It's been awhile...

...but I'm still kickin'.

Ain't much more than that, really. But I guess I'll toss a bit of an update into the aether and see what's for, and what not.

I've a pair of degrees now, an Associates of Arts in Criminal Justice and a Bachelors of Science in Applied Psychology, and they handle themselves well enough. We'll see, in the long run, whether they add enough to my personal and professional happiness to make up for the cost. But, so far, so good.

I've been working in human services, initially as a Qualified Mental Health Associate, which means that I signed a lot of stuff with BSQMHA behind my name and somehow that added more weight to it. The work was satisfying, but I wasn't too impressed by the bureaucratic nonsense that managed the place.

However, I'm currently working for a legal services non-profit and it's been a lot more stable, satisfying, and with good folk.

I think that's the key part about my still being alive and kicking, it's that things are still interesting and challenging. A life lived is a good life, so to speak.

Anyhow, I'm sure some more rambling nonsense is bound to appear here, as time goes on...

It's hard to roll with the punches...

...which, I guess, is a sign that it's the right thing to do, as anything worth doing or having ain't easy. But, it really is hard, sometimes.

I tend to use the phrase, "It's all good," as a personal mantra of sorts, mainly with respect to things that I can't change and just have to weather. It's not that I don't care, but I've grown tired of tilting at windmills that don't matter for much. Sure, I'll still drop my lance and change on, sometimes without reason, at the windmills that do matter, such as individual freedom over corporate conglomeration, but those are things that could be changed by the voices of many. Stuff like when my next paycheck comes or how tight money will be until then, well that doesn't matter.

It sucks, though, as sometimes I find it real, real hard to roll with the punches and I'd like nothing better than to just say, "Screw it," and just have a Falling Down moment...but, I'm not there right now. Heck, I doubt I'll ever be, as I've seen the bottom and I ain't anywhere near it. Sure, it's lonely right now. Sure, it's fiscally hard right now, but I'm healthy, busy, and enjoying most everything else in life.

It could be a lot worse, a lot more dire, so I guess it's really all good.

We need some form of Healthcare reform, period...

If you're of the opinion that the current system of health care and medical insurance, within the United States of America, is acceptable and needs no form of reform, regulation, or change and that nothing said on the subject will change your mind, then this post is not for you and you just need to move right on by it. Also, anyone who feels that the current system is perfectly fine and acceptable, total fair and has no issues, I feel that those folks need some help, because our system is broken and needs to be fixed.

Fair access to health care, at reasonable prices, and without unreasonable restrictions placed upon it, is a right and not a privilege. People should not die, in the United States of America, because they could not afford basic medical care and treatment. People should not have to choose between putting food on the table and having treatment for medical issues. Health care should not focus more on prolonged treatment than cures and they should not be about excessive profit. In fact, running health care as a not-for-profit industry would be an excellent change from the current system.

As it currently stands there are plenty of people who either do not have health care, have over priced health care, or are denied treatment under health care and are fully employed people.

That's insane.

We're also a nation who is reportedly one of the most advanced nations to have ever existed on this planet, yet plenty of our allies are ahead of us in health care on all qualifiers and not just social ones.

Again, that's insane.

Reform would be better than government regulation. Government regulation would be better than government ran. Another that improves the situation would be better than doing nothing. Any improvement, at all, is better than doing nothing and letting folks suffer.

Adding into the options for folks, making pricing easy for folks, all while doctors and nurses make healthy wages and hospitals focus on treatment and curing, instead of guarding profit, would be an excellent change.

Civil discourse, honest debate, and a desire on all sides to enact change and bring fairness to health care would be the best of all.

Please, people, think and keep in mind that we're suppose to be a nation of We the People, not We the Corporations, and that what is best for most of us is best for all of us. I don't care of it is privatized reform, government regulation, or government ran, but we need some change in the health care insurance industry and we need it now.

Why do we try so hard?

What is it about the human desire for companionship that causes us to try too hard, too much, in such a way that demeans not only ourselves, but those whose attention we wish to attract? Would any love we found in such a way truly be worth it? Also, what does it say about the worth of that love, if it came from a debased source?

Perhaps it started out with the romance game shows of the previous decades, but whatever good intent was in those types of shows has devolved into a freak show where people and their emotions are the playthings of editors and producers who seemingly could care less about someone finding love, so long as they get good ratings. Is it worth it? Is whatever fleeting attraction, as well as the destruction that often comes with it, worth it?

Maybe that's my problem, with respect to relationships, in that I expect and give respect, thus I don't throw myself out there in the same way others do.

Is that what we have to do in order to find someone? Are we expected to totally reject our own self-worth, as well as find someone who is rejec their own, just to then have to re-build ourselves together, hoping it doesn't self-destruct, either?

Who knows, I know that I don't, but I also know that services like eHarmony, Match, and so forth have agendas of their own that are not in the direct and best interests of their clients. Plus, to be quite honest, their process doesn't seem to be about honest, but a new version of saying what someone wants to hear.

Anyhow, enough blathering, it's borderline Emo and I'd prefer to avoid that. ;)

Laters.

Self Realization Statement

I am not a pervert, however I am a letch and I am quite okay with this fact of life. While I enjoy looking at lovely ladies and letting them know that I find them attractive, I do understand civility and limitations, thus I am quite respectful, even if a bit coarse.

Personally, I do not see anything wrong with letting a lovely lady know that she is lovely, however I do see something wrong with turning women into objects, as it makes it easier to ignore them if they say "no." Thus, I am a letch, not a rapist. I will flirt with a lady, comment within reason, which is directly dependant with the comfort level between myself and the lady.

It is really that simple, guys, and there is not need to say a woman is a lesbian just because she rejects you, since by that logic any guy who rejects a woman would be gay. Seriously, it is quite acceptable to know that she is just not into you, just like you are not into her, so do not be a dick about it and mess things up for the rest of us.

Pax vobiscum.

WTF?!?! - Where's Matt LeBlanc been?

It's been almost three years since Joey went poof, admist the whole wife/divorce/dating co-star stuff, and Matt LeBlanc has been nowhere that I can think of - WTF?!?!

How can someone go from being that huge, that over the top famous and then, suddenly, just disappear. Him and Andrea Anders are still reported together, with her getting her own show, but is he seriously so over that she is now more bankable?

Damn, weird stuff, in television land.

I hate Jack Shephard...

...seriously.

I've hated Jack, pretty much, since the first episode of Lost for reason that are more guttural than cerebral and I still hate him. I enjoy the actor, Matthew Fox, in previous works, but the character of Dr. Jack Shephard is someone that I don't like, almost without question.

While Jack might have some strong points, I just don't like the guy and I feel he's an ass that irks me more often than naught. If Lost were D&D then Jack Shephard would be a Paladin, but instead of using a realistic version of Lawful Good he'd be using the stereotypical model of Lawful Stupid. You know the type who is judgmental beyond reason, causing interparty strife, because they're not getting their way, and are generally annoying jerkwards.

That's Jack Shephard and I wish the black smoke would give him a colonoscopy, without any warning, lubrication, or spooning.

Maybe it's that I like Sawyer and Jack is a pain in the butt to him, maybe it's because I like Kate and feel that Jack belittles her a lot, maybe it's because I like Kate and Sawyer together, but I really hate Jack. Jack listens to folks until the folks have a different opinion of him, then suddenly they're persona non gratis and he downs them and fights them tooth and nail.

Sure, that might be admirable, except that Jack is wrong so much of the time that someone should just slap the crap out of him, tell him that he should only worry about being a doctor and that's it. Hell, maybe they should have killed him off, first episode, like they said they were gonna do....damn writers, the one time they have an idea I like, they don't do it.

So, in closing, frak jack, jack sucks.

Pax.

Lascivious Nonsense - Layla Kayleigh is a Luscious Pixie...

Obviously I'm a bit fixated on G4, but I think that's an okay thing and I'm comfortable with my fixations.

Speaking of which, Layla Kayleigh is a intelligent and lovely example of why globalization is a damn fine thing today. Not only does she have a lovely face, cute as a pixie, in fact, but, more importantly, she a charismatic and smart lady. In addition to all of that, she's not exactly had life handed to her, but earned it herself.

See, that's just sexy, even if sad, because it shows a strong will and mind.

Now, Ms. Kayleigh, no need to join the restraining order line with Munn and Perrette, as I'm not a freak who doesn't seperate fantasy from reality. You're cute lil' ass, luscious body, and enticing face, all wrapped about that sexy mind, are safe from stalking (from me, at least).

While I'm eleven years older than you, I'd be more than willing to overlook that if you ever suffer some sort of condition that lowers your expectations to my level. *grins*

One Pint Aluminium Bottles are Awesome!

PepsiCo started using these new bottles recently, One Pint bottles crafted from Aluminium, and not only is it awesome from a green standpoint (aluminium is easier to recycle than plastics), but it is cool from a weird little decor standpoint. You see, I have yet to recycle my bottles, instead I clean them out so that I can use them as water bottles around the house.

Sure, it sounds kind of odd, but these bottles are a lot more sturdy than an aluminium can, plus they have this artsy look to them. Thus far I only have a few Pepsi bottles, my Mt. Dew bottle got left back in Boise, when I moved, and it is either in storage (knocks on wood) or it got tossed. Anyhow, I plan on getting a slew of these bottles to add to my drinking glass/receptacle cabinet, since I think it is kind of cool.

Since I was a kid, back in the 70s, I have loved metal drinkware, especially aluminium, as it cools down, pretty much instantly, to the temperature of the water that you use, or whatever other drink you pour into them, and it holds temperature fairly well. In addition to that, there is something about metal cups that has this feel to it, it is the same feeling I get from stoneware, more so when we are talking about drinkware carved from stone.

Anyhow, I just felt the need to share that, maybe see what anyone else feels about it, thinks about it, or has done it.

Lascivious Nonsense - Olivia Munn

Hopefully Pauley Perrette can forgiven me, but I'm in lust with Olivia Munn, too. I mean, obviously I've got a thing for eccentric brunettes, I mean a good mind makes a lovely form all that much more appealing.

Anyhow, up until my move back to Klamath Falls, I'd never had access to G4, thus I'd never seen an episode of Attack of the Show. But, I had scene clips of Olivia Munn before, when she wore that Princess Leia golden bikini; very nice. However, AotS is now on my daily viewing list, knocking E's the Soup right off my viewing list. Not only is AotS funnier than Soup, but Olivia is down right nice to listen to, not to mention watch.

Basically, you've got this lady who is quite comfortable with herself that she does some of the oddest, funniest stuff while putting herself into some of the oddest, self-deprecating humor and I love it. Seriously, if she were a dude, instead of just acting like a dude, I'd probably be gay. *grins*

Well, now comes the time in my piece where I decide to stop, before I entice the subject of my lascivious nonsense to file for a restraining order out of fear. No need to worry, Olivia, no stalker here. *grins* But, if you ever wanna slum it in Oregon, lowering your standards, I'm here for you. ;)

Only thing worse than pipes freezing...

...is the pipes busting, so as to sap the joy from the brief happiness of them unfreezing.

Seriously. What. The. Fuck.

Now I bitch and moan, rant and rave, but I've been trying to keep an upbeat thought in my head, but for this one moment, right now, I'm so fuckin' depressed. It has definitely not been my year, two years now, if you wanna be specific, but so is life, I guess.

I don't even have time to feel really down about it, thus this post, as I need to finish a homework assignment for one of my classes and turn it in, in less than an hour. Feh.

*chuckles* 

I started to work on it, when I heard the excess water noise, had to rush to the neighbors to borrow the turn off, and then remember to turn off the electricity so that the brand spanking new water heater doesn't get blown out.

*grins*

I think I'm gonna leave people alone for awhile, maybe I've been a bit mean, here and there, and karma is just curb stomping my inner child, or something.

Later.

Paid to makeout with pretty ladies...

...has to be a seriously cool job, even if there is not apex of the whole thing.

I mean, seriously, guys in Hollywood get paid to makeout and get all handsy with some very lovely, curvy, enticing, and delectable women, how is that fair?

*chuckles*

Lucky bastards.

Leverage on TNT

It is a weird mix of events that can make a hit show, sometimes it is a interesting cast, good writing, solid production values, or just the right timeslot. But, there is one other keep potential for a show to hit the right audience, which is being the right show at the right time and I think TNT has the right show hitting at the right time, Leverage. Even though the cast, writing, production value, maybe even the timeslot, are all good, it is the fact that the show takes on corrupt businesses, criminals who got away on a technicality, and play on the desire righteous anger, where revenge and justice are often confused, that could make this show a hit.

It is a good caper program, with an interesting cast that has a nice chemistry, not to mention good lines to deliver, back and forth, that makes the show watchable. The plot of the pilot, which is obviously the undertone of the metaplot for the series, is believable, and the production of the show is solid, both of which are good signs, too. Yet, it is the fact that these folk, criminals turned to a more righteous path by the feel of doing what they do best, but for better reasons, that has the potential to ring true with viewers. Since many folk are touched by denials from insurance companies, unjust business practises, being on the wrong sign of powerful or influential people, with no one on their side, be it directly or indirectly, and they know that they would have liked to make things right, regardless of the legality.

Now I will admit, I am a mark for John Rogers, he's one of the geek generation, be it because he plays role-playing games, reads comic books, hell writers comic books, or all sorts of other reasons, thus he's like a lot of us who want smart shows, even if the premise is a bit grandiose. Right now, grandiose is a good thing to be, larger than life is nice, with a touch of grounded thought and concept, look at shows like Lost and Fringe, or the more down to earth, mostly, like the CSIs, it is all about something a bit more than vanilla. It is more about the people than the framework around them.

Leverage is like the Equalizer, more than the A-Team, in that you have a group of professionals whose professions happen to be on the outside of society, from the fringe element, yet they are applying it for the right reasons. Rob from the corrupt, so as to strike at more corrupt, has a nice ring to it, even if it is outside of the legal system. Dean Devlin and John Rogers have a good chance at a solid show here, fortunately they are on a cable network, TNT, that has a nice track record of taking on risky concepts and letting folk run with it.

I bet a lot of people in the audience would love to send the team after Enron, or any one of these CEOs looking for a bailout from the government, for idiotic choices that they have made, instead of forcing them to use their own money to save their companies. Hell, I know I would, so I'm definitely going to keep watching Leverage, and I think you should, too.

Everyones gotta be right...

While I am not free of this little fact, I am aware of it and do my best to avoid it, but why do people always gotta be right about something? Why do we always try to keep on point, even if it is not important? What is it about a conversation that has a statement, counter-statement, clarification and restatement, then firmer reasoning statement, and so forth and so on?

I get discourse, I get commiserating, I get debate, discussion, and so forth, but why is it so rare, so hard, for people to just talk about something? Is conversing for the sake of conversing, or expanding thought, so out of place today? Does everything have to be about being right or wrong, of turning someone to your line of thought, or away from it? What is it about polarization of conversation that is so previlant today?

I remember, when I was younger, that the purpose of debate was about fully examining a topic, of seeing it from multiple sides and viewpoints, however, like many things, it became more about the competition than the discussion. Again, it was more about winners and losers, not thoughts and discourse.

Perhaps it is blind idealism, or thinking complexity into a simple situation, but it would be nice, I think, to just be able to blather on about something, examining all its facets, without a worry about winning and losing.

Modern-Day Piracy...

...and I'm not talking about digital piracy, but the sea-going kind that has been getting more and more play in recent days.

All the romanticized myths and legends aside, especially the good fiction and movies, but the reality of pirates should be quite simple, yet society seems to have forgotten that pirates need to be fought, caught, or slain, not necessarily in that order.

Is it that hard of a concept? Has the modern world grown that soft that the idea of fighting someone who us not fighting under a nation's flag doesn't occur to them? If that's so, you need a reminder about the war on terror, as there are no flags there, either.

The pirates are so brazen, now, that they don't even hide or aim for small targets, so there is no excuse about them being in hiding. While it is understandable to be concerned about the hostages, that concern should be under a reasonable amount, not cripplingly so. If you pay them off, if you let them go, then they see zero reason to not continue what they're doing.

Find them. Sink them. Sheesh.

So Roddy Piper smokes pot...

...but, honestly, why is it a big deal?

Marijuana has been so demonized since it was restricted that folks don't seem to know how to think for themselves, especially when the talking point and misnomer known as "gateway drug" is brandied about. It is so insipid that our society is under the yolk of an ignorant law that is enforcing someone else's morality, or some groups morality, on supposedly free people.

Now, quick point of clarity here, I do not smoke pot. I tried it a couple of times when I was younger and it was okay, did about the same thing for me that beer did, so I did not see the need to risk using it when there was a legal alternative. But, I still think it should be legal, just as alcohol is legal, as well as cigarettes, as neither are all that good for you, yet you should still have the freedom, we should still have the freedom to choose our vice.

Marijuana is only a gateway drug because it is a low echelon, minor substance that is where most folk are introduced to a underground or counter culture environment, but you know what else is a gateway drug? Underage drinking and smoking, yet those are only minor when looked at, in comparison to the life changing event that getting caught with pot in some states can be.

It is bad enough that when pot was criminalized it was done so with ignorance and racism, as well as a pocket full of lies, and was attached to those most idiotic of political movements of the last century, which was prohibition. Not only did prohibition create a niche for an organized criminal element, it romanticised it, as some seemed to forget that our nation normally encourages the rebellious, independent spirit. We like to decide for ourselves, thus when all sort of things that were once legal became outlawed, due to a minority of opinion from some uptight fools, we rebelled and sought out what we could no longer have, right or wrong.

Yet, when the light was seen, only alcohol was decriminalized, which then created a market to keep organized crime alive, as they still had something to push. Billions, if not trillions, of dollars later, as well as tens of millions, if not hundreds of millions, lives ruined over the past century because we decided to tell folks what they could legally intoxicate themselves with.

Stupid. Massively stupid.

Free adults in the United States of America should have the right to choose whether or not they want to drink or drug themselves and if they do something criminal while under the influence, then do what is done with drunk drivers, and prosecute them for negligent behavior. But, simply enough, quite shoving your moral thought down other peoples' throats, as it is our choice, nor your choice. Also, before anyone tries that lame duck of a canard about murder being enforced morality, too, you should notice that I'm talking about letting people do what they want to themselves, not to others.

Sheesh, get out of our bedrooms, or smoke rooms, out wine racks, and every other aspect of our personal life. It is damn annoying.

Legend of the Seeker TV Show...

...which is supposed to be based on the Terry Goodkind series, however it seems more like it was inspired by some folks who saw these books on the shelf with some interesting dustcovers, yet only skimmed the books themselves.

You know, how the Texas Chainsaw Massacre is "Based on True Events", yet if you look at the Ed Gein story, which is the true event, there's no skin-mask wearing psycho chasing teens in panties through a macabre farm of cannibalism. Gotta love word play, dontcha?

Anyhow, it's not like I'm a fan of Goodkind's Sword of Truth series, although I might have to give it a second look, one of these days, but I almost feel sorry for the guy and wonder how he feels about the TV series. It is definitely more in the Hercules and Xena vein of fantasy, with the production values only modestly okay.

The casting is so-so, as Richard is a smidge too young, but Zedd is, in my view, pretty spot on and Kahlan's actress, Bridget Regan, is quite a pleasant sight to see. Overall the show is okay, it'd make for pretty okay fantasy, too, but it's not really that Sword of Truth-ish and I find it annoying.

Hopefully it'll get better, but I sort of doubt it, odds are it'll go the episodic route of Hercules, Xena, and Beastmaster, with a consistent metaplot, yet weak execution with sporadic moments of "Hey, that's cool."

Well, hopefully George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series will be a glorious HBO production that'll send geek-gasms through the intertubes.

Small towns are nice...

...and it has taken me quite a few years to remember this fact, but as they say, distance makes the heart grow fonder.

It was the mid-90s when I moved away from Klamath Falls, Oregon, when I followed my heart outward, up to the Portland Metro area before taking a quick sidestep to Boise, Idaho, so I've been gone from Klamath Falls for roughly twelve years. Now, don't get me wrong, I don't regret leaving, nor why I left, not even when I did while I was gone, but a big part of me is realizing that some of it could have been done without leaving Klamath Falls.

There is no real part of the country, just as there is not fake part of the country, everyone is different in the United States and it shows, be it by region or by city. Sometimes you just find a feel that fits and, for me, it is often the small college towns that I feel more at home, as opposed to the dense urban sprawl. It has a feel that is comfortable and almost stressless for me, although I do miss the stadium theaters, dense population of game stores, and other creature comforts, but the stressless life is not too bad.

Klamath Falls is in a really nice part of Oregon, as there are lots of forests, rivers, lakes, mountains, and historical and natural sites, like Crater Lake. Sure, it's about as far from Portland as you can get, while still being in Oregon, but the Rogue Valley is nearby and a trip to Portland can be pretty quick and easy, if you plan it right. Plus, generally, the people are okay too, even if you don't agree with them. I'm, pretty much, a rabid moderate when it comes to politics, thus the far left and right just tick me off, a lot, but even here in Klamath, I'm chill on that, too.

Maybe it's just the right time for me to be here, but I think, seriously, that it's more of a matter of people knowing when they've found the right zone for them to be in and I'm sure I'd get this feeling in the right big town, like Seattle, but I'm glad to be home in Oregon, the weather is nice, as is the wildlife, so it's all good.

Peanut Butter and Honey Sandwiches...

...are really good, I'm not even out of Strawberry Preserves, yet I felt like trying honey and it's awesome. It does this weird thing with the bread, where it hardens it, sort of, which adds a cool texture that I remember from when I was a kid and I'd put Maple Syrup on bread.

Yeah, I had a major sweet tooth, one that's mostly in control today, as opposed to the days where I'd buy a tube of chocolate frosting and eat it with a spoon.

It's sort of odd the things you find you like, as I'm one of those folks who can stomach a peanut butter and mayo sandwich, which my Grampa Emerson introduced me to, as a kid, yet most people gag at the idea of it. Of course, I hate Lima Beans, as well as Hominy, as they've this odd bloated corpse look to them, which bugs the hell out of me.

I've tried peanut butter and banana sandwiches, in honor of Elvis, and they're okay, but not my cup of tea. But, now, I'm in this odd mood for experimentation, which is most likely due to my odd diet for the past month of eating only Mac-N-Cheese with various marinated tunas.

*shrugs*

Yeah, definitely not a blog about healthy eating here. :D

What a difference a week makes...

...as we went from a nation where it was a radical thought that an African-American could run for the Office of President of the United States to a nation where that thought is now a historical fact and reality.

Barack Hussein Obama, he who will be the 44th President of the United States, has done what many would have thought impossible in less than a generation since the epic speeches of Martin Luther King Jr.. It has been less than a generation since segregation was ended, a handful of generations since the American Civil War, and we have gone from a nation whose honor was stained by the inhuman act of owning a person to a nation where we have elected an African-American man to the highest office in the land.

It is an amazing day, a future fill with hope, wonderful, joyous hope, and the world now sees that the American dream is so much more than it was just one day before. We have elected the son of a first generation emigrant as our President, how much of a epoch changing event is that?

Not only did I vote for Barack Obama, but I donated money and time toward his campaign and I've never been more proud to be an American than I am right now. The stain on our national honor is a little bit less today, our image in the national eye is a little bit brighter today, and the words against us are a little quieter today, and that is a good thing.

We've gone from yes we can, to yes we have, and that is a powerful thing to have done.