Feeling A Little Too Blue

First and foremost, congratulations to Barrack Obama. And congratulations to America for our first black President. It took too long, but at least we finally got here. I cannot imagine what it's like to grow up and live as an African American, but I bet behind the celebrations is a collective sigh of relief. Because now, the American Dream is truly real, where ANYONE can be ANYTHING they want, with hard work and a little luck. Except for homosexuals, but we're working on that.

That being said, I'm an independent. The candidate matters to me, not whether he's red or blue or whatever. But what scares me about this election is that the Democrats have EVERYTHING! There are good Republicans out there who lost elections just because they happened to be in the same party as G.W. I understand the sentiment; me myself couldn't wait for Bush to be gone. But still, when one party has total control, I get nervous. Look at how wonderful total Democratic control has done for Maryland, with our high taxes and corruption and pandering in Annapolis.

I voted for Barrack, because Ron Paul wasn't on the ballot. My theory is this: McCain would take/steal my children's money and spend it overseas. Barrack will take MY money and spend it here in the US. Obama's plan was the lesser of two evils, but far from what I think the country needs. Also, the greatest evil was the thought of Palin being one infarction away from the Presidency. With her Neanderthal positions on book burning and birth control (amongst others), she would have set the country back years.

My wife and I differ on religion. She's full-bore Baptist, while I'm a Secular Humanist. One problem I have with the Christian religion in the US now is it thinks that its views should be the views for the whole country. Not every Christian thinks that, but with Family Values and Intelligent Design, the "business" of religion is trying to force its viewpoint into law.

I feel that the strength of America is freedom. Freedom to make the choices that work best for you. I fully support any Christian, Buddhist, Agnostic, Devil Worshipper, or Pagan in their right to believe what they want. But respect each other's rights.

For example, I'm anti-abortion, but I'm cool with birth control. Most anti-abortionists think life starts when the sperm and the egg hook up, but this isn't the case. You need a third thing to produce life: a nice, warm utereus. If there's not a mommy that the fertilized egg can use to develop, no life can ever occur. So if you can prevent the egg from implanting in the utereus via birth control, I don't feel a life was taken. However, once that egg is nicely implented in the utereus, then without any other outside factors, life will occur. So removing that egg from the utereus is murder.

That's my position on that. But I can turn around and be pro-euthanasia, because someone who's lived a full life and doesn't want to suffer should have that right. We're all gonna die, if we want to skip some pain and suffering at the end, that should be our right.

My point about this is that I'd be hard pressed to fit into any political/religious category, so I think we should all have the freedom to make choices for ourselves, even if those choices offend someone else. Those people have the right not to choose anything that offends them. But America seems to lean towards removing any offensive choice, regardless of how small the offended party is.

So while I'm afraid of a Democratic strangelhold on Washington, I am happy for it because I think we'll get a lot more freedom than we had under Bush.

I'm just worried about Obama's Socialist tendencies, but that's another post.

Weed

I <3 Jon Stewart

A little dated, but I'm not on top of things as quickly as I was, unless it pertains to Veggie Tales, Ben 10, or Thomas:

Jon Stewart is my hero.

He's made the point before, but it begs asking again and again and again...why is a news show on a COMEDY STATION the only one asking these types of questions? Why is Jon Stewart the one pointing out the obvious hypocrisy in the media today, and not the media itself?

Jon obviously was bashing the right, but the left is just as guilty. Where is the unbiased reporting, based on facts, that show us who a candidate really is, not hyperbole and simplifications used to appeal to a certain target group with a lot of votes.

Let me put it this way; I know Obama is dirty. I know McCain is dirty. I know Biden and Palin are dirty. It's a sad fact of politics that you can't get to where they are without selling your soul. I just want to know who they sold their souls to, and for what causes.

What I REALLY want is a way to motivates the masses to blow the whole freaking system up, and start new. Make government's job to protect us from businesses and foreign threats. Stay out of my personal life. Become more efficient when the budget is unbalanced, don't take more of my money.

But when the agencies who are supposed to police the government are part of the complicity, why not steal from the candy jar?

My $.02
Weed

Birthday Parties

So C turned 6 this week, and we had his birthday party on Saturday. He had his first soccer game that morning, which was unbearably hot. C ran for about 3 minutes then was done with the whole running thing. However, he played goalie for a whole 12-minute quarter. He's not into the soccer thing yet like he was into t-ball.

At his party, he got waaaaaaayyyy too much stuff. Bakugan Battle Brawlers, Wii games, a hand-me-down DS from his cousin (the best-present winner, at least for now), and some Star Wars figures. The he and G got to spend the night with Aunt D and Uncle K.

My family is awesome. I am the 5th of 5 in a Catholic family. Thankfully for me, my mom and dad were devout Catholics, so I was able to surprise the family 10 years after the birth of the last brother. My mom was 39 and dad was 45 when they got their big "surprise" (I prefer this euphemism to "oops", "mistake", "uh-oh", and almost all others I've heard throughout my life ;) One of the blessings of being the baby in my family is that I was spoiled by having brothers and sisters that were like aunts and uncles as well. However, most blessings can be double-sided as well, and this one is no different.

At work, I like to thing I'm the kind of guy who does what needs to be done. I work, I do good things, I help where it's needed. However, because my sisters and brothers are the same type of people, I often catch myself allowing them to do all the work while I "play". At 35, I still play with the kids while my sisters (and wife) make the food and clean the kitchen. "Wassa problem, dude?" one might ask, but growing up Catholic means growing up with guilt, and I feel guilty I don't do more for my family. If my economic situation wasn't so pitiful right now, I'd repay them that way. If I weren't so lazy when they're around, I'd do some of the work myself. I just need to step up and do my part. My sister D has got it all mastered. She cooks, cleans,and STILL plays with the kids. She is the favorite aunt hands down.

W

Freestyle Friday

Twitter me this, my brother, can you follow me?

I know I'm silly, and goofy, but it just don't bother me

Cause I gotta be me, and being me means being Weed

And by being Weed I'm being me and thereby being free

I love porn with plots and draining threes from the spot and

Feet fail me not because I love the Veggies a lot

Even tho Jesus is not a deity I like what he said to me

Loving your neighbor is better than Bush killing an Iraqi

Exactly, so tacky to be taking away our inherent liberties

You wanna be safe, America, go live in a monastery

Life is danger, and life is fatal

You can't be free if you live in the cradle

Lay your life on the line for freedom each time

Imagine if I weren't free to kick you this rhyme

Sad things are when people fear the force, Yoda says

Sad things are when being mean makes you famous, Perez

Sad things are when two candidates mean no choice

Sad things are when they try to take away our voice.

weed out

For My Kids 20080912

C, G & I:

Tomorrow is C's 6th birthday party.  His birthday was earlier, I was the mean daddy and made him ride the bus to school only to pick him up a little later.  Then we went to play 9 holes of "real" golf, and he was SOOO excited to ride in the cart.  Then we met Mommy for lunch at Applebees (your first choice was McD's, but Mommy got you to change you mind ;).  After that, we went to see "Star Wars: The Clone Wars", and Uncle K joined us in the theatre.  That was a surprise for me, because he had told me he couldn't make it, but then he did.

It also made me happy he could make it, because Uncle K and Aunt D took Daddy to see the original Star Wars when he was about C's age, so the continuity of him being then when we went to see the new Star Wars movie meant a lot to Daddy.  Uncle K and Aunt D were like Daddy's second parents, after Mom Mom and Pop Pop.

C might have his first soccer game tomorrow.  It was supposed to be last week, but it got rained out by tropical storm Hanna.  It's been raining all day today (practice was canceled both times this week), so tomorrow's game is iffy.  I'd say a 70% chance we play.  I'm worried for C, as he's on the under-8 team, when by birthday he qualified for the under-6 team.  Add to that his genetic predisposition to be small like me, and like I said...I worry.  Also, it hurts me because I feel like I have to "toughen" him up on the soccer field.  He wants to goof around and hug me a lot, and I push him away and ride him hard.  I hope one day he understands how freaking hard that it to do to my wonderful little boy. 

C started 1st grade okay, and he loves riding the bus.

G has finally, Finally, FINALLLLLLLY seemed to master the fine art of potty training.  He's still anal retentive (literally) at times, but he's over the hump.  He's such a wonderful little enigma that I love him and want to throw him out the window at the same time all the time.  He's sweet and loving to I one second, then the next he gives him a forearm shiver.  All in all he's a good kid.  And he's going to be a good athlete.  C is more thoughtful, but G has that ability to put everything he has into it. 

G likes Pre-K4.  He looks forward to homework and practicing writing.  Hopefully we can keep that up! ;)  Mommy is still worried he might be a little ADHD, but Daddy thinks it's just Daddy's side of the family in him ;)  He is ALL ENERGY!

I is starting to talk, but he's doing it differently that the other boys did.  It's like he's trying to speak in phrases instead of words sometimes.  If you ask him to repeat something, he does a passable job...once.  If you missed it, oh well.

And the trains!  Oh my does I like his trains.  I've put coaches on Thomas and Gordon about 1,456 times in the past month.  Mommy probably has me beat, but not by much.  And I likes to go into the toy room and point to the shelf for us to get more trains down.  It doesn't matter if all the trains are already down or not.

I likes to have his belly rubbed.  The wierd thing is, he keeps sticking your finger in his belly button.  Haven't figured that one out yet.   I has a temper too, and he is stubborn.  Oh my, he is going to be a force to reckon with come 10 years from now. 

I love you boys.  I ache to think how fast you're growing, and how it won't be long before you don't want as much to do with me as you do now.  I love your hugs and wrestling with you and reading you stories and singing songs before bed.  I so want to see what you grow into, but I want to bottle you up right now so I can save you forever. 

Love

Daddy

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Escher is/was the man
W

Whatcha Gonna Do, George

I love songs that are like good sex. There are the U2 songs, which build slow to an amazing crescendo. If I could f*ck like the live version of "Bad", I'd change my name to Valentino. There are the punk songs which are quickies, hard and fast. With kids, you need these. There are the silly songs like my Beasties which are fun-loving coital sessions. The artsy 80's Cure songs like passionate love with that slightly mental girl.

(Side Note: The Killers are really an 80s art rock band ala The Cure/Morissy/Joy Division, right? Just because they're 20 years late doesn't deprive them of being in this select group, does it? Didn't think so...)

But the best of all, by far, are the jam sessions. A great bass groove which takes 10+ minutes to play out (on the song side!!!). See "A Crazy Game Of Poker", "Bop Gun" (The Cube version), and my current obsession, the P-Funk Live and Kicking version of "Make My Funk The P-Funk". The original song is a classic of Funk, but all in all, it's not that spectacular (in the way that the 3 series isn't all that, as far as Beamers go. But it's still a damn nice car.)

But they did a live version of this in Chicago one night that is amazing. It's has everything you want in a P-Funk song: call and response, amazing solos and that funky bass, and George Clinton. Why isn't George celebrated like Hef is? He's created a family as creative, and large, and as seminal as Hugh has. But I guess I'm one of the few that put great music on the same level as hot women. Why is kinda the point of this post...music and sex affect us in very similar ways.

Next time you're engaged in the nasty, think about this post, and not as way to hold out longer! ;) What kind of sex are you having? Hopefully it's not Heidi Montag sex.

My $.02

Weed