I have a habit for latching onto things and not letting go do to something I can General Principal.
Basically, something will come along, such as the movie Titanic, and I'll decide to take a position on it based on general principal. In Titanic's case, I refuse to watch it based on Generel Principal. See how that works?
Some other examples:
1) Not flying for five years. I probably would have been up to flying two years after my sabatical began, but I waiting for give years on General Principal. In fact, I wanted to wait until Dear Leader was no longer in office, but the American people decided to screw themselves for four more years.
2) I refuse to have a North Carolina or West Virgina mailing address, regardless of the deals available in those areas. North Carolina because of Duke and North Carolina Univeristy. Cheaters. West Virgina because of the stigma attached to it...that, a no building regulations what-so-ever.
3) Nine to five jobs. Not only would I probably shrival away and die if I had to work on one of these, I won't even try due to general principal. I have worked nine to five jobs in the past and for the industry I'm in it doesn't make a ton of sense to me. Some position require such time frames, but more creative jobs I think are constrained by such arbitary constructs (yay big words).
That's all that is coming up right now. I guess you could toss some political views I am holding right now in there. I've adopted some mostly because I feel like I have to move more left to offset the nutcases on the right. Historically I have been a moderate.
So what kind of things have you latched on to and maintained out of a sense of general principal?
Thursday, June 30, 2005
Who Won The Pot?
Leslie and I have had an epic relationship. Over 14 years we had really good times and really lousy times. We broke up and got back together. We traveled all over the country and lived together. By all measures except the law we might as well have been married. I've spent literally half my life with her and her with me and I will never regret it. It all came to a mutually decided end several weeks ago in front of a campfire in central Virigina and we are both satisfied with the result.
Basically, what it boils down to is after lots and lots of money, work, and love we finally figured out that we couldn't deal with the small things and differences that came between us. We have too much history that creeps up when we try to address some major issues and the silly every day things as well. As a result, we have decided that we will be much better friends than lovers. We both still very much love each other but it has transcended what it was and has grown much deeper. Formalizing this doesn't really change our relationship from the way it's been over the past five months. We still hang out and do everything we were doing, we just can see other people now. In fact, Leslie is already dating someone else and I hope he can treat her the way I could not.
As for me, I'm going to let things happen as they will. I'm not going to actively seek out anyone but I'm going to put my self in situation to meet to new people and see what happens. If anything develops I'm certainly not going to shut it down.
In the end I'm just curious, who won the pot? :)
Basically, what it boils down to is after lots and lots of money, work, and love we finally figured out that we couldn't deal with the small things and differences that came between us. We have too much history that creeps up when we try to address some major issues and the silly every day things as well. As a result, we have decided that we will be much better friends than lovers. We both still very much love each other but it has transcended what it was and has grown much deeper. Formalizing this doesn't really change our relationship from the way it's been over the past five months. We still hang out and do everything we were doing, we just can see other people now. In fact, Leslie is already dating someone else and I hope he can treat her the way I could not.
As for me, I'm going to let things happen as they will. I'm not going to actively seek out anyone but I'm going to put my self in situation to meet to new people and see what happens. If anything develops I'm certainly not going to shut it down.
In the end I'm just curious, who won the pot? :)
Friday, June 24, 2005
Ironic, Isn't It
I worked for myself for several years. Part of the drawback is you have to pay quarterly estimated taxes which means you have to guess how much you are going to make at the begining of the year and make quarterly payments on the tax liability of that guess. Well, me being me didn't bother with that the first year I was working for myself, which wasn't that big of a deal because the first 10 months of 2000 I didn't make all that much as a contractor so my tax liability wasn't all that bad. However, in the last two months of the year my income almost tripled because of a nice fat contract I landed. As a result, my tax liability went through the roof and I wasn't even close to being able to meet it.
So I ended up in a whole to the IRS. Everyone has been in a financial whole at one point or another. However, a whole to the IRS is different because:
1) They can take your stuff
2) They assess both penalities and interest
3) They can take your stuff
These whole's also tend to grow larger because the more you make, the more you owe. The short version of all of this is I ended up in a very large whole with the IRS over three years.
Here comes the irony. The area I live in has gone up in value around 30% each year for the past several years. I purchased my town house for $150,000 and similiar town houses to mine are going for about $380,000 right now. A year ago I decided the best way to dig myself out of the tax whole was to leverage the equity in my house, at that point it was about $180,000, to pay off the tax burden. Equity lines of credit are awesome because you get a super low interest rate AND they are tax deductable.
Yup, that's right, that's the irony, I paid my taxes off with a tax deduction. :)
Nice.
So I ended up in a whole to the IRS. Everyone has been in a financial whole at one point or another. However, a whole to the IRS is different because:
1) They can take your stuff
2) They assess both penalities and interest
3) They can take your stuff
These whole's also tend to grow larger because the more you make, the more you owe. The short version of all of this is I ended up in a very large whole with the IRS over three years.
Here comes the irony. The area I live in has gone up in value around 30% each year for the past several years. I purchased my town house for $150,000 and similiar town houses to mine are going for about $380,000 right now. A year ago I decided the best way to dig myself out of the tax whole was to leverage the equity in my house, at that point it was about $180,000, to pay off the tax burden. Equity lines of credit are awesome because you get a super low interest rate AND they are tax deductable.
Yup, that's right, that's the irony, I paid my taxes off with a tax deduction. :)
Nice.
Wednesday, June 22, 2005
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
Michael Jackson
I didn't write much about this and I didn't really follow it much either. However, I am pleased with the verdict, and here is why. I believe the shit Jackson's dad put him through and the way startdom was thrust upon him more or less froze his maturity around the 8 year old level. Wonderland is just confirmation of this. Anything that happened between him and those kids was never sexual in intent, he just isn't mature enough. He is stuck at 8 when it comes to that and feels safest with kids that he relates to through that lens. Is it socially acceptable, absolutely not, but he isn't a pedophile. He doesn't fit the MO for a sexual predator.
Anyway, here is a nice little wake up call to the idiot talking heads who feel they can judge a case better than the jury. Check it out. God I hate these 'experts'.
Anyway, here is a nice little wake up call to the idiot talking heads who feel they can judge a case better than the jury. Check it out. God I hate these 'experts'.
Operation Yellow Elephant
One of the dumbest things about this war is the way the people that wanted it and now support it even though the original reason for going has been debunked refuse to call for their sheep to enlist, despite the record low turn-out in recruiting. So some enterprising people came up with 'Operation Yellow Elephant'.
Support our Troops! Put your money where your mouth is. Good stuff.
Support our Troops! Put your money where your mouth is. Good stuff.
Check Your Pockets!
I have never run out of gas or lost my car keys. Never.
Two Monday's ago I took the boat out with Luke's friends he met through work. Normally the way this works is after we put the boat in the water I drive the trailer up on this hill and park it. Then I get out, put my phone, car keys, and wallet in the pockets of my swimsuit, and walk back down to the pier. I put them all in my pockets so that when I get to the boat the weight reminds me to take them out and put them in a safe place. This particular day, for whatever reason, I only had my keys in my pocket and carried my wallet and phone in my hand, so when I went to place everything in the safe place I didn't check my pockets.
We drove over to a nice little cove I like to go to and stopped. As soon as the boat stopped I was took off my shirt and dove into the water. Somewhere through the air a little voice kept telling me I was forgetting something but, as usual, I just pushed it a way and ignored it. I have to start paying attention to that little voice, it's always been right.
So we had a great day boating and were out 7 hours or so until we put back in around 8:30 pm. Normally what happens at this point is I grab the car keys from the safe place and walk back up the hill to get the trailer while everyone else unloads the boat. Well, the keys weren't in the safe place. It didn't take too long for me to realize that the keys were sitting under 25 feet of water at the bottom of Lake Anna. Not one of my better moments.
After trying to get a hold of someone to break into my car and figure out a way to start it up we found out that out in the sticks it was a pipe dream at best. So we decided to pile 6 people into a Jetta and drive two hours back home. 6 people + Jetta = Uncomfortable but funny. I was driving with my knees up by my ears through a seriour thunderstorm. Good stuff.
To wrap this up I'll tell you this. I couldn't find my extra set of keys. I tore the house up looking for them. So I gave Les a call, who hasn't lived with me for over a year, and asked her if she knew where they might be. Sure enough, she suggested the key ring, where keys are supposed to be placed. Of course, I looked everywhere BUT where they belonged and there they were. Five hours later I had my truck back and all was good.
Two Monday's ago I took the boat out with Luke's friends he met through work. Normally the way this works is after we put the boat in the water I drive the trailer up on this hill and park it. Then I get out, put my phone, car keys, and wallet in the pockets of my swimsuit, and walk back down to the pier. I put them all in my pockets so that when I get to the boat the weight reminds me to take them out and put them in a safe place. This particular day, for whatever reason, I only had my keys in my pocket and carried my wallet and phone in my hand, so when I went to place everything in the safe place I didn't check my pockets.
We drove over to a nice little cove I like to go to and stopped. As soon as the boat stopped I was took off my shirt and dove into the water. Somewhere through the air a little voice kept telling me I was forgetting something but, as usual, I just pushed it a way and ignored it. I have to start paying attention to that little voice, it's always been right.
So we had a great day boating and were out 7 hours or so until we put back in around 8:30 pm. Normally what happens at this point is I grab the car keys from the safe place and walk back up the hill to get the trailer while everyone else unloads the boat. Well, the keys weren't in the safe place. It didn't take too long for me to realize that the keys were sitting under 25 feet of water at the bottom of Lake Anna. Not one of my better moments.
After trying to get a hold of someone to break into my car and figure out a way to start it up we found out that out in the sticks it was a pipe dream at best. So we decided to pile 6 people into a Jetta and drive two hours back home. 6 people + Jetta = Uncomfortable but funny. I was driving with my knees up by my ears through a seriour thunderstorm. Good stuff.
To wrap this up I'll tell you this. I couldn't find my extra set of keys. I tore the house up looking for them. So I gave Les a call, who hasn't lived with me for over a year, and asked her if she knew where they might be. Sure enough, she suggested the key ring, where keys are supposed to be placed. Of course, I looked everywhere BUT where they belonged and there they were. Five hours later I had my truck back and all was good.
Friday, June 03, 2005
WoW, First Impressions
I installed it and played it for about three hours last night. Nice interface, pretty easy and intuitive.
Basically, it's sorta like EQ2-lite. EQ2 is a level of complexity higher than WoW, particularly the crafting stuff. However, both seem to be very enjoyable, and WoW works better in windowed mode so I can work while I play. :)
WoW reminds me VERY much of Fable, the XBox game. If Fable became a multiplayer game, WoW would be it. The graphics are extremely similar.
EQ2 is very much like Morrowind.
Basically, it's sorta like EQ2-lite. EQ2 is a level of complexity higher than WoW, particularly the crafting stuff. However, both seem to be very enjoyable, and WoW works better in windowed mode so I can work while I play. :)
WoW reminds me VERY much of Fable, the XBox game. If Fable became a multiplayer game, WoW would be it. The graphics are extremely similar.
EQ2 is very much like Morrowind.
Thursday, June 02, 2005
Lip Synching and Mime's
More Star Wars
Fun stuff this time.
First, the real last hope for the galaxy.
Second, a music video filmed within the Star Wars Galaxies online game. If you wanted any idea what the game looked like, this is it. It's all done in game. The dancing is a skill you can learn that can buff others. Good stuff. Check
it out.
Wee.
First, the real last hope for the galaxy.
Second, a music video filmed within the Star Wars Galaxies online game. If you wanted any idea what the game looked like, this is it. It's all done in game. The dancing is a skill you can learn that can buff others. Good stuff. Check
it out.
Wee.
(Don't Fear) The Reaper
I defy any of you to watch this SNL skit and then listen to the Blue Oyster Cult's original version of "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" and not only hear the cowbell.
Ever since I saw that skit all I hear is cowbell when I hear that song. Funniest skit ever, or up there at the very least.
Ever since I saw that skit all I hear is cowbell when I hear that song. Funniest skit ever, or up there at the very least.
Wednesday, June 01, 2005
You know you're a Republican when...
...Saddam was a good guy when Reagan armed him, a bad guy when Bush's daddy made war on him, a good guy when Cheney did business with him and a bad guy when Bush needed a "we can't find Bin Laden" diversion.
...trade with Cuba is wrong because the country is Communist, but trade with China and Vietnam is vital to a spirit of international harmony.
...A president lying about an extramarital affair is an impeachable offense. A president lying to enlist support for a war in which thousands die is solid defense policy.
...Jesus loves you, and shares your hatred of homosexuals and Hillary Clinton.
...the best way to improve military morale is to praise the troops in speeches while slashing veterans' benefits and combat pay.
...providing health care to all Iraqis is sound policy. Providing health care to all Americans is socialism.
...global warming is junk science, but creationism should be taught in schools.
...being a drug addict is a moral failing and a crime, unless you're a conservative radio host. Then it's an illness and you need our prayers for your recovery.
...trade with Cuba is wrong because the country is Communist, but trade with China and Vietnam is vital to a spirit of international harmony.
...A president lying about an extramarital affair is an impeachable offense. A president lying to enlist support for a war in which thousands die is solid defense policy.
...Jesus loves you, and shares your hatred of homosexuals and Hillary Clinton.
...the best way to improve military morale is to praise the troops in speeches while slashing veterans' benefits and combat pay.
...providing health care to all Iraqis is sound policy. Providing health care to all Americans is socialism.
...global warming is junk science, but creationism should be taught in schools.
...being a drug addict is a moral failing and a crime, unless you're a conservative radio host. Then it's an illness and you need our prayers for your recovery.
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