Joyous Anniversary

Happy Anniversary to my sister and her husband. They are quite the couple and I hope to grow up to be just like them.

648 Dead, 322 Hurt in Iraq Bridge Stampede - Yahoo! News

This is exactly the definition of what a terrorist does. So sad and pointless....

Man who fatally beat wife put to death in Missouri - Yahoo! News

Sounds like the death he got was too good for him. "Painful and protracted" would probably have been more appropriate.

Loss

We just found out today that someone we know was killed in Iraq this week. We weren't close with him, but just having it within touch like this is hard enough. I know his family must be devastated.

It just doesn't make sense to me...

Standards

Don't toothbrush manufacturers have standards that all toothbrushes have to meet? Why is it that all the new toothbrushes out there do not fit in the toothbrush holders on sale at all stores????

Darwin Awards Inductees

Wow, if these idiots had managed to kill themselves, they would be in the running for sure...

True Love

True love is taste testing borderline milk so the other doesn't have to....and boy did it taste bad. Yuck!!!

Little League World Series

We just finished watching the LLWS this weekend. It has been on TV for a couple of weeks now as the tournament has progressed.

I have to say that in watching those kids play with their hearts, it makes me enjoy watching sports again. I wish the grownups in professional sports could learn a few things from them. They really brought integrity and honor back to the sport and showed the world what playing a sport should be all about.

Congrats to Hawaii on their win in the Championship game. It was a great game to watch, extra innings and all.

Limited Use

It seems my video/graphics card in my PC might be dying...and if so, I will need to get a new one soon. My school semester starts in less than a week so this is not really the best time to be having a computer fall out of service.

Until then, I will be using my laptop on the Internet and hoping that there is not critical stuff on my PC that I need. Such is life. I hope to get some answers to this whole thing later today but for now, the weather is cool and dry so I am thinking some yard work is in order...

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Update: Haven't fixed it permanently but was able to find a work around. I turned the Hardware Acceleration all the way off, so no gaming (not that I do much) and not too much video editing for a while but hopefully this will not be a long term fix...

Newest Addition

I just got home from running a few errands and stopped at the fish store to get some fish. I didn't do it sooner because I had to clean the tank yesterday and wanted to give it a day to settle.

They didn't have any Silver Lyretails so I got two Dalmation/Marbled ones. One male and one female. I might see if I can get a Black one someday soon too. We'll see. They seem to be adjusting to the new tank well and we'll see if they get along with my girl.

PETA asks NCAA to ban Gamecocks nickname

Okay, while I don't think cockfighting is a noble sport (and apparently most of the US doesn't either because it is illegal just about everywhere) I do feel that PETA would better spend their time and resources addressing real animal abuses. Their argument that the name "Gamecock" inspires people to honor cockfighting is just plain weak. They have in no way shown that by using a gamecock as a mascot, these communities are more prone to animal abuses.

What I would like them to address (and here is where my own hypocrisy steps in) is chicken farming. I am an eater of chicken, I admit, and I do buy my chicken from the store, so I am as much to blame as anyone else for this industry. I was stuck behind a chicken transport truck the other day on the highway (there are a lot of chicken farms here), and it was almost enough to make me stop eating chicken, at least mass produced chicken. I can't even begin to describe the smell coming from that truck, but that is not the worse of it. This truck was hauling chicken cages but not one of the cages was more than 9 inches tall. It seems most birds are taller than that because not one of them was standing upright, they were all hunched over or laying down. I felt so bad for them cramped in those cages like that, probably scared shitless (hence the smell), not knowing what was happening to them next. It truly was a sad sight to see.

Why can't PETA take on some of the ridiculous livestock issues that we just turn the other cheek to in this country? I know that there are farms out there that do take treatment of animals seriously, and I applaud their efforts but mainstream America is still going to buy the cheapest chicken they can find and that means the status quo for most farmers. PETA's efforts would be taken more seriously by me and many others if they were trying to make real changes and not just trying to make headlines over idiotic issues like mascot names.

(Note to those that will argue that PETA does a lot of good in other areas that don't make headlines, I know that. I also know that they have addressed the livestock problems in this country. My issue is not that they don't have good results, it is that when they address stupid issues like mascots, they take credibility away from themselves and all of us who do believe in treating animals right.)

Evangelist backs off Chavez assassination call - Yahoo! News

Someone needs to shut this bonehead up...now he is saying he didn't mean "killing"...kidnapping would be adequate. Duh...can we possibly put our foot farther down our throat?????

Yellow Seedless Watermelon

I bought a yellow watermelon recently that was locally grown with a guarantee from the seller that I would love it.

I did, the color kind of threw me off a bit but it was sweet and delicious (and seedless) just like its red counterpart. I highly recommend it.

Expensive Trip

This weekend, J and I went to a nearby town to do some shopping and get his watch band adjusted. On the way there, we got this in our windshield...
I had it looked at yesterday and it is too big (about 1 1/2 inches across) to have fixed, so we will need a new windshield on our less than a year old truck...fortunately the comprehensive deductible is only 100 bucks.

U.S. obesity rates on rise-report - Yahoo! News

I don't understand how anyone can be surprised by this when most schools only require physical education 1 out of every 5 days. The media always comes out with these reports like it is big news that if you eat crap and don't move enough, you will get fat...don't we know that already? Why aren't we doing something about it?

When I went to school, we did PE everyday all the way through high school. And as far as the blame being put on having fast food restaurants close to the school....we weren't allowed to leave our school grounds until we were juniors in high school. These restaurants should not be a factor if the schools are requiring students to remain on campus (which we better hope elementary and middle schools are).

Here is a break through thought....eat healthy, and move around some everyday. Do I get extra points for putting it in writing?

U.S. evangelist calls for assassination of Chavez - Yahoo! News

Okay, can we say that Pat Robertson is an idiot?

I know Chavez is not a nice guy either but this statement is just the latest in a string of idiotic things that Robertson has said over time. I find it amazing that he calls himself a religious person and that anyone listens to him.

Krispy Kreme

Today while working my ass off on the elliptical machine, an overweight guy walks by me with a TShirt that reads "Eat Krispy Kreme"...don't know if he was trying to help us all out, or making a statement...regardless, I thought it was hilarious.

Chicago Bears Yeah!!!

Chicago has been my favorite football team since I was little. I don't know why exactly, I have never lived near Chicago but I do have a fascination with the town (which I am sure I would be totally over if I ever spent a winter there).

Anyhow, they beat the Colts on Saturday in preseason...and I am hoping this means a better season for them (and me) than last year.

Both J and I are a bit turned off of some professional sports these days with all the crying about contracts, drug abuse and arrests, but I can't help but be excited for Chicago. Let's hope their season ends up being one of a kind.

In Memory

The second of the original batch of fish I got at Christmas time died today. It was the male of the silver lyretail mollies I had. He was one of my favorites but was never one of the healthiest fish in the tank. I am bummed...I will have to find someone new for the female to hang out with soon.

Stereo Clarification Revisited

Had to revisit this one from March 2005, because it has resurfaced in my life and I didn't find any answers then. Thought perhaps I might find some now....
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Could someone more hip than me answer this question for me? Is having your license plate rattle because your car stereo is so loud, a good thing or a bad thing???? I think it sounds and looks horrible but maybe I am just not getting it.

It seems to me that if you are playing your stereo loud enough to share music with all the cars in a 1 mile radius, the motivation is to impress people. I don't find the rattling license plate impressive, just hysterical...(I don't find the loud stereo impressive either but who am I to judge, I played my stereo loud in high school too).