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I have spent way too much time over the past couple weeks talking about politics. Sure, it’s a subject that fires me up–and I guess it’s best to write about something you care about–but that’s not the kinda writer I wanna be. I like writing about funny stuff. I like telling amusing, lighthearted stories with my own slanted view on society. So enough with the gloom, doom, and negativity–let’s talk about something fun.
From the “it could only happen to me category,” lemme tellya about the snafu I somehow managed to get caught up in with my landlord. I learned a long time ago I’d much rather have something do something automagically than be held responsible to remember to do it myself. It’s not so much because I’m forgetful…I just sorta get distracted and ignore responsibilities for something more amusing. Either that, or I’m lazy. In any case, it’s all automatic for me. Programming the VCR to record shows (back when I had a VCR) even if I planned on staying home to watch them (ya know, just in case). My phone is “programmed” to change to “audible” every night just in case I fall asleep with it on vibrate. . . . . .
The elections might be finished–but I’m not. I’ve been complaining a lot about politics lately because politics is “in” nowadays. So before I return to the usual complaints and irritations, I have to get something else off my chest: people are stupid. Beyond stupid. To call people morons would be an insult to morons everywhere. No one has a dime of common sense. I simply cannot believe the stupidity in the world. People have no sense of cause and effect. Action and reaction. I don’t know how I can live in a world with people that are just so damn stupid. They make it worse for people like me–the nonstupids.
On Tuesday, California voters passed many wide-ranging measures–all of which have significant dollar amounts attached to them. “We” approved of $2 billion to go to children’s hospitals. “We” approved of $10 billon for a high speed train to connect LA and SF. I reluctantly used the word “we” because unfortunately, I get lumped together with these pinheads–but trust me, these are not measures I would have approved.
Meanwhile, Thursday–not even 48 hours after the polls closed–the governor announced that California is in serious debt and proposed a $4 billion tax . . . . .
The early results are in and I’m sad. Just when you think our society is willing to accept, you see the prejudice that resides in people’s hearts. As of now, Prop 8 is failing–54 percent to 46. It’s early–but the race is nowhere near close. I’m surprised by the results–I assumed it wouldn’t pass–but I guess that just goes to show you everyone’s opinion is different.
I really thought this thing would fail. It feels like our society is becoming more tolerant of gay people. I figured intelligent folks would see through the misleading and negative ad campaigns. And yet here we are, another civil liberty denied.
Prop 8 passing means one of two things:
1) People truly aren’t open and accepting of homosexuals. Sure, they might say all the right things in public. But when it comes to anonymous private opinions, people hate the gays. That’s the only reason I can think of to deny them the same opportunity that’s available to everyone else. Either that…
2) Either that or people are truly stupid. The television campaigns focused on the children. Everyone always wants to protect the children. The quickest way you can get anyone’s emotions riled up is . . . . .
When life gets too busy or I have nothing to complain about, I just reach back and find something I wrote earlier but never posted (usually because it was uninteresting or poorly written…or maybe even both). This is one of those stories.
I don’t mean to be a troublemaker–things just sorta happen to me. I think the reason why is because I’m a fighter–I simply don’t lay down when unjust situations arise. I don’t wanna inflate my own ego here, but I believe strongly in my convictions and I’m never going to back down. Some might call it stubborn, but I prefer ‘determined’–it puts a positive spin on things.
The Girlfriend and I went to Jack in the Box because she was craving one of their fruit smoothies. “Should I buy the small one for $2.69 or the large for 3.39,” she asked after studying the menu.
“Go with the small,” I told her. She rarely finished drinks like that and it didn’t make sense to spend the extra 70 cents on something she wasn’t going to drink. We went through the drive-thru and ordered the smoothie. The cashier didn’t tell us a total–only to pull up to the window.
. . . . .
The Olympics start this week…but does anyone really care? Do you know anybody who actually gets excited about the Olympics? I don’t know anyone who watches. Outside the big-name events (men’s basketball and Michael Phelps) I don’t know anyone who cares. I certainly don’t care. There’s no fun in watching someone run around a track. There’s only so many times I can watch a person swim in a pool (zero). There are very few mainstream events in our society that are as past their prime as the Olympics. I truly believe no one gives a crud…other than the athletes involved. If the world were to somehow skip an Olympics, do you think anyone would even notice? I don’t.
Recently I was sitting outside a very rich and classy hotel. It was one of those expensive joints–the kinda place where two nights cost more than I pay in month for rent. Normally I wouldn’t be caught dead near such an establishment, but an assignment for work put me at the hotel’s entrance for a few hours. Since my job isn’t challenging, I had little to do other than watch numerous cars come to the valet and wait to get parked. It . . . . .
I finally got around to seeing “The Dark Knight” this weekend and I noticed there was quite a lot of the dialogue I didn’t pick up. My initial fear is that I spent way too much time with headphones plugged into my ears and was now paying the price with a hearing loss (but I only listen to talk radio podcasts with the volume extremely low!). Immediately after the movie, The Girlfriend said how much she loved the movie. “The only thing I didn’t like was the score: it was too loud and it drummed out a lot of the dialogue.”
Thank goodness! I didn’t wanna say nothing at first because it would like admitting I’m starting to go deaf. But when she confirmed the same problem I had, it meant either we were losing our hearing or there was something seriously off with the audio ratios of the movie. Either way, I’m happy. If I’m gonna go deaf with someone, it might as well be the person I’m going to marry.
I was at the Wal-Mart recently when I heard a six-year old kid say to his mom “Can we buy it? It’s only $300.”
What kinda world is . . . . .
I came home and found a car parked in my driveway. Instead of flying off the handle–like every instinct wanted me to do–I reported it to my complex’s office and they promised to called a tow truck. I tried to get on with my life but kept peering out the window to make sure the car was still there. Some nitwit parks in my driveway and he thinks that’s the end of it…but it’s not–not for me. I wanted the jerk to feel the consequences of his actions…and what better way to suffer than having to free an impounded car. As much as I didn’t want that car in my driveway, I desperately didn’t want the owner to move it before the tow truck truck arrived. I tried making a snack to eat, but couldn’t concentrate on my food. I tried watching TV but found myself distracted. It was too much and I was obsessing. I couldn’t stop thinking about the car and became extremely angry. If the owner appeared in my presence, I’d end up ripping him a new one for being an arsehole. If the tow truck came, I’d be tempted to help him break a window.
I . . . . .
I broke the law today. The Girlfriend thinks I’m evil person and continuous lawbreaker–but it’s not something I do every day (unless keeping a dead hooker buried in your basement is illegal). I should probably hire a lawyer and only confess my wrongdoings to a priest but I’m so damn emotional about the topic I can’t keep my mouth shut.
I was stuck in yet another freeway traffic jam. This one was nowhere near as bad as previous timewasters–but frustrating nonetheless. My friends and coworkers tell me I should take solace in that at least I’m getting paid to sit in traffic but it’s just not enough for me. Getting outside is great and being in a cubicle sucks: but sitting in traffic isn’t much better. I suppose technically I’m outside. But with all the exhaust from other cars, you can’t roll the window down. The car feels like a plush prison cell, equipped with a radio and air conditioning.
As I was parked on the freeway, I watched the vehicles in the carpool lane brisk past me. I was moving a swift ten miles per hour; they were driving about six times faster than that. And even though they . . . . .
I read an article online that said the earth has four billion phone lines and one billion computers. That ratio doesn’t seem right. Four to one? I have one phone line and about a dozen computers–I must be throwing the scale off.
This story is a little old, but it took me a while to gather all the facts before I attempted my spin on it (whaddya know: I can do research). A while back, the LA Times reported that an LA judge named Alex Kozinski had a pornographic website. I’m giving you the gist of the story because there’s no need for me to reiterate the whole LA Times piece. The highlights include “a video described as a half-dressed man cavorting with a sexually aroused farm animal” and “the judge acknowledged maintaining his own publicly accessible website featuring sexually explicit photos and videos.”
Once the story ended up on wire services, it took off. Why wouldn’t it? It was sleazy and involved a prominent judge…who just so happened to be presiding over a trial about porn. This story was as juicy as they come. For almost a week, Judge Kozinski got ripped in national media. He was considered a . . . . .
About two week ago I bought a GPS navigation device for my car. I had been thinking about it for a while now so it wasn’t entirely an impulse buy. That being said, I didn’t walk into Fry’s to buy a GPS. Fry’s was in the middle of a massive anniversary sale. Most electronic store “sales” don’t really provide much of a discount (nine times outta ten the price is predetermined by the manufacture). But when Fry’s has a sale, it’s usually legit.
I wandered over to the GPSs and was immediately helped by a salesman. I was there strictly for information because I was still in the preliminary shopping stages. I knew little about the differences between GPSs. Why are some $200 and some $400? It’s not like a computer where you pay more for bigger and fast–a GPS doesn’t need bigger and faster. The salesman pointed out the various features and showed me a device that was on-sale that day (and that day only) for $200.
Like I said, normally I scoff at sales. But I noticed that Fry’s was also offering a significantly lesser GPS made by the same manufacture for the same exact price. Was this . . . . .
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