{ { { who am I? worldly»about me. what's with the grasshopper? random»why sbg. not inside frames? reload. } } }
10:50 PM | link
Yes, I did want to know how to get rid of the Shop button in Netscape! [via cluttered]
10:06 PM | link
Robert Siegel talks with Robert Putnam who is author of Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community. Putnam uses an observation about the decline in bowling leagues in the US as a metaphor to describe the increasing alienation of Americans from their families and communities, and the political process. One crucial factor leading to the social isolation is television. Says Putnam, "People watch Friends on TV -- they don't have them."Did you know that more Americans are members of bowling leagues than vote? And even American involvement in social groups has been sharply declining in recent years. But it turns out that joining a social group decreases your chance of dying or developing a disease by 50%. So get off your duff and meet some new people!
9:22 PM | link
I go a few days without watching the news or reading the newspaper, and I come back to this after my long, busy weekend: Austin officer shot to death in Zilker Park. What? That doesn't happen here. I hate what's happening to this city. I want my sleepy little hippie college town back.
5:02 PM | link
I think I've found my favorite political cartoon.
7:08 PM | link
All the cool countries are doing it. Why aren't we? I belong in Europe. [via a nice piece of ass]
6:47 PM | link
Vote in this eLection and be entered in a drawing to win $50,000.
6:02 PM | link
Why on earth would the deaf community resent the people who would rather hear again than stay deaf?
12:24 AM | link
A couple nights ago, I watched Eyes Wide Shut and 13th Warrior. Not the greatest double feature, but I was surprised at the lack of character development in the beginning of each film. Each film did very little to get me to care about the characters before they tried to draw me into their various dramas and dilemmas. Or maybe I was just feeling particularly uncaring that night. Heh.
EWS did get me thinking about long-term relationships, though. Note to self: do not try to deny my attraction to other people while I have an S.O. Acknowledge the attraction, realize that it doesn't compare to the connection I have with my S.O., and move on. Wait. That doesn't sound quite right. It sounds like I'm saying I should never consider other possibilities. That's not right, either. I can consider other possibilities, but I shouldn't make those (often superficial) attractions more confusing than they need to be by trying to deny or ignore them. Babbling, yay.
6:16 PM | link
My company is way better than XYZ internet startup. And it kicks ass to work here, too!
6:14 PM | link
Whoa. georgybush.com was mentioned in the New York Times (registration is free). We got a small blurb and a screenshot of the front page of the site! (The Web version has no screenshot, alas.)
And anti-Bush Web sites like www.georgybush.com feature parody songs in Spanish and English that can be put on CD's for distribution.
3:42 PM | link
Gotta love a religious leader who can say stuff like this: [via 2020 hindsight]
I am content to be one of the multitude of Christians who do not care much about the doctrine of the Trinity or the historical truth of the gospels. Both as a scientist and as a religious person, I am accustomed to living with uncertainty.
And:
I do not claim any ability to read God's mind. I am sure of only one thing. When we look at the glory of stars and galaxies in the sky and the glory of forests and flowers in the living world around us, it is evident that God loves diversity.
3:34 PM | link
If you sprinkle when you tinkle, cut it out! Nothing sucks more than sitting down, peeing, then getting up and realizing the seat was not dry. This happens to me at work, even. At work! C'mon, ladies! [via 2020 hindsight]
10:46 AM | link
I have the what-do-you-want-for-dinner-i-don't-know-what-do-you-want? conversation a lot. [via backup brain]
11:27 PM | link
It still needs some work, but I'm moving my Willy Wonka page here.
7:17 PM | link
Wren at the junkbox has discovered the five stages of blogging. Does this put me in stage 3?
5:45 PM | link
I've been reading Bishop John Shelby Spong's Why Christianity Must Change or Die lately and I stumbled upon some columns he wrote for an religion resource site. I'm glad I did. Here's what Bishop Spong had to say about John Rocker:
"Rocker's comments revealed that racism is alive and well inside his mind. He bemoans the foreigners who, in his opinion, are taking over this country. He does not embrace the fact that his family once was listed among the foreigners that this land has absorbed. He seems blissfully unaware that race, gender, nationality and sexual orientation are givens in life, not chosens.
To hate, minimize or denigrate people on the basis of their being is what this sin of racism means. Racism is itself a disease of the soul that must be rooted out over a lifetime of conscious effort."
More:
"Let me say this carefully, but clearly. Anyone who elevates their prejudices to the position where they are defended as the will of God is evil.
Anybody who justifies their denigration of another person's being based upon a quotation from an ancient sacred text called the Word of God is simply out of touch with contemporary scholarship."
1:22 PM | link
Fun with Battlefield Earth reviews, yay! If the fact that the Church of Scientology is involved isn't enough to keep you away from this movie, try these reviews on for size.
"A million monkeys with a million crayons would be hard-pressed in a million years to create anything as cretinous as Battlefield Earth. You haven’t endured pain till you’ve seen Battlefield Earth."
Ebert's got a good one, too:
"Battlefield Earth is like taking a bus trip with someone who has needed a bath for a long time. It’s not merely bad; it’s unpleasant in a hostile way. I watched it in mounting gloom, realizing I was witnessing something historic, a film that for decades to come will be the punch line of jokes about bad movies."
8:57 AM | link
You don't need to touch another person's body -- or your own -- to have a rockin' good time!
"She told us that if we were patient and waited until child-conceiving age before learning anything about sex, that would make it so much more special! Isn't that rad?"
9:53 AM | link
Guns don't kill bills. Lobbyists do.
From 1989 to 1999, the National Rifle Association contributed $8.4 million to congressional candidates and national party committees, including soft and PAC money, according to Common Cause. The combined campaign contribution money of Handgun Control Inc., Texans Against Gun Violence and the few other anti-gun groups is a relative joke.
So? If enough people feel strongly enough about gun control, shouldn't they go out and raise more money than the NRA and buy the lawmakers for our side? No.
Why should we have to outbid a minority for control of, or even a response from, our own political system? If the system doesn't work for the majority of Americans, what good is it?
9:37 PM | link
If you read my ramblings, please add shiny blue grasshopper to your Prefs»Favorite Weblogs at weblogs.com. I'm curious. :)
8:48 PM | link
When was the deadline to turn in my statement of candidacy in order to continue from the Texas Democratic Convention to the National Convention? Today. When did I turn it in? Today.
While at the state party office, I did run into Glen Maxey, a fabulous Texas lege member who just so happens to be openly gay. Only in Austin, baby.
2:52 PM | link
I did the 5-mile March of Dimes walk today. Tomorrow, I'll be in the Million Mom March here in Austin. (1:00 in front of the governor's mansion.) Because it's Austin, we'll have live music!
And if you think more guns = less crime, think again. [via metafilter]
2:14 PM | link
This letter has most definitely made the rounds. I put off blogging it for a few days, but the more I read it and think it over...it's brilliant.
5:10 PM | link
Tips and tricks on how to have good anal sex. Points for being thorough!
8:15 PM | link
Gee, my governor makes me proud. A possibly innocent man is set to die in my state on June 22. And George W. Bush will do nothing to stop it.
"Under Texas law, Bush can only commute a death sentence if he receives a recommendation to do so from the state Board of Pardons and Paroles. Absent such a recommendation, Bush's legal authority is limited to granting a 30-day reprieve. ... In reality, no one honestly believes that Bush could not have stopped the execution of Tucker, Beets or any other death-row inmate had he seen fit to do so. 'One of the myths in Texas is that the governor doesn't have any power,' says David Dow, a law professor at the University of Houston. 'All the governor has to do is communicate his wishes to the members of the Board of Pardons and Paroles who are, after all, his political appointees, and they will do exactly what he wants.' Dow notes that in the one case where Bush commuted a death sentence to life in prison -- serial killer Henry Lee Lucas -- the governor made it clear what he thought and the board carried it out."
8:00 PM | link
Nobody wants a plate of General Charlie's chicken.
12:21 PM | link
I haven't seen End of Days yet (starring Arnold Schwarzenegger), but this New York Observer article sure makes me want to.
"I want to make it clear that I’m not endorsing Satanism here, what I am saying is that it’s incredibly refreshing to see a film that questions the simple-minded, simpering piety that passes for theodicy in popular culture and popular films. The simple-minded theodicy that allows the parents of a kid who escaped being murdered at Columbine to give all the credit to God—it was His doing, He saved my child. Which leaves the parents of a kid who was murdered to choose between thinking God wanted their kid dead and mouthing pious blather about God moving 'in mysterious ways.'
You see it over and over again, the sickening cruelty of the survivors of a natural tragedy, a tornado for instance, weepily telling the television cameras their survival was all God’s will, thus implicitly telling their neighbors who lost a mother or a child God must have wanted them dead. But it just ain’t as easy as that. This isn’t hard-won religious faith, this is cruel kindergarten-like cowering. Religious faith needs the challenge of the subversive theodicy in End of Days or it doesn’t mean anything. It’s sad that the only source of skeptical challenge to brain-dead pieties in Touched By An Angel–popular culture should come in a neo-Satanist Arnold Schwarzenegger movie, but we should be grateful to My Dark Lord Arnold for having the muscle to bring it to us. "
12:05 PM | link
I recently switched all my Amazon referral links so now all fees will go to the ACLU. Visit givequick! and do the same for your referral links. You can contribute to random nonprofits or to an individual charity.
The givequick! co-founder has an ever-so-cool blog. I'll be adding him to the roaming section as soon as I get off my lazy duff and make some updates to the site.
11:48 AM | link
If you like this one from Warped, register for free so you can read it and many more strips!
9:57 AM | link
Yet another reason to move to Canada. Ain't this the truth: "A lot more women masturbate than will talk about it," Johanson continued, "and most women's first orgasm is from solitary masturbation." Parents, take this advice to heart:
"If parents happen to walk in on their child in the midst of a masturbatory frenzy, New York sex educator Sari Locker offers some words of advice: Turn around and leave the room. If the moment comes up later in conversation, 'Apologize for interrupting their private time. Do not criticize or say anything to instill guilt or shame.'"
8:40 AM | link
The world mourns a respected cardinal. Uh, yeah.
8:41 PM | link
Should same-sex couples be banned from adopting children? Last week, Mississippi Governor Ronnie Musgrove signed legislation banning gay and lesbian couples from adopting children. The new law takes effect July 1, and three other states already have similar restrictions.
What the hell is going on? Am I the only one with my head on straight?
10:08 AM | link
I went from medium blonde to strawberry blonde and I think I like it.
8:53 AM | link
I passed the entrance exam!
"Congratulations! We are pleased to inform you that you have passed the exam for the Word Police Community Relations Division. Welcome to the Word Police Force. May you use your power wisely and kindly. You are now ready to receive your diploma and the Grammar Citations that you are henceforth empowered to issue."
4:43 PM | link
Whoa.</Keanu> I'm orange, too. [via malapropism]
"You are a bold and confident ORANGE. Orange is a warm, yet powerful color that indicates a strong and welcoming personality. You are a vibrant individual with an upbeat attitude and bright, inviting demeanor. Orange is no ordinary color, and you're no ordinary person. Energetic and fun-loving, you're a real friend magnet. Your charm and unassuming manner make you the sort of person people want to meet. You are well-rounded, fun to be around, and enjoy helping others. It is no surprise then that Orange is also a symbol of attraction. It is clearly the color for you."
2:21 PM | link
I went to see Gladiator last night, thinking that I was in store for a typical Hollywood cheeseball action flick. Nuh-uh. I was blown away. Now I have a new object for my lust. Yay!
She ain't so hard to look at, either.
3:15 PM | link
Which character are you most like? Me, I'm like Pooh. [via malapropism]
Just last week, a bunch of us at work were trying to decide that very thing. I thought I would be most like Piglet, but I guess I don't know Pooh personalities very well, after all.
2:59 PM | link
Jenn created a blog portal for southerners. Guess who's a member? Now I just need to get around to joining the webring.
By the way, I do so enjoy Jenn's nice piece of ass.
7:19 PM | link
Is it just because I'm a hippie liberal that I'm interpreting it as social commentary?
1:42 PM | link
I heart this town. Now if we could just get rid of this loser.
"Welcome to the city of brazen ingenuity, which just happens to be the nerve center of Republican politics right now. What a combination! Austin is where the grand plans for retaking the White House are being drawn. It's also where the governor's mansion draws protesters who think there is too much money being spent on the drug war. It's where the GOP's strongest contender in 12 years eats at Fonda San Miguel, jogs around Town Lake, sends his daughters to public high school and is represented by an openly gay state legislator. It's also a town with an openly lesbian sheriff."
1:18 PM | link
God bless these men, every one of them.
"These days, however, few of us care to talk undercover. Most of us have become unabashed evangelists. And I'd like to think that we have persuaded several men to give it a shot."
