Now, i'm not one for making endorsements so this isn't really one but, i have found a new television guilty pleasure. Today i saw the show "Who Wants To Be A Superhero". In this program a group of people are competing to be the next superhero. And the host:
....wait for it...
...wait for it...
the man himself...
Stan Lee!!!
Holy fuck! Now this isn't "My Name Is Earl" but damn, while you're cooking supper (or SUPER MEAALLLLL) this shit is great. i know i'm swearing a lot here but this show is satisfying much like swearing is. It feels good with not much substance to it. These cats take themselves EXTREMELY seriously and it makes the show that much better.
If i had known about this show during it's auditions (wait... even Stan Lee is crying on the show right now... this show rocks... no, it ROX) i sure as hell would not be writing these blog entries. i'd be sewing myself up a sweet ass pleather and spandex superhero costume. i'd be kicking super villain tail, saving kittens from trees, and scamming on Wonder Woman.
i fear i may have missed my calling in life. Maybe this will turn me into a super villain... do i here a spin-off series coming on?
Aug 24, 2006
Emergency Fund
Today got me thinking about my old emergency fund. In my youth i always had, stashed away, a few hundred dollars. Hidden somewhere that was secure enough to remain unfound during the many room searches of my teenage years but easily accessible at a moment's notice (if audio tapes were as easy to hide i'd still have my old tape collection). That money and a backpack always packet with a change of clothes was my insurance plan, useful for the several times i was kicked out of the house and in the event of fire (the latter never happened though).
At that point in my life those meager supplies where enough to get me through anywhere from a couple of hours to a few days if need be. Fast food and the possibility of cheap room. An insurance agent's wet dream in preparation if not for the frequency with which i had to make a claim against my rainy day plan. i wasn't that bad a kid... really.
Believe it or not i still have that emergency fund stashed away in a very similar place. Old habits die hard, especially ones so closely tied in with a personal sense of security. My security blanket of sorts. The usefulness of $100 or so, however, has changed dramatically whether due to inflation over time or lifestyle changes.
Sure that money could still feed me for several days, and possibly get me a night or two at a flea infested motel. Sure it would take a couple of months before the electricity, cable, water, and heat were turned off (summer would be a better time for this, of course, than winter). But what about the mortgage? i've grown quite fond of owning my own house, having a safe haven from the world at large. i've dropped a lot of sweat and spilled a bit of blood fixing this place up. Walking away is not quite that easy for me now.
i'm pathetically in love. This is not a solo mission any longer. How long will that money last for two people? Maybe half as long? Maybe less? Will she still be as tolerate of my ways in such a circumstance?
The argument for whether inflation or lifestyle serves as the root cause for the uselessness of my emergency fund quickly becomes a moot point. i quickly realize that freedom is the constant in this equation. Although i am in a vastly happier, healthier, and better spot at this time in my life i am not necessarily any more free than i was as that powerless teenager.
The difference here, however, is that i have chosen the limits of my freedom (a majority of them at least). In fact, i could alter many of those limitation today if i wanted, not increasing my freedom but re-defining it. Looking at how far i've come in that time, i think i'll continue with my current limitations. i'll also continue to hide a few hundred dollars as well, just for old time's sake. (Do you still have your blankey, or sheet?)
At that point in my life those meager supplies where enough to get me through anywhere from a couple of hours to a few days if need be. Fast food and the possibility of cheap room. An insurance agent's wet dream in preparation if not for the frequency with which i had to make a claim against my rainy day plan. i wasn't that bad a kid... really.
Believe it or not i still have that emergency fund stashed away in a very similar place. Old habits die hard, especially ones so closely tied in with a personal sense of security. My security blanket of sorts. The usefulness of $100 or so, however, has changed dramatically whether due to inflation over time or lifestyle changes.
Sure that money could still feed me for several days, and possibly get me a night or two at a flea infested motel. Sure it would take a couple of months before the electricity, cable, water, and heat were turned off (summer would be a better time for this, of course, than winter). But what about the mortgage? i've grown quite fond of owning my own house, having a safe haven from the world at large. i've dropped a lot of sweat and spilled a bit of blood fixing this place up. Walking away is not quite that easy for me now.
i'm pathetically in love. This is not a solo mission any longer. How long will that money last for two people? Maybe half as long? Maybe less? Will she still be as tolerate of my ways in such a circumstance?
The argument for whether inflation or lifestyle serves as the root cause for the uselessness of my emergency fund quickly becomes a moot point. i quickly realize that freedom is the constant in this equation. Although i am in a vastly happier, healthier, and better spot at this time in my life i am not necessarily any more free than i was as that powerless teenager.
The difference here, however, is that i have chosen the limits of my freedom (a majority of them at least). In fact, i could alter many of those limitation today if i wanted, not increasing my freedom but re-defining it. Looking at how far i've come in that time, i think i'll continue with my current limitations. i'll also continue to hide a few hundred dollars as well, just for old time's sake. (Do you still have your blankey, or sheet?)
Aug 20, 2006
s4s/f4e: Homosexuality
We live in a fucked world (getting the swearing out of the way early). Greed's as popular as it ever was. Loyalty in the workplace is almost non-existent if the opportunity to move up the ranks or make a quick buck presently itself. People are used and abused so that others can get/maintain power or horde massive amounts of money. An overwhelming percentage of the population struggle to get by and make ends meat (or ends vegetables in my case). Life is suffering.
In such a world those who do find love are the lucky ones. With true love such a difficult to procure commodity why should we limit anyone fortunate enough to stubble upon it. i find it comforting to know that if i am incompasitated, for whatever reason, my significant other can legally make decisions on my behalf because we are married. If i knock myself out while skateboarding she (who knows me best) can ride along side me in the ambulance, holding my hand. At the hospital she can OK treatment for me. Some might argue that i shouldn't be aloud to make decisions for myself at any time but that's not the point here.
Why are we not giving those who find love with members of the same sex the same right? Obviously religions have their own right to make decisions on their own sacraments but the legal right to get married and all the rights associated with that should not be limited to only heterosexual relationships. This is not the land of majority rule, it is the land of the free. The land of equal rights. The separation of church and state. What happened to the slogan "Virginia is for Lovers"? Surely homosexuals in love should be allow to go to Virginia to "get hitched" (as they call it down there).
If fundamentalists really wanted to preserve the sanctity of marriage shouldn't they look at the divorce rates in this country? How about the infidelity statistics? Dare i mention spousal abuse? These crimes amongst the flock are clearly affecting the sanctity of marriage far more frequently than lovers of the same sex.
And... if someone during this important debate brings up gay marriage leading to future marriages between humans and pets they should quickly be pummeled unconscious. When they finally revive they should be given a computer with internet access where they can look up and view their sick little interspecies fetishes (which is clearly what they dream about if they brought it up) to there heart's content while the rest of us adults continue the conversation.
i could conclude here with a quote from a great many people but i think Lenny Kravitz summed it up best when he said "you've got to let love rule"...
In such a world those who do find love are the lucky ones. With true love such a difficult to procure commodity why should we limit anyone fortunate enough to stubble upon it. i find it comforting to know that if i am incompasitated, for whatever reason, my significant other can legally make decisions on my behalf because we are married. If i knock myself out while skateboarding she (who knows me best) can ride along side me in the ambulance, holding my hand. At the hospital she can OK treatment for me. Some might argue that i shouldn't be aloud to make decisions for myself at any time but that's not the point here.
Why are we not giving those who find love with members of the same sex the same right? Obviously religions have their own right to make decisions on their own sacraments but the legal right to get married and all the rights associated with that should not be limited to only heterosexual relationships. This is not the land of majority rule, it is the land of the free. The land of equal rights. The separation of church and state. What happened to the slogan "Virginia is for Lovers"? Surely homosexuals in love should be allow to go to Virginia to "get hitched" (as they call it down there).
If fundamentalists really wanted to preserve the sanctity of marriage shouldn't they look at the divorce rates in this country? How about the infidelity statistics? Dare i mention spousal abuse? These crimes amongst the flock are clearly affecting the sanctity of marriage far more frequently than lovers of the same sex.
And... if someone during this important debate brings up gay marriage leading to future marriages between humans and pets they should quickly be pummeled unconscious. When they finally revive they should be given a computer with internet access where they can look up and view their sick little interspecies fetishes (which is clearly what they dream about if they brought it up) to there heart's content while the rest of us adults continue the conversation.
i could conclude here with a quote from a great many people but i think Lenny Kravitz summed it up best when he said "you've got to let love rule"...
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