Owlish Mutterings
10/05/2005
8/24/2005
MuNu Down
The hyperactive owl flies at midnight. The hyperactive owl flies at midnight. This would normally be a great opportunity to take advantage of what I've heard described as "sunlight," but I've got a cold.
- posted by owlish @ 8/24/2005 09:44:00 AM 0 comments
7/04/2005
Blogging
Mu.Nu looks to be temporarily down, so I'll post this here, for now. Instapundit has a comment on various things about the Mainstream Media. Interestingly, the Houston Chronicle has a short article here on blogs, just ripe for a fisking: A few warnings about blogging Ooh, scary headline. Blogging causes lung cancer? Blogging causes male pattern baldness? Let's find out. NEW YORK - Many people have become obsessed with blogs, which are personal journals posted by individuals on the Web. I'm not addicted to blogging, I can stop any time I want. And can we please get beyond this "Blogs are personal journals" meme? Some are, maybe most are. But a lot of blogs are a whole lot more than that, and the ones that are kicking your collective MSM butts are clearly more than that. According to a Pew Internet Study, 50 million Internet users read blogs regularly. Ooh, they've got a study. This article must be well researched and scientific then. Blogging can be both a cost-effective and efficient way of connecting with people, but there are some warnings: Hmm. "Cost-effective." So I guess they're talking about blogs being started by corporations? I don't think the average man on the street thinks, "I need to connect with more people. What's the most cost-effective way? I know, a blog!" •Don't trust everything you read in blogs. While more and more news organizations and companies are creating blogs of their own, many blogs are filled with false information. I had to read that statement a couple of times to get it's meaning. Some news organizations and companies are starting blogs. Those you can trust. Many of the other ones are "filled with false information." Yeah, bite me. Corporate blogs are exactly the ones that I have the least trust in. Including the 11 blogs run on the Houston Chronicle site. Like the Au Paris blog [HC accountant quits and goes to Paris to be an Au Pair], or say this post from About:Chron. Some of those blogs had somewhat interesting info, but none of it was stuff I hadn't read elsewhere. •Never keep a blog in which you trash the company you work for or your boss. Also, never put your company's sensitive or inside information in your blog. There have already been cases in which people have been fired for blogging about their employers. Useful advice, I guess. •Don't give out too much personal information in your blog. Don't use your real name, which could put you at risk. Rather, use a pseudonym. Every single blogger should be blogging under a pseudonym? Why? I do it, but have some specific reasons to do so. If JohnL hadn't been blogging under his real name, I never would have noticed his blog, and probably never would have started myself. So there may be reasons not to anonymously blog. A site where you can start your own blog for free is www.Blogger.com. Hmm. The only site you give in an article about blogging is Blogger? Because, you know, you wouldn't want to point people to blogs that they might want to read, because then you might hemorrhage readers even faster than you're doing now.
- posted by owlish @ 7/04/2005 11:51:00 AM 50 comments
6/30/2005
Pumpkin Pie
My MuNu site is having some permalink problems, so I'll doublepost things I submit to Carnivals there and here. Another of my grandmother's recipes, this time written out in the blank pages of a cookbook: Pumpkin Pie 9" pastry shell with high fluted edge. 2 slightly beaten eggs with 1 pound can of Del Monte pumpkin Combine: 1/4 cup light brown sugar, 1/2 cup white sugar, 1 tsp vanilla, 1/2 tsp salt, t tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1/4 tsp cloves. Blend into pumpkin mixture. Stir in 1 can (1 2/3 cup) of evaporated milk. Bake 450 for 15 min reduce oven to 350 and bake 25 to 35 min more, or until knife comes out clean 2 inches from edge. For pecan ring: take pie from oven 10 min before done. Spoon a mixture of 1.2 cup chopped pecans, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, 1 tablespoon butter. Add 1 1/2 tsp grated orange rind around edge of pie. Bake 10 min more.
- posted by owlish @ 6/30/2005 09:26:00 AM 1 comments
5/31/2005
Moving Time
mutter mutter gotta pack everything up mutter mutter where'd this lampshade come from? mutter mutter man, comics are heavy mutter mutter i need a hobby that doesn't involve collecting heavy, breakable crap mutter mutter This blog is moving to MuNu. http://owlishmutterings.mu.nu/ It'll be a bit before I've worked the kinks out, so bear with me.
- posted by owlish @ 5/31/2005 12:50:00 PM 10 comments
Babel Too
Hey LlamaButchers! This is Fun! Or this: Evening came yesterday to the bottom, 10 dead the word in Chinatown. Innocently, its only crime too was in the false place, with the forgery bad weather, statement of the people, which is false today with the kids, you declare itself that at the present time, they do not have anything to lose are to you buildings KINGDOM! Johnny used, after school in Kinoerscheinen to work. One received oneself to push, if it wishes a formation which it has a long manner. It is now outside on the road all the day to which the jump sells to the people who pay. A AK-47 for its business of the best friend the American manner received. Eastside meets of Westside downtown area. No don't times, the walls fall can to the bottom you believe him to come? RICHLY! Can't you intend it to name? The black man, included to again hold its chain in its hand. The brother of setting with died of brother for the profit of others, not of play, anybody gains. Acceptance, right in time. What did it arrive at the sublime dream? break it that all the niederwerfen, we place him high of still violently. Another KINGDOM? Eastside meets of Westside downtown area. Time, no line, the walls fall downwards. Can't you believe him to come? RICHLY! You cannot hear it next KINGDOM! Somebody cannot stop it here...??!!
- posted by owlish @ 5/31/2005 12:35:00 PM 0 comments
Babel Indeed
Meme from LlamaButchers: 1. Take the lyrics to a favorite song. 2. Go to Babelfish, translate the lyrics into German, then from German to French, and finally from French back into English. 3. Post the results verbatim. 4. Invite friends to guess the song based on the interesting new lyrics. This is probably not the whole song, by the way. _ it must fight not still, him time, something have make distort some this night the be drink which it sector alive become a ring of box, him time must be run, if it him see, its hand press it a woman be still right me hear its Scream, of hall which it can all same parlerelle me go, it go to the bottom surpamment with bed terrified me which it dead its hand roll up, be of return a woman have be again just ahead, however not thus which be however not considering so ahead him, not, I which indeed him this one Nurse, you slipped and drops some start to him in the passing, as it starts, to inflate it consider, it wish the truth, him in the sector of discussion with these hands Lookin are outside there precisely as gently right, as him still can considering him ahead, however not if which to have been, ahead never, but before I which is actually seen to him this bad, it a woman is not so still precisely to bring a name that you did not acquire, but you are not a child with one reheat have intended yourself "one injury to precisely only strike? Kickin ' your ass would not be a pleasure still, these are to him a time which even old Scheisse to precisely fight over another night which him those rifle seizes, it rather drinkable have, evening it still discovers this can considering it ahead, however not if which A is been, ahead, however not if, as fucking durable this one man of trains excursions thus quickly is, as it before I which is actually seen to him this bad which is yet just never it a woman
- posted by owlish @ 5/31/2005 12:32:00 PM 2 comments
LlamaButchers vs Wonkette
This post from LlamaButchers explains all. Yip Yip!
- posted by owlish @ 5/31/2005 12:26:00 PM 1 comments
Memorial Day
Lots of posts around, this article by Mark Steyn may be the best. H/T: Right Wing News. What did I do to observe the day? Not much, truthfully. Raining off and on, cool weather when it wasn't raining though. Made walking around the Strand pleasant.
- posted by owlish @ 5/31/2005 07:15:00 AM 2 comments
5/29/2005
The Risen Empire
Just finished The Risen Empire by Scott Westerfeld. Interesting hard SciFi space opera. One of it's basic themes is transhumanism; the people of The Risen Empire work to become posthuman by becoming undead [more or less], the Rix are all cyborgs and work to create planetary scale AIs. Other races are mentioned, one working towards biological solutions, one towards informational immortality [videotaping every second of your life, keeping a weblog, etc.] The author has recently started a blog. I think I need a category in my sidebar for authors' blogs.
- posted by owlish @ 5/29/2005 03:52:00 PM 3 comments
Media
Via Fark comes this editorial from the Washington Times. The fun section, discussing Rathergate and Newsweek:
Three now-common themes appeared in each controversy: (1) The misinformation erred predictably against the current American government. In CBS' case, anchorman Dan Rather impugned the president's past military service. The Newsweek article questioned the ethics and sense of the U.S. military. (2) These were not minor slips. The counterfeit documents Mr. Rather circulated undercut a sitting commander-in-chief in the midst of a national election. The fraud had the potential to alter the very governance of the United States. Newsweek's wrong information incited the Middle East's lunatic elements. Rioting and death followed, complicating the U.S. military effort. (3) Neither organization was markedly contrite when exposed. The culpable Mr. Rather refashioned himself as the maligned target of the blogosphere. Newsweek spokesmen whined that a vindictive administration was hounding their management. In response, the public assumed haughty news organizations were caught exhibiting the usual partiality -- and then on spec retreated to victim status when challenged.Nothing new to people who are watching, but still.
- posted by owlish @ 5/29/2005 12:36:00 PM 5 comments
Movies
In response to Time's 100 Greatest Movies List, A Small Victory has made her list. From my Standpoint, a much better list too. So, movies I've seen in bold, movies I plan to see in italics.
- Empire Strikes Back
- The Big Lebowski
- Spirited Away
- Shaun of the Dead
- Fantasia
- The Phantom Tollbooth
- Army of Darkness
- Cemetery Man
- Battle Royale
- 12 Monkeys
- Se7en
- Fifth Element
- True Romance
- Suicide Kings
- Leon
- Monty Python and the Holy Grail
- The Sting
- River's Edge
- Legend of Billie Jean
- Star Wars
- The Godfather
- The Fly (original!)
- Road Warrior
- Aladdin
- West Side Story
- Airplane!
- Slapshot
- Apocalypse Now
- Back to the Future
- Winged Migration
- Fog of War
- Lost in LaMancha
- Serpico
- Akira
- Guys and Dolls
- Snoopy, Come Home
- Lord of the Rings, Fellowship of the Ring
- Bad News Bears
- Interstate 60
- Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure
- Jaws
- Boondock Saints
- The Last Waltz
- Hedwig and the Angry Inch
- Super Troopers
- Ghost Dog
- Raising Arizona
- Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie
- Toy Story
- A Christmas Story
- Nightmare Before Christmas
- Edward Scissorhands
- Dog Day Afternoon
- And Justice For All
- Spider-Man 2
- The Untouchables
- Real Genius
- Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
- Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
- Chocolat
- Three Kings
- Dawn of the Dead
- From Dusk til Dawn
- National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
- Prophecy
- Nothing to Lose
- The Last Boy Scout
- Happy Gilmore
- Ghostbusters
- Sixteen Candles
- The Longest Yard
- Legends of the Fall
- The Outsiders
- Office Space
- Napoleon Dynamite
- Blazing Saddles
- Young Frankenstein
- The Muppet Movie
- Quick Change
- Dead Alive
- Mallrats
- Session 9
- Heathers
- My Life as a Dog
- Clerks
- X-Men
- Princess Bride
- The Sandlot
- Breakfast Club
- Close Encounters of the Third Kind
- Boiler Room
- The Hills Have Eyes
- Evil Dead
- Heavenly Creatures
- Spartacus
- Titus
- Mary Poppins
- The Omen
- Smokey and the Bandit
- Revenge of the Sith
- The Good, The Bad and the Ugly
- Lost Boys
- This is Spinal Tap
- Strange Brew
- South Park, Bigger, Longer and Uncut
- Dead Again
- The Ref
- Goonies
- Better off Dead
- Good Burger
- Starship Troopers
- Bladerunner
- Fast Times
- Say Anything
- Crowhaven Farm
- posted by owlish @ 5/29/2005 07:41:00 AM 2 comments
Movie Meme
JohnL at TexasBestGrok asked for volunteers on this meme, so ok. Other people who have done it include Blackfive, and a zillion other blogs that I read, that I can't find right now. 1) Total number of films I own on DVD/video: 24 DVDs, about 32 VHS. That counts various DVDs of anime which aren't movies. 2) The last film I bought: I'm not completely sure, but I think it was the extended edition of Lord of the Rings: Return of the King I bought as a Christmas present. 3) The last film I watched: Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith 4) Five films that I watch a lot or that mean a lot to me (in no particular order): Animal House The Lost Boys Star Wars: A New Hope The Princess Bride Beauty and the Beast [Disney] 5) Tag 5 people and have them put this in their journal: Nah.
- posted by owlish @ 5/29/2005 07:10:00 AM 2 comments
5/28/2005
Life
Ok, what's really going on? At least partially, I was thinking of going to Scarbourough Faire, [this is the last weekend], but with the forecast for rain, rain, rain, it didn't seem reasonable. So, I've got a mix of being pissed at the weather [always useful] and pissed at myself for being a procrastinating wuss.
- posted by owlish @ 5/28/2005 09:55:00 PM 2 comments
Fingerprints
This is kinda cool. Need to frame someone? Just make a copy of their fingerprints. Do not try this at home. Also from Geekpress.
- posted by owlish @ 5/28/2005 09:53:00 PM 3 comments
Advertising
You know essentially all advertising is sexual in nature, right? This is a good selection of logos that feature hidden male genetalia. H/T: Geek Press. God, I'm a nerd.
- posted by owlish @ 5/28/2005 09:49:00 PM 1 comments
Carnival of recipes
is up at Fresh as a Daisy. Mmm. Sun Comprehending Glass has a recipe for flan. Shrimp and Grits? My dad would love it. Me, on the other hand - Chicken Breasts with portabella and blue cheese sounds tasty to me.
- posted by owlish @ 5/28/2005 09:33:00 PM 3 comments
Hangin out
The bar across the street has a band, playing 70's tunes. Pink Floyd, "Play that funky music white boy," and now "Do a little dance, make a little love, get down tonight." Yippee. Shake your booty, everyone. Update: now the damn "Piano Man." Crowd's loving it, though.
- posted by owlish @ 5/28/2005 09:28:00 PM 3 comments
5/27/2005
Movies
Stryker's got a post on watching movies in this day and age. Basically, lots of commercials, rude patrons, and high prices. I went to see Revenge of the Sith this afternoon, [at a MOVIE MEGAPLEX] with two friends who rarely go to movie theatres. They were not impressed with the whole experience. About 10 minutes of video ads [at a volume louder than most rock concerts], 20 minutes of previews, an audience that didn't really detract from the experience but didn't add to it either. Oh, and of course they wanted to get to the theatre 20 minutes early to get a good seat. With regard to the movie, she liked Episode 1 better, he liked Episode 2 better, I liked Episode 3. We all watched Episode 2 last night, she watched Episode 1 the night before. Fanboy thoughts: (1) As cool as Yoda is in a lightsaber battle, it just doesn't fit. He's much smaller than a human, he usually hobbles around, and yet he can catch a full on strike [which takes strength and leverage]. He should be a badass in other ways. (2) Wookies get a tiny amount of time in RotS, compared to Ewoks in RotJ. And why are they fighting water battles on their jungle planet? (3) I just don't care about any of these characters. Blah blah, I want to be a Master, blah, illegal love, blah, I'm pregnant, blah, Jedi Masters get taken out like paraplegic gnats [and shouldn't some survive, so Vader can spend the next few years hunting them down and killing them?], blah, volcano fight. (4) The political crap is too complicated to be useful as a comment on present day politics. If President Bush = Dark Jedi Master, then he not only wanted a war and pushed for it, he was directly responsible for 9/11 and the creation of the Islamic "army." (5) If we're following the rules of the universe, people don't just die because they lose the will to live. I can accept the Dark Side having something to do with Padme's death, but it isn't telegraphed. Is the Emperor doing it long distance? Is Vader sucking out her life force, to heal himself as he crawls out of the lava? Or due to his previous force choke? (6) So, basically the morals of the movie are "Love is Evil" and " Don't Give a Whiney Angst-Ridden Teenager Ultimate Power." Yippee. How the fuck did Anakin Skywalker grow up, first as a slave on a desert planet that makes Arakis look like WaterWorld, then as a Jedi trainee where he would presumably see a large slice of life, and then suddenly come to the amazing conclusion that life isn't fair? If life were fair he would still be a slave, probably repairing droids and landspeeders. Instead, he's the right-hand-man to the most important person in a government spanning thousands of worlds, and doin' the dirty with the beautiful Senator and ex [Democratically elected] Queen. (7) Uncle Lars, watching the sunset. How heavy-handed with the visuals can you get? So, on the positive side, it's a movie in a cool scifi universe, with amazing special effects. And ultimately I like the "Anankin turns to the Dark Side to save his beloved wife" concept. But, even when I [as TexasBestGrok puts it] check my cynical, 30-something ass at the door, I tend to think about what a great movie it could have been, rather than how much better it was than episode 1. Maybe that's because I went with 2 other cynical 30-somethings rather than an 8 year old, I don't know.
- posted by owlish @ 5/27/2005 09:02:00 PM 2 comments
Tortilla Soup
So, continuing my search for the perfect tortilla soup recipe, I made a batch for some friends yesterday. Used the recipe, but: used pork loin instead of chicken [held up well, added it about halfway through the cooking]; no corn [will add it next time, unless I'm avoiding corn due to Adkin's]; no celery [fine]; didn't have cilantro or epazote on hand during cooking, so added some fresh cilantro on top of the soup at the end, which worked ok, but not great; figured out why the last batch didn't have enough heat - I didn't use any peppers from the can of chipolte peppers, so chopped up 3 peppers and used that and most of their seeds, which was a little too hot [not too hot for my friends, since they'll eat thai soup that hot, but hotter than any tortilla soup I've eaten in a restaurant].
- posted by owlish @ 5/27/2005 07:41:00 AM 1 comments
5/25/2005
Lightsaber
From Impenetrable Prose and Poetry:
Your Lightsaber is Blue Blue is often associated with depth and stability.
It symbolizes trust, loyalty, wisdom,
confidence, and truth.
What Colored Lightsaber Would You Have?
brought to you by Quizilla
- posted by owlish @ 5/25/2005 07:38:00 PM 2 comments
Han Shot First
Going through Mu.Nu, ran into Shoes, Ships, and Sealing Wax. She's got a post asking about Star Wars, and the Han Shot First scene came up, so I answered this: [I watched the movie last week, and thought I have got to get me one of these shirts.] The Han Shot First thing: there's a scene in the original movie that's involved, right after we're first introduced to Han Solo. He's leaving the bar, and runs into a bounty hunter, who will get paid for Han, dead or alive, preferably dead. The bounty hunter's got a blaster pointed, point blank, at Han. They sit back down, chat, the bounty hunter offers to forget he saw Han for a large enough bribe. Han doesn't have the money, is slowly preparing his blaster under the table. The bounty hunter says something like "I've been looking forward to this for a long time," Han counters "I bet you have," and shoots him. The Han goes to the barkeep, flips him a coin, and says "Sorry about the mess." This scene establishes Han as a "does what he needs to do to save his own skin" guy. With the release of the Special Edition, though, the scene was changed. In it, the bounty hunter fires, hits the wall to the side of Han's head, and only then does Han fire. Now, the bounty hunter was close enough that a blind quadraplegic couldn't have missed, and Han, knowing that this guy was going to kill him in the next few seconds, had a reason to fire. So, yes, it's a small point, but it's a good example of Lucas' seeming mistakes/ overwhelming ego.
- posted by owlish @ 5/25/2005 03:43:00 PM 5 comments
That's fookin Smurftabulous!
A fun webtranslator, in case you need something translated into smurf, pimp, redneck, or other useful languages. The hAcK3r one seems to change the coding of the webpage, I'm not sure if that's a bug or feature. H/T: Rishon Rishon
- posted by owlish @ 5/25/2005 03:10:00 PM 0 comments
Movies
So, JohnL saw this list of the 100 best movies of all time from 2 movie critics at Time. He did his usual bold movies he has seen, italics for ones he intends to see. Rob the Wonder Llama does the same thing here. To me, it's a fairly strange list, with a bunch of movies that are unfamiliar to me. So, bold for ones I've seen, italics for ones I intend to see, small print for ones that have no name recognition at all.
Aguirre: the Wrath of God (1972) The Apu Trilogy (1955, 1956, 1959) The Awful Truth (1937) Baby Face (1933) Bande à part (1964) Barry Lyndon (1975) Berlin Alexanderplatz (1980) Blade Runner (1982) Bonnie and Clyde (1967) Brazil (1985) Bride of Frankenstein (1935) Camille (1936) Casablanca (1942) Charade (1963) Children of Paradise (1945) Chinatown (1974) Chungking Express (1994) Citizen Kane (1941) City Lights (1931) City of God (2002) Closely Watched Trains (1966) The Crime of Monsieur Lange (1936) The Crowd (1928)
Day for Night (1973) The Decalogue (1989) Detour (1945) The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972) Dodsworth (1936) Double Indemnity (1944) Dr. Strangelove: or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964) Drunken Master II (1994) E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) 8 1/2 (1963) The 400 Blows (1959) Farewell My Concubine (1993) Finding Nemo (2003) The Fly (1986)
The Godfather, Parts I and II (1972, 1974) The Good, The Bad and The Ugly (1966) Goodfellas (1990) A Hard Day's Night (1964) His Girl Friday (1940) Ikiru (1952) In A Lonely Place (1950) Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) It's A Gift (1934) It's A Wonderful Life (1946)
Kandahar (2001) Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949) King Kong (1933) The Lady Eve (1941) The Last Command (1928) Lawrence of Arabia (1962) Léolo (1992) The Lord of the Rings (2001-03) The Man With a Camera (1929) The Manchurian Candidate (1962) Meet Me in St. Louis (1944) Metropolis (1927) I've seen the version re-released in the 80's, assuming that counts. Miller's Crossing (1990) Mon oncle d'Amérique (1980) Mouchette (1967)
Nayakan (1987) Ninotchka (1939) Notorious (1946) Olympia, Parts 1 and 2 (1938) On the Waterfront (1954) Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) Out of the Past (1947) Persona (1966) Pinocchio (1940) Psycho (1960) Pulp Fiction (1994) The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985) Pyaasa (1957)
Raging Bull (1980) Schindler's List (1993) The Searchers (1956) Sherlock, Jr. (1924) The Shop Around the Corner (1940) Singin' in the Rain (1952) The Singing Detective (1986) Smiles of a Summer Night (1955) Some Like It Hot (1959) Star Wars (1977) A Streetcar Named Desire (1951) Although I tend to think of this in terms of a play, rather than the movie. Sunrise (1927) Sweet Smell of Success (1957) Swing Time (1936)
Talk to Her (2002) Taxi Driver (1976) Tokyo Story (1953) A Touch of Zen (1971) Ugetsu (1953) Ulysses' Gaze (1995) Umberto D (1952) Unforgiven (1992) White Heat (1949) Wings of Desire (1987) Yojimbo (1961)- posted by owlish @ 5/25/2005 08:33:00 AM 3 comments
Communication
I was in a he said/ she said triangle kinda thing, but it's all better now. So, the plan is to see RotS this Friday afternoon, with my friends. Looks like he never formally asked his parents to babysit. Or... who knows.
- posted by owlish @ 5/25/2005 08:28:00 AM 2 comments
5/24/2005
Alien Loves Predator
One of the wackiest web comics I've seen in a while. H/T: Rocket Jones. And no, it isn't Aliens-Predator slash fiction. More or less work safe.
- posted by owlish @ 5/24/2005 05:05:00 PM 0 comments
My Banjo is Wet
From Deskmerc:
You are Kermit the Frog.
You are reliable, responsible and caring. And you
have a habit of waving your arms about
maniacally.
FAVORITE EXPRESSIONS:
"Hi ho!" "Yaaay!" and
"Sheesh!"
FAVORITE MOVIE:
"How Green Was My Mother"
LAST BOOK READ:
"Surfin' the Webfoot: A Frog's Guide to the
Internet"
HOBBIES:
Sitting in the swamp playing banjo.
QUOTE:
"Hmm, my banjo is wet."
What Muppet are you?
brought to you by Quizilla- posted by owlish @ 5/24/2005 12:16:00 PM 0 comments
Cold Fury
Looks like wedding bells are in the future. Getting a wife and a co-blogger at the same time, impressive.
- posted by owlish @ 5/24/2005 11:51:00 AM 0 comments
My animal nature
From Anarchangel:
What Is Your Animal Personality?
brought to you by Quizilla- posted by owlish @ 5/24/2005 10:51:00 AM 0 comments
Photoshop
Deskmerc has a chuckle worthy photoshop, Bush as dungeon master, with Advanced D&D books. Cool.
- posted by owlish @ 5/24/2005 10:46:00 AM 0 comments
5/23/2005
Book Meme
I've been tagged by JohnL for this book meme. [And this afternoon I followed it back as far as it would go, where it's bouncing around a bunch of Jesuits. Some interesting lists there]. 1. Total Number of Books I've Owned: My best estimate is that I currently own 700-750 books, without counting each one. 2. Last Book I Bought: The Queer Eye for the Straight Guy book. Hey, it was cheap. 3. Last Book I Read: Way of the Wolf, by E. E. Knight. Fun stuff to read while eating dinner. 4. Five Books That Mean A lot to Me: 1) The Bible. Yes, everyone is mentioning it. Yes, I don't believe it's the verbatim word of God. But, it has had a profound effect on my life and my civilization. 2) In The Moment, Harvey L. Rich, MD. A book written by a psychoanalyst, discussing his cases and a way to approach life. Big impact: when I first read it, I could barely get through a page without crying. Wouldn't affect everyone the same way, but it was helpful for me. 3) A book of poetry by Keats. Not so much because I love the poetry, but because the book itself has meaning for me. A gift from a long time ago. 4) The Kid, Dan Savage. If you have to ask why, I'm not going to tell you. 5) The Chronicles of Narnia, C. S. Lewis. For a while I was reading one or another of these almost constantly. When I understood they were a metaphorical retelling of various bits of Christianity, it pissed me off, sort of like when your mother tries to get you to eat a vegetable you hate by hiding it in a casserole. But still, they were probably the first fantasy that I read [maybe LoTR or The Hobbit came before]. No books that I've read have had a huge philosophical impact on me. Classes in college, yes; specific books, no. I have a zillion SciFi books with varying levels of impact, but no one stands out. 5. Tag five people and have them do this on their blog. It's late, let me sleep on this. If anyone reads this and wants to be tagged, comment.
- posted by owlish @ 5/23/2005 09:56:00 PM 0 comments
Blogging
So, looks like this blog is going to be moving to mu.nu sometime in the future. That's partially why I haven't bothered to put back up my sitemeter [I removed it accidentally when I changed templates], nor to add stuff to my blogroll. I've been doing a survey of mu.nu blogs, going down TexasBestGrok's list. It's interesting. A fair number [5-10%] exist but haven't really started, some on hiatus. A higher proportion than I was expecting tend to be more diaries than anything else. And today was the first time I was reading a blog and unknowingly came upon a link to me. Kinda cool. And I'm coming up on my first blogaversary. More cool. Anyway, I think I need at least an owl picture or drawing as a symbol. I've looked around some, nothing has hit me yet. I could use the drawing I have for a planned owl tattoo, but since I didn't like it enough to get it inked, I don't know if I want it here either. Anyone got a way to scan a 5ftx5ft cloth panel? Hmm. Time to play with my digital camera, maybe go to the zoo.
- posted by owlish @ 5/23/2005 09:07:00 PM 0 comments
The Keys to my Heart
This is a fairly odd quiz, based entirely on animal questions. Hat tip: Martinis, Persistence, and a Smile.
The Keys to Your Heart |
| You are attracted to those who are unbridled, untrammeled, and free. |
| In love, you feel the most alive when everything is uncertain, one moment heaven... the next moment hell. |
| You'd like to your lover to think you are loyal and faithful... that you'll never change. |
| You would be forced to break up with someone who was ruthless, cold-blooded, and sarcastic. |
| Your ideal relationship is lasting. You want a relationship that looks to the future... one you can grow with. |
| Your risk of cheating is zero. You care about society and morality. You would never break a commitment. |
| You think of marriage pessimistically. You don't think happy marriages exist anymore. |
| In this moment, you think of love as commitment. Love only works when both people are totally devoted. |
- posted by owlish @ 5/23/2005 08:46:00 PM 0 comments
How to Cure the Star Wars Blues
Heartbroken that the movies are finally done? Fear not, for ESPN [H/T: Physics Geek] has the script for Star Wars VII: Lucas Strikes Back. Chewbacca, radio psychologist? It could happen.
- posted by owlish @ 5/23/2005 03:58:00 PM 0 comments
Your Inner Dragon?
Puttering around, saw this quiz on Idle Mendacity.
A SILVER Dragon Lies Beneath!
My inner dragon is to dragons what the Ranger is to humans. I possess considerable intelligence and self-confidence. I live by my own code of ethics and I stick to it at all times. Click the image to try the Inner Dragon Online Quiz for yourself.
- posted by owlish @ 5/23/2005 12:29:00 PM 0 comments
5/22/2005
Blogs
The fun things you can find with google. confabulation has blogrolled me, thanks! As has Reflections in d minor - quite a cool blogroll, with some scifi links. As has Monkeywatch. And I've outed myself in signing The Online Coalition petition. Oh well. Anyone who knows me in real life, who knows I blog, can probably find this.
- posted by owlish @ 5/22/2005 07:30:00 PM 0 comments
HotMuscleGeek
Another cool gay NYC blog, ER physician who likes tortilla soup. Fairly irregular posting though.
- posted by owlish @ 5/22/2005 05:22:00 PM 0 comments
Food
Ok, so, I couldn't start an Adkins diet before getting all the carbs out of the apartment, right? So, for lunch I wanted to eat the last package of Ramen. And since CalTechGirl has the crazy idea that I'm sort of a cook, I thought I would do something a bit more than the usual dumping in a can of tuna. So, chopped half an onion, and cooked it with some pepperoni, in the non-stick pot. Worked pretty well. Cooked till the onion was transparent but still a little crunchy. Added some water, noodles, flavor packet [in theory, roast beef flavor]. Cooked, ate as a soup type thing. Worked fairly well, tasted pretty good, except... boiled pepperoni has the flavor and texture of cardboard.
- posted by owlish @ 5/22/2005 02:16:00 PM 0 comments
Rails Across the Galaxy & Sanctuary
If you haven't read Sanctuary yet, go do so. Part 1, Part 2. As the saying goes, rich bloggy goodness. 3 thoughts come immediately to mind: 1) Maybe my high school wasn't so dumb, insisting these spoiled rich kids go camping. 2) One of my favorite stories in Analog was Rails Across the Galaxy, printed as a serial, ending in the mid-September 1982 issue. Written by Andrew Offutt and Richard Lyon. It deals with a first contact situation, present day Earth, with the aliens making the contact. The earthlings have something the aliens want; the earthlings don't know what to ask for it:
"But what then,?" Angel demanded, his arms writhing like a pair of cobras in heat. "What you are telling me is that although the Railroad has desperate need of your services, there is nothing you and your people need from us!" ... "We have a custom," I said mercifully. "When one is in need and cannot pay, one says ... Please." The Star Trader's hands became steady. "Other races have similar customs, Trader Quinan. It is absolute Railroad Policy that I may not practice such a custom; for if I did, your race would forever after have the right to say Please to the Railroad."The moonbat who asked the security agent to say please wasn't making a point of politeness, he was making a point of power - who had it in their interaction. The security agent was absolutely right in not giving up his power. Now, on the other hand, I disagree with so-called security measures that call for me to give up my power, yet don't offer me any more security in exchange. Strip frisking grannies, confiscating fingernail clippers, and forcing a woman to drink her own breast milk do nothing to improve my safety. But the proper place to debate this is in Congress, not in the airport. 3) There was a short story I read a while back in a Dragon. In it, Merlin comforted a dying King Arthur, by telling him what the future would be like. He talked about the poorest children having more clothes than current kings, and he discussed vanilla ice cream, with vanilla and sugar being from places that were currently unreachable, on an undiscovered continent. The highest technology is indistinguishable from magic.
- posted by owlish @ 5/22/2005 11:02:00 AM 0 comments
5/21/2005
Star Wars costumes
Saw this link on TechTv. Studio Creations has a lot of info on how to make your own costume. Looks like making your own stormtrooper suit would take quite a bit of time, but maybe a tusken raider outfit isn't impossible.
- posted by owlish @ 5/21/2005 08:19:00 PM 0 comments
Weight and Diets
When I got back from my parents, I expected to have lost some weight, since I had been more active than usual [although not really aerobically] and eating roughly the same. No change. For the past week I've been much more of a slug than usual, and not particularly focused on eating well, but I've lost 4 pounds. I don't get it. So, maybe, I can get back into a diet. To avoid cheating, I'm going Adkins, walk at least 40 minutes a day, try to figure out some sort of weight training pattern I can keep going.
- posted by owlish @ 5/21/2005 10:42:00 AM 0 comments
5/20/2005
It's a strange world, mark 2
Got that craving for human flesh, try some hufu. I don't think it's a joke, but who knows. Hat tip: Northshore Politics, via Carnival of Comedy. Update: No, it's not a joke. Homepage.
- posted by owlish @ 5/20/2005 02:22:00 PM 0 comments
Fun quiz
A very well done quiz [well, at least the questions were clever]. H/T: View from the Pew
| What military aircraft are you? EA-6B Prowler You are an EA-6B. You are sinister, preferring not to get into confrontations, but extract revenge through mind games and technological interference. You also love to make noise and couldn't care less about pollution.
|
| Click Here to Take This Quiz Brought to you by YouThink.com quizzes and personality tests. |
- posted by owlish @ 5/20/2005 10:26:00 AM 0 comments
Carnival of recipes #40
Carnival's up. Another chili recipe. I need to develop my own. Panang Beef, a Thai recipe. Somewhat complicated, but not impossible, assuming you can find red thai curry paste. Stuffed steak - round steak wrapped around stuffing, sounds good. Brisket - easy, crockpot meat. Chocolate dipped strawberries. Mmmm.
- posted by owlish @ 5/20/2005 06:44:00 AM 0 comments
5/19/2005
Star Wars
So, I know this couple who see maybe 2 movies in theatres a year, who are planning on seeing the latest movie. I would like to go with them, for camaraderie. They're trying to get his parents to babysit his kid, and won't go opening weekend anyway to avoid crowds. Being the martyr, I offered to babysit if his parents can't/won't do it. So, I'd kind of like to go this weekend, partially because IT'S STAR WARS and partially because I've read so many reviews which are all over the map that I'd like to go and form my own opinion. If I knew I was going to babysit, I'd go ahead and go. Not knowing, I'm not sure I will want to see it twice [I've seen very few movies in theatres more than once. Disney's Beauty and the Beast is the last one that comes to mind].
- posted by owlish @ 5/19/2005 10:24:00 PM 0 comments
Sullivan Pile-on
The Daily Pundit has a great post on Andrew Sullivan's stances. It's always fun to see something that pretty much directly mirrors my own thinking. H/T: INDC
- posted by owlish @ 5/19/2005 10:20:00 PM 0 comments
Script?
Indus, (Pakistan 2500 B.C.E.)
You are INDUS. One of the most famous undeciphered
scripts, however, modern scholars have no text
any longer than 17 symbols. You might be
concealing a dark, mysterious heritage -- or
you could have been used to mark whose beer was
whose.
Which Indecipherable Script Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla
H/T: Pixy Misa.- posted by owlish @ 5/19/2005 08:40:00 AM 0 comments
Women in the Military
Sgt. Mom has a fun yet serious post on women in the military. My favorite section:
2. Alas, only one country that we have fought since 1941 has given more than lip service for the Geneva Convention, the forces of militant Islam would appear to have about as much use for traditional chivalry as Orky the Killer Whale has for a stair step machine, and it is abundantly clear that in this war, there is no front line, there is no safe area. When an enemy can take a clear shot at the Pentagon, and kill civil servants sitting quietly at their desk jobs— well, that should make it pretty clear that there is no rear in which to park the gear and the ladies’ auxiliary safely out of harms’ way… even of going back to the old way were still even possible.As they say, read the whole thing.
- posted by owlish @ 5/19/2005 08:26:00 AM 0 comments
It's a strange world
Need some human leather for making charms? Only 18$ Man, life is cheap sometimes. H/T: Fark
- posted by owlish @ 5/19/2005 07:58:00 AM 0 comments
5/18/2005
Things that make you go hmm
I wandered into some posts on the GayPatriot brouhaha from a couple of months ago, and it occurred to me that I know a guy who's gay and named Michael Rogers. It's a fairly common name, so it's probably not the same guy involved, but maybe.
- posted by owlish @ 5/18/2005 09:28:00 PM 4 comments
Lyrics
Just because I've got the tune in my head, a silly [traditional?] drinking song: The Scotsman Oh, a Scotsman clad in a kilt left a bar one evenin' fair. And one could tell by the way he walked he'd drunk more than his share. He fumbled 'round until he could no longer keep his feet. Then he stumbled off onto the grass to sleep beside the street. Ring-ding, diddle-iddle, la-di-oh! Ring-dye, diddle-lye oh! He stumbled off onto the grass to sleep beside the street. About that time two young and lovely girls just happened by. And one said to the other with a twinkle in her eye. "See yon sleepin' Scotsman so strong and handsome built. I wonder if it's true what they don't wear beneath their kilt." Ring-ding, diddle-iddle, la-di-oh! Ring-dye, diddle-lye oh! I wonder if it's true what they don't wear beneath their kilt. So, they crept up on that sleepin' Scotsman quiet as they could be. They lifted up his kilt about an inch so they could see. And there, behold, for them to view beneath his Scottish skirt, was nothing more than God had graced him with upon his birth. Ring-ding, diddle-iddle, la-di-oh! Ring-dye, diddle-lye oh! was nothing more than God had graced him with upon his birth. Well, they marveled for a moment then one said, "We must be gone. Let's leave a present for our friend before we move along." As a gift they left a blue silk ribbon tied into a bow around the bonney star Scot's kilt did lift and show! Ring-ding, diddle-iddle, la-di-oh! Ring-dye, diddle-lye oh! around the bonney star Scot's kilt did lift and show! Oh! The Scotsman woke to nature's call and he stumbled towards the trees. Behind a bush he lifts his kilt and gawks at what he sees. And in a startled voice he says to what's before his eyes, "Oh Laddy, don't know where ya been, but I see ya won first prize!" Ring-ding, diddle-iddle, la-di-oh! Ring-dye, diddle-lye oh! "Oh Laddy, don't know where ya been, but I see ya won first prize!"
- posted by owlish @ 5/18/2005 09:04:00 PM 1 comments
Star Wars
Much anticipation for the upcoming movie. I've been watching the first three, and it must have been a while since I've seen them, since when Luke was first shown, my thought was "hey, he's kinda hot." I'm pretty sure that's new. And in a true fanboy geeky kinda way, I'm identifying most of the aliens, and some of the robots. For more fun, I recommend Three Dead Trolls' Vaders Employee Evaluation. Scroll down about halfway.
- posted by owlish @ 5/18/2005 08:25:00 PM 0 comments
Blogs
Puttering around on the Carnival of vanities, we come upon Bad Example, talking about Arianna Huffington's group blog. In general I agree with what is said, but this bit is different:
Good blogging IS good writing. You don't just toss off a steaming pile of unfinished thought-crap, call it good, and wait for Lady Fortune to kick in your door toting buckets full of gold coins. Bloggers CARE about what they write, which is why they write it. Even on tiny posts, it's the blogger's best efforts that get published. They know it's not Hemmingway, but they do the best they can with what they have. Anyone who's struggled for half an hour tweaking a 3-line throwaway post knows what I'm talking about.Emphasis mine. Dude, is spending 30 minutes writing a 3 line post that useful? If you're trying to write great literature, maybe it is. Of the blogs I read regularly, only Lileks' Bleat and Joe.My.God seem to be working towards that kind of writing. Especially when your most recent post was on Glenn Reynolds and Porn for Penguins. Update: On the other hand, I could understand if Protein Wisdom takes that long to write.
- posted by owlish @ 5/18/2005 01:09:00 PM 0 comments
3 Dead Trolls in a Baggie
Musical comedy for geeks. Good stuff.
- posted by owlish @ 5/18/2005 06:42:00 AM 0 comments
5/17/2005
Andrew Sullivan
There was a time when I was reading him daily. Around the presidential election I was checking him over a couple of times a week, and recently not at all. Yesterday, after his semi-defense of Newsweek, I delinked him. Now, given the readership of this blog it's fairly unlikely I've sent him any hits at all, so who cares. Glenn Reynolds, on the other hand, is a big deal. See also INDC.
- posted by owlish @ 5/17/2005 09:31:00 PM 1 comments
50 Foodie things
From Downtown Lad comes this list of 50 food related things to do before you die. Things I've done: 13) Learn how to make a dry martini 18) Shuck an oyster 20) Wolf down a hotdog on Coney Island 29) Pod fresh peas 30) Queue for fish and chips 35) Grill a steak [although their version requires aged organic Guernsey beef, cooked with foie gras] 40) Bake a loaf of bread Ok, my tastes are not into 2000$ bottles of wine.
- posted by owlish @ 5/17/2005 10:40:00 AM 0 comments
Media, News, and Information
My post here has gotten some attention, so I thought I'd expand a little on what I believe, rather than on what seened like some other interesting posts. (1) Local news sucks. The only marginally useful information for me is the weather report. I don't care that a house burned down, that someone got into a fight, or that a local restaurant had some problems on its health inspection. And sports generally don't interest me, although watching a close game can be fun, so watching a summary of various sports is pointless. I don't watch local news unless I'm with someone else who is watching. (2) The same kinds of problems apply to national news coverage, to a less extent. In general I prefer to get information through reading rather than being lectured to; I prefer reading a newspaper to watching TV to get info. (3) Most of my friends are more liberal than I am, especially economically and politically. And, OK, they don't trust the media either. Basically, they're generation Xers. The post on Dean's World was primarily, though not exclusively, talking about baby boomers losing trust in the government and the military and reinvesting that trust in the institution that brought those institutions down, the media. (4) The media errors that have had the greatest impact seem to have been anti-Republican, anti-current-government and anti-military. There was a short-lived meme that Senator Kerry had an affair [if I remember right] [maybe from Drudge?]; compare that to Rathergate and Newsweek. I'm ignoring Jeff Gannon; that whole affair is something different. (5) Readership in newspapers is down; viewers of CBS, ABC, NBC news are down. That is probably evidence that everyone has less trust for the media, rather than just conservatives or just liberals. Oh, and this Ace of Spades post? I agree.
- posted by owlish @ 5/17/2005 07:04:00 AM 0 comments
5/16/2005
Star Wars
Yup, this week various people will be talking about Star Wars, like A Small Victory or Vodkapundit. Then there's a factsheet on the Endor Holocaust, explaining what would happen as the debris fragments from the second Death Star rained down on Endor. [H/T: Classical Values] Then of course there's Darth Vader's blog. And my Star Wars Personality:
- posted by owlish @ 5/16/2005 05:06:00 PM 0 comments
Swineberries
James Alan Gardner has a website here. He apparently wrote a Planescape novel in '95, not adhering to whatever absurd history existed soon after he wrote it. It wasn't picked up, and is published on the web here. Fun quote:
You have to hold the berry lightly in your fingertips, testing the weight and texture in the fruit. Then you lift it to your nose and smell its bouquet-a light, sugary fragrance, with a teasing hint of musk. Then, and only then, do you slip it between your teeth and bite down gently... whereupon, you discover the sodding berry tastes like pure rock salt.
- posted by owlish @ 5/16/2005 04:26:00 PM 0 comments
Red and Blue States
When did Blackfive turn into a group blog? Anyway, Grim's got a post about Red State economics that every Democrat should read. Update: Guest bloggers, not a group blog.
- posted by owlish @ 5/16/2005 03:44:00 PM 0 comments
The Press
A post on Dean's World [H/T: INDC Journal] argues that:
Yes, that does seem to be the defining trait of today's "liberals"--they trust the press, they don't believe there's any bias in the press, and they share the working press corps' cheap and shallow cynicism about the government, the military, and everyone else.Compare with this post on Lies and Statistics:
I do not dispute the bias in the Media, I do not dispute that the media has been doing a crappy job, but I do not think that any of these things have to do with how liberal the media is. (I think some of the bias has to do with our own personal biases and) I think that they have to do with how lazy and or corrupt the media is. It is easier to talk about things that you agree with than it is to really question what is going on from an objective point of view.My question is, what if the MSM suddenly flipped? They automatically publish anything presented by the White House, and take with a huge grain of salt anything said by the other side. Would (1) the War on Terror be helped? (2) sites like Instapundit take as strong a stance on poorly reported subjects?(3) today's "liberals" still trust the press?
- posted by owlish @ 5/16/2005 10:21:00 AM 3 comments
Enterprise
Lileks geeks out, discusses the ending of the show and the history/social impact/power of Star Trek. He description of Worf and Troi's relationship is classic.
Bad romance: Worf and Troi? The big mean feral warrior and the ship’s shrink? I NEED TO MATE. IT IS MY TIME. Worf, I sense you are feeling stress. I HAVE MANIFESTED THE SWORD OF KAHLISS IN MY LOWER UNIFORM. I AM . . . CONFINED. Let’s have some tea and discuss this.
- posted by owlish @ 5/16/2005 09:42:00 AM 0 comments
5/15/2005
Political quiz
Somewhat interesting quiz, I come out as an Enterpriser, which could be described as a small government conservative. I don't like some of the questions, which are set up as 2 opposites, agree or strongly agree. #15 Immigrants today strengthen our country because of their hard work and talents vs Immigrants today are a burden on our country because they take our jobs, housing and health care. Anyone want to make a point about the difference between legal and illegal immigrants? #20 Books that contain dangerous ideas should be banned from public school libraries vs Public school libraries should be allowed to carry any books they want. What the heck is a dangerous idea? A murderous free-floating meme? Hat tip: Diggers Realm, although I've seen it elsewhere.d
- posted by owlish @ 5/15/2005 11:20:00 PM 0 comments
Pirates
And from Pirates, comes this quiz:
My pirate name is:
Iron John Flint
A pirate's life isn't easy; it takes a tough person. That's okay with you, though, since you a tough person. Like the rock flint, you're hard and sharp. But, also like flint, you're easily chipped, and sparky. Arr!
Get your own pirate name from fidius.org.
- posted by owlish @ 5/15/2005 03:10:00 PM 0 comments
More fun blogs
Pirates! Man your Women! Looks like posting has been a little slow recently, but it's a cool blog. IT professional, has LARPed, likes ren fairs and The Food Network's Alton Brown. Pointer from TexasBestGrok.
- posted by owlish @ 5/15/2005 02:55:00 PM 5 comments
Weirdos
2blowhards has a long post on his experiences in "Weirdos and Culture." [Hat tip: Reflections in d minor] Huge number of comments, a couple of which got me thinking. 1) I've met some of my sister's gay friends, and while they're considerably more left wing than I am, they aren't "weird." Own a house, have retail jobs, not particularly flamboyant although significantly more interested in clothes and skin care products than I am. My sister may be in the category of too weird to function well in the "real world." although I'm not sure. 2) Weirdos in medicine: that would be a fun thesis subject. At least in academic medicine, the only really successful oddballs are the extremely obsessive, low socialization type in obscure disciplines. The ones who are able to diagnose diseases that no one else has ever seen. Those types are much more useful in a tertiary care center. By the way, I'm ignoring the stereotypical surgical god complex, since it seemed to be an artifact of some old training - the attendings I came in contact with who acted as if they walked on water were much more likely to be older than average. 3) Weirdos in psychiatry: yeah, ok, there are some whose interest in psychiatry is partially due to a desire for increased self-knowledge, me included. Anyone who gets through American med school has some ability to work in our real world; foreign grads vary greatly by country. Residents who have significant emotional problems will have problems in residency. 4) The other part is, anyone in medicine doesn't have time or energy to get too extreme, and they have to be able to interact with the state and federal government, which also limits things.
- posted by owlish @ 5/15/2005 01:46:00 PM 0 comments
Music
So, I'm puttering around with RealPlayer, had it search my harddrive, and listening to various gaming bits. I have more random sounds than I know what to do with. The amusing thing: the Star Wars Christmas album, which I listened to at some point, and apparently downloaded at the same time, is classified Genre: Terror. :)
- posted by owlish @ 5/15/2005 01:41:00 PM 0 comments
I'm a cow
Really fun, bizarre, not safe for work, animation. I'm a cow.
- posted by owlish @ 5/15/2005 08:57:00 AM 0 comments
5/14/2005
Lightsabers
Ever wonder how a lightsaber is constructed, or whether or not you can use one to reheat coffee? This article tells all. Thanks Suzi.
- posted by owlish @ 5/14/2005 07:46:00 PM 0 comments
Conservative/Liberal
This quiz shows why conservative/liberal labels don't mean much anymore.
Your Political Profile |
| Overall: 65% Conservative, 35% Liberal |
| Social Issues: 75% Conservative, 25% Liberal |
| Personal Responsibility: 50% Conservative, 50% Liberal |
| Fiscal Issues: 100% Conservative, 0% Liberal |
| Ethics: 25% Conservative, 75% Liberal |
| Defense and Crime: 75% Conservative, 25% Liberal |
- posted by owlish @ 5/14/2005 06:05:00 PM 0 comments
Dreams
| What Your Dreams Mean... |
|
- posted by owlish @ 5/14/2005 06:02:00 PM 0 comments
Geeking
Your Geek Profile: |
| SciFi Geekiness: High |
| Academic Geekiness: Moderate |
| Gamer Geekiness: Moderate |
| Internet Geekiness: Moderate |
| Music Geekiness: Moderate |
| Fashion Geekiness: Low |
| Geekiness in Love: Low |
| Movie Geekiness: Low |
| General Geekiness: None |
- posted by owlish @ 5/14/2005 05:59:00 PM 0 comments
Tax Reform
In the category of it'll never happen because it makes too much sense we have Tigerhawk's plan for tax reform. H/T: Instapundit.
- posted by owlish @ 5/14/2005 09:20:00 AM 0 comments
Gay Gun-Nut Demographic
Instapundit points to this post on Alphecca noting Condi Rice's comments about the Second Amendment, that got edited out of CNN. Rice '08 works for me.
- posted by owlish @ 5/14/2005 08:56:00 AM 0 comments
5/13/2005
Carnival of Recipes
#39 is up. Chicken enchiladas. Yum. One of these days, I'm going to make Baked Alaska.
- posted by owlish @ 5/13/2005 10:21:00 PM 0 comments
Geekery
JohnL thinks he's a geek merely because he's describing his reallife stats in D&D terms [1st edition, by the way]. [and get well soon]. Oh how wrong he is. A true geek translates him into various, more complicated RPGs. Here he is as a GURPs character [I think about 120 character points is reasonable]. ST 12 [20 points] [weekend athlete] DX 11 [10] IQ 15 [60] [genius-minus] HT 7 [-20] [weak] [much lower than this and you're paralysed] Appearance: attractive [5] Wealth: comfortable [10] Status: 1 [5] Advantages: common sense [10] language talent 2 [4] musical ability 3 [3] ally [ 100 points, 5; appears almost all the time x3, 15] [wife] Disadvantages: Bad sight, nearsighted, bought off during play, [0] honesty [-10] dependents [ 2 25 point dependents [and one 50 point dependent that doesn't count] [-24], loved ones x2, appears almost all the time x3] [let's limit this to -40 points, no wonder he doesn't go adventuring much] 72 points so far. Skills: Musical instrument: piano [2 pts, 14], electronic keyboard [2pts, 14], pipe organ [1,13 ], bass [1, 13]; singing [1, 7], writing [4, 16]; running [1, 5], skiing[1, 9], swimming [1, 11]; cooking [1, 15]; hobby: rock music [2,15], science fiction[1, 14]; languages: English [5, native language, 22], Latin [1, 17] German [2, 18]; hypnotism [1, 14]; computer operation/ TL 7 [1, 15], law [10, 18]; computer programming/7 [2, 14], history [1, 13], literature [1, 13], mathematics [1, 13], physics [1, 13], research[2, 15], theology [1, 13], carousing[1, 6], diplomacy[1, 13], fast-talk [2, 15]; driving (car) 7 [1] 52 points in skills instead of the planned 48. Cut out a few more, or add 4 points worth of quirks.
- posted by owlish @ 5/13/2005 08:22:00 PM 0 comments
I'm back
I'm back; I survived. The floor is almost done - 3 panels left, each of which will require a little cutting. I left it for my dad mostly because he is much more anal about it than I am. He'll measure a cut that I know isn't physically possible to fit, then cut it several more times until it just barely fits. Me, if the crack around the border of the room is slightly larger, who cares? The molding will cover it anyway. So, I'm being anti-social this weekend, avoiding personal interaction that would lead to much babysitting. Tough. My temper's not the best right now, and I don't want to say some things I might regret later. On the other hand, why in the world are there fireworks going off over the harbor?
- posted by owlish @ 5/13/2005 07:29:00 PM 0 comments
5/10/2005
Time Travelers Cash Only
From Instapundit comes this review/ analysis of MIT's time traveler convention. Cool. And yes, Instapundit can post a huge amount when you lack internet access for 4 days.
- posted by owlish @ 5/10/2005 12:46:00 PM 0 comments
Stuff
Doing various random things in the Tiny Texas Town, basically fixing whatever emergency popped up in the last 24 hours. Broken toilet on the second floor flooding everything? Check. A guy has a painful enough elbow that he needs an emergency visit to his doc? Check. The place that we're planning on putting in flooring is cleaned out now, but may need more work before we start putting flooring down. Saw perhaps the most obnoxious family in America 2 days ago. 2 couples, husband and wife around mid 50s, husband and wife around mid 20s. Younger woman is pregnant, younger husband is black, all others white. We were in a Subway waiting for sandwiches. The older woman started making various comments. The most ridiculous was "You're a pig" when the guy ordered a footlong sandwich, and she kept making snorting noises for the rest of the time. I don't know how much longer I can take this.
- posted by owlish @ 5/10/2005 12:36:00 PM 0 comments
5/06/2005
Blog
Posting may be light for the next week or so. I'm going to my parents' house for Mother's Day and to lay down some more laminate flooring. Whee.
- posted by owlish @ 5/06/2005 06:52:00 PM 0 comments
Carnival of recipes
#38 is up at Techno-Gypsy. No contributions from me. A chili recipe for Real Men. Refried bean soup?
- posted by owlish @ 5/06/2005 06:49:00 PM 0 comments
Life
How can I put this. I've got a friend, that I'm getting to the point that I disagree with almost everything she does or believes. Everything - from her politics to how she treats her dog to what cookie recipe she decided to use for an event at her kid's school - makes no sense to me. I read Timothy Zahn's The Green and the Gray a couple of days ago. Not a bad book, but not one of his better works either. There is something of an overriding theme of "If we can just talk things out, and understand each other, everything will be better." This applies both to the hero's marriage and to the conflict between the Greens and the Grays. Sometimes communication is helpful, sometimes it isn't. The more I communicate my actual beliefs, sometimes more conflict arises. On the other hand, growing up, my family's tendency was to have no conflict whatsoever. So I'm not sure all my instincts are useful or common. So, I've gotten into the habit of disagreeing with /bringing up with little things that bother me, but not the big things. This isn't getting anywhere, let me give a concrete example. Their family was asked to bring about 4 dozen bite sized cookies for a party given on Saturday in celebration of Mother's day. Kids ages range from about 1-6, maybe a little older. Growing up, she has some fond memories of making cookies at home with her mother [I think], and so she at times makes homemade cookies. For the party she decided to make some fairly complicated cookies, requiring making the batter the night before, then making tiny balls, rolling them in sugar, and then putting a chocolate chip in the middle of each one. Now, she wanted a recipe in which her 3 year old son could contribute - he could put the chip down. And, it wouldn't have been so bad if we were making bigger cookies. But if I hadn't been there it would have been fairly late for them to finish the cookies, which would have just gotten the kid angry [ok, more angry]. [Is she specifically having projects around for me to do when I'm at their house? I don't think so, but maybe]. Hmm, I'm feeling taken for granted again. A recurring theme. bleh.
- posted by owlish @ 5/06/2005 05:56:00 PM 0 comments
Crooked Cops
Holy crap. This is insane. My college had a very good campus police force. A small number for the number of people on campus, all of them at least with masters in criminal justice. A small number of dedicated people seems like a better idea than a large number of cops who were and still are gang members. Hat tip: Right side of the rainbow.
- posted by owlish @ 5/06/2005 04:56:00 PM 0 comments
Insanity and Historical Revisionism
LGF has 2 fun posts today, the first on the crusades and the second on a post by Daily Kos which tries to prove Rondal Reagun had more to do with causing 9/11 than bin Ladin. Come on, we all believe "the single most critical moment in American political history" was Reagun taking solar panels off the White house, don't we? [underlining his].
- posted by owlish @ 5/06/2005 04:44:00 PM 0 comments
Kitty Cannon
And for those cat haters out there, we have this game. My high score is 853 ft. Hat tip :LlamaButchers[899 ft]
- posted by owlish @ 5/06/2005 02:33:00 PM 1 comments
Star Wars
2 different reviews, one from BigFanboy, [hat tip: PvP], one from Variety, [hat tip: Volokh Conspiracy]. And if you're still in the mood, TexasBestGrok has a post of various Star Wars links, including the script. Pete from A Perfectly Cromulent Blog has seen it, but his review isn't up yet. His comments:
That's kind of an extremist view. Parts ruled. Parts kind of sucked. I was wishing I had a fast forward button during the early Anakin-Padme scenes, but once Obi-Wan goes to Utapau to "arrest" General Grievous, it's essentially wall-wo-wall evil and lightsaber-fu, sprinkled with the requisite wooden dialogue and goofy made-for-videogame action sequences. One Jar Jar scene, and he doesn't talk.
- posted by owlish @ 5/06/2005 09:18:00 AM 2 comments
5/04/2005
Blog
If I ever put up a military section on my blogroll, Scottish Tanker Hooligans will probably be on it. Why exactly he wanted to get a second flaming walenza is not clear.
- posted by owlish @ 5/04/2005 08:10:00 PM 0 comments
Knights of the Old Republic
Finished the game, using a light side fighter type. I'm heading to my parents over the weekend; the perfect time to go to the dark side. On the other hand, I'm now having dreams in which I'm walking into the/a villan's lair, which was a posh library [bookcases, leather bound volumes] that had been taken over by a jungle, with streams running everywhere. Looked kinda cool, though.
- posted by owlish @ 5/04/2005 08:57:00 AM 0 comments
Homosexual Blog
A Perfectly Cromulent Blog was briefly rated #6 on the Google search for "homosexual blog." Why, I have no clue. On the other hand, a fair number of the results look like discussions on conservative blogs about homosexuality. Plus, there's a note on Duck Homosexual Necrophilia.
- posted by owlish @ 5/04/2005 08:48:00 AM 0 comments
5/03/2005
Spork Films
This article starts out as a review of a supposed combination sports/chick flick - a spork flick - Fever Pitch, a movie I would never, ever consider watching. It goes on to suggest the 10 rules to a chick flick. As I don't really watch a lot of movies, and when I do, it's almost never a chick flick, I can't comment on the accuracy of his rules. However, I've seen a fair number of real life couples acting as if rule #6 were true:
6. Your boyfriend's friends only get in the way. The sooner you can destroy them, the better.Hat Tip: Houston's Clear Thinkers.
- posted by owlish @ 5/03/2005 09:17:00 PM 0 comments
5/02/2005
Runaway Bride
In honor of the wacky woman, RightWingDuck has some runaway bride jokes. My favs:
I'm a very traditional person. I believe the key to a good marriage is trust, honesty, and not faking your own disappearance.
So she disappears the day before the wedding and wakes up in another state penniless, tired, and with bad hair. Which reminds me, it's been ages since I've been to a good bachelor party.
- posted by owlish @ 5/02/2005 04:01:00 PM 0 comments
Protein Wisdom
By the way, his URL has changed. New one up in blogroll.
- posted by owlish @ 5/02/2005 03:04:00 PM 0 comments
English
The LlamaButchers do significantly better on this little quiz:
Your English Skills: |
| Vocabulary: 100% |
| Grammar: 80% |
| Punctuation: 80% |
| Spelling: 40% |
- posted by owlish @ 5/02/2005 02:57:00 PM 0 comments
4/30/2005
#37 is up. If you're looking to impress that special someone, this salad including rose petals is just the ticket. A tasty chicken recipe - sear and bake. Avgolmado soup? And another recipe for crawfish etouffe.
- posted by owlish @ 4/30/2005 02:24:00 PM 2 comments
Housesitting/dogsitting
I'm housesitting for some friends this weekend, which is why blogging has been reduced. It's kind of annoying - I feel somewhat taken for granted - but I don't really mind doing this. I knew I was going to be fairly bored, so I bought the first Knights of the Old Republic, and have been playing that. It's fun, but light side/dark side decisions are heavy-handed -> do you give beggers some money [light side], or kill them [dark side]. I didn't know it's D20 based, either. Cool, though.
- posted by owlish @ 4/30/2005 01:35:00 PM 2 comments
4/27/2005
100 gay things
Crazy Tracy has a list of 100 things about her and her homosexuality. I may try to make such a list, but I don't think I can hit 100 things without getting way too personal to blog.
- posted by owlish @ 4/27/2005 07:33:00 PM 1 comments
Wil Wheaton
I don't usually read his stuff, but I headed over there today. Turns out he's getting big into poker, and his cat died. Sorry. If he's ever on Bravo's celebrity poker show, I think I'll watch it. He's bound to do better than some of the idiots on it.
- posted by owlish @ 4/27/2005 07:10:00 PM 2 comments
Mockery
Go here for my previous post. Probity Rules made a comment on it and a post on his blog here. I misunderstood what he meant originally. And since part of my post did mention mockery ["5) Science and Religion are not enemies. People trying to claim anti-science points of view as scientific [intelligent design] will be mocked."] I apologize. From my standpoint, an all-powerful God is by definition able to have created the Earth whenever He wanted. He could have created us all yesterday, a year ago, 38 years ago [at my birth, of course], 6000 years ago or whenever. But to me that feels like cheating, like being amazed by a magician who made a woman disappear on stage an then reappears instantly across the auditorium, and then finding out he used identical twins. To me, a God that created a universe 4 billion years ago, knowing that after a certain length of time humanity would exist, is so much more awesome than a God that created a world 6000 years ago, with all species existing already, or than a God who had to continually tinker with life to create eyeballs, and legs, and hair, and... Anyway. To me that's one of the main purposes of blogs: read a post, see what strikes a cord with you, and write about it. The fact that when I reread my post I didn't notice anything mocking about it, doesn't mean it can't strike someone else differently. And obviously, it did.
- posted by owlish @ 4/27/2005 03:06:00 PM 4 comments
Movies to live in
The Sheila Variations has a post on Movies She Would Like to Live in, [Hat tip: Truly Bad Films] and includes several, including Only Angels Have Wings. The comments have some choices that are closer to what I would want [and have heard of!], like Star Trek2: WoK, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, and Buckaroo Banzai. There are some other choices that are pretty much suicidal, like Aliens and Blade Runner. Trust me on this one, even if you never see an alien [or a predator], the Aliens universe is not a friendly place. Star Trek would be kinda cool to live in, even if they have moved beyond capitalism. And I would have at least a chance of a useful job there [I could be a much better ship's counselor than Troi, even without psychic abilities]. LotR and Star Wars are neat universes, but unless you're a main character you're cannon fodder. Pretty much the same for Bond. Buckaroo Banzai seems like a happy place to be. And even if you're not a member of the group, you could watch them play, read the comics, join the extended group [whatever they were called], and help out if the World Crime Syndicate had its hooks in your backyard. For the non-scifi list, might I recommend Max Dugan Returns? People who try hard, catch a break, and then succeed?
- posted by owlish @ 4/27/2005 02:40:00 PM 1 comments
Interesting
The fun of some of these quizzes isn't so much the outcome, it's what the quiz says the outcome means:
You are 'programming in QBASIC'. This programming
language (of which the acronym stands for
'Quick Beginners' All-purpose Symbolic
Instruction Code'), which is so primitive that
it cannot easily be used for any purpose
involving the Internet nor even sound, was
current more than a decade ago.
You are independent, in a good way. When something
which you need cannot be found, you make it
yourself. In writing and in talking with
people, you value clarity and precision; your
friends may not realize how important that is.
When necessary, you are prepared to be a
mediator in conflicts between your friends.
You are very rational, and you think of things
in terms of logic and common sense.
Unfortunately, your emotionally unstable
friends may be put off by your devotion to
logic; they may even accuse you of pedantry and
insensitivity. Your problem is that
programming in QBASIC has been obsolete for a
long time.
What obsolete skill are you?
brought to you by Quizilla
Hat tip: LlamaButchers.
- posted by owlish @ 4/27/2005 11:54:00 AM 2 comments
Tortilla Soup
I am on a quest for the perfect Tortilla Soup recipe. Found a couple in cookbooks I own, one which looks like it has less taste than the recipe I tried last week, one which I've made before and made a huge mess. [it required pureeing some ingredients, then the soup itself, before being poured over chicken and stuff]. On to Google. This recipe from texascooking.com, looks very similar to another recipe I have. Or, there's this list at cdkitchen. Compared to my last try, lots of these recipes use fresh cilantro. Seems reasonable to add. I am not adding kidney beans, black beans, or the bizarre vegetable mix found in the copycat recipe for El Torito. I'll go buy some ingredients, and post what I finally do. Update: ~2 cups chicken breast ~2 cups chicken broth 2 beef bullion cubes 5 cloves garlic, minced 1 medium red onion, chopped 1 14 oz can corn 1 14 oz can diced tomatoes with peppers 3 pieces celery, chopped [more because they were in the fridge and going bad than anything else] 1 tsp chili powder 2 tsp ground cumin ~1/2 tsp salt 1 tsp epazote 1/2 bunch fresh cilantro [maybe a cup?] 1 tsp chipolte peppers in adobo sauce 1 tsp Worcester sauce Throw into the slow cooker, let it cook overnight [and remember to make sure it's plugged in!]. Presumably more taste than the previous attempt, but I may have to add more chipolte peppers or some Tabasco depending on how hot it is. Update: It ended up having just a hint of a bite to it, so I added a couple of drops of Tabasco sauce to each bowl. Served with tortilla chips. Overall, pretty tasty, although the chicken disintegrated and turned the whole thing into more of a stew than a soup. Either the chipolte peppers or the cilantro added something that was needed, though. Note that I had prepared the chicken breast and broth from a fryer I cooked in the slow cooker overnight, with a little salt and pepper for seasoning.
- posted by owlish @ 4/27/2005 09:34:00 AM 1 comments
Homosexuality and AIDS
2 thoughts this morning, brought on primarily by GeekSlut. 1) How much of the "If you're gay, then you must be a Democrat" thought was brought on by the AIDS crisis? Specifically, if several people you know are dying of AIDS [say, back in the 90's] and it's your duty to help them, you're doomed, but if it's the duty of the state, then you're off the hook. I wonder if most of the conservative gays blogging are younger than 30. 2) The first guy I knew who was fully out was in a committed [at least, as far as I know] relationship, and had been for almost 20 years. Which is probably why they were both still alive, and not dead of AIDS.
- posted by owlish @ 4/27/2005 07:45:00 AM 0 comments
4/26/2005
His life, my life, I dunno
So, doing a random walk through peoples' blogrolls this afternoon, and I come upon GeekSlut. Warning: no X-rated pics, lots o X-rated content. So, he's similar to me in several demographic areas, completely opposite in others. He contracted HIV in a time that it was usually an inexorable death sentence. [I'm neg, in case you wondered]. He has partied hard, has an automatic reflex to check how much illegal stuff he's carrying when he meets a cop, etc. He delays sex to play World of Warcraft. Conservative christian family. Bodybuilding tips, recommends lots of fiber for rather specific reasons. Likes Justice League, Stargate, and gay porn. He has some video and audio blogging. He seems to have stopped recently. Could my life have been similar to his? Maybe. I haven't found much on his formative years. If I had the chance to trade lives with him, would I? More realistically, should I try to aim my life to be more like his?
- posted by owlish @ 4/26/2005 05:45:00 PM 0 comments
Firefly
From Penny Arcade comes the link to the trailer: "This is going to get pretty interesting." "Define interesting." "Oh God, oh God, we're all gonna die." Sweet. I've seen maybe half the shows, now I must get the DVDs.
- posted by owlish @ 4/26/2005 05:41:00 PM 0 comments
4/25/2005
Politics
A political quiz, from Eric's Grumbles:
You scored as Anarchism. <'Imunimaginative's Deviantart Page'>
|
- posted by owlish @ 4/25/2005 01:10:00 PM 1 comments
4/24/2005
Try, try again
Looks like my answers got erased. This one looks like more fun anyway. It's not working right. So,
- posted by owlish @ 4/24/2005 04:28:00 PM 0 comments
Life and Death
This meme and the previous meme come from Impenetrable Prose and Poesy:
Copy the list, bold the ones you've already done, italics the ones you want to do, and add some left-off items that should be on the list in a separate section.Watch whales migrate Go white water rafting See wild game on an African safari Find a long-lost friend Learn to dance Fly a plane Drive a NASCAR race car Appear on Broadway Dive the Great Barrier Reef Skydive Golf on a world famous course Travel the Nile in Egypt Be serenaded by a Venetian gondolier Swim with the dolphins Play with an orchestra Paint the Big Apple red Float in a hot air balloon Sip a mint julep at the Kentucky Derby Visit the Oval Office Trace your roots Helicopter over a Hawaiian volcano Ride a mule down the Grand Canyon Stroll along the Great Wall of China Cruise in a Ferrari See the Taj Mahal at sunrise Walk the Inca trail at Macchu Picchu Ride a Harley down an open road Feed sharks Scale a famous peak [depending on how famous you want] Explore a Rain Forest Learn to be a cowboy [partially done] [not a huge wish, though] Play ball in a Major League park Prepare the world's finest meal [or at least a meal that a really picky friend likes] Be an extra in a movie Gaze upon a magnificent waterfall Horseback ride along a beach Conquer a fear Ride a steamboat down the Mississippi Dive in a submarine Taste the finest wine Run a marathon Write a song or poem for someone you love Volunteer overseas Visit a nudist colony Explore the Alaskan wilderness Hover in a blimp Eat a cheeseburger in paradise Run with the bulls in Pamplona Say a special thank you Experience weightlessness Record and sell a CD of my own original music Vanity-publish a book of my own poetry Be the opening act for Tori Amos Decipher the Voynich Manuscript once and for all Finally take that darnded course on Principles Of Concrete - [I have a friend who took a course on Soil Mechanics in college, does that count?] My additions: Attend GenCon Get a tattoo Using all of my previously learned skills, get a job as a bartender See a Space Shuttle launch
- posted by owlish @ 4/24/2005 02:04:00 PM 0 comments
More Fun Memes
A somewhat strange quiz. I have no idea who these people pictured are, including my secret lover, except the guy from Will and Grace:
- posted by owlish @ 4/24/2005 01:50:00 PM 0 comments
Phil Foglio, Super Genius
Thanks to Penny Arcade, I now know Girl Genius is now a webcomic. If you don't know who Phil Foglio is, you have no gamer street cred.
- posted by owlish @ 4/24/2005 11:11:00 AM 0 comments
4/23/2005
Carnival of Recipes
The new one is up. Sometimes there are some really fun recipes, like this one for a cake that looks like a cat's used litter box. There's a recipe for Fiesta Chicken which uses cheddar crackers as part of the breading. Kinda cool.
- posted by owlish @ 4/23/2005 11:49:00 AM 0 comments
5 Questions, Part 2
Part 1, including the rules for the meme. JohnL at TexasBestGrok has asked me 6 questions. I can ignore one if I want. [nah]. [In other words, I'm ending up doing the same meme from 2 different people, which fortunately had completely different questions.] I'm going to stick this at the top of the blog for a while. If anyone wants to play along, simply comment "Interview me" and I'll come up with 6 questions for you.
1. OK. First, the obvious one. I know you've mentioned it before, perhaps in a posting that has long since been archived, but please explain for first-time readers your handle and blogname.
First, the blogname. "Mutterings," because I envision this as me sitting off in my corner of the blogosphere muttering to myself, and if someone happens to hear that's fine. "Owlish" because I like owls in a totemic kind of way, and have a collection of various artistic owls. I wanted to blog anonymously so I avoided words that might have provided more clues to who I am, like Doc.
Second, the handle: "It's a floor topping and a dessert wax! No, wait... It's an online diary and a linkfest; one man's thoughts about life, liberty, and the pursuit of a boyfriend." I basically wanted a mission statement, something a new visitor could see and get a general idea of what he was going to get. I had a different one earlier, saying basically I was more essayist than linker. I decided that wasn't where the blog was going, thought of the Saturday Night Live skit with "It's a floor wax and a dessert topping" and randomly flipped them.
I like the name. I am less pleased with the handle, but have no obvious alternative.
2. Since you live in Galveston (i.e., Hurricane alley), do you have a Bugout box? If so, what's in it? If not, what would you put in one?
Galveston is very overdo for a hurricane. The closest thing to a Bugout box I have is a leather cosmetics bag my grandfather gave me more than a decade ago. I keep it stocked with usual things like shampoo and antiperspirant, as well as some simple over-the -counter symptom treatments [ibuprophen, immodium, diphenhydramine, vitamins]. Since I'm a single guy, with that bag ready I can pack very quickly [I packed for about 3 days and was out the door in 10 minutes recently].
Part of the reason I don't have anything more formal was for a while I was considered part of UTMB's emergency response, and part of my job was not to bug out. The other part is I'm up on the 5th floor, so if I get flooded out everyone else is dead.
If I knew a class 5 hurricane was likely to hit, had a short amount of time to pack the car, and expected to lose everything I didn't take, I'd get some more clothes, my laptop, and 2 cloth wall hangings. Then the music box from my great-grandmother and an antique stool. After that, a couple of the more expensive owls, and a couple of pieces of gold and silver [a necklace, a bolo tie, some rings, a plate]. Some prints. Dump the CD collection into a storage container, dump DVDs, computer games, and some VHS into another. Take a couple of minutes, grab ready-to-eat food, can opener. My SCIFI and fantasy books are heavy and relatively easy to replace, they're gone. Comics and RPGs are less easy to replace, some have value, but still heavy; depending on the time they're gone or in the back of the truck. Keyboard and stand might come. My dad has copies of all important papers, besides my CV, which I think is on my laptop.
I don't have a trauma kit [would want my stethoscope, it's pretty nice and could be handy]. The only way I'm doing any lifesaving beyond CPR is if the entire US medical and legal system has broken down. [I haven't had ACLS since med school; if your life depends on my ability to intubate you, pray for a miracle].
Unlike Kim du Toit, I don't have a gun [at home anyway, my dad keeps the rifle that is mine]. On a pure risk/benefit level, I suspect the chance of me using a pistol for suicide is greater than the chance I would need it to defend my life [both very low]. I've thought about getting one for recreation and to join the Houston Pink Pistols, though.
3. One of my daily reads, Timothy Sandefur, recently wrote that atheism is the Last Closet: "We come up with clever ways of avoiding the issue or rationalizing things, or we just stay quiet, because it would upset the family and scare away friends if you admitted that you’re an atheist. You call yourself an agnostic or a deist or a freethinker—anything but the A word. You keep going to church. You say all the right words. The family can go on politely thinking you’re still in the fold." What do you think about that statement?
At one point I told my therapist that it would bother my parents more if I told them I was an atheist than it did when I told them I was gay. He responded with "Are you an atheist?" to which I said I wasn't sure. I still don't know. So, I think there is some truth to that statement in my life.
4. I have noted that many people of the medical and related biological persuasions are atheist, while most equivalently-educated engineers, accountants, programmers, and lawyers remain adherents to some faith system. What was your experience in medical school -- were few/some/many/most of your fellow medical students atheists?
3 separate populations: college students, medical students, and psychiatry residents. The only people I know who proclaimed themselves to be atheists are from college. 3 guys: one remains an atheist, one I've lost contact with, one is dead [suicide or LSD flashback related]. Medical school had fairly low rates of weekly church attendance [mostly Catholic or evangelical Christian, a few Islamic, a few more obscure]. I've heard of surveys showing very low incidence of religious beliefs in psychiatrists compared to the general population, but that wasn't really my experience of the residents, and I haven't heard of that applying to all doctors.
On the other hand, it somewhat applies to me. My main crisis of faith comes from my experiences in psychiatry. I can imagine that hyperreligious, manic patients could have been very influential in the development of faith in prehistory, and could have been called prophets or seers.
5. What is the last piece of music you listened to?
The self titled Hoobastank [assuming computer game music doesn't count]. Before that was Amy Grant's Lead Me On.
6. What is the last movie you saw to which you had a strong emotional reaction (positive or negative) and why?
Hmm. The last movie I saw was Sin City, which caused me to flinch in a couple of places, but really didn't qualify for a strong emotional reaction. Saw The Incredibles on DVD with some friends a while back, which was probably the most recent one that counts. I laughed hysterically at the scene in which the wife is getting the rundown on the new suits; teared up in a couple of places. Good flick.- posted by owlish @ 4/23/2005 10:39:00 AM 1 comments
4/22/2005
Mockery?
I was puttering around on Technocrati and found this post on Probity Rules, linking to my post on what I would do if elected pope. The specific sentence:
I have noticed that there is a great deal of mocking on the Internet, generally by people who believe other people's belief systems are irrational.He then defines mocking:
A mocker is someone being overly proud and arrogant (Proverbs 21:24).I guess my saying "I want and deserve to be pope" would be overly proud and arrogant. But that wasn't the point. I was thinking more of a scene in this book, in which a god's church has been slowly getting more and more corrupt, and his chosen people would be destroyed if they didn't get their act together. So the god manifests on the holiest day of the year, destroys the high priest, and appoints someone who normally could not have been the successor as high priest. As I'm not even baptized in the Catholic faith, much less a priest, I assumed it would need the direct intervention of God for me to be appointed pope. And if so it would not be because I was especially holy, but because his church would need a metaphorical kick in the pants. And, yeah, probably a woman would perform that function better, but maybe a gay man would do.
- posted by owlish @ 4/22/2005 10:52:00 PM 1 comments
Foster care continued
The Chronicle had another article about the bill. They estimate between 2000 and 2500 kids would have to be taken out of their current homes and placed somewhere else. Sounds like a disaster to me.
- posted by owlish @ 4/22/2005 10:32:00 PM 0 comments
Life
Ok, while I've had this stupid cold a friend has been passing kidney stones. He wins. At some point I'm going to have to knuckle under and get some anti-biotics.
- posted by owlish @ 4/22/2005 10:18:00 PM 0 comments
Growing up Catholic and Gay
Gryphmon has a thoughtful post about some of his life experiences, and the influence the new pope had on his life. H/T: Smash
- posted by owlish @ 4/22/2005 10:16:00 PM 0 comments
Template Change
I'm getting tired of the old version, making a few changes. Now I just have to figure out how to add my blogroll. Update: Hmm. Better now. Still may need a little tweaking.
- posted by owlish @ 4/22/2005 12:40:00 PM 0 comments
What Die are you
Just because all the cool blogs are doing it:
- posted by owlish @ 4/22/2005 09:38:00 AM 0 comments
4/21/2005
Signature Weapon
Yeah, this sounds about right.
| Desert Eagle You preferred a weapon with 45% power over speed and 61% range over melee. |
| You use a Desert Eagle. One of the most powerful handguns in production, the Desert Eagle is a heavy punch in a small package. Its reliability and speed are remarkable for a gun with such high caliber. Your enemies won't stand a chance as you fell them bullet by bullet. |
 |
My test tracked 2 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:
|
