Thirsty Thursday

I know that the title of the blog today is pretty generic but that was as clever as I feel capable of being this morning. I kind of enjoyed this process yesterday so

LANCE'S TOP 5 BEERS

1:

Boddingtons Pub Ale I love this beer. It just really works for me on so many levels. It is light and creamy and if I really wanted to I could drink it all day long. I have also enjoyed a pint or two of this at breakfast. Totally worth it.

2:

Guinness. This is a beer that I can enjoy often and really never regret drinking. I have been told by those who have visited Ireland that it is even better over there. I hope one day to find out if that is true.

As I looked over the vast selection of beer out there and thought about my choices 3 through 5 I realized that the other beers do not really matter to me. Because unless I am really stuck somewhere that I can't have coffee or a diet cola beverage I will not order a beer that is not a Guinness or a Boddingtons. I used to brew my own and I feel like I made a couple of tasty ones but I also followed a recipe and used basically a kit to achieve that. I know a few people in the Salem area alone that make some amazing beers from scratch. The craft brewing industry has really taken off in the NW and I think it is one of the things that makes us a great place to live.

I have a friend (Not anybody any of you know) who recently moved to Colorado and they were telling me that the local beer was better in Colorado then in Oregon. Well I just had to laugh. I mean I was polite but come on. How can you even say such a thing? I think it comes down to more then just the amount of beer awards a state has won. The taste of beer is a personal thing and in my book nothing tops Oregon for that. I mean it even though I drink mainly English beer. But I am a snob.

Webpost Wednesday

Today is Wednesday and I am going to use Wednesday to throw up some links to things around the internet that I have found interesting. Or perhaps articles I like or something else. It is going to be pretty random but that is the plan anyway. That being said I am having a hard time today finding something that I think is interesting or even blogworthy. Ha!! That word reminds me of the old 'Seinfeld' where Elaine was trying to decide if guys were "sponge-worthy". I loved that show.



I do not get much chance to watch reruns of it anymore but when I do stumble across it I always find it very funny. I think I would put it into my top 10 television comedies of all time. Lets see off of the top of my head I think this is my list

TOP 10 TELEVISION COMEDIES
1: Arrested Development Only three glorious seasons but I loved and continue to love every minute of it. I feel like it was a show that you had to pay attention to and were rewarded when you did just that. It was humor on a complete different level.

2: Mr Show This is another show that seemed to operate on a different level from what was on television. By being on HBO it allowed them to have a lot more freedom that other shows which does make a difference that is for sure.

3: The Ben Stiller Show This show only lasted one season but what an amazing season it was. If you can track this down on Netflix I highly recommend it. Or if you know me and ask nicely I may let you borrow my copy of it. There are skits from this show that are still being stolen and re-used by other television shows even today.

4: The Office The (ahem) British version. I hate to sound like a comedy snob. But, I may as well own up to the truth of who I am and in some cases I am very much a snob and the three epic seasons are such good television. It is at times almost unbearable to watch but still so well done that you can't help yourself. But ultimately so touching that the series finale will bring a tear to your eye.

5: Seinfeld I already wrote a bit about this above. It isn't my favorite comedy of all time but it is up there on the list.

I am stopping at Top 5 because the Top 5 is all that really matter and besides I am a lazy so and so. Deal with it.



This song by Mumford and Sons called 'Awake My Soul" makes me weep at times. I just love their music and it also depresses me that I am unable to create the same kind of thing in my life. Which probably says a lot about me more then it does about them. Please give them a listen and feel yourself lifted up. You folks have a good day.

Terrible Tuesday

I think that from now on along with my other thematically structured days I am going to use Tuesdays as a day that I rant. This may involve a story that I have read that I did not care for or perhaps an issue in the world that has upset me. It could be something as weighty as world politics or as light and fluffy as why I do not care for black licorice. So without further ado the topic for today is.

FLAT BRIMMED BASEBALL HATS

Now it obviously isn't the hats themselves because why would I get that upset about a piece of clothing. It is the people who seem to be wearing the flat brimmed caps. I do have a problem as well with the style because of the functionality of it. When I wear a baseball cap it is most often because I have not showered that day and my hair is a mess so it keeps my hair out of my eyes and and keeps me looking not so goofy. But if I were to wear my cap with the brim pressed flat and tilted off to one side and tipped up what would the point be? What purpose would it serve? Is it for fashion? I do not think most of the guys that wear their hats this way would say they pay attention to fashion. They obviously do at some level because they are wearing clothes and affecting a style that they and their friends think is cool on some level.

That doesn't excuse them because I still do not understand how you look in the mirror and say "There we go. The hat is tilted just so and now I am ready to rock." It ranks up there with me or down there really on the same level as the guys that wear the popped collar on their shirt and wear two or three shirts. Granted, it was cool when Fonzie popped the collar on his leather jacket but who is cooler then Fonzie. Do not answer you can't because know one is.

Are you enjoying the afterglow that Fonzie was so gracious to give you? I do not think I can write anymore today. I am just going to sit and think about how cool Fonzie was. That man had it all figured out.

Music Monday

As anyone who knows me can attest. I love music. I love nearly all kinds of music and some of it is probably what the snobs consider as bad music but I really do not care. The reality is that music in all of it varied shapes and forms fills a real need inside of me. There are times where just the tone of the song will bring tears to my eyes. I realize that probably says more about me then it does anything else but it is the truth.

So I think on Mondays I will share with you something that I like or am currently enjoying. Today it is the Avett Brothers and their 3 song NPR performance. It is 15 minutes long but if you can carve out some time please give it a listen. I think you might enjoy it.

Soccer Sunday I

I dub today Soccer Sunday. I am going to try to use Sundays to post something about the sport I am currently loving and that is American Soccer or English Football. I am right now as I write watching a replay of the US National Men playing against Argentina and it has been a really amazing game. The passing and touch on the ball that Argentina is showing is incredible and as usual Lionel Messi is playing amazingly. But I think that for me the real star of the game and the hero for the United States was Tim Howard. As much as I have complained about him in the past he was amazing in goal in the game. If he had not been on point the US would have lost probably 3 or 4 to 1. As it was the USA escaped with a 1-1 draw. Lets face facts. While it is true that, at times, we were competitive with Argentina we are not as good as they are. Oh sure we played well and there were some stellar moments during the game but overall on a position by position level we just do not match up well with them. They are faster and smarter then we are in terms of both passing and overall strategy.

I have to say though that as much as I enjoyed watching the match and as much as I enjoy watching the US play and I suppose I am a supporter of the team though I am not a card carrying member. I have to say that I am really bothered by Clint Dempsey and his attitude on the pitch. It isn't that he is unable to play or that he isn't talented because he is and he has proven that he can play at the highest levels of Soccer. But the way he acts on the pitch just irritates me. It feels like if he isn't pouting about something he is hacking at another play or just coasting along until he can sneak in a run on goal. He gives the illusion or impression that he does not work all of the time. I realize that I may be wrong but he just makes me crazy at times. (Climbs down off of soapbox)



In local Soccer news the Major League Soccer (MLS) expansion team Portland Timbers lost their second straight match to the Toronto Reds. It was a hard fought match and the Timbers looked really good at times which leads me to have some high hopes for the rest of the season. But, once again as in the first loss of the season a 3-1 defeat by the Colorado Rapid the Timbers showed a real inability to finish. That coupled with a team that seems to be unable to get going in the first 15 minutes in a game does not make for a success. The talent is there and the coaching staff and the front office is doing everything they can to ensure success but in the end it comes down to the players on the pitch and it is up to them to win these games. It up to them to put the ball into the net. That is the ultimate goal in a soccer match and if you do not put the ball into the onion bag you can not win matches. That being said you also must keep the ball out of the net on defense and if you are unable to do that it becomes doubly hard to win games. The first two games of the season so far have shown that while the Timbers seem to have a strong defense there are times where they seem to check out mentally and when that happens they give up goals. I hope this gets fixed and gets fixed soon if it doesn't we are in for a long season and not a very fun one.

Film Friday

I have tried and tried over and over again to stick to some sort of thematic structure in this blog and most of the attempts have been an epic failure. So in yet another attempt I am going to make Friday a day where I write about films that I enjoy.

I imagine that my analysis will be very in depth and full of high level academic thought as I break down all of the nuances behind some of yours and mines favorite films. I imagine that we will discuss the political ramifications of different films as well as there effect on popular culture and the world at large. I will shine a light on the dark subtext of films that the dirty communists are using to manipulate our youth and using to bring down and destroy the values that we hold dear as Americans!!!!

(Sorry, I blacked out for a second.) This will not be happening today as I appear to be getting a migraine. But next week for sure.

Thursday

I just realized something. The NCAA basketball tournament in going on right now. I do not care. I have come to the realization that I do not really care about basketball in any form. I do not care if it is the NBA or College or High School or peewee. I am not sure what changed. I used to like basketball. I grew up in the midst of Blazer madness. I was a huge David Robinson fan as well as Moses Malone and Charles Barkley when I was growing up. But somewhere along the lines in the last decade or so I just have lost total interest in the sport as a whole.

In fact as I have grown older the sports that I follow avidly have changed as well. I have always been a sports fan and when I was a child that meant watching televised ice skating events as well as the weekly professional bowling tournament that would be on every Saturday. But before those there was usually the Major League Baseball game of the week. When I went to Australia I ended up watching a Cricket match and I even found that pretty interesting. But really the only sports I follow any more are the NFL and a little, very little, bit of college football. I like mixed martial arts and I follow the National Hockey League and I like Soccer.

As I am writing this I think it has more to do with the internet and cable television and the availability of these sports to be seen. As a child we had basically four channels and then some local uhf that did not show sports. So there really were limited options. I never ever saw Hockey until my grandmother got cable it did not exist on television as a sport in the pacific northwest. Also really the only time I was able to watch soccer was late at night on the Oregon Public Broadcasting channel and even that was pretty sporadic. But now I can just turn on the computer or the television and pretty much find a clip of anything is being played and there are some crazy sports out there.

I think basketball just is kind of boring for me right now. I know that people will argue that they think soccer is boring and I can accept that argument. I, for numerous reasons, do not find it boring. I am not sure why. But I do know that I can sit down and watch or listen to a soccer match and it holds my interest but anymore when I try to watch basketball it just does not. The same goes for baseball I just have a hard time really getting into it. I do like going to live games but I think that is mainly because I can people watch and scream at the opposing team and the umpires. I love screaming at umpires and refs and opposing players. I think that is one of lives great joys for me.

I have a story about that. Want to hear it? Here it is. I went to a Seattle Mariners baseball game several years ago with my housemates. It has to be over 10 at this point and my be close to 15 years ago and the Mariners were doing pretty good as a team Ken Griffey Jr was there star player and it was pretty exciting to see him play live. It was also possible back then to see a game at the Kingdome and to get seats pretty close to the field without if costing an arm and a leg. So, I am unable to remember who they were playing, we had seats about 5 or 6 rows up from the field and right where the opposing teams bullpen area was. That is where the opposing teams pitcher was was warming up for the game. I do not even remember his name but I begin to yell at him.

Now when I heckle I rarely if at all use profanity. It is not clever and I do not think it is even funny. There is a time and a place for swears and at a public event with people and their kids around is not one of those places.(puts soapbox away) So I proceeded to tell the pitcher that perhaps his family was unhappy with the way he pitched and that my 80 yr old grandmother could do better. I also let him know that I thought Griffey Jr would have no trouble hitting a homerun or two off of him. It also had not occurred to me that he could hear me. I know that was silly of me but I swear I just figured that will all of the noise of the fans and the music and other players that my voice would blend and I was really just yelling for the amusement of my friends anyway.

So I continue to yell and then the pitcher just stops and turns and looks right at me while holding the baseball in his hand. I feel the people sitting on either side of me slide away and one may have muttered "you messed up now". I remember thinking he is going to throw that ball at me. This is really going to hurt. In the end he did not throw the ball. But the glare he gave me still haunts me. I also stopped heckling him and he went on to pitch his best game that season. I am pretty sure I cost the Mariners a win.

All of my rambling aside. While I may not like or enjoy basketball now it is fine with me if you do. So just leave me alone and let me follow the Portland Timbers.

RCTID!!!!

Stealing or a Tribute

I just read an interesting article here about the 'Simpsons' and 'Family Guy' talking about joke stealing. Here it is. I believe it is safe for work. But then again my opinion on that may be a little off since my HR person is wearing pajamas and drinking a cup of coffee at his desk right now. In fact I am not sure he is even wearing shoes. (What do we pay that guy for anyway?)

But, back to the topic at hand. I have railed in the past about television and movies and novels and people stealing from each other. At this point I will turn and look pointedly at James Cameron. But I have used a stick on that dead horse before so I will not rehash the old argument.

I guess it makes me wonder is there anything new out or is everything that is being in the creative entertainment industry a rip off or an homage to something that came before? Is it better or at least more tolerable if the person doing the ripping off acknowledges it as such or calls it a tribute? I know that as far as I am concerned it becomes more tolerable when they do. I feel like nothing upsets me more when a director or writer is touted as some sort of creative genius and then when you see the material it is just patently obvious that they have stolen the idea. When they are will to at least acknowledge the idea that they were at the very least "inspired" by something but wanted to put their own spin on it I am usually able to find some redeeming quality in it.

What makes me call for and most of the time enforce a Lance wide boycott of a product or a individual is when they continue to steal ideas over and over again and are encouraged by the masses to do so because the masses go to their movies and make them rich. I can feel myself ramping up to a Sheen like level so I am going to dial it back down. What do you guys think?


IS THERE NOTHING NEW UNDER THE SUN?

Broadway Coffeehouse

As I mentioned yesterday and may have mentioned before on this blog. I like coffee. Some would say that I also have a chemical dependency on the caffeine that rides along with the coffee. I would say that has nothing to do with the fact that I like the smell and the taste of it. Sure, things would be horrible if I didn't enjoy drinking it but I really do like the taste of coffee and I love the smell and the process of it as well.


And thanks to the friendly folks at my local coffee house. The aptly named Broadway Coffeehouse since it is on Broadway st. I have found several new ways to take in my daily dose of the good stuff.

What I have pictured above is how I spent last Saturday morning. It was a nice Chemex of an Indonesian coffee along with the morning paper and a very tasty Marionberry scone from Great Harvest.

I personally can't think of a better way to start the day then to have a tasty cup of coffee and a nice pastry of some sort. One way for me to get both of those things is at the Broadway Coffeehouse and I just am unable to recommend it highly enough. So if you get a chance get over there and give it a try.

If you do not like coffee, God forbid, they also have tea and hot chocolate and Chai and lots of other things to drink that I am told are really quite tasty. I find it to have a very comfortable atmosphere as well. I basically have not had a bad experience there. They are open seven days a week from 6am to 10pm which is good because "anytime is the right time for coffee"
(That phrase is mine. I claim it by order of the internet bloggers collective.) They also have free Wi-Fi so you could be down there right now reading this while you drink their coffee. Think about that. Did I just blow your mind?

But, do not just take my word for it. Go down and check it out. You will be glad that you did.

Monday

It is mid Monday morning and I have know idea what I want to write about today. I would love to have something witty and insightful to share with all of you but nothing is really springing to mind.

Things I like

In no particular order

Coffee
Fight Club (Film and Novel)
Sir Terry Pratchett
Quadrophenia (Film and Album)
League of Legends
Friends (I will not name them all)
The Portland Timbers
The Pittsburgh Steelers
Attractive ladies with black hair
Attractive ladies with blond hair
Attractive ladies with red hair
Attractive ladies with brown hair
(You know who you are ladies)
The lady that I will always miss and who I think of everyday
Ben Folds
This video by Ben Folds...

Somber Sunday

Sundays have been a little odd for me lately. I try to not do much on weekends as it is but Sundays have been kind of sad. I am not sure if it is the weather or if it is something that is going on with me. I actually enjoyed the rain last Sunday and ended up going for a drive out to St Paul but really that was only because I went north on the road just outside the neighborhood and it took me there.

Today I just felt crappy all day and ended up the afternoon and early evening with a small migraine. What that really means for me is that I may not sleep much tonight since I did for a few hours this afternoon. On the plus side I could spend most of the night watching "Deadwood" and I could think of far worse ways to be up all night if I have to be.

One thing that I do find fascinating when I re-watch a television show after a break of several years. Is that I notice the actors that I haven't noticed before usually because they have gone on to do other things. In the case of "Deadwood" I just noticed that Kristen Bell of the television show "Veronica Mars" and the film "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" had a small role as a young "naive" prostitute in a couple of episodes of the first season of "Deadwood". I think that for me in changes some of the nuances of the characters when the actors are ones that I recognize and whose work I enjoy. Since we are on the subject of "Deadwood" I have to say that the actor whose work I enjoy the most in it is Timothy Olyphant.

I just love his work in this as well as his work now in "Justified". In some ways I think that his character in "Justified" is a modern day version of Seth Bullock in "Deadwood". This character archetype is one that Olyphant does extremely well. I am just sad that "Deadwood" ended prematurely but at least it ended well as opposed to numerous other television shows I have enjoyed.

See you next week. It is possible that Sunday may constitute a day of writing about entertainment.

Fantastic Friday

Today is Friday and tomorrow is the first league game of the Major League Soccer(MLS) debut of the Portland Timbers. I think regardless of whether or not you are a fan of Soccer or Futball or Football you have to understand that this is a pretty big deal for the state of Oregon as well as the Pacific Northwest in general.

It doesn't matter to the Pacific Northwest as far is it's identity goes. There are way to many other things do to in this lovely part of the country then go to a professional sporting event. But until now Oregon only had the Blazers and Washington had the Seahawks and the Sounders. The Timbers joining MLS will not affect the popularity of the college teams in this area but I like that it does draw some more attention to the area.

That doesn't mean you people need to move here though. Feel free to come and visit and spend your money but do not stay. Even better in the world of our former esteemed Gov Tom McCall

"We want you to visit our State of Excitement often. Come again and again. But for heaven's sake, don't move here to live. Or if you do have to move in to live, don't tell any of your neighbors where you are going."

I think he says it far better then I can. I love living in the Pacific Northwest. In fact I love living in Oregon.

St. Patricks Day

Today is Saint Patrick's Day which has become the arguably the most important amateur drinking day of the year. It has transcended New Years Eve for a lot of the hardcore drinkers and seems to be holding off a hard charging Cinco de Mayo.

As far as I am concerned. I do not give a flying fig what some drunken, flute wielding, Papist, has to say. I am neither Irish, or Irish Catholic, or much of a drinker. I am not an Orange-men as some people like to claim on this day. Technically I suppose it is true that I was raised as a Protestant but I more and more do not care about the labels.

But, the most important thing for me is that while I am aware of my family's origins. My father's side is Scottish-English and my Mother's is Scandinavian. I often joke with my friends about being a Scotch-Viking. I was born in the United States of America, in the state of Oregon, in the county of Marion, in the city of Salem. And I had no control over that. It just happened! So for me to get all worked up about where my father's father came from or where my mother's mother is from I just have no desire to do it.

I suppose things might be different if I had been born and raised during a different time historically or perhaps in a place where Catholics and Protestant's were constantly fighting. But I was not. So I have no desire to get all twisted up about it or to fabricate a reason to celebrate something that I do not even care about. If I want to drink I will do so. If I do not want to I will not drink but I certainly do not need an excuse to drink. Just ask most of my friends.


So there you go folks. Day two of my trying to write everyday and I believe I may have insulted the Irish, Catholics, and I suppose Protestants as well. I think for me that is a pretty good day all things considered.

Strange Night

I am trying to be better about writing and posting even when I may feel like my thoughts are not coherent enough to make a decent post. I was inspired by a friend of mine and the reasons that were given for their daily postings. I just hope I can be consistent and give this more of a go. It isn't like I do not have the time. That is sadly totally true.

On a health note I believe I should put down in writing a reminder to myself and to my friends to not take a B-complex vitamin as you are going to bed. I am not totally sure if the vitamin was the cause but I fell asleep for an hour and woke up at 1 am and was wide away until 4:30 am. I sometimes sleep oddly but this has never happened before. And it wasn't like I was up and groggy. I was wide awake. I didn't have caffeine and that doesn't usually affect my sleep anyway.

I did watch a very interesting BBC crime drama during this time of lucidity called

Red Riding: In the Year of Our Lord 1974

It is the first of a televised trilogy based on a series of books by David Peace. I know nothing of the books. I ended up watching the film on Netflix because they kept recommending it for Lance. So if you are looking for a gritty crime drama. I would recommend it. I am looking forward to watching the second one.

That is all for today. You folks be safe out there.

and the Oscar goes to...

Last night was the Academy Awards and the biggest winner seemed to be the film "The Kings Speech". It was an enjoyable movie and one that I thought was both interesting on both a historical level as well as in terms of enjoyment. But, what I find interesting is that most of the snarky entertainment blogs that I read just do not seem to get it. One called "Film Drunk" had this to say

"The Oscars happened last night and The King’s Speech was the big winner, taking home Best Picture, Best Director for Tom Hooper (he didn’t deserve it for this, but call it a late award for John Adams), Best Actor for Colin Firth, and Best Original Screenplay for 73-year-old David Seidler. It’s ironic, because that movie really sucked huge old wrinkly British gravy-covered stuttering balls. Okay, maybe it wasn’t terrible, but if you made a parody of The Oscars, The King’s Speech is the film that would win Best Picture there. If Seltzer-Friedberg were slightly talented and made a film called “Oscar Movie,” it would look exactly like The King’s Speech. Colin Firth is great and Geoffrey Rush is a gangster, but seriously? That was the best movie of the year? A stuttering king and his unorthodox mentor? It really drives home the fact that the people who vote on this are a thousand years old, and probably babysat for Kirk Douglas when he was in elementary school."

Well now! I am sure that feels very proud of his phrasing in that quote. Oh how clever he must feel. But what I do not think he gets is that the film is a true story. What does he want them to do? They could have added dragons to it I suppose or perhaps a sparkling vampire? Sometimes when you make a movie based on an historical event it may be a little predictable.

As far as I am concerned, the best movie chase came down to two films "Black Swan" and "True Grit". I enjoyed "The Kings Speech" but I did not feel it matched the power or had the technical expertise of the the two that I preferred. This doesn't mean I am going to go on some sort of rant about the state of cinema today or anything like that. I just liked the other films better. Because if I wanted to I could work myself up into a rant about film that would make Charlie Sheens coke fueled rant on the Alex Jones show pale in comparison. WINNING!!

Ah I amuse only myself at times but that is enough for me.

On a side note I spent some time in the Highland neighborhood this weekend with a certain family. A fair amount of wine was consumed and some pasta but the high light was the matriarch of the family casually admitting that she had thrown her childs "slap hand" into the garbage!!! The horror of it all. Imagine this poor child home from a hard day of basketball excited about playing with the new toy, that I believe may have been an award, for their efforts on the courts and it is tossed away like yesterdays news. the child was so upset that once they retrieved the "slap hand" from the garbage they wandered off and I did not see them again. They may be stumbling around the neighborhood still. It just goes to show that even in a nice place like the Highland neighborhood parents can still be mean. But rest assured that this reporter is going to continue to be on hand to shine the light of justice on these kinds of shenanigans.

Witty or Just Plain Mean?

I am a big fan of the sarcasm. I like to use my tone to convey my dissatisfaction with the world around me. I often curl my lip and look down at the common people and ask myself "why is it that people would...?" You can fill in the blank there. It could be a certain popular movie or song, perhaps a book or magazine or an actor or actress that I do not care for.

But, I wonder as I get older if all of that sarcasm is wearing me down and stopping me from just enjoying life. I just read a line from a magazine

"One of the freedoms you can find away from the nation's coasts is freedom from the curse of trying to be cool."

I really like how that sounds. I think as I try to stay abreast of current events both politically and pop culturally I find myself reading some things that are pretty snarky and not informative. It seems like if I am reading something that has a liberal side to it there is more time spent making fun of the latest "dumb" thing that Glenn Beck or Sarah Palin has said and I am as guilty of that as most people. But I wonder if it really should be more about the issues at hand when it comes to politics and not about what some cult of personality person said.

I realize I am just rambling here but I sometimes use this blog to process my ramblings so there you a special treat today a look into the head of Lance. I hope it wasn't to scary.

At the Coffee Shop

Well I am back at the coffee shop enjoying my weekly splurge. But, I am not sure if I am enjoying it or not today. I seem to be in a bit of a mood. I am not sure what started it. I had a good day yesterday, the Pittsburgh Steelers won the AFC championship and will be going to the Super Bowl. That alone should have been enough for me to have a good week let alone a good Monday but that does not seem to be the case.

I think it started with the two gentleman discussing politics at 7:30 in the morning when I walked in. That is far to early to start discussing the problems of America and the world. They are playing the new Decemberists album which I really like so that has started to pull me out of my funk a little bit. But, wait, in comes a gentleman who seems to be going to use the window bar to do some writing but he is not going to actually buy anything and in fact he is going to lecture those around him about how coffee is bad for you. I love it!!!

Please come into a place that exists to serve coffee and use its services without paying anything in return for them. That is the height of rudeness as far as I am concerned. I find it interesting that as I look at myself and what makes me tick is that I tend to judge people based not on creed or color but on whether or not they do something "stupid" in a social setting. But, what defines "stupid" is only something that I know and the definition changes all of the time.

I realize that this doesn't come as much of a surprise to anyone who knows me. I have always been a pretty big fan of people taking the time to listen and to not behave like the dumbest person in a crowd of people. That is unless I am at a sporting event and then I like to let the heckling fly. But even then I try to do it in a clever way and not in a crude way. I believe clever is what separates from the savages. *sniff*

I just hope that today is the day I am clever enough to find a job.

Monday Musings

In the wake of the politically motivated shootings in Arizona I have been doing some thinking. My first thought was that this whole thing makes me so sad. It makes me sad when anyone dies or is hurt be it an accident or as in this case a person who I believe is probably a little or a lot unstable decides to do something crazy.

In the aftermath of this tragedy the media on both sides of the political spectrum have ramped up the rhetoric. I feel that both sides bear a little bit of blame for this whole mess. I realize that you can't control crazy and people do and will continue do any number of criminal and crazy things and try to find something to blame other then themselves. But, the reason that I think both sides are to blame for this is that both sides want us to be scared. They both thrive if the people who believe in there message are scared that their rights are either going to be taken away or infringed upon in some way.

Though I have to admit it is hard to not point blame squarely at conservatives when they use rhetoric like Sharon Angle did last year.

"You know, our Founding Fathers, they put that Second Amendment in there for a good reason and that was for the people to protect themselves against a tyrannical government. And in fact Thomas Jefferson said it's good for a country to have a revolution every 20 years.
I hope that's not where we're going, but, you know, if this Congress keeps going the way it is, people are really looking toward those Second Amendment remedies and saying my goodness what can we do to turn this country around? I'll tell you the first thing we need to do is take Harry Reid out."

She said that on the Lars Larson show. Now I totally understand that she meant take Harry Reid out in the political sense. She means defeat him in the election. But in the context of the quote in can sound a little scary. I also realize that I am not crazy and I am good at comprehending things. I feel like it really comes down to thinking about what we say and how we say it. When politicians or even just regular old folks use phrases like "putting someone in the cross hairs" or "taking someone out" or even the phrase "second amendment solution" it is pretty hard to not take those as some sort of a call to violent action and if you are at all a little unstable it can very much be a call to violent action.

Now, if they are making a call for violent action, then own up to it and face the consequences. Do not after the fact try to pretend that "well that wasn't what I meant". Because often if the goal is removing an obstacle or removing someone from office then yes in a very straight forward blunt way assassination is the answer. I do not think it is appropriate and I think we live in a time where there should be solutions to problems that are not violent ones.

There is a respect for authority that needs to exist regardless of whether or not I agree with their political position. If I do not like there policy I will work to vote them democratically out of office. I will not try to harm them by violence. I feel that whatever success you may achieve will be forever tainted by acting violently against them. As it stands right now we still live in a civil society that is governed by laws for all of us. If I wanted to live in a world that is controlled by the biggest gun. well there are parts of Africa that I could move to.


All of my ranting aside. This is a sad, sad, thing and I hope and pray that we do not have more of this in the future. I do not think that things in America are anywhere near bad enough that an armed rebellion is the answer. They were not bad enough when Bush was president and they are not bad enough now that Obama is in charge. We are better then this America. We must be.

Jan 3, 2011

Well it is the beginning of a brand new year. I am not sure what all of that means and I do not intend to bore you with a retrospective of the year in Lance or a top 10 list of any sort. I watched an interesting 10 minute video yesterday about the nature of Time. I found in very thought provoking. I will post it for people to watch. I would highly recommend taking the small amount of time it takes to watch and giving it a look. I think you will find it interesting.

Time is passing us all by.

I hope you were able to check that out. I would love to see your thoughts in the comments section.

I liked a lot of what he had to say and I will try to unpack some more tomorrow or later today. Have a good one folks.

Dec 27th, 2010

I hope all of you are recovering from your Christmas festivities. I went to bed about 11 or so last night which is early for me and I woke up at about 3:30 am. I am not sure what that means but I am not overly thrilled about it that is for sure. So I am writing this at about 5 am after playing several games of Football Manager 11 followed up by a losing effort in League of Legends. I saw basically two movies this weekend. Well more like 1 and a half. I went on Christmas day to see "The Kings Speech" with my parents and I have to say that I really enjoyed it. There were a couple of things that it did for me. It highlighted an area of history that I have always been a little bit interested in as well as showing me some new aspects of what was going on that I had not learned about in school. So if you are looking for a relatively cerebral film that tells a good story I would highly recommend it.

The other film that I only watched part of was "Inception" now I realize that is was kind of the hot film from last year. There were several stories written about it and many of the webcomics and blogs I read wrote about it. There was a big twist at the end that was supposed to be surprising and it dealt with what is really reality and how do we perceive it. I think maybe the idea that if I feel it is reality then it is reality even if in truth I am in a tube being fed paste kind of like "The Matrix" or if your actually intelligent or well read Plato's The Cave. But enough of my snarkiness. So after about 20 minutes or so of Leonardo DiCaprio fiddling around in peoples dreams along with some things in real life which I suspect were actually Leonardos dreams. (Spoiler) I realized that I just did not care about this story. It has been told and retold and retold better and in a far more interesting manner then this film.

I think that both reality and the nature of Free Will are big deals and important questions for those of us who care about that kind of thing to process but it is not done well in this film and it doesn't need to be redone by another ham-handed director. In this case the only good thing being that it wasn't a film directed by M. Night Shamaladingdong because he is a hack of the highest order. I believe that I will say that again just because it makes me feel good. M. NIGHT SHYAMALAN IS A HACK OF THE HIGHEST ORDER!!! Ahh that feels nice. Say it with me. I feel better and I think you will also.

A different sort of film that I would highly recommend is "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World" it is pure escapism but oh so much fun. I love that you basically take a seat and then are along for the ride and if, like me, you have grown up playing video games or reading comic books then you will enjoy it even more. Check it out. You will not be sorry and if you are then it is possible that we may not be able to be friends. I am sorry but that is just the way it is. There are some things that are to much for me to get past. So you think real long and hard before you give me your two cents concerning this film. Because if you do not like it my wrath will come down upon you like Thor's hammer with the wrath and fury of two suns colliding!!!!

COUNT ON THAT!!!!!

Monday

Hello again my friends, I hope this Monday finds you well. We are moving closer to Christmas and then New Years I would love to say I am excited about this but in all honesty it is just not that big of a deal to me. These last two years the holiday season has just kind of blended together in a lump and have not been either the most satisfying or the most fun. Not that they have to be and apart from a few peaks during time spent with friends it has been overall a pretty bleak couple of years. One benefit is that at least at this point I can only hope things began to get better.

I have made some new friends in this last year and gotten re-acquainted with some old friends and that has been a good thing. But this is really not where I expected to be at 41 years old. "Ouch" I know it shouldn't hurt me to write that down but it does. I think I had some unspoken expectations about what it would mean and look like to be 41 and I am certainly not meeting them. I realize that this isn't the end of the world it is just the reality of what I am dealing with. I am fully aware that things could be far worse.

That being said. One of the things that I do miss most of all is riding the train on a daily basis. I wish I had the money to just get up in the morning and drive to Wilsonville and hop on the train and ride it back and forth. I really used to enjoy the time I spent both riding the train and writing on it. I am really hoping for a job that will allow me some of that again. I think it was good time well spent and better time then sitting in my car on 217 that is for sure.

It has been an odd experience being unemployed for this long. I wish I could be more productive in terms of my writing but it is hard to motivate myself to be angry about things or feel that excited or upset. I think part of my defense mechanism so I do not freak out about money getting tighter is to not allow myself to feel super emotional about anything and keep myself locked down which we all now is not a healthy way to live and not how I have ever lived my life. There are some pretty important things going on in the world politically right now and I just am unable to bring myself to be excited about them. Oh sure, there is a feeling in the back of my mind that I really should care about that and that this is a big deal but I just do not feel the urge to be either righteously indignant or really happy about it.

I know there are people who think that I am depressed and I should go visit someone but that is not an option right now. I hope that one day it will be and perhaps I can continue to use this blog as a way to process some of what I am feeling but also I am not sure if this is the correct forum for such a thing as well. Talk to you later folks.

Dispatches From the World of Film

So I just finished watching a film called Pirate Radio and I have to tell you. I really, really enjoyed it. As anyone who knows me can tell you I am a sucker for a film that uses music in a good way and if it is a film that is about music as well then I am pretty much locked in. One of my favorite films of all time is Almost Famous and I have touched on that here before. But I want to encourage all you to check Pirate Radio out. The trailer is below

Thursday

blankety, blank, blank today.

Wednesday

Pretty crazy wild weather day yesterday. I know that we on average in Oregon get a couple of tornadoes a year but wow. The one that hit Aumsville yesterday was a doozy. The air temperature alone has been really higher then normal I think for the last week or so. I tend to wear shorts given a choice even in the winter time but I often have a long sleeve shirt on or a light jacket over it but Monday I was out doing some things and I just had on a t-shirt and shorts. Even for me that is a bit extreme in December but I wasn't uncomfortable at all.

I did read an interesting thing this morning. I do not know if all of my readers, or any for that matter, will remember this but right after President Obama was elected there was a huge rush on handguns in America. You couldn't turn on the television or radio or read a political blog without someone talking about the shortage of both guns and ammunition. Well it seems that times have changed again. The ammunition shortage is over there seems to be plenty of that to go around. Also Obama has made no significant moves to control or outlaw guns. Because of that along with some other things both societal and economically related. A large amount the guns purchased in the post election surge are being resold in the used market or private person to person sales. In fact gun manufactures Smith & Wesson actually posted a loss this last quarter. I am not sure what it all means other then that I think that people are not running as scared as they used to be running. They seem to be scared about other things but not about guns being taken away or ammunition being outlawed.

I think the people that actually benefited from this whole thing was the National Rifle Association (NRA). The annual revenue for the NRA is around $250 Million. Which is fine people can give money to who they see fit. I just find it interesting that what drives such giving is pure abject fear. I know that we try to rise above the emotional and like to think that we are rational beings but in our core the reptile brain freaks out and pushes us to do things that are emotionally based and may not be in our best interests. I find that fascinating.

Tuesday

Not feeling super inspired this morning. But on the plus side I am not feeling really cynical either so I suppose that is a good thing. I am just trying to keep the wheels turning. You folks have a good day.

Monday

So, I, had an interesting thought this morning as I was getting ready to head down to the coffee shop. It came about because of a discussion that my house-mate and I had yesterday during the Pittsburgh Steelers game. They were showing basically the same Toyota car commercial over and over during the breaks. It was a national commercial and the point of it was that you never know who you will see buying a Toyota. What my house-mate commented on was that it also seemed that you would never see any African-Americans at the Toyota dealerships and very few Hispanics other then Eric Estrada, but I do not think famous people count, because in this case it was special because he was Eric Estrada not because he was Hispanic. When my friend pointed that out I countered with "Well perhaps African-Americans do not buy Toyotas. Maybe it is a demographic thing?" Now, I was being factitious but it made me think. I have grown up in Salem, Oregon. It is a small to midsized town in the heart of the Willamette Valley and on the west side of Oregon. I am within a hour long drive or less from the Pacific Ocean.

Now, I grew up here and Salem is a pretty white town. It is possible that we are now more then 50% Hispanic I do not know the exact numbers but I know as a child the few people of color in my grade school all the way through to high school were usually Asian of some sort. There were just not very many African Americans. But what I wonder is...should I care about that? Should it bother me when I see a commercial that is obviously whitewashed or conversely been run through some sort of committee that said well we need a rainbow so lets get one of every race. To me that is not realistic.

Now, do not get me wrong I have no problem with integration and the more people of differing backgrounds and experiences the more exciting a place can be to live and I think the food in those places will be better by far then a place that is predominately one race or the other. But, I am unable to control who moves where and I tend to feel like these things happen organically and do not happen smoothly or well when done artificially.

So should I be concerned about something that I really have no control over other then that I in my own personal life can be welcoming to all peoples. I am not in a position of authority. I am unable to make laws that will impact societal mores one way or the other. So should it bother me if notice a commercial is racist? Does it make me a bad person if it doesn't bother me?

Just some thoughts that are bouncing around in the old noggin this morning.

Television

So I watched The Office last night or actually this morning on the DVR and I do not remember Michael Scott being so detached from reality. I realize he has always been a little out there. But last night seemed like he really is just detached from reality. I enjoyed the show but I wonder how much longer it can go on. It seems a little stale to me.

Thursday

Blah, blah, blah.........I got nothing today. perhaps I will post something this afternoon.

Wednesday?

Today is Wednesday. I need to keep repeating that because I woke up thinking it was Saturday. I am not sure why. I went to bed between 10 and 11 and slept until 7:30 so I am not really sure what this new schedule is doing but it feels like my body clock is adjusting to something. I am just not sure what it is adjusting to.

I am still trying to figure out some sort of thematic theme that I want this blog to operate under be it entertainment or politics or just whatever pops into my head. I realize that is what it is right now but it worries me that the random nature of the writings will drive some readers away. Not that I am trying to make money off of this but you know that kind of thing is always pretty cool. I think my ultimate goal is to get rich enough that I can complain about the Government taking to much of my hard earned money. I doubt that will ever happen though.

Oh!! I did hear something last night that I found really interesting. I was half listening to the Daily Show and they had a retired general named Hugh Shelton on who has just released a book detailing his 40 years in the U.S. Army. That alone might make for some interesting reading but what I found even more interesting was that after the general walked out. Jon Stewart said "I heard you just recovered from an injury?" The general went on to detail how he had fallen out of a tree or off of a ladder and been paralyzed. He was ultimately taken the military hospital in DC and they elevated his blood pressure to, in his words, "dangerous levels" for about 8 hours and he was cured. I am sure the actual procedure was far more complicated then that but I still thought it was pretty amazing that some one figured out if we can really get blood around the injured areas maybe the human body can fix itself. I think that is pretty neat and I am constantly astounded at how the human body can repair itself.

That is all for today. Keep on rocking folks!!

Tuesday for Tea

Well day 2 of trying to get myself on some sort of reasonable schedule started bright and early. I went to bed last night between 11 and midnight and I woke up this morning at 4 am. I am not sure if this is good or bad. If I fall asleep in the middle of the afternoon I am pretty sure it is a bad thing. But all that aside here I am awake and typing and drinking my second cup of black tea which I have sweetened with some tasty blackberry honey.

So I sit here listening to several different morning shows on NPR and trying to figure out the best way to get a job. They just did a quick blurb on the radio about people working longer in life because they will not have enough in savings to retire on and I thought "oh boy. I also have that to look forward to." I do not say that to be a downer it is just the sad truth. I need to find a job that pays the bills as well as allows me to save a little bit and has some form of health insurance attached to it. Or, pays enough to allow me to purchase my own health care.

Today is also Dec 7th. Which is Pearl Harbor day. I would be remiss not to acknowledge that. I have a far older 3rd cousin I believe who was in Pearl Harbor I have never met the man but my mother has always talked fondly of him. I am thankful for the service he did for the country and for servicemen and women who do an extraordinarily hard job as far as I am concerned and all personal politics aside I am not sure that it is a job that I could do.

Well that is it for today. I do not have any real tidbits of wisdom for you but I hope that will happen as I continue to progress in my daily writings and try to find some form of theme to work under. I have some vague ideas about using a book on writing that I have as some sort of a catalyst for my daily writings so we will see if that idea comes to pass or not.

Have a good day.

Foggy Groggy Monday

Well it is Monday morning as usual and I am not typing well. I am feeling a little foggy this morning. I am not sure why. I thought I slept pretty well. I mean sure I stayed up probably later then I should have but that is nothing strange for me. But, when the alarm went off this morning at 7:30 I lay there in bed trying to get a handle on what day it was. That is not the norm for me at all. I am even one and a half cups of coffee down and still not all together there. I am torn because I feel like I need to be productive and find five new jobs to apply for. As well as work on updating my resume and trying to find the perfect sounding phrase that will make a prospective employer say "Wow! This Lance is the right person for the job. I will call him up right a way." Or just calling today a wash and curling up on the couch wrapped in my comforter and watching movies on the Lifetime channel.

I am really feeling the need lately to get myself on some form of schedule that is like having a job. I have been unemployed since July and I am starting to fall into staying up to late and wondering around the house in my pajamas kind of behavior and I know that is going to make finding a job that much harder. I think I am going to start working on fixing this by pledging to you my faithful reader or readers as the case my be and trying to post daily. I hope that will help me actually focus my time on the internet as well as allow me to sharpen my research and my writing skills. As usual I am not sure what path this will take in terms of form of blog posts or what particular topics I might be addressing but rest assured I will be blowing your socks of with the power and majesty of my writings.

So be prepared for the losing of your socks!!

Coffee Monday

It is Monday and I am at the Broadway Coffeehouse enjoying my job search and my coffee and marionberry (sp?) scone. I find that even though I do not like being unemployed and I do need to find work soon. For reasons both economic and social and mental. I really do like having a Monday morning free to step in to the coffee shop have a cup or two or three and do some writing and some searching. It gets me out of the house and allows me to listen to people around me and to marvel at some of the things people say and how people act. I would again recommend the Broadway Coffeehouse to those of you who have not tried it out. I do not believe you will be disappointed at all.

I had an interesting past week and weekend. It was Thanksgiving and so I did all of the usual family stuff. I went to my Parents house and there were several members of the extended family there all from my mothers side of the family. Aunts and Uncles and Cousins and some assorted second Cousins it is always good to see them. But what I did this weekend that was different was that I took a drive out to the Brigittine Monastery in Amity, OR. The initial reason for the drive was because a potential wine tasting trip fell through and I had heard that the monks sold some very tasty fudge out there so I convinced or to be more accurate once they were in my car I just drove people out there. I found that I really enjoyed being out there. I live in a world of almost constant noise of some sort. It is either people talking or it is music or electronics of some sort and it is always around me. When we pulled up to the monastery there was a sense of peace and quiet all around me. We went into the main building which houses the gift shop and met a monk there who answered some of our questions and gave us a fudge sample.

(The fudge is amazing by the way. I purchased a pound of it for $10. It is really very tasty and I am sure that I should not be eating it. But I believe that since it is fudge made in a monastery it makes it Godly and I also understand that Godly fudge or chocolate has no calories to it. So eat away.)

The origin of the Brigittine order is an interesting one.

"The Order of The Most Holy Savior, popularly known as Brigittine, was founded in the year 1370 by St. Birgitta of Sweden to give praise and honor to God. Elements which characterize the Brigittine Order include a deep love of Christ, especially in remembrance of His sufferings, the fullness of liturgical worship, a respect for learning and authentic devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the holy Mother of God, all incorporated into a simple monastic life style."


The comes from their website. But I am in the process of reading about the group and St Birgitta herself. I am finding it pretty interesting. I hope to share more about that in the future. But, all that being said I would encourage people to take the trip out there and check it out. The level of calm it can bring to you is simply amazing.

One last thing. I turn 41 tomorrow. I am in a completely different place this year then last year. I believe that is a good thing and as soon as I get this job thing taken care of then everything should be looking rosy. I do not mention my birthday to get attention I just want to make note that I am in a better place now then I was last year at this time. Well better emotionally and mentally if not fiscally but that is another issue. I just know that I wouldn't be in the better place I am in if not for the support of my friends. I will not name names I believe most of you know who you are and what you mean to me and I will probably be talking with you in some form or another as the week progresses but I just wanted to make mention of that and say thank you to them on my blog. You all mean the world to me.

Have a good week folks.

The Hunt Continues

So last week as I was sitting in the coffee shop writing my weekly post. I was reminded that a friend had said I should apply at T-Mobile for there call center here in Salem. So I decided to check it out. I filled out the online application in what was a pretty painless process but then I noticed that there was a sort of assessment test as well. I headed home and took the test and sent it in. I didn't give it much thought after that.

Well about a half hour to an hour later the phone range and it was T-Mobile telling me that I had passed the assessment and they would like to do a phone interview. I said of course and they set it up for the following Tuesday. Wow, I thought, I have never had a response to an application come so fast before that is really a good sign. Moving forward in time, Tuesday rolled around and the phone interview came. It was pretty simple just some questions about job history and what kind of skills I had and what I would do or have done in specific situations. As the interview wrapped up the lady told me that they would like to set up a face to face interview and that I had passed the first two steps of the process. I was pretty pleased about that and even more pleased when they called the next day and told me that they needed to set up a background check. So, for me, when the background check process started it made me really feel like I had a shot at this job. I mean why would they spend money on a background check if they were not serious about hiring me and it really felt like to me that things were going to end well.

Thursday morning dawned bright and clear and I awoke nervous. That isn't that uncommon for me as I am a little prone to butterflies in stressful situations. I used to get almost sick to my stomach before slowpitch softball games and I have come close to throwing up before public speaking. But I spent the morning getting myself ready for the interview and settling myself down and off I went to T-Mobile's Salem call center. When I got there I was shown a 5 minute DVD extolling the virtues of working for T-Mobile and how great it was there. It was almost like they were trying to sell themselves to me. When that ended I let the desk person know and I went and sat on the couch out front.

And I sat. And sat. And Sat. The interview was for 1 pm and I believe at about 1:15 out walked the person doing the interview. We went off and he proceeded to ask me pre-written questions from a sheet that had question choices for him to pick from. I spent most of the interview looking at the top of his head as he wrote down my answers. It really could have been an interview administered by a computer for all of the personal interaction that there was. We got done and he told me that I would hear from them on Monday or Tuesday. Well, that is that, I thought as I was driving home. I had heard back from an old employer that he had received a call from the background checkers so I thought that was good. Well on the drive home my phone beeped to tell me that I had an email. When I got home I checked it because as we all know it is illegal to check your phone while driving and I am a super safe driver. *wink*

Well the email told me I would not be getting the job. Now, that is fine. I am a little upset by that but I have not been hired for things before. But, what hurts I think is that I got past the first two levels with I believe just the background check and face to face interview left to go and was starting to feel really confident that the job was going to be mine. It was more the speed of finding out. It felt like he sent off the email as soon as he had returned to his office. It seemed like the response was so quick because his mind had already been made up. I realize that they are well within there rights to not hire me. But I think the process in which they let me know could have been a better one.

So the search continues. I hope I find something soon. Or something finds me.

Pizza Thoughts

I went to have pizza last night at my friends house. It is always a fun time and there is usually some form of pleasant discussion. The basic model is kind of cool the host makes the pizza dough and supplies the sauce and cheese and people bring whatever kind of toppings they want and they just start cranking out the pizzas. I throughly enjoy it most of the time.

Some of the conversations last night ranged from the Meyers-Briggs test on personality to politics both local and global and what motivated people to run for office and the different tools used by companies to sell things. It was a good evening and I usually enjoy pretty much anything that has an interesting conversation and an intelligent one. Well, last nights had both so that is always a good thing. I do not really have any profound nuggets of wisdom to share but it was a good evening non the less.

That being said. I just want to encourage my readers to get together now and then with friends in person and have actual conversations. I mean keep them civil but actually discuss things that have some depth. It is better for everyone to have to do a little bit of thinking about why they think like they think. I do not mean condemn them for being wrong or calling them stupid if you disagree I just mean have a conversation about it. Who knows you may even find that you agree on more then you think you do. I know I am often pleasantly surprised that I agree with someone when on the surface it looks like I would not.

Give that a thought at Thanksgiving this year when your crazy uncle starts going on and on about his latest Big Government theory. Take a moment, take a breath and actually have a conversation with them. You might be amazed at the result.

Post Election Blues

The election is over and America does not seem to have fallen apart. I am surprised. I thought after seeing all of the commercials during the campaign season that if the wrong candidate was elected the whole country was going to burst into flames. I am waiting for it to happen but so far everything seems to be running like normal. I know my life hasn't changed really at all. But in reality my life has never changed following an election. Even after the election of Obama nothing in my life has really changed as far as politics go.

I find it so interesting that we get so worked up about the elections and yet basically things seem always the same. I realize it may change for other people but I am not sure who. I like to vote and I like to be invested and to pay attention to what is going on in the world. But I have really felt like on a personal level my life has been all that affected by whoever the President is. I realize I might feel a greater sense of fear or urgency if I listened to Glenn Beck or Rachel Maddow but I don't. I like to think that this keeps me a little more grounded and less likely to be all worked up about things that that are past my level of control and in some cases, honestly, my understanding.

One example that pops into my head is from either last year or the year before. There was a gentlemen running around named Lord Christopher Monckton and he went on Glenn Beck to talk about the one world government that was coming as soon as Obama and the United States signed on to the climate treaty in Copenhagen. Well it has been a year since he was on Beck and since the meeting in Copenhagen. Well what has happened in this past year? Well, in short, not much. It seemed like last year at this time amongst some of my conservative friends there was a real sense of fear and almost panic that Obama was going to be giving away our Democracy by signing some sort of world government treaty in Copenhagen.

This just did not happen. But. No one seems to want to talk about the predictions that Beck throws out there to make people scared and angry. The man makes millions and millions of dollars a year from radio and television and books by spreading fear and distrust and people continue to swallow it like pigs from a trough. I just do not get it.

It is the same on the more liberal stations as well. The more agitated the audience is the more likely they are to purchase books or give money to campaigns to fight against the so called opposing side. I do not think that politics in America need to be trench warfare. It doesn't benefit us as a people or humanity in general to be so angry about things that basically most of us have no real control over and actually may not even happen.

I do not think that Oregon is going to be setback by Kitzhaber being elected. I think that things will basically continue like normal. But, I am sure that all of the usual suspects well continue to spread fear and anger all for the sake of making themselves even more wealthy. I am not sure how they sleep at night but they probably do it on a very expensive mattress and in a very expensive home.

Voting Day

Tuesday November 2nd is election day. Things are a little different in Oregon because of our vote by mail system. So rather then going into your local precinct headquarters we get a ballot in the mail a few weeks before the election that we are supposed to fill out and mail back in. If we do not mail it in early enough then you can drop it off on election day at different drop points all around the state.

Earlier this month after I had filled out my ballot and mailed it off I raised a question on my Facebook page about purchasing a stamp to mail in my ballot. This made for an interesting discussion and one that I want to bring over to the blog. So first I will put in some of what people said on my post and then hopefully we can get some comments to address the different points people made.

So what I said was this

"Lance Cummins has voted and now would like to begin the conversation about the vote by mail process in Oregon and why he has to use his own stamps to mail it back in."

I received several different comments some from people letting me know that I didn't have to mail that I could go drop it off. Which was already aware of. On a personal level it doesn't really bother me to buy my own stamp and I like the flexibility of doing my research and being an informed voter and then mailing it in as opposed to going to the HQ and voting in the booth. I mainly was just wanting to see what people thought.

My friend and regular commentator on this blog, Joel, had this to say:

"if they wish to use the VBM process, make the ballot postage paid. It in essence a poll tax. I do understand that if we had to go to a polling place we would have to expend resources to do so as well."

I felt like that was a valid point. By buying a stamp I am in effect paying for the privilege of voting.

Another friend and regular commentator Macy had this to say:

"for me, I just am not seeing how a stamp is more expensive/intrusive than the old system of having to show up at the ballot box at a specific day, taking time out of your schedule (and maybe hours off work) in order to stand in line. It seems I never turn my ballot in early, so I always drop it by a drop-site, which isn't inconvenient as they have them all over the place and I can just combine it with another errand."

I thought she made a good point that is does come down a little bit to what it feels like for each person. Some people really felt like going to the HQ was a hassle and too to much time out of the day. I have heard stories about people voting in other states, never Oregon, and having to wait 4 and 5 or more hours to vote. Now for me that is unacceptable. I like to vote I enjoy it. But I can't imagine that I would wait that long to cast my ballot no matter how important it was. I mean lets just be honest. How many of us would wait that long?

My friend and fellow blogger Christopher closed with this thought:

"If I were king for a day I'd burn the vote by mail law and go back to the old system. I really liked going to vote at the local voting booth, it made me feel like a citizen."

I can understand where he is coming from. I do not agree. I like to vote by mail. But, I also like feeling like a citizen and right now with politics the way they are it is very easy to feel unconnected to government and to feel like your vote really counts for nothing. Which is really to bad. In Australia and Venezuela voting is mandatory and I do not think that is a good thing. As much as I think everyone should vote I also like that in America I am able to not vote if I feel so inclined. Though I also think you void your right to complain if you do not vote. I know it is easy to be cynical and say that special interests control government and I do feel that the Supreme Courts ruling about the person hood of corporations does not help things. But voting is the only way I have, you have, to be heard. I am not going to use violence to get my message across. So for me being involved by voting is how I say part of the solution. So get out and vote people!! Do it for me.

Direct Democracy

There was an article in yesterdays paper. The Oregonian to be exact that I linked to above. It is written about Direct Democracy in Oregon and asks if it is a good thing for the state. I think the author asks some good questions but his overall position is one that after 1912 all the good that the initiative system brought to Oregon politics was done and now the system has just brought us a bloated constitution and a budget that is out of control because state legislature is handcuffed by the whims of the public at large. In the interest of full disclosure I must add that I have been employed in the past by a signature gathering firm and will do so again if the opportunity presents itself.

I have to disagree. I realize there are problems with the system in Oregon. But, there are problems with every states system and nothing is going to make every voter happy. But DIRECT DEMOCRACY is what makes Oregon special. It is what allows the average voter to have a voice. I may disagree and often I do with where the money is coming from or what the particular issue is that we are going to be voting on. But, I get to vote. In other states I am not afforded even that. There are laws passed without any discussion or input from the voters who put the politicians in office in the first place.


To get rid of this would take the state backwards to a time when the elite where the ones voting and they liked it that way. Yes, Democracy is messy and ugly and that is how it should be. In truth if you want things to be run smoothly then we should install a benevolent dictator. Because, believe me, then things would run smoothly. The budget would be balanced, trains would run on time, and most likely Oregon would be a much quieter place to live. But, this idea goes completely against the so called origins of the United States. I believe that Direct Democracy serves the people best as messy as it is. It allows the people a voice and that voice is loud and sometimes unorganized and ugly but it is a voice.

As far as I am concerned, I would not have it any other way.

Back in the Coffee Shop

Well it is Monday morning and I am drinking my cup of coffee and reading the news and trying to figure out what jobs I want to apply for today. Overall it feels like a pretty good morning. One thing that I do miss though is the drive to Wilsonville and then the train to Beaverton. I always enjoyed the fall and winter mornings and watching the leaves change color and looking at the fog as the train moved along.

I got nothing else you folks have a nice day.

What to write.

Well it is Monday the 11th of October. I am sitting in my coffee shop and trying to decide what I should write about this morning. It seems like there is always some political issue I could get fired up about or perhaps a new movie or television show that I want people to know about. But, I sometimes do not feel led to go in that direction. The problem is that while I may not be led to go in that direction I am not led to go in another so I just sit and my mind spins its wheels.

My last post that I did about the argument I had on the Facebook really got me thinking about why I post and why I find political things interesting. It isn't that I like to upset people or to make myself upset. Sure there is some energy that goes along with being fired up about something and making myself righteously indignant about an issue. I will freely admit that it can be kind of fun to put myself in that position. But, really, I do not like being upset. I do not enjoy hurting someones feelings or having mine hurt which I think is often why I try to be dispassionate in my discussions about politics and social issues and why I think the talking heads on television (I. E. Beck, Olberman, Riley, Maddow) tend to make me so crazy.

I realize that they are entitled to their opinion along with everyone else but it feels like there opinion is given so loudly that no one else can get a word in edgewise. I do love a good discussion and listening and being able to join into a good intelligent conversation about politics or religion or entertainment is really one of life's great joys for me. I think that is one of the really great things about the Internet because it allows for people from all over the world to meet in a sense and just talk. Take my tiny little blog for instance. I do not have a lot of readers I get a few a week but according to my tracker thing I have had readers from Europe and South America as well as all over the United States. I mean that just blows my mind. I would like it even more if everyone would comment so conversations would develop but I also understand that often a person needs to be really upset to reply to a post.

That is where a problem can start for me because in my desire to get a response so I know people are reading I sometimes feel like I need to post things to get people angry. It isn't that I want to be a "muckraker" but it feels like that in my attempt to generate conversation.

Well that feels like it is about for today. I need to do some job searching so off I go.

Facebook Fight

Most of my regular readers and really anyone who knows me or who has taken the time to read my blog or any of my writings know that I tend to lean toward the liberal side on some issues. But I do not think of myself as a super liberal. I am a registered independent and I feel like if things in American Politics were a little more balanced then we would not have the amount of anger and fear that infects both sides of the political realm. That being said I wanted to share with you a little conversation I had on Facebook last night. I will give you a little bit of background and then post the conversation in its entirety as it appeared on my friends comment page.


Okay here goes. Well my friend Teresa Lucas works for the Chris Dudley Gov campaign and she really is a nice girl. I had classes with her at Western Oregon and worked with her during my time at Vote Oregon. She is more conservative then me but she also is open to discussion which is really all I ask of anyone. Well she posted as her status "Don't forget to register to vote or re-register before Oct. 12". Now that is a pretty innocuous statement and one that I totally agree with. People should register to vote and or re-register if there party affiliation has changed or they have moved. The very first comment on her page was by a fellow named German A. Vanegas. He wrote:

"IF you hope for a real POSITIVE change you have to vote. We have to take control of Congress to stop Emperor Obama from reigning basically unopposed! ON NOVEMBER 2nd WE THE PEOPLE WILL SHOW WHO REALLY IS IN POWER... US!!!

Now I noticed that and thought well that is just silly. Obama was unable to get his health care reform passed and he has been unable to do really hardly anything that he has wanted to do. This is when he is a President that has had Democratic control of both the House and the Senate. So to call him an Emperor just seemed so silly to me and I let German know what I thought. What I will post below is exactly as was written with no editing on my part I copied and pasted it straight across.


German: "IF you hope for a real POSITIVE change you have to vote. We have to take control of Congress to stop Emperor Obama from reigning basically unopposed! ON NOVEMBER 2nd WE THE PEOPLE WILL SHOW WHO REALLY IS IN POWER... US!!!"

Lance: "@German, Really emperor Obama? He had full control of the house and the senate and was unable to pass health care reform his pet issue. It is silly to even call him that."

German: "‎@Lance, Obama's reformed health care ill-bill was passed and became LAW! And IF you know anything about what is in it, then you owe to know Obama made false promises concerning what was in the health-care bill before it was approved, proving what a liar he really is. Among the many lies, the truth is, it will very costly, even though Obama assured the people it would actually "save money"... Last, I couldn't care less for your personal opinion!"

Lance: "Let me get my stick so I can keep poking the bear, I seem to have stirred something up. Love it!!"

German: "‎@Lance, other than you showing you are a liberal progressive, who believes in social medicine, you haven't stir up anything. You don't even know what is in the bill, let alone how Obama screwed YOU! LMAO!!!"

Lance: "‎@German, Well despite you denying it you are still talking about what I said. It seems like you do care about my personal opinion. Thank you for your noticing little old me. I love when those who are smarter then me and who really understa...nd all of the secret goings on in American Govt can fill me in on how much I am being screwed. It really isn't that I believe in social medicine but that I do not think Obama has been nearly as effective as the Democrats hoped and the Republicans feared. So that is why I think it is silly to call him am Emperor he has basically done next to nothing in office."

German: "I don't care about your opinion, Lance. I am just expressing my own, which counters your love for Obama. I know exactly what YOU mean, to you, Obama hasn't move far-left enough as desired by his supporters, like you. Tough luck! LOL!!!

Hey, ...a friendly advise, lose some weight Lance, because under Obama health-care you may not be cover for certain ailments originated from being overweight ;>)"

(Now I must admit that I got a little upset here due to what I felt was an uncalled for attack on my weight issues. I feel like I controlled myself and gave a pretty decent response.)

Lance: "Wow! Now a personal attack based solely on seeing a few pictures of me. Without any knowledge of who I am or what I could possibly have going on in my life. Classy, very classy, and I believe pretty typical of your ilk.

Please tell me what ...political party I am registered with? You seem to have such an insight to my character. I await with anticipation your I am sure most clever retort. Perhaps you could lock me up into some sort of verbal anaconda choke. May trap me with an intellectual knee bar. Please fill me in on all of the things I need to do to fix both the American Govt and the world."

German: "‎@Lance, I tell you who you are. You are the kind of "man" you present in your profile picture, hiding in fear, "behind the scenes." You pretend to be the "intelligent one" with pseudo-intellectual remarks, but are not worth much as an opponent; other than innuendos and being full of shit, you don't state anything of substance! LMAO!!!!"

Lance: "WOW! Speaks for itself I guess. *shrug*"

German: "‎@Lance, you are truly an ignoramus, just like your idol Obama."

Lance: "Keep it coming. I love it. Every sentence just proves your point."

(At this point another person jumped in. A conservative who I went to school with who knows me personally.)

Andre: "Wow German, your baseless, idiotic attacks coupled with an inability to spell make me embarrassed to be in any way associated with you; even if it is only on somewhat of an ideological level."

German: "Who says I want to be associated with you Andree?! You are another "pseudo-intellectual" coming across like a buffoon! LMAO!!!"


I just had stopped replying at that point because I figured what was the point. I guess I am telling my readers about this because I want to know a couple of things.

1. Was I out of line? I really feel like President Obama has been ineffectual and at this point may be not get a second term.

2. Do I come across like this sometimes in my writings because I do not want to. I want to have reasoned debate and civil discourse.

So please fill me in. Where did I go wrong?

Oct 3rd, 2010

I had an interesting conversation with a friend last night about political campaigns and the shape that they are taking right now and have taken in the last few years. He contends and I tend to agree with him that it has become an issue of marketing not of policy. That while people give lip service to policy and facts about the issues that often voting is such an emotional response that we are led more by the marketing of the candidate or issue as opposed to the actual reality of the situation.

As we talked and as I look back on both the Obama campaign as well as the angry health care summer it seems even more true to me. The Obama campaign was masterful in its use of catch phrases, "Hope and Change", and visual imagery. So much so that you can see the present Republicans parroting some of the same lines in the campaigns going on right now. As I watched Chris Dudley give his closing statement during the Oregon Gubernatorial debate I was struck by the similarity of his plea that Oregon couldn't handle four more years of the same and that we needed to join with him to move to a new future. A future of Capital Gains tax cuts and Corporate tax cuts and where I believe we will all get a pony. So how can you not want a pony.

I feel like the truth between Dudley and Kitzhaber lies somewhere in the middle but I am not sure either candidate is going to be allowed or able to achieve that. One of the problems being the nature of the primaries and how to be able to win in the primaries the candidates must often out liberal or out conservative their opponents. Which can be okay if the middle independent voter base is so disgusted by the partisanship and craziness of the fringe on both sides that they decide not to vote at all. I admit I have been there in years past.

I do not know or have answer that is for sure. I wish I had a magic wand that could solve Oregons budget shortfalls. But, I dont. The truth is I like Kitzhabers temp jobs plan to weatherize some of the buildings and get back savings from the lowering of the energy bills. I also understand that that could be some tax cuts in Oregon to bump the spending up a little. But I do not see either candidate enacting the plans of the other and probably to do so would be the death of them politically. Only time will tell what is going to happen in the future. I am not convinced that Kitzhaber will be business as usual for Oregon or that Dudley will be a complete mess as a first time Governor.

For me though....admitting that I am not sure about something is often a success.

Monday

Good morning folks. I hope you all had nice weekends. So far other then being a little bit humid and muggy, which may be the same I am not sure, we have had some spectacular fall weather here in the Valley and I like it a lot. One side benefit of looking for work is that I have had the freedom to play a lot of disc golf and I really do enjoy getting out and walking the different courses and enjoying the outdoors.

I really am surprised at how much disc golf has gotten under my skin. I really am liking it. I find the process of figuring out what disc I should throw and what type of throw both interesting and intellectually stimulating. I used to make fun of the disc golfers and all of their many discs. While I still make fun of the guys that carry 15 or 20 disc which is just silly I think even if you are a pro. I know it may be hard to believe but there are professional disc golfers. But, I digress, I use three or four discs. I have two drivers and a mid range and a putter. The reason I use two drivers is because one actually falls off to the right and the other falls of to the left so depending on where the pin is I use a different driver. But my other discs I just use whenever I need them and that is totally based on distance.

But enough of my disc golf lecturing. I will talk to you later. It is time to continue the job search.

Monday Mania

Good late morning folks, I hope you all had a good weekend. Mine was actually pretty nice. I went up to Portland on Saturday evening to hit some of the local game and music shops with my buddy Bossy T and his young ward Spunky Andrew as they are calling themselves these days. But the highlight had to be hanging out at the Hawthorne pods enjoying some tasty Whiffie pies and watching the rain poor down. It was just plain crazy.

Then the following day I headed north again and the three of us went to Guardian Games for their board game day. I would highly recommend it to all. Not only do you get to play some board games but if you do you get 20% off of board games and that my friends is a sweet, sweet deal. So we played a little Killer Bunnies which turned out to be pretty fun and then picked up a copy of Wings of War which is an amazing WWWI and WWII flight game. Then following that we went to the Portland Retro Gaming Expo which was, in a word, AMAZING. There was a vast collection of old school game systems. But, what I found most fascinating was that older game systems prices had dropped. You could find a totally functioning "Dreamcast" for instance for $40, the prices of the games themselves had gone up mainly due to it being hard to find some of them anymore. All in all it was a great weekend.

I am still looking for work so if anyone hears anything please let me know. I would love to do some writing for money so keep you eyes open people!!! Catch you all later.

Searching

Well I am starting the search for a new job as I mentioned on Monday. This is not something I particularly enjoy or am even looking forward to but we will see what happens. I have given some thought to graduate school but I am already in debt from my bachelors and I am not sure that more debt on top of it while I continue to look for work is the answer. I do like the idea of going to perhaps law school or maybe looking into teaching Political Science or Philosophy but that may have been a better idea at 30 or 20. I am not sure I can bring what is needed to the table in terms of long employment for a company.

I am not sure what all this means. One of the things I know it means is that I continue to apply for work as I try to think through all of these things. We will see what happens. Maybe I will get lucky.

To Begin Again

Well, I realize that it has been over a month since I last posted. I believe it has actually been over two months. But, things have changed and as such I need to begin blogging again. The job I was doing is now basically over and I am not sure if it will actually start back up again. My money is on no it won't. I will not go into all of the issues behind the scenes suffice it to say that matters beyond my control made this happen.

I loved working both for and with my friend and I know I will most likely do so again. Had he been in control the job would still be going strong and we would be continuing to serve the Oregon Voter and helping to make their voice be heard. But, as of now, I began looking for work again. If I am to be effective in this endeavor I need to set myself a schedule and treat it like I am working at a job so for part of the time I am going to be blogging just to put myself into a schedule. I think that will make things easier for me. As most of my regular readers know, if there are any of you left, I tend to not have a topic in mind and I like to flow as I write. So some posts may be about the job hunt and others will be about film or politics or whatever else strikes my fancy.

So until tomorrow I will talk to you folks later.