On race relations

Top 5 things that I hate in no particular order

1) When the whiskey bottle is empty and there is no more in the house.
2) The fact that most of my favorite bands have broken up, and I am faced with a lack of new music to choose from.
3) When people try to tell me that I am not black enough, or that they are more black then I am, despite the fact that they are white.
4) My dog eating the stuffing out of the couch.
5) Living in suburbia and the long drive from the bar it entails.

Actually all of those things except two and three are pretty much bullshit, and don't bother me all that much. So lets address number 3.

The other night I am out at some rock show with friends, when a drunk acquaintance of mine comes up and starts rambling on about various non-sensical topics. At some point during this conversation the fellow turns to me, and proclaims that he is in fact FAR more Black then I am. This a person who I believe to be of more or less Irish and German descent, and I am not talking about the Black Irish either.

Please allow me to go ahead and set the record straight on this topic once and for all. Pay close attention. If you fall into the category of the person mentioned above, no matter how many hip hop records you buy, no matter how many Spike Lee films you watch, no matter how much you attempt to hide your natural speech pattern, you will never (repeat NEVER) be more Black then I am.

Being Black isn't about fitting into some sort of stereo-typo that was mostly conceived through some sort of false advertising. It's a mind set to be sure, but step one to being Black, is to have the skin town to back up your claim. Not saying you can't be one of the "light skinded brothers", but you certainly cant be 99% German either.

Web Comics Redux

I am in the middle of testing out code that takes about three hours to run. I could fill that time by doing all sorts of mind numbing things that I don't enjoy, or I could bring some joy into the lives of my readership. I personally prefer the later as opposed to the former. I did some true Internet surfing for the first time in awhile and stumbled across some new stuff.

There is a new Copper comic out. I am can't express how happy this makes me.
I discovered this comic (Octopus Pie) today while looking around on the Bolt City site.
David sent me to this site featuring some pretty rocking art as well.
Ugly Hill may be my new favorite comic.

Let's see... I feel like I should give you more. I have had some thoughts of substance as of late, but I can never really decide on a way to serve them up for mass consumption. Not that anyone actually reads this blog... So how about a quick brain dump?

Changing the world is a daunting and scary task. You are not going to be able to simply draw up a road map to take you from Point A to Point B. It doesn't work like that, and nor should it. Choose an area that you can improve upon and work to improve it. If everyone does that, we are going to be just fine.

Why exactly does MLB wish to speak to Jay Gibbons but it doesn't want to speak to Rick Ankiel or Troy Glaus? This makes little to no sense. Is it because Gibbons is not a very good player and Ankiel and Glaus are? Why are people not as out raged about this as they were about Jason Giambi or Barry Bonds? Has the bar been lowered that much? I am going to choose to hope it has not been. If it has been, we may be seeing my last days as a sports fan. While were talking about Performance Enhancing Drugs, (can we please for the love of all that is holy and right in the Universe come up with another name for them?) I don't mind the double standard as it relates to drug use between baseball and football as long as we are held to a higher standard.


cheers!

Information security

By now we have established that I work in IT, and am nothing more then a reluctant (yet enthusiastic) geek. A large portion of my day is spent talking about various security flaws in code and other applications. It seems you cant walk more then ten feet without hearing someone tell you about this great new security protocol they have created. I have no true point here other then to make a small statement. MOST INTERNET SECURITY IS A JOKE. It is impossible to make anything perfectly secure. Please by all means keep trying, but don't you dare try and tell me you did it because I will call you a liar to your face.

cheers

I take it back.

I have long held the belief that You Tube is worthless, and for that I was wrong. I have never had much interest in the things that people have sent me from You Tube, but recently I discovered something about You Tube that I am in love with. I can watch old skateboard videos whenever I want, and I can watch videos of my favorite bands that I never saw. I don't have a long post to make about this because there is simply nothing more to say, but I will now leave you with links to some things that I have truly enjoyed. Be warned that the sound quality on some these isn't the best but it's still good stuff. Without further adieu the links:

Best of Rodney Mullen
Jake Brown

Torches to Rome
City of Caterpillar
Yaphet Kotto
Reversal of Man
Orchid

This final link is of a band who I hung out with a great deal, and traveled about the west coast with. I love these kids. I am pretty sure I am somewhere at this show.

The Spirit of Versailles

I am sorry but we have to break up.

It's not you it's me... I mean I just think I need something more. I have really enjoyed the time we have spent together, but it just feels like it might be time to move on. It's nothing that you did per se, but more of what you didn't do. See Charles, I loved Post Office and Women. They were wonderful, they made me feel not so bad about my drinking( b/c I am clearly no where near as bad as you). It's just...well...like Woody Allen, you just don't bring anything new to the table from book to book. Look I know there are people out there who love reading about being drunk, never holding down a job, and sleeping with tons and tons of women, but I am simply not one of them. Mayhaps we will meet again one day in your poetry, but dearest Charles, I think Fac-to-tum will have to be our last trip down Novel Lane. It's been lovely and I cherish all the time we spent together.

cheers always

A War of Attrition

I love seeing live music. There is almost nothing else in this whole world like it. A giant crowd singing or screaming their heads off in unison, or a small intimate gathering of individuals listening intently to the next up and comer. These are moments to be held and cherished for all time. Enjoying the the bliss that comes from spending countless hours with your friends driving around the country to see a band that you have been trying to see for years... These are the things that make music so damn worth while.

However lately it has seemed like there is a bit of a war going on within the music scene (i am mostly speaking of the indie scene). If you have a job or possible early classes, or mayhaps just are not a night owl, it is almost impossible to see good shows. They rock shows seem to start later and later every year. Whatever happened to the 7:00 PM all ages show that was over no later then 10. It allowed you to either go home, and get some sleep or hang out later with friends and discuss what you had just seen.

I love my job, I take a good deal of pride in my job, but I am sick of having to choose between my job and a desire to see a band. I can not believe that everyone who is going to the show is seriously so busy that they can't show up until 11:00. What the hell are all of these people doing before the show anyways? I understand that if you work a second shift schedule, its impossible for you to get anywhere before the witching hour, but I don't believe that most of these people actually fall into this category. It seems like year after people show up even more fashionable late then before. Look I get that it sucks to be the first person at the show, but really midnight? Are you shitting me? What were you doing before you got to the show? Is there some super secrete bar or party that happens before shows that I am not privy to?

It seems the older I get the less faces I recognize at the show. Part of that of course that people lose interest in seeing shows. I understand that impulse. It is very rare that a show comes through my town that I actually care about. However I think a bigger reason is that as you get older you have more responsibilities, and thus can't be out drinking and watching rock till 3:00 AM on a Tuesday. It simply won't work.

A Clarification of my position

I am a computer guy. Try as I might to avoid them, deny them, and on rare occasions destroy them, they are are a huge part of my life. I have been rather obsessed with them since I was 13 years old. I decided at that young and tender age that I was going to be a software developer. I am in fact now a software developer.

My love/hatred of computers often leads people to misunderstand my point. This is mostly b/c I am a HORRIBLE communicator. I have very explicit beliefs on what the best operating system is, and what I want out of all of my gadgets. I am Debian GNU Linux man, and I don't get a lot of newer tech ideas (see blue tooth headsets). While I was very impressed initially by the iPhone, as I read more about it, I cooled. It simply does not do several things that I want a phone to do, and I get the distinct feeling I would not be wild about the interface. If your wild about the interface, that's great. I am not saying it can't work for you. I am saying that it doesn't work for me.

Here's the major problem though. People don't get it when I complain about various things Apple Inc does. It's not that I don't find it funny; it's not even that some of the ads are incredibly untrue (which they are), it's that I am not making these statements as a disgruntled windows user or even an M$ (thats Microsoft for those scoring at home) fan boy. Trust me, I am neither. I in fact loath Windows. I am a very satisfied user of Linux. Sure I have complaints about my OS, but I think it's the best thing going. It's free, I have tons of free software, it runs very smoothly, and I can customize as much as I want. It's everything I need. So if you ever meet me (or anyone like me) we are not saying mean things about Apple. We are simply amazed at the idea that people think that there is nothing better then a Mac and the bizarre cult of personality that has developed around the Mac.

The way Apple is going these days, it won't be long before you drive your iCar to the local Starbucks and order your iLatte. So please don't get me wrong, Apple is a solid company. They make nice and what seem to be reliable products, but I won't simple give them a pass on all criticism. I don't understand why anyone would. So please the next time I say I am not a fan of some piece of technology, be it the iPhone, the Wii, blue tooth headsets, please don't take it personally. I am not making an indictment of your life. I am simply saying I don't agree. Well, unless of course your that ass hat at the bar or the store talking on their blue tooth headset at the top of their lungs for all to hear. FUCK YOU! YOUR NOT THAT IMPORTANT!!!! HOW HARD IS IT TO PUT THE PHONE TO YOUR HEAD? HONESTLY, HOW FUCKING HARD IS THAT!