Well, am finally home from Christmas festivities in Pittsburgh. Spent a lot of it avoiding terrible family members, many of them with strange afflictions, like an obsession with being straight, or pinkeye. Some of you were even there for some of it; aren't you lucky.
For the rest of you, your gifts will be in the mail today. I had to wait till I went to the museum over break to get a lot of them.
I'm afraid I really don't have a lot to say, except that I wish some people I know were happier. It honestly breaks my heart to see the people that my cousins have grown up to be. I just hope they'll figure their own shit out soon, and shake off that nasty brainwashing.
One of my cooler presents this year is a logo for this blog, so as soon as I figure out how, it'll add much to your expereince of this page.
Oh, also, please go read up on the the Dover decision. Beautiful, wonderful, a triumph of truth. AND, the judge was all supposed to be on the IDiots side! HAH. Take that, IDiots.
Friday, December 30, 2005
Thursday, December 15, 2005
Irony
Does anyone else see the irony that the Bush regime wants to push for a "secular" government in Iraq?
In other news, I feel I should open up this blog to anonymous comments so that my friends who don't have blogger accounts can post. I do this because I post on their blogs anonymously to irritate them, so they should feel free to respond in kind.
If, however, I get spammed by fundies, woo-woos, or other assorted wackos, rest assured, I will not hesitate to remove your comments and close this blog to anonymous posters. The reason I do this is because I am NOT interested in a fair exchange of ideas, this is not public property where your freedom of speech applies, and because I don't give a shit what your opinion is if you don't agree with me, because this is my blog. If you don't like it, fuck off.
In still other news, Catholicism is pretty prevalent in the news these days. I was listening to a discussion on the "no gays" memo on NPR today. If that's how they're trying to keep pedophiles out of the priesthood (which is a line of thought that is tragically flawed, of course :rolls eyes:), which is what some people seem to be saying, aren't they re-victimizing the women who were abused by priests? I mean, not only were these women abused, right, then the church didn't do anything about it, then the church totally ignores them when trying to fix the problem. I dunno, maybe that isn't really the reason the church wants to bar gay men from becoming priests. I know that the Catholic church teaches being gay is wrong, but the discussions I've heard on NPR about this seem to indicate that this is some sort of response to the recent sex abuse scandal. Which is what leaves me feeling like the women in the scandal got shafted.
I'm off to Detroit next week for work (I know, you all wish you could come with me), then home for Christmas. After which, I hope my nostalgic melancholy will dissipate.
Also, Friday is my birthday, so give me presents and love!
In other news, I feel I should open up this blog to anonymous comments so that my friends who don't have blogger accounts can post. I do this because I post on their blogs anonymously to irritate them, so they should feel free to respond in kind.
If, however, I get spammed by fundies, woo-woos, or other assorted wackos, rest assured, I will not hesitate to remove your comments and close this blog to anonymous posters. The reason I do this is because I am NOT interested in a fair exchange of ideas, this is not public property where your freedom of speech applies, and because I don't give a shit what your opinion is if you don't agree with me, because this is my blog. If you don't like it, fuck off.
In still other news, Catholicism is pretty prevalent in the news these days. I was listening to a discussion on the "no gays" memo on NPR today. If that's how they're trying to keep pedophiles out of the priesthood (which is a line of thought that is tragically flawed, of course :rolls eyes:), which is what some people seem to be saying, aren't they re-victimizing the women who were abused by priests? I mean, not only were these women abused, right, then the church didn't do anything about it, then the church totally ignores them when trying to fix the problem. I dunno, maybe that isn't really the reason the church wants to bar gay men from becoming priests. I know that the Catholic church teaches being gay is wrong, but the discussions I've heard on NPR about this seem to indicate that this is some sort of response to the recent sex abuse scandal. Which is what leaves me feeling like the women in the scandal got shafted.
I'm off to Detroit next week for work (I know, you all wish you could come with me), then home for Christmas. After which, I hope my nostalgic melancholy will dissipate.
Also, Friday is my birthday, so give me presents and love!
Tuesday, December 06, 2005
People I think about sometimes
Aaron from field camp in Italy, 2000. He was overweight, lacked confidence, and I think about him from time to time and hope he learned something from the experience. We all tried to buck him up a lot; I even took him shopping for new clothes before we left. I hope he doesn't look back on it as a terrible experience. But sometimes we're not as self-aware as we could be.
Jason from high school. Yes, high school, with drama and everything. I don't really regret the stupid and cruel thing I did, I was very young and very selfish. I just wish I could find him and talk to him now. After Chuckie died, I tried to find him, but couldn't turn up anything. I don't even know what his plans after high school were; I don't even have a starting point. Except that I'm sure his mom still lives in Delmont, and I could, if I had the balls, track him down. But I don't and I won't. I also wish I had the guts to say something to him when I saw him out over Christmas a couple years ago, but I still wasn't grown-up enough to do that. Also, Jason, I kept that mix tape you made me until my junior or senior year of college, when it finally broke. That was a good mix tape, and I will re-create it one day.
Chris from college. Lived across the hall from Joel, and gave us bad mushrooms once. But a very, very cool guy. Scary intelligent. I'm sure he's leading a cult somewhere or something. Gave really great parties. All in all, someone I really wish I'd kept in touch with, because I'd like to have seen how he turned out.
Speaking of field camp, where the hell is Philip? If I ever track him down, well, he'd just better hope I never track him down. I know you're in Hawaii you asshole. I know you're crappy at keeping in touch, but I did make an effort, so you could have as well. Jerk.
And Dustin from forensics. Such a sweet, creative kid. And he sent me paintings freshman year of college. After that, he kind of dissapeared, and I wonder how he turned out, too. I'll occasionally make and effort to find him, but I don't have any idea how to spell his last name. Damned Greeks. Very creative, just not always very smart. Though one of those people who was way smarter than he gave himself credit for.
And of course, Neal. Though that's less the misty nostalgia and more the "I wish I knew where he was because I want to feel superior to him for fucking up his life after we broke up." I have heard bits and pieces from Jamie, but nothing lately since Jamie's had his second kid. Jamie and I don't talk too much, especially after that....incident.
And there are occasionally people I am able to track down. I don't have the balls to email him, but I once made out with this guy, who's living in CA and making comics. It's funny how things work out. If he happens to stop over here, I hope he doesn't think this post is incredibly stupid. Sigh.
Jason from high school. Yes, high school, with drama and everything. I don't really regret the stupid and cruel thing I did, I was very young and very selfish. I just wish I could find him and talk to him now. After Chuckie died, I tried to find him, but couldn't turn up anything. I don't even know what his plans after high school were; I don't even have a starting point. Except that I'm sure his mom still lives in Delmont, and I could, if I had the balls, track him down. But I don't and I won't. I also wish I had the guts to say something to him when I saw him out over Christmas a couple years ago, but I still wasn't grown-up enough to do that. Also, Jason, I kept that mix tape you made me until my junior or senior year of college, when it finally broke. That was a good mix tape, and I will re-create it one day.
Chris from college. Lived across the hall from Joel, and gave us bad mushrooms once. But a very, very cool guy. Scary intelligent. I'm sure he's leading a cult somewhere or something. Gave really great parties. All in all, someone I really wish I'd kept in touch with, because I'd like to have seen how he turned out.
Speaking of field camp, where the hell is Philip? If I ever track him down, well, he'd just better hope I never track him down. I know you're in Hawaii you asshole. I know you're crappy at keeping in touch, but I did make an effort, so you could have as well. Jerk.
And Dustin from forensics. Such a sweet, creative kid. And he sent me paintings freshman year of college. After that, he kind of dissapeared, and I wonder how he turned out, too. I'll occasionally make and effort to find him, but I don't have any idea how to spell his last name. Damned Greeks. Very creative, just not always very smart. Though one of those people who was way smarter than he gave himself credit for.
And of course, Neal. Though that's less the misty nostalgia and more the "I wish I knew where he was because I want to feel superior to him for fucking up his life after we broke up." I have heard bits and pieces from Jamie, but nothing lately since Jamie's had his second kid. Jamie and I don't talk too much, especially after that....incident.
And there are occasionally people I am able to track down. I don't have the balls to email him, but I once made out with this guy, who's living in CA and making comics. It's funny how things work out. If he happens to stop over here, I hope he doesn't think this post is incredibly stupid. Sigh.
Monday, December 05, 2005
Darn darn darn.
I hate it when other people say what I'm thinking better than I can.
Also, is super-cute photo of Penn.
I have a totally unhealthy crush on him.
Also, is super-cute photo of Penn.
I have a totally unhealthy crush on him.
Always winter and never Christmas
Yes, that's right. Chronicles of Narnia opens this week, and it looks cool as hell, so Xtian allegory be damned. I loved those books as a kid, and I still love them as an old and cynical atheist, so shut up.
In related news, winter has happened to Syracuse. Changing seasons get to me. I start feeling nostalgic and homesick.
In the fall, I reminisce about the good ol days in band. Friends, drama, the mental and physical work. Fall has so many distinct smells to trigger memories. Leaves, fires, cinnamon, apples. The crisp air of a fall night with the promise of snow hits my mind with such a shock of nostalgia, it almost takes my breath away. I can almost hear... well. Anyway.
Winter is different. Winter is melancholy, a time for missing friends and family. Christmas Eve with my family is very important. Not just to see the family, but to feel the warmth and comfort of a hundred years' worth of tradition. My family has had the same Christmas Eve dinner since my great-grandfather came here from Poland. Visiting old churches, with the faint scent of incense and the echoes of daily mass going on, feels similar. Same food, a menu I can recite while asleep. Pierogies from one of the Polish churches, mushroom soup, saurkraut, shrimp and smelts. Cousin Dee always brings a fancy vegetable dish, and we have new potatoes with butter and parsley. Same thing every year. Still, doesn't get boring. Ham and kelbasia Christmas morning, with bread courtesy of my mom and Uncle Joe. Time to visit Grammy and Aunt Paula. Maybe later some friends will come over. Of course, that used to be a lot more true. Not that many friends around anymore.
It's not that I don't want things to change, of course. Everyone should go on with their lives, get married, have kids, move away. It's just that sometimes I miss the way things used to be.
And I certainly am not alone in that, especially this time of year.
In related news, winter has happened to Syracuse. Changing seasons get to me. I start feeling nostalgic and homesick.
In the fall, I reminisce about the good ol days in band. Friends, drama, the mental and physical work. Fall has so many distinct smells to trigger memories. Leaves, fires, cinnamon, apples. The crisp air of a fall night with the promise of snow hits my mind with such a shock of nostalgia, it almost takes my breath away. I can almost hear... well. Anyway.
Winter is different. Winter is melancholy, a time for missing friends and family. Christmas Eve with my family is very important. Not just to see the family, but to feel the warmth and comfort of a hundred years' worth of tradition. My family has had the same Christmas Eve dinner since my great-grandfather came here from Poland. Visiting old churches, with the faint scent of incense and the echoes of daily mass going on, feels similar. Same food, a menu I can recite while asleep. Pierogies from one of the Polish churches, mushroom soup, saurkraut, shrimp and smelts. Cousin Dee always brings a fancy vegetable dish, and we have new potatoes with butter and parsley. Same thing every year. Still, doesn't get boring. Ham and kelbasia Christmas morning, with bread courtesy of my mom and Uncle Joe. Time to visit Grammy and Aunt Paula. Maybe later some friends will come over. Of course, that used to be a lot more true. Not that many friends around anymore.
It's not that I don't want things to change, of course. Everyone should go on with their lives, get married, have kids, move away. It's just that sometimes I miss the way things used to be.
And I certainly am not alone in that, especially this time of year.
Thursday, December 01, 2005
I just don't see why this is my problem at all
Why am I trying to locate a landfill in West Virginia for a project that is managed out of one of our PA offices? I'll tell you why - because the secretary can only think of one thing at a time, and since she just saw me, she transferred the phone call to me, even though this is totally not my problem.
She also likes to put random things in my mailbox if she isn't sure who they're for.
Really, this is true. I am always finding invoices, catalogs, and other mysterious things in my mailbox or on my chair with no explanation.
One day, I found in my mailbox one of those fax confirmation sheets that has a mini copy of the first page of your fax with a little message saying "completed." This sheet had on it a list of some project-related budget stuff, numbers and tasks and things. Obviously nothing to do with me, right, because we all know I'm not a cost analyst. Anyway, at the very bottom, written in as an afterthough, was my name and some cost or another that didn't have the right accounting number or something. At the bottom, I want you to understand, of a typewritten page, written in with pen. And this sheet of paper somehow found its way into my mailbox. I mean, why? There is no possible way anybody could have thought this piece of paper belonged to me. Other people's names were all over it. It's as though she's decided to put things in my mailbox and just can't stop.
And it wouldn't be so bad except that then I have to go running around trying to figure out whose stuff is in my mailbox, and I have actual work I could be doing instead.
Anyway, Barcelona was fine. Not necessarily the people I would choose to spend time with. And I don't think staying out till 5 (or, on one night, 7) am is really fun. And since they stayed out so late, we slept in and really didn't have much of a chance to see stuff. And everyone but me was constantly hungover. And they frankly have silly jobs and care about clothes, which I just can't get behind. But it was a fine trip. The actual travel part went so smoothly I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop. Seriously, no delays, lost luggage, interminable waits in airports, or even significant turbulence. Our flight even got in an hour early on the way home!
But anyway, I have to go to lovely Utica, which I know you're all envious of. So I must be going.
She also likes to put random things in my mailbox if she isn't sure who they're for.
Really, this is true. I am always finding invoices, catalogs, and other mysterious things in my mailbox or on my chair with no explanation.
One day, I found in my mailbox one of those fax confirmation sheets that has a mini copy of the first page of your fax with a little message saying "completed." This sheet had on it a list of some project-related budget stuff, numbers and tasks and things. Obviously nothing to do with me, right, because we all know I'm not a cost analyst. Anyway, at the very bottom, written in as an afterthough, was my name and some cost or another that didn't have the right accounting number or something. At the bottom, I want you to understand, of a typewritten page, written in with pen. And this sheet of paper somehow found its way into my mailbox. I mean, why? There is no possible way anybody could have thought this piece of paper belonged to me. Other people's names were all over it. It's as though she's decided to put things in my mailbox and just can't stop.
And it wouldn't be so bad except that then I have to go running around trying to figure out whose stuff is in my mailbox, and I have actual work I could be doing instead.
Anyway, Barcelona was fine. Not necessarily the people I would choose to spend time with. And I don't think staying out till 5 (or, on one night, 7) am is really fun. And since they stayed out so late, we slept in and really didn't have much of a chance to see stuff. And everyone but me was constantly hungover. And they frankly have silly jobs and care about clothes, which I just can't get behind. But it was a fine trip. The actual travel part went so smoothly I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop. Seriously, no delays, lost luggage, interminable waits in airports, or even significant turbulence. Our flight even got in an hour early on the way home!
But anyway, I have to go to lovely Utica, which I know you're all envious of. So I must be going.
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