Oh, yes...

One other thing. I put up a link to the website hosted by my mission. I encourage everyone to look up their respective missions as they apply. The URL starts as http://www.mission.net/ . Click on it and find your mission. It's always nice to let people know what you are up to, unless you don't want them to know. So, go ahead and be a social recluse if you wanna be...I don't mind. Really. :)

Wow, how pointless...

I have nothing to say about myself or anybody else today, so I'll go away...

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to everyone! It's been a great day! Val and my mother-in-law got me a new wallet for Christmas. It was a complete surprise, and I had a 'kid' reaction to it. Totally excited and thrilled. That was the best present. I also got the Episode 3 DVD, a pen/ FM radio and a ton of candy. We also got a few church DVD's. All in all, a happy day! I hope everyone's Christmas is as great as mine has been.

And remember, it's Jesus' birthday, at least as far as all the rest of Christianity is concerned. So, remember to take time for Him this special day.

Merry Christmas to my family and friends, especially to my friend Ben! :)

I just gotta have it...

It's been an interesting day. Lots of emotions, problems, etc.

A co-worker of mine was ashamed to admit today that, after 2 months of being free, had started smoking again. To my shame, I sat for 2 seconds, and then pointed to him and said "WEAK!" What followed, about 30 seconds later, was a realization of what I had said. I apologized to him, saying that if I had divulged an addiction to him, I would want him to be understanding to me about my plight. So much for the Golden Rule...

His situation made me start thinking about the nature of addictions. I think that everyone has at least one, and that it is part of our personal challenge to overcome the world and better ourselves. The other thing I have figured out, is that addictions seem to come in many guises. Pornography and sexual addiction, anger, smoking, drugs, alcohol, apathy...

I find that I have real troubles with getting angry. I used to think that I was pretty mellow, and that I didn't get angry. Now, it seems that I get very upset about things or people that hurt me. I talk angrily, I write angrily, and I'm so sure that I'm right that I defend my position to the utmost. I seem to be forgetting the 100 year rule: In 100 years, is this thing you are angry about, is it going to matter? Usually it isn't important enough to even matter, but still I fall into the trap.

I try to remember that I shouldn't get upset, but I always seem to forget that when my emotions get going. I feel so powerless sometimes, because I always promise that I'll do better, and the next time isn't better. I have a friend who helps me evaluate myself and my emotions/thoughts, and I'd like to thank him for helping me realize that I may think that what I am doing is right, but that long term, it isn't Christ-like or charitable. Thank you, Mr. Raty.

I think that that is enough profundity for a Wednesday. Stay happy...

Give in to your anger...

Well, I have had it confirmed to me, once again, that ignorant, angry people are stupid. Someone called here at work and was irate about a notice that we had sent out for the Christmas holiday. We will be closed on Monday, and won't send any orders out on Sunday. Any orders sent after the usual cutoff time on Thursday will be delivered Monday.He didn't read the whole notice, and was upset about his interpretation of it. He thought that he wouldn't get an order on Friday like he usually would, which is untrue. So, rather than call up and ask a reasonable question in a reasonable tone, he calls and leaves a voice mail reaming a friend of mine for her incompetency and saying that someone should be shot for being closed for 4 days. What makes people think that it's all right to talk to someone that way? Does every single person fly irrationally off the handle at every little provocation? It seems insane.

Monday Stuff...

Well, it's Monday once again, and almost Christmas time.

My holiday humbuggies were deepened on Saturday when I recieved word from Ben about a former friend. Ben and I were friends with this person 12 or 13 years ago, he and his wife. I found out that they are divorcing after 17 years, and to add to it, that our friend was\is abusive to her. Along with other assorted sins, I was saddened to learn of the depths that this "friend" has descended to. It just goes to show that you may think you know a person quite well, but that you really don't. What a sucky situation...

I don't really have anything else to add today, so I'll bail out...

Still, old friend...

Ah, nothing like a quote from Star Trek 2 to liven things up, and for a post title it does admirably well.

I am still alive, and I'll try to get something up on Monday.

I'm out...

The worst part of getting sick...is getting better.

Good day, persons. It's been a busy day here at work, but time is crawling along. How unhelpful!

I now sound lots worse than I feel. I'm still trying to clear out my lungs, and to stay warm. The warm part is a bit harder, since the other seems to be a bit involuntary.

I have nothing else to say today, so I will bid all of you adieu, and hope your weekends are productive, relaxing and safe. Hasta!

Endurance of Champions...Or Something Like That.

Well, bloggers, I'm back @ work, and able to post coherently. I came to work yesterday, but was in no shape to try anything other than work and breathing, both of which were difficult. I was sick all this past weekend, and I'm only now getting better.

I don't feel like getting into anything strenuous right now, mentally, so I'll close and bid you all good day...

I'm sick...

Well, it's official. As of 10.30 AM this morning, I am sick and stuck at work. Fridays are the worst days to get sick at work here. One of us is here at 3 AM, the other shows up at 7 AM, and I get here at 9 AM. Usually the person who is here at 3 is gone by 7.30. So, there is no one to cover for me, without it being unfair.

You know you are sick when you don't even have the energy to keep yourself upright in your seat. That's pretty bad, isn't it? And when coughs seem to come from the soles of your feet, that just makes it worse.

I'm not looking for a pity party, just trying to tell you how I feel. I hope no one else out there is feeling like this, because then I'll throw a pity party for you instead.

Have a good weekend! I'm out......Really, really out.

This mosaic image, one of the largest ever taken by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope of the Crab Nebula, is a six-light-year-wide expanding remnant of a star's supernova explosion. Japanese and Chinese astronomers witnessed this violent event nearly 1,000 years ago in 1054, as did, almost certainly, Native Americans.The orange filaments are the tattered remains of the star and consist mostly of hydrogen. The rapidly spinning neutron star embedded in the center of the nebula is the dynamo powering the nebula's eerie interior bluish glow. The blue light comes from electrons whirling at nearly the speed of light around magnetic field lines from the neutron star. The neutron star, the crushed ultra-dense core of the exploded star, like a lighthouse, ejects twin beams of radiation that appear to pulse 30 times a second due to the neutron star's rotation. The colors in the image indicate the different elements that were expelled during the explosion. Blue in the filaments in the outer part of the nebula represents neutral oxygen, green is singly-ionized sulfur, and red indicates doubly-ionized oxygen. Image Credit: NASA, ESA, J. Hester (Arizona State University)
Here is the link to this picture.

My day...

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank my wife Valerie for the comments that she has left here today. I love it when people leave comments, but my day was going bad today, until she left all of these comments on my site today. Thank you, my goo. You've brightened my day!

Busy busy busy...

I have nothing to say today. Sorry... Until tomorrow...

'twas the week after Thanksgiving...

It's Monday, bloggers, and for most of us, that means it's time to go back to work. Some of you lucky ones don't have to work, and some others do nothing but stay at work.

Well, I don't have much to say right now except to report on my Thanksgiving antics. I am pleased to report that I didn't stuff myself to the point of near-regurgitation, as I have done on previous occasions. I am also pleased to report that my wife is getting better by the day. Val and her brother, Josh, have a Star Wars card game somewhat akin to the game Magic:The Gathering. It's kinda old, from 1996, but Val and I started playing the starter pack the week before Thanksgiving, and aside from having a few procedural questions, it's really fun. I've become hooked on it. I know that again proclaims that I am a nerd/geek, but it's fun, I like it, and by golly I'm gonna play it!

I have nothing else to blog about right now, but if I think of something later, rest assured that I will let you know about it. I'm out...

Dia de Gracias...

For all of you who are interested, Val and I will be staying home and sharing Thanksgiving with most of my -in-laws. We'll also be being sick together, she and I. Sounds like fun, don't it?

Happy *gobble* Day, everyone! Be safe!

28 Hours?

I thought that this was an interesting article. I can't imagine sitting around for more than an hour for anything. Not that I'm really impatient, but I can think of better things to do with my time than sit outside in the winter and be cold. I guess I'm not as much of a gamer as I thought. That, and $400 for a game console seems asinine. However, I remember paying about $300 for my PS2 not 4 years ago. So, maybe I'm a bit smarter now to wait for the price to drop.

On other digital topics, a virus warning has been released, again warning people to be aware of what they are opening on their e-mails. Here's what I got about it this morning: We have become aware of a number of viruses that are being spread via email attachments. The return address on the emails changes; however, the subject lines tend to be consistent and include the following:

Paris Hilton & Nicol
You visit illegal we....
Your IP was logged
Mail delivery failed
Hi i've a new mail address

There may be others. If you receive these or similar emails, please do not open the attachment -- delete the email immediately.

So, make sure you know who it is that you are getting e-mail from. If you don't know the person sending you mail, go ahead and delete it. Better safe than sorry...

No Good Deed Goes Unpunished...

What is "Goo" ?

I've gotten a few emails from you guys asking what "goo" means.

"Well, I'll tell you..."

"He's going to tell, he's going to tell..."

"No! Stop that! No singing!"

Those of you who know me know I am a bit........overweight. Not obscenely so, but more than I want. But, my wife loves me anyway. So, about a year ago, I was voicing my opinion about how I looked. I believe it was a statement to the effect that "I'm fat, and I don't like how I look." Valerie promptly said that I have "goo fat" and that I was/am cute, and she loves me the way I am. So, "goo" became our pet name for each other. We think it's unique, and we like to say it to each other.

So, that's how "goo" came to be...

This has been a public service announcement brought to you in part by viewers like you. (I took that "public service" thing from Ben. I hope he will forgive my theft.

What a weekend...

Hello, fellow-citizens. I hope all of your separate/collective weekends were fun/productive/relaxing/ etc. Mine was kind of sucky.

Val has been feeling unwell since Friday. Saturday we did all the stuff that we needed to by 2 pm, which included exercising, food shopping, going to see her dad, going to the library to get books and movies, and going to the bank to deposit $. Not too bad for a Saturday. After exercising though, Val started to feel worse. We went to a pre-Thanksgiving party at her dad's that night, and we got back at about midnight. By the time church time rolled around at 10 am Sunday morning, she wasn't good at all. She decided to come to Sacrament, but skip nursery, so that the kids didn't get what she has. She was really upset about not coming to nursery, but I think she made the right decision. She didn't sleep well at all last night, and is probably feeling miserable right now. I feel bad for her, but I feel worse in that I can't do anything to help her feel better.

My point in stating all of this is that I think I am now becoming sick from her. That's never fun, is it? I love her dearly, and I don't mind taking care of her when she needs me, but it hurts to see her so frustrated, sad and exhausted. I also think that I'll be at her point of sickness come Thursday. So, Happy Thanksgiving to me. Oh well, I suppose I should be grateful that I have a body that can get sick, and that I am a relatively healthy individual. Such are the challenges of mortality.

Fast and Furious Friday

Good day, fellow-citizens! Today at work I am by myself. So, accordingly, I am taking this lull in the storm to post a little something for your viewing/reading pleasure.

It has been a very busy week. Between coming home from work, exercising (~30 minutes), dinner (~1 hour, at least), scripture reading(~30 minutes), and any meetings for church callings, there hasn't been time enough for much of anything else, except sleep.

There is an individual who has been trying to get a hold of me this week, and I have been unable to adequately respond to him. I did leave a voice mail on his cell phone explaining why I didn't answer the phone (reading scriptures), but I wanted to apologize to him. I hope he doesn't think I'm trying to avoid him. I'm sorry, Ben.

That's all I have for right now. If I get a chance later, I'll post something else. Have a great weekend, gente del mundo (people of the world).