Live It. Love It. Learn It.

The Internets 2.0

2008-01-15T08:33:00.000-05:00

Great idea! It would be awesome if USPS and UPS, et al, would publish RSS feeds for their shipping information. That way, you could subscribe to the feed for your tracking number and get instant notifications whenever an update occurred in the shipping process via your favorite RSS feed reader like Google Reader.

I am waiting for a package from USPS and I don't think they're going to leave it here if I'm not here to pick it up, so it would be handy to know on the fly wherever I am that the package had been processed in the local distribution center. A text message would be nice.

That's all for this morning!

To Whom it May Concern (And To Everybody Else, Too)

2007-12-12T00:18:00.000-05:00

Hey, internets. What's poppin'?

I just read through all my old posts, and I feel sort of overwhelmed. Almost like I couldn't put that much effort into anything I'd write now. I miss the old days when I used to express myself to a mostly anonymous crowd (we "bloggers" were in the great minority then), and only a few of my closest friends got to read my *real* thoughts.... the little interpersonal observations that only they had any context from which to derive meaning anyway. And so we went on living by the light of day, but in the privacy of our back hallways or makeshift computer rooms or bedrooms (I was never so lucky), we took off our masks to bask in the glow of our flickering tube monitors, we bared our souls to LiveJournal (or DeadJournal or Blurty or Xanga...), and we felt suddenly legitimized, seeing these deep introspections in published print. We typed in 80-width text fields what we couldn't (or wouldn't?) say out loud, and when we really wanted our friends to step into our minds, we posted "friends only" those most personal of our soulful exposés. We trusted that our truest friends would read them, and know, and understand. Hell, many times the people that ventured the furthest into our blogs became our truest friends. And we read, and we knew, and we understood. We created an entirely new mode of communication with those blogs.... a new outlet, a new therapy. And we were better friends to each other, because we suddenly realized that we were all very much alive together. Mine wasn't the only life that had a full-bodied narration echoing through my mind at all times, inaudible to the world around me and often making me feel insane. We all have those quiet thoughts, analyses, interpretations, concerns, fears, compassions, passions, questions, answers.... many of these we hid deep within our hearts. We finally just found a place where we felt safe enough to share them. And it was good.

And I felt so much more alive.

This blog is impersonal and even, at times, dispassionate. Did I get too old to think my quiet voices mattered? Did I decide that I was content to wholly internalize that never-ending conversation? That I didn't need friends of the emotional sort? It's certainly possible that I didn't want any for a while. I probably didn't want people I cared about to hear what my voices had to say. But, by protecting my friends from the evils in my mind, I also was protecting the evils in my mind from my friends, giving them a safe, warm place to grow and prosper. Maybe I'm too ashamed to re-open those overgrown gates. Maybe the wrought-iron hinges are too rusty to budge. Maybe I'm afraid of what ghastly sights the light of a new day will reveal. But I do know this: I'm so, so, soooo ready to feel alive again. I AM a human being, complete with a heart and a brain and a soul. Cynicism and isolation are for the birds. I'm kicking open my secret garden. Do you want to come in?

"United with his fellow-men by the strongest of all ties, the tie of a common doom, the free man finds that a new vision is with him always, shedding over every daily task the light of love. The life of Man is a long march through the night, surrounded by invisible foes, tortured by weariness and pain, towards a goal that few can hope to reach, and where none may tarry long. One by one, as they march, our comrades vanish from our sight, seized by the silent orders of omnipotent Death. Very brief is the time in which we can help them, in which their happiness or misery is decided. Be it ours to shed sunshine on their path, to lighten their sorrows by the balm of sympathy, to give them the pure joy of a never-tiring affection, to strengthen failing courage, to instil faith in hours of despair." - Bertrand Russell, Mysticism and Logic

Swim Toward the Surface!

2007-07-02T22:39:00.000-04:00

I know... just when you thought I was all blogged out.... I'm surprised myself, really. Oh, well.... Run with it, I always say.

I'm stuck in a decent routine, workin' that nine to five (thirty..... six..... thirty.... ok... nine to five just sounds better than eight to six thirty.) I'm pretty well immobilized by these shins/ankles/calves/feet/you tell me, so I haven't been kickin' up nearly enough dirt to keep me sane, but I'm trying to make up the distance in the pool, and I'm on the market for a decent bike. I've finally decided to go see an orthopedic surgeon in hopes that I'm not a 23-year-old invalid, so keep your fingers crossed, please.

Let's see.... I'm doing software development (and playin' foozball, naturally) at Strictly Biz, the place I interned in high school. It's the most enjoyable work I've ever done.... Excellent sign.

Basically, I'm working on getting my head cleared out and trying to pick up momentum in life. It's kind of hard to do with all the distractions of the old stompin' ground scattered about, but I'm holding my own. It'll be nice to get back to Purdue and press on the grind a little bit on my own. Everything I do feels better when I do it on my own.

I can't breath. I miss you.

Fuck.

Yeah, I said it.

This is getting harder by the second.

It's like figuring out which way's up deep under water, blind-folded, and completely disoriented. And I'm running out of air. Time's moving too fast.

Like the Cavalry at Dawn

2007-02-26T05:06:00.000-05:00

For all the things I don't know, there's at least one thing I do -- My sleep "schedule" is out of control. It's too cold to sleep in my bedroom most of the time, so I find myself on the couch or in the office, and that puts me less than 5 feet away from something better to do than sleep. Of course there's also the overwhelming influx of homework I'm strapped with this semester (my sincerest gratitude to Old Man Winter for sending the Math and Italian departments into a "catch up from the blizzard" frenzy) I seriously spent the better part of two straight days doing Calculus homework last week, and that was because I missed 2 days. Rock on.

Right.... sleep.... I don't know. I tried it for a few hours tonight, but coughing and worrying about all that homework got the better of me, so here I am at 5am getting ready to read about women's rights for my 8:30 class so I can spend the hour after that prepping for my Italian exam at 10:30. Then, of course, I'll have an hour to finish up my Calc homework before class at 12:30, and then I'll have about 45 minutes to eat something before I have to trudge across campus to go to my CS lecture. At about 3:30 I'll probably head back home for some food, and if I'm not too tired, I'll work out for an hour. Then I'll head back down to campus so I can finish my CS project and hopefully try to take the reigns on this whole homework fiasco so the rest of the week isn't quite so high-paced.

I need to read something that wasn't assigned to me, and I need to run on a riverbank with nothing but my iPod in tow. I need a balmy evening where no shirt feels good, and I need a bourbon, two ice cubes in a heavy glass, and my guitar. I need a haircut. I need my health. I need to wake up at sunrise and feel refreshed. I need to see God on the ground and in the sky, and in the eyes of everyone I meet. I need to treasure the blessings I have, but these things I need to seek out for myself. I need my best friend.

Thanks. I needed that.

And now, I need the golden sun to charge the midnight sky like the cavalry at dawn.

I got this. It's a beautiful day.

Is HHS the #1 Prep Team in the Country?

2007-01-19T18:32:00.000-05:00

Thursday, the top 2 boys basketball teams in the country, according to ESPN, both lost. #1 Oak Hill Academy lost to Chicago Simeon and #2 Artesia lost to another team from California.

Huntington High was ranked third in the latest poll. When the poll is updated next week, it's likely HHS will be on top.

These rankings are a little different than the USA Today standings which showed Artesia below HHS already.

PS - I know.... I know....... Give it time.

A Toast, A Promise, and Some Fireworks

2007-01-01T16:30:00.000-05:00

I'm going to recap 2006 shortly. But first, I'm going to go run. It will help clear my mind, collect my thoughts, and put me on track to fulfill my first resolution: to hit the ground running in 2007.

Warning: This is going to be rough, but I'll make it enjoyable if I can.

Here's to

Staying Afloat

2006-12-05T20:33:00.000-05:00

Tonight the whirlpool touched the ocean floor. I'm cascading with the current... splashing around helplessly... thrashed by debris.... desperate gasps for sweet, sweet air chopped into desolate pieces as I sputter in the salty water. The ocean's falling faster now, its belly gliding smoothly down the shores, and down, and down, and splash! back up again! And down, and down, sculpting the sand, naked and wet, to the figure of the receding tide. And now, as wildly as the clouds roared in so many months ago, as violently as the torrents poured down on me and swept me away, the ocean lays me down, breathless and beaten (but alive and oh, so well) on the soft, soggy mattress that will soon become dry land again. And lying, back pressed firmly against my beloved terra, my chest heaving up and down like my turbulent captor, the sea, the corners of my lips turn up ever so slightly. I'm gazing so far out into the universe, my eyes reflect the glow of moonlight and stars I can't even see, and tonight, right now, I own this moment.

I haven't written in so long. It feels incredible. If you can't tell, this is an allegory; and no, it's not about sex :P. Believe it or not, I was just talking about this semester ;-) Hope you didn't hate it too much! :P (Gah! Must use less emoticons in blog....)

I'll be back. I can see it in the moon, reflected with the midnight sky onto the icy pond behind me.

Peek-a-boo!

2006-08-25T18:13:00.000-04:00

An interesting question:

Does the greater Middle East have a comparative advantage over the United States in crude oil production?

I know I'm in(ternet)cognito these days, but I'm focusing on kicking ASS in school. Week 1 is finished and I have perfect attendance. ROCK!

I might update my reading list later, but if anybody is interested, I'm on my way to the library to get Adam Smith's The Wealth of Nations. I'll post my schedule here in the next few days (namely when I get my apartment set up and my computer plugged in. Yes, that's right, I haven't set my computer up yet. That's how many computers there are on Purdue's campus!) I LOVE THIS PLACE!

BOILER UP!

100%

2006-07-31T02:25:00.000-04:00

God, I'm going to miss this place, but not that much.

Huntington tomorrow. If you're on my A-list, you'll get a call.

This is surreal. I can't believe it's ending just as quickly as it began.

If I thought I was dedicated this year, I'm about to switch into uberfocused mode.

I'll try to catalogue my incredibly healthy life choices here, both for motivational purposes and future reference. I shall start by reading my text books and studying as much Italian as possible with this Rosetta Stone software.

I'll post my schedule soon.

Tonight, I sleep. Tomorrow, I win.

Emotion Reloaded... Cha Cha Cha

2006-07-27T15:25:00.000-04:00

Laundry's done. Apartment's mostly packed. Work's winding down. Condy's in Asia.

All's well.

I have my first modeling gig (is that what we call them?) this weekend for Express. It's kind of a joke, but I need money and at least I get to see some of my friends before I move. I keep telling people I'm banking on getting discovered so I can drop out of school and move to New York and become anorexic. Minus the anorexia, that would be sweet. (Don't hold your breath.)

Let's see... I'm going salsa dancing tonight! Cha cha cha! I'm definitely going to miss Evansville. It's funny that I finally started to wake up again socially toward the end of the year. I guess the summer heat will do that to ya. I actually started a song last night about it. It's called "Reloaded". Basically, it's about a guy who spends a long time being emotionally exhausted because of a bad relationship.... Actually, it's not about that part at all. I know some of you have experienced this.... After just being completely introverted for a long time, the ice starts to thaw and you begin to feel like you can have fun for the first time in ages. Thing is, when you start to have fun again, you begin to realize (or at least I began to realize) that the gun that shot you in the first place is loaded again, and now that you're putting yourself in front of it again, you have to wonder when there's going to be another bullet in the chamber.

I didn't actually write too much of the song last night... I just had the idea for it. I like "another bullet in the chamber". That needs to be in there. Good thing I put it on the internet. COPYRIGHT!

Ok, guys. I'm at my buddy Josh's finishing up my laundry for FREE! (Thanks, J Z) It's time to go drink cocktails. One mustn't be sober when one is dancing merengue. ;-)

Holla!

o/` Tied Up and Twisted, The Way I'd Like to Be o/`

2006-07-25T04:18:00.000-04:00

She totally crashed into me... I couldn't have seen it coming. I couldn't have stopped it. Of course, I probably have no chance of keeping her, but it sure was nice being crashed into. I needed that.

You hear that? If you're reading this, you're beautiful. Your paintings are like nothing I've ever seen. Your personality is as radiant as your smile. I'm sorry I didn't meet you sooner, and now I'm leaving, and I have no idea if I'll ever see you again. I can deal with that--there's a lot of future ahead of me, God willing--but man, oh, man. Where did YOU come from?

This is kind of what it felt like.

Hahaha.... That's all you can really do at a time like this. Laugh out loud. And be thankful to the core that you can laugh. I know I am.

Well, then, now that that's out of the way, I'm sure you're all wondering where my political commentary is. I'll give you the Reader's Digest version for now. The end of the world is upon us. More next week.

No. On second thought, I don't have anything else to say tonight. I'm pretty sure I just opened this window to vent about a girl. Maybe it's the stress of moving that's getting to me. I don't know. God, she's hot.

Oh, yeah! For those of you who don't know, I received official notice from Purdue that I now have in-state tuition. If you'll recall, this has been a long time coming for me, and Friday, when I found out, was probably one of the happiest days of my life. I move to West Lafayette this weekend. Look out!

Good ol' summer. Red hot days and white hot nights, and the moon climbs the midnight sky once more.

And the Espy Goes To...

2006-07-18T01:45:00.000-04:00

I hope to chronicle "Road Trip 2k6" here in the next few days. There should be plenty of pictures and stories to fill in a whole slew of posts. The only missing ingredient here is the dedication of the author (me). Since it's been what seems like ages since I've thrust my thoughts upon the internets, I doubt I have very many readers.

Prove me wrong. Motivate me.

You may ask yourself, "If Adam is having a hard time feeling motivated to write about his trip, why does he suddenly feel motivated enough to write about writing about it?"

Actually, you probably aren't asking yourself that. That was a complicated, jumbled, inefficient thought.

Point is, though, that something else inspired me to poke my head into the world wide web. This Jason McElwain kid, J-Mac, is incredible. I just wanted to share this picture with anybody who wanted to see it. I don't know about you, but it gives me the chills. Not the creeped out chills, but the ones I get when I see ginormous fireworks exploding across a patriot sky. Good chills. Kiss that Espy, killer. You earned it.

Blogging is so therapeutic. I should do it more often.

With a Huff and a Puff...

2006-06-09T03:32:00.000-04:00

I watched a movie tonight.... First time I've done that in a long time. It was interesting. The jury's still out on whether I liked it. I'm tryin' to grok it.

One thing's for sure, though. Brothers Grimm.....

Will Grimm: I've been thinking of an alternative career path. One that uses all of our new expertise.
Jacob Grimm: Will.
Will Grimm: I haven't sorted it yet...
Jacob Grimm: Will, this is the real world. We-we're men without a country, we're enemies of the state, and worst of all we haven't a single bean to our names.
Will Grimm: It's a good name, though, isn't it?
Jacob Grimm: It's a damn good name.*

* (Emphasis mine)

Peacenation

2006-05-27T14:31:00.000-04:00

Serenity is paramount.

My phone doesn't work. Aside from building a boat dock, a ramp, and a few fires, I have no responsibilities whatsoever. I have no schedule. I don't have to worry about money, people, noise, pollution..... pretty much the only concern I have is for the bugs. I'll survive them though.

Lake Michigan is absolutely gorgeous. The weather is impeccable. The flight in was quick and uneventful (which is usually better than the alternative). I can feel my chest relaxing for the first time in months. I kicked up dirt on the shores of Lake Michigan this morning. It's a little more awe-inspiring than the Ohio.

Honestly, I couldn't be happier right now. I'm going to go play the guitar or read or indulge some other guilty pleasure I never find time for in the "real world". Catch ya on the flip side.

I'll be camping tonight when the moon kisses the midnight sky.

Hi, My Name Is

2006-05-12T00:49:00.000-04:00

All sorts of crazy goings on today.... I got my official acceptance letter at Purdue (for the second time), I got a pretty cool compliment at work which I'll have to tell you about later, I made some good money, I found people to cover all my shifts so I can head to West Lafayette tomorrow, Donovan confirmed that he will indeed graduate, and I just helped my new neighbors Jason and Clara(??) set up their network.... They apparently noticed my Computers Plus uniform a few times and knocked on my door tonight to ask for help. No harm, no foul. They're cool folks anyway.

Today rocked.

Now, I should go pack. Please note that the primary purpose of this post was to help me remember their names, but I've already forgotten dude's wife's name. Why am I terrible with names?

The Wind Up

2006-05-09T09:27:00.000-04:00

If I had a summer to speak of, this would be it. That's right, I'm less than 3 months away from West Lafayette, IN. Work's going well, I've got some pretty sweet vacation lined up for the next couple of months, and then I've got to redirect all my energy into academia.

Milton wrote a dissertation on his idea of an ideal education. I won't bore you with the gory details, but I was interested and pleased that he included physical exercise, diet, and theological study as integral parts of the broader whole. His school varied little from those of Aristotle, Isocrates, Plato, Galileo Galilei, and the host of poets, philosophers, and kings who were raised under their tutelage. These aren't men who "took themselves too seriously" as a principle. Prima facie, they took the world seriously and made serious endeavors to wield what knowledge it presented them to forge for mankind its future. From the die of their lives we have cast the blazons of intelligence, fortitude, temperance..... These are not emblems to be cast down and forgotten, nor to be worshipped as unattainable idols of men before our time. They are a compass-head for those men and women willing to sacrifice comfort, fortune, and companionship to the glory of God and His creation.

How's that for letting go of myself? Come to think of it, how cowardly is that? And what a tragic shame.

I Fear, Too Early: For My Mind Misgives

2006-04-08T02:26:00.000-04:00

Well, I'm basically one week into April. This is going to be a long, dry month.

Pshh..... I just wrote three or four paragraphs about love and then highlighted them and replaced them with this sentence. I should not try to write seriously when I'm this tired. I'll need to remember that when I'm at Purdue ;-)

Suffice to say I'm beginning to notice the effects of the phenomenon of exponential growth within my person as the years progress. At the same time, I'm becoming increasingly aware of the stablizing effect age has on my personality. Perhaps the "refining" effect would be a more appropriate nomenclature.

Of course, at the same time this is developing within me, it's manifesting itself in all the beautiful women around me.

I'm thankful I didn't get married when I was eighteen years old. It works for some people. It's not for me, though I always thought it was.

I've lived. I've loved. I've learned. I don't believe in regret. Life is, after all, yours to miss.

But He, that hath the steerage of my course,
Direct my sail! On, lusty gentlemen.

My Blood, Shed for You

2006-04-04T14:03:00.000-04:00

The Lion said to her, “Are you not thirsty?”

“I’m dying of thirst,” said Jill.

“Then drink,” said the lion.

“May I—could I—would you mind going away while I do,” said Jill.

The Lion answered this only by a look and a very low growl. And, as Jill gazed at its smooth motionless bulk, she realized she might as well have asked the whole mountain to move aside for her convenience. The delicious rippling noise of the stream was driving her nearly frantic. “Will you promise not to—do anything to me, if I do come?” said Jill.

“I make no promises,” said the lion.

Jill was so thirsty now that, without noticing it, she had come a step nearer. “Do you eat girls?” she said.

“I have swallowed up girls and boys, women and men, kings and emperors, cities and realms,” said the lion. It didn’t say this as if it were boasting, nor as if it were sorry, nor as if it were angry, it just said it.

“I dare not come and drink,” said Jill.

“Then you will die of thirst,” said the lion.

“Oh dear!” said Jill, coming another step nearer. “I suppose I must go and look for another stream then.”

There is no other stream," said the lion.

Spring Forward, Fall Back

2006-04-02T00:27:00.000-05:00

Hey! What if I updated this thing? Wouldn't that be weird?

Problem is I get tongue-tied every time I try to say what I want to say...

The details of my vacation have been withheld at the request of the CIA. They are now need-to-know classified pending further investigation.

Not much in the way of an update so far, I suppose. I'm taking a voluntary sabbatical from alcohol for the month of April. Really, I started about a week ago. So far, so good, though there was a hearty bout between the little guys chilling on my right and left shoulders earlier this evening in front of the fridge.

In entertainment, lately I'm bouncing back and forth between C.S. Lewis and my new TV adventure, Gilmore Girls. If you have any comments about the implications of my enjoyment of the show, I invite you to direct them to my bulging bicep, who will more than likely direct his secretary, my right fist, to take a message on your face. ;-) No, seriously though. Lauren Graham and Alexis Biedel are both hott as hell. (Author's note: Those of you who know me best should know that I had to look up both of those names. I only know them as Lorelai and Rory Gilmore. I'm not good with actors' and actresses' names, social lives, or fashion faux pas. Lorelai, by the way, is a beautiful name.) The dialogue on the show is written by somebody with a measurable IQ (that's an anomaly in Hollywood) Plus, there's a healthy level of sexual mother-daughter innuendo which keeps me coming back for more. Honestly, it's a good show. I had no idea what it was until recently, even though it has apparently been on the air since 2000. I've almost burned through season one now. Between that and C.S. Lewis's gripping literature, I find myself with just enough free time to work out, run, clean, and cook myself ridiculously healthy meals in between work and sleep. All in all, I'm content. Now let's go to Ollie with the Black-U-Weather Forecast. Ollie?

"It's gon' rain!"

Thanks, Ollie. Tune in next time when we uncover the truth about Roald Dahl. Great British novelist or sick, twisted megafruitophile?

Oh, one more thing. This is serious.

I love you. I miss you. You were more to me than you'll ever know.

Rest in peace. :'(

Freakonomics

2006-03-25T15:11:00.000-05:00

I really need to update you guys on the last week and a half of my life. I have a cold and I'm reading Freakonomics right now before I go to work. I'll get back to you tonight or tomorrow. As always, names will be changed to protect the innocent.

I'll bet you didn't know Norma McCorvey was largely responsible for one of the biggest crime reductions in US history. Fascinating.

Next post - Fear and Loathing in West Virginia: Behind the Scenes

Fear and Loathing in West Virginia

2006-03-08T21:29:00.000-05:00

What are you doing, West Virginia? Of the three of these bills, maybe.... MAYBE..... I could deal with the road bill. I wouldn't like it, but I could live with it. You get yourself into a bind and then you have to work your way out of it even if you don't like the means to that end. But extended detainment of citizens?

There are some constitutional concerns that need to be addressed before we proceed.

--House Judiciary Chairman Jon Amores (D-Kanawha)

Ya think!?!?! The bill, proposed by Sen. Evan Jenkins (D-Cabell), "would allow police to detain a person under the reasonable suspicion of committing a crime for up to six hours." Reasonable suspicion, eh? Perhaps now would be a good time to tell you the story of a very good friend of mine who was recently driving home to West Virginia from New York and her unfortunate run-in with Ohio's finest. Here's a quote from her blog:

So, I drove Mitch's car because he was way too tired to drive. Mitch fell asleep. I wasn't even speeding much...like 5 over...and a cop pulls us over. I had to hang up on Adam...poor kid.
Estimated time 11 53pm. Location- Outside of Cleveland. Mitch is awoken by the beauty of sirens. Cop takes licenses and proceeds. Cop makes Mitch get out of car. Cop questions. Cop moves toward carpet and finds some sort of substance he imagines to be "marijuana". Cop questions some more. Cop makes me get out of car. Cop places me in the back of his SUV with Mitch. WE sit. He searches the car. Takes us out of car. Asks us a million times if "we smoke". Finally, we get to get back in car. Ending time 12 34. Nice way to waste an half hour on questioning....nice. I hate cops in OHIO.

These are the people the wonderful legislators of the state of West Virginia wish to empower with an unconstitutional authority to detain anyone they damn well please for SIX HOURS! It's a high-tech, high-speed world. People get sentenced to 24 hours of jail time. Six hours is a long time. Especially considering they don't have to charge you with ANYTHING! The US Supreme Court had a hard time deciding that citizens were required to provide identification to law enforcement when they weren't driving vehicles. If this bill becomes law, I hope a cop tries to detain me for 6 hours without charging me JUST so I can get the media publicity associated with the ensuing FEDERAL LAW SUIT!

Sorry about that rant. I won't go into a rant about this last article. It needs its own post anyway, probably, and I'll leave it up to some of my friends to argue the other side here. I'm referring to the minimum wage law which was passed in West Virginia today. It's bleeding heart liberal short-sighted teary-eyed idiocy, if you ask me. And hey, look at that! You did!

Comments? Concerns? Suggestions? Over the last few months I've been hard at work developing an incredible, revolutionary new piece of software which I've now implemented in my blog. It's called "comments"! The system works thusly: You click where it says "0 comments" (or however many comments there are on any post I've written), then click "add a comment". You then record your thoughts on my post in a text field in your browser. When you're finished, you either log into blogspot or you type in your name (and your website, if you so desire) and then click "Login and publish". It's neat. Then I can read what you think and respond to it, and so can all my other readers! I dare you! I double dog dare you!

Aight, Stop! It's Hammer Time!

2006-03-06T23:48:00.000-05:00

Reading C.S. Lewis's essays has made at least one thing abundantly clear to me. If my goal is to devour all the important philosophical, theological, and political literature I can find, I'm going to need to a) stumble upon an alternate dimension like Narnia where I could live a lifetime while 5 minutes passed here, or b) live to be a hundred and seventy. Neither of these seem likely, so I guess I'll just have to aim for the sky and hope to break free of gravity before I fail miserably. At least then I'd be free-floating.

Seriously, the man has read almost every book known to man. A few weeks ago I gave up trying to add his "suggestions" to my reading list online, keeping a notebook beside my bed instead. I've filled up an entire page, three columns, and I'm barely half-way through his writings. I guess studying literature at Oxford will do that for ya, but realizing the sheer volume of reading I want to do is starting to make me look at my plans. I have often said I never wanted to finish college. Maybe I shouldn't. Maybe I should teach while I do research and earn new degrees. I could always save up a little money and try to start some businesses. Or I could try to become a university president somewhere (those of you who know me best know there are two places above all I'd like to do this right now, but if I did decide to become a professor I would want to teach at different schools across the world, and who knows? I might fall in love with Stanford, or Cambridge, or the University of Stellenbosch or God knows where. Each school has different worlds of knowledge I could leech from while contributing my own brand of sarcastic wit to a bunch of post-adolescent neophytes (somewhat like myself right now...) Plus, you know I'd be the prof that students would love because I would party with them. ;-) I don't know. It's food for thought. A year just isn't enough for this zen road trip. A lifetime isn't enough. Or, better put, all life is is one big zen road trip. My life, anyway.

In other news, I'm officially incredibly healthy. I'm pretty sure I had the flu two weeks ago, but I didn't even realize it until two days in, and it was gone the next day. I had a mild headache (something I'm not used to), I was running a fever the whole time, but I made it to work both days, I stayed on my feet, I didn't even really feel that bad... Didn't really even notice that I might be "sick" and not just hung over 'til the last day. Plus, I'm back to running 3 or 4 times a week, I'm lifting just as much, and I've wrangled my drinking "tendency" into something much more manageable.... even enjoyable! Righteous.

Speaking of which, I'm learning more about God every day. Not that this is at all surprising, but I will never quench my thirst for knowledge about Him. (I haven't yet discovered a brand of knowledge for which I have no thirst. I just feel especially parched when it comes to theology.) More to come when I grow up. Stay posted.

On an unrelated note, I came across two noteworthy blogs in my infinite scouring of the internets this morning. I would've posted them for you this morning, but Blogspot was down. Frustrationation. Oh well.

1) MC Hammer has a blog! He seems to be doing pretty well. Mostly, he talks about his kid and sports and the state of hip hop. I'd surf on over there and check in on the baggy-pants sensation if I were you.

2) Hammertime was the lighter side of my surfing this morning. I did come across a blog of exceptional quality which struck my heart, compelling me to write this post in the first place. The blog belongs to Michael Brown, an unemployed graphic designer in Durham, North Carolina. He writes about his daily life with his wife and his three children, his on-going search for a job, and puts forth some insightful commentary on sociopolitics and theology as they manifest themselves in his life. But wait. That's not all. He maintains his blog from a computer terminal in a public library. Yes, Mr. Brown and his family are homeless. Most of his musings profess to help other homeless people across the country in coping with their predicaments. He gives some practical advice, some philosophical. I haven't had a chance to read through the whole blog, but I've definitely bookmarked this one. You might want to as well. I honestly think somebody should give this guy a book deal, quick. He's a fairly talented writer as far as I can tell. Given his social status, I'd say he can write plenty well enough to earn a buck or two.

As always, but particularly in this last matter, I'm interested in your thoughts. This is my life in the fast lane, folks. Live it. Love it. Learn it.

How Can They Meet Us Face to Face?

2006-02-26T00:45:00.000-05:00

I ended my first book with the words "no answer". I know now, Lord, why you utter no answer. Before your face questions die away. What other answer would suffice? Only words, words; to be led out to battle against other words.

That was, hands down, the most moving piece of literature I've ever consumed.

I feel embattled in my quest for God. I don't need that kind of guidance. The world unaided provides more than enough resistance along the path I've chosen. I appreciate good intentions for what they are, but mine isn't a journey bound by the logic of this world. In all mundane matters, my thirst for knowledge and the necessity to apply the full power of my mundane logic are married into one, but this matter, by its very nature, cannot be based in logic. When its foundation is laid, all manner of logic might flow forth from it, but the fact itself to which I have committed is in a plane separate and distinct from all human thought.

To that end, what is the virtue in pressing me to seek out "both sides" of an argument which does not exist? All the mind I have is set into that desire, and I am beginning to think our entire lives are dedicated to that purpose, but it seems to me dangerous to condescend anyone but a child or a fool by thrusting upon him that which he hasn't seen (or can't yet see) for himself. If the man has any passion for the matter, it can only serve to drive a wedge between him and his concerned benefactor; worse still, the lesson stands to be lost in translation.

Even still, I'm worried about what lies behind this. You urge me to look to both sides of the story told on Earth. Let that be my concern. If you agreed with me, would you still urge me to seek out the "truth"? We must presuppose Euclid or Aristotle or Newton or Einstein to have theorized correctly before we can delve into any number of our modern activities, and we do so regularly. Do you, then, urge me to look to both sides of these stories for truth? So why the passionate disposition in this matter? Yours is not a proselytizing ideology. What is the motivation for ensuring that I've heard both sides before I make any decisions? Given my choice, what do I stand to lose if I'm wrong? Even if your advice may indeed change my mind, to what end?

Again, I enjoy challenges to my philosophical, scientific, physical, and artistic endeavors. I often seek them out. My spiritual journey does not share a roof with any of these facets of life. They are mortal. This walk is difficult, almost impossible to bear at times. I will bear those burdens which God sees fit that I should endure, and no less, but neither do I seek any more.

These are my misgivings. I struggled to author them, and they are infantile and confused. They could be said to be addressed to the world at large, and in fact they are, but they are obviously more direct than that as well. I pray these words are well met where they fall, for they are only those. Words. I use them here to deliver human love to human ears. These words exist for that purpose. They fall short in communicating that which exists outside our nature. That is a conversation reserved for a time when all the experiences and the lessons life has to impart upon us have expired; that is to say, Till We Have Faces.

By the Bright, Shining Light of the Moon

2006-02-19T00:25:00.000-05:00

We live in a beautiful world...

What's up, the internets? No excuses. Just been neglecting my blog. Really, it's been a conscious decision, not like I just forget or am too lazy. Any time I have enough free time to write in here, I realize that there's a lot of other things I want to do. Namely, read a book, work out, play a song, cook, clean, get ready for work, go to work, or sleep. That's right. My life has about 8 flavors right now. The beautiful part isn't in the selection.... it's in the intense depth of each one of those flavors. Quality over quantity, here. It's producing amazing results.

As far as reading goes, I've been slowed down recently by trying to get back in touch with a lot of my friends. I spent a month or so pretty well cut off from the world reading non-stop, and I knocked off a bunch of books, but I needed to talk to some people. I talked to one of my favorites tonight, and it was definitely soul food. I needed that more than anything at this point, even if it was only for a few minutes.

C.S. Lewis..... Always been my favorite author, and I never even knew why. The Chronicles of Narnia are obviously amazing, and even as a child I was aware that there was some degree of Christian metaphor in those pages, but you can't really appreciate the depth of his story-weaving until you've given his more "grown-up" works some serious thought. If I was born into Christianity, walked away from Christ (and even almost the very idea of God) of my own accord, and given my footing and my sight again by one of God's more blessed chilrden, C.S. Lewis very definitely delivered my mind, body, and spirit back across the distance I had transgressed.... and by his momentum, propelled me exponentially further toward God than I had ever been before. I recognized soon after "turning around" the potential for my faith to be reborn a phoenix from a dove, but it was impossible to imagine the world from the eyes of a phoenix without those flames burning across your own field of vision. Now, my sights ablaze and my vantage point granted by the wings of God, I can see just how long a journey this really was meant to be. It looks more difficult even than the hardest times I've seen behind me, but at the same time it looks easier than ever.

I don't know when I'll post again. It was just a quiet evening, too cold to run, the music set my mind to work, and here it is. I expect another, albeit smaller-scale, disappearance in the coming weeks so I can get my reading back on track. I'm going to finish The Voyage of the Dawn Treader tonight and then read Till We Have Faces. I'll be thinking of you.

With a joyful heart, a peaceful mind, and a tattered spirit, I bid you farewell. Meg says the moon is yellow in the midnight sky.

What Time is It?

2006-02-05T03:27:00.000-05:00

This is why I love Purdue.

This..... heh.... this is something which, if the guy turns out to be onto something, will be the biggest discovery since that whole flat world theory was put to rest.

I'm in a very bad mood tonight, through no fault of yours (unless you're one person...) and I'm trying to keep myself distracted by reading geek news. It's not working. I should be freaking out excited about that second one. I'm not.

I'll try to write something substantive some time soon. Don't hold your breath, though. I have a day off tomorrow, but I'm evidently going to spend it asleep, having stayed up all night because of someone's a) stupidity or b) extreme thoughtlessness.

Boiler up!

6 of One, Half Dozen the Other

2006-01-30T23:50:00.000-05:00

Somehow, today's an important day for me.

Ah, yes. It marks the halfway point in my journey through Evansville, Indiana.

That's right. Six months down, six to go.

Look out. These next six months are going to be a whirlwind of zen road trip-ism.

I look forward to seeing you all on the other side.

(It's actually kind of interesting that this is the halfway point. It coincides almost perfectly with my transition into my next book. What I'm about to do is going to forever change my life. I'll tell you more about it when I'm done.)

Hail to the Chief

2006-01-22T22:36:00.000-05:00

Life is advancing on me at all fronts. The only recourse is phalanx.

I just watched the premier of Commander-in-Chief. That show is a joke. The subject of the show isn't two guys, a girl, and a pizza place. It's the Oval Office. The intellectual capital of this solar system. How many people told me I would like this show? Do none of you see the difference between this and Aaron Sorkin's work? What about between Kelly Clarkson and Rachmaninoff? Pat Buchannon and John Calvin? James Frey and David Hume?

Within 5 minutes of her presidency, the first First Lady has already egregiously violated the God-given sovereignty of another nation in favor of Western ideals. Cited empathy. You would be sickened by the courses of action a similar breed of "empathy" toward these United States by a great many of our foreign counterparts might prescribe. We are, however, presently in a position to divert these tendencies. Ironically, these empathetic tendencies of ours will play the jester who strips us of that robe of protection. Think UN, seventy five years down the road.

Who am I kidding? It's inevitable. Just give me the high ground and a bunch of rocks.

Perhaps I've grown a little cynical. I still love my country. What it should be. After careful consideration, I've decided I would be willing to bear the burden of national office for my countrymen... I do not propose to serve them directly. I may be the first politician in several centuries to say that. I will serve God, and as His mandate, myself. By preserving my right and theirs to do so freely, I stand for every man, woman, and child born, sworn, or carried into this great nation.

I stand ready to serve at your call. The unspoken truth, of course, is that you won't call.

Death in the Family

2006-01-19T23:42:00.000-05:00

Oh dear God...

I have been in recluse for a little while, tending to work and my overgrown reading list, and I'll be back under the sheets for a while yet, if I had to guess, but this can't go without comment.

I feel like I could've saved it. I look back at all of you Huntingtonians with an unjustifiable sense of anger and disappointment, directed at no one in particular. And then I feel like I dove from the deck just as the explosion rendered devastation behind me. Less an explosion. More a slow, gruesome death. Like the plauge. What plagues Huntington? West Virginia? My old life?

They say what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. To witness my beloved Keith Albee reduced to this (let alone to imagine its "not-for-profit" times to come) twists the dagger further into my heart, but I'm committed to enduring the quest I've chosen, and so I'll carry on, turn my head back one last time in disgust at you and in respect for the fallen hero of days gone by, cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war.

(If you don't understand any of this, go about your business. Nothing to see here.)

Viva La Musica

2006-01-10T20:50:00.000-05:00

Good song. I'll be back with you as soon as I'm finished reading Ayn Rand. I miss you, the internet.

Let's Go Exploring

2006-01-01T13:24:00.000-05:00

This was the last Calvin and Hobbes strip ever printed.

For a child, snow is a miracle. The heavy white fog that blankets the world, casting the sun's rays brilliantly back into the sky, pleasantly illuminates our adult lives, but the weight of the snow on the ground presses against our more "mature" senses in a less romantic way: "I'm going to have to shovel this stuff." "I wonder if the roads are safe." For a child, the vivid white powder bears no burdens. In the most impressionable stage of his life when all his experiences are adventures and he's developing his perception of the world with every wisp of sensation it provides him, the snow is nature's most comprehensive sudden impulse, reshaping and refocusing his lens. Do you remember taking your first delicate steps into the fresh white snow as a child? I do. I tried desperately not to break through it for fear of shattering the dream I felt all around me. When the serenity remained intact, I realized I had my first canvas spread out at my feet. It was magical.

Grown up now, I don't always take the time to stop, hold my breath, and step out onto the snow with that childlike wonder, although the ability to appreciate such an immaterial act was crystalized in my mind long ago. Bill Watterson tends to pluck that particular chord within me more often now than I let nature do the same. That's why I posted my favorite strip of all time today. I didn't really think I had anything else to learn from that spiky-haired hellian and his strip-ed friend, but this morning when I saw that strip and I felt the excitement of the world through Calvin's eyes, I realized that the snow is just another color. When I open the door today to step out into 2006, there won't be any snow on the ground. The world is still my canvas.

Make 2006 the best year of your life. Don't leave your canvas waiting, untouched. From every step you take, the ripples of beautiful colors will flow and blanket the world like so much fallen snow. Step surely. Walk straight. Go in peace, and know that you go with God.

The Spirit of Christmas

2005-12-21T04:27:00.000-05:00

It's getting to be that time.

Hope everything's ok up in NYC, Nick. Walking several hundred New York City blocks sure would make me grouchy.

Come to think of it, so would staying up this late and having to work 9 hours in the morning. I love Audioscrobbler. G'night, world.

Death Be Not Proud

2005-12-17T01:08:00.000-05:00

Wow. It's been a rough day for the human race.

I haven't seen a lot of press around this yet, so it seems like it's very fresh news, but it appears that Jimmy Wales, founder of the Wiki project (Wikipedia, Wikimedia, Wikibooks, etc...) has been murdered. Apparently, his shooting death was related to the false article posted about John Siegenthaler, Sr., a Kennedy-era reporter. The article has received a lot of publicity over the last week or two, and the author has apparently apologized for what he termed a "joke". Nonetheless, it seems someone who was a friend of Siegenthaler has shot and killed possibly the most prominent pioneer of the new age of the internet, often called Web 2.0. His life was ended senselessly, but its lasting impact on the human race has only begun to form. Evidently, someone was attempting to further prove the faults in Wikipedia. Sorry for the disinformation. It worked on me, and that's not easy to get by with. It definitely makes me look at Wikipedia with a healthier degree of skepticism.

John Spencer, the American actor I'm most fond of for his almost transcendent portrayal of White House Chief of Staff Leo McGarry in NBC's The West Wing, has passed away at the lamentable age of 58. In an eerily parallel turn of events, Spencer died of a heart attack less than a year after his character, McGarry, was compelled by myocardial infarction to resign from his White House post. Many of you probably know the West Wing is my favorite television series of all time. John Spencer's death strikes a melancholy chord of tragedy deep within my soul. I hope both of these impeccably talented gentlemen are well-received into God's loving arms. If a man's gifts to humanity speak to the quality of his soul, I'm confident they both are.

I want to look at Senator Lieberman's proposed innovation bill, the National Innovation Act of 2005. I had planned on researching it tonight and serving something up for Elephino, which is sorely malnourished of late. Unfortunately, before my research could get underway, I tripped over the last two unfortunate events and spent the last hour reading about the two mens' lives in tribute. Joe Lieberman will wait until tomorrow. If he doesn't, he won't be receiving a tribute on my blog. Goodnight and God bless!

AudioScrobbler

2005-12-14T22:01:00.000-05:00

The concept behind this service is sheer genius. I hope everybody I know gets one of these and adds me as a friend. Check out my AudioScrobbler.

Calvin and Hobbes for the Soul

2005-12-13T22:02:00.000-05:00

Figure 8

2005-12-13T03:27:00.000-05:00

Someone found the future as a statue in a fountain at attention looking
backward in a pool of water wishes with a blue songbird on his shoulder who
keeps singing over everything
Everything Means Nothing to Me
Everything Means Nothing to Me
Everything Means Nothing to Me
I picked up the song and found my picture in the paper the reflection in the
water showed an iron man still trying to salute people from a time when he was
everything he's supposed to be
Everything Means Nothing to Me
Everything Means Nothing to Me
Everything Means Nothing to Me
Everything Means Nothing to Me

I Am a Stranger in a Strange Land

2005-12-11T01:52:00.000-05:00

I finished an excellent book today. I think I'll probably give it a day or two before I let you know what I think while I try to grok its fullness. When waiting is filled, I shall speak rightly.

I really need some time to grok a lot of things. Someone very dear to my heart may well have died today. Perhaps not in the corporate sense, which I could certainly envelope in love and understanding until it became a part of me. The sort of death I'm refering to is infinitely more terrifying in that it denies..... oh, hell. I couldn't even begin to explain this to you. Maybe if both of us spoke Martian. I don't know. I've never been able to speak Martian.

I've started writing songs. I have three incomplete songs, thus far. One is called "Joker's Wild". Another, "Benediction". The third, "Black and Mild". And those are just the ones I want to tell you about. I even have a melody in mind for at least one of them right now. I'm excited about that. Now I just need to get a keyboard to transpose said melodies.

Thou art God.

Tiggers Are Wonderful Things

2005-12-06T00:53:00.000-05:00

Merry Christmas

2005-12-04T01:41:00.000-05:00

I was feeling somewhat Christmasy today and decided to record a song for you guys. I don't think it's great, but it's a fun rendition of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer a cappella. If you want to hear the music, Jack Johnson sings it originally. I just didn't feel like stripping out the instrumentals, and I can't play it on the guitar really, so you're stuck with just me and my voice.

Enjoy!

Edit: I added a guitar part. This is (literally) the first full song I've ever played on the guitar, and I learned it today because I wanted instrumentals behind my voice here. The result is some crappy guitar strumming and some crappy vocals (trying to match up with the guitar isn't easy... I can't record them at the same time with my crappy mic...) The theme here is crappy, but that's what Christmas is all about, right? I thoroughly enjoyed doing this, so I don't care what you guys say ;-)

God bless!

Tech News for your Brain

2005-12-01T23:43:00.000-05:00

(Warning: This post is rated high on the nerd scale)

I don't expect anybody to surf over to TechNews ever, so I'll go ahead and show you some stuff I thought you might be interested in.

First, for the book lovers out there, Guardian posted SurveyMonkey's top 20 geek novels of all time. Check it out. I might have to add some (or all) of these to my reaidng list at some point.

Second, and even cooler, Microsoft (for those of you who don't know) is working on a new version of Windows, codenamed Vista. There are a lot of new features, but the one that I'm all hot and bothered over is the Restart Manager. Basically, it's trying to make all those "you must now restart your computer" messages stop interrupting your computing life. It's something that's been missing from Windows since, well, forever. Trust me, this may mean nothing to you now, but some day you won't be able to remember how you lived without it.

That is all.

The Media "is" Retarded

2005-12-01T23:04:00.000-05:00

President Bush was summoned for jury duty in Crawford last month. Obviously, the President won't be able to fulfill this summons while in office. Instead of assaulting my readers with a barrage of reasons for this, let's assume those are apparent and focus on how News.telegraph, an online news provider in the UK, reported the "event".

Alec Russell penned the article, all of which contained factual information as far as I can tell. My complaint isn't with factual reporting. It deals with the rhetoric used to deliver the news. Amid details on the lackluster story, (emphasis mine)

County officials posted a jury summons to President George W Bush at 43 Chapel Ranch Road, the address of his Texas ranch, last month.

But the White House said yesterday that Mr Bush was too busy with affairs of state to appear in court on Monday and would have to "reschedule".

We already decided that the idea of the President serving as a juror during his presidency is ludicrous. To apply accusatory rhetoric to the President's response (which, I'll point out, the article never actually quotes) is ignorant. Notice that the second sentence, which is intended to deliver the administration's message regarding the summons, has only one word in quotations. All I got from this was that at some point during Scott McLellan's press conference, he said the word "reschedule". To say that "Mr. Bush" is "too busy" makes him sound like he's trying to weasle his way out of a date with an ugly girl. I wonder what the rest of the sentence/paragraph actually said. I guarantee you the "too busy" thing is out of context. The man answered the most strenuous, verging-on-insane call to public service we could dream up in the United States and some half-wit crumpet-munching "news man" wants to call him out for dodging jury duty? You couldn't nail him to the cross on draft-dodging and you couldn't dig up any dirt on his military service. Now this? Give me a break. I want to start writing syndicated columns about liberals (and Brits). All I need to do is put one word they say in quotations and the rest is poetic license. Journalists actually get paid for this? The media "is" retarded. Now give me fifty bucks.

P.S. - In case Alec Russell reads this, seventh graders know not to begin sentences in English papers with "and" or "but". Yes, I do it in my blog, but I don't get paid to write any of this, and as the saying goes, "I do what I want".

The Moon Climbs the Midnight Sky

2005-11-29T01:05:00.000-05:00

You need to read this. It's the least you can do.

I've been asking myself a lot about the least I can do. Some of you know I've been pressed by this question for a long time. Even more of you know that the question was exacerbated when hundreds of my neighbors, people I don't even know, were devastated by a massive, deadly tornado a few weeks back. You've seen the pictures.

I think you should know that I've decided to do all that's in my power to become a volunteer firefighter here in Newburgh. I tell you this not because I'm particularly proud of myself (although I will say that I am proud), but with hopes that it might inspire in even one of you a crescendo of those feelings which led me to the disaster area that Sunday morning, which led tens of thousands to Ground Zero on and after 9/11, and which now lead me to brave one of nature's most brutal, untame elements simply because I consider myself able and willing to preserve my fellow man's life, limb, and property when he needs these things most.

I have to wait and see if I'll be given the opportunity to go through with this, but if not today, then tomorrow, or next year, or five years from now. My heart and my mind are set in stone. If God is willing, I will fight fires.

There's a lot more I could talk about, but I worked 12 hours today, and as my last post will testify, I have some reading to do.

Tonight, I need not venture outside to seek out the moon in the midnight sky. I have faith in its everlasting glow.

Reading List

2005-11-27T03:08:00.000-05:00

I need to keep track of the books I've read/want to read while I'm out here. If you're wondering why I'm still not posting, the list below has a lot to do with it ;-) I'm on a pilgrimage, if you will. Formatting and links coming soon. The book(s) I'm currently reading will be in blue. So, without further ado...

Viktor Frankl
- ~~Man's Search for Meaning~~

Barack Obama
- ~~The Audacity of Hope~~

Norton Juster
- ~~The Phantom Tollbooth~~

Ann Coulter
- ~~Slander~~
- ~~Treason~~
- ~~How to Talk to a Liberal (If You Must)~~

J.K. Rowling
- ~~Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince~~

John Bunyon
- ~~The Pilgrim's Progress (Part 1: Christian's Pilgrimage)~~
- ~~The Pilgrim's Progress (Part 2: Christiana's Pilgrimage)~~

Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner
- ~~Freakonomics~~

Christopher Moore
- ~~Lamb: A Novel. The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal~~

Robert A. Heinlein
- ~~Stranger in a Strange Land~~
- ~~The Moon is a Harsh Mistress~~
- ~~Time Enough for Love~~

Bill O'Reilly
- ~~The O'Reilly Factor: The Good, the Bad, and the Completely Ridiculous in American Life~~

Chuck Palahniuk
- ~~Fight Club~~

~~The Qur'an~~

Ayn Rand
- ~~We The Living~~
- ~~Anthem~~
- ~~The Fountainhead~~
- ~~Atlas Shrugged~~
- For the New Intellectual
- The Virtue of Selfishness
- Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal
- Philosophy: Who Needs It?

Robert M. Pirsig
- ~~Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance~~
- Lila: An Inquiry into Morals

Plato
- ~~(The) Republic~~
- Everything Else

The Bible
- Old Testament
- New Testament

C.S. Lewis
- A Preface to Paradise Lost
- The Pilgrim's Regress
- Reflections on the Psalms
- ~~A Grief Observed~~
- The Abolition of Man
- Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer
- The Great Divorce
- The Allegory of Love: A Study in Medieval Tradition
- Spirits in Bondage
- ~~The Screwtape Letters~~
- ~~Screwtape Proposes a Toast~~
- ~~The Problem of Pain~~
- ~~Till We Have Faces~~
- ~~Mere Christianity~~
- ~~The Joyful Christian~~
- ~~Miracles~~
- Surprised By Joy
- All My Road Before Me: The Diary of C.S. Lewis 1922-27
- ~~God in the Docks~~
- ~~The Four Loves~~
- ~~Readings for Meditation and Reflection~~
- Essay Collection: Faith, Christianity, and the Church
- Essay Collection: Literature, Philosophy, and Short Stories
- ~~The Chronicles of Narnia~~
  - ~~The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe~~
  - ~~Prince Caspian~~
  - ~~The Voyage of the Dawn Treader~~
  - ~~The Silver Chair~~
  - ~~The Horse and His Boy~~
  - ~~The Magician's Nephew~~
  - ~~The Last Battle~~

John Milton
- ~~Poems of Mr. John Milton, Both English and Latin (1645)~~
- ~~Poems, etc., Upon Several Occasions (1673)~~
- ~~The Reason of Church Government~~
- ~~An Apology for Smectymnuus~~
- ~~The Doctrine and Discipline of Divorce~~
- ~~Of Education~~
- ~~Areopagitica~~
- ~~The Tenure of Kings and Magistrates~~
- Second Defence of the English People
- The Ready and Easy Way to Establish a Free Commonwealth
- Paradise Lost
- Paradise Regained
- Samson Agonistes
- Christian Doctrine

Dan Brown
- Digital Fortress
- ~~Angels and Demons~~
- The Da Vinci Code
- Deception Point

Karl Marx
- Das Kapital
- ~~The Communist Manifesto~~

Dante Alighieri
- The Divine Comedy

Immanuel Kant
- Oh man, there's a lot of these

Dan Millman
- Way of the Peaceful Warrior

Winston Churchill
- The Crisis

Sun Tzu
- The Art of War

Che Guevara
- Self-Portrait: Che Guevara
- The Diary of Che Guevara
- The Motorcycle Diaries
- The African Dream: The Diaries of the Revolutionary War in the Congo
- Bolivian Diary
- Guerilla Warfare
- Critical Notes on Political Economy
- Our America and Theirs
- Manifesto: Three Classic Essays on How to Change the World

Whittaker Chambers
- Witness

Phyllis Schlafly
- Not sure yet...

Tom Robbins
- Even Cowgirls Get the Blues

John Eldredge
- Wild at Heart

Ernest Hemingway
- For Whom the Bell Tolls
- The Sun Also Rises
- More...

Hunter S. Thompson
- Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
- Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail

Adam Smith
- The Wealth of Nations
- The Theory of Moral Sentiments

David Hume
- A Treatise of Human Nature
- An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding
- An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals
- Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion
- Essays Moral and Political

Joseph Addison
- Cato, a Tragedy

Thomas Reid
- Inquiry Into the Human Mind on the Principles of Common Sense
- Essays on the Intellectual Powers of Man
- Essays on the Active Powers of Man

John Locke
- A Letter Concerning Toleration
- A Second Letter Concerning Toleration
- A Third Letter for Toleration
- Two Treatises of Government
- An Essay Concerning Human Understanding
- Some Thoughts Concerning Education
- The Reasonableness of Christianity, as Delivered in the Scriptures
- A Vindication of the Reasonableness of Christianity
- First Tract on Government (the English Tract)
- Second Tract on Government (the Latin Tract)
- Essays on the Law of Nature
- Essays Concerning Toleration
- Of the Conduct of the Understanding
- A Paraphrase and Notes on the Epistles of Paul

René Descartes
- Compendium Musica
- Rules for the Direction of the Mind
- Discourse on Method
- La Géométrie
- Meditations on First Philosophy
- Principles of Philosophy
- The Singing Epitaph
- Comments on a Certain Broadsheet
- The Description of the Human Body
- Conversation with Burman
- Passions of the Soul

Saint Thomas Aquinas
- Everything... and there's a lot

Thomas Hobbes
- The Elements of Law, Natural and Political
- Elementa Philosophica
- Leviathan
- Questions Concerning Liberty, Necessity and Chance
- Behemoth (or The Long Parliament)

John Calvin
- Institutes of the Christian Religion
- His biblical commentaries

Aristotle
- Everything, and there's a lot

Socrates
- Everything, and there's a lot

Niccolò Machiavelli
- Everything (and there's a lot)

Thomas Malthus
- Everything

Adolf Hitler
- Mein Kampf

Nelson Mandela
- In His Own Words

The Federalist Papers

The 9/11 Commission Report

Behold The Wrath of God

2005-11-21T00:40:00.000-05:00

The Wrath of God
Originally uploaded by adamnationx.

I know it's been a while. I've obviously been pretty busy lately. First there was a giant tornado, then the lack of internet thereafter, then I escaped to Purdue for the weekend, and then I was just reeling from it all. I'm here now, though. Go check out the photo set from the tornado. I'm going to read and go to bed. Tomorrow, posting commences full force. Tonight we dine on turtle soup.

An Elephant and a Rhinoceros? Elephino...

2005-11-02T22:13:00.001-05:00

So I created a new blog today, called Elephino. It's so I can post all my political stuff somewhere that I can send the general public and avoid having them read about how drunk I got last night, or how confused I am about life, or whatever today's thing is. You know how it goes. Nonetheless, I will probably cross-post everything here so you guys don't have to jump back and forth, but I ask that if you want to send anyone else to read any of my political whatnot, send them to LFIKnow.blogspot.com. A fun time will be had by all. (hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha..... hahahahahaha.... *sniff* *wipes a tear* hahahahahaha.... sorry..... that's not true)

Fiscal Responsibility and Student Aid

2005-11-02T22:13:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, Marshall University's student newspaper, the Parthenon, published (essentially) an op-ed by the federal issues coordinator of the West Virginia Citizen Action Group that caught my interest and drove me to do some research. The column concerned the House Education and Workforce Committee's budget cut proposals, made at the request of GOP leaders in Congress to curb the widening budget gap. Initially, Congress had been asked to shoot for $35 billion in reductions, but the rising costs of hurricane relief have driven Congressional leaders to ask for an extra $15 billion in reductions from a wide range of committees.

The Education and Workforce Committee was tasked with finding $18 billion in net savings from direct spending programs. In the course of its investigation, it discovered some inefficiency in the federally-subsidized student aid programs in place under the Higher Education Act. To quote the Committee's report from October 25, 2005, (emphasis mine)

Since 1965, the federal government has invested hundreds of billions of dollars in higher education on the premise that all students, regardless of financial circumstance, should have the opportunity to pursue postsecondary education. Four decades later, taxpayers are spending more than ever before on higher education, yet the goal of higher education access remains elusive to far too many American students.

There is no question that an investment in higher education pays dividends for the future. An educated workforce drives economic growth. Scientific breakthroughs keep America on the cutting edge of technological advancement. Children whose parents are college educated are more likely to pursue postsecondary education themselves, continuing the cycle of success and prosperity. Yet despite the clear imperative for an effective and efficient investment in higher education, billions of taxpayer dollars are being wasted through inefficiency and unwise public policy.
After more than a decade of tuition increases that have far outpaced the rate of inflation and growth in family incomes, it has become clear that blindly increasing federal student aid is doing nothing to solve the challenge of skyrocketing college costs. Indeed, the vast increases in federal student aid have coincided with these tuition increases, calling into question whether the current federal investments in higher education may actually be a contributing factor to the college cost explosion that is squeezing the budgets of hard working low- and middle-income American families.

Taxpayers are carrying a tremendous higher education cost burden on many fronts. In addition to the more than $70 billion in direct student aid paid for by taxpayers in FY 2005, American families are subsidizing aid to institutions, research, and numerous federal programs outside the Higher Education Act that award funding to colleges and universities. Moreover, higher education consumes a significant portion of the taxes paid at the state level, and even after all of this, families with children enrolled in college are paying more than ever before for their own tuition bills.
To ensure the federal investment in higher education is made in the best interests of students, families, and taxpayers, the Committee has developed comprehensive reforms that will expand college access for low- and middle-income students while simultaneously generating savings for taxpayers by eliminating program waste and inefficiency, trimming excess subsidies paid to lenders, and placing the aid programs on a more stable financial foundation to ensure their long-term viability and success for future generations of American students.

The Congressional Budget Office estimates these reforms would save between $14 billion and $15 billion over five years, eliminating waste on behalf of taxpayers while expanding student benefits. Taken together, these reforms will help put student aid programs on a strong financial foundation to ensure their stability now and into the future, protecting both students and taxpayers.

In short, the people who proposed this (read: Republicans) are not anti-education. They're not even trying to keep poor and middle-class West Virginians from going to Marshall. More importantly, this legislative proposal doesn't have any such results. Let's break it down.

First, let's look at the efficacy of trimming government spending on student aid while maintaining or improving the level of service. More and more American students are pursuing higher education every year. At the same time, over the last decade, tuition costs have continued to rise steadily. As such, student loan programs have grown significantly over recent years. Through investment in technology and refining its programs to maximize efficiency, loan programs have been able to provide better services to borrowers and to do so at reduced costs. The loan programs, however, are still collecting subsidies from the federal government well in excess of today's required costs for running the programs. The new proposal requires all funds acquired above the minimum guaranteed be returned to the federal government to be reinvested in the student aid program.

Today, borrowers who wish to consolidate their student loans must lock on to the prevailing fixed-interest rate of the day, regardless of whether interest rates will go down in the future. The Committee's proposal offers borrowers, for the first time in history, the opportunity to choose between keeping the variable interest rates of their student loans when consolidating or selecting a long-term fixed rate that suits each borrower's financing plans. Most consumer loan products (like mortgages) charge a 2% premium to lock in long-term fixed rates, whereas the Committee's proposal will cost the borrower 1% above the variable interest rate of the year the loan is consolidated. A one-time 1% offset fee by the borrower will allow the federal government to secure the fixed rate for up to thirty years.

Another area the Committee's proposal targets is the security of tax-payers in responsibility for loan defaults. The proposal reduces the amount of money the federal government will pay to loan companies on defaulted loans, increasing the incentive for loan companies to work with borrowers to prevent defaults in the first place so tax payers aren't forced to bear the burden.

Student borrowers pay up to 4% in loan fees today, including a 3% origination fee and a 1% default fee charged to some borrowers. With a stronger default fee structure, the Committee's proposal was able to reduce origination fees for all borrowers, resulting in total loan fees of 1%.

The proposal also attempts to compensate for tuition inflation by increasing the borrowing limit for first and second-year students (from $2,625 to $3,500 and $3,500 to $4,500, respectively), although aggregate limits will remain at $23,000. Graduate limits will increase from $10,000 to $12,000 annually.

In addition, the "single holder" rule, which which limits consumers’ ability to consolidate with the lender of their choice by requiring consumers who have all of their loans held by a single lender to consolidate with that lender, even if they could obtain better terms and service elsewhere.

There are more benefits to the Committee's proposal, all of which you can read about in their report, from which a great majority of this information was acquired.

In my next post, we can talk about why the op-ed concerns me and why it concerns me even moreso that no one (no political groups on campus, no student interest groups, no Student Government official, and certainly no one on the Parthenon's staff) found the column's egregious claims even remotely newsworthy, warranting any kind of comment or rebuttal. If student financial aid isn't important to college students, who do you think's going to care? (Wrong answer: Their parents. You don't belong in college. Go get a real job.)

Did You Know Libraries Have Books For Free!?!?

2005-10-31T00:21:00.000-05:00

There is a giant evil pumpkin outside the courthouse in downtown Evansville. And it's about to eat Donovan and Rory! OH NO!!! I better take a picture!

I have a lot of political whatnot going on in my head these days. Blame Ann Coulter. No... it's not her fault. It was there before I had ever read anything by her. Now I'm just more informed. I do not, however, feel like talking about it right now, since I've now read like 700 pages straight of Ann Coulter. I just need to read How to Talk to a Liberal (If You Must), and then I'll have read every book she's written. Then I'm reading The Pilgrim's Progress, then C.S. Lewis or Robert Heinlein. This isn't meant to impress you, so don't go getting that idea. It's meant to give my friends (Jon, DD, etc.) a reading list if they ever feel inclined to, you know, read ;-). I recommend you start with Ayn Rand.

I know this is kind of pathetic, but I don't have a copy of the Bible at my apartment. I need to get me one of those as well. Also, I'm taking suggestions for potential reading in the future, if anybody has anything you think I should read. On my list right now:

~~The Pilgrim's Progress~~

CS Lewis (pretty much everything)

Heinlein (")

The Bible

Dan Millman's The Way of the Peaceful Warrior

The Federalist Papers

Plato's The Republic

Sun Tzu's The Art of War

Anything by Ronald Reagan I can find

Immanuel Kant

Whittaker Chambers' Witness

Phyllis Schlafly (pretty much everything)

Che Guevara (")

Karl Marx's Das Kapital and The Communist Manifesto

~~Bill O'Reily's The O'Reily Factor~~

The 9/11 Commission Report

2005-10-28T14:59:00.000-05:00

Where to begin... This has been the craziest day I can remember. I just quit my job at the Pasta Grill (due to a bounced paycheck, among many other things...), got into a fight with the monkey-brains down at my friendly neighborhood Fifth Third Bank (over said bounched check), closed my account with aforementioned bank, and saved the world all in one day.

How did I save the world, you ask? Well, Johnny, it's complicated. You can read about it in my biography some day, but I don't have time to explain it right now ;-)

What I do have time to explain is my love for Ann Coulter. I'm glad BadAdam has taken the time to comment on some of the quotes I've posted in the last few days. I love the engagement. See, I am in the middle of reading all of Ann Coulter's books (I'm halfway through Treason right now). I don't necessarily agree with her on every point, and I do think that she discredits herself with her incessant, often senseless name-calling, but the assertion that she doesn't have anything worthwhile to write about is, at best, untrue. She hits the nail on the head with regard to the gross negligence of mainstream media in presenting unbiased, adversarial press coverage to the people of this country. She has a right to be angry about it as well. And so do I, but at least I'm mentally liberated enough to discern "news" from "bull$#@!" with fairly raw accuracy. The problem - Ann's source of frustration, and the behemoth from which she derives justification for her derisive language - is that the vast majority of Americans, whether by misguided apathy or turnip-truck credulity, allow the New York Times editorial staff (et al) to take them by the hand and right into the polls (and wherever else they'd like to escort the American "public").

I've always shared Ann's indignance toward this (atrocious) "phenomenon". Iraq ratified its Constitution on Tuesday, while on that same day the 2,000th American casualty in Iraq was reported. What was the Associated Press's headline for the day? "2,000th Soldier Killed", or something to that effect. Papers across the country repeated the headline. You don't think this effects the way the people of this country feel? Of course it does. That's the game plan.

I'm disgusted right now. I don't want to talk about the New York Times any more.

As for global warming, I have decided to write a research paper on the topic so I can clear up lots of conflicting facts I've heard over the last 20 years or so. I need to better found my opinions before I comment on the subject. I'll post the paper on here whenever I finish it, but don't expect it soon. I intend to do a lot of research.

That's all I've got for now. I'm going to go spend my new-found free time finishing Treason and then I'm going to go run. What a day. What a day.

Liberals Are Always Wrong

2005-10-26T13:58:00.000-05:00

Liberals have been wrong about everything in the last half-century. They were wrong about Stalin (praised in the New York Times and known as "Uncle Joe" to Franklin Roosevelt). They were wrong about Reagan (won the Cold War and now polling as the greatest president of the twentieth century). They were wrong about the Soviet Union (defeated by the twentieth century's greatest president). They were wrong even about their precious "Abraham Lincoln brigade" in the Spanish Civil War (the disgorging of Soviet archives proves that the Lincoln brigade was part of "a rigidly controlled Soviet operation"). They were wrong about Nicaragua (communist dictatorships in Latin America turned out not to be "inevitable revolutions," after all). They were wrong about welfare (since overhauled by Republicans to notable success). They were wrong about crime (Giuliani's achievement is evident in the number of candidates who promise to continue his policies). They were wrong about social security (now bankrupt). They were wrong about the Civil Rights Act (which was neeever going to be used as an instrument of discrimination against whites). They were wrong on the sexual revolution (witness the explosions of AIDS, herpes, chlamydia, hepatitis B, and abortion).

It is not an accident that, today, the left's single biggest cause is "global warming" This time, conservatives won't be able to prove them wrong for a thousand years.

This is another Ann Coulter quote from the end of Slander, and I find it screamingly hilarious. (I also find it stunningly accurate ;-))

I Am Not a Journalist

2005-10-24T23:29:00.000-05:00

Well, it's been ages. I've been working a lot, and spending pretty much all of the "down time" (if there exists such a thing) reading. I have a lot of things I should be writing about here, but that will have to wait until later this week. I also will probably just take all the suggestions you guys gave me in my last post, but that's also going to have to wait. For now, I just wanted to share this with you.

A Clinton-appointed federal judge actually made a finding of fact that [Matt] Drudge [, maintainer of the Drudge Report,] is "not a reporter, a journalist, or a newsgatherer." Hustler magazine is journalism protected by the First Amendment. Penthouse and the National Enquirer are journalism protected by the First Amendment. Indeed, even the New York Times is deemed "journalism" protected by the First Amendment. The dean of the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism noted with some consternation that "no journalist or journalism organization protested after this federal judge took it upon himself to determine who can be called a journalist.

-Ann Coulter, Slander

So, let me get this straight. It's "Congress shall make no law... abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press when it's 1) smut-infused garbage or 2) convenient to the [blatantly anti-competitive] liberal media." (Sadly, the two often coincide.) Really, it's right there in the Constitution. Much-heralded First Amendment. Check it out some time.

Many, Many Moons Ago

2005-10-12T22:54:00.000-05:00

Well, see, I work too much, and I have a to-do list that invariably spans across days (even though it's never intended to do so). Tell you what. I will write my next post per request. Post your ideas in comment form here or email me, IM me, whatever you gotta do.... I will pick a winner and write a post before the next moon. (Better go check my lunar calendar...)

Facebook Faceoff

2005-10-08T21:59:00.001-05:00

I've been having a very interesting series of discussions on Marshall's Facebook lately with Meg and one of her friends, Sean. I wanted to post some excerpts before they disappear into wall-land forever.

This is what started it all:

Sean wrote
at 8:27pm September 29th, 2005
how can a person with such good taste in musica have such bad taste in politics, its sad. i love you anyways.

Meg wrote
at 12:01am September 30th, 2005
I chose to be Republican because that is my only real choice out of the two parties...if I had a REAL choice I would be Libertarian...so. I love you too...why dont' we ever hang out ?
Meg

Sean wrote
at 2:53pm October 2nd, 2005
The only Real choise, Is no choice,both parties are corrupt its just that the Democrats have a stronger history of favoring working class people and civil rights, which are the back bones a democracy.

Meg wrote
at 3:34pm October 2nd, 2005I love how I didn't even mention politics and there is a battle on my page!!! Thanx Sean...Always giving me crap...Well, I, of course, can't let that go without a come back...
If democrats are the backbone of society than we have some serious osteoporosis.
Hearts,
Meg

Sean wrote
at 8:44pm October 2nd, 2005
I didnt say that democrats are the back bone, i said that they sympathize with them a heck of alot more than the republican party.Oh, and the Republican Party are very proud about their philosophy on OutSourcing of American jobs- they say it helps the economy well if thats the truth we should be in a economic Boom! Another thing, this administration( And Congress) hasnt proposed one bill that has helped the middle class or poor, Not One. They only protect their own, the top 1%(wealth wise).

[This is where I hopped in]

I wrote
at 3:31am October 3rd, 2005
I'll weigh in on the fight that Meg didn't start, participate in, or finish ;-)

1) The backbone of democracy is not to favor the working class. The backbone of democracy is to favor no one moreso than anyone else except the majority. And even in doing so, democracy is designed to protect the rights of the minority.

2) Administrations (being members of the Executive branch) don't often propose legislation.

3) I find it hard to believe that no legislation proposed by any Republican in Congress in the last (how long were you talking about? Congress runs on a different electoral schedule than the Oval Office) has benefited anyone but the wealthiest 1% of the population. What, in your mind, would satisfy the category of beneficial to middle or lower class Americans? I won't try to refute this in abstract, though I'm sure I could.

4) One's "taste" in music has no bearing on one's political persuasion, I hope to God.

5) I strongly encourage you to avoid political affiliation. It will make your vote, and, in turn, your voice much stronger. I promise. I'm a Republican. Would I lie to you? (hint: rhetorical question)

Meg wrote
at 11:54am October 3rd, 2005
BOYS!!! Alright..well, as a poli sci major (and a novice at that), I would like to point out that SEAN is making rather large and vague accusations without even saying a single thing that isn't a soundbit from CNN or something...so...let's hear something originial and possibly true...And seeing as I am not partaking in this...I have nothing else to say...:)
Meg

Sean wrote
at 8:33pm October 3rd, 2005
1.) i just had to ask , Adam, to be my " friend" in order to defend what i was saying- which i think is humorously ironic. 2.) Yes, I know the executive branch doesnt propose bills, but they can And Do put pressure on their party to get Passed, What they want.
3.) Maybe my accusations are large but i think OutSourcing American jobs is an important issue not only economically, and socially as well.
4.) I think republicans should wake up and realize how bad this adminstration is, oh did you hear Tom Delay- has been got for insider trading, the whole batch is rotten, from the top down. And from their failed policies - have affected many people for the worse.
5.) I appreciate Meg, allowing us this arena to debate these issues, even if she didnt want to , and I am sorry to have started this , but open discussions are very democratic.

Meg wrote
at 1:55am October 6th, 2005
Liberals do suck SEAN.... All they do is bitch and moan and make up things to raise taxes and pretend that they are making a difference. Take Johnson for example. How many programs did he make? How many were successful? How much $$$ did he waste fixing nothing? They make programs and then they don't take the time to make them work...I don't want a bullshit response to this about war or military spending either...because that is a boring fight...so hit me with an original....thanx
meg

Sean wrote
at 3:50pm October 6th, 2005
all i have to say is, No Child Left Behind ACT, need i say more...

Meg wrote
at 5:43pm October 6th, 2005
No Child Left Behind is lame...but I don't see any other recent reforms that have not been equally as lame...Assessments are a part of educational life and a lot of teachers don't have any business teaching (AHUM...FHS)...lol...Anyways. At least they are attempting to hold teachers accountable, though they are going about it totally the wrong way and not being reflective of how much parents need to partake in education- though many parents at FHS were a little too involved if you ask me...So...education sucks and is what I would consider an impossible fix...liberals and republicans alike have failed to fix it. So...that is not really a good argument either.
Meg

[Well, they started talking about education, and as you may or may not know, that's my breaking point...]

I wrote
at 8:47pm October 6th, 2005
And while they both continue to fail on the political (aka public) front, private schools are sidestepping a vast majority of the American public schools in competition for placement at selective colleges, virtually flawless graduation rates, much higher test scores, etc. The public school students who can compete almost always do so of their own accord, assisted by active parents and a handful of diamond-in-the-rough teachers sprinkled conservatively throughout their academic careers. What gives here? Is it that "rich" kids are just inherently smarter, or can afford to "buy" their educations? Come on, now. You can't buy a brain. What you can do is have access to better teachers. How does that happen? Offer more money to the applicant pool, increasing competition and turnover to better qualified candidates. How does that happen? Well, you can go the government incentive route, but the government can't afford to do what needs to be done. My suggestion: school vouchers. Get public schools competing with private schools for government funding, and public schools will feel suddenly feel the burning desire to compete. Capitalism really isn't a bad thing, boys and girls. Peoples' money is attached to their minds and their hearts. To convince them to part from it, you have to try to win over both moreso than the next guy. This competition naturally raises the bar in any industry it touches.

PS - Education is the silver bullet.

[followed by...]

I wrote
at 9:00pm October 6th, 2005
See if you can contribute to this "conversation" without using any of the following words, names, or phrases:

Liberal
Conservative
Democrat
Republican
Bush (President Bush is ok, or just the President will suffice)
John Kerry (spoils of war, my friends)
propoganda (the word)
propoganda (this includes any and all broad, sweeping references to any current military engagements, the "administration", any individual "scandals" occuring within the federal government (ala Tom Delay), or anything which could be the name of a campaign platform category header (military, economy, homeland security, foreign/domestic affairs, etc.) unless accompanied by at least two descriptive supporting elements...)

Warning: This might force some of you to understand what you're talking about. Don't worry. It doesn't hurt.

Sean wrote
at 10:57pm October 6th, 2005
Tell me how many people benefited from Bush's Drug Bill? Probably only a handful of corporate cronies that's who. I know drugs costs are at an all time high and health care is rising also. Not to mention the administration could make it legal to acquire cheap drugs from Canada but that would be too sensible. This administration has favored corporate interests above all Americans. I dont even want to mention roll backs on enviromental policies.It feels 90 today , that doesnt seem natural. B/c it's not ! I would like you to tell me 1 policy that has benfited a good number of Americans, just one. Besides Faith based initiatives , for that could be a good program.

Sean wrote
at 11:00pm October 6th, 2005
I am sorry Adam i didnt follow your little rules. I guess i am just not that clever, I'll leave the tough work to you.

I wrote
at 12:38am October 7th, 2005
You followed the rules pretty well, except you didn't say President Bush, and that's an important rule ;-) But let's talk about beneficial policies. Since you brought it up, we'll start with the President's "drug bill", by which I assume you're refering to the Medicare bill passed in 2003. It would be difficult to name one person who has benefited from the new policies outlined in this bill, since the benefits don't kick in until January 2006, as stated in the bill. When they do, though, we'll be able to name millions of beneficiaries. Here's how: Starting in January, new low-cost prescription options will allow seniors with no or average drug coverage to cut their drug costs by half or more. For catastrophic coverage, Medicare will cover 95% of all prescription costs after seniors spend $3,600 of their own money each year. The new Medicare will also help retired seniors pay the costs of medical coverage from former employers. I think this is going to be a big hit for people like my father who are bleeding financially-tight pensions from 9/11-struck companies to pay for health care instead of enjoying their retirement in peace. But the big new benefit of Medicare will be for limited-means seniors, who will no longer have to pay any more than a $5 copay for prescription drugs, and over 95% of drug costs will be covered by the federal government.

That sounds beneficial to me. I realize many of you latch on to what your party's got to say to define your political "ideas". You need to understand WHY they're saying what they're saying, though. In this case, Democrats are indeed expressing concern over the new Medicare bill. But their concern is that the plethora of options available to seniors will be too confusing. People also complain that electronic ballots will be too confusing. I say get over it.

Since that was kind of long, and I don't want Meg to have a heart attack, I'll just outline a few more policy initiatives I feel are helping people, but I'm not going to explain why. I'm sure it'll all come out eventually.

The President's Jobs and Growth package has given much-needed tax relief to 90% of small business owners in this country who pay taxes on the individual and not the commercial/corporate level. This is highly stimulating to the economy.

The President has proposed several initiatives geared toward homeowners and families wishing to own their first homes. See the American Dream Downpayment Act and the Self-Help Homeownership Opportunity Program (SHOP).

In the style of Enron, Tyco, et al, corporate accountability has become an important issue for EVERY American. Believe me, the kind of financial fraud we're talking about here can negatively effect everybody from the top down. The President proposed a "Ten-Point Plan to Improve Corporate Responsibility and Protect America's Shareholders", and the SEC adopted and implemented all 10.

The President is looking ahead economically speaking. We as a nation have been trying to hold onto outdated or outdating jobs like a family pet. The thing is, nobody short of God himself can stop the world from progressing, and if we're going to stay competitive in the international market, we're going to have to progress with it. The President's "Jobs for the 21st Century" initiative proposes more then $250 million for community colleges (like Marshall's) to train workers in industries that are creating the most new jobs, as well as funding for secondary education programs to prepare students for the jobs of the 21st century. As far as the "outsourcing" of these dying jobs you mentioned a few days ago, Sean, the President's Trade Adjustment Assistance program (which he signed an expansion for in 2003) provides $1.1 billion in FY2005 to cover wage differences and health care costs for displaced workers when production or labor has been shipped overseas while they adjust to their new jobs.

The President is funding research in hydrogen and fuel-cell technology to the tune of over a bilion dollars, wihch will be spread over 28 institutions of academia, industry, and national laboratory.

You mentioned the faith-based initiatives, an element of this administration I'm incredibly proud to have supported. I don't even need to discuss how this is beneficial to millions. This has been a strongly bipartisan effort in Washington.

Look, I'm tired, and I haven't even touched on national security, foreign affairs, energy, or the environment. It's not that these are weak areas.... it's that I can't type anymore tonight.

Now, who wants to argue policy with me?

I wrote
at 12:47am October 7th, 2005
Crap.... I forgot to address the Canada thing. See, the problem with legal reimportation from Canada is that the FDA can't guarantee the safety of the drugs that are coming back since they're outside its comprehensive regulatory net. Canadian officials cite the same problem when the express their distaste for the idea (which is really because they aren't producing the drugs, so they're not making any money on the exports.) So besides the fact that Canada doesn't want it and the US thinks it's a danger to anyone taking prescription drugs, sounds like a great idea to me. (Until then, I'd remind you that it IS possible to go to Canada right now and bring back personal prescriptions if you're careful, just like it's possible to bring back personal "prescriptions" of the green leafy kind. It's cheaper now than it would be if it were legalized, with the taxation and whatnot.... The choice is yours, America.)

Meg wrote
at 5:53pm October 7th, 2005
Now I have huge amounts of stuff on my wall...thanx a lot...people are trying to educate you now...poor Sean
Meg

Meg wrote
at 6:05pm October 7th, 2005
Oh...and Adam kicked your ass...cuz he actually looks deeper into things than the CNN news channel...you should try that sometime...ahhh...

Sean wrote
at 7:09pm today
You and Adam , maybe all conservatives i dunno, are beautiful with words and stats and weave great agruments, but the problem with you all, is you dont deal with reality. Your so stuck on theory that you cant see the problems in your own back yard.To republicans and maybe all politicians, The means justifies the ends, We go to war based on faulty intelligence, down right lies and manipulations which should be a crime, but 9/11 happened so all critical thought just went out the window. I am not going into the details of why this war was wrong i am just saying the means do not justify the ends. If you start something on a questionable foundation its likely to fall. And the arrogance that the president has is unpresidential and unbecoming of a person in such a prestigious position. "Mission Accomplished" and all that , what bullshit. If it was accomplished then what are we doing over there, Peacekeeping?? Please.

Meg wrote
at 9:53pm today
The TRUTH...After years of coverups on boths parties ends, it is very difficult for me to even imagine that the truth could be found in today's world. Because of the over-globalization, we are now forced to fake it openly and not discuss the real heart and details of any matters anymore...we have to save face to the world. I honestly believe that the government is corrupt, but I don't think one elected official was the cause of this nor do iI believe that we should be putting our livelihoods closer intwined with such a fate. True freedom would be a lack of laws establishing such freedom...it should just be there. If there is no longer a truth, is there a freedom? It is something to ponder tonight while you watch CNN...There is no way that anyone is really telling the truth because no one speaks it or hears it...They shout and protest a world that they don't even understand...this is for both sides. What is the truth?

I wrote
at 10:52pm today
I speak the truth. I don't just *know* about the world. I go out into the world intent to learn about it. I've learned what every basic government must provide its citizens, I've learned what "amenities" can be provided to a people, given the peoples' willingness and consent to taxation to provide common ("public") goods. I've learned some of the problems that have arisen and continue to arise in democratic society (where the peoples' will truly is law, and there is nothing to stop the people from willing themselves into bad situations, or worse, to stop them from willing at all, as I believe we're facing today on many levels.) It is exactly this kind of ongoing debate we've been having that should be batted across every dinner table, tossed around every water cooler, and (this is for all you Marshall students who are skimming over this even as we speak, likely ignoring all the "boring" stuff) ESPECIALLY tossed around on every college campus in this country. When you allow yourself to flow into a "mainstream" political machine, all the intricacies of your voice in particular are surrendered to the "corruption" of which you all complain. Your individuality, the very heart of this and any democracy, is forfeited in favor of a cookie-cutter candidate system prone to corruption by the sheer ignorance of the masses. Sean, it hasn't mattered to me what your arguments have been at all. It has only mattered that in my rebuttals, I've convinced you to do some research of your own, even if all it did was strengthen your convictions. People, this goes way beyond your average "get out and vote" campaigns that seem to be directed at our generation election after election. I'm trying to convince you to participate in the society you're cohabiting. I don't mean turn on Fox News, CNN, or MSNBC and let them tell you how you're participating. I mean you, the demos in democracy. The one voice who must speak his mind so that he may harmonize with others and conflict with still others until, in chorus, we form one great nation. With my voice, I will add "under God".

I wrote
at 10:55pm today
I think you mean the ends don't justify the means...

Obviously this is still ongoing. It's fun. It's... well... it's just fun. Feel free to read over it, or, of course, you could ignore it, thus proving me exactly right ;-).

I worked hard tonight, and I was paid well for it. I only had two tables, but they both said it was the best night out they've ever had, one of the tables got six chef specials (iron chef type deal) and lots of wine, and they both made me feel very good about taking care of them with their wallets. Yay for that. I'm not typing anymore, so have a lovely evening. I'm out.

My First Photo Set

2005-10-06T18:51:00.000-05:00

Town of Newburgh

As of my last post, I've posted a total of 52 times. That's one for every week in the year. I'm impressed.

Today I didn't have to work at Express OR the Grill, so I lazed around. It's BadAdam's birthday, so I talked to him for a little while, which was extra funtastic. Then I went for a walk and took some pictures of Newburgh, mostly the riverfront where I run every day. I hope you enjoy them half as much as I do.

That's all for now. I'm going to go to the brother's house for a little bit. I'll be back later for some bookology. I'm not at all tired of Ayn Rand, but I'm tired of having Ayn Rand left to read ;-) Let's see.... only 1,800 pages to go. Oh good.

I shall try to be in bed before the moon reaches its peak in the midnight sky tonight. I have to work 10-4 and 5-close tomorrow.

Quantum Leap

2005-10-04T13:09:00.000-05:00

This is huge. I realize you'll all think I'm a ridiculous nerd, but this is HUGE.

Epic.

We may finally get our jet packs ;-)

Just Keeping In Touch

2005-10-04T00:35:00.000-05:00

Big things are happening in the world. I don't really have time to talk about them, but to give you some examples, President Bush has nominated one of his advisors to fill Sandra Day's seat, and the woman has never sat on a bench before. I'll have to read up on this before I condemn it, but it wouldn't really be condemnation anyway. Rather, concern for the upcoming confirmation battle she's going to face. In other news, Shelley Moore Capito has decided not to attempt to oust Senator Byrd. Instead, she'll seek another term as West Virginia's 2nd District Representative to the US House. I have mixed feelings on this as well. It seems like she may be trying to do the Party a favor, but it also seems like a cop out.... Why wait until after Byrd announced to back out? That weakens the GOP if anything. I'll have to think about that one for a while before I jump off the fence. Let's see..... I haven't mentioned Tom Delay at all on here, but I'll write a post about that as soon as I get a chance. My favorite headline for the day, for those of you who don't know, is that I got another job. I start tomorrow evening at Express for Men. Clothing retail heading into the holidays. Oh boy. We'll see how it goes, and I'll try to let you know about that as well. My schedule is filling up pretty quickly, and I won't hesitate to cut back on my blogging to allow for more productive engagements, but I do have a weakness for the internet, so don't expect me to fall off the WWW just yet ;-)

Current projects:

Waiting tables at the Pasta Grill
Selling clothes at Express (starting tomorrow)
Getting in ridiculously good shape (Like you don't even know)
Teaching myself to play the guitar (I'm actually well past GCD now!)
Re-learning Calculus (back to the basics, boys)
Let's just call this one exercising my political muscles ;-)
There is one more, but I choose not to share it with you fine individuals. It's mine.

Yes, It's Killing Me Too, But.....

2005-10-01T22:41:00.000-05:00

We've all seen the picture.

It's clever. In a comparative analysis with, say, gas prices 5 years ago, it's probably close to true. But here's the thing, folks. Oil is cheap. It's dirt cheap. Until it starts to run out. I don't want to feed some mindless liberal frenzy and imply that the concern is physically depleting all the world's supply of oil. The key word is starts. Crude oil discovery peaked in the 1960's. (Richard Reese) That means that since about 1962, the rate of discovery of new oil has been in steady decline. In the meantime, oil production, that is, the production (a function of demand, for the economically challenged) has increased on an exponential curve. As the demand for oil increases, mounting pressure on oil producers suffering from a visibly diminishing supply drives oil prices up. It's a response designed to slow demand to keep consumption in line with supply. This is a relatively simple concept. I don't feel like I've enlightened anybody.

So let's continue. There are two distinct facets of this situation I'd like to examine. The first is the relationship between an exponentially increasing demand for oil and a curiously coinciding exponential population growth since around 1940. (Population Reference Bureau) What do you suppose is going on here? The relationship is symbiotic. The mechanical capabilities derived from the dawn of oil as fuel have created a world capable of sustaining exponentially more people. We've built a society and almost all social structures therein on the presumption that oil would continue to fuel our system. Of course it can't do that forever. I'm not the kind of person that cries disaster, but this situation certainly has the potential. As our ability to sustain this population thrust levels out and starts to decline, we're faced with one of two consequent situations. The first and more gruesome alternative involves releveling global population to maintain a healthy supply-demand relationship with oil. Of course, even with a healthy dose of death, this solution could only ever be temporary. How many people would we be willing to expend before we were forced to choose another solution? The more relevant question, I think, would be what kind (read: nationality, social class.....) of people would we be willing to expend before we caved in.... But let's leave this alternative to pure hypothesis and credit the human race with a better collective mind than that (I'm laughing with you, not at you, I swear....) Eventually, the elusive "alternate fuel source" will need to become our primary fuel source.

This leads me to the second facet of our situation. Getting back to the price of gas. Our world, like it or not, is more or less run by a capitalist machine. The machine is sensitive to few things: supply vs. demand, cost vs. benefit, ethical vs. profitable..... (ok, not so much...) We've already talked about supply and demand with regards to oil. What I want to look at now is the cost vs. benefit analysis companies entertain when deciding what to do about oil. As long as the cost of the (process of) depletion of the world's supply of oil does not outweigh the benefits of exploding said oil to propel products from point A to point B, these companies will (11 times out of 10) not think twice about changing the pace, switching up the game plan. Enter "arm", "leg", and "first-born"-priced gasoline. People are complaining. Then people are buying less gas. Many of these people are laffable to me, because I hear them claim to be helping to protect our oil supply, but 100-1 says gas prices drop to $1.50 a gallon they'll be driving the motor homes to sunny San Francisco and back as often as Saturday. This is why gas prices can't drop ever again. They need to steadily (slowly's ok, too fast and you cripple economies.... not desirable either) increase. In stride, the pressure on consumers to decrease consumption (the driving force behind demand) will increase. Other effects will ripple down. The price of goods will increase since transportation costs will increase. Economic stimulus will be a rarity since people will have less to spend. Suddenly, corporate demand decreases with fewer goods coming out of production. Now the costs outweigh the benefits. In times like these, Research and Development departments the world over get frantic calls from CEO's and Board members to the effect of "Find us this damned altermenant fuel or whatever nonsense it's called!" And that, my good friends, is when we free ourselves from our dependence on oil.

It's a hard, fast bullet to bite, but it's one our parents and their parents felt we could handle, or perhaps didn't see coming (again to the credit of mankind, something I'm not always comfortable conceding). Or, you know, we could take plan A and kill everybody (you know, in Africa, Asia, and everyone in the Middle East that's not Israel... maybe parts of South America too... nobody in Europe or North America, though.... except Canada.) Ok.... Clearly I've gone on for too long.... I hope I've made sense, and I hope you don't realize how offensive any of this was.... err..... I hope I haven't offended any of you. Have at it, folks. Ohhh... and let me just put something in perspective for you in closing. It's a good thing the world isn't powered by Scope.

Diet Snapple 16 oz $1.29 ............ $10.32 per gallon
Lipton Ice Tea 16 oz $1.19 .........$9.52 per gallon
Gatorade 20 oz $1.59 ................. $10.17 per gallon
Ocean Spray 16 oz $1.25 ........... $10.00 per gallon
Brake Fluid 12 oz $3.15 ............. $33.60 per gallon
Vick's Nyquil 6 oz $8.35 ............ $178.13 per gallon
Pepto Bismol 4 oz $3.85 ............ $123.20 per gallon
Whiteout 7 oz $1.39 ................... $25.42 per gallon
Scope 1.5 oz $0.99 ..................... $84.48 per gallon
Evian water 9 oz $1.49................$21.19 per gallon

WV Supreme Court (In)Justices

2005-10-01T14:15:00.000-05:00

Senator Byrd seems to command quite a bit of support in his umpteenth bid for reelection this year. In apparent disregard for Canon 5A(1)(b) of the Code of Judicial Conduct, two West Virginia Supreme Court Justices, Joseph Albright and Larry Starcher provided a visual endorsement by attending Byrd's campaign kickoff in Charleston.

We should point out that the new Code of Judicial Conduct now specifically proscribes the conduct complained of in this case. Canon 5A(1)(b) of the Code of Judicial Conduct, effective January 1, 1993, clearly states that a judge or a candidate for election or appointment to judicial office shall not 'publicly endorse or publicly oppose another candidate for public office.
-WV Supreme Court comment on a 1993 case involving a Wood County Circuit judge

Justices Albright and Starcher have unquestionably committed an ethics violation in Senator Byrd's favor right out of the gate in the 2006 election, but it appears that Byrd isn't only flanked by the Judicial Branch of government in his attempt to seige power from West Virginia. Byrd recently ordered a military aircraft to carry him and his campaign manager into Wheeling to serve as a backdrop for a thousand-dollar-a-plate campaign dinner. West Virginia GOP chairman Robin Capehart has called on Senator Byrd to "acknowledge he is blatantly wrong to spend our hard-earned tax dollars for political campaigning" and to "refund the cost of the travel to the taxpayers of West Virginia." It has been months since the June 24 campaign event, but Senator Byrd's campaign records on file with the FEC do not indicate that any such reimbursement has been made. Senator Byrd, Congresswoman Capito hasn't even announced her plans to run against you yet. You're overcompensating in your old age. Then again, maybe you realize that you no longer see eye to eye with the people of West Virginia. West Virginians are ready to bring you back home. It's clear that you're not in line with this either.

Sheer Literary Genius

2005-09-27T05:12:00.000-05:00

... she knew that she could not have reached this white serenity except as the sum of all the colors, of all the violence she had known...

I sat down to write it all out. I know now that I won't. In the spirit of Howard Roark, of Dominique Francon and Gail Wynand, but no.... This isn't in their spirit at all. They're characters on a page. This is purely my own, and I'm too possessive, too protective of these feelings to adulterate them for your sake.

And I'm not ready to give them to you. Not yet.

In Today's Headlines...

2005-09-26T17:49:00.000-05:00

I haven't been very loyal to my interest in the news lately, so I've decided to tackle a few headlines here in the next day or two. These are the ones I want to talk about.

More to come. Stay tuned.

Good Morning, Sunshine

2005-09-25T23:30:00.000-05:00

The cream-white plaster of my bedroom wall came into focus this morning as my eyes jerked open. In that instant which each day untangles my imagination's nightly-spun fantasies from the consciousness of waking life, I was content with the air of my first few breaths of the day, with the dust-filled rays of light cutting through the room above me, with the soft, cool touch of the unused side of my pillow as I buried my arms underneath and pressed the side of my face reassuringly deeper into the feathers. Almost instantly, my serenity vanished, splashed like the placid waters of an untouched lake on a windless day at the moment when a free-falling child breaks the surface in his descent from a cliff, high above, sending wave and ripple out to all its shores. My mind was diving, like that child, through the dreams and the darkness of the night before, its fingers outstretched, pushing away eagerly the air and water, reaching out for the state of mental, emotional, and spiritual elation I suddenly vaguely recalled departing late last night in favor of slumber. I found myself wishing away the last several hours of dreams that I might have preserved the feelings I'd stumbled across, submersed in the words I've so taken to getting lost in lately. I stood from my bed, driven by a purpose, the intent to take up that book and deliver myself into a new mental intoxication. I knew it would be unique, different than the night before. I've come to realize that with her, they're all different..... fantastically, perfectly different.

But as I crossed my little apartment to where I left the book, I found a beautiful, accurate relic of last night's journey. I'd left it for myself to discover this morning when I knew I wouldn't be able to recapture the sentiment, but that I'd desperately want to. And, if only for a moment, it worked.

Happy to Oblige

2005-09-22T00:40:00.000-05:00

Heidi wanted pictures.... Heidi's got pictures.

We knew she was worried about getting keg-spray all over her outfit, but imagine our surprise when she came into the room like this ;-)

Yes, it's tape.... don't ask...

Stop it, Heidi...

This picture is my artistic interpretation of Heidi at her best... intent, determined, and going somewhere

There you have it folks.... my beautiful ex-roommate. See any facebookable pictures? (Let me know if you want anything cropped, Heidi-ho ;-)

Muse - Time is Running Out

2005-09-21T23:35:00.000-05:00

New video..... If you guys haven't heard Muse before, this song should serve as a decent introduction.... They're incredible. You should also watch the video 'cuz it's fun. On that note, I really didn't have anything to say. I will be writing my review of Coheed and Cambria's new album, which is now available in stores. For now, though, I'm going to go run. PEACE!

Remember When There Was Music on MTV?

2005-09-21T03:38:00.000-05:00

Well, those days are gone. But the days of music are infinite, and as long as there's music and video, there will be music videos. In conclusion, I've added a music video player to my blog. I even hand-picked the videos you get to choose from. I'm not saying you couldn't probably find these videos and more elsewhere.... I'm just saying there are some here as well, and since I picked them, you will be able to gain valuable insight into my soul by watching all of them. After all, that's the reason you're here, right?

Pshh....

I'll be showcasing different videos as the mood strikes me, so buckle up and enjoy the ride. This is life in the fast lane. For my first video, Blood Red Summer. Cheers.

The moon is slowly preparing to tuck itself into the blankets of the horizon, so I think I better hurry up to catch it while there's still a midnight sky of which to speak.

I Am A House

2005-09-20T20:55:00.003-05:00

There it is. Chapter eleven, page 140. Expression and utility melded together just as the words of this book kiss the language that conveys them. Questions start to answer themselves. And everything under the sun suddenly seems to belong there.

A house can have integrity, just like a person," said Roark, "and just as seldom."
"In what way?"
"Well, look at it. Every piece of it is there because the house needs it--and for no other reason. You see it from here as it is inside. The rooms in which you'll live made the shape. The relation of masses was determined by the distribution of space within. The ornament was determined by the method of construction, an emphasis of the principle that makes it stand. You can see each stress, each support that meets it. Your own eyes go through a structural process when you look at the house, you can follow each step, you see it rise, you know what made it and why it stands. But you've seen buildings with columns that support nothing, with purposeless cornices, with pilasters, mouldings, false arches, false windows. You've seen buildings that look as if they contained a single large hall, they have solid columns and single, solid windows six floors high. But enter and find six stories inside. Or buildings that contain a single hall, but with a facade cut up into floor lines, band courses, tiers of windows. Do you understand the difference? Your house is made by its own needs. Those others are made by the need to impress. The determining motive of your house is in the house. The determining motive of the others is in the audience."

I'd say dare to be bold, but that's cliche and I don't really want most of you to be bold anyway. The real challenge, the piece de resistance of your life, I think, should be this: dare to be. But for God's sake, figure out why first.

In Books I Find More Life Than in Life

2005-09-19T14:05:00.000-05:00

I've only read like three chapters of The Fountainhead, but I can already tell that I'm in love with this book. Howard Roark astounds me.

Give it time.

The lake below was only a thin steel ring that cut the rocks in half. The rocks went on into the depth, unchanged. They began and ended in the sky. So that the world seemed suspended in space, an island floating on nothing, anchored to the feet of the man on the cliff.

It's As Simple as Somethin' That Nobody Knows

2005-09-19T03:10:00.000-05:00

Tonight was the first time in my entire life I've ever actually mixed anything with anything. I can see where this could get quite addicting. This sound clip is also going to play in my profile.... I will continue to try to make improvements, but I really need to be focusing on the volumes of "IRL" things I need to be doing, like

Getting another job
Reading everything Ayn Rand ever wrote... Ok... Maybe not everything...
Continuing my self-taught guitar lessons
Continuing in these fun and educational recording/mixing endeavors
Keeping up the (thus far) superbly dedicated workout routine I've established for myself
Helping Sheriff Wolfe get elected
Evidently being Clark Kent by day, Superman by night.... quite exhausting if you ask me

So I'm going to do what's good for me and go to bed, even though I could stay up all night recording things. Thank you, Jack Johnson, not only for helping to create a memory with Linzeroo, but also for being so gracious as to let me use your song to try to figure this stuff out. Much obliged.

Flip! Flip! Flip! Flip!

2005-09-18T14:20:00.001-05:00

Real quick post before I go accomplish things.

Double Dizzee sent me a few pictures, the most important of which I believe to be the first picture I've ever had of the two of us together.... So now, for your viewing pleasure, Lil' Flip and David David David David Banner!

Next to Nothin'

2005-09-18T03:41:00.000-05:00

I'm pretty exhausted right now, so I think I'm going to crash without saying much, but I just wanted to direct your attention to some of the changes I made. You won't really be able to see some of them, but I believe most or all of the ones you can see are going to be in the "nav bar" dealie to your right. New profile, etc.... I'm not too pleased with my "Portrait" just yet, but I'll put some more work into this later. I guess mostly I was just trying to see what all I could do with Blogger. It's really not too bad at all. Let me know what you guys think of what I've done so far!

No work tomorrow... gonna try to get over to the brother's house and pick up my laundry, play with the kids, and the whatnot. Who knows? Maybe I'll bring pictures back ;-) Everybody loves pictures.

Speaking of pictures, I'm missing Huntington a little bit right now, so I was looking through some of the old ones, and I found something that reminded me of last summer... I present, from left to right, Jimmy Metal, Gor, and Jimmy Metal's Mom ala Remedies :-).

Goodnight!

I Got Nothin'

2005-09-14T03:04:00.000-05:00

Way too late.... Need to go to bed....

Both as a mandate for myself and as notice for all of you, I'm going to start doing some things with this blog..... making it feel a little more like home, if you will..... I have some really good ideas. We'll see what happens.

Sweet dreams.

Bovine Inspiration

2005-09-13T01:03:00.000-05:00

God doesn't need us. We need God. All of this is starting to come into focus. We were dead, and we were given life. Our lives will be taken away. We get to participate in this, God's creation, for a short time, and all He asks of us is to live these borrowed lives consciensciously while we can. This whole mundane world can be a blindfold, distracting us from simple, enumerated truths, or it can be utilized, as I believe God intended, to enlighten ourselves and bring to bear mortal, flesh-laden guardians of the word and will of God to protect his worldly creation.

The vast universe of knowledge within which we as mankind have immersed ourselves has caused me to feel torn between scientific truths and the doctrines of the Christian faith. I've come to realize that the perfection and beauty of the natural laws that sustain this universe in seemingly flawless equilibrium are, in fact, the highest testaments to the encompassing wisdom of its necessarily and obviously divine Creator. No new knowledge that we may encounter could be construed to negate His wisdom or disprove His supremacy, but would only stand to firm the grounds on which that supreme wisdom is based. What we learn, He has already known, engineered, if you will, and only gives to us as we mature to accept it.

God doesn't want to make it hard for us to please Him. He doesn't want to weigh us down with obfuscated rules or loads we cannot carry. On the contrary, He wants it to be the easiest decision we've ever made to recognize, not decide, that our lives are, have been, and always will be His.

Go ahead, folks...... Rip this apart. I want..... no... I need a challenge.

So If I Seem a Little Out of It, Sorry

2005-09-12T03:46:00.000-05:00

Tonight is a very Elliott Smith night.

The spin of the earth impaled a silhouette of the sun on the steeple
And I got to hear the same sermon all the time now from you people
Why are you staring into outer space, crying?
Just because you came across it and lost it

Do you think you took the easy way out? I think you're a genius. And a coward.

Lest We Forget

2005-09-11T15:30:00.000-05:00

Well, well, well...

2005-09-10T23:53:00.000-05:00

I don't want to talk about it. Check back tomorrow.

90% of the time, I can keep my feet on the pavement, steady focused on life, liberty and property here in Indiana, and afford only fleeting glances back at what I've left behind. The other 10% of the time, I find myself with nothing but my own blood, running far too cool from a weakened heart, to give me warmth.

I want to share another secret with you. It's another secret from my childhood. You know I'm adopted, and I've carried that with me for most of my life as a source of burden and confusion. This secret I carry with me always as a source of courage and faith; an everlasting reminder of the ease of my own perseverance; a temporal manifestation of the nature and body of my Father.

One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord.
Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky.
In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand.
Sometimes there were two sets of footprints,
other times there was one only.
This bothered me because I noticed that during the low periods of my life,
when I was suffering from anguish,
sorrow or defeat,
I could see only one set of footprints,
so I said to the Lord,
“You promised me Lord,
that if I followed you,
you would walk with me always.
But I have noticed that during the most trying periods of my life
there has only been one set of footprints in the sand.
Why, when I needed you most, have you not been there for me?”
The Lord replied,
“The years when you have seen only one set of footprints,
my child, it was then that I carried you.”

This secret is entitled 'Footprints in the Sand'. My parents had a plaque with this engraved on it in our house, and although nobody ever knew I did it, I hid in the basement and read it to myself thousands of times growing up. It was always very uncharacteristic of me to need someone to hold my hand, you see, but to read that there was a man who would not just walk beside me in times of trial and pain, but pick me up and bear my load with His filled my heart with joy; this was what I came to know as love, and it was perfect love. Whether I believed the man was real or not, I vowed never to love any of my fellow creatures on this Earth with any less intensity than I'd found on that plaque.

I don't know if I expected the man to carry me through the darkness unscathed, or if I never expected him to be there at all when I set off to grow into myself, start college, fall in love, become a man.... I could feel myself growing, tearing and healing again and again, stronger with each generation of muscle, spirit, and mind; but all the way, I felt blind and alone. I had long ago closed my eyes, weary with anticipation of a helping hand that I couldn't see anywhere on the horizon.

Tonight, I opened my eyes for a moment. I took in my surroundings, and then, puzzled, I turned to face the path I've taken to get here. It was rugged, treacherous, and laced with obstacles big and small.... that much I expected. It took a few minutes to take it all in, and then I realized that I had to look back to see it. My eyes had been closed for so long, and yet here I was, alive and well, smarter and stronger than ever before. Then I'm certain I could feel the Lord put me gently back on my feet and place His hand on my shoulder, and we walked together again.

To my fellow skeptics: I don't exercise blind faith, and I'm not trying to imply that the difficult nature of my own life is (of itself) evidence of the existence of a higher power in the universe. All I'm saying, and all I feel I need to say tonight, is this: Open your eyes. Open your heart and mind. I don't think God is outside waiting to get in like you'll hear from most Christians. I truly believe he's inside waiting to get out.

And Now Let's Bring on the THUNDERING HERD!

2005-09-10T00:42:00.000-05:00

Quick post before bed, I think. I have an early morning tomorrow.

I'm reserving my season analysis and whatnot until I've seen the guys play together tomorrow. I didn't get to watch the William and Mary game last weekend as I'm several hundred miles away, but I listened to most of it online. It's just not the same. I need to see some serious chemistry tomorrow and I need it to be awe-inspiring. I realize nobody thinks we can come together this season, but I refer you to the rings to your left and remind you that nobody expected us to even be here today, threatening conference records of a number of big schools in Conference USA. Marshall football is blessed with glory divine, a program risen quite literally from the ashes of tragedy to greatness, something no other team in college football can (hopefully) ever fully understand. It doesn't matter if it happens tomorrow or not, but I guarantee you this. We will continue to rise. We are Marshall! (I say it may not happen tomorrow, but in reality, HELL YEAH it will! Give 'em hell, Herd!)

Working at the Pasta Grill is fun, it seems relatively lucrative, and it certainly feeds me well, but it's exhausting. I'm surprised I had enough fire to work out tonight before bed. I know I'm going to feel really good about that in the morning. That's my favorite benefit of exercise - the endorphins. I guess I'll always be a drug addict in one way or another.

Radiohead's O.K. Computer is the best album of the 1990's according to Pitchfork. I just finished listening to it, and I'm going to have to agree. Also, Radiohead and Muse do sound a lot alike, but with different instrumental preferences and styles. Both bands = A+, but I'm more inclined to Muse's (I believe) more advanced musicology. Whatchyou gon' play, now?

So much for a quick post. Randy, Chad, and Bobby wanted to say goodnight to all you faithful readers, and to remind you to wear Green tomorrow!

The moon climbs high into the midnight sky, a lasting tribute to the players, fans, coaches, and crew whose lives were taken from us on November 14, 1970.

... and Give You Peace

2005-09-09T04:28:00.000-05:00

I wouldn't call it easy to see, but when I think about it, even my own long, ambling tribulations find a predestined path. Who could've orchestrated such a thing?

I've been searching for a long time for an intellectual author to blanket my thoughts and ease my mind about God. I think I've finally found that author.

It's me.

Follow the White Rabbit

2005-09-08T13:57:00.000-05:00

I don't have time to post today. Too busy...

I just wanted to get this list back up to the top so I could see what I still want to write about.

Expect the Marshall Football post to come during or after the Kansas State game this weekend... (I have mixed feelings about my excitement for this game....) There will also be other posts not on the list, but that's my prerogative.

Hey, look at that.... I did have time to post today ;-)

~~My Letter of Resignation from Marshall University's Student Government~~
Why Nick Jo Rahall II is Unfit for Public Office and What We Can Do About It
~~The Week I'll Never... er... Remember:~~ AKA My Trip to Purdue
~~Musings on Religion~~ (ongoing, I hope)
A Full Review of the Album I've "Never Heard"
Marshall Football 2k5: Sweet Jesus
I also hope to read a book of some sort, which you'll inevitably have to hear about

Sometimes I Struggle to Breath

2005-09-06T19:29:00.000-05:00

I'm not feeling part three right now, but I just want to type something. I can feel tension mounting in my blood as more and more is piled onto my plate. I've had several incredibly productive days in a row here, but it seems like a one step forward - two steps back kind of thing is going on... maybe just one step back, but still, that's like standing still. Why am I working so hard and getting so much done if I'm standing still? I don't know.

I didn't work out at all today. Maybe that's why I feel so blah. Wait. Now I remember. Last night.

This whole campaign thing is a bit overwhelming, especially when I need to be focusing on populating my bank account right now, but I can't stop thinking about it. I've already done a lot of work, and I anticipate a lot more soon, but I'm thinking that it would probably be a good idea to take a step back for a little while and get things in order here in Indiana before I dive headfirst into a necessarily gruesome year-long endeavor.

I'll feel a lot better about everything when I find a law firm that will hire me. It might help if I actually tell them that's my plan. I doubt they're going to start knocking on my door any time soon. Know any good lawyers in Evansville, anyone? ;-)

Ok...... a little typing (and breathing) has gone a long way. I feel better already. I think tonight I'm going to stay home and find out what the Qur'an has to say about life. I've been meaning to do that for a while now. I just haven't ~~had~~ made the time.

Damp blue light ripples across the page as the moon reassuringly climbs the midnight sky once more.

Round Two: FIGHT!

2005-09-06T03:00:00.000-05:00

I'm really not an alcoholic. I know it's hard to believe, but you'll have to trust me. I had two nights off this week, and tonight, I found out what karaoke night is like at the Fox and the Hound. I also got to hang out with a lot more of my co-workers, which eventuated in a good, although likely forgotten time for all parties involved (especially this party). Tonight, I spent a lot of time with my friend Jack, which led to vocal entertainment approximately 7 times... I coudn't tell you exactly how many times I held a mic tonight, but let's assume seven is close to accurate. Obviously, since I won't be able to compose a coherent "new" post, I'm about to start round two of the week I'll never remember.... How ironic, since I won't remember writing this tomorrow, but as per Double D's request, buckle up, cuz here we go...

(Commence Part Deux)

So.... Where did we leave off? Ahh yes. It was 8:30 in the morning and Jon was swearing. Nothing new here. (The 8:30 in the morning thing, maybe...) Donovan sort of waited up for me, so he was nowhere near waking up, Saturday morning before classes started and all. Jon and I decided to head to Vienna for some waking up and catching up. I introduced him to chai, or "kai", as he initially insisted on calling it. Still, it was one of the most memorable mornings of my summer (granted, probably one of the few mornings of my summer, period...) From this point on things get a little hazy. I'm pretty sure we drove around in Donovan's 'stang for a little while, taking in the campus and visiting some old friends (the loose sense of the word...) By the time we got back to Jon's, Donovan was awake and wondering where we had gotten off to.

[If you can fill in the blanks, feel free to email me at adamnationx@yahoo.com]

I remember some excellent music followed by some beirut.... Generally speaking, I think the next day or two resembled the Safe House in many ways. Let's just leave it at that.

Next thing I know, there we are, sitting at Cafe' Hookah enjoying some fine coals.... Honey and Rose, I believe, followed by orange and something. Either way, there was a beautiful young woman waiting our table by the name of Katie with whom Donovan and I enjoyed some wonderful conversation and coal-fixing. She invited us to an electronica ("not trance!") show at the aforementioned esbatlishment that night, which we attended with Cate and Jon.... Jon, however was on the phone for the majority of the show. The guy on the boards was ok, but I wouldn't say he was better than Jon, so we mostly just enjoyed our hookah and conversation. When we finally left, Cate went home and DD, Jon and I went back to their house for some reminscence.

I may have missed a night in my recount. I'm going to consult the proper authorities and see what they think, but in the meantime, I think you've had enough Purdue-opoly for one night (wow..... that was the night after Reggaefest, right D?) Anyway, I leave you with part two of my [God knows how many] part documentary entitled "The Week I'll Never.... err.... Remember".

Until next time,

Hearts and Karaoke

(to be continued)

Brewed and Bottled by: Cerveceria Modela (alcohol-induced post)

2005-09-04T23:52:00.000-05:00

(Warning: Long post.... and I can't figure out where paragraph breaks should go when I'm drunk... You know you want to read this anyway)

To kick things off, today was a great day at work. I finished my last day of training, so on Wednesday I start making some tips, which should be enjoyable. After I was done with my shift, I got to start my wine-tasting venture, which I get to continue until I've tried every kind of wine we have, including the reserves and whatnot. That was pleasant. I also got a free shot of our new gin, Stellar, which lives up to its title, if I do say so myself. It's "citrus-infused". I even ordered a Stellar Tonic after I tried it because I liked it so much. I tried the Chicken Marsala tonight (two herb-grilled chicken breasts smothered in marsala wine sauce with portobello mushrooms and sun-dried tomatoes, if you're interested... actually, I'm just testing my menu knowledge, so shut up and listen). Around the time I finished eating, two of the girls I work with called me over to the table at which they were seated (don't end clauses with prepositions) and informed me that I would be accompanying them to the Evansville night scene. I was left with no choice but to agree, since I don't know anyone here, and off we went to the one bar/restaurant I've ever been to in this city besides Pasta Grill, called The Fox and the Hound. We didn't stay there very long before I decided I wanted to see something new, so they took me to the most redneck bar I've ever seen, Laura's Place. There was a band there that was actually incredibly talented, and I danced around while they played their country whatnot. I was shocked when they actually played some George Clinton song.

(I would like to take this time to apologize for the inferior quality of writing of this post.... I'm drunk. This would be a good time for me to tell you about the week I'll never remember. Initiate launch sequence... 5, 4, 3, 2, 1....)

My "summer vacation" really only consisted of about 14 days of vacation. I took twelve hours this summer at Marshall, I waited tables at the Hall of Fame for a few months, and I suffered through a friend's messy divorce, so I wouldn't call the rest of my summer anything but gruesome. Needless to say, when it ended I felt compelled to do some catching up, but in the process of moving to Indiana and finalizing things and such, I guess I neglected to do any of that (with the exception of my moving out party at the apartment and Nam's little shindigs..... those are some fiestas I really will never.... errr..... remember...) I got to Evansville, a nice little city of nothing where I know noone, and it only took me about 6 days to realize that I was an under-partied, lonely bastard with a slightly improved physique (what is there to do in this town besides work out? I'm only just finding out....) Toss in a dash of women, and you've got yourself a recipe for disaster.... and by disaster, I mean I left my apartment at 12:30am and drove my ass through every cornfield in Indiana all the way up to West Lafayette, proud home of the Boilermakers and a few of my best friends on the planet. ETA - 4:20. (Isn't it ironic? Don't ya think? It's like raaa-i-aaaain.......) So...... as soon as I hit the door of JC and DD's house, I pretty much collapsed on the floor. I don't really remember much after that until Jon walked into the room where I had crashed out and uttered some obscenities about some unexpected random body on his floor (I had neglected to alert Jon to my arrival for the sheer surprise factor). I only intended to stay at Purdue for about 2 days, but something about the way I woke up at 8:30 that morning to Jon's familiar expletivity should've told me I wouldn't be leaving for a while. Seven days, to be exact.

Well, kiddies, I think that's enough for tonight. This story's going to have to come in parts.... I think that's appropriate, though, all things considered. It was, after all, the week I'll never remember. It's not like I'm going to forget ;-)

Until next time,

Hearts and Amnesia

(to be continued)

I Have a Secret...

2005-09-04T14:43:00.000-05:00

I found this here (not work safe). For some reason, it spoke to me. Hmm.....

That is all.

A Truly Extraordinary Life

2005-09-04T11:44:00.000-05:00

This entry is not political in nature.

Chief Justice William Rehnquist was like a father to these United States. Among his plethoric accolades: he was the only sitting Justice to have voted in the legendary Roe v. Wade; he was one of two justices in history to preside over a presidential impeachment hearing that divided a nation; he helped reunite a divided nation by deciding the outcome of a presidential election; perhaps most nobatly, he championed the "One Nation Under God" approach to judicial responsibility, a righteous and noble effort no matter what one's stance on the cause.

The raging, shifting winds of change keep ripping away at the fabric of time. What's in store for this great Nation under God? I can't begin to answer that question, but I do know this: that one of the greatest men ever to grace this Earth has been called to service by God to watch over us all, and I will rest easy tonight with that comfort on my mind.

Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist
A Man and a Legend
Octobor 1, 1924 - September 3, 2005

A Farewell to Arms

2005-09-03T11:31:00.000-05:00

I want to publish this letter so I can read it whenever the feeling strikes me, but also as a reminder to those special people I left behind in Huntington, should they ever happen upon this, that I meant what I said and I said what I meant ;-)...

Senators,

Serving the students of Marshall University has been an educational and inspiring endeavor through the course of the last year. Even laying aside the countless memories, the strongly-forged friendships, and the endless pages of hilarious dialogue I've taken from this body, there is something profound to be said about the principles of democratic self-government, the sense of duty and fulfilled call to service I've witnessed in each one of you as we've gathered together week after week. There is at least, but most important of all, one common interest that has driven us here: that is the heart-felt desire to propel Marshall University forth in excellence for ourselves, for our fellow students, and for students to come for years after we've left our marks on these halls.

In the short year of my own service here, we've helped to extend the hours of the Drinko Library, proving that student opinions can and will be heard, if only they are voiced; we've worked alongside two university presidents to create a better life for the students of Marshall; we've contributed in many ways to ongoing battles against such student concerns as cancer, poverty, hunger, and AIDS; we've helped empower over a hundred other student organizations in their own equally pertinent and beneficial engagements to this university; and now we've managed to carry this torch into a new academic year, rich with the promise of inspiring and exciting changes for Marshall University. You have the unique and crucial opportunity to shape these changes for generations of students to come. I encourage you to enjoy this opportunity to its fullest, as I'm confident you will, but also to bear in mind the weight of your responsibility. I believe we've already given credence to the fact that we are here to, and we will, make a difference.

And so, as you lead Marshall into a new year, into Conference USA, into a new set of challenges, it is with a reminiscent smile and a tinge of regret that I hereby submit to you, my colleagues and friends, official notice of my resignation from the Student Senate of Marshall University and all relevant committees therein, effective immediately. I will be pursuing my studies at Purdue University, but shall remain, as always, a respectful servant of the Student Government Association and of This Great University.

Thank you for everything, and may God be with you in all that you do.

Yours in Friendship and Service,
Adam D. Litton

Benvenudo al Sogno Nostro

2005-09-02T21:44:00.000-05:00

*sits down at computer*

*sighs in relief*

*starts to type*

Did today really just happen?

I woke up at about 7:30 this morning to the less-than-subtle Cingular tune. Heidi was calling me to talk about her shitty night, but I, the loving friend that I am, thought it best to spare her from my morning conversational "skills". So I rolled over and slept until 11.

She called back at 11:12 (because we're good ex-roommates like that) and I got the run-down, to which all I can say is that Heidi is a trooper - an excellent person by any standard, even mine.

Amid all this I was realizing that standing in the rain one fine morning in Huntington last week, I managed to contract a cold. The timing couldn't be better, since at this point I'm jobless and feeling relatively worthless aside from providing some comfort to an old friend. So I excused myself from our conversation to take a shower, fought back the sniffles with some OJ, and set off to try to remedy my unemployment.

Thirty minutes later, I had a job at a local mid-to-upscale Italian place called The Pasta Grille. It's "family"-owned an operated, which is code for.... well, nevermind... If I told you that, they'd have to kill you. Regardless, the food is astounding. There are two master chefs who started the place like seven years ago, and they like to show off their culinary genius, so if you're ever in town, they'll make whatever your heart desires. I feel extremely lucky to have found this place, especially so quickly. Life smiles upon me. I worked my first training shift tonight from 4-9:30, and I go back tomorrow at 4. Occupationation. After my shift, the owner (Chef Trent) and my FH Manager both bought had an Italian beer at the bar and I hung out with some of the regulars. And tomorrow, I get a wine sampling. What a job.

The moon has never felt so warm, caressing the sickly midnight sky.

Good Apollo, I'm Burning Star IV, Volume One: From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness

2005-09-01T22:39:00.000-05:00

Coheed and Cambria has some of the most interestingly-named albums I've ever seen. Not that I am listening to a pirated pre-release version of the new album right now, but if I were, I would highly advise anybody who's never listened to CoCa to start doing so today, and if you are already a convert, buy this album. It's just as rockin' awesome as the rest of Coheed's albums, but they seem to have matured musically... diversified, if you will. But I'd only say that if I had just listened to it, which I clearly haven't.

I don't even know what to say right now. I suppose I could go off on some political rant or tell you all about my crazy 10-day vacation which, coincidentally, just ended today. I don't think that's what I want to talk about, though. I think I'm content to just make words appear where before there were none. As my friend Shawn recently discovered, sometimes that can be an excellent release.

All this writing has to be leading to something. Whenever I have paper and ink, graphite, blood... whatever..... the blankness of the page seems to draw me in. It's enchanting, and I've been surprising myself with the things that come out. I think my mind is gearing up to write a book; amazingly enough, it feels like it's doing that of its own accord. I don't know how to make sense of that to you people, but I suppose I don't really have to. Instead, I think I'll give you a synopsis of some of the things you can look forward to (or dread) reading here in the coming days:

~~My Letter of Resignation from Marshall University's Student Government~~
Why Nick Jo Rahall II is Unfit for Public Office and What We Can Do About It
~~The Week I'll Never... er... Remember:~~ AKA My Trip to Purdue
Musings on Religion (ongoing, I hope)
A Full Review of the Album I've "Never Heard"
Marshall Football 2k5: Sweet Jesus
I also hope to read a book of some sort, which you'll inevitably have to hear about

I warned you from the start, this is life in the fast lane. Hop in or move the $#@! over. And yes, I took the picture.

The moon emanates silver radiance against the velvet canvas of the midnight sky.

Rahall slams Bush on Social Security

2005-08-29T21:14:00.000-05:00

Posted: Thursday, Aug 04, 2005 - 08:21:10 pm EDT

I think the president has the same problem with social security that he has with Iraq - no exit strategy

-U.S. Rep. Nick Jo Rahall II

It's so convenient to play to the heartstrings of war protestors across the country that I'd imagine it's almost impossible for some politicians to resist. Rahall's assessment of the Social Security "crisis" clearly indicates that without said heartstrings, he would have nothing more than his own name to say about Social Security. The nature of the threat facing our Social Security system is purely mathematical. It's imminently clear that we cannot sustain the payout as technology increases quality of living and life expectancy in the United States (along with the rest of the world). The Baby Boomers are a prominent example of a major population "push", which many statisticians and economists question the current system's ability to overcome, but whether the terminal point is immediately present or several years off seems of little consequence. I present you some statistics published by the Social Security Administration to consider. It's important to realize that Rahall's argument is that the danger isn't immediate. Change the years in the following statistics.... Add 10 to them if you want. How about 50? (Word of caution: we aren't going to make it 50 years with what we've got.... add it anyway if you want)

€ In 1950, there were 16 workers to support every one beneficiary of Social Security.

€ Today, there are only 3.3 workers supporting every Social Security beneficiary.

€ In 2008, baby boomers are expected to retire, beginning a span of ever-increasing retirees. According to the website, "By the time today's youngest workers turn 65, there will only be two workers supporting each beneficiary."

€ In 2018, the president said the government will begin to pay out more in Social Security benefits than it collects in payroll taxes, creating mounting program deficits.

Privatizing Social Security implies that the money that you pay into the system comes out only for you. It creates a one-to-one ratio coverage, independent and necessarily insensitive to population change of any degree. The argument about the risk of private investment applies only in the transition period, and it is the prominent argument used to scare old people into avoiding any kind of change to the current SS system, which, as I thought we'd already established, is unsustainable. If you've ever studied Computer Science (along with numerous other engineering-related fields), I'm sure you could confirm that when trying to apply a solution to a problem, you want to fix it for all cases, not patch the bugs that you see today only to run into more next week. The one-to-one ratio payout ensures that your money will be there when you need it, no matter how many of you their are. Any questions?

Oh, and here's my favorite part. Rahall, asked to offer alternatives to President Bush's suggested solution, said that House Democrats feel "alternatives should not be put on the table until privatization is taken off the table."

Pshhhhwhat!?!?!?!?!? Damnit, Nick Jo, I want answers. If nobody puts any more suggestions on the table until we take ours off, I'm going to be one pissed off senior citizen before anything gets fixed.

Butterflies and Hurricanes

2005-08-29T01:54:00.000-05:00

I have a busy day ahead of me... I should be sleeping, but I just don't feel it. Invaluable wisdom has been imparted upon me tonight, and I know I need to heed that wisdom. Maybe after I get some sleep it'll have set in. Until then, I'm going to keep running it through my head. CPR.... CPR.... CPR........

God bless the people of New Orleans and anyone else threatened by Katrina. Believe me, I know how you all feel...

The moon wanes through the tropical haze as rain clouds scatter across the midnight sky.....

Wingardium Leviosa!

2005-08-28T14:53:00.001-05:00

During my last two days at the 'Due, I decided to start reading the 6th Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

I probably should've known that I wasn't actually going to start the book without finishing it, too. So I did. I read the last two chapters in Cafe Hookah to the enjoyment of our waitress, who kept prodding me with "Are you done yet?", and "Isn't it good?"... you know, things like that. That didn't bother me, because the book really was incredible. It's gripping.... it runs the gamut of human emotion, and it appeals to my life in particular right now as I seem to have engaged myself in a solitary journey of epic importance (at least to me). I highly recommend the entire chronicles of Harry Potter and his gang, and if you just haven't made it out to get the latest installment, you're doing yourself a disservice if you don't go get it today.
I'm in Huntington for a few days. It should be an interesting visit, but I haven't slept in my bed in over a week already, and I've been having these dreams..... with much greater frequency than before...... what a pain.... I need a vacation from my vacation.
On an unrelated note, one day I want to do this. The environment was unparalleled by anything I've ever seen at a bar. Good times.

You're More American Than I'll Ever Be

2005-08-24T15:38:00.000-05:00

Was Che a prolific, enlightened advocate of freedom of the people or a blood-stained, martyrous student of Soviet communist ideals? Maybe a little of both? Two things I do know: I need to read everything this man ever wrote, and I need to brush up on my Soviet communist ideals, because I'm inclined to believe that there's something about this man's collective experiences in the impoverished, identity-torn Southern hemisphere that bridged a gap between revolutionary socialism and individual freedom (and I'm referring to the very heart of individuality here...) It's almost as if the "live by the land" doctrine of the Western tribal cultures could be blended with the capitalist progression of industrialized society to generate a truly liberated population. Through this lens, if I'm applying it correctly, Che Guevara was truly a noble, morally-driven human being. I think his death, and the failed revolutionary attempts leading to it, contributed to his attaining the most complete understanding of the human condition anyone has ever seen.

The modern mantra applied to socialism is right, I guess. It really does look good on paper. And in the movies.

You can lead a horse to water, or in some cases an entire civilization, but you can't make them drink....

P.S. - I finally watched The Motorcycle Diaries.... You were right...

What is (4,102 x (12e^2-6tan45)+39.758)0(5+6sin70)?

2005-08-19T14:35:00.000-05:00

I'm back in the midwest. Decidedly in the heart of the Bible Belt. I went to the Newburgh Library yesterday and discovered that the biggest section (by far, and in a relatively small library) was the Christian Fiction section. This should certainly be interesting. My apartment is coming together nicely, and pictures will be forthcoming, but I don't think you want to see all my boxes and other various unpackedness. I'll get a round tuit ;-).

Let's see.... this is a big week in the news as well. If you don't know what I'm talking about, I advise heading on over to Google News. I'll bet the word 'Gaza' appears in one of the top 2 headlines at all times. Read up. I didn't think we'd be alive when this happened, and yet here it is. More on that later, too, I guess, because I have to go to my big brother's house and drive him to pick up his van or something to that effect. Sorry for the inconsequentiality of this post; I felt like I should say something, but I don't really have time to say anything.

Peace and Blessin's Be Wit' You

Hail, Hail to Old Purdue

2005-08-11T10:11:00.000-05:00

A lot of people seem intent on questioning my motives in life. The most likely reason for this (that I can think of) is the relative eccentricity with which I've lived my life. I can see where it would be difficult to apply standard logic to some of my decisions, but guess what... I don't have standard logic. I have Adam logic, and that's worked pretty well for me, so I'm going to stick with it.

On that note, I am moving to Evansville, Indiana this weekend, as I said in my last post. I have my last final at Marshall on Friday morning, then I'm headed to Wheeling for my favorite cousin's wedding reception (she got married in Colorado earlier this summer, but I couldn't make it out there because of school). Then Saturday or Sunday I'm back in Huntington to finish loading up my car, and I'm heading down I-64 until I get to my new apartment. Why, you ask? (You ALWAYS ask why, so learn to love it.) I'll tell you why.

I. I never had any intention of graduating from Marshall University.

A. I went to school for two years at Purdue University in West Lafayette, IN. For more than half of that time, I was drunk and stoned out of my mind. It was not cost effective for me to stay at Purdue when I didn't even know if I could tie my own shoes.

B. Marshall does not even have the academic program I'm interested in (Computer Science), although they're phasing in a B.S. over the next 3 years. The thing is, that's going to take too long, and I still can't get a Ph.D. Not gonna do it.... wouldn't be prudent...

C. As anyone who's traversed those fine corridors will surely tell you, Old Main is about as user friendly as a large room full of pit vipers with razor blades for door handles. Our professors are severely underpaid here in West Virginia; the bargain status of Marshall provides for a sorely pathetic academic environment with regards to the degree of student interest in academic research. Marshall just isn't cutting it for me, and I'm sorry if that offends you. Wait. No I'm not.

II. I am in love with the academic quality of another school.

This one is easy. Purdue has the world's first Computer Science program. It has the best technology research park in the United States. The only thing it doesn't have is a good location, but short of picking it up and moving it to Southern Cali, there's nothing I can do about that. I'm a Boilermaker at heart. Here's an example of why.

Stunning. The thing is, I can't afford to go to school here for $25,000 a year. So what am I going to do? I'm going to live in Indiana for a year to qualify for in-state tuition and pay $5,000 a year, which I can afford. Good thinking, huh?

III. None of this has anything to do with running away from anything.

I don't have anything from which to run. I've made some incredible friends in Huntington, certainly better than most you'll find in the mid-west, the apparent birthplace of the cold shoulder. (Where I come from, we have this thing called ' southern hospitality'. That's a rap song in Indiana, and they'll glare at you whether you play it or not.) As for running away from Lorin, if I wanted to take the easy way out, I'd stay here. It's much more of a challenge to dive into the unknown to give myself a better opportunity.... I owe it to myself to leave, and it's been the most difficult decision I've ever made to do it anyway. I'd appreciate it if the vast majority of you would either shut the hell up and let me do my own thing or try to think things through before deciding that I'm running scared for leaving the place that ALL of you wish you could leave too. (Don't deny it, you know it's true.) This is the best decision I've made in my life. Let's do it.

Oh, and the midnight sky is nowhere to be seen.......

You're Wasting Your Talent, Randy

2005-08-09T16:01:00.000-05:00

My life is forever changed. I don't think I'll ever be able to look at this world in the same light again. Every moment seems like a scene from a movie. I walk to a brand new beat; my heart feels a brand new rhythm. Why, you ask?

I'm in love <3. Even a 60 GB iPod Photo can't replace someone as cool as LJ, but the little bastard comes devilishly close. Lorin will be missed greatly, but it's time to go on to bigger and better things.... or something like that. Regardless, she's a good girl, so be good to her, world.

In other news, I am moving to Evansville, IN in less than a week. More on that later though, because STOP! It's dinner time!

SOTD Archive

2005-08-01T23:27:00.000-05:00

[Recent Archives]

7/27/06
Artist: Nelly Furtado
Album: Loose [2006]
Track: (03) Promiscuous

7/17/06
Artist: Ying Yang Twins
Album: United States of Atlanta [2005]
Track: (12) Pull My Hair

5/08/06
Artist: The Flaming Lips
Album: Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots [2002]
Track: (03) Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots, Pt. 1

4/09/06
Artist: Cat Stevens
Album: Tea for the Tillerman [1970]
Track: (02) Hard-Headed Woman

4/08/06
Artist: The Killers
Album: Hot Fuss [2004]
Track: (11) Everything Will Be Alright

4/06/06
Artist: Band of Horses
Album: Everything All the Time [2006]
Track: (06) The Great Salt Lake

4/03/06
Artist: The Killers
Album: Hot Fuss [2004]
Track: (08) Change Your Mind

3/27/06
Artist: The Streets
Album: The Hardest Way to Make an Easy Living [2006]
Track: (04) All Goes Out the Window

3/08/06
Artist: The String Quartet
Album: Tribute to Coheed and Cambria: IKSSE3 [2005]
Track: (04) Three Evils (Embodied in Love and Shadow)

3/07/06
Artist: Ying Yang Twins (featuring Anthony Hamilton)
Album: United States of Atlanta [2005]
Track: (03) Long Time

3/06/06
Artist: Avalon
Album: A Maze of Grace [1997]
Track: (05) Adonai

3/02/06
Artist: Panic! At The Disco
Album: A Fever You Can't Sweat Out [2005]
Track: (03) London Beckoned Songs about Money Written by Machines

2/28/06
Artist: Phil Vassar
Album: Shaken Not Stirred [2004]
Track: (12) Black and Whites

2/27/06
Artist: Simon and Garfunkel
Album: Collected Works Volume II [1990]
Track: (15) America

2/26/06
Artist: Yellowcard
Album: Lights and Sounds [2006]
Track: (02) Lights and Sounds

2/25/06
Artist: Muse
Album: Showbiz [1999]
Track: (07) Unintended

2/20/06
Artist: Muse
Album: Origin of Symmetry [2001]
Track: (02) Bliss

2/17/06
Artist: Coldplay
Album: A Rush of B-Sides to Your Head [2003]
Track: (04) Don't Panic

2/16/06
Artist: Sufjan Stevens
Album: Greetings from Michigan, the Great Lakes State [2003]
Track: (01) Flint (For the Unemployed and Underpaid)

2/15/06
Artist: Jekyll and Hyde: The Musical
Album: Original Cast [1997]
Track: (25) Dangerous Game

2/14/06
Artist: Dr. Dre (featuring Korrupt and Hittman)
Album: Chronic 2001 [2001]
Track: (18) House Wife

2/13/06
Artist: David Banner (featuring Sky and Marcus)
Album: MTA2: Baptized in Dirty Water [2003]
Track: (07) My Lord

2/12/06
Artist: Sarah McLachlan (featuring Will.i.M of Black Eyed Peas)
Album: Remix Album [2005]
Track: (07) Just Like Me (Cat's in the Cradle)

2/10/06
Artist: Muse
Album: Absolution [2003]
Track: (13) Thoughts of a Dying Atheist

1/30/06
Artist: Sufjan Stevens
Album: Illinois [2005]
Track: (22) Out of Egypt, Into the Great Laugh of Mankind, and I Shake the Dirt from My Sandals As I Run

12/29/05
Artist: Johnny Cash (with Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, and Waylon Jennings)
Album: The Essential Johnny Cash [2002]
Track: (Disc 2: 16) Highwayman

12/19/05
Artist: Coheed and Cambria
Album: Good Apollo, I'm Burning Star IV, Volume One - From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness [2005]
Track: (04) Ten Speed (of God's Blood and Burial)

12/17/05
Artist: Brian Wilson (of The Beach Boys)
Album: Smile (2004)
Track: (09) Good Vibrations

12/16/05
Artist: Ludacris and Field Mob
Album: Ludacris Presents Disturbin' Tha Peace (2005)
Track: (02) Georgia

12/10/05
Artist: Tom Waits
Album: Bone Machine (1992)
Track: (05) Who Are You

12/09/05
Artist: Tom Waits
Album: Mule Variations (1999)
Track: (05) House Where Nobody Lives

12/06/05
Artist: Winterpills
Album: Winterpills (2005)
Track: (01) A Benediction

12/04/05
Artist: Cat Stevens
Album: Tea for the Tillerman (1970)
Track: (03) Wild World

12/01/05
Artist: Ray Charles
Album: Billboard Top 100 (1961)
Track: (#19) Hit the Road Jack

11/23/05
Artist: Will Smith (featuring Snoop Dogg)
Album: Lost and Found (2005)
Track: (09) Pump Ya Brrakes

11/22/05
Artist: The Shins
Album: Chutes Too Narrow (2003)
Track: (05) Saint Simon

11/21/05
Artist: John Legend
Album: Get Lifted (2004)
Track: (08) Ordinary People

11/20/05
Artist: Linkin Park
Album: Meteora (2003)
Track: (09) Breaking the Habit

11/19/05
Artist: Dntel (Postal Service dude)
Album: The Dream of Evan and Chan (Single 2002)
Track: (01) Evan and Chan

11/18/05
Artist: The White Stripes
Album: White Blood Cells (2002)
Track: (11) I Think I Smell A Rat

11/17/05
Artist: Frankie Vallie
Album: Billboard Top 100 (1976)
Track: (#4) December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)

[Old Archives]
9/17/04 [miles davis and ella fitzgerald] - prelude to a kiss
9/16/04 [jeff buckley] - i never asked to be your mountain
9/13/04 [queen] - bohemian rhapsody
9/02/04 [the searchers] - love potion no 9
8/30/04 [sublime] - garden grove
8/29/04 [elliot smith] - the white lady loves you more
8/24/04 [miles davis and thelonious monk] - blue monk
8/18/04 [jamiroquai] - little l
6/30/04 [jamie cullum] - all at sea
6/29/04 [rush] - spirit of radio
6/28/04 [the postal service] - such great heights
6/27/04 [wilco] - hell is chrome
6/26/04 [elliott smith] - i didn't understand
6/25/04 [stevie ray vaughn and double trouble] - blues at sunrise
6/24/04 [icp and twiztid] - homiez
6/23/04 [coheed and cambria] - delirium trigger
6/22/04 [jackson 5] - i'll be there
6/21/04 [basement jaxx feat dizzee rascal] - lucky star
6/17/04 [dream theater] - through my words
6/10/04 [stevie ray vaughn] - texas flood
6/09/04 [red house painters] - katy song
6/08/04 [bob dylan] - maggie's farm
6/07/04 [matt nathanson] - little victories
6/05/04 [the streets] - has it come to this
6/04/04 [jeff buckley] - yard of blond girls
6/03/04 [mr magic] - puff puff pass
6/02/04 [piebald] - fear and loathing in cape cod
2/24/04 [dayton family] - philly blunt
2/22/04 [beethoven] - moonlight sonata
2/20/04 [dmx] - slippin'
2/14/04 [john coltrane] - equinox
2/13/04 [eric johnson] - cliffs of dover (live)
2/9/04 [paul oakenfold] - southern sun
2/8/04 [elliott smith] - bottle up and explode
2/7/04 [phil vassar] - i'll be the one
2/6/04 [dmb] - all along the watchtower (live at red rocks)
2/5/04 [enya] - from where i am
2/4/04 [coheed and cambria] - the light and the glass
2/3/04 [dizzee rascal] - i luv u
2/2/04 [elliott smith] - waltz #2

In Profile

2005-08-01T14:39:00.000-05:00

[Vital Signs]

Celebration: December, 22, 1983
Origination: Huntington, WV
Location: West Lafayette, IN
Occupation: Student, Server, and Social Observer
Affiliation: GOP, Purdue University
Communication: AdamNationX at Gmail dot Com (Email)
xAdamNationX (AIM)

[Where My Passions Lie]
La Musica, politics, computer science, high-tech gadgetry, xbox, Super Smash Bros Melee, SNES, theatre, college life, tennis, baseball, football, cliff diving, tennis, mountains, lakes, rivers, forests, midnight, good wine, Italian, The West Wing, My iPod, philosophy of religion, running, piano, guitar, drummin', Siberian Huskies, cards, Texas Hold'em, Euchre, Wiki, curvaceous women, philosophy of dead people, road trippin', camaraderie

[Music is Soul Food]
Coheed and Cambria, Elliott Smith, Tom Waits, Coldplay, Muse, Miles Davis, Jamie Cullum, Yellowcard, Sublime, Eminem, 50 Cent, Outkast, Dave Matthews, Phil Vassar, Rascal Flatts, Jeff Buckley, The Postal Service, Adem

[Lights, Camera, Action!]
Adaptation, Amelie, American History X, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Lilo and Stitch, The Boondock Saints, A Clear and Present Danger, Dead Poets Society, Donnie Darko, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Four Rooms, The Matrix, Lord of the Rings, Gladiator, High Fidelity, Labyrinth, The Motorcycle Diaries, Moulin Rouge, Newsies, Pirates of the Caribbean, School of Rock, Sideways, Forrest Gump, Ray, Scream 1, Shrek 1/2, Stigmata, Super Troopers, Top Gun, Van Wilder, Waking Life, Wimbledon

[Read a Good Book Lately?]
The Bible, The Qur'an, For Whom the Bell Tolls, The Sun Also Rises, A Swiftly Tilting Planet, The Catcher in the Rye, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Lord of the Rings, The Black Cauldron, Ordinary People, The Island of the Blue Dolphin, The Red Badge of Courage, Harry Potter, Cannibals and Kings, Republican Party Reptile, A Farewell to Arms, Something Wicked This Way Comes,(More coming very soon)

[Now What?]
Well, when in doubt, the beginning is always a good place to start. But then again, the end is often more exciting than the beginning.

In Portrait

2005-08-01T01:59:00.000-05:00

[Self Portrait]

[Love Big]

Bush Named Time's 2004 Person of the Year

2004-12-19T21:36:00.000-05:00

Bush Named Time's 2004 Person of the Year

Time Magazine has named its 2004 Person of the Year, adding insult to the injury of the "heated" 2004 Presidential Election. Seriously, though, I recognize the determination required to stand face to face in defiance against popular opinion (no offense, befuddled masses, but mob mentality is soooo last millenium...) Props to the W. I have a feeling that John Kerry would've been GQ posing had the election gone differently, but apples being apples and all, it's a beautiful day in the neighborhood.

Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged

2004-12-18T23:30:00.000-05:00

I shall read tonight... The following book is now open for discussion.

Goodnight...

Grooooooooooooan

2004-12-18T03:01:00.000-05:00

Woooooork..... I'm meeeeelting..... tooooo muuuuch chriiiiiistmaaaas.....

Eye Candy

2004-12-15T01:08:00.000-05:00

Checkin' in. Work and holiday stress have kept the writing at bay for a bit, but that doesn't mean I can't at least give you some eye candy! And while you're looking, make sure to check out my Froogle Wish List, which is also linked from my profile. Enjoy the pics!

Lorin has been busy lately working and doing the finals thing... She's also painting a Red Bull (get it?)... Art is fun.

I like this picture because it looks like she's in the act of painting... and because she's beautiful...

This picture is from a while ago during the Presidential debates.

Seth, Brad, and I love W.... Really....

Blair the Hawaiian skateboarding prodigy says what up...

Macromedia Central is Cute and Fluffy!

2004-12-09T17:12:00.000-05:00

I strongly suggest that you check out this early-stage application from Macromedia. It's capable of a lot already, and I have a feeling the concept is going to become a popular one on the internet in the next year. I have AIM running on it, as well as a RottonTomatoes movie picker, the weather, an incredibly powerful guitar chord/tab app, and a blog reader (you can add Atom and RSS feeds to check your friends' blogs just like the major news feeds and whatnot). My Atom feed is available at http://adamnationx.blogspot.com/atom.xml.

In other news, I've never been much of an artist - at least not when the medium wasn't digital. The other day, my girlfriend - who happens to be an incredibly talented artist - was drawing a picture in my office and I decided I wanted to try my hand. Keep in mind that I haven't drawn anything really since art class in middle school, and even then I hated drawing. I don't know what was different the other day, but I was extremely pleased with what I produced. Here for your viewing pleasure, I present "Stitch at the Bar", obviously inspired by my approaching 21st birthday, and, well, Stitch.

See the peanuts? ;-)

Meega na la kweeeeesta!

Have a great day!

Are You of Legal Drinking Age?

2004-12-06T21:51:00.000-05:00

That's right, folks. I'm closing in on two weeks until the 2-1. With bittersweet sorrow I reminisce the many young drinking binges. The rebellious adrenaline rush long ago vanished, ridiculous benchmarks have been put into place, and I decidedly command an overabundance of drinking stories of all shapes, sizes, and ethnicities.... I feel like I've earned my badge, and while I fully intend to exercise my soon newly-acquired rights to the fullest extent, forgive me for being less than ecstatic about taking one more step into the twenties...

I AM, however, excited about buyin' me some beer! Perfect weather for drinkin', that's fer damn sure!

"That's why Donovan drinks cool, refreshing Keystone Light..."

One of my favorite qualities of beer is that it invariably engages me in an exploration of the many intricate wonders of music. I thought it was just me, but here's Donovan (my roommate from Purdue, by the way, for those of you who don't know him) in the midst of his own musical epiphany.

"The greatest band ever..."

Of course, we all know that beer does have its downfalls. Well.... ok... maybe it has downfalls for some people, but I've never experienced them myself. Here's a good example, though.

That's right, kids. Drink beer. Everybody's doin' it.

And in conclusion.... IN conclusion... the greatest band ever... Phish.

The Phantom of the Opera

2004-12-06T02:54:00.000-05:00

In Select Cities December 22

Wow... this is a big one. Movie musicals in the 21st Century are few and far between. They're incredibly difficult to pull off; especially something as timeless as Andrew Lloyd Webber's masterpiece. I'm skeptical about the casting already just from listening to the trailers, but I have faith in Joel... *fingers crossed*

I would like to point out the premier date, in case you hadn't already noticed. I'm in for a kickass 21st birthday...