So that's where Mark Sanford was, but why are we surprised?

South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford cheated on his wife. Hardcore. He didn't cheat on her in South Carolina, he didn't even pop up to North Carolina for a bit of afternoon delight, no, Mark left the freaking continent.

Sanford, who looks like what would happen if you spliced the DNA of Bert with that of a carrot, went AWOL last week but everyone's suspicions were raised when his wife said she "didn't know where he was" but wasn't the least bit worried. Republicans rushed to defend one of their rising stars - Sanford has been listed as a potential Presidential candidate in 2012 - but even they had to know something was amiss. Some spoke of how Sanford was supposedly out hiking, and "being a man, something lubrals (liberals) wouldn't understand". Well, if being a man means leaving the your wife and four children behind while you desecrate your marriage thousands of miles away, I don't know if that's what I want to be.

Now their defense is that Sanford "made a mistake" and that it's "no worse than what Clinton or Edwards did" (ah, the old Slick Willy chestnut), but they're wrong. They're very wrong. The actions of Bill Clinton and John Edwards were nothing short of despicable, no one is doubting that, but Clinton and Edwards never ran on a platform of family values, Christian morals, and never pushed sexual minorities to the fringes of society with their rhetoric. Sanford has made no secret of his distaste for homosexuals, bisexuals, or even sexually active heterosexuals who may not be married. He is going to get a lot of stick for this incident, and he deserves every bit of it. There is no room to defend this hypocritical lying sack of crap, there isn't.

Soon we will hear them climb atop their towers and cry foul of the "liberal media", the same liberal media that includes The State newspaper, Columbia's daily, which received the erotic emails exchanged between Sanford and his lover as early as last December and elected to withhold them, in essence, protecting a conservative official from public scorn. All the outlets are blocked off, Sanford is impossible to defend. You can't blame this one on Obama, who, I may add, is a dedicated husband and father. He's also a Christian. He is what Sanford claimed to be.

Furthermore Sanford was a harsh critic of Bill Clinton and voted for the President's impeachment following his affair in the 1990s. Sanford actually resorted to name calling, though he was never as bad as Lindsay Graham. Sanford may not have lied under court oath, but he did lie. He lied under religious oath to his wife (you know, something about a Preacher, an alter, a Church, lots of people watching), he lied to his family, he lied to his staff, and he lied to South Carolina. By his own standards, he is unfit for leadership.

No, this isn't a good time to jump on Mark Sanford, that happened a long time ago.

One person in the Observer editorial forum asked if we could send NC Gov. Bev Perdue for a hike and transfer Sanford here, you still want that? Bev might be stupid, but she has nothing on Sanford.

I'm not a Democrat, in fact I'm not very fond of them, but thanks to people like Mark Sanford, John Ensign, Larry Craig, and Mark Foley (all supposedly Christian men who ran on a platform of morals only to prove themselves hypocrites) this country is going to become a one party state with the Democrats in charge.

Well, at least the Democrats try. The SC Libertarian party is probably loving this, and they have every right to be. Every right to be.

Perez Hilton, Will.I.Am, and the Bonobo

As you surely know by now, professional loud mouth Perez Hilton was punched by a member of Will.I.Am's entourage in Toronto after the MuchMusic video awards, or something. Apperently Will.I.Am's manager hit him.



This has, somehow, become major news in the last day, and it's a shame that it has. It's not news, it just isn't. Neither of these people are important, one is famous for running his mouth, and the other is famous for making trendy music that no one will remember in ten years time, maybe not even him. The way people are acting you'd think Bob Dylan laid out Tom Wolfe with a hurricane kick. Honestly.

Perez probably deserved to be hit, I'm not disputing that, but I will openly question the masculinity of those involved. Do you really need multiple people around to beat up an out-of-shape gay man? Really? I mean, listen to the guy, he's about as tough as a goomba, the proper ones. And really, Perez, calling him a "faggot"? Nice one, hypocrite.

The Khalid Sheikh Mohammed joke was brilliant though, shame most ardent fans of either party will have no earthly idea who that is.

The fact that this is major news during a revolution in one of the world's most important nations, during the worst financial crisis in global history, and the day after a deadly commuter rail crash in our nation's capital has me questioning mankind's fitness for it's position atop the animal kingdom.

You may ask, who will take our place then? (or maybe, who will take r place den?) Dolphins? No, they're overrated. But I love them anyway. Baboons? Possibly. Elephants? That's a good shout, but I can't see it. The most likely answer is the Bonobo. Bonobos do have facial expressions and emotional awareness, which puts them ahead of Mike Jefferies. Kanzi, a 26-year-old male from Des Moines, understands some 3,000 spoken English words, which is more than most celebrity worshipers. Underneath the hairstyles and fancy clothes, we're still apes (I know I am), and Perez Hilton and Will.I.Am are the ones throwing their own crap for attention.

It'll take them awhile, no doubt as they're still progressing, but we should be very aware that we have someone gunning for our spot now, and our strength is not in our depth.

Thanks a million, Perez.

Holy waste of newsprint, Batman!

Excuse me for the canned headline, I actually feel dirty for that. I apologize profusely.

On Saturday the Charlotte Observer did it's credibility no favors when it published a story about a Batman comic that made a mother angry. Really, they actually put it in the print edition. Here's the online version.

I don't blame the mother, Yvette Spivock, as much as I blame the Observer. Seriously, has the editorial staff been under a rock? Charlotte has big problems, world changing events are taking place in Iran and I'm sure something must've happened in Gastonia recently. Honestly, don't cover this crap, it isn't news, it isn't even fluff, it's garbage. Are you going to cover it every time an overzealous parent complains about some crappy show giving Paris Hilton television time? It's a slippery slope, and no, it wasn't a "slow news day".

But really, Mrs. Spivock, I'm not mad at you, but if you were "outraged" by a Batman comic it's time to reevaluate your values. Do you really think comic books should be labeled like cigarettes?

South Charlotte *sigh*. It was nicer when it was just farmland.

Every time a convention comes to town people do this stuff, and the paper covers it! Why, paper, why?!

"The Hut"

http://consumerist.com/5297272/pizza-hut-tries-to-avoid-blame-for-its-pizza-shortens-name-to-the-hut

You are so going out of business.

It's actually not that surprising when you consider Yum! Brands, parent company of "The Hut", was spun-off from Pepsi for whom 2009 has been a rebranding disaster on more than one occasion.

Edit: They now say it's only a "secondary name". Mmmhmm.

A hero

The 2009 equivalent of Tank Man. (Photo: TehranLive.org)

Try as they might all of the efforts by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's goons to stop the free flow of information out of Iran have been circumvented by modern technologies and creativity. Despite silencing the venerable BBC by jamming equipment, and destroying NBC's Tehran offices, the government has been unable to prevent people from seeing their tyrannical behavior, which includes beating protesters to the verge of death. Some have even shown their injuries on YouTube and related site.

The Iranian government hasn't stopped at injuring people within it's own borders, it has launched DoS attacks on some ex-patriot news sites such as TehranBureau (twitter account as the site as been attacked), which are critical of the conservative government. Some have offered reformists within Iran a cyber lifeline of sorts in the form of American and European proxy IPs which allow them to freely post updates to sites such as twitter.

In support of the reformists, and in support of freedom, everyone should take the opportunity to wear green. People do it every St. Patrick's Day, many without the slightest clue as to why, just that it's what everyone does. Do it for something important.

Stand with FREE Iran. Protect a free world.

Do schools kill creativity?

My friend came across this and shared the link. It's from a TED talk featuring Sir Ken Robinson.



As a product of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools I can say that the answer as related to CMS is plainly, yes. For those who don't know, CMS is basically the educational and governmental equivalent of what British Leyland was to the automobile industry. A large, unwieldy, overly bureaucratic, top heavy organization that has lost sight of it's original goal.

CMS, as with most Western educational systems, focuses primarily on mathematics and language (in our case, English), then on science and social studies (though the latter is being forced closer to the fringe), and then, and only if there's time after all the standardized testing, physical education and the arts. In many cases the last two are seeing themselves axed in the name of saving money. Teachers are being fired while the top level officials who ran the ship so shoddily that it began to take on water in the first place keep their six-figure jobs.

According to these people sitting behind their desks in office buildings in Second Ward, Raleigh, and Washington, the education of the youth should be based solely on the student's ability to pass a standardized test. A menial, tedious selection of multi-choice questions answered on a sheet of paper with hundreds of tiny circles on it. This, to them, is education, and the aggregate performance of students on these tests determines how much money is allocated to each school for the following year. Bad performance - for some bizarre reason - equates to less money, and with the focus so heavily on math and language, the arts and physical education bare the brunt of the cuts.

Furthering out the arts and physical education is the somewhat recent idea of "workforce development", basically turning schools into an assembly line of workers for the already established business community. You basically go to school to learn how to become a good, productive worker. This rigid system stifles individual creativity because it's dead-set in the needs of the industrial economy. Yesterday's economy.

I'm not saying that it's all about more focus on the arts and physical education, it isn't. Not everyone's talent is playing the harp or keeping goal. One can be talented and creative with mathematics and languages, but it once again boils down to the standardized, rigid system employed by the higher-ups.

Also, I am not criticizing teachers. I'm a great admirer of teachers, they are among the most selfless people on the planet and often work for a pittance because they have a passion for helping young people. I am criticizing those in the higher positions, some of whom have never been teachers, who believe that test scores determine a person's worth. It's borderline criminal.

In my opinion education needs to be revolutionized to fit the 21st century rather than the 19th century. The world has changed dramatically, but the education system is stuck in the era of the steam engine.

Children should be taught to express themselves, and to learn by doing, rather than placed on an assembly line and have their failures punished in draconian ways.

Nike, of all things, makes sense with this ad:

Mystery shadow leaders find a new enemy: Pygmy goats.

Ahh, the pygmy goat. A loud, dangerous animal. At least according to several "neighborhood leaders" (read: someone who thinks they're important) in Charlotte.

Two pygmy goats, who are smaller than an everyday black lab, one of the most popular, if not the most popular, domestic pets in Charlotte were recently removed from Jeffrey Koenig's Fourth Ward yard because it wasn't big enough for animals not considered "domestic pets" by the city of Charlotte. Though it is worth noting that the comparable city of Seattle does consider them domestic pets. As a result Koenig has taken his battle to the city council and has received support from some members, and hundreds of Charlotteans.

But there are those who would like to see the goats, Alvin and Buckley, forced to leave the Queen City for the pastures of outer Metrolina. One woman said that her grandmother "had regular goats" and that they were "a pain". This is probably because "regular" goats on average weigh 185 pounds, or about the weight of an average 6'3" male. A fat pygmy goat will probably weigh 55, and that would be considered very husky. Most float between 30 and 45. My lab, Jake, weighs 70. Can you see where I'm going with this?

If indeed Koenig fails in his effort to move the goats back into the city, will the children of the NIMBYs who have chavtastic sport mufflers on their cars to make it sound more powerful than it really is (drive through South Charlotte, you can't miss them) be forced by the city to remove them in order to adhear to noise restrictions? The goats not only make less noise (a lot less), they also pollute less. Charlotte is trying to "go green", you know.

And before you say having goats in the city makes Charlotte look "small town" and "country", remember what Charlotte was 20 years ago, and remember what it will be when the trendy folk pull up the stakes and move to the next hot spot. Charlotte is country.

I also want to say that Tetris is celebrating it's silver jubilee. It's hard to believe it's been that long, it seems like just yesterday I was playing it in beautiful pea soup green on the Game Boy, which also celebrated a special birthday this year. Certainly a magnificent milestone for a creation that has played a monumental role in not only gaming, but technology in general.

Ka, please. Thank you.

In 2010 Ford will introduce Americans to it's Fiesta, a fuel-efficient sub-compact that has already proved wildly popular in the European market. This year Ford launched the Fiesta Movement, a chance to show Americans what the Fiesta was all about, how the car drives, and what it's capable of. If you want to learn more about that, you can ask Fiesta Agent 48, who just so happens to be my, erm, "e-wife", Jane.

The introduction of the gas-saving Fiesta is a smart move from Ford who endeared themselves to many Americans this year when they refused the federal bailouts that were accepted by the now bankrupt General Motors and Chrysler. As of June, Ford is the only of the "big three" under it's own control as Chrysler is soon to be in the hands of Italian auto giant Fiat, and if you're an American, you own 60% of GM, like it or not, and most of us don't. As a result of this in recent months some Americans have pledged that their next car purchase will most certainly be a Ford and the Fiesta gives those with modest budgets but ambitions of owning a new car a chance to do just that. However, Ford should take this one step further and bring it's tiny Ka stateside in 2011 to compliment the Fiesta.

Even though fuel prices have dropped since this time last year, when they were more easily compared to gold and silver than other liquids, they're still more than twice as high as they were ten years ago and wages, well, aren't. Because of this people are trying everything possible to save a dime here, a penny there, and a quarter somewhere else. One of the easiest ways to do this is to either drive less, or drive a more fuel-efficient automobile, and this is where cars like the Fiesta and Ka, and even slightly larger Focus, come into play. The Fiesta averages nearly 47 MPG while the Ka manages a stunning 56, even out dueling Toyota's vaunted Prius (note: I'm not bashing the Prius, it's a wonderful car in it's own rite). Plus, it's adorable.

Given it's small size safety is an obvious concern about the Ka. During the 2008 model's test by Euro NCAP the Ka managed decent, though far from spectacular, figures. These will probably need to be improved if the car is brought to America due to the larger prevalance of freeways and SUV-type vehicles.

Thus far Ford has done a commendable job of switching away from the gas-guzzlers that were the vogue of the high-flying, free-wheeling 90's, and it's ability to do so is a large reason why it's in such good condition compared with it's main domestic rivals today. But there is no reason why Ford can't keep going and push the American industry into a new frontier with it's fuel-saving, affordable, small cars. There will always be a special place for the F-150 in America's heart, and rightly so as it helped built this country and will continue to do so for many years, but Ford, and the American auto industry's, futures lie with the Ka, Fiesta and Focus, and because of that, the future looks bright.

Memorial Stadium is falling apart & The Pan American Games?

Really.

That's not really a shock to anyone who's driven past the near seventy-five year-old concrete hulk on 7th Street.

This now leaves the city with a new bill to foot because a structural analysis of the stadium is sure to show more damage than we currently know about. That actually creates a possibility for the city: a chance to bid for the Pan American Games.

Charlotte loves to bid for sporting events, particularly college basketball tournaments which are always successful in the city, just ask the CIAA. But recently Charlotte has begun to enlarge it's portfolio with events beyond basketball such as the Quail Hollow (formerly Wachovia) Championship, a stop that has become a gem of the PGA tour, and the Charlotte Ultraswim, which though it's been around for awhile has only recently garnered much publicity thanks not only to the apperence of Michael Phelps, but due to several Mecklenburg Aquatic Club swimming grabbing medals in Beijing last summer. There are some who would dream of the Olympic Games being in Charlotte, but that is the longshot of all longshot, the Pan American Games are actually a realisitic possibility for the city.

Indianapolis (1987) and Winnipeg (1999) are similar sized cities which have hosted the games, though they have grown in size and expectation since. Rio used the 2007 games to help boost awareness for a potential 2016 Olympic bid where they will compete against Chicago, Madrid, and Tokyo. Rio will also most likely host the final of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in it's world-renowned Maracana. Rio built an entirely new stadium for the Games, the 45,000-seat Estádio Olímpico João Havelange, which has since been home to Botafogo (to whom it is known as Engenhão, after the neighborhood where it's located) who were quasi-nomadic before the move.

Also this week we found out that UNC Charlotte seems to be a bit short in their quest to raise money for a new football stadium, why couldn't a 40,000-seat stadium in the University area become a joint project between the city and the University? There isn't really a reason. UNCC's current sports venues could also play some role in the Games.

Charlotte does have the ability to host such an event, though it may be somewhat adverse to hosting a "second-tier Olympics" having seen the much scowled at Atlanta host the real deal in 1996. Those people need to understand that we're not Atlanta, we're Charlotte and we can't let everything Atlanta does decide what we do and don't do.

In 2011 the Mexican city of Guadalajara will host the games and they will feature thirty sports, the twenty-six Olympic events plus baseball, softball, rugby union, and raquetball. Greater Charlotte has the venues for these sports:

Archery: Independence Park (Elizabeth, Charlotte)
Aquatics: Mecklenburg Aquatic Center (Second Ward, Charlotte)
Athletics: Pan American Stadium (University City, Charlotte)
Badminton: Grady Cole Center (Elizabeth, Charlotte)
Baseball: Knights Stadium (Third Ward, Charlotte) {or Fort Mill, SC}
Beach Volleyball: Lake Norman (temp venue)
Basketball: Bobcats Arena (First Ward, Charlotte)
BMX: Park Road Park (Charlotte)
Boxing: Belk Arena (Davidson)
Canoe: National Whitewater Center (Mecklenburg County)
Cycling: Uptown Charlotte
Equestrian: Gaston Equestrian Park (Dallas, NC)
Fencing: Cabarrus Arena (Concord, NC)
Field Hockey: Davidson Field Hockey Stadium
Gymnastics: Halton Arena (University City, Charlotte)
Handball: Bojangles' Coliseum (Independence Blvd., Charlotte)
Judo: Grady Cole Center
Karate: Grady Cole Center
Modern Pentathlon: Irwin Belk Complex (Biddleville, Charlotte) - running, Aquatic Center - swimming, Independence Park - shooting, Grady Cole Center - fencing
Mountain Bike: Reedy Creek Park (Charlotte)
Open-water swimming: Lake Norman
Raquetball: TBD
Rowing: Lake Wylie
Rugby: Belk Stadium (Wingate, NC), District Three Stadium (Rock Hill, SC)
Sailing: Myrtle Beach, SC or Outer Banks, NC
Shooting: Independence Park
Skating: TBD
Soccer: Bank of America Stadium (Third Ward, Charlotte), Pan American Stadium, Richardson Stadium (Davidson), Queens Stadium (Marion Diehl Park, Charlotte)
Softball: Phillips Stadium (University City, Charlotte)
Squash: Cabarrus Events Center (Concord, NC)
Table Tennis: Cabrarrus Events Center
Track Cycling: Rock Hill Velodrome (proposed) (Rock Hill, SC)
Taekwondo: Grady Cole Center
Tennis: The Palisades (Charlotte)
Triathlon: Lake Wylie, York County, SC - Charlotte bike course, run to stadium
Volleyball: Halton Arena
Weightlifting: Cabarrus Events Center
Wrestling: Brayboy Gymnasium (Biddleville, Charlotte)

Of course, this is just one of my pipe dreams. :)

Panda: More of a Jeep than the Compass

With Fiat taking control of Chrysler there is a lot of talk over which Fiat and Alfa Romeo models will make the jump stateside to likely be sold as Chryslers and Dodges, but there's also talk of one model making the jump as a Jeep: The Fiat Panda 4x4. The very mention of the name "Jeep Panda" is causing Jeep purists to roll their eyes, but after giving a closer look to both the current Jeep lineup and the Panda, I start to wonder why.

The current Jeep lineup features an SUV (which I won't call a Jeep) called the Compass. The Compass is the entry-level automobile for the Jeep brand, but it hardly deserves it's Jeep badge. The Compass is the first (and hopefully last) "Jeep" to not have a trail rating. Yes, despite Jeep's long, proud history of off-roading and comfort someone at Chrysler decided it would be a good idea to build an uncomfortable piece of crap without a trail rating...decisions like this caused the mess Chrysler finds itself in today.

While the Panda may not be American, or the most comfortable thing in the world (it's rather spartan inside) it does have the soul of a Jeep. The Panda is used by Alpine police forces to navigate the rough terrain they face on a daily basis. It's no Wrangler, but it beats the crap out of the Compass.

The Panda sells for rougly $14,900...very affordable and rougly $3,000-$10,000 less than the Compass. The Panda also gets 43 MPG compared to 24 for the Compass. Both seat five, and the Panda can readily venture off of paved roads.

The introduction of the Panda would not mean the end of the Wrangler and the Grand Cherokee, and maybe not even the Liberty (which to me will always be called the Cherokee). The Panda would slot in as Jeep's entry-level offering and would only serve to strengthen the brand, not dilute it.

Most Jeep purists fondly remember the Comanche, a tough pickup truck that you could drive through a wall and it would keep going. The Comanche serves as a relic of a Jeep before it was Chyslerized. The Panda isn't the Comanche, but it could become a symbol of the moment when Jeep became Jeep again.

Obscure soccer club of the week (April 27 - May 3, 2009)

Big Bullets of Blantyre, Malawi.

Unlike Presidente Hayes, Big Bullets are actually somewhat successful having won the Malawi Super League eleven times, the previous national championship eleven times, the Press Cup eleven times (this is becoming a theme), the Chibuku Cup eight times, the Kamuzu Cup seven times, and the Blantyre district title nine times before that.

*deep breath* Gosh they have a lot of cups in Malawi.

Big Bullets could be compared to Liverpool FC owing to being created out of it's rival club, Wanderers, in a similar fashion to the manner Liverpool was created out of Everton and like Liverpool, Big Bullets have been the more successful of the two.

The team's name has changed many times through-out it's history due to sponsorships having been called Bata Bullets (after a shoe company), Bakili Bullets (after owner Bakili Muluzi, who was actually the President of Malawi at the time and is a rather scrupulous character), and hilariously Total Big Bullets (after an oil company).

Though they regularly compete in African competitions they've yet to taste any real success on the continent as the standard of football in Malawi is not what it is elsewhere.

David Poole 1959-2009

David Poole of the Charlotte Observer died of a heart attack yesterday, he was 50.

Poole was officially the Observer's NASCAR writer, which is a big job to have in Charlotte, but he was more than that. I'm not a big NASCAR fan but Poole's columns were powerful and insightful. Poole would give you his thoughts on the state of racing and back it up with facts, I didn't always agree with him but I had respect for him.

With North Carolina's changing demographics came many people who were skeptical and sometimes even hostile to it's culture, a culture of which stock car racing is a huge part. Many of these critics would rag stock car racing having never actually watched, let alone attended, a stock car race. Poole took these people to task and did it in such a fashion that no one could dare say he was wrong.

He was simply a giant in Charlotte journalism, not just Charlotte sports journalism. Poole played a role in helping Charlotte land the coveted NASCAR Hall of Fame and when it opens, he'd better be in it.

Bobby's addiction

I'm addicted to Jane. I am, I really am.

Potential Carolina World Cup venues

Soccer by Ives has a list of fifty-eight potential US World Cup venues (down from seventy), three are located in the Carolinas: Charlotte, Clemson and Columbia.

While I admit none of them are likely to host matches, Charlotte does have a chance and it's nice to see Clemson and Columbia showing an interest. South Carolina is frozen out from hosting NCAA events due to the whole flag row, and doesn't have an NFL team so the Super Bowl is highly unlikely meaning this could be their only chance for major sporting exposure.

However, FIFA's regulations require certain things that Williams-Brice Stadium and Memorial Stadium don't live up to at the moment and it would require significant work to bring them up to snuff.

With that said, I'm disappointed that the USSF didn't contact Chapel Hill or Raleigh.

The Game Boy is 20

Well, it turned twenty yesterday but that was Earth Day so I didn't realize it.

I didn't get a Game Boy until 1995 when the Play It Loud models were released, I got a red one for Christmas and it's still in working order today. Nintendium is crazy tough.

The Game Boy is easily the best handheld ever released. It paved the way for the handhelds of the future and outlasted many of them because of it's simplicity. Rather than trying to blow you away the Game Boy simply played it's games and did so with reasonable battery life unlike it's competitors (battery issues killed Sega's Game Gear).

I'm not much of a geek so I can't sit here and discuss technical aspects, so I'll just link the Cnet article.

I do love my Game Boy though.

Obscure soccer club of the week (April 20-26, 2009)

Club Presidente Hayes of Asunción, Paraguay.

The club is named for Rutherford B. Hayes, the 19th President of the United States.

"Why Hayes?", you ask. Most Americans would never even consider Hayes when listing their top-10 US Presidents, in fact, aside from possibly his own decedents, he'd be lucky to make anyone's list. But alas, Hayes is revered as somewhat of a hero in Paraguay. Hayes made news in recent times following the 2000 election in which George Bush lost the popular vote to Al Gore yet won the Presidency. Similarly Hayes lost the 1876 popular vote to Samuel Tilden but was elected by virtue of the Electoral College and an Electoral Commission.

On this day last year Jenny Drapkin wrote an article at MentalFloss called "Rutherford B. Hayes: The National Hero of … Paraguay?" detailing just why Hayes is held so highly in Paraguay.

During the War of the Triple Alliance, Paraguay was heavily defeated by Argentina, Brazil, AND Uruguay (well, that hardly seems fair at all) during the war two-thirds of the Paraguayan people lost their lives.

After the war Argentina and Paraguay continued to fight over an area called the Chaco and traveled to Washington where, you guessed it, President Hayes acted as arbitrator. Hayes decided in favor of Paraguay became a hero to it's people.

With that said, while most school children in Paraguay are aware that Hayes was once a US President, many aren't aware of what he did.

Before @oprah there was @bobbyafc

For real.

http://herebeforeoprah.com/

Tyler Stasko

...is a murdering little snot.

Last week 20-year-old Tyler and a 49-year-old woman named Carlene Carol Atkinson (what a mature adult she is) decided it would be a peachy idea to engage in a bit of the old street racing on NC 49. You know, that thing young men with high powered cars unsure of their own masculinity do to make themselves feel more manly (and I say this as an insanely androgynous human being), or in the case of Atkinson, simply because she's an incredible shithead.

Oh, and they killed somebody. Three people in fact. 45-year-old Cindy Furr, a professor at Winthrop, Cindy's 2-year-old daughter (TWO!) McAllister (or "Mackie") who were traveling along the public road in their own car, and a 13-year-old passenger in Stasko's car named Hunter.

Three incredibly senseless deaths. Three incredibly unfortunate deaths. Mackie and Hunter were young children yet to reach the primes of thier lives, indeed Mackie was barely of walking age, and Cindy Furr was a long time educator helping to better the lives of young people everyday. And now they're gone. And for what?

I never understood the appeal of street racing, never. And it becomes even more mind-boggling when you consider we live in fucking Charlotte. We have no shortage of racing facilities for these idiots (in fact, North Carolina has a race track in every county, including Mecklenburg!). Yet they insist, they have to show the world how cool they are. It's not cool, it's stupid. Sadly, being stupid isn't a crime. You know what basketball and soccer wash outs do? They play in parks. You are not Jeff Gordon, if you were any good at it you'd be in NASCAR or F1. Stop.

No, being 20 isn't an excuse. He knew better. 20-year-olds are not children, they're grown adults. You can sign up for military service at 17, and by 16 most functional human beings have an idea of how the world operates.

Murder is the correct charge. A car, a two-ton piece of steel, is a deadly weapon when placed in the hands of an idiot. It's like shooting for birds in a Harris Teeter parking lot and then claiming you didn't understand the risk when you kill somebody. Like firearms, cars must be used responsibly.

He should be tried for looking like a douchebag anyway. What a prince *rolls eyes*.

I should use my blog more

I should, but for some reason I don't.

It's not for a lack of writing. I tweet pretty commonly, I keep a written diary which for some reason I've taken to writing in blank verse (maybe it's this whole Elizabeth Barrett Browning clip I'm on), I keep another blog, send out several e-mails (my e-mails average 500 words, apparently) and maintain Jane's fan network.

I just forget to write here. Not that anyone cares, heh. Something always comes betwixt me and updating. For some reason I used to get a lot of hits from Beverly Hills, California and Odessa, Ukraine though...I always found that interesting.

Alas, I shall try. You could also check out MJ's site, she's a smart girl (and a new twitter mate of mine :)....).

Time Warner wants to kick you in the face.

Thankfully, I don't use them. They lost me ages ago, but that doesn't mean I'm not allowed to hate them and their habit of kicking people when they're down.

Recently Time Warner announced it's plan to introduce a "tiered" pricing system for it's broadband users, meaning the company is going to raise it's customer's prices again. This is something Time Warner customers are more than used to, the company does it regularly (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, ect.) and obviously has no plans to stop. Unfortunately for some people in Charlotte-proper Time Warner is the only pay-TV option they have (they can't get a clear shot at a satellite). Though for internet many opt for AT&T (frm. BellSouth) which provides a better, but by no means ideal, option. AT&T is also looking into a new pricing system, which would further screw the general public.

This news comes on the heels of a Charlotte Observer report which referred to Metrolina's jobless rates as "sobering". 11% of Mecklenburger's are out of work and Mecklenburg is the healthiest county in the region. It is today, at a time when more and more Charlotteans need the internet for work, that Time Warner chooses to kick them. This also comes nearly immediately after a spat between Time Warner and local television station WSOC over a fee WSOC charged Time Warner to carry the channel and is sister WAXN. Of course Time Warner trotted out their old stand-by "In doing this WSOC wants to force us to charge our customers more for our service". Of course, Time Warner lied (*shock horror*) and WSOC wasn't asking "five times more" than other local stations. Eventually the two sides reached a deal.

Of course some people will say "you've pointed out TV prices, not internet prices", and you'd be right, but it makes no difference, it's still an example of Time Warner using it's power to screw it's customers to make up for their disastrously misguided investments. In fact, the average family can expect to spend $200 (two zeros) per month on Time Warner's internet service under their new plan. $200 in a region crippled by job loss and pay cuts.

There are obviously alternatives. For those who can get them Dish Network isn't a badly priced option for television and the picture is quite good. AT&T (unless they go down this road) for the internet. Sadly Time Warner is treated very well by Charlotte, but you can stop that by sending your dollars elsewhere.

You can also contact the following people and voice displeasure with Time Warner's nice treatment from a city it spits on:
Pat McCrory (Charlotte Mayor)
Bev Perdue (North Carolina Governor)
Anthony Foxx (Charlotte City Council and candidate for Mayor)
John Lassiter (Charlotte City Council and candidate for Mayor)
Kay Hagan (US Senate)
Richard Burr (US Senate)
Mel Watt (US Congress)
Larry Kissel (US Congress)
Sue Myrick (US Congress)
Susan Burgess (Charlotte City Council and Mayor Pro Tempore)
Patsy Kinsey (Charlotte City Council)
Edwin Peacock (Charlotte City Council)
James Mitchell, Jr. (Charlotte City Council)
Warren Turner (Charlotte City Council)
Michael Barnes (Charlotte City Council)
Nancy Carter (Charlotte City Council)
Andy Dulin (Charlotte City Council)
Warren Cooksey (Charlotte City Council)
Jennifer Roberts (Chairperson, Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners)
Harold Cogdell, Jr. (Vice-Chairperson, Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners)
Vilma Leake (Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners)
Dan Murrey (Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners)
Karen Bentley (Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners)
George Dunlap (Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners)
Dumont Clarke (Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners)
Bill James (Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners) *cough*
Neil Cooksey (Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners)

Random

41.5 miles per gallon

Created by The Car Connection

OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!one!!!

Cause Janey is the best :)

I took another online test

Because I like them.



I have a boring blog.

Jessica Simpson

Gained weight.

The media made fun of her.

This is probably my biggest pet peeve: Men are allowed to gain weight, it's even often celebrated (Actually, men who are underweight are often maligned as "faggots"). But if a woman dares not be waif thin or perfectly toned she gets crucified.

There is nothing, nothing wrong with a woman having curves. In fact many timelessly beautiful women such as Jean Harlow, Jayne Mansfield, and Marylin Monroe would be considered overweight by today's media-driven, status quo-controlled culture.

On the Super Bowl tonight you will see commercials celebrating the right of "real men" to be overweight, and you will see commercials reinforcing a stereotype that only thin females are attractive. NBC would just rather let a beer company tell you that than PETA.

But I won't rant and rave about it. If you're a male and you think women of Jessica Simpson's build aren't up to your standards, you can be that way. More for those of us who do appreciate it. :)

Big White Elephant

Big, really big.

Beijing's famous "Bird's Nest" has one event on it's schedule for 2009, one. On August 8th, the stadium will host Puccini’s opera “Turandot".

The $450 million, 91,000-seat stadium doesn't have a tenant. Plans called for the local Chinese Super League club, Beijing Guoan, to move into the stadium following the Olympics. Guoan balked at these plans after seeing the rental fee. A somewhat strange part of this story is that the Bird's Nest is run by CITIC group, the company also owns most of Guoan through a subsidiary called CITIC Guoan. That tells you that the rent must be somewhat exorbitant.

Somewhat stranger is that China's national soccer team doesn't have any matches scheduled at the supposed National Stadium, instead choosing random venues throughout the country.

Beijing does have three other clubs who could potentially (though the changes are about as thin as my arms) call the stadium home. Hongdeng, and BIT both play in the second-tier Jia League, while minnows Baxy play in the third level Yi League.

A stadium which has a horrible reputation as a white elephant is Montreal's Stade Olympique, a major difference between "the Big O" and the Bird's Nest is that the Montreal venue has actually had regular tenants, the Bird's Nest has lost it's best bet to the aging (albeit recently refurbished) Workers Stadium.

Of the other recent Olympic Stadiums, only Seoul's (1998) Jamsil could be lumped into this category though it does see use as a concert venue, and occasionally by tiny Seoul United. That said, Espanyol will soon decamp Barcelona's 1992 stadium for greener pastures in Cornellà de Llobregat leaving the future of that stadium up in the air. With that, the stadium has been in use since 1927.

The Bird's Nest, however iconic it may be, will surely serve as a very large warning sign for the future to not bite off more than you can chew.

Jane wanted me to do this

So I shall, and plus it's a nice gesture.

"But IM N DA ARMY"

So, I met this legend on JTV:

[15:05] (flyguy1) JK IM IN COLLEGE SO IM GROWN

This is important to remember.

[15:10] (flyguy1) i was stationed at FORT HOOD TX WHEN I WAS IN THE ARMY
[15:15] (flyguy1) im drinking and smoking right now with two girls...im pretty sure averybody would love to see that.
[15:15] (flyguy1) IM MY IS A NONSTOP PARTY 24/7
[15:15] (flyguy1) i get off work and start drinking...invite some army groupies over to chill with me
[15:16] (flyguy1) when you are in the army. you have to stay drunk to stay sane
[15:16] (flyguy1) my fridge is loaded with beer and hard liquor

That's not too bad, I guess. But this is just incredible:

[15:32] (flyguy1) THE AIR FORCE AND NAVY ARE FOR BITCHES...IF YOU WANT TO SEE COMBAT JOIN THE ARMY OF MARINES..HOOOOAAAAHHH

Holy shit.

At this point he was repeatedly informed that the Marines are a branch of the Navy.

He persists:

[15:32] (flyguy1) GO ARMY GO MARINES...HOOOOAAHHH...*** THE NAVY AND AIR FORCE FAGGOTS
[15:33] (flyguy1) IM NOT TALKING ABOUT WWII OR THE NAVY SEALS..THOSE GUYS ARE BADASS

Yea, because those guys have nothing to do with the Navy, right?

[15:33] (flyguy1) IM TALKING ABOUT ENLISTED NAVY AND AIR FORCE COWARDS..

Because the SEALS aren't enlisted, apparently.

[15:35] (flyguy1) THOSE NAVY AND AIR FORCE ENLISTED ARE PUNKS.THEY DONT DO ***...ITS ALWAYS THE ARMY AND MARINES DYING IN IRAQ...I DONT CONSIDER NAVY AND AIR FORCE FIGHTING THE WAR ON TERROR BECAUSE THEY DONT DO ***

Yea, because the Air Force never provides covering fire to ground troops. And none of those ground troops are ever Navy officers.

Oh.

[15:36] (flyguy1) WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU HEARD A SAILOR OF A AIRMEN DYING IN IRAQ...ITS ALWAYS THE ARMY AND MARINES SHEDDING BLOOD

Rest in peace.

[15:37] (flyguy1) THE ARMY AND MARINES ARE HARD...WE SOME HARDCORE MOTHERFUCKERS....PLEASE DONT COMPARE US TO NO NAVY OF AIR FORCE COWARDS
[15:39] (flyguy1) AS A SOLDIER IVE BEEN TO IRAQ AND FOUGHT ALONG SIDE SOME HARDCORE MARINES...IVE NEVER SEE NO NAVY FAGS IN IRAQ...I NEVER SAW NO AIR FORCE PUNKS IN IRAQ....ITS ALWAY THE ARMY AND MARINES SHEDDING BLOOD...*** THE NAVY AND THE AIR FORCE.
[15:41] (flyguy1) THE NEW NAVY AND AND THE AIR FORCE ARE COWARDS AND A DISGRACE TO AMERICA...THESE ASSHOLES DONT EVEN KNOW HOW TO SHOOT A *** WEAPON...HOW COME THE ARMY AND MARINES KEEP GOING BACK TO IRAQ WHILE THE NAVY AND AIRFORCE FAGGOTS GET TO STAY STATESIDE A...
[15:43] (flyguy1) WHY DONT THEY TRAIN THE NAVY AND AIRFORCE FAGGOTS THE SAME *** THEY TEACH THE ARMY AND MARINES AND SEND THEY *** TO IRAQ INSTEAD OF SENDING THE ARMY AND MARINES TO COMBAT OVER AND OVER

Yep. He actually said that. I'll actually provide the transcript upon request.

Feel free to drop him a line.

I mean, I know there are morons online, but this one probably takes the cake.

I voted, yay

I did! For these people:

US President - Barack Obama/Joe Biden (D)
NC Governor - Pat McCrory (R)
NC Lt. Governor - Walter Dalton (D)
US Senate - Kay Hagan (D)
US House, NC District 8 - Larry Kissel (D)
NC Atty. General - Roy Cooper (D)
NC Auditor - Beth Wood (D)
NC Comm. of Agriculture - Ronnie Ansley (D)
NC Comm. of Insurance - Wayne Goodwin (D)
NC Comm. of Labor - Mary Fant Donnan (D)
NC Secy. of State - Elaine Marshall (D)
NC Superintendent of Public Instruction - June St. Clair Atkinson (D)
NC Treasurer - Janet Cowell (D)
NC State Senate District 37 - Rusty Sheridan (L)
NC House District 100 - Tricha Cotham (D)
Mecklenburg County Comm. At-large - Harold Cogdell, Jr (D), Dan Murray (D), Jennifer Roberts (D)
Mecklenburg County Comm. District 5 - Abstain
Register of Deeds - David Granberry (D)
Soil and Water Conservation District Supervisor - Myself (G)
Parks and Rec Bond - Yes
Street Bond - Yes
Housing Bond - Yes
Neighborhood Improvement Bond - Yes

I'm transparent :)

I think this speaks for itself

Watch live video from Jane? on Justin.tv

I guess I should update.

So, I had what I think was the flu last week. It wasn't great and I could think of a million better ways to spend the week. I won't go in to detail, but parts of the week were not pretty.

I'm better now though, kind of.

Anyway, I played Megaman 9 a lot while I was ill. I got okay at it, I have to stress the okay part because some people are crazy good. Playing it made me think of older Megaman games, notably the title MM9 is based on, that being Megaman 2.

Anyone who has ever played Megaman 2 will remember Woodman. He's one of the more memorable "robot masters" and featured in future games as well. Anyway, I've always thought that Woodman resembled John Daly. Do you agree?



So, the Jane recently (Oct 25th) celebrated her one-year anniversary of lifecasting. She had a fever that day :( but still managed to do something. Jane's a really awesome person once you get to know here, and I'm glad I do :). Oh, watch her make pumpkin seeds here.

And since Jane would want me to include it, watch this:



So, my Meredith Robbins post was quite popular. Apperently she's been swamped by attention recently. I got around 200 hits on that post, which is more than my usual 4. (Hi, Jane, Denis, and Dane).

Moritz Volz

http://www.volzy.com/

Legend.

I have a crush on Meredith Robbins from Jeopardy

I do.

Sad she lost :(

Smart girls are amazing.

I'm telling you Richard Burr is 27

Yep. Twenty-seven. Only 27% of North Carolinans approve of the job he's doing.

Couple this with Liddy Dole being 93rd in effectiveness and Robin Hayes spreading 'em for the GOP everytime they need a controversial bill to pass and it's not hard to figure out why North Carolina doesn't carry much clout around Washington.

North Carolina has some serious problems that need addressing, and without any pull in Washington many of them are likely to continue to be neglected.

Fuck the banks, and screw the Democrats and Republicans

You know. People bitch when Greens and Libertarians try to "steal" votes from Democrats and Republicans. It's really starting to piss me off.

We aren't trying to steal your votes, we're trying to save your God damn life.

You see this shit we're in today? You did that, not us. Yet you still bitch about us hanging around. "How dare those lunatics try to get their voice out there? They'll fuck everything up."

Too late, you already did that.

The Democratic President, Bill Clinton, pushed major banks to make sub-prime loans. The Republicans are now using this as a talking point against Democrats without telling you that during the Clinton administration they, the GOP, controlled both houses of Congress (104th, 105th, and 106th Congresses). There's just as much blood on their hands as the Democrats.

Yesterday the Dow surged up 900 points, a major boost and everyone started jacking off. As of this posting it's down 500 points, or 5.46%. This on top of news that the FTSE, Britain's major index, was off a staggering 7% as European fears of a recession mount.

That 900 point gain has been reduced to nothing more than a stop gap, like putting a piece of Juicy Fruit on a crack in a dam.

Now we, the middle and working class tax-payers, the segment of society already financially stretched thinner than myself doing yoga, are on the hook for >$700bln. That's over $23,245 per American. That's what you'll be paying and I'll be paying. You'll be paying that while some reckless, incompetent jackass of a CEO vacations in Hawai'i while you hit up Lake Norman because you can't afford the trip down to South Carolina this year.

Meanwhile, while AIG throws lavish parties on your dime with wine that costs more than that car you're struggling to keep, there's a single mother fighting a war in Iraq in the name of the American elite who want more money from that oil that sits under Baghdad. She prays everyday that she doesn't get shot so one day she can kiss her baby again.

Somewhere in North Carolina a man is going crazy because the banks he just helped bail out adjusted his mortgage and now he can't pay it.

And right now, I'm praying I don't start pissing out blood again, because I can't get insurance.

Seven miles to the west of me is Charlotte's medical district. A baby was just born there. Maybe someone should go over there and tell her what she's worth, tell her she's precious and priceless, and then tell her that you guys think she's worth about as much as a Honda Accord with all the trimmings.

You haven't killed America yet, it's fire still burns. But only because us lunatics protected that tiny ember, and while you're out spending our tax money, we'll still be protecting it, and stoking it. Hoping that one day it'll burn hot enough, and high enough to force you out.

North Carolina elections 2008

They're really, really bad.

I don't like either of the candidates running for Governor, and I don't know enough about the third (Mike Munger, a Libertarian) to pass judgment on him.

Pat McCrory is largely inoffensive, he doesn't do much at all as Mayor of Charlotte. The arena scandal made a lot of people, including myself, very angry though. I guess you can say he helped develop the area, but at the same time he's held us back in areas such as alternative energy. He does (or did) hold a position at Duke Power which may create a conflict of interest. Charlotte has two Nuclear Power Plants in the area and to be honest they scare the crap out of me.

Bev Perdue has done nothing but attack McCrory which has rubbed me the wrong way. She's gotten really nasty about it and to be honest I may well be tempted to vote McCrory because of it, and I'm a friggin' Green. That's not how we act in North Carolina, Bev, you were raised better than that.

Robin Hayes is up to his typical bullcrap. Hayes helped pass CAFTA and cost North Carolina, and specifically his district (NC 8) lots of jobs. Hayes did this at the urging of Bush and other Republican top brass, his vote passed the bill. That day Hayes showed that his loyalties lie with the Republican Party of the United States, and not the people of North Carolina. I'm voting for Larry Kissel.

The US Senate race is the worst, Kay Hagan (D) and incumbent Elizabeth Dole (R) are acting like ― for lack of a better phrase ― two catty bitches. There's an ad out where Dole's camp metaphorically calls Hagan a bitch (not that Kay has done anything to disprove that theory), and Hagan's ads just throw mud at Dole. Though the DSCC has some hilarious anti-Dole ads out. I hate both of them. Where's Beth Troutman when you need her?

Walter Dalton would be a better Lt. Governor than Robert Pittenger, most people probably don't know anything about this office, heh.

Ugh. This is why we need to let Greens, Libertarians, and Constitutionalists debate with the Democrats and Republicans, what a hot mess this is.

Dear Bruton,

I'm sorry for telling you to fuck off. I have a request for you.

Stop using the commercial-at (that's what this: @ is officially called) so much. Please. I know, at first it looks really cool, but after awhile it becomes very annoying, and I know about annoying.

You got your dragstrip and it's amazing because you have four stadiums now (if you can count this one). But please, just start using "at" instead.

For me? I'll even dress up like that stupid girl running for Vice President if that makes you happy. *Bobby makes puppy dog eyes*

Heh

Quality.

Megaman 9

Is teh awesome.

I must praise Capcom and Inticreates for the work of pure genius that is Megaman 9.

What a nostalgic, anger-inducing orgasm of a game this is.

10/10.

Breed Specific Legislation is Unamerican.

http://www.hellobully.com/bsl.html

As the owner of a rescued Pit Bull, I felt I should post this.

Watch Jane's vlog

and lifecast: http://www.justin.tv/jane_ds

Seriously, she'll hurt me if you don't.

The Most Serene Republic of Deranged Tabby Cats

http://www.nationstates.net/deranged_tabby_cats

Kind of a big deal.

Fuck off, Bruton.

Seriously, go fuck yourself.

I realize how much Bruton Smith and his race track have done for the economy of Cabarrus County. I also realize how much Cabarrus, and indeed Mecklenburg, have bent over backwards to please Bruton and his ego.

I wasn't against his drag strip earlier this year, he has every right to build on land he owns. Afterall, the people in that subdivision did by land near a fucking speedway (three of them actually if you count the dirt track and auxilary oval). What I was against was Bruton asking a country reeling from the loss of it's largest employer, PhillipMorris, for an $80 million incentive package or he would close his speedway, Cabarrus' second largest employer, and move his business elsewhere. The county and the city of Concord buckled to his demands, they had no choice. They offered his business $80 million over 40-years.

That wasn't good enough. Not only has Bruton built his drag strip, but before it's grand opening Bruton has announced that he wants that $80 million over three years, not 40, and if he doesn't get it he's going to start charging interest.

As people in North Carolina know, Concord borders Charlotte. Charlotte is a success story, and Charlotte's wild success is due in large part to the tireless dedication of the Belk family. Indeed, John Belk was once Mayor of Charlotte. The Belk's have donated large sums of money and time to various organizations in Charlotte. No fewer than five stadiums in the metro bare the name of Irwin Belk, a testiment to his passion for the community.

When all the Belk's pass on, Charlotte will mourn their loss with tears, and look back on them with incredible pride. When Bruton dies, Concord will breathe a sigh of relief.

The Chai Story

http://thechaistory.blogspot.com/2008/08/chai-story.html

That is heart wrenching :(

Chad Ocho Cinco

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chad_Ocho_Cinco

Hahaha.

Hey look at this

Becky Hammon is not the devil

She isn't.

The flack Becky Hammon has received for playing basketball at the Olympics as a Russian is shocking, disgusting, and incredibly trashy.

Becky Hammon is a highly respected basketball player, she is rated as one of the top guards in the world. More importantly, by all accounts she's a sweet, engaging woman who would never wish harm on anyone. Becky has played in the WNBA for 10-seasons and has never once been approached by the US Women's national basketball team to play a game, not even during minor events such as the Pan-American games. Becky's talent was ignored until she applied for Russian citizenship.

During the offseason Hammon suppliments her rather paltry WNBA salary by playing professionally in Russia for CSKA Moscow, recently Becky signed a $2-million contract with Moscow multi-sport outfit after receiving her Russian passport. This led many self-styled defenders of all things American to label Becky a "whore" who "sold herself" to Russia. Becky did not sell herself to Russia, Becky applied for Russian citizenship to help her club CSKA. In Russia teams are limited by the amount of foreign players they can field, by getting a Russian passport Becky has freed up a "non-Russian" spot on her team's roster, allowing them to bring in another foreign player. Becky did not sell herself to the Russian basketball federation. Becky is not a whore.

One thing the heat Becky has taken for daring to pursue her Olympic dream has led me to ask is where was this heat when Mike Piazza represented Italy at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, or the 2006 World Baseball Classic? If a Pennsylvanian can play for Italy then a South Dakotan can play for Russia. I don't care where Piazza's Grandparents come from, he's as American as Becky Hammon, if Becky is a traitor than so is Piazza. If Becky is a traitor than so are the eighteen American's who represented Greece's baseball team in 2004 (Greece's only baseball stadium has since been converted for soccer use for anyone wondering why baseball won't feature in London 2012).

Moreover, why are we allowed to import athletes but Russia isn't? There's a very famous former American international male basketball player who plays professionally in the same city as Hammon, but his country has their own basketball team.

Hmmm.

"God loves Russia just as much as God loves America.", you couldn't be more right, Becky. God loves everyone, but he doesn't like hatefulness. Think about that.

Finding meaning

In regards to faith, I've always been a bit of a lost sheep. I don't know why, I just never felt like I fit in.

I don't like how my Church (I consider myself a lapsed Baptist, but I'm still Christian) kicks people out often for simply being different, it bothers me. I understand why they do it, but it always seems like they're going after the wrong people. I don't think homosexuals are bad people by birth, they shouldn't be scorned for being the way they are, again, I understand the reasons behind it, but I don't really see how it's rational considering that much worse acts are perpetrated under the banner of the Church. Maybe it's because I'm so liberal about everything.

I've always been a very spiritual person, but I've never been able to understand why I am. Until one day, by chance, Jane spoke to me about her spirituality. She's incredibly admirable in her faith, she attends Church three times a week and is active in other areas as well. I don't think she ever intended to help me, but she ended up doing so. I asked her if I could ask any questions about it when I felt the need to, she said I could, and I have. It's been very helpful to me, I appreciate all she's done with it. It's impossible not to love her once you get to know her well, she's pretty and that helps at first, but it doesn't matter once you find out how genuinely good she is inside.

It's nice that I found someone with similar spiritual beliefs to my own, we disagree on one major point but I look passed it because I know she wants to help me.

Expanding to meet your needs

Time is money, so quit wasting both.

So...

Happy Independence Day, 45 minutes too late, heh. But still.

I didn't see fireworks this year because I'm still in some pain, but that's ok because I need to relax to heal myself. I wish I wasn't so frail, but there isn't much I can do about it other than workout like crazy which my heart won't allow.

I'm really glad that Íngrid Betancourt was rescued in Colombia, along with 14 other hostages. Gosh, that must have been hell for them and their loved ones, but at least they're safe now. Ms. Betancourt is a hero of mine, she's an extremely strong woman to say the very least.

Jake and Smokey (two of my dogs) are doing better. Jake was in shock for a few days, and still kind of is, but he has some of his pep back. That was just a freak accident. In a way I take spraining my toe as a sign that I was supposed to be home to stop that.

I wanted to mention this too, I'm an Arsenal supporter but I'll also be purchasing an Aston Villa shirt this season. The Villans have forgone a £2 million (US$3.96m) shirt sponsorship deal with an internet gambling site in favor of "giving" their sponsorship the the Birmingham-based children's hospice Acorns. I write more about it in my other blog. It's a very, very touching move by Villa and should be applauded.

Well, I guess that's all I have to say. I'm actually rather complex, but I mostly hide my inner most feelings.

Oh, vote for Jane, please :)

Eek

So I hurt my toe on Thursday, then aggravated it helping my dog on Sunday. Two of them got their collars hung together, one couldn't breath so I had to jam my hand, well, finger between them so one could breathe. They're both okay, thank God, but that was scary.

I hurt my back, both arms, and other foot along with aggravating my toe. So, I don't really feel well right now. I'd have been even worse if I'd have lost him though, I'm still fighting the depression thing. I probably will my whole life, but I've had some good days recently. I hope I keep having them.

Other than the pain I'm fine right now, I seriously used all my energy though...

Oh, vote for Janey, she's an angel you know :)

Haha I'm actually happy for once

Yep :) Hopefully I feel this way for awhile.

Janey you are teh r0x0rs :D

Political Compass

So I was rather bored and I took the political compass test.



That pretty much came out the way I expected, and is probably the reason most people think I'm batshit insane.

"Bobby, you're wasting your vote."

Am I? Well, everyone says I am. Half want me to vote for McCain (yea, that's happening) and half want me to vote for Obama (he's ok, but I want more). So following the departure of the one major candidate I had chosen to support (Fmr. Sen. John Edwards) I've decided to vote for Kat Swift (G-TX) :).

Upon hearing this I was met with a ton of derision, the whole "It's people like you who ruin this country" line of bull. Doesn't the constitution allow me to vote for whomever I want? Technically Cookie Monster is of age to run for the office of President and I could vote for him if I wanted to (and I did vote for him as a County Commissioner once), plus Kat is cool!



She's a lot like me, a lot. So, go Kat go :)

Oh, and watch Jane's vlogs. She'll disagree with the rest of this post, but she's still totally lovable.

Happy Birthday Mecklenburg

You rule.

Charley and Gordon

from hepjo


from videohost4

I didn't make either video, I was just pretty touched by both of them. Both cats have Feline Cerebellar Hypoplasia, basically poor motor skills among other things. Animals with CH can manage to lead a relatively normal life but require more care than animals without the disease. Often animals suffering from CH are needlessly destroyed.

This site features information about living with a disabled cat if you're interested in adopting a CH animal.

I have four animals (three dogs and a cat). None have CH but I would love them just as much if they did.

Christian: The Lion At World's End

I know it's a rather old video, but it's still a very powerful story, even the brief clip managed to get to me. It made my day :)

Things like that are why I'm an environmentalist. God didn't create, or ever approve of, money. Kind of like the Dan le Sac vs. Scroobius Pip song.

On a somewhat related note, Today is Endangered Species Day. There will be a lot of events, like in North Carolina there will be an event at the botanical gardens in Chapel Hill and a boating event in Asheville. Nothing in the Charlotte metro though. :(

I'm glad California overturned it's gay marriage ban. I'm not gay, but everyone deserves a chance at happiness and it's not threatening to "the American family" to have two men or two women who love each other get married. I understand how some people can be repulsed by it. Not to mention God twice in the same post, but he wouldn't create something he hates.

Oh, and for the 6 people who read this (I'm big in Huddersfield, apparently), do this please. It's for a good cause no matter what you sign up for, I switched my cause from the environment to Invisible Children because A) Jane supports it, B) I want to help children in Darfur.

Oh well, bye-bye for now.

Yay?

86

Created by OnePlusYou

Ugh, I wish I could type faster, my left hand sucks for that :(

SocialVibe

Jane wanted everyone to join SocialVibe, so I did.



It's for a good cause, so yay.

Damn

Rennes 2 - 1 Toulouse
Lille 2 - 1 Lens
Paris S.G. 1 - 1 Saint-Etienne

------------------------------
16. Paris S.G. 40
17. Toulouse 39
18. Lens 39
19. Strasbourg 35
R. Metz 21

I really want PSG to go down.

Stuff I guess

I've had a pretty crappy week, well, everyday since mid-March has pretty much sucked. I don't think a day has passed where I haven't had a sinus headache. This is the main culprit, but I deal with it because it's nice and I like nature. Notice my 2006 Earth Day tree in the foreground? :)

A tornado, or maybe a couple of tornadoes, hit Greensboro yesterday. That sucked. Someone died and part of the town got beat up pretty bad. I quite like Greensboro, it's a really nice town, so it scared me when I heard that.

But despite all that, I'm happy because Jane had an amazing day (which I'm sure she'll write about). She's had a bad run of luck so seeing her smile warms the cockles of my heart :) Heh, I love her too much. But she really deserves only amazing things, such a beautiful person, more so inside than out (as hard as that is to believe), should never have to put up with that much bad luck.

Oh, I do actually write in this blog. Heh. And I have to thank Anders for showing me this beautiful ad on youtube.

Gas Prices in Charlotte

Lowest 15 (avg. price $3.51):
1 BP
0 Shell
0 Exxon
14 Others

Highest 15 (avg. price $3.64):
5 BP
5 Shell
3 Exxon
2 Others

I'm just saying.

Massive, massive headache

Which, for now at least, is gone. That was fucking insane, it got worse when I laid down. So around midnight (after two rather sleepless) hours I decided to sit outside where the air was cooler but my headache just got worse because the neighbor's dog would NOT stop barking.

But, I'm better now. Though my pillows are soaked because of the rag I used on my head, my bedside trashcan is full of tissue, and it's 5:19 A.M. (I woke up at 4:30) which means I'll be dead tired by 3 P.M.. Lovely.

I hate April and May because they make me seem like a sicknote (which I am, but more so).

Bored

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Intelligence Test

Bah.

Arbor Day...what should I do?

I planted two trees on Tuesday, I don't guess planting another one would hurt, I do have an open spot in my backyard. Tomorrow it's supposed to be 81° F (22° C) and clear tomorrow, so the weather will be good for it, I guess I will.

I ran today for the first time in a week, it was the first day I've had any energy since my kidney stone issues started. So, I guess I'm pretty well recovered. I do have a sore throat from allergies though, but I have some Tazo African Red Bush Tea that Jane sent me, it's really good and works quite well. She also sent me a picture she drew me (that I use as my Twitter icon) back in December, it's an inside joke between us, but I was touched that she sent it to me, it made me smile. :) (It was sent awhile ago but I figured I should blog about it, maybe I'm simple, but since it came from her it was amazing to me.)

Heh, I think I get more scared of tornadoes in Texas than Jane does! I think I have a strong enough heart to get through their tornado season, maybe :O

Earth Day, Jane, and Me

So today was Earth Day. I consider myself an environmentalist, though I could do much better than I do. Anyway, I planted two trees, one Southern Live Oak and one Sugar Maple. I'm not so sure how the latter will do, you don't see a lot of them around here, but I'm confident the Oak will take well and someday be a great big tree for someone to enjoy. The tree is also somewhat of a Southern tradition, you see them in big cities like Charleston, New Orleans, and of course Charlotte.

Last week I asked Jane if she had ever considered becoming a songwriter. I told her I thought she'd be good at it, she has a really deep passion for music, sings very well, plays three instruments and used to write poetry (and having read some of her poems I can confirm she's quite good at that too). She's very intelligent and has a lion's heart so I'm sure she'll be successful at it. Heh, if you couldn't tell, I'm quite fond of Janeybean! :)

My kidney stone hell seems to be over, thankfully. I'm still hurting some, but I'm doing a lot better. I'm going to try to change my diet some, hopefully that'll bring about some change.

Oh. My. God.

This post might be a bit graphic.

Ok, so I'm a 23-year-old American male and I'm uninsurable. I stand 6-feet-7-inches tall (203cm), weigh 155 pounds (70 kg/11 stone) and my Body Mass Index is around 16.9, which is (obviously) incredibly low. Because of my size it was thought at one time that I suffered from a potentially fatal connectivity disorder called Marfans Syndrome, which US President Abraham Lincoln suffered from. Basically everything is elongated, including the aorta. Due to the elongation, everything, including the aorta, could potentially tear. This is why I can't get private insurance, because despite being cleared of malignant Marfans, I'm now seen as a liability.

Unfortunately, I'm also very prone to kidney stones, something which I inherited from my mother. Despite my rather young age, I've dealt with them on several occasions, including this weekend. On Thursday morning I woke up with a feeling which I can only describe as "having a nail in my kidney", I knew what it was right away, but I was not ready for what happened. I went through Thursday and Friday limping around, I tried to sit as much as possible, and got through the days ok. On Saturday morning at roughly 10:30 AM EDT I passed my kidney stone, or so I thought. Hours later the pain returned, and on Sunday morning I passed another, smaller but sharper, stone, but the pain was still there, oh boy! Around an hour-and-a-half ago I passed a third stone, another small one, but as you can imagine, by this point my cock feels like Officer Alex J. Murphy from the opening scene of "RoboCop" and I STILL had pain. Roughly 20 minutes ago I passed the fourth, and largest stone. Luckly, and hopefully, this seems like the last.

I may be whining here, and I think I deserve to, but for all the money this country spends on crap you'd think I'd be able to go to a doctor and get this taken care of instead of spending my weekend pissing out what seemed to be a pint of blood, two stones THE SIZE OF FUCKING LEMON SEEDS, and two shards of them...FUCK THIS SHIT!

Janeiac

JAYN·I·AC
n.
1. A person who has an excessive enthusiasm or desire for jane_ds.
See also: Bobby

Heh. I'm bored, and weird. :(

Heh.

Now I can't decide whether that's being incredibly resourceful or being unspeakably revolting....ahhh. Such is the enigma that we've come to know as Bobby, man....he's either some sort of a divine being who we should all worship and learn from, or an irredeemable reprobate who should be executed publicly at the local town hall swiftly!

-Yoss.

Haha, quality.

Limping around, and a lot of people hate me

I hurt my knee last week, I'm still limping. It's just red now, it was blue with speckles of dried blood in it until Tuesday, that was weird. The worst part is that it's over the bone rather than a muscle so there was nothing to absorb the impact. But oh well, that's life I guess and complaining won't make it any better.

It's also kind of funny how many people automatically hate me. Heightism maybe? That'd explain the random people who hate me in person but not the ones who hate me online, heh. It's as much an obsession as love though.

I don't know why I feel they need to write about it, but Jerry Reese...Charlotte cannot support a Major League Baseball team. We don't even support our NFL team unless they're winning. Get over it and stop blocking the Knights from getting a stadium. People want the stadium because they can take the entire family out to a game and not have to mortgage the house in the process. No, the International League doesn't have the glamor of the Major Leagues, no one ever claimed it did, but it's a better deal for Charlotte in the long run.