Archive for July, 2004
Hip to be Liberal, Revisited
29 July 2004Not long ago, I discussed an increasinly popular trend I’d like to call “the left”. May I remind you, I am moderate centrist (perhaps with an ever-so-slight left lean myself), and I don’t call myself out of conviences for not having to pick sides. If I was going for convenience, I’d simply declare myself a Republican and get my rather conservative family off my back.
But I’ve noticed the trend continuing, to the point that I can’t escape it–my coworkers, net denizens, people sitting next to me at Wendy’s. What I’ve discovered is that many of these people don’t even have a solid understanding of the liberal position on issues. For example, a nurse whom I overheard criticizing Bush’s conservative agenda, and the next minute, swearing off national (socialized) health care, but saying “something’s gotta be better.” Well, Republicans tend to favor free enterprise which allows drug companies and insurance companies to hyperinflate costs… “Something better,” more than likely, is in the direction of socialized medicine, a rather liberal solution.
“So,” I decided, “this fad isn’t about liberalism so much as it is about anti-Bush sentiment or even more general sentiments of anti-authority.” Then I remembered the polls–yes, those things. Last time I looked, Bush and Kerry are at a dead heat… They’re each lingering a few points below the 50% mark. (Wouldn’t it be nice if they could at least linger *at* the 50% mark?) And yet the whispers and not-so-whispery pro-Kerry/anti-Bush discussions I’ve been hearing every which place far outnumber the pro-Bush talk from my family. So where are all of these Bush supporters disappearing to after pollers hang up the phone or walk away?
I’m guessing it’s a combination of two scenarios: (1) Some people support Bush but still have their gripes, so when fanatical Kerry supporters come around at lunch or wherever, they nod their heads in agreement to avoid an argument they don’t care much about. (2) Others are simply appalled by Bush and have no reservations about doing so, but truth be told, what little they know about Kerry, they’re not convinced he’ll be any better, perhaps worried he’ll be even worse in different respects. At least they know what they’re getting with four years of Bush.
(As an aside… Kerry’s wife with seventeen names, Teresa Ivanna Chiquita Banana Sabado Domingo Heinz 57 Kerry, probably isn’t helping. There’s a lot of discussion about her contributions to the dubious Tides Foundation, which in turn supports some flat-out extreme political movements. While it’s been plainly stated and supported that Heinz’ contrubutions are going to a specific list of benevolent (and rather useless, from what I can see) causes, there’s nothing stipulating that Tides can’t in turn reallocate other funds to the extremist groups. If everyone wants to get rid of a former oil tycoon that made bedfellows with the Saudis, is it any better to elect someone who’s wife donates to a charity that sponsors pro-terrorist causes?)
This just goes to reenforce my dissatisfaction with the whole system and the “lesser of two evils”… At this point, “evil” is becoming the operative word, and “lesser” simply a riddle.
But maybe I’m missing something. Feel free to discuss.
Blogger’s Complex
28 July 2004Well, I may or may not have vented about this before–I’m pretty sure I have–but I’ve been working again on improving the RSS (Real Simple Syndication) feed for Smart-Popcorn.com. In the process, I stumbled onto a million flame wars, having to do with RSS standards (or lack thereof) as per usual. We’re talking guys that are boiling over because someone thinks a “<link>” tag, rather than a “<guid>” tag, should be an item’s “permalink” tag.
Let’s all pause to respond in unison: “What the hell is all this?”
…and in an encore performance, “Who the fuck cares?!”
It’s amazing how much each of these people seem to think they’re going to change the world with some petty little tag that nobody else wants to use. If Freud had lived to day, I bet money he would’ve observed and written about this “Blogger’s Complex”–similar to a Napoleonic complex, only caused by a person’s insignificance in the world rather than a person’s height. These people (not just the aforementioned RSS freaks, but rabid Bloggers in general) must feel absolutely fucking useless in real life, because within their little personal blog worlds, they are supreme and cannot be defied, and if anyone disagrees with them on some other little blog world, they have a hissy fit. It’s saddest when they’re arguing about–well–nothing.
Quite frankly it pisses me off the Bloggers have taken over RSS technology as much as they have. When I started the RSS feed for Smart-Popcorn.com, which couldn’t have been much more than a year, year and a half ago, it was still considered to be a breakthrough technology for the the propagation of information. Now, it seems a lot of legit news sources are considering it a “kiddie’s toy” again. Geeks.
Anyhow, I converted my RSS feed to version 2.0 (I suppose that fits, since the site itself is “Version 2″). And I’m using both those stupid tags as the “permalink” or whatever, because there’s really no difference between the two. Hopefully we’ll see this help pick up traffic.
The Pass Around Movie Quiz
28 July 2004(Repost from my OpenDiary)
Ok, here’s the game. These are the highest grossing films of all time. Bold those that you’ve seen. Of those, italicize the ones you liked, and strikethrough the ones you didn’t like.
1. Titanic (1997) - $600,779,824
2. Star Wars (1977) - $460,935,665
3. E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) - $434,949,459
4. Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999) - $431,065,444
5. Spider-Man (2002) - $403,706,375
6. Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, The (2003) - $377,019,252
7. Passion of the Christ, The (2004) - $370,025,697
8. Jurassic Park (1993) - $356,784,000
9. Shrek 2 (2004) - $356,211,000
10. Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, The (2002) - $340,478,898
11. Finding Nemo (2003) - $339,714,367
12. Forrest Gump (1994) - $329,691,196
13. Lion King, The (1994) - $328,423,001
14. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001) - $317,557,891
15. Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, The (2001) - $313,837,577
16. Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002) - $310,675,58317. Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983) - $309,125,409
18. Independence Day (1996) - $306,124,059
19. Pirates of the Caribbean (2003) - $305,411,224
20. Sixth Sense, The (1999) - $293,501,675
21. Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980) - $290,158,751
22. Home Alone (1990) - $285,761,243
23. Matrix Reloaded, The (2003) - $281,492,47924. Shrek (2001) - $267,652,016
25. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002) - $261,970,615
26. How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) - $260,031,035
27. Jaws (1975) - $260,000,000
28. Monsters, Inc. (2001) - $255,870,172
29. Batman (1989) - $251,188,924
30. Men in Black (1997) - $250,147,615
31. Toy Story 2 (1999) - $245,823,397
32. Bruce Almighty (2003) - $242,589,580
33. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) - $242,374,454
34. Twister (1996) - $241,700,000
35. My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002) - $241,437,427
36. Ghost Busters (1984) - $238,600,000
37. Beverly Hills Cop (1984) - $234,760,500
38. Cast Away (2000) - $233,630,478
39. Lost World: Jurassic Park, The (1997) - $229,074,524
40. Signs (2002) - $227,965,690
41. Rush Hour 2 (2001) - $226,138,45442. Mrs. Doubtfire (1993) - $219,200,000
43. Ghost (1990) - $217,631,306
44. Aladdin (1992) - $217,350,219
45. Saving Private Ryan (1998) - $216,119,491
46. Mission: Impossible II (2000) - $215,397,30
47. X2 (2003) - $214,948,780
48. Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002) - $213,079,163
49. Back to the Future (1985) - $210,609,762
50. Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999) - $205,399,422
51. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) - $204,843,350
52. Exorcist, The (1973) - $204,565,000
53. Mummy Returns, The (2001) - $202,007,640
54. Armageddon (1998) - $201,573,391
55. Gone with the Wind (1939) - $198,655,278
56. Pearl Harbor (2001) - $198,539,855
57. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) - $197,171,806
58. Toy Story (1995) - $191,800,000
59. Men in Black II (2002) - $190,418,80360. Gladiator (2000) - $187,670,866
61. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) - $184,925,485
62. Dances with Wolves (1990) - $184,208,848
63. Batman Forever (1995) - $184,031,112
64. Fugitive, The (1993) - $183,875,760
65. Ocean’s Eleven (2001) - $183,405,771
66. What Women Want (2000) - $182,805,123
67. Perfect Storm, The (2000) - $182,618,434
68. Liar Liar (1997) - $181,395,380
69. Grease (1978) - $181,360,000
70. Jurassic Park III (2001) - $181,166,115
71. Mission: Impossible (1996) - $180,965,237
72. Planet of the Apes (2001) - $180,011,740
73. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) - $179,870,271
74. Pretty Woman (1990) - $178,406,268
75. Tootsie (1982) - $177,200,000
76. Top Gun (1986) - $176,781,728
77. There’s Something About Mary (1998) - $176,483,808
78. Ice Age (2002) - $176,387,405
79. Crocodile Dundee (1986) - $174,635,000
80. Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992) - $173,585,516
81. Elf (2003) - $173,381,405
82. Air Force One (1997) - $172,888,056
83. Rain Man (1988) - $172,825,435
84. Apollo 13 (1995) - $172,071,312
85. Matrix, The (1999) - $171,383,253
86. Beauty and the Beast (1991) - $171,301,428
87. Tarzan (1999) - $171,085,177
88. Beautiful Mind, A (2001) - $170,708,996
89. Chicago (2002) - $170,684,505
90. Three Men and a Baby (1987) - $167,780,960
91. Meet the Parents (2000) - $166,225,040
92. Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991) - $165,500,000
93. Hannibal (2001) - $165,091,46494. Catch Me If You Can (2002) - $164,435,221
95. Big Daddy (1999) - $163,479,795
96. Sound of Music, The (1965) - $163,214,286
97. Batman Returns (1992) - $162,831,698
98. Bug’s Life, A (1998) - $162,792,677
99. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004) - $161,963,000
100. Waterboy, The (1998) - $161,487,252
Looks like I tied Reel Monkey with 91/100 viewed. Harry Potter shouldn’t count, because I have no interest in them, but meh.
It’s true… People need rules and restrictions. :-/
17 July 2004Well, to stimulate interest in Smart-Popcorn.com, I’ve felt a need to draft up some guidelines for the site, not only to encourage movement and development of the site in a positive and upwards direction, but also to provide some standards of review and editing which, unfortunately, seem necessary to keep the old & new members of the team working together.
There are several other topics to consider, but I believe this one is most important for the sake of teamwork, so here it is:
1. Standards of Quality & Content of Reviews
1.1 Total Length
1.1.1 Minimum 400 total words
1.1.2 Recommended 500-800 words
1.2 Proportionate Length
1.2.1 Intro: maximum 100 words / 20% of total length
1.2.2 Smarts: minimum 150 words
1.2.3 Popcorn: minimum 150 words
1.3 Support of Stated Opinions
1.3.1 Every stated opinion must be supported by at least one
cited example from the movie being reviewed.
1.3.2 Smarts and Popcorn sections (in combination) should
include a minimum of 10 cited examples from the movie.
1.4 Editorial Content
1.4.1 Limit personal information to that which may affect your
opinion of this movie. Minimize bias and restrict
personal information to the introduction.
1.4.2 Do not include any verbal or implied dissent against
specific critics or reviews, whether they are internal or
external to Smart-Popcorn.com. Allow visitors to form
their own opinions of our critics and other staff.
1.4.3 Editors may not add to the content of a review except to
correct factual errors or omissions. Corrections should
be contained in brackets and displayed in italics.
1.4.4 Editors may otherwise rearrange, restate, or omit content
so long as it does not affect the tone, balance, or
overall opinion of the review or the immediate context.
1.5 Required Content
1.5.1 Concluding “Overall” section should include a final
recommendation to the audience (i.e. see in theatres,
wait to rent, avoid), taking into consideration the
intended audience/target demographics, as well as
appropriateness for children.
1.5.2 Other sections should follow the guidelines provided by
default text, but content can vary entirely based on the
critic’s interpretation of artistic/technical merit and
entertainment value.
I have called a “town meeting” for current and former staff members where we will discuss my proposed guidelines, so this is hardly final. Still, I thought it was something to share, both to show what I’ve been dealing with the past few days and to allow for a bit of reflection on the amount of rules and regulations people seem to need in order to function in harmony with each other. I suppose this is the tradeoff for encouraging a diversity of opinion on my site; without regulation, it’s easy for people to make claims of unfairness and partiality.
I Object!
16 July 2004(Reposted from my OpenDiary)
Well, it’s been contested that this Peter character can’t participate in a well-thought, rational debate or conversation, and I certainly don’t know the whole history of this little OD-feud, but it didn’t take long to see those accusations confirmed personally.
I happened upon an entry in his OD about a possible reinstatement of the draft in 2005 (see Pundit Issue #4: The Draft). Well, he was misinformed about this issue, and several of his source links were incorrect as well. I know this because I, myself, was upset upon hearing about pending draft legislation a month or so ago. Rather than find a few similar-reading articles to support my political slant, however, I scoured the net for various sources until I found one that had no reason for bias. Actually, if the site would have any bias, it’s certainly anti-war. Objector.org… It provides information to civilians and military personnel alike on how to get out of military service if they don’t believe in it. Doesn’t sound like a site funded by Bush campaign dollars exactly, does it?
Anyhow, very matter-of-fact about it, I provided the link to the Objector.org article and pointed out to Peter and readers of two key factual errors in his post:
- The $26-28 million dollars spoken of is not an increase in budget–it’s in fact the entire budget of the Selective Service. There was only a slight increase for the coming year and the Selective Service has received a continuous budget for a good part of the last century, despite the abolishment of the draft. So if you’re looking at spending, there really is no evidence that Bush or anyone is trying to build up resources for a coming draft.
- There ARE twin bills in the House and Senate that propose to reinstate the draft… And these bills were introduced by Democrats! Charles Rangel and Ernest Hollings want to reinstate the draft so that military service and foreign affairs effect everyone: men, women, college students, high school dropouts, rich kids and poor kids alike. A great topic for debate, but I’ll save that for another time. As it is relevant to this issue and to Peter’s entry, these two congressman are far from being Bush cronies.
These were my arguments, and I stated them almost exactly as above, with no hint of personal attack, unless he considers “You’re misinformed” a personal attack. Today, I jump on to see if he had responded. (I was actually looking forward to a response, to see if he could somehow dispute or disagree with my source or my facts. I happen to enjoy a good, intelligent debate.) I go to his OD, and where are my notes? Gone. Missing. “BUH-LEETED!”
This is a guy who’s told my colleague, ReelMonkey: “And you better hurry up and delete these notes, you wouldn’t want your three readers to see someone challenging your high and might [sic] word.” Hello, kettle? This is pot. You’re black.
So I log in, with intent to repost my link and ask why he felt my completely nonaggressive, civil posts needed to be deleted. When I log in, I get this message:
| The author has blocked your access to this diary page, and you can not access it. Click the button to go to The Open Diary home |
Well, now. Not only does he delete my notes, but he blocks me immediately, no chance for future discussion? Interesting behavior, from someone who seems to want to project an image of maturity and intelligence.
I make no denial about it… I’m only on OpenDiary to assist Reel Monkey, because she’s plagued by some really obnoxious naysayers on her OD and Peter seems to be the driving force behind it. I hold no reservations about trying to provoke Peter into an argument, because I know I can hold my own and it doesn’t seem like he can. I may even be on the offensive, not because of his continued harassment of Reel Monkey, but because he represents a cross-section of amateur, unprofessional film “critics”–and I say unprofessional in the sense that there’s no apparent desire or effort to be professional–that makes it harder for serious aspiring critics on the net to be taken seriously.
However, I have not yet even taken the offensive. (Peter, you’ll KNOW when I take the offensive.) As of yet, I have only posted intelligent conversation on one of his entries, to give him a chance to respond intelligently. Judging by his response, I may be lucky. If I sought to discredit him, I don’t think it’d take much effort, because he’s already revealing himself to be a hypocrite and a coward.
Hey, if I’m wrong, Peter, prove me wrong. Start by telling me what was so offensive or erroneous in my source link as to merit deletion.
Sigh
15 July 2004That’s the sound I’m making so much lately.
Starting last Friday night, I’ve been having breathing problems. I finally went to the doctor and he said it was probably asthma. (I was relieved at least that it was definitely nothing heart-related… My BP and pulse are actually good. Keep it in the lungs, I figure, and it can’t be too bad.) So yeah, asthma. He gave me two inhalers, one a twice-daily medication and the other a fast-acting inhaler. It’s helped, but not enough. I’m still breathing funny, but thank god, I can actually catch my breath. I’m going to take a VitaPak and some germanium tonight (some of Synergy’s wonder products)… I did so Saturday and woke up feeling good for part of the day Sunday. If I’m not feeling better within a couple of days, I’ll probably be going to the hospital for a breathing test (x-rays, some electronic apparatus and such). Suppose it could be infection or something, but I’d expect more symptoms and I’ve only today had a few coughs… Nothing before that.
It’s so annoying; I hate being sick. Or really, I hate being sick in a way that isn’t just a 48-hour bug or something I know I’ll get over pretty quick. I’ve usually been a good rebounder and I’ve really had no problems beyond the occasional cold. It’s not disabling but it’s kept me so fatigued that I don’t really feel up to doing what I need or want to do. I mean, I might be procrastinating otherwise but I like to have the option. *sigh* I think I’ll try to do some stuff regardless… Rest myself up well and try to feel better tomorrow, and just do shit. Finish up some of the stuff on the site. Clean up the house, call Erin over to watch that movie maybe, I dunno. Just stop doing nothing. I suppose I could be lucky if illness could be a cure for lack of motivation.
WTF?
13 July 2004Ok… My lord. The man isn’t making it easy. Does the Bush administration truly have no sense?
Two years ago, the administration proposed a law “freeing” millions of acres of currently protected national forest land to roads, logging, mining, and what not. It fizzled out pretty quickly so I gathered the administration didn’t deem it important. But here we go again… Today, they proposed a revised rule… One that would actually make it MORE difficult for states to protect these supposedly “national” forests.
I suppose anyone who doesn’t already might want to know my key issues. I’m relatively ambivalent about the war. I think we screwed the pooch in how we handled and are handling it, and the missteps have detracted us from more success on the greater war on terror, but I believe there was justification in going in there. The U.N. should have reprimanded the country for its noncompliance some time before. Plus, my personal theory is that one of the intentions in going to Iraq was to “stir up the hornet’s nest”, so to speak–to provoke Al Queda and other terrorists and confront them on their own side of the globe. Is that a little presumptuous? Yes. Are there economic motivations as well? Yes, just as Europeans have economic motivations NOT to go. But I see some value, and I’m not a peacenik, honestly. Our military personnel weren’t signed up against their will, and they were plain foolish if they didn’t see a risk in signing up. When I see hard proof that our government’s motivations were completely contradictory to American interests, or when someone reinstates the draft, I’ll join the protest. (There ARE some congressmen trying to reinstate the draft, by the way… and they’re Democrats. Go figure.)
Anyhow, in short… yes, ambivalent about the war. Economy? Personally I consider any president rather impotent about the economy, and there’s a multiple-year delay on what effects they do have. Moral issues? I think Bush is too forceful of his personal beliefs for a president, but I think the liberal strength in this country is similarly too adversarial AGAINST personally held beliefs (i.e. religion). My big issues are criminal justice, education, and the environment.
Now I recognize that there is still a need for lumber and forestry in this country. I’m not some extremist screaming “Trees have feelings!” or chaining myself up to a giant redwood. But I do believe we should assume some responsibility in limiting our expansion and consumption of natural resources, especially forests and woodlands. And the president wants to open up 58 million acres of land publicly designated as national forest land? Yes… Enter: conflict.
Let’s look at some numbers. The United States of America spans about 9 million square miles of land. 30% of that land is covered by forest and woodlands. That equates to about 2.7 million miles of forest available for logging and other forms of consumption. This new plan calls to revoke protection of 58 million acres that SHOULD BE protected. (In fact, the remainder of the 191 million acres of designated national forest area is already unprotected.) Google a website that will convert acres to square miles for you, and calculate the square mileage of 58 million acres. Got it? It should read 90,625 square miles. That’s less than 3.5% of the total forest area in the U.S.! Why on earth do we need to open up our national forests to logging?!
Why would we even want to?
Why? Because of our country’s apparent policy of “In Money We Trust”. Anything to save money. Why do loggers want to get to the national forests? Because those forests are closer to roads, closer to civilization. The other 96.5% of forest land is too remote for logging companies’ interests. They don’t want to build hundreds of miles of brand new roads. They want to develop and widen those dirt roads we use to drive to remote canyons for solitude and peaceful recreation, some of the few places we can go to see wild animals that are actually in the wild. Now granted, a better road to West Clear Creek sounds like a good idea. But then I realize I’d be sharing the road with bulldozers and semi trucks. And when I finally make the winding, six mile journey into the canyon, I might be left looking at an “oasis” that’s as much desert as the plateau above, as land that has been desert for millions of years.
In all seriousness, I imagine Clear Creek will be safe from logging for a long time to come… It just wouldn’t be practical for them to straighten out the road enough to get large vehicles down there. But the point is, there IS no point. NO POINT in opening up our protected lands. Our national forests protect some key environmental interests, areas with some of the most unique cross-sections of wildlife and terrain. They promote conservation. They promote recreation. They promote fitness, responsibility, and other personal skills through the campers, hikers, and other groups that use the land. Our national forests even promote economic interests, with the added tourism value of places like Sedona, and even Bush’s own supposed interests when Boy Scouts, youth groups, and other religious and conservative organizations use the land.
I still refuse to vote for the “lesser of two evils”, but with this proposal, Bush just pushed my vote further away from him today. The proposal probably won’t go anywhere, as the last one two years ago didn’t, and this one is actually more likely to receive opposition. So why on earth would the Bush administration bring this up in an election year? Maybe he secretly doesn’t want to get re-elected.
Geek Posers
11 July 2004Hmm, odd… I’m being a bit presumptuous so I won’t name names here, though I’m sure I’m not speaking of anyone who reads this.
Ever found people who claim to be ‘geek’, but really aren’t? In particular, they’re actually just quite… dumb, yet they try to act like a geek so when they put their collective foot in their collective mouth they don’t seem as stupid? I think I may have stumbled onto such a person. And don’t get me wrong, I don’t think being ‘geek’ includes bragging rights. “Well, who am I? I’m a geek. I’m socially inept and more than likely obsessed with one or more facets of geek culture such as Star Wars or D&D.” I mean, it’s not a terrible thing to be, but we geeks aren’t the cool kids in high school. There’s usually only one thing we have going for us, and that’s our intelligence. “Geeks” aren’t generally considered as brainy or bookwormish as, say, “nerds”, but geeks generally know enough to keep up with said nerds in conversation. If our geekdom is infiltrated by those without said intelligence, what will we be left with?
On the other hand, I’m probably looking at it wrong. A lot of geeks–granted, not all of them (and at this point it probably doesn’t sound like me, either)–but a lot of geeks are just very socially accepting. They don’t care what clothes you wear, how cool you are or what not. More often than not, if someone wants “in” on a geek group, they let in. (This applies to a general geek group, not a specific, fanatical group of fanboy geeks.) So perhaps this intellectually-challenged person simply found acceptance among a group of geeks, and thus associates herself with them out of loyalty. I guess that’s cool.
Still, I’m defensive. I didn’t forego cool, enjoyable activities in high school for things like ACT tests and National Merit scholarships just to be associated later on in life with peabrains. (We’ll just skip over those turbulent college years, with the low grades and everything… We don’t talk about that here.) I may have to resort to being a full-fledged NERD again. :-P
Well now…
11 July 2004I’d hoped last night I would finally get a chance to watch Dirty Pretty Things with Erin. She was supposed to be back in town (from a trip to Tuscon) sometime yesterday, but I couldn’t get ahold of her. (On a possibly unrelated note, when I called yesterday, someone sounding Indian or middle-eastern picked up the phone. Just odd, maybe a Model UN kid? But then Erin should’ve been available.) Anyhow, I was feeling discouraged so didn’t try to call back after that first call, at about 5:30 or 6:00. Figured I’d work on things around here and, when Kaleena got home, either go out with her (if she could) or sit in and watch Amélie.
Yes, Amélie. If I wrote here more regularly, I’m sure a pattern would appear that I watch that movie most times I get bummed out. It’s a good cure-all.
Anyhow, Kaleena got home and we decided that I’d come over at about 9:30, and decide further from there… Probably go see a movie. As it turns out, I ended up going to see Anchorman… not with Kaleena, but with her hubby Matt.
Hello. My name is Thom. I like to hang out with my ex-girlfriend’s husband.
Sounds weird, doesn’t it? But it’s actually pretty cool how well Matt & I get along. Given slightly different circumstances, I bet we would’ve been friends in high school. I picture a smaller school, like Mayfield HS back in Kentucky, and I imagine Matt would’ve fit right in there along side Chris Walters and Aaron Allen, Michael Tucker, Matt Wright, and all the guys I hung out with. Social situations were kinda simplified there… you pretty much had one group of people per one type of kids. At RMHS, you can have a dozen kids with very similar interests and personalities and they might never know one another. Anyhow, I guess it makes Kaleena blessed, and it’s easier on the both of us. Had she (hypothetically) married some jock or something, there’d probably be some friction between husband and ex-boyfriend. As it stands, it’s like I’m just a mutual friend to them. Cool.
Oh, and Anchorman was… funny. It’s sort of weird humor, takes some getting used to… The jokes are really BAD, but the writers and cast take the jokes to such extremes that it makes them funny again. Almost a spoof of a spoof, I suppose. Not bad.
So, we’ve got company over and I probably should wrap up. Not feeling too great; for some reason, I’m not catching my breath so well today. Not coughing or anything, don’t feel congested… Just lots of yawns. Maybe it’s psychosomatic. I’ve been psyching myself out a lot lately, affecting my sleep. Not sure why. Don’t really have a lot of stress on me right now. Eh, I’ll improve. Laters.
Thom Likes:
8 July 2004- Camping, preferably in the middle of nowhere, so that when the campfire dies down, nothing keeps me from seeing all the stars in the sky.
- Making someone laugh for knowing the names of those stars, and pointing out which ones are planets.
- Amusing anyone with my huge stockpile of completely trivial information.
- Visiting an old place full of memories, to reflect upon how my life has changed or how it’s still the same.
- Relaxing when I discover that those memories don’t keep me from enjoying the place again.
- A movie so awesome, I’m willing to see it several times in theatres.
- Being able to afford to see a movie several times in theatres.
- NOT working at a movie theatre anymore.
- Taking a bath or laying in bed and having pages of amazing dialogue just float into my head.
- Learning something I never knew before.
- Writing a program–usually a script for my website–and having it work perfectly the first time.
- Knowing that I’m not on bad terms with any ex-girlfriend of infatuation I’ve ever had, and that I’m still good friends with two or three of them.
- Having a friend who would put nearly anything on hold–maybe even her husband–if I was having a crisis.
- Having a horrible day, but being cheered up by a song on the radio.
- French horns, apparently.
- Being an “educated virgin” like Jakob Dylan sings about being.
- Picking up my guitar and playing a song, perfectly, that I haven’t played in months or years.
- Strumming or picking out a new song by ear.
- Being one of those people with a quote for every situation… Usually thanks to Friends, Simpsons, Futurama, or an Adam Sandler or Kevin Smith movie.
- Keeping those quotes to myself, so that only I am immediately aware of what a dork I am.
- Spoiling someone.
- Really cliché remixes with fat bass beats. (Get the party started!)
- Watching my AIM notifications and seeing a friend log on.
- Friends so fun and friendly it’s almost obnoxious.
- Acting really pissed off about something almost random when I’m actually in a pretty good mood… It tends to amuse people.
- On a related note… Driving Kaleena places. :-P
- Starting to write in my journal again, after going months without it.
- Being an “early adopter”… Yeah, baby.
- Reading old entries and realizing what a dick I was, at one time or another, because hopefully in my awareness I am no longer like that.
- “Take it Easy” coming on the radio when I need to do exactly that. (Got a job thanks to that song.)
- “Peaceful Easy Feeling” when I’m feeling nostalgic, or dreamy.
- Hell, the entire Eagles repertoire.
- Playing “Up and Away” (my “footsteps” song) and feeling a bit of spiritual renewal.
- Being comfortable in my faith, regardless of how abstract it may be.
- Getting into a heated debate and finding some amount of truth on the other side.
- Eating at the Denny’s I once dine ‘n ditched at.
- “I’m not even supposed to be here today!”
- Ordering chicken strips with ranch & buffalo sauce at the Denny’s in Camp Verde, post-camping.
- Taking a call at the helpdesk and knowing someone thinks the world of me for helping them with the simplest of tasks.
- Hanging up the phone after an absolutely impatient, unruly caller and knowing I still managed to help them.
- Getting a call from “our old friend” Steve Dolter or another of our super-friendly callers, especially when the call immediately follows one of those frustrating calls.
- Geeking out when meeting or talking to a celebrity, when I thought I’d be so much cooler than that.
- Starting to like a song or album after I swore I would never listen to it.
- Getting called out for dinner… no really, it just happened. :-P
- Getting along so well with my ex’s husband, when he could have every reason to loathe me if he weren’t a cool guy.
- Ahem… Leather and latex? Such simple pleasures, shiny objects, but I can be honest. :-P
- Being such a prude 99% of the time that I totally freak most people out when I’m not.
- Speaking of leather… The smell of fresh rawhide, or sawdust. Good outdoorsy smells.
- Umm… Knowing that I’ll never possibly reach 169 of these things, but being pretty happy just the same.