todays

today's dodged bullet: i was supposed to drive up to LA and back tomorrow for a 5-hour meeting...which would have meant 6 hours of driving, thus an 11-hour day that i would have to start at about 6:30 to ensure getting to the meeting in LA by 10:00 AM.

instead, i'll dial in and view the presentation over a webinar, all from the comfort of my own cubicle.

today's hooray for religion: michigan militia that decided that killing policemen was the way to push their agenda. remind me again what good has come of religion...because lately, i can't come up with anything.

today's playlist:

• devo - we're through being cool
  
• the killers - a dustland fairytale
  
• broken social scene - swimmers
  
• goldfrapp - believer
  
• stephen duffy - holes in my shoes
  
• alphaville - oh patti
  
• weezer - the girl got hot
  
• queen - fat bottomed girls
  
• giorgio moroder - chase
  
• empire of the sun - walking on a dream
  
• blondie - war child
  
• shout out louds - impossible
  
• rupaul - ladyboy
  
• adam ant - hell's eight acres
  
• jonsi - boylilikoi
  
• twin shadow - castles in the snow
  
• spoon - the mystery zone

queen - fat bottomed girls today's celebrity rumor: i am told that john cho (fast forward, star trek) refers to himself as, "the cho". i hope this is not true. and for the record: today's state: sleepy. very sleepy.

get up for church

with or without religion, good people can behave well and bad people can do evil — but for good people to do evil — that takes religion.

-- steven weinberg

the monster woke me at 6:45 today, and that's sleeping in for her. still, 6:45 on a sunday morning seemed way too early today.

then i thought about younger, church-going days, when we had to be to meeting #1 by 8:00 AM, when in reality, the congregation could have established any time they wanted for their meeting #1. and for whatever reason, chose 8:00 AM.

which reminded me of a quote i grew up with:

a religion that does not require the sacrifice of all things never has the power sufficient to produce the faith necessary unto life and salvation.

...which was a quote that never, ever inspired me.

adam ant

i don't know who this holy moly site is run by, but if they break news like this, i'm all about them:

And we can also exclusively reveal that [Adam Ant is] recording again, for the first time in 16 years.

and to celebrate, here's a favorite track from the good old days:


miss thing, adam and the ants

business travel II

business travel. not as fun as it sounds. and the smell of bleach keeps me awake, a little bit.

i'm stuck in lovely montebello, CA, at a hilton garden inn. i saw a little japanese restaurant earlier today, and thought to give it a try for dinner...until i saw the health code B rating in the window.

so i ended up at carrows, which wasn't delicious, but did have an A rating.

bored, i went to the best buy across the parking lot, just to look through the CDs...yeah, that bored. the only items i considered buying were the essential clash, which i remembered that i already have at home, and a box set of the traveling wilburys...until i remembered that the song that was really drawing me to the CD was the roy orbison-sung "not alone anymore". which i already have.


not alone anymore, the traveling wilburys

business travel

after a saturday at disneyland with the in-laws, i'm in a hotel room getting ready for a couple of workdays in the LA office...to which i'm not really looking forward, but not dreading in any way...it's just an inconvenience working in someone else's office space, if even for just a couple of days.

BUT. when entering my hotel room, i found a gift basket that had been left for another guest. tempted to not mention it to anyone and just pilfer it for myself, but that's inviting bad karma. so i called for someone to come pick it up.

there's something odd about finding physical evidence of a previous guest in a hotel room. it's not as if one expects that nobody's been there, before...but cracking that sense of "sanitation" or whatever is just a tad unsettling.


disneyland was fun. it's odd, odd, odd, how disneyland inspires a sense of nostalgia for something one has never really experienced. that's good emotional manipulation, right there.

a collection of memes has been making the rounds, so here's a bit of it:

nod to calvin:

TEN TO START.

1. Are you single? i am not...happily taken.

2. Are you happy? more than i thought i would be at this point in my life.

3. Are you bored? more often boring, but not bored at the moment.

4. Are you naked? rarely.

5. Are you a blond? i'm not, but people think i am, because my calico-colored hair is going all white.

6. Are you moody? no, that takes too much energy.

7. Are you a lover/hater? lover...except on those whom i hate.

8. Are you hot/cold? i sweat more than anyone i know.

9. Are you Irish? no, but my oldest sister was.

10. Are you Asian? not by birth, but by marriage, perhaps.

TEN FACTS.

1. Name: ken

2. Nicknames: beeb

3. Birth mark: no

4. Hair color: white that looks blonde

5. Natural hair color: calico

6. Eye color: blue

7. Height: 5' 10"

8. Facebook Mood: good: i enjoy seeing what my high school friends are thinking. we're a surprisingly liberal-progressive lot, except for the odd conservative here and there.

9. Favorite color: red

10. One Place to Visit: this year, greece; ask again next year, and the answer will be different


ages since i've posted a song, huh? let's do that in the next post.

ewok

talking to a coworker about tomorrow's outing at d'land:

ME: is there anything else (other than Captain EO) newish at disneyland that we should get fastpasses for?

HIM: nothing in the past few years

ME: so i heard they're revamping "star tours"?

HIM: "star tours" closes next month, and will be closed for a year so george can put in his new movies.

ME: great, now they'll have stupid anakin yelling out "yippee".

HIM: [laughs] yeah, i hear it is a pod race.

ME: that "yippee" was worse than the ewoks in RotJ.

HIM: i loved the ewoks, but i was 8 when that came out. i used to roll down the car window in my dad's car and yell, "yub yub" to random passersby.

ME: i was 23. i hated those fuckers.

training

i spent the past two workdays in a training session, sitting next to someone whose behavior was not much different than a five year-old. he felt it his duty (privilege) to assist the instructor with pretty much any question the rest of us may have asked, or to offer technical advise, accurate or not, to the instructor mid-presentation.

i seriously thought he'd never shut the hell up.

as he was sitting next to me, i was constantly aware of him trying to catch my eye, like maybe the proximity might make us friends or something. if one could read my mind, one would read, "leavemealonedon'tlookatmejustgoaway".

does that make me a bad person? no. it makes him a bad person.

i'm actually looking forward to going back to the office tomorrow. yeah, it was that bad.

good dog

this is why i've never left the shelter empty-handed.



no such thing as a bad dog.

mika kicks-ass

very cool: mika, a favorite popstar of the moment, has released the title track from the new kick-ass movie soundtrack, and it is a good record.



am i surprised? not because mika did this, because he's terrific; more surprised that a movie actually pulled in a good song.

i'm all the more encouraged about seeing this, now.

freedom isn't free

this alien wanted to become a fan of the Freedom from Religion Foundation on facebook, but was afraid of the mormon end of his family seeing that and becoming...concerned. or something.

then he actually read a few of their posts on facebook, and was glad he didn't join in, all the same...they're crazy, just like any other fundamentalist.

kick-ass

i've seen the preview trailer for kick-ass a dozen times...and this is one i'm looking forward to.

SXSW: Kick-Ass Is Fast, Furious and Funny as Hell | Underwire | Wired.com

green zone

went to see green zone with the husband today. though by the same director, it isn't a bourne movie at all...for what isn't seen in the previews, there's actually a little more story here, all about chasing down the big lie of WMDs in iraq, and the various government agencies fighting with each other to get their story out.

throughout the movie, i found myself wondering how this whole chapter of USA's history would be rewritten, and to whose advantage. because you know that, the same as they have rewritten their god, some will rewrite the war effort into the story they want to believe.

all shaky camera work, of course, with men yelling back and forth throughout, but still easy enough to follow. surprises? none. but entirely watchable just the same.

this-that-theother

• i find myself studying my neck everytime i look in the mirror. i'm also watching celebrity necks these days. sally field: much older than me, and arguably the most obvious neck-age on tv right now. george clooney: closer to my age, in his last movie, his neck-age is pretty obvious.
  
  
  
• echo & the bunnymen track: proxy. look at them now!
  
  
  
• i had to confirm with the admin assistant that at least one other coworker in our office is older than i am. and yes...there is exactly one. by two years.
  
  
  
• superman movie tease

  Nolan said that he admired Singer's film, especially the way it connected in to director Richard Donner's version of Superman and the first two movies starring Reeve. Nolan added, though, that this new movie will stand on its own.

addendum

one poster responded to the hater on roseanneworld forum: roseanne's "heart is bigger than your mouth."

and i loved that.

eternity with the homosexuals

roseanne barr got into a little bit of blogging trouble last week, when she relayed the news of mormon celebrity marie osmond's son committing suicide because he's gay.

for several days, rosanne posted several links and her own personal commentary on the very damaging correlation between mormon teachings and the church's (mostly closeted) gay members; most notably, the above-average rate of suicides.

turns out, that part about osmond's son being gay was apparently from an untrustworthy source, and not substantiated by those who knew him. so the faithful logged on to blast roseanne for having posted that aspect of the story irresponsibly. something for which she apologized, profusely.

what the saints didn't address, however, was the substance of roseanne's posts: that there is real danger when a church, claiming to have a direct tunnel with the BIG DOG, tells you that there's something inherently wrong with you, that you aren't worthy of a temple marriage, and thus not going to "the highest degree" of their multi-level heaven.

it's not okay to make up this kind of baloney, and the "general authorities" -- who, ironically, have no authority in general matters -- should publish very clear statements that they are wrong on the subject of homosexuality.

because they're christians, and christians who lie will also be barred from that highest degree of their heaven. do they really want to spend eternity living with the homosexuals?

stock photo

i'm trying to complete five prerequisite web-based training courses at work before a real-life class next thursday, in between what all else i do at work all day. can't help myself from getting distracted by the poses and expressions used in the stock photo illustrations.

been a while since i posted an adorable track, eh? this one was recommended by a bro-in-law, and it's awesome.


lowiza, the lovely feathers

blondie converse

this is intriguing...debbie harry / blondie contributed to designing a line of converse chuck taylors.

add this to that list of I WANT.

shoes available here.

2011 prediction!

okay, so george clooney didn't win anything last night at the oscars. that's fine, we like jeff bridges, and didn't LOVE up in the air. clooney puts out like 14 movies a year, so i'm making what some may call a premature prediction for oscars 2011:

best actor in a leading role: george clooney

and you can quote me.

the husband and i watched at a friend's house; those attending threw $5 into a kitty (total pot: $40 -- i have very nonparticipatory friends), and made their best guesses as to who would win. by the end of the night, the husband and i came in THIRD! against two cards, both of whom acknowledged that they hadn't seen any of the nom'd movies for the year.

i guess being informed did not offer us much in the way of a winning hand.

alice

i'm surprised: i really liked tim burton's alice in wonderland. i often come away from a tim burton movie admiring the concept, but being disappointed by the actual execution. (major exception: big fish, for which i didn't care for either the concept nor the execution.)

alice, though, seemed perfectly pulled off in so many ways: imagery was really well carried out; characters exactly matched what one would hope; and the story never seemed to wander off-path.

surprisingly focused. i really liked it.

digital journal

i'm not really big on gadgets, but i'm filing this under, "I WANT"

Microsoft's Courier 'digital journal': exclusive pictures and details (update: video!) -- Engadget

130 percent

readers may recall that i ranted about the groupon people recklessly writing about the jaws movies being set in the midwest. here's a new one:

Eighty percent of America's cucumber crops go toward making pickles; the other 50 percent is distributed among spas for edible eye coverings.

1. i doubt that "the other 50%" goes to spas. i mean, many foods other than pickles are made from cucumbers...those "whole cucumbers" one can buy at the market, for example.
   
2. 80% + 50% = far more than 100%.

now i'm not a writer by trade, but i do appreciate at least a minimal amount of integrity from people who are.

niecy

how can i watch niecy nash on dancing with the stars without watching kate gosselin's ugliness? even in fast-forward, i just don't know if i could stand it.

and when i say "ugliness" i'm not talking about physical appearance.

but really, who doesn't love niecy nash?

southLAnd

glad to see southLAnd back on tv this week. big fan of just about anybody from the o.c.; but seriously, with this show, benjamin mckenzie is doing well for himself.

and i'm eager to catch up with the personal dramas that got started during the short NBC run last year.

so gritty was this week's episode, though! i'd forgotten how there is not one static shot in the whole show, rather, every shot is handheld shakiness almost to the point of not being able to grasp what the image is.

there were two scenes that were particulary intense: mini-riot at the end of the cul de sac was intense -- god knows if there's anything scarier than black people disobeying authority (ahem), that would have to be shower-violence in prison, our last impression for the week.

but i would kick my copcar partner's flabby butt if he brought fried foods into my cruiser.

mormon news

from the mormon newsroom blog:

Religious Expression: A Fundamental Right
POSTED BY LYMAN KIRKLAND
At the On Faith blog this week, the question posed to the panel of On Faith religious leaders and experts addressed proselytism overseas:

What is the real problem with proselytism overseas by U.S. religious groups? Isn't sharing one's faith part of religious freedom? When does it cross the line into manipulation and coercion?

Representing The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, On Faith panelist Michael Otterson explained that freedom of expression, including sharing one's faith with others, is a fundamental human right:

Everyone is and should be entitled to speak his or her mind on such matters, and everyone else has the right to listen, or not, as they choose. Because of the central importance of these rights, no person or government is justified in interfering with them.

ME: what is missing in the press release is the LDS response to the question, "When does it cross the line into manipulation and coercion?" the response is found in the original article:

...Mormons eschew any tactic that smacks of coercion, high pressure salesmanship, argumentation, or economic incentive. They invite--even persuade--but do not pressure or coerce...

which, in my own experience, is baloney. their tactics in gaining "converts" are very heavy-handed, emotional manipulation sales tactics. never mind what they put their members through once they're onboard.

interestingly, the panel member goes on to make the following quote from the church's scripture:

"We do not believe it just to mingle religious influence with civil government, whereby one religious society is fostered and another proscribed in its spiritual privileges, and the individual rights of its members, as citizens, denied." (Doctrine and Covenants 134:2, 4, 9)

apparently, their not-so-covert political activity with Prop 8, the anti-gay marriage ballot initiative (california, 2008) is not interpreted as having one religion trumping another (yea, even non-religion) in matters to be decided by the state.

crazies

today is going to be a crazies day at the office.

case 1:

BOSS doesn't think we should have requested access to a customer interface because it puts too much responsibility on us. i told her i requested it only so that i knew what the customer's experience was if we got involved with problem-solving down the road.

i know that had i not requested it, one day down the road when we were looped into problem-solving and i didn't know what the customer interface was, she'd be asking why i didn't know this.


case 2:

coworker has asked repeatedly why there are two versions of one report. i informed him that "A" is the regular monthly distribution, and "B" is the quarterly distribution, based on "A", targeted toward upper management.

coworker asked, "so which came first, 'A' or 'B'"?
i said, again, "'B' is based on 'A', so 'A' came first."
coworker, "ha ha, it's like the chicken or the egg...which came first? ha ha."

no, it isn't. A came first.

(and for the record, some in the scientific community have determined that between the chicken and the egg, the egg came first...because that egg was laid by a not-quite-chicken bird, whose mutated offspring became the first chicken.)

same coworker answers Instant Message questions by shouting over cubicle walls, rather than typing a response.

twin peaks vs lost: who has the best mysterious asian guy?

sleep disorder

i experience this about twice a month:

Exploding head syndrome
Okay, exploding head syndrome doesn't actually involve detonating domes. This creatively named disorder occurs during the onset of deep sleep, when the person is suddenly startled awake by a sharp, loud noise. These noises range from cymbals crashing to explosives going off. To the person hearing them, the explosions seem to originate either from right next to the person's head or inside the skull itself. There's no pain involved, and no danger, either. Doctors don't know what causes exploding head syndrome, but they do know that it isn't associated with any serious illness.

glad to hear i'm not the only one.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35606027/ns/health-behavior/wid/11915773?GT1=31036

big love

bill: everything is about the campaign for him. EVERYTHING. he's always been a priesthood driven dick, but this season is different...he's completely driven by his campaign for senate. (and yet does not allow the same for marjean and her own campaign, her tv retail business.)

interesting that barb brought up the antidepressant medications talk regarding utah women in tonight's episode. did you know that utah has the highest rate of antidepressants in the US? is this related to an overwhelming culture of mormonism? evidence suggests.

not enough interaction with the compound this week.

i took a few weeks, but i'm finally loving the new theme song.


home, engineers