Category: Uncategorized

Three days. It was only three days. I worked out friday. Hell, I even swam 3000 yards on saturday (for some reason, that doesn’t have the same mood stabilizing effects, though). That should not be enough time for a defeatist attitude to creep in. But it most assuredly was. The first 5 minutes on the elliptical, I felt sluggish. But then something blossomed. The music took on an almost supernatural significance (and how Fury in the Slaughterhouse became uplifting, I will never know. “When I’m dead & gone” is the most cheerful song on the album). I believed in the inherent goodness of humanity, I was motivated again, and I felt more completely alive.

I’m still feeling better than I was before I got on it. =)

• I did a bangup job on the minutes.
• I’ve been pointman on the dishes, and this frequent source of contention is not an issue.
• I have had a solid week of athletic virtue.
• I made tasty split pea soup.
• I’ve started reading loyalty, voice, and exit, whatever the order of the three in the title.
• I’ve had some fun with ffxi.
• I have a better sleeping surface.
• I bought a blender so that my protein shakes are no longer lumpy.

Maybe I should seek out a secular humanist “church” and check into their goings on. A way to connect with people in the between times, I suppose.

I just got back from watching “The Corporation” with roommate Ben. It is an amazing documentary, and I cannot recommend it highly enough. The content and relevance of it is top notch. The editing is amazing. It is an explanation and critique of the modern corporation, I’ll probably go into greater depth on that point later. And the female voice reminded me *so* much of the Animatrix.

I posted an ad on craigslist, and some guy from outer suburbia said he’d bring “Outfoxed” over for a showing. My roommates have also expressed interest. Clara said she’d talk to her coworkers about it. May turn into a little party deal. =) I can make something, maybe even branch out to foods other than cookies. =)

I’d also like to see the Control Room at some point. This may be my summer of documentaries. =)

So, apparently, the department of justice keeps statistics on the number of homicides throughout the year. Apparently, in 2001, there were around 6/100,000 citizens. Going with roughly 290 mill citizens, that’s 2,900*6 = ~17,400, an increase of about 1,500 over the prior year. (though it’s hard to tell how much of that might be due to rounding error). Canada, otoh, roughly 30 mill citizens. about 540 homicides. So, more than a 1/10 of our population, less than 1/30 of the homicides. thus, more than 3 times as likely to get killed in the US (note your chances are still pretty piddling here, especially if you’re a white woman).

Healthcare related mortality might provide another fascinating axis to examine at some later point.

Minutes basically finished. Let me tell you how much I hate documenting exchanges between politicians. =)

[Ooooo, even more interesting, suicide + murder rates across a selection of nations, mostly industrialized.]

I was standing with my shirt open in a cooling rain on a muggy day, while lightning rumbled in the distance, watching a golden sunset that clouds spread out over the entire sky.

This is the summer I’ve been missing.

So, we’re in the time of year where only the insane listen to the voluminous election prediction information. In that spirit, I made it about a third of the way through this upper midwest electoral survey report, put out by the Humphrey Institute. It offered nothing truly surprising. But it’s a welcome antidote to the echo chamber effect of my overwhelmingly liberal self-selected community.

No air mattress for scu. *sighgrrr* I’ll probably just go downtown and get one, once tom’s check has safely cashed. Bouncing once, bad. Bouncing twice, grounds for flaying.

In that religious history post I made, random_boy posted an excerpt from some graffiti bboards, back at cmu. It just made me think of and see the similarities between the mentalities of the fringe elements of “mainstream” religion (read “christianity”) in that conversation (with the noteworthy exception of ), and the followers of fringe religions. It also made me think of the title of a class, took, featured prominently in the subject of this post. =)

So, I got a call from a recruiter today while at the gym.

It’s a linux/gui/c++/hla contracty job.

The exchange they give for their toll free number is 666

When I first looked up what I thought was their website, it took me to an “oil & gas, software outsourcing & solutions” website. I think, though, it’s actually a telecommunications thing.

The scary thing is, I’m actually tempted.