Oops, I guess it's actually Monday now. My bad.
We made it back from NC yesterday, right ahead of the winter storm that's dumped several inches of snow and freezing rain on our vicinity. Snow report to come in later.
Just a quick update for now. More later.
Monday, January 26, 2004
Saturday, January 24, 2004
Friday, January 23, 2004
And We're gonna go to Boone...
And then to Roanoke, and Lexington, and Charlottesville, and Davisboro, and Aiken, and Tampa, and San Antonio, and Beech Mountain, and then we're gonna go to Washington DC, and we're gonna take back the White House!!! YEAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!
Sorry, I've just spent the past half-hour listening to remixes of Howard Dean's concussion-- I mean concession speech following the Iowa caucus. :) If you want to hear some of them, click here. Some of them are pretty hilarious.
Anyway, if you've been to my honey's blog, you know that she's made it through her final jury before her final grad recital, and I don't know which of us is more relieved, me or her. Honestly, it's pretty rough being a diva's consort, let me tell you! :P
I promised a few words on the President's SOTU speech from earlier this week, and here they are as follows:
Ehh. Meh. Kinda goofy. Loved the reaction to his "parts of the Patriot Act will expire in a matter of months" line. I think it hurt him more than it helped. That's all.
On a sadder note, Bob Keeshan, aka Captain Kangaroo died today. It's sad to think that he and Mr. Rogers are no more.
More later. And seriously, dude, go and listen to the Deano Machino remixes.
Sorry, I've just spent the past half-hour listening to remixes of Howard Dean's concussion-- I mean concession speech following the Iowa caucus. :) If you want to hear some of them, click here. Some of them are pretty hilarious.
Anyway, if you've been to my honey's blog, you know that she's made it through her final jury before her final grad recital, and I don't know which of us is more relieved, me or her. Honestly, it's pretty rough being a diva's consort, let me tell you! :P
I promised a few words on the President's SOTU speech from earlier this week, and here they are as follows:
Ehh. Meh. Kinda goofy. Loved the reaction to his "parts of the Patriot Act will expire in a matter of months" line. I think it hurt him more than it helped. That's all.
On a sadder note, Bob Keeshan, aka Captain Kangaroo died today. It's sad to think that he and Mr. Rogers are no more.
More later. And seriously, dude, go and listen to the Deano Machino remixes.
Wednesday, January 21, 2004
Barking for Clark?
Well, I'm thinking about it. The button to the right is not an "official" endorsement (yet), but I thought it was a pretty cool site. Check it out.
State of the Union thoughts later.
State of the Union thoughts later.
Monday, January 19, 2004
Bwahahahahahaaaa!!!
If you haven't got the money or (I'm looking at you, Ombra) patience to go see The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King, here's a quick 3-minute guide ot the movie:
Tightly Wound: Thumbnail Guide to RotK
Tightly Wound: Thumbnail Guide to RotK
Justice Flowing Down Like Water
An interesting weekend, to say the least. I had two photo assignments; one to photograph the proceedings of Lee-Jackson Day here in Lexington, and the other to photograph the Martin Luther King day celebrations at the town's largest African-American church.
A little background on Lee-Jackson Day, first. It was first celebrated in 1904 in Lexington to honor Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson, both of who are buried here. Someone at the paper told me it started off as some kind of banquet, and that its appearance on the calendar has wavered on and off. It became a state employees' holiday in Virginia three years ago, and until the appearance of MLK Day was celebrated on the third Monday in January. Today it is celebrated on the third Friday of the month.
This year, I went out to Stonewall Jackson Cemetary to take photos of the graveside service in honor of L-J Day. I was late getting to the service, but siffice it to say, what I caught was interesting. About half the crowd was re-enactors in period dress. They sang hymns, said prayers, and played "Taps" as a coterie of re-enactors fired a three-gun salute in honor of Jackson.
It was a nice, historical kind of ceremony, although I couldn't help wondering who was there for the history and who was there as an "F-you" to integration. A little while later, the re-enactors marched down Main Street as they made their way to Gen. Lee's crypt (located, conveniently enough, in Lee Chapel on the W&L campus.)
As they were marching and I was taking photos, a man in civilian clothes walked by me carrying a Confederate battle flag over his shoulder I thought little of him until a few minutes later, when he decided for no reason whatsoever to yell "Hooray for the South! Everybody sing 'Dixie'!" At this point, he began to sing the song, with maybe a couple of other people singing along. Unfortunately, he got the words wrong, singing:
Oh, a way down South in the land of cotton...
when the words should be:
Oh, I wish I were in the land of cotton
That was when I decided that I had enough photos of the Lee-Jackson parade.
The next day I went to Lexington Baptist Church for Martin Luther King Day services. The minister of the church there was retiring after many years in the pulpit, and he preached a sermon that made the hairs on my neck stand up; it was that good. It was a pretty heady contrast to the L-J day services.
Oh, and also, today is mine and the Bunny Bear's six-month anniversary. Happy, Happy, Kathy! I love you!!!
A little background on Lee-Jackson Day, first. It was first celebrated in 1904 in Lexington to honor Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson, both of who are buried here. Someone at the paper told me it started off as some kind of banquet, and that its appearance on the calendar has wavered on and off. It became a state employees' holiday in Virginia three years ago, and until the appearance of MLK Day was celebrated on the third Monday in January. Today it is celebrated on the third Friday of the month.
This year, I went out to Stonewall Jackson Cemetary to take photos of the graveside service in honor of L-J Day. I was late getting to the service, but siffice it to say, what I caught was interesting. About half the crowd was re-enactors in period dress. They sang hymns, said prayers, and played "Taps" as a coterie of re-enactors fired a three-gun salute in honor of Jackson.
It was a nice, historical kind of ceremony, although I couldn't help wondering who was there for the history and who was there as an "F-you" to integration. A little while later, the re-enactors marched down Main Street as they made their way to Gen. Lee's crypt (located, conveniently enough, in Lee Chapel on the W&L campus.)
As they were marching and I was taking photos, a man in civilian clothes walked by me carrying a Confederate battle flag over his shoulder I thought little of him until a few minutes later, when he decided for no reason whatsoever to yell "Hooray for the South! Everybody sing 'Dixie'!" At this point, he began to sing the song, with maybe a couple of other people singing along. Unfortunately, he got the words wrong, singing:
Oh, a way down South in the land of cotton...
when the words should be:
Oh, I wish I were in the land of cotton
That was when I decided that I had enough photos of the Lee-Jackson parade.
The next day I went to Lexington Baptist Church for Martin Luther King Day services. The minister of the church there was retiring after many years in the pulpit, and he preached a sermon that made the hairs on my neck stand up; it was that good. It was a pretty heady contrast to the L-J day services.
Oh, and also, today is mine and the Bunny Bear's six-month anniversary. Happy, Happy, Kathy! I love you!!!
Thursday, January 15, 2004
There's a Sale at Penney's!
I promised an update on my so-called life, and by God, here it is!
Work's going okay right now, if a bit slow. We're currently running around like chickens with our heads cut off trying to get entries ready for the Virginia Press Association awards. I have four photos (so far) entered for VPA consideration, and that may increase if my editor Darryl decides to submit more stuff.
Kath and I are getting excited about our upcoming bundle of joy. She's almost moved out of her "morning sickness" phase and it shows on her face big time. She came to the office the other day to drop off some chocolate, and later one of the receptionists told me how she saw a sparkle in Kathy's eye and a glow in her face. :) Kathy kinda brushed it off, but it's true: she is just looking gorgeous (in my eye, anyway) in her pregnancy right now.
We had our first experience with a cleaning lady yesterday. Kathy has been used to one from when she was living with her mom in NC, but this is the first one I didn't have to call "Mom". She did a good job, although she wasn't able to finish everything we had on our "to-do" list. Still in all, the inside looks a devil of a site better than it did a few days ago.
Finally, we have a bad cat, and it's not the one we expected. Our oldest cat, Katie has been rather prominent in our daily lives lately (See Kathy's blog for some recent anecdotes). However, in the past few days, she has taken to wedging herself into crawlspaces and mewling until we get her out. Is it some kind of punishment for leaving her for 5 days while we went to Charleston? Is it some kind of cat intuition about the impending baby? Who knows? All I know is, if she weren't so darn funny, she'd be out on the street with a "FREE to a good home" sign around her neck. Goofy cat!
Well, that's all I got at this moment.
Work's going okay right now, if a bit slow. We're currently running around like chickens with our heads cut off trying to get entries ready for the Virginia Press Association awards. I have four photos (so far) entered for VPA consideration, and that may increase if my editor Darryl decides to submit more stuff.
Kath and I are getting excited about our upcoming bundle of joy. She's almost moved out of her "morning sickness" phase and it shows on her face big time. She came to the office the other day to drop off some chocolate, and later one of the receptionists told me how she saw a sparkle in Kathy's eye and a glow in her face. :) Kathy kinda brushed it off, but it's true: she is just looking gorgeous (in my eye, anyway) in her pregnancy right now.
We had our first experience with a cleaning lady yesterday. Kathy has been used to one from when she was living with her mom in NC, but this is the first one I didn't have to call "Mom". She did a good job, although she wasn't able to finish everything we had on our "to-do" list. Still in all, the inside looks a devil of a site better than it did a few days ago.
Finally, we have a bad cat, and it's not the one we expected. Our oldest cat, Katie has been rather prominent in our daily lives lately (See Kathy's blog for some recent anecdotes). However, in the past few days, she has taken to wedging herself into crawlspaces and mewling until we get her out. Is it some kind of punishment for leaving her for 5 days while we went to Charleston? Is it some kind of cat intuition about the impending baby? Who knows? All I know is, if she weren't so darn funny, she'd be out on the street with a "FREE to a good home" sign around her neck. Goofy cat!
Well, that's all I got at this moment.
Bigoted Idiots
I was going to write a rather innocuous post this morning updating you on my life, but then I ran across this on a link in someone else's blog.
WARNING! Contains explicit and possibly upsetting language
You know, it's amazing how people will say that we don't need to worry about racism in this country anymore, but then we get a-holes like these e-mailers attacking someone's ethnicity just because she said something "mean" about the President.
I'm living in a nation of six-year olds!
UPDATE Margaret Cho responds.
WARNING! Contains explicit and possibly upsetting language
You know, it's amazing how people will say that we don't need to worry about racism in this country anymore, but then we get a-holes like these e-mailers attacking someone's ethnicity just because she said something "mean" about the President.
I'm living in a nation of six-year olds!
UPDATE Margaret Cho responds.
Tuesday, January 13, 2004
Sorry, haven't blogged much
At least nothing intensely personal. I promise I'll have something up later on in the day. Right now, it's kinda tense here in the newsroom. More later.
Tuesday, December 30, 2003
No more, no more
Hey there! Sorry I haven't done much active blogging lately, but with the holidays, it's been a bit of a bear to even post a meme result. Ehh, go figure.
I've been formulating my New Year's resolutions, and among the more mundane ones (get some exercise, lose weight, try not to be such a bastard) I've come up with one that I truly hope I don't fall back on.
As of January 1, I will no longer listen to any politically oriented radio talk show. It seems like an exercise in masochism, and I refuse to degrade myself in this manner any more.
I have listened to talk radio for going on two decades now. When I started, Larry King was the top dog (even if his show was broadcast at midnight) and Rush Limbaugh was just an executive with the Kansas City Royals.
Rush Limbaugh is fond of beseeching his listeners to give him six weeks of listening to truly understand where he is coming from. I've given him far more than that, and far more than he deserves. I know a lot of people listen to talk radio in order to "Know the enemy" (and I suppose many conservatives tap into more liberal sources for the same reason). I just can't do it anymore. I have seen the "soul" of talk radio, and it is a dark, twisted place.
I am tired of being run down. I am tired of being told that, because of my opinions and political philosophy, I am somehow un-Christian, un-American, and unworthy of kindness. I am tired of being told that because I am a liberal, I am somehow in league with terrorists and despots, or "the enemy within", or simply put, a "traitor".
I am a 37-year old, college-educated, born-again Southern baptist who is happily married and expecting his first child. I toil under the apparently insane notion that all people are basically good inside, and that we can leave this world a better place than that in which we arrived. I believe in the Ten Commandments, the Beatitudes, the Eightfold Path, and the Bill of Rights. I love the land of my birth. I don't want to see it destroyed by terrorism, or from fear of the threat of terrorism.
I don't hate conservatives. I've known many in my time; I'm even friends with some. Simply because we see issues differently is no reason for me to think little of them, and vice versa. To hear people on talk radio describe it, however, you must either be completely 100% conservative or considered "the enemy".
I see a lot of political reactionism on both sides of the ideological spectrum, and I hear many liberals talking about how we should start our own network of programs and stations to counteract those on the right. With all due respect, I disagree. These programs thrive on opinions based on blurting out whatever comes to your mind. You aren't encouraged to think things through, to research, analyze, consider the opposing viewpoint. It's all "my opinion is right, and if you don't agree, you're an idiot."
I'd rather read, listen to and watch the news and come to my own conclusions on the issues of the day rather than be spoon-fed a daily dose of the "Two-Minute Hate" anymore. I'd rather base my positions upon analysis and research than "Ooh, Rush is for that? Well, I'm against that then!" or "What? Bill Clinton likes that idea? Well, obviously it's some kind of Commie plan. I hate it!"
In time, I may eventually tune back in to see what's going on. I hope I don't give in, though. Something tells me I'd be better off not listening to these radio bullies.
So long, Rush, O'Reilly, Hannity, Savage, Mike Reagan, Boortz. Pick on someone your own size.
I've been formulating my New Year's resolutions, and among the more mundane ones (get some exercise, lose weight, try not to be such a bastard) I've come up with one that I truly hope I don't fall back on.
As of January 1, I will no longer listen to any politically oriented radio talk show. It seems like an exercise in masochism, and I refuse to degrade myself in this manner any more.
I have listened to talk radio for going on two decades now. When I started, Larry King was the top dog (even if his show was broadcast at midnight) and Rush Limbaugh was just an executive with the Kansas City Royals.
Rush Limbaugh is fond of beseeching his listeners to give him six weeks of listening to truly understand where he is coming from. I've given him far more than that, and far more than he deserves. I know a lot of people listen to talk radio in order to "Know the enemy" (and I suppose many conservatives tap into more liberal sources for the same reason). I just can't do it anymore. I have seen the "soul" of talk radio, and it is a dark, twisted place.
I am tired of being run down. I am tired of being told that, because of my opinions and political philosophy, I am somehow un-Christian, un-American, and unworthy of kindness. I am tired of being told that because I am a liberal, I am somehow in league with terrorists and despots, or "the enemy within", or simply put, a "traitor".
I am a 37-year old, college-educated, born-again Southern baptist who is happily married and expecting his first child. I toil under the apparently insane notion that all people are basically good inside, and that we can leave this world a better place than that in which we arrived. I believe in the Ten Commandments, the Beatitudes, the Eightfold Path, and the Bill of Rights. I love the land of my birth. I don't want to see it destroyed by terrorism, or from fear of the threat of terrorism.
I don't hate conservatives. I've known many in my time; I'm even friends with some. Simply because we see issues differently is no reason for me to think little of them, and vice versa. To hear people on talk radio describe it, however, you must either be completely 100% conservative or considered "the enemy".
I see a lot of political reactionism on both sides of the ideological spectrum, and I hear many liberals talking about how we should start our own network of programs and stations to counteract those on the right. With all due respect, I disagree. These programs thrive on opinions based on blurting out whatever comes to your mind. You aren't encouraged to think things through, to research, analyze, consider the opposing viewpoint. It's all "my opinion is right, and if you don't agree, you're an idiot."
I'd rather read, listen to and watch the news and come to my own conclusions on the issues of the day rather than be spoon-fed a daily dose of the "Two-Minute Hate" anymore. I'd rather base my positions upon analysis and research than "Ooh, Rush is for that? Well, I'm against that then!" or "What? Bill Clinton likes that idea? Well, obviously it's some kind of Commie plan. I hate it!"
In time, I may eventually tune back in to see what's going on. I hope I don't give in, though. Something tells me I'd be better off not listening to these radio bullies.
So long, Rush, O'Reilly, Hannity, Savage, Mike Reagan, Boortz. Pick on someone your own size.
Monday, December 29, 2003
Nobody tosses a dwarf!
 | Gimli Gloin's son If I were a character in The Lord of the Rings, I would be Gimli, Dwarf, handy with an axe when orcs are about. In the movie, I am played by John Rhys-Davies. Who would you be? |
Tuesday, December 16, 2003
Which Christmas Carol am I?
You are 'Hark! The Herald Angels Sing'. You take
Christmas very seriously. For you, it is a
religious festival, celebrating the birth of
the Saviour, and its current secularisation
really irritates you. You enjoy the period of
Advent leading up to Christmas, and attend any
local carol services you can find, as well as
the more contemplative Advent church services
each Sunday. You may be involved in Christmas
food collections or similar charity work. The
midnight service at your church, with candles
and carols, is one you look forward to all
year, and you also look forward to the family
get together on Christmas Day.
What Christmas Carol are you?
brought to you by Quizilla
Monday, December 15, 2003
Psychotherapy
| Disorder | Rating |
| Paranoid: | Low |
| Schizoid: | Low |
| Schizotypal: | Moderate |
| Antisocial: | Low |
| Borderline: | Low |
| Histrionic: | Low |
| Narcissistic: | Low |
| Avoidant: | High |
| Dependent: | Moderate |
| Obsessive-Compulsive: | Moderate |
-- Personality Disorder Test - Take It! -- | |
Not sure what to make of this.
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