Aaron's Third World Nation

WATCH THIS! DO IT!

2006-03-03T11:38:00.000-08:00

HERE! Watch This. Come on. Please. Do it. You might learn something.

2006-02-14T14:06:00.000-08:00

This blog has moved to Wordpress.. the new link is HERE!

Serious bullshitq

2006-02-14T13:38:00.000-08:00

I am just now realized why Blogger has started to suck so much.. They're launching a "Blogger Plus" thingy that you have to pay money for. Wordpress, here I come.

Shot in the face...

2006-02-14T13:14:00.000-08:00

Apparently, the 78 year old lawyer that Cheney shot IN THE FACE.. err, I mean, "peppered"... with A SHOTGUN... had a heart attack. My thoughts on this, in no particular order...

1) Dick Cheney: "Suck it up, I have heart attacks all the time" 2) Can you say "involuntary manslaughter due to negligence" girls and boys? I knew you could. 3) It's all a lie, everybody knows lawyers don't have hearts. 4) What's the big deal? Who hasn't scratched themselves on a briar, twisted an ankle, or been shot in the face while in the woods? It happens all the time. 5) Ok, they said that this guy was in "stable condition". Yeah, right.. and gullible is written on your forehead. He's a 78 year old man who got shot in the face with a shotgun.. no way in hell he's in stable condition after three days. I bet he died very quickly afterwards and nobody's talking to the media.

Favoirte MM quote

2006-02-08T16:44:00.000-08:00

"There were so many vehicles, all trying to get out of London. My apologists have claimed the car that I first hurled at Bates was empty, those who'd been inside having previously escapted... I'm sorry that isn't true." . -Miracleman

2006-02-06T14:00:00.000-08:00

It's going to be awhile before I switch blogs.. mostly because I'm lazy. So, in the meantime let me tell ya'll about the drama. Okay, so Vicky called me yesterday (most of my dramatic stories start with Vicki) and asked me if I wanted to go to an electronics shop that was having a sale.. she also wanted to get a new phone charger. She had asked me to go on Saturday, but she was busy when I got off of work and then I was busy.. so we ended up not going. Anyway, when she asked me on Sunday I agreed, but said I needed to go eat first. This is when the craziness starts.' Ok, so I'm walking down my street to the Thai place by my house when Serendipity strikes. I hear a voice calling my name from a car parked in the middle of the street. It's a girl named Elizabeth M-something-or-other. I had a stats class with her in college and she used to hang out in Java (Java=coffee shop) every now and then. Now for the weird part... this is the third time I've run into her in Chicago. First, I met her at the UCC (where I lived when I was in law school).. she was visiting a friend for the weekend. Then, I saw her one day on the Red Line at the Belmont stop. Anyway, I get in her car to talk to her while she's waiting for a friend to come out of an apartment building. We talk for a little bit and she invites me to a Superbowl party. Now, granted, I did make plans to go shopping... but, being who I am, how could I possibly pass that up? I'm a sucker for last second party invites. So after we drive around and pick up another girl... I decide I should probably call Vicki back and let her know I'm not going to go shopping with her. She is PISSED. Her response was, first, "What's your excuse THIS TIME?" I told her. Then she says, "Oh, so you're ditching me for some girl you barely know?" Me: "Well, when you put it that way... yes, yes that's exactly what I'm doing." Yeah, that didn't go over so well. However, I had a lot of fun.

2006-02-02T17:40:00.000-08:00

OMFG! Blogger just took away my ability to create spaces between paragraphs. My third world nation is about to get nuclear.

Oh the agony...

2006-02-02T17:38:00.000-08:00

Mozilla Foxfire is causing me to lose the cut/paste option. If I use Microsoft Explorer then I can paste stuff... it's almost not worth it. *drops to knees* Why God... *shakes fists in the air* Why?! I tried switching to Word Press and it didn't work. However, Wordpress did have this nifty thing where I could transfer my entire blogger blog over to a new Wordpress blog.

Another try...

2006-02-01T07:25:00.000-08:00

Is this gonna work or should I just cut the foreplay and switch blogs now? Read the comment.

Testing.. one, two, three.. testing

2006-01-31T18:35:00.000-08:00

I have an idea. Read the first comment.

Hey peoples...

2006-01-31T18:00:00.000-08:00

Two things: Ron will be staying in Japan next year. If it wasn't for sushi, anime, giant robots, and geisha.. I'd really start to dislike that place Second, I'm really starting to get annoyed with Blogger. Does anybody know if I can cut/paste in livejournal? or Xanga? I may have to have an out-of-blogger experience. The worst case scenario would be transitioning my blog to myspace. However, those of you who missed the myspace bought would be out of luck.

Sigh Bangs head against wall...

2006-01-19T18:47:00.000-08:00

I bought new shoes today I bought new shoes today because I was tired I bought new shoes today because I was tired and put on two black shoes that didn't match when I left for work this morning. I had to stop at Target where I bought a new pair of nice black shoes for $30... I was late for work. In summation: I am not a morning person (However, the pair of shoes I bought were NICE and only cost me $30 bucks. Not too shabby.)

Nerd Stuff

2006-01-18T12:09:00.000-08:00

This is specifically for Rashod... everybody else can tune out. Ok, I just read the first Miracleman Comic.. freak'n sweet. What program can I use to view .cbr and .cbz files? (I think those are what I mean) I downloaded a bunch of comics that I can't read. (The first 10 preacher comics, a few hellraiser comics, a few Misc. Gaiman comics, and a bunch of the Lucifer series comics).

Interesting Discovery

2006-01-16T17:27:00.000-08:00

Ashley's link to my webpage is "Weinberg, a wise wise wise man." Now, my initial thought was... "What in God's name did I write on my weblog that gave somebody that impression?" Any thoughts on this? Am I percieved by many to be a wise person? I have a sinking suspicion she wrote that because I chose to discontinue my career as a lawyer.

I don't get it...

2006-01-16T06:35:00.000-08:00

The Best Blonde Joke Ever. I found this off Daypop... funny in a not-so-funny sort of way.

Post Secrets

2006-01-15T15:28:00.000-08:00

I write less on my blog than I do in the comments section of other peoples blogs because I don't ever really think that anybody reads this thing.

Missle-anious

2006-01-13T14:53:00.000-08:00

Seriously, I got nothing today. I am spent. It's friday afternoon and I have about another hour until I can leave. The suns still up. Rock. No really, granted, I still have to work tomorrow (10-3), but I'm still going to go out tonight and have a good time as if I didn't have to get up tomorrow. I'll probably end up seeing a show at Schuba's if I can talk some people into joining me. I was at a show last night and told me I was "straight laced." What the hell does that mean, exactly? Is that an accurate description of me? I don't think I want to be known as straight-laced. Honestly, I think he was drunk and was trying to think of a different word. Well, I wont hold it against him. I hope his CT-scan went well today. Interesting thought... I like hitting on girls in bars, however, I dislike getting hit on by girls at bar.

I officially hate blogger...

2006-01-09T14:48:00.000-08:00

They took away my cut and paste option. No more news articles. Damn the man... Read this. Do it. Seriously. DO IT! It'll probably piss you off. And make you even more anti-American. Sometimes I want to punch America in the face. Yeah, America and Blogger.

Oh yeah, New Years

2006-01-09T08:35:00.000-08:00

Thanks to everyone who made it. I had fun. You all didn't drink enough though. Try and do better next year. I'll probably post more when I'm not so bloody tired.

Kick me.

2006-01-09T08:33:00.000-08:00

Sooooooooooo tired. Tax season. sucks. Schedule: Mon: 8:45-9:00 Tues: 9:00-9:00 Wed: 9:00-6:00 Thurs: 9:00-9:00 Fri: 9:00-6:00 Sat: 10:00-3:00 This lasts until April 15th.

Pissed cause I'm not in Rockford

2005-12-28T15:16:00.000-08:00

Seriously.. I'm missing all the drama.. and the girls... and the hottubs. Ok, I'm also missing potential Ron time... as he is supposedly in the Rockford area.. you can never tell with that kid. He's got ho's in different area codes... whom I'm sure he will be visiting now that he's back in the States. I'm thinking mostly Vodka with juice/pop mixers, several bottles of wine (and champagne), and maybe some Whiskey. I'll take special requests for different types of beer or girly drinks. Non alcoholic drinks will also be available.. but only in moderation. Does anybody want any particular kinds of food? My mom insists I serve food. Silly parents. So I'll probably have some appatizers and maybe a few pizzas.

Holy Crap... that one caught me off gaurd...

2005-12-23T13:29:00.000-08:00

Members of the House of Representatives form of rock band called "The Second Amendment" "The bipartisan rock and country band features Reps. Collin Peterson, D-Minn., on guitar and lead vocals; Thaddeus McCotter, R-Mich., on lead guitar; Dave Weldon, R-Fla., on bass; Jon Porter, R-Nev., on keyboards; and Kenny Hulshof, R-Mo., on drums. advertisement While the name sounds political - the Second Amendment to the Constitution guarantees the right to bear arms - it actually is the second incarnation of an earlier band Peterson formed a few years ago called the Amendments. "It's always nice to have a double meaning," Peterson said. "We are all in favor of the Second Amendment." The five-city tour is part of an official congressional fact-finding trip between Christmas and New Year's Eve that will take the band to Iraq, Afghanistan, Kuwait, Pakistan and Ramstein Air Base in Germany."

News Flash

2005-12-23T13:23:00.000-08:00

Mr Pibb + Red Vines = Crazy Delicious View the rest of the story: HERE and HERE

Tonight on TV

2005-12-22T12:57:00.000-08:00

"Aloha Flight 243". Documentary on passenger jet that loses foward upper half of its fuselage while in flight but lands successfully. Pilot quoted as saying "I told you I was hardcore."

Hangovers...

2005-12-21T11:30:00.000-08:00

My day as haiku: Hangovers aren't fun when you have to go to work. Damn you, cherry Wine Update: It is almost 4 in the afternoon.. and my head is still swimming. "Everybody likes a little ass, but nobody likes a smart ass." -Joe, my boss-

The real world sucks sometimes...

2005-12-20T13:12:00.000-08:00

I'm getting all sorts of random phone calls today from people who are hoping that I can hang out.. well, I freakin still have to work. Bloody Hell.

Thoughts on miracles....

2005-12-20T08:04:00.000-08:00

"And Lo, the angel of the lord appeared, and said 'pick a card, any card' and they did, and the angel said, 'is this your card' and it was, and there was much rejoicing."

Crazy things are afoot...

2005-12-20T07:09:00.000-08:00

Chris Sula is coming into Chicago today... drinking will ensue.

My theory on the Patriot Act....

2005-12-16T11:09:00.000-08:00

Ok, why does the President want the Patriot Act to be permenant? What does he gain? Why is it such a big deal? Well, here's what I'm thinking. Bush is Skull & Bones, his dad was Skull & Bones, most of his cabinet is Skull & Bones... and, incidently, Bush's grandfather was in Skull & Bones. Now, here's the kicker... Bush's grandfather and a bunch of Yale VIP's basically created the C.I.A. and, to this day, Skull & Bones members have a free pass into the ranks of the C.I.A. It is said that about half of Skull and Bone's members end up in the C.I.A. and share top secret information freely with other Skull and Bones members. Now, granted NSA generally does the wiretapping.. but, I have a sinking suspicion that the C.I.A. and/or Homeland Security (which was also created by a Skull & Bones member and, moreover, has always been headed by a Skull & Bones member) get's some crazy benefits that, in turn, help Skull & Bones as a whole. Note: Skull and Bones is a small group of the wealthy elite.. they only accept 8 members a year from Yale's graduating class. Think about it.

Accounting Rocks...

2005-12-14T13:59:00.000-08:00

I got some Christmas presents today from clients: One bottle Dwor Artusa Polish Vodka (extremely classy) and One bottle of Polish Cherry Port Wine (Nalewka Babuni) I'll save the Vodka for shots on New Years. My bosses each got a box set of Van Gogh Vodkas: One large bottle of the plain vodka and 10 half sized bottles, each with a different flavor. I'm soooo jealous.

This is awesome...

2005-12-14T09:56:00.000-08:00

Another crazy news article.. I think this is freakin cool. Except, what happens if the company goes under? Does the kid get sent to an orphanage?

"November 19, 2005 -- Weblinkhosting.com, a web hosting company in New York is set to do what no hosting company has done before. That is to legally adopt a child under the name of the company. The child will live at the web hosting data center where he will be provided with food, clothing, shelter and love from the owner and employee’s. With that he can learn all there is to learn about his new mother, web hosting. Perhaps even work for the company I the later years and become a Linux guru. The process has taken almost 6 months to go through but it looks good so far. Weblinkhosting.com will officially and not to mention legally have a child adopted under the company."

Is anybody suprised..

2005-12-14T09:33:00.000-08:00

A well-known Coke dealer pawned Jenna Bush's ID while they were transacting business and then bragged about it on camera. AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. Ok, I'm done now.

Aaron Wants to Know...

2005-12-14T09:02:00.000-08:00

What's your take on the article posted below. Is it a true, unfortunate fact of life? Are women doomed to have unfulfilling sex lives? Does this mean men possibly SHOULD sleep with a large variety of women before getting hitched (for pre-game practice), take classes on tantra, and read books like THIS ONE to have a healthier, happier marriage? Or, is this person just trying to sell books and make money by writing garbage? Seriously, what do you think?

A new sexual health book claims men and women are born with incompatible 'sexual programs' and that women have the superior 'full option' software whilst men get by with the basic 'reproduction only' version. "It's completely self evident, a woman's advanced sexual 'software' allows her to achieve orgasm without ejaculation and in most cases, serial (or multiple) orgasms, whereas the males much more basic 'software' causes him to ejaculate at the first orgasm, making his sex drive limited and short lived by comparison", commented co-author Kevin Hartley. There's is little argument that men and women are compatible enough to reproduce, but when it comes to sex for the sake of intimacy, pleasure and maintenance of a long term relationship, the authors claim the natural incompatibility of the 'programming' of each sex causes common and predictable relationship difficulties. It is common for relationships to start out strongly, sexually speaking, and then in time for frequency and intensity to decline. The authors say this is the ultimate end point of the problem of sexual incompatibility. "Here's the bottom line. If you're an A grade tennis player, you'll be bored playing a C grader in one minute flat! Women are naturally born, A grade lovers, and the fact of the matter is they'd rather not play at all, than play with C graders!" Kevin Hartley said. Whilst no one ever wants to take the blame for relationship breakdowns, this new work places the onus squarely upon the male who, it is claimed, must 'upgrade' his sexual software in order to match the natural abilities of the female for intense high level sexual activity. There is little doubt the No 1 cause of arguments and relationship breakdown, is sexual dissatisfaction. Since the No 1 cause of unsatisfactory sex is incompatibility between partners, gaining an understanding of the inherent sexual abilities of both sexes and lifting the standard of the weaker performer may well be a recipe for better relationships.

Ok, I need Ideas...

2005-12-14T07:33:00.000-08:00

Who have I not invited to my new years party.. who deserves to be there? Besides Ben Folds.. and preferrably somebody that I know or you know and who'd like to be invited, personally, by me. Maybe Trent Ferguson? Am I forgetting any other Augustana people? Any Highschool people who Marcus hasn't claimed yet? Etc. -Aaron P.S. Katie Sprinkle, you are sooo coming to my New Years Party... don't think you're getting out of it.

Mash-ups!

2005-12-13T10:38:00.000-08:00

Holy crap.. I just got done listening to American Edit (Greenday's American Idiot remixed) and it's pretty freak'n good. Check it out.. seriously.

So, what are YOUR thoughts on the Constitution?

2005-12-12T09:38:00.000-08:00

Bush on the Constitution: 'It's just a goddamned piece of paper' Article: HERE

Last month, Republican Congressional leaders filed into the Oval Office to meet with President George W. Bush and talk about renewing the controversial USA Patriot Act. Several provisions of the act, passed in the shell shocked period immediately following the 9/11 terrorist attacks, caused enough anger that liberal groups like the American Civil Liberties Union had joined forces with prominent conservatives like Phyllis Schlafly and Bob Barr to oppose renewal. GOP leaders told Bush that his hardcore push to renew the more onerous provisions of the act could further alienate conservatives still mad at the President from his botched attempt to nominate White House Counsel Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court. “I don’t give a goddamn,” Bush retorted. “I’m the President and the Commander-in-Chief. Do it my way.” “Mr. President,” one aide in the meeting said. “There is a valid case that the provisions in this law undermine the Constitution.” “Stop throwing the Constitution in my face,” Bush screamed back. “It’s just a goddamned piece of paper!”

Saturday nights...

2005-12-10T21:13:00.000-08:00

Everyone and their mother has a party on Dec. 17th. I just don't know what to do with that. SHannon has a party, my neighbor Grant is throwing a party, my roommate Mike's b-day is the 17th... he's having a party.. Damn, even Liam Paul Gustafson is having a party (it's his birthday too. He's turning one... Danielle sent me a myspace invitation.) What to do, what to do.. I'll probably shut myself in my room... kind of like I'm doing right now. It's Saturday night at 11:00 and shitty outside.. sigh. On one hand, I'd love to go out, but, on the other, I just don't feel up to it. I'm just not in the right mindset to want to hit the bars. I'm not "ON". How does one go from "OFF" to "ON"?... I probably just need some Ibuprofen (slight beer-induced headache)... or maybe more Vodka. I just don't have the motivation it takes to get off this couch and out of this house (It's fricken freezing out there). Yet, Saturday nights are precious commodities.. they only come around once a week. Alas.

Reading Under the Influence

2005-12-08T13:00:00.000-08:00

I went to an event yesterday where drunk people get up and read passages from books to other drunk people. Seriously though, those English nerds really know how to have a good time. After about three beers, I got into an argument with girl about whether or not Kafka was a good author. She tried to tell me that "The Trial" (by Kafka) was her favorite book and I told her that Kafka was a crackhead and that his stories were bizarre to the point of being incomprehensible. One of the better barroom conversations I've had in awhile. I love being a big nerd. Honestly, anybody who says they like Kafka is just trying to impress somebody.

It's Funkytown

2005-12-04T17:26:00.000-08:00

"Czech Republic is turning into giant college campus, has become synonymous with binge drinking and pot smoking. In other news Fark headquarters relocating to Central Bohemia." -Fark.com- Here is the article. This is all starting to make a lot of sense, Katie Sprinkle.

Die, pagan scum...

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

Ok, bottomline... I want to throw a New Years party this year. Does anybody have any comments on this? What is everyone doing for New Years? Does anybody else have anything in the works? I have several senseable reasons for wanting to do this. 1) I like throwing parties and I'm good at it. 2) I think I could get a lot of people to come to my house... who might be too intimidated (old-school kids) or not interested enough (Ron, Gayle) to go to Marcus and Holly's. 3) Last year, I wanted to pre-party at my house and then move to Marcus and Holly's.. but everyone came later than planned and, then, nobody wanted to leave. It kind of ruined my night because I was all annoyed and sober. We didn't get to Marcus and Holly's till around 11:00 (or something like that). Now that I've said that, I'm willing to be flexible. Maybe we could tag-team parties.. start at my house and move somewhere else (Marcus and Holly's) or Vice-Versa. However, transporting the party means having sober drivers.. and nobody (myself included) wants to be sober on New Years Eve. I want input, comments, hate mail about this idea. I don't want to compete with anybody.. just to spend New Years with as many of my friends as possible. -Aaron P.S. Although if I do end up competing with Marcus... everyone else remember this: It's not how big the bar is.. it's how you use it. ;)

Updates, updates... for Kate Sprinkle

2005-11-28T13:39:00.000-08:00

I had an amazingly old-school weekend.. on Saturday I had a small gathering at my house. The guest list included names such as: Leigh Mossip, Renee Westland (formerly Aurand), Megan Olanik, and Jamie Staniszewski. Very strange.. and very fun. I'm trying to get them all to come around for New Years. I also want to throw out an apology to Marcus and Holly. I wanted to hang out with them on friday, but I got suckered into a second thanksgiving dinner in the burbs with my dad's side of the family. I didn't get back in town until 10. I tried to get a hold of them later in the weekend, but Marcus changed his cell number without telling me so i never got a hold of them (oh, and I lost my cell phone charger at some point and my cell phone died.. so sorry if anybody can't get a hold of me.. I'm working on it). Lastly, I got to see my brother and his fiancee this weekend. He's been kind of scarce since he started dental school so that was really good. I like that guy. Of further note: Ian comes back Dec. 7th, Ron and Kate Sprinkle, both come back on Dec. 22. Chris Sula is coming back into town at some point as well. The Christmas season is going to be a lot of fun this year.

Ian's Adventures: The Hidden Caligrapher Pt. 2

2005-11-28T13:15:00.000-08:00

More adventures from the life of Ian... soooo jealous: "My roommate Warren and I have been frequenting our neighbor's restaurant, and I have a few words to say about him. Aside from the fact that the beef noodle he cooks has to be some of the best in all Taiwan (apparently he studied and worked to perfect the recipe for three years) Mr. Xu has lead quite an interesting life. His father was a colonel in the nationalist Chinese Army under Generalissimo Chiang kai-shek, and fought in Manchuria (northern china) which saw some of the worst fighting in both World War Two and the Chinese civil war that followed. (note: I don't mention this to him, but from my reading of history the nationalists in Manchuria were nasty, brutal and corrupt to the core, so Mr. Xu's dad was probably someone whose hand you wouldn't care to shake without gloves on). The the first years of Mr. Xu's life were dominated by the constant upheaval and warfare that China suffered all throughout that time. At age six the entire family moved to Taiwan to escape the communists who had taken over all of China by the fall of 1949. Mr. Xu was raised in fairly luxurious circumstances, due to his father's rank, and after recieving a university degree in engineering, Mr. Xu served his compuslory two year military stint in President Chiang kai-shek's personal guard unit. He proudly showed me a picture of himself in a handsome uniform standing guard at the Presidential Offices, and told me stories about how beautiful and intelligent Lady Chiang was, and about how she was the one who really took care of Taiwan's domestic and diplomatic affairs because Chiang kai-shek was too "simple minded" and only could focus on military matters. He explained that at the time everyone knew of the political purges that were going on, but his unit had nothing to do with it and didn't talk about the things that they saw on pain of death. He also told me about the luxurious villas that Chaing Kai-shek built for himself all around the island, and about how he was constantly moving from one to the other, obsessed by the military and his dreams of recapturing China from Mao. After the Army, Mr. Xu opened up a factory making aluminium ladders and window frames for houses. He also was a dedicated calligrapher, as well as an avid reader of history, and an electrician. He had a family, with two children (now one grandchild), and it seems became a widower some time later. Then, twenty-five years ago, he began cooking beef-noodle. When I asked him why he recently moved his restaurant to our sleepy little alley, he smiled conspiratorially as told me he was getting too well-known after being on the nightly news and in the newspaper all the time, and he wanted to escape to a more relaxed venue so he could read and work on his calligraphy. I think its also because a lady friend of his lives nearby as well. Now days when he's not working on calligraphy, he spends much of his free time studying classic american pop music lyrics and having singing contests with his friends, which is beyond hilarious, because none of them can speak a word of english. The day before yesterday he sang a couple lines of "you are my sunshine" and i had to squeeze back tears of laugher. (It should be noted that i am more than sympathetic to how hard foreign languages are to speak, and at times my chinese probably sounds terribly silly, but this was truly truly funny to listen to. Just imagine what would come out of your mouth if you tried to sing in a foreign language you couldn't speak a word of and you will know what I mean). Sometimes, my buddy and I will sit in Mr. Xu's restaurant after closing time and drink tea and talk politics. For him its a big party, and sometimes the stories get pretty wild (I think the caffine in green tea affects the older generation of chinese like alcohol does us). There's nothing more fun after along day than watching a reserved, dignified ex-soldier/calligrapher turned restuaranteer gestulating wildly and running around his resturant panomiming out a story, as he downs tea like its shots of whiskey. I should also mention that Mr. Xu is a great lover of conspiracy theories, and some of the stuff that he postulates on the political condition of Taiwan is pretty extreme, but who knows? maybe he's right. And like many Taiwanese, Mr. Xu is more than sympathetic to the plight of abondoned animals (of which Taiwan has millions) and it is not uncommon to be sitting eatting and have a friendly neighborhood dog or cat wonder in for a sniff. One time the neighbors cat came in and meowed so cutely that Mr. Xu gave it some beef and a tour of his place, backroom, basement and all, talking to it the whole time like it was a human "oh, you want to visit this room? well go right in and take a look..." I wonder if he tells the cats and dogs about his conspiracy theories too when Warren and I are not there to listen? Probably just sticks to history lessons, and teaches them Tai Qi."

I just recieved the best phonecall... ever...

2005-11-18T13:58:00.000-08:00

Jade just called me (it is currently 3:45 on friday) and told me she had an extra ticket to go see the new Harry Potter movie... at the IMAX! I didn't even freaking know the new movie was out yet (I've obviously been living under a rock) and now I'm going to see it tonight with a bunch of cool/nerdy people. I win! All my "Jade Zen" tribute paid off.

How my friend Ian is doing: The Hidden Caligrapher Part 1

2005-11-18T09:28:00.000-08:00

This is so awesome and well-written. In the words of Ian Easton: "I had been reading in a cafe all day and I was tired when I got home. I had a few more writing exercises to do - I hate writing in Chinese, even if it is getting markedly easier- and soon I was hungry. A new, hole-in-the-wall noodle place had openned up on the ground floor of my building next to the hair salon, and I went in for a look. My first thought was: "hey, for a hole-in-the-wall place in the back alleys of Taipei this is incredibly clean and smart looking. This is strange." "Also there are only three things on the menu and theyr'e written in an amazing style. And relatively expensive, but still cheap for someone that thinks in dollars like me. Well, my gregarious neighbor, who is always chasing the alley cats around says its good, so here we go." The beef noodle, which is the signature dish of Taiwan, was excellent, and easily the best I've tasted ever. He added some chili spice to it, just a pinch, and tomatoes, which is probably his secret. While I was eatting I noticed brushes and ink in the corner and asked the lonely proprieter if he liked caligraphy. We were the only two people there and he looked around as if to make sure no one would overhear us before replying. "well, calligraphy is...yes, i guess you could say i like it." I then complimented him on his food and then asked him if he wrote the highly stylized menu that was posted on the wall. He swelled up ever so palpably at my flattery (Chinese love to be flattered by foriegners) and before I knew it he was breaking down and confessing his lifelong adoration of calligraphy. He then started pulling out newpaper clippings and photocopies of his more famous works. He downplayed their importance, of course, but I recognized them from my trip to the National Palace Musuem, which is said by many to be the premier collection of Chinese art in the world. I couldn't believe it. How could his works be on display there? And then he showed me pictures of him standing with an exhibition of his at the Chiang kai-shek Memorial (like the Taiwanese version of Lincoln memorial in D.C.) and pictures of him being interviewed on T.V. There were articles on top of articles about him. More clippings then he new what do with. I kept telling him what a great artist he must be, and he was getting all worked up in a frenzy. He swept off the top of the nearest table and stood in a kung-fu stance in front of it and started explaining the secret to way he writes, while making rapid, sweaping gestures across the table top with an imaginary brush as if it was a sword. I thought he was going to break something for sure. Then he suddenly started lecturing me on the Song dynasty, which saw the height of many forms of Chinese art, speaking slowly so I could follow his slightly arcane way of speaking Chinese. Somehow he had transformed from a lowly beef noodle cook (albiet an excellent one) into a larger than life professor of history and a renouned master of calligraphy in a matter of minutes. I didn't know what to think. But then, a neighbor or two walked by the place and peered in curiously, as if considering their dining options, and just like that, as if the spell had been broken, the man was back to being a quiet, lowly cook. He quickly hid all of the newspaper clippings away and insisted I take a photocopy of one of his works before I leave. I climbed the stairs back to my place still in a bit of a daze from it all, but I was sure that I now had a new favorite place to eat: The hidden calligraphers beef noodle shop."

I don't even know how to title this...

2005-11-13T22:36:00.000-08:00

If I could be known for only a few things in this life, I would like one of them to be 'He could turn 20 drunk guys, a dancer with no moral standards, and a bathtub full of beer into a beautiful thing.'

This made me laugh

2005-11-13T22:14:00.000-08:00

This is from the blog, Barely Legal: "I communicate throughout the day with my girlfriend through her work email from my school email. This often leads to some humorous exchanges. Russ@lawschool.edu: Some girl hit on me today at work. I've never been hit on that aggressively before. She almost broke my spirit. Girlfriend@realjob.com: Well I'm glad you were able to maintain your will power for at least a few minutes. Russ@lawschool.edu: I don't know. I think you have reason to be worried, she said she was Sicilian. That means that, presumably, she can make pizza, pasta, and tiramisu (all my favorites). Girlfriend@realjob.com: It also means, presumably, that she has a hairy ass. I hope you enjoy running your fingers through it after stuffing yourself with her home-made spaghetti-o's. Russ@lawschol.edu: Your previous email has been forwarded to your human resources sensitivity coordinator, Vito Taglialucci."

Interesting side-note

2005-11-08T11:57:00.000-08:00

As my life gets more and more interesting.. my blogposts become less and less frequent.

It's a small world...

2005-11-04T13:49:00.000-08:00

Ok, anybody know that band, Evanescence? I used to go to elementry school with the girl who sings in that band. In fact, we took piano lessons from the same piano teacher (she was way better than me). Hell, my (asshole) friend Mark and I used to go on double dates with her and this girl I used to like named Jenny Sweeny. Weird, huh. It's almost enough to make me want to listen to that band.. almost.

Strange Link... Web Zen?

2005-11-02T14:00:00.000-08:00

This link is for Jason.. .who is currently in San Francisco. I hope you all enjoy the strangeness of it all.

Question...

2005-10-31T17:03:00.000-08:00

Am I the only one that thinks that a class dealing with the Philosophy of Human Relationships is a fantastic idea? I would take that class without a second thought.

Never thought this would be me....

2005-10-31T15:18:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I had a dream last night that I swore I would never have... the proverbial "I'm late for a final" dream. That sucked. I never thought I would be one of those people. I thought I was too laid back for that. To make things worse... One floor of the school I had to pass through had a ton of spiders just kind of dangling in the hallways. Weird, usually this would really freak me out in a dream, but this time I was only just slightly creeped-out and I ducked under them (much like the spiders in the stairway up to the sheridan El stop).

Now does this remind you of anyone in particular?

2005-10-31T14:17:00.000-08:00

Part of a story by Mark Twain: "I do not claim that I can tell a story as it ought to be told. I only claim to know how a story ought to be told, for I have been almost daily in the company of the most expert story-tellers for many years. There are several kinds of stories, but only one difficult kind--the humorous. I will talk mainly about that one. The humorous story is American, the comic story is English, the witty story is French. The humorous story depends for its effect upon the manner of the telling; the comic story and the witty story upon the matter. The humorous story may be spun out to great length, and may wander around as much as it pleases, and arrive nowhere in particular; but the comic and witty stories must be brief and end with a point. The humorous story bubbles gently along, the others burst. The humorous story is strictly a work of art--high and delicate art-- and only an artist can tell it; but no art is necessary in telling the comic and the witty story; anybody can do it. The art of telling a humorous story--understand, I mean by word of mouth, not print--was created in America, and has remained at home. The humorous story is told gravely; the teller does his best to conceal the fact that he even dimly suspects that there is anything funny about it; but the teller of the comic story tells you beforehand that it is one of the funniest things he has ever heard, then tells it with eager delight, and is the first person to laugh when he gets through. And sometimes, if he has had good success, he is so glad and happy that he will repeat the "nub" of it and glance around from face to face, collecting applause, and then repeat it again. It is a pathetic thing to see."

Ok... I don't necessarily believe this....

2005-10-30T08:21:00.000-08:00

I came across this page and I thought it was kinda funny so I'm posting about it even if I don't exactly buy into its message. Ameriskanks (mostly) Suck Page!: "This page is about, essentially, why NiceGuy thinks Ameriskanks (mostly) Suck*. Such as: their extreme and gleeful sexism. Their accompanying denials of their sexism. Their head-games. Their double-standards and double-speak. Their massive and despicable hypocrisies. Their verbal abuse. Their thanklessness. Their narcissism. Their lies within lies within lies. Their never-ending, sanctimonious victimhood mentality. The bigotry they thinly-disguise as 'humor'. Their mouthy temper-tantrums. Their 'I want everything whether I deserve it or not' attitude. Their unceasing complain-a-thons. Their demands to be continuously pampered and showered with money. The fact that they will spread their legs for a man who gives them enough jewelry, yet will deny their obvious whoring. Their convenient blindness to the fact that they scapegoat men and screw-over men constantly. Their knee-jerk denials whenever it comes time to evaluate their own flaws in an honest fashion. How they'll complain of men failing to express their emotions while simultaneously ignoring male emotions with smarmy cries of 'take it like a maaaayaaan!' The fact that they routinely behave outrageously unfairly towards men yet always demand that men treat them fairly... Did I miss anything?" I can think of a few reasons why people would buy into this kind of stuff and the reasons are.... The Ladder Theory and The Compliance and Value Model

hehe...

2005-10-29T22:28:00.000-07:00

Auntie Em: Hate you, hate Kansas, taking the dog. -Dorothy

So many good things...

2005-10-28T23:30:00.000-07:00

So many good things happened to me that you just need to talk to me to find them all out. However, I wont send you away empty handed. I tried Sake for the first time yesterday. It tasted like cereal, had the alcohol concent of Port (roughly 22%), and made me feel great. It's really great served warm. I didn't expect that. I thought it was all hype. Also, I like girls... non-crazy ones. It's a good thing. IF I had a countdown of consecutive days in which I have not seen Vicki... it would say 12. Hypothetically speaking.

Really looking forward to Christmas Cards this year...

2005-10-26T11:19:00.000-07:00

Top Contenders for snotty X-mas Cards: 1. You are such a good friend. If we were on a sinking ship and there was only one life jacket... (Inside card) - I'd miss you terribly and think of you often. 2. Looking back over the years that we have been together, I can't help but wonder..... (Inside card) - What the hell was I thinking 3. I'm so miserable without you... (Inside card) - It's almost like you're still here. 4. I must admit, you brought religion into my life... (Inside card) - I never believed in Hell until I met you. 5. As the days go by, I think how lucky I am.... (Inside card) - That you're not here to ruin it for me. Actually, come to think of it.. some of these would make better birthday cards...

Squeee

2005-10-25T07:52:00.000-07:00

This is great. I just found a flashgame based on the book I just read (and posted about below). Here it is. I love the internet.

Read this book

2005-10-24T11:53:00.000-07:00

I read this book over the weekend... it is one of the most fascinating books I've read in a long time. It's an autobiography that reads like a Palahniuk novel.

whistling Dixie

2005-10-19T13:37:00.000-07:00

The more I think about it, my favorite movie of the summer was Hustle 'N Flow. Go watch it. Also, I'm going to Door County this weekend (against my better judgment). I've already said that I'm going and Jason nows says he will hate me forever if I back out now. So, for all you Chicago readers... I'll be out of town this weekend. The leaving town thing is also good in a way because my house, which was the impact site of a 200-person party last weekend, is still in shambles. F-it, I'm not cleaning it. I didn't get any of that $1000 that my roommate collected at the door... so clean-up is officially his problem.

UPDATE!

2005-10-18T16:41:00.000-07:00

Check out this article.. they had some of the same thoughts I did when they read about this so-called Cambridge research.... __________________________ "We cealld Cambrgide, but offiilacs siad the rwneneod university had prodeucd no scuh figinnds, to their knwoldgee. More digingg did rveeal, heowver, taht back in 1976, one Graham Rawlinson, a rarehsceer at Nottingham Uinvetsiry in cntrael Enlagnd, decebsrid the pheneomonn in his Ph.D. thsies, and then aagin in a 1999 leettr to a sceiitnfic junoral. Hwoeevr, tihs raemrkable fdining aappers to hvae attarcetd lttile notcie utnil late lsat year, when smeonoe -- but it's not claer who -- lleiky notcied the 1999 ltteer and snet arunod the e-mial." __________________________ Howeevr, Davis pntioed out, jumebld txet becoems diffilcut to raed if leettrs are switcehd between the fsrit and socend halevs of the wrod. And long scramlbed wodrs are haderr to raed than short oens. In case you're wnodeinrg wehther tihs wrkos in Japansee, the simlpe aewnsr is "no."

Snopes says..... TRUE.... Very Rushmore-esque... or maybe more like Good Will Hunting

2005-10-18T16:33:00.000-07:00

Snopes.com is this fantastic site I got off of Rashad's blog (it's on myspace). And it proves and disproves urban legends (it's the internet version of myth busters). Here's an example of a proven urban legend Here's the legend: "A young college student was working hard in an upper-level math course, for fear that he would be unable to pass. On the night before the final, he studied so long that he overslept the morning of the test. When he ran into the classroom several minutes late, he found three equations written on the blackboard. The first two went rather easily, but the third one seemed impossible. He worked frantically on it until — just ten minutes short of the deadline — he found a method that worked, and he finished the problems just as time was called. The student turned in his test paper and left. That evening he received a phone call from his professor. "Do you realize what you did on the test today?" he shouted at the student. "Oh, no," thought the student. I must not have gotten the problems right after all. "You were only supposed to do the first two problems," the professor explained. "That last one was an example of an equation that mathematicians since Einstein have been trying to solve without success. I discussed it with the class before starting the test. And you just solved it!"" Now, go to snopes to see how it all really happened!

I (HEART) KEITH OLBERMANN

2005-10-18T10:36:00.000-07:00

This article is really interesting.. I especially like the quote at the end of the blog post. However, you have to click the link to get to the really good stuff. "Secaucus - Last Thursday on Countdown, I referred to the latest terror threat - the reported bomb plot against the New York City subway system - in terms of its timing. President Bush’s speech about the war on terror had come earlier the same day, as had the breaking news of the possible indictment of Karl Rove in the CIA leak investigation. I suggested that in the last three years there had been about 13 similar coincidences - a political downturn for the administration, followed by a “terror event” - a change in alert status, an arrest, a warning. We figured we’d better put that list of coincidences on the public record. We did so this evening on the television program, with ten of these examples. The other three are listed at the end of the main list, out of chronological order. The contraction was made purely for the sake of television timing considerations, and permitted us to get the live reaction of the former Undersecretary of Homeland Security, Asa Hutchinson. We bring you these coincidences, reminding you, and ourselves here, that perhaps the simplest piece of wisdom in the world is called “the logical fallacy.” Just because Event “A” occurs, and then Event “B” occurs, that does not automatically mean that Event “A” caused Event “B.” But one set of comments from an informed observer seems particularly relevant as we examine these coincidences. On May 10th of this year, after his resignation, former Secretary of Homeland Security Ridge looked back on the terror alert level changes, issued on his watch. Mr. Ridge said: “More often than not we were the least inclined to raise it. Sometimes we disagreed with the intelligence assessment. Sometimes we thought even if the intelligence was good, you don’t necessarily put the country on (alert)… there were times when some people were really aggressive about raising it, and we said ‘for that?’”" Please, judge for yourself.

Horton Hears a Heart (Poe-Seuss Mash-up)

2005-10-18T09:04:00.000-07:00

Funny and original... storybooks for goth children... "I buried him under the theedlewog bush And jumped in a pool to rinse blood off my tush. How smart I was, Sam! How sane was my plan! So sure I'd be implicated by no man! - It was then I stopped splashing. I heard a queer sound... A faint tumpata-tump - but there's no one around! Then I heard it again. But - who was it? Where? ... From the theedlewog bush? No! It can't be from there! Well, it's not from the theedle that I hear this thumping It must be Sam's compacted heart - it's still pumping! My ears are quite large, and I do hear this sound and I feel his cold stare through all six feet of ground. The thump grew and grew like a clockwork in Hell 'til a glum kangaroo could have heard it as well... and all of the beasts of the jungle, I'm sure, could hear the percussion I scarce could endure!"

I don't know if this is actually from a Cambridge study or not.... however, it's pretty cool.

2005-10-17T07:20:00.000-07:00

The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid.... aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh?

Quote...

2005-10-14T12:09:00.000-07:00

"More than any other time in history, mankind faces a crossroads. One path leads to despair and utter hopelessness. The other, to total extinction. Let us pray we have the wisdom to choose correctly." -Woody Allen-

I got punked....

2005-10-14T11:00:00.000-07:00

Apparently my housemate, Mike, knows how to throw a party.... hundreds of dollars on alcohol, kegs and mixers, dimly tinted lights all throughout the basement, strobe lights, and... getting more to the point... fog machines. So I was falling asleep in my room after work with my door shut. I hear the fire alarm go off, get up out of bed, and open my door to a wall of smoke. Thankfully, I was much too tired to panic... I just kind of stood there for minute and stared.. then shrugged my shoulders, muttered swear words under my breath, and took a step out into the hall. The second I step out of my room I hear Mike and one of his friends (they're both pretty stoned) laughing at me and my confusion.

What to do, what to do....

2005-10-13T11:02:00.000-07:00

I have a few possibilities for how to spend my evening tomorrow [friday]... 1) I could go on a date with "mystery girl A"* and see "Improvisation with a Vampire" 2) I could go to the Mountain Goats show at The Empty Bottle with Vicki... and maybe even Brian Riggans if he can make it to Chicago 3) I could go drinking with Bryan Briggs because he's getting his MCAT scores back tomorrow (an activity we planned a week ago) D) Combine options 2 and 3... and get drunk with Briggs at the Mountain Goats show... if he's up for that. 5) Sit home and do nothing.. cry myself to sleep. *The same girl I saw Broken Flowers with last week.

Working rediculous hours this week

2005-10-11T10:47:00.000-07:00

13 hour days... 9 in the morning until 10 at night... Accounting rocks. Go tax deadlines! Yes! Ok, all faked enthusiasm aside... the time and a half will be nice.

Huh... party at my house?

2005-10-11T10:45:00.000-07:00

Apparently, my housemates are inviting several hundred people to party at my house on saturday. I don't know if this is a good thing or a bad thing yet... so I'm not really promoting this. However, I'll have to be there just so nobody steals my stuff.. and there will be plenty of free alcohol.

Quotation....

2005-10-07T14:22:00.000-07:00

"I've met God across his long walnut desk with his diplomas hanging on the wall behind him, and God asks me, "Why?" Why did I cause so much pain? Didn't I realize that each of us is a sacred, unique snowflake of special unique specialness? Can't I see how we're all manifestations of love? I look at God behind his desk, taking notes on a pad, but God's got this all wrong. We are not special. We are not crap or trash, either. We just are. We just are, and what happens just happens. And God says, "No, that's not right." Yeah. Well. Whatever. You can't teach God anything."

Nothing New(s)

2005-10-07T14:00:00.000-07:00

Vicki Saga Part Billion: To bring everyone up to speed. Vicki and I are talking.. kind of. I'm just really not sure if we are friends.. or could possibly be friends. I'd like to be, but I just don't know if that's possible. She's pretty defensive around me all the time. Also, can't help but feel like she tries to manipulate me in really petty ways. For example, she attempts to guilt me into hanging out with her which is annoying and completely unnecessary. Oh, also, she has a thing for Brian.. which is a whole nother world of trouble that I really don't want anything to do with. In fact, she really wanted me to go with her to Brian's party this weekend.. a trip that had third wheel written all over it. If Jason or Jon were going to be in Rockford this weekend, I might have considered it... or even if Rashad or Bristol were going to be there. However, none of the above are planning on being anywhere near the Rockford area this weekend.

This post is specifically for Nick...

2005-10-03T13:46:00.000-07:00

You're gonna need sound for this so check this out when you're out of class... Red vs. Blue Ok, for everyone else.. check out the new Strongbad E-mail.

Baby Stewie

2005-10-03T13:41:00.000-07:00

Baby Stewie Kill, Take over the world, dance, shoot, fart, meg, eat, sleep, Mind Control, Smoke, Act Cool, Smell, Smile, President, run, stewie, diaper, fuck, poop, urinate, masterbate, quagmire, dog, and sing.* I challenge you to find more. *I did not find all of these myself.. I got a number of them from Ron's blog.*

The good, the bad, and the ugly

2005-10-02T09:46:00.000-07:00

I am getting rid of the piece of crap mini-van next weekend and switching it up for my mom's 2000 Camry. In other news: I went to Mideval Times on friday with Rashad, Jade, & Co. and we were most definitely the most obnoxious ones there. Who would have thought pitchers of St. Paulie's Girl and Knights would go so well together. I also learned that Jade is allergic to horses. In even more other news: Vicki called me on friday and asked me to get her a U-haul for the weekend (because she doesn't have car insurance) to move her stuff into her new place. I talked to my housemate, Mike, who runs a moving company, and he told me to call Chicagoland Truck Company because it was the cheapest place in town. I did and, simultaniously, Vicki called U-haul and made a reservation for the same day, but with a $50 cancallation fee. I called her back, told her that I had reserved a U-haul for early Saturday morning and she told me that she made a reservation, but U-haul didn't tell her what time she could have it. They said that they'd call her by 5pm. Anyway, I had to work on Saturday, so I needed to know a set time and I told her that I'd get the truck for earlier in the morning and that she should try and get out of paying a cancellation fee. Sp I ended up getting a U-haul for Vicki on Saturday morning at 7 A.M. and brought it to her house. Then she told me that it was too early to move anything (apparently, she had been out until 5:30 in the morning friday night.. while I had gone home early and passed up partying with Jade and her friends after Mideval Times) so I brought the thing back at 8 A.M. and paid $50 bucks for an unused U-haul. This was not a great way to start a Saturday. Most people would be pissed off about all that... not me. I returned later that day to help her move. I probably wont even ask for the money back.

Hungover at work...

2005-09-29T09:37:00.000-07:00

Hannah and Sarah came up from Rockford to visit me last night.... Vicki appeared out of nowhere around midnight, launched into her current quarter-life crisis, and left 20 minutes later.

Ouch

2005-09-27T18:26:00.000-07:00

The Vicki situation has just gone from bad to worse. I tried to get her to talk about her anger management issues. Yeah, that was another one of my bad ideas. I ended the conversation with a complete apology and was greated with silence. I'm guessing she thought I was being condescending.

Word!

2005-09-26T14:12:00.000-07:00

Foreign languages can express things that English cannot. From Japanese: "Bakku-shan -- a girl who appears pretty from behind but not from the front" Another example, Backpfeifengesicht: a face that cries out for a fist in it. (German)

More thinking amongst yourselves....

2005-09-26T13:54:00.000-07:00

"Are introverts arrogant?" "Hardly. I suppose this common misconception has to do with our being more intelligent, more reflective, more independent, more level-headed, more refined, and more sensitive than extroverts."

Talk amongst yourselves...

2005-09-26T13:51:00.000-07:00

As Coolidge is supposed to have said, "Don't you know that four fifths of all our troubles in this life would disappear if we would just sit down and keep still?" (He is also supposed to have said, "If you don't say anything, you won't be called on to repeat it.") I particularly like the second quote.

It's like playing with dynamite...

2005-09-26T10:47:00.000-07:00

It has been two days since Vicki has stopped talking to me. The conversation went something like this... We were on our way to go eat lunch and... Vicki: (Says I'm a strange drivier.. meaning bad) I drive like I live my life.. Me: (Interjecting.. meaning interrupting) Oh, I'm sure you're a much better driver than that. Vicki: (Reaching over and hitting me) If you weren't paying for my lunch, I'd be really mad at you.. Me: (lauging) Well, actually the first thing that came to my mind was, "Oh, so you drive haphazzardly?" (I just wanted to use a big word). Things escalate after that... she asked me to explain that comment which I was not prepared to do. I fumbled an explanation.. dug myself a bigger whole. I'm sure I said something at this point that made things worse. For example, I brought up the last time she was pissed off at me... I'm pretty sure that wasn't a good idea. Me: Wait, why are we fighting about this? What does it matter that I have a misconception about how you live your life. Is this really worth fighting about? Vicki: (Stoney Silence... the implied answer here is YES) At this point, I turn the car around now... I was tired and didn't know where the restaurant was and she had stopped giving me directions. At one point, she asked to get out of the car so she could walk home. Instead, I just drove her home... after that point neither of us said anything to each other that wasn't related to directions back to her house. It should also be noted that at some point in the conversation I attempted to apologize. It honestly was not my intent to hurt her feelings.

Blackwater Down

2005-09-25T00:06:00.000-07:00

Blackwater Down More scandal... the Department of Homeland Security hired and deputized mercenaries in New Orleans after the hurricane because its illegal to use U.S. miliatry to handle domestic law enforcement. The mercenaries carried glocks and AR-15s and drove around in unmarked vehicles with little to no oversight or accountability for their actions. On another note, Bush tried to use this as a reason to repeal the law stating that the military couldn't be used to handle domestic law enforcement... scary thought.

Experts Say Faulty Levees Caused Much of Flooding

2005-09-24T23:44:00.000-07:00

Ok, so hurricane experts from the Louisiana Hurricane Center are going on the record to say that the hurricane was not nearly strong enough to cause the levee's to flood. They say that some other factor caused the flooding... probably faulty design or faulty construction. Well ain't that some shit. And this is a story from the Washington Post, not some crazy conspiracy theory newspaper.

The center's researchers agree that Katrina's initial surge from the southeast overwhelmed floodwalls along the New Orleans Industrial Canal, flooding the city's Lower Ninth Ward as well as St. Bernard Parish. They believe that a little-used Army Corps navigation canal known as the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet helped amplify that surge, although they acknowledge that this surge was larger than the system was designed to control. But the researchers have strong evidence that Katrina's subsequent surge from the north was several feet shy of the height that would have been necessary to overtop the 17th Street and London Avenue floodwalls. It was the failures of those floodwalls that emptied the lake into the rest of the city, filling most of New Orleans like a soup bowl. On a tour Tuesday, researchers showed numerous indications that Katrina's surge was not as tall as the lakefront's protections. They showed a "debris line" that indicates the top height of Katrina's waves was at least four feet below the crest of Lake Pontchartrain's levees. They also pointed out how the breached floodwalls near the lake showed no signs of overtopping -- no splattering of mud, no drip lines and no erosion at their bases. They contended that the pattern of destruction behind the breaches was consistent with a localized "pressure burst," rather than widespread overtopping. The center has also completed a computerized "hindcast" of Katrina, which has confirmed the evidence before their eyes. Their model indicates that most of the surge around the lake and its nearby canals was less than 11 feet above sea level, and that none of it should have been greater than 13 feet. The Army Corps's flood-protection system for New Orleans was designed to handle surges of more than 14 feet above sea level.

This is amazing...

2005-09-24T09:55:00.000-07:00

1. Ok, go to google.com 2. Type in "Failure" 3. Hit the "I'm Feeling Lucky" button 4. Watch as hilarity ensues

NRA files lawsuit to stop New Orleans from taking guns from armed citizens.

2005-09-23T12:42:00.000-07:00

Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition. It's about bloody well time the NRA was good for something other than starting hillbilly militias. The situation in New Orleans is rediculous.. the military is not above the constitution. We have the right to Bear Arms, dammit.

This is sad...

2005-09-22T09:43:00.000-07:00

This is a first person account of two paramedics (in New Orleans for a conference) who got repeatedly screwed by the police, the military, and the government in New Orleans: -Their conference group planned to leave the city right after the storm by hiring 10 chartered buses, but the military commandeered them as soon as they got close to the city. -They went to the police station after being told that they could not enter either of the two Shelters in the city. The police cheif told them they would recieve aid if they hiked three miles to the freeway.. in other words he lied just to get them to leave. -No help was given at the freeway and they were stopped at gunpoint and told they could not leave the city, so they started a camp next to the freeway. They looted a water truck and took some C-rations that fell off of a military vehicle. However, their 90+ group started getting the attention by the media, and the military broke up their group at gunpoint and confiscated their food and water. - Ect. Read the article for the rest of the details.

Location: Ashland, between Lawrence and Foster

2005-09-21T17:28:00.000-07:00

Ok, the place we are looking at is 4-floors and 3600 sqaure feet... also, the rent is considerably cheaper. I'd be paying 125 less a month and I'd have a place to park (which would save me another 125 a month). The downside: No amazingly awesome deck... instead, it has sunken patio. It's alright, but it's not a deck. Update: Aaron and Lauren, two of my housemates, just vetoed this place because it was too far from the El. We are now looking at a place around Lincoln Park.

So.. I got some crazy news

2005-09-21T10:26:00.000-07:00

There is a very real possibility that I'll be moving AGAIN sometime in the next two weeks. As amazingly nice as our place is... our landlords an asshole. He has been so much of an asshole, in fact, that my two housemates, who signed the lease with him, are going to break the lease and use this months rent as a security deposit on a place that is just as nice if not better (nobody wants to downgrade). The current place is 2600 square feet. I think we can do better. I'd also like a parking garage, a bedroom big enough to fit a queen-size bed, and an outdoor hottub (as opposed to an indoor jacuzzi).

Iraq plundered of over 1 BILLION Dollars... might have been the work of pirates...

2005-09-20T15:19:00.000-07:00

THere ye be... Yo ho, yo ho... A presidents life for me...

Ahoy, all ye barnicle-covered bilge rats....

2005-09-20T12:03:00.000-07:00

mateys and wenches, Avast, I have a fierce fire in me belly fer me mate, ol Ron Wendt, ter raise anchor and set sail fer American waters this Christmas. To facilitate his journey, I'll be seizing all yer doubloons, err, I mean, ask'n ya ter make a donation ter my "Ron-America Charity." know ye where I kin find me some grog-filled mates who'd dig up some of thar buried trasure ta throw in with some of me loot so's we all kin dance a jig and swill a pint or two of grog with ol Ron this holiday season? I'll even open up me pub, Skull and Scuppers, fer one ferocious Ron-extravaganza if it works. Arrr, but ye can only come if ye throw in some loot, ye scurvey dogs. Me dear ol mum, bless her black soul, once tol me, "If yer not a friend a Ron, ye kin walk the bloody plank"* *Support the Ron America Fund, I'll pledge $200 bucks to start it off.. lets raise enough to get Ron back to the states. If it actually works, I'll throw everyone a big party*

Marlon Brando wrote a pirate novel....

2005-09-20T08:24:00.000-07:00

"Brando fell in love with t' South Pacific while filmin' t' 1962 classic "Mutiny on t' Bounty" in Tahiti. He later bought his own South Pacific island and, in 1979, proposed t' Cammell that they collaborate on a pirate story. "He made t' South Seas a great part o' his life. Clearly this story comes out o' t' books he read and t' thin's he learned about t' seas durin' his time out thar," Thomson said. "He was also crazy about Asian beauties."" "Set in 1927, t' book tells t' story o' a sea captain named Anatole "Annie" Doultry who, while servin' time in a Hong Kong prison, saves t' life o' a prisoner. On his release he learns he has won t' gratitude o' that prisoner's boss, a beautiful gangster named Madame Lai Choi San." Madame Lai proposes that Anatole join her in a robbery o' a British-owned ship carryin' a fortune in silver. Unable t' resist, he gets swept up in a tale o' pirates, a typhoon, a scorchin' sex scene and hand-to-hand combat. Publishers Weekly gave an upbeat review, sayin' "t' stylish result will delight readers who love movies, Marlon Brando, sea stories, Chinese pirates or adventure tales." T' Washin'ton Post was less enthused

The Legend of Blackheart Barry and Talk like a Pirate Day...

2005-09-20T07:58:00.000-07:00

One summer day ten years ago, two scallywags from Oregon, John Baur and Mark Summers, were playing racquetball. And for reasons they don't even understand they began shouting their encouraging platitudes to each other in pirate-speak. Because, you know, pirates and racquetball go hand-in-hand. The banter was such jolly fun, the pair decided it needed it's own day of celebration. The date of the holiday was changed from the anniversary of that racquetball game in July to September 19, a date that Summers can more easily remember -- it's his ex-wife's birthday. Aarrrr! However, it wasn't until syndicated columnist Dave Barry championed the movement, a concept he agrees is better than one of his own failed experiments, "Talk Like a Member of the Lollipop Guild Day," that anyone other than Bauer and Summers and their immediate swabbies took to the idea.

The pirate speakth....

2005-09-20T07:49:00.000-07:00

It's a sad day. I just realized that I missed a very special commemorative anniversary known as "Talk-like a pirate day." All day yesterday people were talking about landlubbers, poopdecks, and Davey Jones' Locker... and I missed it. In memory o' this lost day, all me posts today will be in pirate-speak. Arghhhh!

Dashboard Confessional...

2005-09-19T22:33:00.000-07:00

I went to a Dashboard Confessional concert with Bristol and Shannon. Ok, the show was alright and I was in good company, however, I now fully understand why I don't listen to that band anymore. First, I remember Chris Caraba (sp?) when I saw him for the first time four years ago and he looked like the bitter broken-hearted punk kid that he sings about in his songs. When he sang, he sang with emotion and you could feel the bitterness. You can't sing bitter songs when you're happy. Tonight, he was happy. He told jokes and he flirted with all the fifteen year old girls in the audience... all night long. Lame. Second, instead of looking like a greasey punk kid, he had his hair slicked back and he looked like a cross between Antonio Banderas and the evil guy from Wanye's World. It just didn't work. He looked liked and acted like that frat guy who brought his guitar to the frat party so that he could play dave matthews band covers and impress the cookie-cutter-kid blonde girls. He was THAT guy. Seriously, the guy made a point to announce that he was still hung over from the night before. Third, he said that he was going to play "something special" because the concert was for charity (and the tickets were kind of expensive).... but he didn't own up to it. Nothing I hadn't heard before. I was hoping for some Further Seems Forever stuff. I would have forgiven him for all of the above for just one of the songs off that first Further Seems Forever album. The one thing I'll give him were that the other guitarist he played with was really cool and talented. He even had one guy who sang back-up on one or two songs who seemed pretty cool.

New study shows....

2005-09-19T11:58:00.000-07:00

functional psychopaths are the best financial traders. Here comes the chianti.

A team of U.S. scientists has found the emotionally impaired are more willing to gamble for high stakes and that people with brain damage may make good financial decisions, the Times newspaper reported on Monday. In a study of investors' behaviour 41 people with normal IQs were asked to play a simple investment game. Fifteen of the group had suffered lesions on the areas of the brain that affect emotions. The result was those with brain damage outperformed those without. The scientists found emotions led some of the group to avoid risks even when the potential benefits far outweighed the losses, a phenomenon known as myopic loss aversion. One of the researchers, Antione Bechara, an associate professor of neurology at the University of Iowa, said the best stock market investors might plausibly be called "functional psychopaths." Fellow author, Baba Shiv of Stanford Graduate School of Business said many company chiefs and top lawyers may also show they share the same trait. "Emotions serve an adaptive role in speeding up the decision-making process," said Shiv. "However, there are circumstances in which a naturally occurring emotional response must be inhibited, so that a deliberate and potentially wiser decision can be made."

Oh, the inanity....

2005-09-19T10:47:00.000-07:00

He-man does four non-blondes.... check it out.

Yesterday...

2005-09-19T09:07:00.000-07:00

I watched Crash. That movie *almost* made me cry. I also watched about 20 minutes of The Grudge... and the 20 minutes I watched definitely gave me a really messed up nightmare. I almost never have nightmares.

Dude...

2005-09-19T08:41:00.000-07:00

Hey Jason.... 1) You should read my blog... mailbox-head 2) Move to Chicago.... NOW 3) Check this out! (Note: If you are not Jason, then you will probably not be entertained by the links)

This weekend...

2005-09-18T21:57:00.000-07:00

1. I lost my voice... I apologize for not calling back those I said I would call back 2. I capitolized on Jon Kryder's surprise party and had a bunch of people over at my house on friday night. 3. Due to the efforts of Vicki, and the supporting cast of myself, Rashad, and, to a lesser extent, Brian.... my house was the setting for the most elaborate barbecue that the Rockford kids had ever seen. We're talking shrimp, scallops, marinaded chicken, seasoned steaks, corn-on-the-cob, well-seasoned patotes n onions, ka-bobs. Damn, we even made brownies. 4. Went to the apple orchard with a bunch of Rockford folk... the apple cider there (to steal the words of Brian Riggans) totally "owns my head." 5. Still unclear about the whole Vicki situation... not really worried about it. I still plan to hang out with her a lot wether we're dating or not so I'm ok with being in the dark about the whole thing. Her words and her actions send TOTALLY mixed signals/messages whatever... take your pick. Meh, if she wants to hold my hand/hug me/make out with me when we hang out... who am I to object? Ahh... it sounds to me like the start of a beautifully unhealthy relationship.

This is soooo bloody brilliant....

2005-09-15T18:16:00.000-07:00

Boing Boing: A Directory of Wonderful Things: "Hacking the fundamentalists" Planned Parenthood in Philadelphia came up with an ingenious way to fight back against anti-choice fundamentalists who block clinic doors and harass workers and patients. The idea: hold a fund drive in which donors give cash for each protestor that shows up. The more there are, the more money Planned Parenthood receives. And, let the harassers know how much their presence is helping the clinic raise funds.

Every time protesters gather outside of our Locust Street health center, our patients face verbal attacks from them. They see graphic signs meant to confuse and intimidate. They are sometimes blocked from entering the building and occasionally they are videotaped. They are offered anti-choice propaganda and free rides to the closest “crisis pregnancy center.” Staff and volunteers are also seen as targets. We are all called murderers, are lectured to about committing sins, and are told we will pay the “ultimate price” for our actions. You can stand with others in the community against these acts of intimidation and harassment. Here’s how it works: You decide on the amount you would like to pledge for each protester (minimum 10 cents). When protesters show up on our sidewalks, Planned Parenthood Southeastern Pennsylvania will count and record their number each day from October 1 through November 30, 2005. We will place a sign outside the health center that tracks pledges and makes protesters fully aware that their actions are benefiting PPSP. At the end of the two-month campaign, we will send you an update on protest activities and a pledge reminder. Example: If you pledge 30 cents per protester, and PPSP has 100 protesters in October and 160 protesters in November, your donation would be 78 dollars for the entire two-month campaign…

Oh what a tangled web we weave

2005-09-15T17:09:00.000-07:00

I am sick. I blame this wholey on Vicki First, she broke up with me (this was on Sunday), which sent me into a severe depression for at least a good hour (which, in turn, had the lasting effect of lowering my immune system). Then, she went ahead and cooked me a delicious meal on Monday night, invited me to watch a movie with her, and kept me up until 2:30 AM talking to her on her front porch area... knowing full well that I had to work in the morning. (Her plan was obviously to keep my immune system low from the day before). Lastly, she and Rashad (her accomplice) practically forced me out of the house on Tuesday to go out to eat with them at a thai place downtown. Vicki was very persuasive... damn that feminine charm. She also forced me to eat an extemely potent green pepper which, if I'm not mistaken, caused this vile condition.* She obviously meant to poison me. Although, how food could cause me to contract a cold, I have no idea. Now I am miserable and missing work (while, at the same time, still getting paid for work. Kick ass.) Sincerely, Aaron S. Preston Esquire *It was pointed out to me that Vicki kissing me several times over two of the last three days**, while also sick***, could have caused me to become sick. I have refused to believe this, as I am sure it had to be that demon pepper. **Further confirming that girls are strange and that I do not understand them. ***She did warn me of this, but I refused to heed her warnings. I didn't actually believe (and still don't) that she had anything contagious. I refuse to believe that I had any bad judgment in the matter... it couldn't have possibly have had anything to do with kissing her (she started it). Even if it did, I obviously wasn't thinking rationally at the time and she should have known that. Either way, I conclude that this cold is entirely her doing.