Showing posts with label Life. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Life. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 30, 2014

In Reply: Avoiding torture and cruelty has nothing to do with who they are or what they do... It's about who we are...

In reply to the following comment at the Lawyers, Guns & Money post "...nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted."
Anonymous says:
April 29, 2014 at 10:58 pm

You dolt. This barbarous:
“A jury found that on June 3, 1999, Clayton Lockett and two co-conspirators, Shawn Mathis and Alfonso Lockett, broke into the Perry, Oklahoma, home of Bobby Bornt. They assaulted Bornt before burglarizing his home for drugs. While they were at Bornt’s home, two 19-year-old women arrived. The men repeatedly raped and assaulted one woman, whose name is withheld as a victim of sexual assault, before loading Bornt, Bornt’s 9-month-old son, Stephanie Nieman, and the other woman into Bornt’s and Nieman’s trucks and driving them to a rural location in Kay County.

Bornt testified that he heard Clayton Locket say, “Someone has got to go,” before he put Nieman in a ditch dug by Shawn Mathis and shot her twice. He also testified to hearing the men laugh about “how tough [Nieman] was” when she did not die after the first shot.”
My reply:

The reason we avoid torturing our country's enemies and cruelly punishing those who break our laws--even when those enemies and lawbreakers have shown that they torture and are intentionally cruel to others--is because we are not them. Our American, religious, and human values and ideals prevent our giving in those animal instincts, and we've made laws to prevent our doing so when tempted. The people who don't do that--who can't control those base instincts and do torture and otherwise behave cruelly toward others...well, they're the very people whose eyes and teeth you're talking about pulling out, aren't they...?

Avoiding torture and cruelly has nothing to do with who they are or what they do, Dr. Douglas... It's about who we are... Who we are, and who we strive to be as Americans and as human beings...


Posted: Wednesday, April 30, 2014 at 6:26 am

Sunday, April 15, 2012

X-Post: Want happiness? Think like a toddler

A Goodness and Goodwill x-post
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Words stolen from this One Flew Over the Playpen post of the same name. I didn't take all of it, and I didn't even want to take as much as I did, but I also didn't want to lose the essence of AnnieDubs' post. Still, anyone interested should read the whole thing at her post. (In fact, I'd recommend reading her blog, in general: One Flew Over the Playpen | One-time political insider turned stay-at-home momma.)

Toddlers make every single choice based on a single criterion: Does this have the potential to make me happy at this exact moment. I say at this exact moment, because the moments following something like lying down in a rain puddle, diving off the sofa, seeing if your finger will fit down the bathtub drain, and smacking the dog across the nose are accompanied by a decidedly unfun aftermath. But that’s not the point. The point is to not think, to just do. To give every possible opportunity for happiness, even if it’s fleeting, the chance it deserves.

Most of the time, I am the buzz kill to O’s high on life. BE CAREFUL. DON’T TOUCH THAT. SLOW DOWN. But sometimes, I follow him around and do what he does. We run wildly through the park with no direction. We put all the pillows in the house in one pile on the floor and throw ourselves onto them. We tear up magazines because the sound is so cool.

I also let O fall. A lot. I worry that if I ever had to take him to the hospital, they’d call Social Services because he is a mosaic of scrapes and bruises on any given day. But generally, if I am confident he can’t break his neck and probably won’t break a bone, I believe the aftermath is worth the adventure.

If you are having a bad day, you should stop for a moment and act like a toddler. And don’t give me that I have responsibilities BS. Go outside and just run without thinking. Stick your hand in some mud just to feel it ooze under your fingernails. Take something – just anything you see – and dump it on the floor to hear the noise. Make the craziest sound you can think of until you feel better.

I know my job is literally to follow around a toddler. I know, I know. My life is sweet ass. But like I said, I’m still a buzz kill to O 99% of the time. It doesn’t matter what my job is now, I still think like an adult. How much time do I have? What needs to get done? What’s the next step?

You gotta force yourself to think differently sometimes. O is right. Sometimes happiness is watching a plane float by. Sometimes it’s rubbing yogurt through your hair. Sometimes it’s spinning in circles until you can’t spin any more.

It doesn’t matter how much planning I do or how thoroughly I weigh the consequences, happiness really doesn’t ever change, whether you’re a toddler or adult…it is always fleeting. But I forget that. I keep forgetting it’s not a long-term accomplishment. I’ve been thinking lately about how I’m not doing enough with myself. I’m not “furthering my career” or “making the most of my time.” But when I look back at the people and things that have made me most happy in my life, they are a series of tiny, fleeting moments that can’t be quantified. Somehow they all just add up into one big general state of just feeling happy.

So when I’ve been feeling like that, I take a tip from O. I grab a little bit of happiness where ever I can find it, even if it’s fleeting. Even if there’s a mess to clean up afterward. It’s worth it every time.
I have nothing to add...

Sunday, March 01, 2009

Life. It's all about how you choose to look at it.

A quick (4 min, 12 sec, + reading/pondering time) public service announcement from my friend JBW.

Life doesn't suck.

Brain Rage: Everything's Amazing, Nobody's Happy

We now return you to your regularly scheduled life (hopefully, with a little more appreciation for it).

Monday, February 16, 2009

Memery - Sheila - Tommy Roe

1. Put Your itunes/ipod on Shuffle
2. For each question, press the next button, and the title of that song is your answer.
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS
4. Put any comments in (brackets) after the song name
5. Tag those to finish the survey as well
-----------------------------------

1) Describe yourself
Moonlight Sonata - Beethoven

2) What do people feel when they're around you?
Eubie's Classical Rag - Eubie Blake

3) Describe your current relationship?
Zip-a-dee-doo-dah - Aly & AJ

4) Where would you like to be right now?
In the Beginning (Radio Edit) - 2 Souls & Bari Koral

5) How do you feel about love?
I Tawt I Taw Ol' Tanty Cwaus - Mel Blanc (as Tweety Bird)

6) What is your life like?
The Central Scrutinizer - Frank Zappa

7) What would you wish for if you only had one wish?
Silence - Gomez

8) Say something wise
The Other Side Of The World - Dishwalla

9) How would you describe yourself?
Lord, I Used To Know 150 Songs By Heart...And Waterbound - Dirk Powell

10) What do you look for in a girl?
Shriner's Park - Melissa Etheridge

11) How do you feel today?
Stairway to Heaven - Neil Pepper

12) What's your life's purpose?
Zombie - Nellie McKay

13) What is your motto?
Rastaman Chant - Bob Marley, Busta Rhymes & Flipmode Squad

14) What do your friends think of you?
You Vote Does Count Skit - P.Diddy

15) What do you think of your parents?
You Can't Always Get What You Want - Luther Allison

16) What do you think about very often?
The Dick Van Dyke Show Theme - The Dick Van Dyke Show

17) What do you think of your best friend?
Sink, Florida, Sink (Electric) - Against Me!

18) What do you think of the person you like?
Life in a Northern Town - The Dream Academy

19) What is your life story?
Ill Angel - Jeb Loy Nichols

20) What do you want to be when you grow up?
Herbei, Oh Ihr Glaubigen (O Come All Ye Faithful) - Mannheim Steamroller

21) What do you think of when you see the person you like?
Didi Tera Devar Deewana - Lata Mangeshkar & S.P.Balasubhramaniam

22) What will you dance to at your wedding?
Cornflake Girl - Tori Amos

23) What will play at your funeral?
Jamie's Crying - Jajuya

24) Biggest fear?
Odds And Ends - Dionne Warwick

25) Biggest secret?
Frankie and Johnny - Tuts Washington

26) What will you post this as?
Sheila - Tommy Roe
----------------

Used my whole iTunes music section (all 43,274 items) on this... Not that impressed, for the most part. I'm a firm believer that the answers are right there in front of you, most times--just concentrate on a problem, then open a random book to a random page, and your answer will be there, if you read it right--but I'm guessing there wasn't enough concentration for this to work as well as it could have...

Fun, nevertheless... 8>)

Wednesday, February 04, 2009

Memery - 25 Things

In Facebook, I'm only tagging the folks who tagged me and the people I mention. On the blog, I'm not tagging anyone.
I invite any/everyone who reads these words to play (particularly if you haven't yet--It can be enlightening), but the choice is yours. If you do choose to play because you read this here (wherever "here" is for you), I would like a tag back, however...
---------------------------------

Rules: Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it's because I want to know more about you.

(To do this, go to “notes” under tabs on your profile page, paste these instructions in the body of the note, type your 25 random things, tag 25 people - in the right hand corner of the app - then click publish.) DON'T FORGET TO TAG ME!

1) I am a packrat. If it’s not rotting or actually in pieces, I probably still have it… somewhere.

2) The roads to most of my personal hells are paved with good intentions and actions never taken.

3) I have at least a thousand records, and just as many CDs, and I’ve listened to every one.

4) I am much less fortunate book-wise. While I probably have 400-500, I have read very few of them. (I do try, but tend to doze off.)

5) I walked to school from kindergarten through twelfth grade. I could’ve ridden the school bus to high school (& maybe jr. high, too) but I preferred the open air.

6) I’m seldom right on time. Usually, I’m late for stuff, but because I know that, I sometimes overcompensate & show up way too early. (That prolly had something to do with my not taking the bus to school, too.)

7) I miss everyone who isn’t in my life anymore, but I’m not so good at keeping in touch with the people who are.

8) I consider myself a Unitarian Universalist, but I seldom attend fellowship.

9) I miss my old Honda Accord hatchback. I liked having the ability to fit small pieces of furniture in my car on a whim.

10) I haven’t been clean-shaven since 1984. (Even then, I left an almost indiscernible soul patch.)

11) I sleep about 5-6 hours in any 24. If I fall asleep early, I wake up in the middle of the night. (It’s 4am as I peck this out.)

12) When I get involved in something, I forget to stop and eat. I’ve gone whole days without food, and not even noticed.

13) My dad, my cousin Lee, and my friend Andy have had the most influence on my taste in music. All of ‘em were & are willing to explore new sounds.

14) My wife, doesn’t know how much I love her. I’m to blame for much of that because I don’t express it nearly enough, but then, I’m not sure she’d believe me anyway…

15) We do own too many cats for our home & lifestyle. (We have 7 of ‘em.)

16) While I’m very organized at work, I’m a mess at home. Some of it has to do with that packrat thing, but it’s also because I don’t set the same “everything in it’s place” rules at home.

17) I seldom drink anything but water, anymore.

18) I don’t carry a realistic image of myself in my mind. I see myself as that thin guy I was in my 20’s or so, and am kinda surprised every time I see myself in a mirror or current photograph.

19) The opposite happens with my dad. Every time I see him, I’m amazed at how much thinner he is than I thought he was (& actually used to be.)

20) When it comes to women (& most men, as well) though, unless you’re very large, very small, or have changed a whole lot since the last time I saw you (& I can actually remember what you looked like the last time I saw you), I don’t really notice your weight.

21) I have a pretty good memory for song lyrics, plot lines, and general trivia, but I have a whole lotta trouble with proper nouns. Too many conversations go “It’s like that movie—I can’t remember the name--where the guy—nope, can’t recall the actor, but he was the same guy in—you know, that movie we watched last spring, with the monster eating the town… It was called… Oh, nevermind.”

22) I prefer the temperature to be about 65 when I’m working, and just slightly higher when I’m at rest.

23) One day, I hope to earn enough to keep us from worrying about money. (I’d settle for “winning” or “being left” enough, but I really would prefer to earn it.)

24) I have an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator in my chest.

25) Like most folks who’ve done this thing, I had a tough time coming up with 25 things to say, and like most, I end this list by saying so.

Saturday, December 06, 2008

Why do people go to work sick & thereby spread their germs?

I realize the economy sucks, and that people need their jobs & the money they earn, and that in the particular situation I'm talking about, there really was no other option, as the guy running the store was the one who was sick, & had he not been there, the place couldn't've been open.

But as I sit here coughing my lungs out, dizzy from congestion, and generally feeling AWEFUL, none of that matters to me as much as wishing some idiot didn't pass his friggin' cold onto me (& apparently, at least one other person at the store) by showing up for work while he was contagious.

Selfish?

Yeah.
Sue me.
(But please wait until I feel better, first.)

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

My friend, Chris

We're so proud of her...

Secret Lives of Women: Mistresses - Christine Video - WEtv.com

(No, we were never that close... ...though she did flash her breasts at me once or twice, when we were about 14 or so...)

"And then there’s Christine: She’s not your typical mistress. Christine is a girlfriend, a mother, a businesswoman, an author, and…a Dominatrix. To her clients she’s known as Mistress Cristian, a domme whose sole purpose is to be worshipped. For 12 years married men have been lining up for the chance to live out their secret fantasies with Mistress Cristian. Some want to be beaten, some want to be humiliated, all want a release when they come to her. Christine says they’re not cheating and what she provides is a service. And it’s no mystery why most of her clients are married, not many wives would do what she does."


Anyway, that promo & blurb is for tonight's "Secret Lives of Women: Mistresses - WEtv.com episode.

Here are the showtimes:

Tuesday, July 15 at 10pm | 9c
Wednesday, July 16 at 1am | 12c
Tuesday, July 22 at 11pm | 10c
Wednesday, July 23=2 0at 2am | 1c

A little behind the scenes action:



She also wrote a book: Amazon.com: The Domestic Domina ..My Life As A Suburban Mother and Celebrity Dominatrix: Mistress CRISTIAN: Books

More info:
YouTube - newyorkdominatrix's Channel

MySpace.com - Mistress Cristian - Tri-state NY, NY

THE DOMESTIC DOMINATRIX;..MEMOIRS OF A SUBURBAN MOM, AND CELEBRITY NYC DOMINATRIX ( AS SEEN ON MONTEL WILLIAMS, INSIDE EDITION, WE TV)

She's one of the only celebs I know, (and the only one whose tits I've seen in person...) so forgive me for a little excessive promotion...

Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Phil Rizzuto, RIP

I wasn't much of a baseball fan, but that doesn't mean The Scooter meant nothing to me... As a cultural icon, he was quite a guy...



And then there were The Money Store ads...

Sunday, August 12, 2007

IPod Semi-Random 10 - 8/12/07

Last 10 songs/stories/podcasts played on my iPod:

1) Fresh - Kool & The Gang - The Disco Box [Disc 4]

2) Ocean - Joan Armatrading - Lovers Speak

3) Lesson #027 - Let's Speak Italian! Podcast

4) iTunes New Music Tuesday July 31, 2007 - iTunes New Music Tuesday Podcast

5) Lazy Eyes - Chow Nasty - KEXP 90.3 FM Song of the Day Podcast

6) Jesus is Just Alright - Doobie Brothers

7) Drum Boogie - Gene Krupa - The Drum Battle At JATP

8) Blue Moon - Chris Isaak

9) Spiritual High (State of Independence) Part II - Moodfood - Moodfood

10) The Philosophy Of Loss- Indigo Girls - Liberation: War Is Over

Monday, August 06, 2007

A (poetic) Public Service Announcement:

I'm working on my addiction to the other box. (This box here is a two way street, at least. While it'd be best to shut 'em both off, lifewise, at least this one lets you give, as well as get.)

A poem by a guy I know, vaguely...
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

television

in our livingrooms kitchens bedrooms
in Feng Shiu a television screen is a mirror
and a mirror facing the marital bed is bad luck
pluck moving pictures and sound
from the electromagnetic spectrum
wherever there is electricity
piped-in cables condensing crisp, multi-channeled feasts
broadcast signals are weaker
since cable television has become ubiquitous
all the materials, chemicals and gases that go into its making
a condensed history of the electronic age
from giant vacuum tubes to little transistors
from small grainy black and white pictures to big screen color
Did we dream in black and white before photography?
our multicultural liturgy Marcia Marcia Marcia!
knowing where I was the moment the last Seinfeld episode aired
ordering our lives supper must be eaten
and home work must be done before prime time
I can pick you up from the train as soon as X Files is over
Infotainment mostly, commercials
paying for privilege of watching It’s free, you say?
did you pay for that appliance? your monthly cable bill?
is time with your kids worth nothing?
your spouse? your parents? yourself?
wherever you live, there is tons of good live local music
often it’s free or just the cost of a drink
turn the television off
you will be surprised how you no longer have time for it
turn the television off
unplug it cover it up stow it away
turn it off

-isw
television - On the Wilder Side
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