this game and steal their car? You can even be a pimp? Well, that's all right, I guess................ *gasp* WTF! A simulated sex-scene! Why is this FILTH even on this game? I'm gonna sue the producer of this game for including such trash and subjecting my children to it!

Here's a news flash, politicians and parents of America... Keep track of what your children are doing and playing. Stop spending time playing golf, poker, shoe shopping, getting manicures, looking at porn, etc. ... and wake up to what your children are doing! Spend time with them instead.

Stupid people...

I apologize for my strong language. I feel strongly about this.

Just how anal do you have to be...

...for this to matter?

I suppose some people are sticklers for correct grammar. I know, for myself, that I hate it when people misspell things.

Oh well. I'm not gonna rant about this, as everyone has their ideosyncrasies.

Just seems to be nit-picky, to me.

But, again, I dunt buthcer my sintences.

:D

I'm back...

Sorry for not telling you, but I had Friday off. And boy, coming back to work is tough. I just have to make it through the next week and a half, and then I have 7 days off... Ah, the relaxation and oblivion. I can almost feel it right now.

Conference was good. I liked it a lot. I always love to listen to Elder Holland when he talks. If he gave 1 talk every session, that would only be better. I was also reminded of how much I miss hearing Elder Maxwell...It's too bad he's gone. Pres. Monson always has good stories. All in all, an excellent conference.

No link yet today, but I'm sure I'll come up with one later on today. Fear not...

Last but not least: Joel comes home in 2 days.

*glee!*