Random Access

Today may be one of “those” days. I’m tired. I have a slight headache. And, why not throw “I’m feeling a little grumpy” in there, too?

Last week, management at our apartment complex decided that it was time to repave the asphalt around the property. This, in and of itself, is not a bad thing. The pain-in-the-ass parts are:

• I don’t recall seeing any notification of this. This is little more that a nuisance, though – I can handle that.
• They have been tearing up sections of the driveways seemingly at random. This makes driving around (not to mention getting into/out of) the complex ‘fun.’ The “best” part of this is…
• They start working – with the heavy machinery – around 08:00. I think that the only word that adequately sums up my feelings on having quality sleep-time interrupted so obtrusively is: “Murderdeathkill.”¹

There’s (almost) nothing like waking to the various rumbling, banging and creaking sounds of construction equipment first thing in the morning. (Note: The only other thing that was even close to this annoying was when our downstairs neighbor’s brother would start playing music around 08:30 or 09:00. Loudly. VERY loudly. Vibrate the floor and walls loudly.) We’re not even at the front of the complex where they are currently working and the noise is quite loud. I feel sorry for the people in the buildings along the construction zone… and for the people who work swing and graveyard shifts.

::: deep cleansing breath :::

Now, to go about the business of getting ready for work….
I’ll even try not to leave a mile-wide swath of destruction in my wake when I depart the complex. Maybe.

Peace.

¹ This word is one of the redeeming things from Demolition Man.

Wednesday‘s Intermezzo
Three down, two one to go. It’s official, I’m taking Friday off. Yup. And just what does that mean, aside from three-day weekend? It means that for the first time in many rains, I’m going to Mallday!

Work
Kristen (co-worker) brought the tapes of Goblet. Hoo-ah! More Professor Moody goodness. Have I mentioned that I like this character? I have? All right. Just wanted to make sure. I think that I’ve finally figured out what his character archetype is: The indulgent uncle who comes to visit and lets you get away with things when your parents aren’t around or aren’t looking.

I may have mentioned, once or twice, that I’ve been practicing drawing. I discovered something great today: If you don’t have any paper available, articles of clothing work just as well! A white shirt, for example! No pencil? That doesn’t matter, either! Use a highlighter! In fact, use a blue one! I am reading a book for PhotoShop® and I have been highlighting sections of the book. I put one of the markers in the book… without the cap. First mistake. When I took my next break, I grabbed the book rather clumsily and wound up having to trap it against my chest. Mistake number two. It was at this point that I remembered the highlighter in the book… but failed to remember that it was uncapped. I looked down to see three (3) blue lines across the lower-front portion of my shirt. Joy. (Note: There is no “Mistake number three,” unless you are talking about the song by Culture Club which is Mistake No. 3.)

NPR/PRI
Both hours of Talk of the Nation were good:

• Supreme Court Death Penalty Rulings
• Summer Movies

The movie segment was good. They were asking callers and emailers what they considered their “All-Time Best and/or Worst Summer Movies.” For me, best movie is a tie between Superman: the Movie and Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan; worst movie – this may be a tie, too: Cool World and Batman and Robin. Those movies hurt to watch. But, they both had good soundtracks AND a common redeeming quality: The words “The End.”

And, what shall we say about today’s Federal District Court ruling on the unconstitutionality of “…one nation, under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance…?
Let’s start by taking look at the history of the Pledge of Allegiance, which also includes its original form and the changes that have been made over the years.

Ok, now that we’ve covered that, here’s my take on this issue:

Whether a person chooses to say it or not should not be the central issue. In a country that boasts of the freedoms of its citizenry, to chastise/stigmatize someone on the basis of saying/not saying “… one nation under God” is asinine.

We were founded on a charter based on religious tolerance. Granted, at the founding of the country (and in the 1800s, when the Pledge was written), you would have been hard-pressed to find someone who didn’t believe in some form of religion, but they were mostly mainstream Christian tenets. Today, you have a multitude of beliefs and non-beliefs. That is a fundamental expression of freedom of choice – if a person chooses to believe or to completely disbelieve a religious credo is their choice.

I don’t know about the overall constitutionality of signing the phrase in question into law, but I don’t think (and I could very well be wrong) that it is an issue of imposing a state religion, as some would assert. In fact, nowhere in the Constitution does it say “separation of Church and State.” What it does say is that the State will not impose an official religion:

Amendment I: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

.Some might argue that saying “…one nation, under God” is forcing a belief upon them. I can’t argue the veracity of that point; I simply do not know. I would, however, pose the following question to these people: If saying that makes you uncomfortable, why not skip that phrase? Or, why not recite it as it was originally written?

All comments or criticisms to this are welcome.

And that is all for tonight.

Peace.

Mid-morning randomness….

• My prediction for a Germany-Brazil World Cup final has proven accurate. Turkey and South Korea will play for 3^rdplace.
• It seems that I know someone who works for a subsidiary of the financially beleaguered WorldCom. What? $3.8 billion in expenses? Us?!? Surely, you jest. First Enron, then ImClone (and Martha Stewart) and now this. Who’s next?
• The O’s beat the Yankees! ::: happy dance :::
• According to the New York Times, the federal judge in the WTC attack trial rejected Zacarias Moussaoui’s no contest plea. It seems that Mr. Moussaoui was under the impression that “no contest” meant that you were not entering any plea of guilt or innocence.
  

  Mr. Moussaoui, who had earlier won the right to represent himself, has since balked at every motion, pleading and other development in the proceeding and has been eager to use the courtroom lectern to inveigh against America, its justice system and, especially, anyone assigned to help him prepare his defense.

  He has brought to the trial an articulateness along with a sketchy knowledge of the law and legal terms apparently gained from popular films and books, the combination of which Judge Brinkema has clearly found frustrating.

  For her part, she has been obliged to play the role of patient but stern teacher as much as that of judge.

  Today, Mr. Moussaoui refused to enter a plea of guilty or not guilty to a new version of the indictment against him. Instead, he wanted to enter a plea of “no contest.”

  Judge Brinkema explained that he should not do so, as that was equivalent to pleading guilty to the six-count indictment, four of which carry the death penalty.

  “No, in your system, if you plead nolo contendre, that means you enter no plea,” he told her.

  She explained that he was mistaken and that a plea of “no contest” would almost certainly mean that he could be found guilty immediately.

  “I will assume you are pleading not guilty,” she said, invoking her obligation to protect a defendant who is representing himself from making a fatal error.

  “Do not assume anything,” he responded with great agitation. “I will plead no contest.”

  When Judge Brinkema overrode his objections, Mr. Moussaoui, dressed in a dark-green prison suit, complained: “You are interfering with my rights. You are undermining my position.”

  Mr. Moussaoui’s demand that the lawyers appointed by the court to represent him be dismissed and that he be allowed to represent himself produced a series of defeats for him today as Judge Brinkema rejected several handwritten motions he had filed.

  As she ruled against him, he railed, “You are putting me in my cell and just running your show.”

  Complaining that the judge was undermining his dignity, he said, `You are just preparing me for the gas chamber.” He then accused her of using “every trick in the book to prevent me” from mounting an effective defense.”¹

  Amazing. That’s really all that I can say about that. I’m not sure what he was expecting of our legal system (and “yes,” it does have its flaws), but this is rather incredible.

• I [heart] my GameBoy Advance. And, I have beaten Jess @ Tetris for the past two nights!

And for today’s Atypical Question of the Day: If you have one (or more), what’s your middle name? To start today’s bidding, mine is Alonzo.

Peace.

¹ Excerpted from The New York Times‘ website.

Goodbye, Ruby Tuesday…

Work. Yay. Two down… three to go. Unless I decide to take Friday off. Decisions, decisions. It was a rather uneventful day, which is not necessarily a “bad” thing. However, I did make a less than glorious discovery: It seems that the copy of Goblet of Fire is woefully incomplete! Whomever posted it only got half to two-thirds of it. BAH!!! Fortunately, a co-worker has all of the books on tape; I shall have to go analog to hear the fate of young Master Skywalker Potter and Dumbledore Kenobi.

Talk of the Nation did a segment about Amtrak and Train Nostalgia. I’m a bit of a train/railroad buff, so I really enjoyed this. It also reminded me of a couple train trips that I have taken and the fact that I used Amtrak to ship many of my things here when I moved to Utah. I want to go on a train trip, but the rail lines here are somewhat limited in where you can go: Denver or Reno. Oh well, a beggar should not a chooser be.

Quote of the Day: Today’s words o’ wisdom come from Dee. Gary and I were talking about the fact that we dressed “opposite” of each other today: Gary in a blue shirt with tan pants, me in a tan shirt and blue pants. Dee, looking at his outfit said:

“This shirt could have blue in it.” (It seemed to contain a very deep navy in it.) “How do you like my outfit? You’re going to see it again tomorrow… and the day after that… and the day after that. I’m going to save myself the trouble of having to find something to wear by wearing the same thing everyday. Just go home and hop in the shower with it.”

Gary, Lynn and I noted that this gives new meaning to “wash & wear.”

Dee: They say that Einstein had seven suits, all the same, so that he didn’t have to worry about what to wear. I have one outfit. I’m seven times smarter than him!

Peace.

Monday, Monday…
Not a bad day in Playa de Mail. I spent most of it in flats. There was also more Goblet of Fire goodness, including Professor Moody. Gotta like the Moody. And, to top it all off, the day passed quickly.

NPR/PRI Programming
Interesting segment on Talk of the Nation about “Teens and Sex.”

Teens today live in a world saturated with sex. It’s there every time they watch TV, open a magazine or listen to the latest pop song. And that means parents are under even greater to talk with their teens about sex. But that’s easier said than done. How can parents help kids make the right decisions about sex?

The bottom line was that parents just need to TALK to their kids… without being afraid to just give them honest answers to the questions that they ask. Seems like common sense, doesn’t it? Somewhere between “I hope I don’t turn out like my parents…” and “When I was your age…” it seems that parents and their kids have lost the ability to simply “talk.” I was blessed with parents who were not afraid to openly answer the random questions that my sibs and I asked them.

Sites of the Day:

• LDraw.org
• BBC – Hot Topics – The Science of Superheroes

Quote of the Day: Will Smith was on The Late Show with David Letterman. At one point, he was talking about a recent trip to Australia (to visit his wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith, on the set of The Matrix 2 and The Matrix 3).

Will: In Australia, it’s cool. I mean, the white women have black women bodies.
Dave ::: stare:::
Will: No… that’s a good thing, y’know what I mean!?! They have…. *gestures at various body parts*…. and…. and….
Dave: You realize that there is nothing that I can say here…
::: both laugh :::

And that’s the news for the night.

Peace.

Sunday
Another Pleasant Salt Lake Valley Sunda-a-a-a-y!

• Slept until 11-ish.
• Got up and puttered around for a bit.
• Read more of the book (see below) that I chose for a discussion that we’re having Saturday.
• Fell asleep for something between an hour and an hour-and-a-half.
• Went to lunch with Jess and Angie.
• Took a few railroad pics. Just tracks, no trains.
• Went to B&N and finished reading the book.
• Home!

And, I even managed to talk the ‘rents and my friend Bret. All in all, a good day.

Book Discussion
I decided to set up a discussion of a book that I first heard about on Politically Incorrect in February. The book is Nigger: The Strange Career of a Troublesome Word by Randall Kennedy, a professor at Harvard Law School. This is a very interesting book; it deals with the word in a very straightforward manner and attempts to present ways to diffuse the volatile nature of the word.

I thought that this would lead to a very… diverse… discussion. Not to mention the potential for provoking new streams of thought. I also intend to extend the conversation to cover other words that are considered racial/social invectives and/or have otherwise negative connotations. Of the people whom I invited to join, I have received many favorable responses. I am looking forward to Saturday afternoon.

Anywho, that’s the day in a nutshell.

Peace.

Jess, Angie and I went to see Lilo & Stitch this afternoon. Cute movie. Three to five minutes after Lilo’s introduction, I was hooked. Yes, it’s a Disney movie. I know… I know… they make movies to enthrall their audiences (which usually works on me, with the notable exception being Hercules). In this case, it worked. I think that part of the reason that it worked so well was that it actually showed a dysfunctional family without making it over the top, a la The Simpsons. There were aliens, too, but they were characters and not caricatures… for the most part. And how can you not like a movie with Ving Rhames (Marcellus Wallace in Pulp Fiction)?!?

Take the kids and go see it. What? What’s that?! You don’t have kids? Oh… Well, go see it yourself!

Peace.

Friday
The end of another fast work week.

After getting up at 05:00 this morning to watch the US-Germany game, I went back to bed after the game to catch a few more blissful minutes of sleep. It wasn’t easy as the 07:45 sun was shining brightly on the other side of the blinds… but, I managed to drift off in search of the gates of The Dreaming once more. An hour later, the alarm sounded, I turned it off and rolled over… and fell asleep again. I regained conscious thought around 09:30. Hooray for circadian rhythms!!! And, in the words of Elastica, “Waking up and getting up has never been easy…” It took me another :05 to finally muster the resolve to get out of bed.

Listened to more of Goblet of Fire today. Obi-WanDumbledore finally showed up. More riddlespeak; it just wouldn’t be Dumbledore without the riddlespeak. There’s yet another Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher in this book; they seem to go through them like a baby goes through diapers. This one, Prof. Moody, has an unfinished edge about him… and lots of attitude; I like him.

NPR/PRI Programming
Talk of the Nation – Science Friday had an interview with Freeman Dyson, a physicist who was part of the “Orion Project,” a plan from the late 1950s that proposed using nuclear power for rocket propulsion. That doesn’t sound too bad, after all, we have nuclear powered submarines… why not rockets? There’s the rub. They wanted to explode the rockets and effectively ride the concussion/shockwave. Can you say “Fallout,” boys and girls? Fortunately, this project was mothballed.

I finally seem to be winding down, this would be an ideal point to retire.

Peace.

USA vs. Germany
The US team just lost their semifinal match against Germany. The score was 1 – 0. But, they played well. VERY well. They put up a good fight against the German team. The German team was FAST! In the opening few minutes of the game, they seemed to be everywhere. It was amazing. One factor may have been that the they were playing on five days’ rest, while the US team was only playing on three days’ rest.

The bottom line: The US National Team showed that they are very capable and are, in fact, one of the best soccer teams in the world. Congratulations to them for putting on the best USA World Cup outing in modern soccer history. Possibly ever. They did not let naysayers’ comments dissuade them in their pursiut of the Cup. They went to the games. They played well. That’s all that anyone could ask of their team.

Peace.

Thursday
There has to be something wrong: These work weeks are going by way too quickly. Hmm… Maybe “too quickly” and “work week” shouldn’t be in the same sentence. Oh, well. What’s done is done. Fait accompli. Half of the day was spent in flats processing, which helps to speed the time along. That and a large cup o’ frozen mocha goodness. I also started Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. I’m five chapters in, so far. And, as of this point, no sign of Obi-Wan Dumbledore. Of course, there’s still lots of book left; I’m sure he’ll pop up eventually.

NPR/PRI Programming
Talk of the Nation talked about the Social History of Ice Cream. Not nearly as bad a program as I had feared that it would be. In fact, it was about as informative and entertaining as their show on Beer.

They also talked about “big business” ice cream companies vs. the old-fashioned Mom-and-Pop ice cream parlors. This segment reminded me of my dad taking me to an ice cream parlor in Silver Spring, MD as a kid. And, he said as a segue, it seems that the first recorded evidence of ice cream in America comes from the colony of Maryland in 1744; it was served in Annapolis by Governor and Mrs. Bladen (yes, the Bladen for whom “Bladensburg, MD” was named) at a dinner with a commission of delegates who were negotiating to buy land from the Iroquois.

Site of the day: Angie sent me an email entitled “How important is makeup?” So… I read it. And then I looked at the pictures attached to it. Then I laughed. A lot. Ang sent it to Jess, too. She read it. Then she looked at the pictures. Then she laughed. A lot. What was so funny? See for yourself: Makeup.

Peace.

Wednesday
Midweek. Thank God. From 13:00 – 15:00 was the longest nine hours in history. What!?! What do you mean that was only two hours?! Noway!!! It was nine! It HAD to be. Why else would I have been so inclined to attempt multiple inner eyelid studies? *shrug*

Finished Chamber of Secrets today. On to Goblet of Fire. I had another “Who do the Harry Potter characters remind me of…” thought. At the end of Chamber, Harry and Dumbledore (the Headmaster of Hogwarts School) are talking in Dumbledore’s office. The headmaster tends to speak… obliquely. In riddles. Their conversation reminded me of Luke and Ben Kenobi or Luke and Yoda’s conversations in Star Wars Episodes IV, V or VI. I also thought that Harry, Hermione and Ron reminded me of latter-day Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew.

NPR/PRI Programming
As I mentioned last night, “Bad Bosses” was the topic of the first hour of Talk of the Nation. I have to admit that they did an admirable job of taking the high road with this segment. It wasn’t just a “Slam the Boss” session; they talked about some of the things that bosses do that get under employees’ skins. In a deft reversal, they also talked about “bad employees,” as well. They also brought up the point of if and/or when someone should take steps to become their own boss.

Quote of the Day: Tonight’s quote comes from “Darkling,” tonight’s episode of Star Trek: Voyager, which may also referred to here as “The Janeway and Barbie-Borg Show.” Kes was talking to the EMH doctor after she was late in returning from an away mission:

“Doctor, I realize that you are concerned about my well-being and have my best interests in mind… but, everyone keeps treating me like a child. I’m three-years-old now!”

Of course, Kes’ people only live nine years, but it still made for a funny-sounding line.

Peace.

Site of the Day:
Today’s mid-morning SotD comes to you by way of :

Find Your Spot. And, no, it’s not even remotely as dirty as it sounds. My top spots are:

• Tampa;
• Orlando;
• New Orleans;
• Little Rock;
• Houston and…
• Baltimore (surprise)

Peace.

Tuesday
Helluva fast work day. I spent about 7½ hours in flats processing. That helped. That and Chamber of Secrets.

Came home and went for a 4½-mile ride as the sun dipped behind the mountains and below the horizon. It felt good.

And, a note from last night: I beat Jess, once again, at Tetris! Tonight, however, I am 99.44% sure that she has already kicked my ass: She got 153 lines. I have my work cut out for me.

NPR/PRI Programming
Talk of the Nation

• They talked about Bureaucracy today. No, not the text adventure from Infocom. The red tape, stand-in-line, drive-you bonkers kind. They mentioned the new Office of Homeland Security… and joked that it may wind up becoming another shining example of bureaucracy at its finest. Neal issued an email challenge for listeners: Come up with possible mottos for the new agency. Some (all but one of them, in fact) of the responses were very tongue-in-cheek:
  • “If we’re still here, you’re still here.”
  • “September 11, 2001” (the only serious response)
  • “If it doesn’t look like we’re doing anything, it means we are.”
  • “Most accidents happen at home.”
  • “If you can’t be free, you should at least be safe.”
  • “We’re watching YOU.”
  • “Eternal vigilance, interminable rhetoric.”
• Wednesday’s Show: “Bad Bosses”
  

  Have you ever taken direction from someone you felt to be incompetent, unreliable, or just plain difficult to be around? If you answered yes, then you understand how hard it is to work for someone who is a rotten manager. But, there are strategies for dealing with and even remaking your boss. Join Neal Conan on the next Talk of the Nation for a look at surviving the bad boss.¹

  The show airs from 2 PM – 4 PM EDT (12 PM – 2 PM MDT) and they will be taking calls and emails during the show. If you want to participate, send email to totn@npr.org or you can call their toll-free number 1-800-989-TALK (8255). If you email the show, be sure to put “Bad Bosses” in the subject line; if you can’t call or write during the show, send in an email before the show airs.

The World had a segment about a successful case of tel… um… well, see for yourself:

Our next story might sound like it was dreamt up by a Star Trek writer but sometimes fact does follow fiction. Scientists in Australia say they have successfully teleported a laser beam encoded with data from one spot to another. They only managed to teleport it the distance of about a yard but when you consider that what they actually did was to make a laser beam disappear, and then reappear in another part of the lab, well … “Beam me up Scotty.” The World’s Technology correspondent Rebecca Roberts joins us to sort out scientific fact from fiction.²

The segment can be heard here, in RealAudio format.

That’s enough for now.

Peace.

¹: from the Talk of the Nation website
²: from The World website

Monday
Work! Again, the day flew by. I had an overwhelming urge to do an inner eyelid study during the first hour, but I suppressed it. Barely. But it was suppressed.

Started listening to Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets today. After this, and Goblet of Fire, I think that I will listen to a book that Jess is currently listening to: The Wizard’s First Rule, by Terry Goodkind. I need to find out if any of the Dragonlancebooks have been done as books on tape… or more importantly, books on mp3.

NPR/PRI
Talk of the Nation spent an hour discussing Civil Liberties and how the government’s newest security measures have affected our rights as a nation and as individuals. A few interesting questions were raised:

1. “Do you view civil liberties as a work in progress? Is that balance between civil liberties and national security a dynamic process or are there hard and firm lines?”
2. From an email question: “Do countries with fewer civil liberties have a reduced threat from terrorism?”

Listening to this reminded me of the Civil Liberties class that I took during my senior year in high school; I just wish that I remembered more from that class.

Amusing Site of the Day: Dictionaraoke

Silently, he stood. A roguish grin flicked across his lips as he picked up his hat and placed it on his head. He looked at the others sitting at the table and nodded. “It’s been a pleasure,” he said and touched the brim of his cap. The others nodded and grunted in response. He turned and walked casually across the room. He chuckled as he turned the knob and opened the door. And then, he was gone.

Peace.

Sunday

• I called my dad at 05:15 MDT. That’s not quite as bad as it sounds: It was 07:15 EDT and I knew that he’d be awake and getting ready for church. Perfect timing. He didn’t answer. What?! No answer? What’s up with that?! So… I left a ‘Happy Father’s Day’ voicemail and went to bed. Twenty minutes later, just as the sweet oblivion of sleep overtook me, my phone rang. It was my dad. He had set his phone to ‘vibrate’ and was in a different room when I called. We talked for a few and then I resumed my journey into The Dreaming.
• Slept in. ::: bliss :::
• Jess, Angie and I went out for lunch and then on to see The Bourne Identity. It was a good movie. I knew that it was based on a book and I knew that an earlier movie had been made from it. What I didn’t know until tonight was that it was a made-for-TV movie. I think that I would like to read the book and see the original movie and juxtapose them against this version.
• Came home and didn’t do much until 12:30 when I…
• Watched the USA – Mexico 2002 World Cup match. The US team looks solid tonight; they brought their ‘A’ game. And…. The US team beat Mexico 2 – 0 and advances to the World Cup quarterfinals for the first time since 1930!!! Mexico played well: They had possession for 2/3 of the game, but they were held at bay by the US’ defense.
  Congratulations to the US World Cup Soccer Team!

And now that the soccer match is over, it’s time to get some sleep before starting another glorious work week.

Peace.