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Long Time, No Post Part Two: Pantheacon, RIP RAW [Feb. 14th, 2007|03:47 pm]
[Tags|, , , ]
[Current Location |Work]
[Current Mood | good]
[Current Music |Jethro Tull - Passion Play]

Off to Pantheacon this weekend! Can't miss this one, as it includes not one, but two memorial celebrations of the life of Robert Anton Wilson, not to mention the official Meme-Orial at the Santa Cruz Boardwalk on Sunday (to which I have scored a ticket). RAW's writings and lectures were a major influence on me during a time when I was trying to sort out and understand some strange experiences and unexpected "reality tunnels" that I had wandered into earlier in my life. I discovered him through the "Illuminatus Trilogy" some 20 years ago and nothing "was" the same after that. I'm yet another person whom Pope Bob helped to see the Fnords. I've been a proud card-carrying Discordian Pope for many years now, except during those sad intervals when one would go through the wash and have to be replaced. (Card, that is, not Pope. Popes require dry cleaning.) In my old wallet I always kept one displayed next to my drivers license so I could confer instant pope-dom on any store clerk who had to process a check from me.

I've been to many a P-Con and always enjoy them despite self-identifying as only nominally Pagan these days I suppose - sort of a Beltane-and-Samhain-Pagan, in the manner of my Christmas-and-Easter-Christian upbringing. At least that's how I see myself in comparison to many P-Con regulars who are intensely devoted to their various traditions and paths. But good-on-em, says I! I enjoy the company, perspectives and spirits of most of my Pagan brethren and cistern immensely - far more than I do that of the more conventionally religious. Me, I follow the word of the Prophet Carlin: "I'm not an atheist or an agnostic. I'm an acrostic - the whole thing puzzles me." I have no idea what is really going on - I can only make some intuitive leaps and guesses and surmises about what seems to me to be going on, and to be content and comfortable in the Mystery, and to enjoy the humor in it all.

And that's where the late Dr. Wilson comes in. With brilliant logic and disarming, outrageous wit, he helped me see that it can be okay, comfortable, even desirable, to live in a "maybe state", not falling entirely for anyone else's BS (Belief System) and definitely not entirely for my own BS. None of us has any idea or way of knowing what the hell is Really going on, we can only hypothesize about it based on the highly subjective feedback provided by our nervous systems as filtered through early-life imprinting, cultural conditioning, media brainwashing, etc. Given this, we have no business telling others what they "ought to believe" or certainly not what God will do to them (or tell us to do to them) if they don't.

For me, beginning to learn to think like this was incredibly liberating. Mind you, I had spent some years in my young adulthood mired in fundy/evangelical Jesus-freak Christianity (one of the "strange experiences and unexpected reality tunnels" I mentioned above). After freeing myself from that, I ventured out into the spiritual landscape, exploring Celtic and Native American Shamanism, Sufism, Wicca and the Western Hermetic Tradition, investing some years of intensive study in the latter. I came to realize that, despite my denials, what I was seeking was not enlightenment, salvation, oneness with the Great Whatever, or whatever, but a simple comforting certainty about it all - the same need for certainty that fuels fundamentalism of all persuasions. The realizations I gained from RAW's talks and writings were very helpful in readjusting my perspective - my reality tunnel - about it all with humor, fearlessness, curiosity and compassion. Thus inspired, I delved into a study of Ericksonian language patterns, NLP, hypnosis and the magick and mechanics of language and belief. I have come to understand that beliefs can be harsh masters but good servants, provided they are given the right mixture of nurturing and discipline. Otherwise, they tend to pilfer the silver and raid the liquor cabinet. And, above all, The Whole Thing is far too important to take seriously.

I am looking forward to celebrating the good doctor in grand Discordian style on three different occasions this weekend, to lifting a tipple of uisca beatha (or two or three or...)to his memory, and to continuing to catapult the lasagna.

"Like what you like, enjoy what you enjoy, and don't take crap from anyone."
---Robert Anton Wilson, 01.18.1932 - 01.11.2007

http://www.rawilson.com/
http://robertantonwilson.blogspot.com/
http://impermanentpress.com/pages2/raw-tix.html
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Long Time, No Post Part One [Feb. 14th, 2007|02:27 pm]
[Tags|, ]
[Current Location |work]
[Current Mood | calm]
[Current Music |Jethro Tull - Stormwatch]

It's been a long time since I last posted anything relatively significant here. Busy with other things, and dealing with a dying hard drive on my desktop and wireless network problems on the laptops. Now here I am at work on a quiet afternoon with the higher-ups gone, the phones still and everything in a general lull. Sweet, as long as it doesn't last too long! Since my last post back in November, I have become the manager of the customer service department and have a very nice team of people working with me. We get along great and have created a very pleasant work environment - a huge turn-around from what it was for the past couple of years. Unfortunately, the operation of the rest of the company makes me feel like the social director on the Titanic at times.

During the intervals when my computers, network and camera have all been working at the same time, I have been copying old family photos and posting them in the 100 Years Old group on Flickr.com. So far I've posted a couple dozen, which only scratches the surface of all the old photos I've inherited. Then, there are the hundreds of early 20th Century postcards that have been passed down, perfect for the Penny Postcards site http://www.rootsweb.com/~usgenweb/ca/ventura/postcards/ppcs-vent.html that both my brother and rowanf turned me on to at the same time. I don't collect this stuff - it just got passed down to me and I find it relaxing to study and work with these images of a vanished world and almost-forgotten people and keep the memory of them alive through sharing. My oldest photos are gradually being posted to http://www.flickr.com/photos/38572265@N00/sets/72157594353439224/
Here is the oldest - a genuine daguerreotype of my gt gt grandparents on their wedding day in 1854 -

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Which Discworld Character Are You? [Jan. 4th, 2007|08:19 pm]
[Tags|]
[Current Location |Home]
[Current Mood | amused]
[Current Music |L & Z watching an episode of Lost in the living room]

Granny Weatherwax? Corporal Nobbs? Archchancellor Ridcully? Rincewind? The Luggage? DEATH? Test yourself at http://quizfarm.com/test.php?q_id=82543 and find out!

I came up 75% Commander Vimes, 75% Nanny Ogg, two of my favorite DW characters. I do enjoy a good tipple, am not entirely "unexperienced" (wink-wink-nudge-nudge) and can often tell what road I'm on though the feel of it though the steering wheel (of course having both eyes open doesn't hurt) - and I don't do it all at the same time! And, willingly or not, I often do what others are uwilling to do.


You scored as Commander Samuel Vimes. You are Samuel Vimes! Captain of Ankh-Morpork’s city Watch! You are a knight, married to the very wealthy, noble lady Sybil Ramkin. You often walk the streets at night, and are able to tell where you are by the feel of the cobbles under your boots. You always do what is right – that is, what needs to be done – to keep the city safe, even when it seems bad.

</td>

Gytha (Nanny) Ogg

75%

Commander Samuel Vimes

75%

The Librarian

63%

Lord Havelock Vetinari

63%

Carrot Ironfounderson

63%

Rincewind

56%

Death

50%

Cohen The Barbarian

44%

Esmerelda (Granny) Weatherwax

44%

Greebo

31%

Which Discworld Character are you like (with pics)
created with QuizFarm.com
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A picture from yesterday [Nov. 26th, 2006|10:51 pm]
Just experimenting with uploading photos to LJ for the first time. Here I am with Laurie & my mom after dinner at her house yesterday.

http://pics.livejournal.com/amidb/gallery/00003s3h
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...and a Pleasant Thanksgiving Holiday [Nov. 26th, 2006|10:32 pm]
[Current Location |Still in my chair at home with my feet up]
[Current Mood | satisfied]
[Current Music |Still Loreena McKennitt - An Ancient Muse]

I've been enjoying a very pleasant and relaxing few days. Wednesday night was my poly men's group meeting in Sonoma, and then I had a comfortable morning and afternoon at home organizing & cleaning up cluttered computer files and helping Laurie prepare our part of a group Thanksgiving dinner - helping mostly by staying out of the way unless needed. We had a great Thanksgiving dinner with five of our nearest and dearest at Zhahai & Cascade's, just two mile away. Nice not to have to drive for an hour to be with friends for a change! Two of our number came back home with me to spend the night, and after all the turkey dinner,dessert, wine and champagne we fell asleep much sooner than we intended to!
Friday Laurie had to work but I observed National Buy Nothing day by staying at home and catching up on things that I wanted/needed to do. I even took advantage of the nice weather to mow the lawn and tidy up the yard a bit. English walnut trees are messy this time of the year! I made one trip into town to rent some movies (that doesn't count for Buy Nothing Day, does it?) I rented Protocols of Zion (disturbing documentary about anti-Semitism, religious prejudice and abysmal human ignorance that helped reinforce my prejudice against organized religion in general), Thank You for Smoking (wicked cynical satire about a tobacco lobbyist) and X-Men The Last Stand (fun adrenaline rush).
Yesterday, we had a second Thanksgiving dinner with my mom, who lives about 90 minutes away. She turned 89 on Tuesday and is in remarkably good shape for her age. She still lives out on her own, drives and takes care of all of her own needs, except for having someone come by to tend to her yard every couple of weeks. She is sharp and in good spirits and is fun to spend time with, but I notice that she is getting alarmingly forgetful and I need to keep a closer watch on that. We took her a home-cooked turkey dinner with all the trimmings and she prepared a salad and vegetables, and insisted on doing all the cleanup and dishwasher-loading afterward. I know better than to try to stop her so we just stood by to help if she requested or needed it.
Today Laurie took her mom out shopping and I tended to things at home and then set out for some grocery shopping and errands of my own just as the rain came pouring down!
This is the first post-election Thanksgiving in the past six years when my sense of gratitude for the blessings that I enjoy hasn't been severely tempered by a desperate urge to emigrate to Tierra De Fuego or hide under the bed until at least 2008. There is a much work to be done and I am not very confident in the power shift in Washington to really make much of a difference in the big picture, but I am feeling glimmers of hope and renewal that I haven't felt in a long time. Above all, I continue to feel profoundly grateful for the incredible people in my life and for the amazing places they have taken me over the years. I can't - and don't want to - imagine who I would be today if I hadn't found my tribe over these past many years and hadn't chosen to follow them out of mainstream conformity and complacency and into the incredibly rich life I live today. My wish for the world is for more people to open up and experience this same kind of shift in perspective and awareness in their own way.
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Changes at work... [Nov. 26th, 2006|09:41 pm]
[Current Location |Rocking chair in my home office]
[Current Mood | relaxed]
[Current Music |Loreena McKinnett - An Ancient Muse]

I was looking forward to a pleasant and restful long weekend, and that's what I got. I needed it too, after a tense couple of weeks at work culminating in a round of layoffs on Friday and Monday. Three people were let go, which is a significant number in a company of 17. Two of the three that were let go were ready to go anyway and at least one was mostly quite pleased about it, and all three were given generous severance packages including pay through the end of the year. I was not among the newly unemployed; in fact I was assured that not only was my job secure, but that I am considered essential to the continued growth and success of the company as we launch some new stuff aimed at increased sales and profits. I of course took the opportunity to recommend some improvements of a personal and pecuniary nature and was assured also that they will be looking out for me with regard to increased pay as things evolve. One of the changes in personnel was designed to make my little department much more functional, pleasant and cooperative in spirit, and it was a change that was long overdue. Once things settle down, I expect my day-to-day work experience to be much less stressful and more smooth and productive. Layoffs at the beginning of the holidays really suck, but two of the three that were let go were ready to go anyway and were quite pleased about it, and all three were given generous severance packages including pay through the end of the year. Tomorrow should be a crazy day for me because there is always a backup of stuff to be done whenever we're closed for a holiday, and the new replacement person in my department won't be coming in until Tuesday and it will take a while to get her up to speed. Should be fun...
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Still in full-gloat mode! [Nov. 9th, 2006|02:58 pm]
[Tags|]
[Current Location |Around here somewhere]
[Current Mood | amused]
[Current Music |Steve Kimock]

More political blathering...

I expected the Dems to take the house but I really didn't expect them to take the senate too. That just seemed too much to hope for. But Senator Macacawitz Allan of VA has officially conceded and the two independents (including Leiberman) are throwing in with the Dems, so the Republican regime is officially over. And as an extra bonus prize, Rummy is out too! I love all the high-minded talk of bi-partisan harmony and civility now that the balance of power has shifted. The Republicans in charge have certainly demonstrated some shining examples of these noble virutes in their conduct toward the loyal opposition these past 12 years. But getting even often means lowering yourself to personally unacceptable levels, so I hope they just get on with things instead. I am all for civility and harmony, but this is Congress we're talking about. Winning the Senate turned out not to be too much to hope for after all; now, maybe, just maybe, I can invest some hope in the possibility that some real advances will start being made. But, again, this is Congress we're talking about. "Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress. But I repeat myself." -- Mark Twain.

Being the ultra-liberal pinko yellow commie rat bastard America-hating terrorist-loving San Francisco-values-embracing paranoid conspiracy nut peacenick pervert that I am, I have come to feel just a skosh more disenfranchised and internally expatriated these past twelve years for some strange reason. And, for some strange reason, I don't think that's likely to change much. But I'm still really happy to see that arrogant smirk smacked off Shrub-boy's face. And through it all, I have found my place and my community. I took the red pill once and would take it again in a second. Fnord.

I do hope Speaker Pelosi survived her lunch at the White House and has been seen in public since then. I had visions of her sitting over a trap door at the dinner table with Shrub-boy pushing a button that opened it to drop her into a chute that sends her off to a "rendition facility" in Egypt or somewhere, but that's just the sick, cynical, political part of my mind at work.

A thought for the Thanksgiving Season --
"In this world of sin and sorrow there is always something to be thankful for; as for me, I rejoice that I am not a Republican." --H. L. Menken
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Notebook Chronicles Part 2 [Nov. 8th, 2006|02:42 pm]
[Current Location |Over yonder]
[Current Mood | pleased]
[Current Music |Hanuman - Pedalhorse]

You will recall that in Sunday’s episode, our feckless hero was contending with a new notebook computer which refused to pick up the signal from the router and was advised by tech support to take it back for a replacement. This Toshiba was one of the featured sale items on the front page of Office Despot’s Sunday newspaper circular, but the one I got on Sunday was the only one in the local store. I called all three of their local outlets and none had this machine in stock, nor were they sure of when they would get any. One store manage told me he last got a shipment of them on Oct. 24! WTF! It’s their sale item this week! I finally found one (the only one in stock north of the GG, apparently) when I called the San Rafael store. So on Monday after work I trundled on down 101 all the way to San Rafael and made the exchange, once one of their tech people (at least this store had one!) had satisfied himself that there was indeed something wrong with it. I brought the new one home and had it up and online with a minimum of hassle. It’s a really nice little machine, and now I just wish I had some time to play with it! I did lie in bed and watch an episode of Lost on it late last night and that was pretty cool. Tonight I’ve got my Poly Men’s Group in Novato and will have some special company waiting for me when I get home (theory & discussion of Polyamory the first half of the evening, hands-on practical experience the second half). I’m not complaining, but I won’t have time to play with my new toy again until tomorrow night! I’m looking forward to the mobility and not being chained to my home office desktop any longer.
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Neeeneer, neeeneer, neeeneer!! [Nov. 8th, 2006|02:12 pm]
[Current Location |work]
[Current Mood | Gloating]
[Current Music |String Cheese Incident]

I must say I am pleasantly surprised by the election results. Alright, I admit it – I’m more than pleasantly surprised – I’m gloating shamelessly! And to my conservative Republican friends and relatives (who won’t be reading this anyway), may I say with all due respect and understanding for your feelings, “Neeeneer, neeeneer, neeeneer!! You lost, get over it!” (Okay, I had to say it somewhere!) The centrist wing of the Republocrat party is finally back in the game. And while they are a far cry from what I’d prefer in a political party, they’re the best this country seems to be able to do at the moment. As long as they are wiping that arrogant little smirk off Shrub-Boy’s face and can begin to counteract his madness and initiate at least a bit of progressive change, then they’re okay with me for now, but I've learned not to have high expectations. If Allen concedes to Webb for the VA senate seat then we will have collected the whole set – house, senate, and the majority of state governors. Woo-HOO!!Not a bad night’s work! I hear that W has invited Nancy Pelosi to lunch at the White House tomorrow. I hope she brings her own food tasters with her.
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Drat! [Nov. 5th, 2006|09:34 pm]
[Current Mood | Disgruntled]
[Current Music |Old Blind Dogs - 5]

So today I gave in to the urge to buy a new notebook computer. I've never had one of my own and it has been four years since I had one at all (courtesy of my previous employment). I found one, a Toshiba, that had everything I wanted at a very good sale price, and I even consulted my Internal Guidance System about it. I went to the local Office Despot and did the deal, then brought it home and plugged it in. A couple of hours later, after much dicking about, some help from a much more knowledgeable friend, and a half-hour on the phone with a nice lady in Korea or somewhere with Toshiba's tech support, I concluded that it has to go back for a replacement or a refund. The problem is that its wireless connection refuses to have any electronic intercourse with my router. I had it right next to L's notebook which had a strong signal from the router but it refused to have anything to do with the router's signal. Nothing I could do would persuade it to communicate with my network, although occasionally it would pick up on a signal from somewhere else in our sparsely-populated rural neighborhood. The nice lady in Korea or wherever says the wireless card seems to be bad. So, tomorrow after work, I'll see if I can get a replacement and maybe it will give more satisfactory results. I still have a vision of myself out on the porch under a glorious moon much like tonight's, with the world in my lap.
Other than that, its been a good weekend. I got some much-needed organizing done in my room and replaced a flimsy shelf with a sturdy cabinet. Doesn't sound like much, but it made a difference. Then it was off to the PPP, which turned out to be well-attended despite earlier predictions. Many more of our SC tribe than usual were there.
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Missing the Playa [Nov. 2nd, 2006|04:35 pm]
[Tags|]
[Current Location |Work]
[Current Mood | Homesick]
[Current Music |office sounds on a quiet day]

An unusually quiet afternoon here at work. No business going on, most things under control, and Great Leader is gone for the afternoon instead of running around with his hair on fire as usual. The minutes are dragging by (52 to go!) and it's grey and damp outside and I'm missing Burning Man. Just two months ago today I was out there in the big middle of it all having a blast. For the last little while I've been revisiting it through some of the 700+ photos of the 06 Burn posted at  http://images.burningman.com/ thinking "I was there!" - "I remember that!" - "Was that there??" - "How did I miss that?" - "I saw them!" - "Where was I when that happened?" - and "I gotta go check that out this evening!" Yes, a part of me believes that Black Rock City is still out there on the Playa with all 38,000 residents still rockin' away and all I have to do is jump in my car, drive 7 hours, and I'll be back there again. But no, it's not out there, it's in here (points in general direction of pinel gland) and I can live it anytime I want, like right here, right now.  The other day, Halloween, we all dressed up in costumes for work, and the one other Burner here & I showed up in our best Playa garb. I even accessorized with my Camel Pack, goggles and Buffy dust mask, all still coated with playa dust. That, combined with the generally surreal nature of a typical work day here plus my co-workers' costumes helped put me back in the spirit of it, sort of. Will I make it back next year? I'd like to, but L wants us to go to NFNC Summer Camp in Oregon for the first time and I'm interested in that also. But it's just before Burning Man and I don't know about getting it together to do both. I've got some time to decide, so we'll see...
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A workshop, another birthday celebration, and a hike at Point Reyes [Oct. 29th, 2006|07:28 pm]
[Current Location |Roughly 38° 14' N 122° 38' W]
[Current Mood | mellow]
[Current Music |Ian Anderson -- The Orchestral Jethro Tull]

I feel much more rested and on top of things than I did a week ago at this time, although it took a while to get here. In our previous episode, dear reader, you will recall that our hero was experiencing great fatigue from staying out way, way too late the night before. A bit of domestic discord upon awakening that morning didn't help much, but we didn't go into that then and won't now. Suffice to say that the week didn't start well and was well on its way to being over before it got better. Work was stressful and full of non-stop interruptions and annoyances, and I just couldn't seem to get on track energy-wise until about Thursday. Then on Friday evening Voni came to visit and we had a great dinner followed by Bill Maher on HBO and from there the weeks fatigue and stress melted away.

On Saturday I attended Zen DeBrucke's workshop on accessing our Internal Guidance Systems. It was a very reasonable two-for-one deal and it had been in the back of my mind to do this one ever since I took her Power Manifestation workshop back in January. Linda wanted to go so we enrolled almost at the last minute and got the two-fer deal. I recommend Zen's work to anyone interested in refining their ability to direct the power of thought and awareness toward creating a richer life. I'd developed a certain amount of resistance and cynicism toward anything along these lines after OD'ing on mainstream & new-agey personal development and self-help stuff years ago, but I found Zen's approach to be refreshingly straightforward, simple and easy to relate to. I feel that I've re-connected with some basic inner tools & resources that I've always had but had lost touch with. Now I need to review the notes and handouts and stay plugged in and practice using the skills.

The workshop ended just in time for me to scoot further on down the highway to Oakland for Desi's birthday dinner. Another Saturday night birthday party! This was a small gathering at a restaurant near Jack London Square called the Buttercup Kitchen. Walking around the square, I realized that I hadn't been down in that area in 10 or 15 years and was amazed at how fast the years had gone by. I was on my own that night, and although there were many great Samhain/Halloween rituals and celebrations to choose from, my choice was to just go to the dinner party and then head on home for some rare quiet and solitude. Now that we are moving into the darkness and (in the Celtic tradition anyway) the beginning of a new year I felt more of an urge to draw inward and enjoy the opportunity to be alone and reflective for a while.

This morning I took advantage of the extra hour to arise early and spend some time reading, meditating, and reviewing what I had learned the day before about IGS. Then I used my new IGS skills to discover what I really wanted to do with the rest of my day, and that turned out to be to take a long solitary hike at Point Reyes. It had been too long since I was last out there, and too long since I last took a good hike. I've been sedentary way too much, and that and all the birthday parties and restaurant food has been turning me into a slug! So I headed out around 10:30 and chose the Muddy Hollow/Glenbrook/Estero loop in the hills above Limantour. The coastal clouds hung in all day, with just the occasional patch of blue, so the weather was just right for hiking, not too warm or too cool, and just dull and grey enough to cloak the mostly barren landscape with a touch of subtly melancholy mysteriousness to satisfy my inner Celt at this auspicious time of the year. There were very few people out there, so I was able to do pretty much the whole seven miles or so, plus the drive in and out in silence.

I pretty much followed the route described on bahiker.com - http://www.bahiker.com/northbayhikes/muddy.html - with a couple of sightseeing detours. The final stretch took me up Muddy Hollow Trail, and although it is officially signed as closed due to being hazardous and partly under water, it was in fact dry and easily passable all the way up from Estero Trail, although I sure it won't remain that way much longer. It passes through some dense undergrowth, mostly alder, along the edge of a marsh, and at one point I came almost face-to-face with a young buck fallow deer with a nice rack of antlers. A little further along I spotted two other, apparently does, and one was pure white. I got a few photos of its face looking at me through the undergrowth.

The non-native Fallow and Axis Deer were introduced into the area about 60 years ago and have proliferated to the point that they are threatening the well-being of the native Mule Deer and Tule Elk and the NPS appears to be moving from a policy of managing them to eradicating them altogether. I'll have to look into this a little more, as it seems such a shame. I almost contributed to the eradication program (possibly adding myself to it) when a couple more Fallow Deer (each with a nice set of antlers) ran out into the road in front of me on a blind curve while I was driving out. In addition to these critters I saw a couple of Red Tail Hawks and a (probable) Northern Harrier, not to mention the usual multitude of LBJ birds. I took a couple dozen pictures, some of which I'll post on Flickr when I get to it. But enough of this for now - someone loaned us a DVD set of the first season of some show called Lost. I have no idea what it is but I've been told it's worthwhile, so I'll put a wrap on the weekend by checking out the first episode.
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Move along - move along - nothing to read here... [Oct. 22nd, 2006|09:35 pm]
[Current Location |Right over there]
[Current Mood | tired]
[Current Music |The Waybacks - Devolver]

Nothing much to tell - just enjoyng the end of a rare quiet weekend at home and playing a little more with this here LiveJournal contraption. This is my thrid journal posting. I've added the beginnings of a bit of bio and uploaded a couple more pix to see what happens. Next I'll try playing with creating a gallery as time allows. Hah.
I mostly stayed around home this weekend, except for going to Art's birthday party in Martinez last night. Didn't get home until around 3:00 AM so am somewhat of a zombie today. Laurie has been doing quite a bit of redecorating around the house and I got into the spirit a bit yesterday by spontaneously going into my closet and hauling out stuff I don't wear anymore for giveaway. It's been a long time since I've done that and was rather shocked at how constipated my closet had gotten! Things should flow a bit better now. Also did a fair amount of sitting out on the front porch in the warm sun reading (Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman) and quaffing Guinness. Last weekend was the Sacred Connections 4-day retreat, the weekend before I did both days of Hardly Strictly Bluegrass in GG Park, and the weekend before that it was the Sebastopol Celtic Festival Friday night thrugh Sunday. After three intense but fun weekends in a row, I was ready for some down time & pretty much got it but want more, but it's back to work in the morning! And so, to bed...
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Keith Olbermann Kicks Ass! [Oct. 18th, 2006|11:16 pm]
[Current Location |Still here]
[Current Mood | Defiant]
[Current Music |Mendelssohn Violin Concerto in Em - Yehudi Menuhin]

I stopped in the middle of writing my first journal entry to catch Keith Olbermann on MSNBC - I knew he would have some strong comments on Tsar Georgivich's signing of the Military Commissions Act, and he did not disappoint. Go to http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15321167/ and watch the video to get the full emotional impact of his delivery. The written words are certainly powerful in and of themselves, but you've got to hear and see it to really get it. I don't know how long they'll let him stay around, but he's really going for it while he still can.

"Stop throwing the Constitution in my face, It's just a goddamned piece
of paper!" --- George W. Bush

"In this world of sin and sorrow there is always something to be thankful for. As for me, I rejoice that I am not a Republican." --- H. L. Mencken
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Well, here I am on LJ... [Oct. 18th, 2006|08:50 pm]
[Current Location |Here]
[Current Mood | Grim foreboding]
[Current Music |Max Bruch Violin Concerto #1 (Yehudi Menuhin)]

I've been hearing about LJ, I've surfed randomly through several journals and looked around a bit, and now with the encouragement of my friend rowanf, I've jumped on in. Not sure what I'll do with it, how often I'll post, or who will read it but I may as well make a start. I doubt if I'll post anything that is highly personal, private or too self-revealing as I don't trust this medium enough for that. And, if I do, names may be changed to protect my ass. Mostly I suppose I'll just use it to keep track of my ramblings and musings, and those of my friends who are also on LJ.

Ironic that I begin this little exercise in free speech on the day after my country's leaders betrayed what we used to consider its most sacred principles and officially turned it into a fascist dictatorship. Yesterday "President" Bush signed the Military Commissions Act, essentially scrapping the rule of law that has prevailed since the signing of the Magna Carta in 1215. The writ of habeas corpus, which guarantees you and me our right to due process in a court of law before a judge and jury has ben codified and essentially gutted. "They hate us for our freedoms" Bush tells us, and so he takes away the most essential of our freedoms, and we the sheeple let him do it. Just keep us lulled with the illusion of being safe and secure, and stupefied with pop culture and we go along with anything as long as he doesn't cancel the Superbowl or American Idol. What have we become? We are Germany in 1933 all over again, giving Adolf Hitler carte blanche power as dictator through the signing of the Enabling Act. That act abolished the German constitution, and Chancellor Bush's signing of the Military Commissions act yesterday did virtually the same thing to the US Constitution, that "goddamned piece of paper" as Bush, who publicly swore to uphold and defend it, has referred to it in private. I have never been more ashamed of my country or its leaders. Not a very cheery or positive start to my LJ musings, but there it is.

"Resist much, obey little; Once unquestioning obedience, once fully enslaved;
Once fully enslaved, no nation, state, city of this earth, ever afterward resumes its liberty." -- Walt Whitman, "To the States"
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