Welcome to this week's Thursday Threesome, brought to us this week by Glenn Miller (that's the name that popped into my mind. Hope that's a good example) and The Back Porch.

Onesome. Big. Anything "big" happen to you lately? Come now, what's the biggest thing in your life these days?
Probably the biggest things in my life are signing up for St. Baldricks and Left Coast Crime, which starts this afternoon! Very excited about that, but it will mean I won't be here as much as normal.

Twosome. Band. I didn't do the band, but I did choir when I was in school. Tell us: what kind of extracurricular activities did YOU do when you were in school?
You'll never guess what I did in high school. I was on the golf team my senior year. Mind you, I got 72 on 9 holes instead of 18 so I never was part of any games, but it was fun playing every day. And I haven't touched a golf club in about 7 years. Took Grpop's back in May. I really should start playing again.

Threesome. Music. Our topic of the week is music, so why don't YOU share little about your personal tastes in music. Favorite band? Favorite song? Have a song you love to sing along with but hate to admit it? Now's the time to fess up!
I'm going to be lazy and just direct you to my post on the subject I made yesterday on the porch. However, I will mention my favorite song again, "Learning to Trust" by David Meece.

In other news today, Mr. Rodgers has passed away. I'm as sad as I was when I learned he'd quit doing his show a year and a half ago. I loved his show growing up, and I watched it for years, even watching it with my brother. He did all kinds of fascinating stuff on the stuff. I still remember the film on making crayons. He will be greatly missed.

And finally, since I won't be around to do it later, I must take the Princess Bride quiz everyone else is doing.

You are Westley. Valiant, handsome and a great
believer in the power of true love. You learn
quickly, recover quickly and think quickly.
Others marvel at your brilliance and wish they
were you!


"A princess bride personality test!"
brought to you by Quizilla

So this week, we're celebrating the Jixaversary over at Jix. Today is a special anniversary of my own. Today is my bloggaversary. Yep, that's right. It's been a year since I started sharing my boring life and opinions with those of you who keep coming and reading. And thanks for making this a very fun year.

Other big news. As those who are regulars at Zap's and Jix know, I've signed up for the St. Baldricks head shaving fund raiser. Any proceeds go to fight children's cancer, a very worthy cause. And I get to do something I enjoy to raise money, too. Seems like everyone wins. So, if you want to support me with a tax deductable gift, just follow the link. 13 days until the shave, but who's counting. And I see from this posting that I already have two donations, so thank you to those who have given. Fast work considering I just signed up two hours ago.

In case anyone was wondering, I did get my laundry done last night. The laundry room was almost completely empty. Full when raining, empty when not. Anyone who can explain that to me is much smarter then I am.

And I keep forgetting to post my "I Will Be Here Count." So far this year, I've been to 1 wedding, and I've heard this classic Steven Curtis Chapman song once. I give Kevin and Rebecca credit for using it as their first dance and not in the ceremony, but it still counts. (We'll see if it's used in every wedding I attend this year or not. I know you care.)

And I think my mild headache is gone. I didn't take any medicine today to see what happened. I did bring it into work, however, just to be on the safe side. Anyway, it bothered me a little bit, but hasn't been a problem all afternoon. Would be wonderful if I could enjoy the mystery convention starting tomorrow without having to worry about it. Of course, I'll probably run myself ragged and get sick again (or sicker) as a result. So I guess it's really not that hard to be smarter then I am. :)

Made it back just fine last night. They were predicting rain yesterday, but I only hit scattered sprinkles most of the way down. Until I hit the grapevine. That's when the rain started in earnest. It had tappered off by the time I reached Santa Clarita, leaving me just long enough to unload before it started pouring here. Sounded neat all night. I love listening to rain on the roof.

Of course, that didn't make the laundry room any more empty. Sure hope my normal Tuesday night luck doesn't hold because I must to laundry tonight or I won't have clothes to wear the rest of the week. And I have a busy schedule planned, too.

Got back a little later then normal last night because I met Donald for lunch. Good visit, and I got to see his office. Of course, I also spent an hour I normally don't spend off the road, but it was well worth it.

Grandma was with my uncle and aunt this weekend, so I didn't get to see her for very long, but what little I did was sad. She has no short term memory at all. I told her I don't know how many times why I was up and that I was leaving Monday, but it never seemed to register. It's so sad to see anyone like that.

Surprise!

Just got home from the wedding a little over 30 minutes ago. My family isn't back from their day in San Francisco yet, so I thought I'd jump on the internet.

The wedding was very nice. Ran into some old friends I haven't seen in years that I grew up with in church. Spent most of the reception with them, even though we were supposed to be at different tables. But four people at their table never showed up, so it didn't make any difference at all. I only knew maybe 10 people there, so it was nice to have people to talk to. They're doing well, from the sounds of things.

Man, they kept playing music at the reception I wanted to get up and dance to. The worst was when they played "Lady in Red" and "Great Balls of Fire." Brings back lots of memories from dance pracitce at Nordquists.

Had a good drive up yesterday. Did pull off at a rest stop and dozed for about 30 minutes. Made a world of difference. Traffic was much lighter then it's been the last few times I've driven up here. I slept like a rock last night and didn't get up until after 9 this morning. Feeling about like yesterday. Still only 95% Mainly a small, mild headache.

Anyway, should probably post this and sign off. See you all Tuesday.

Well, in just a few short minutes, I'll be leaving for SR. Actually got the majority of the packing done after Bible study last night. Just need to change, add a few last minute things, and hit the road. After checking my oil and water. Got the tire pressure taken care of last night. (Family joke.) Looks like I'm going to need to figure out why my left front tire has a slow leak. Not fun.

The good news is it looks like I figured out the correct windsheild wiper blades to get. We had brief showers Wednesday night, and they worked just fine. That's a relief heading off on a major trip like this.

Got several sincere sounding compliments on worship time last night. In spite of my voice. I noticed a couple times when it was giving out on me, but not when I was trying to bring everyone in. Talked a little more to Jon, and we really don't know what shape the worship team will take yet. So we'll just have to see what happens I guess. Another chance to practice being flexible. :)

I'm feeling the best I have all week. Still didn't get the sleep I wanted, but we were all in with the lights out by 1, so I got more sleep then I have been. I'll still keep my distance from my family so I don't make them sick. Man, I wanted to be well this weekend.

Anyway, I'm going to hit the road. Hope you have a great weekend, and I'll fill you in on mine when I get back.

Good morning. Don't think I slept any better last night, but I'm feeling better. Anyway, time for the Thursday Threesome, sponsered this week by Sherman Williams and The Back Porch.

Onesome: New- Hey, it's close enough to spring (even though the East Coasters have been getting hammered) to ask what's on the "to do" list for March. Do you have plans for changing anything around in your home or apartment? ...or are you ready to just get out of the place once the weather clears?
My to do list for March? Have a birthday. :) And call a realtor and start looking at condos. I mean it this time.

Twosome: Paint- ...any refurbishing or refinishing projects just waiting for the warm weather? That trim that needs painting or that one room with that horrible carpet? ...or do you have something you just dream about doing?
Well, since I currently live in an apartment, there are none I know about. Of course, if I buy a condo, that might all change.

Threesome: Smell- ...and lest we forget the gardeners out there: what spring madness do you have planned in the plant world? New flowers for the windowsill? How about that garden where the snails took over last year? ...or does a quick dusting of the artificial ficus cover you for another year?
My uncle and aunt gave me a bamboo plant when they were here Monday, so I actually have a house plant now. And I really do plan to plant some flowers outside my front door. Been going to do that for about 10 months now, but this time I really mean it!

I am so sick. Well, I just feel horrid anyway. This cold that I thought I was getting over on Monday is hanging on like crazy. Of course, it might help if I could get some sleep. Stil was close to 2 before I was sawing logs again. And I turned off the light at 11:20 feeling like I was going to fall asleep any minute. I'm going to pick up some Nighquil (or however it's spelled) on the way home from work tonight and knock myself out once I've taken the guys home after Babylon 5 tonight. I just hope this works. Otherwise, it's going to be a long, miserable weekend.

Of course, since I didn't feel like working out at all at lunch time, I'll be caught up on TV by this time tomorrow. Maybe I really will be starting JF's new book by this weekend afterall.

Played games with Jeff and Jen last night. I won Stock Market (Jen almost did), then Jen beat us pretty badly at Monopoly: America Edition.

And that's all the news in this corner of the world. Back tomorrow with the Thursday Threesome before I get a week's worth of work done so I don't feel too guilty taking time off this weekend.

Took a risk last night and it didn't quite pay off.

When I left work at 5, I decided to go to Trader Joe's even though it's way out of my way and try to buy a loaf of bread. Took me exactly 30 minutes, and I walked into my apartment at 5:30. To discover that my uncle and aunt were waiting for me. They were on their way to Disneyland with Aunt Martie's son and his two kids and we were supposed to have dinner last night. They thought they'd be in town around 6. I figured since I hadn't heard from them, I'd have time to go to TJ's. But they got into town at 5. Fortunately, Jeff and Jen were at the apartment and gave them the tour and visited with them for the 25 minutes. I wasn't there. We headed out to Oliver Garden for a good dinner. Really enjoyed getting to see them. And really wish I could be at Disneyland with them. If it weren't for the time off I was planning the rest of the month, I would be there with no hesitation.

The new Jerrilynn Farmer book was released today, and I got it in the mail from Amazon. Can't wait to start it! Unfortunately, I've still got about 100 pages in Donna Andrew's You've Got Murder. I'm really enjoying that book, however. Wish I thought I'd have time to finish it soon. But with my agenda the next few nights, I'm not even sure when I'll be watching Buffy and 24. May be taking them home to watch if I get back from the wedding while everyone else is out and about.

When I got back, Jeff and Jen were still there watching TV. We talked for a while, then Jeff and I decided to introduce Jen to the joys of The Stock Market Game. I won (I think by a landslide), but we had fun. And I'm sure Jen is hooked.

Didn't get as much sleep last night as I wanted. And it's certainly catching up with me. I had very little energy until about an hour ago. Which is a problem if I'm going to work during the work day. Got quite a bit of small stuff done this afternoon. I feel very good about that. It's the fact that I still haven't returned to the project I started last week that's concerning me.

I had a successful afternoon of shopping on Saturday. Just took me an hour more then I wanted to spend. Got a wedding present, and got a good deal on it because of President's Day Weekend, so procrastinating actually paid off. This time. Got my present for Grandma for her birthday as well. Now, I just need to wrap that.

Mike drove here from Pasadena on Saturday and we went out to dinner. Had a good time and it was good to talk to him away from Mom and Dad and get his take on things happening at home over the last few months.

Jeff is now officially engaged. Jen was very surprised, which is a good thing. He's now staying with me for the rest of the week. Or at least until I leave for SR. We're planning to hang out and play games tomorrow night. Can't wait.

My uncle, aunt, step-cousin, and his two kids will be through town tonight on their way to Disneyland, so we're going out to dinner. They're going to start by coming by the apartment, so I bet you can guess what I did yesterday afternoon. Yep, the apartment is now cleaner then it's been in months. :) Am I a complete bachelor or what?

And The Music Man was wonderful last night! So glad I already bought the soundtrack. I'd never seen it before, and I can see why so many people love it so much. It might take over from Sound of Music as my favorite musical. Donald and Heather came over and watched it with me, which was loads of fun.

Of course, I now have a new interest. Watching the movie last night, I realized just how much I love barbershop quartet music. So now I need to try to find some good groups. Which is much harder then it initially sounds like it will be. Anyone have any recommendations?

After the movie was over, I headed upstairs to go to bed. And tried to go to sleep until after 2! Don't know what the problem was. But what's even weirder is that I'm still wide awake and have been all day. If only I could do that on a regular basis.

I didn't play ultimate this morning, and it's my own fault. I was having a hard time convincing myself to get out of bed. I finally did it and got all ready to go. Then I discovered that I'd left my cleats outside in the rain. And they were still drenched. Since I really don't want to get sick before I go home next weekend, I decided maybe that wasn't the best thing for me to do.

And it was probably for the best schedule wise. I'm about to hit the road and run the errands that I need to do and then I'll be home to connect with Mike about this evening.

But before I go, another rant. I'm about ready to start boycotting Domino's pizza because their drivers are the pits! They've recently moved to the shopping center with the supermarket I like in it, so I'm having to put up with those idiots on a regular basis now. They plow through the parking lot like they're the only ones there. And last night I almost got into an accident with one who tried exiting the parking lot at the exact same time I did from behind me and pass me in the lane I was turning into. Maybe it's just one really bad driver I'm seeing all the time. But I think it's all of them. If you've going to have people delivering stuff for you, you'd better make sure you have drivers who respect everyone else or you'll find yourself with more then one lawsuit. I wasn't before, but now I'm completely behind the woman who sued Domino's several years ago over an accident when they were having their "30 minutes of it's free" promo.

Let's see if I can actually post today. Yesterday, I tried to post something, but the internet here at the college died, so I lost it.

Wednesday, we got sent home from work early. It started to rain again Tuesday night, and poured all night. Placerita Canyon floods at the drop of a hat, so they sent us home. The ironic thing is, by noon, when we left, the water had really gone down. I guess things were still bad over on North Campus, but I've seen things much worse. As in, water so strong in the road that cars can't stop at intersections. The water just pushes the cars right on through.

So I went home and watched Back to the Future and finished reading Nancy Drew #1. Yes, that's right, a ND book. Actually, I hadn't read that one before. What surprised me most was the fact that Bess and George weren't in it. Looking through the few I have, looks like they don't show up until book 5 or 6. About the time Ned shows up, ironically.

But I must share the line that had me laughing. A villain is confronting Nancy and says, "This will be the last time you'll ever stick your nose in business that doesn't concern you!" If you only knew, fella....

Last night, we had our lowest turnout yet for Bible study. Of course, everyone had games, and it was homecoming. I simply can't wait for basketball season to be over. Of course, that will mean a group of guitarists. Still not sure how I feel about that. It will be nice to have some people helping me again, but I've been enjoying the extra time to myself. Plus, I think I'll still be point man, which isn't what I want. Plus, Jon keeps talking about no keyboard or piano. And I maintain we need it in there. Of course, he wants to introduce drums (good luck at my church). I don't get it, but I'll keep playing it by ear.

Survivor last night. Will anyone think any less of me if I say I'm glad the guys lost? They were asking for it! Any time you go around bragging like they were, you're asking for a put down like that. I will most definitely be rooting for Roger, since he's from Valencia (a part of Santa Clarita). I'd heard he was really chauvinistic, but I didn't think he was any worse then any of the other guys. Dan, even though he's an accountant, can just leave now. But so far, things are going about like I thought they would. The guys are doing better around camp as far as shelter goes, but the ladies are a much more serious threat at competition time then the guys will ever be willing to admit to. I learned long ago never to underestimate ladies when it comes to anything, however.

And, for the record, I was completely taken aback by the outcome of Celebrity Mole Wednesday night.

Donald, Heather, and it sounds like possibly Pete are coming over to watch a movie tonight. We've agreed on Monsters, Inc., but that's subject to change. And I may or may not be getting together with my “favorite” brother tomorrow. He's in Pasadena right now for a conference and has some free time tomorrow evening. We'll just have to see what develops. Meanwhile tomorrow, I also need to get a wedding present for Kevin and Rebecca (next weekend) and birthday present for Grandma to give her early when I'm in Santa Rosa and clean the apartment before my uncle and aunt stop by on Monday and Jeff comes for the week. For that matter, I need to see if I can find out when he's coming. Looks like my weekend will be almost the opposite of last weekend. But I don't have a SNYF, and I can't wait for the new version of the Music Man that's going to be on ABC Sunday night. I got the soundtrack this week (Kristin Chenoweth, don't you know) and I'm loving it. And I've never even seen the original movie or the stage production. Hopefully it'll live up to my expectations.

I'd better get this posted so the woman with the new DVD player hooked up can copy them.

Thursday Threesome, brought to us this week by Agatha Christe and the Back Porch.

Onesome: Three- Hmmm... There's a three day weekend coming up for some people. Do you have Monday off and have some special plans? ...or is this just another weekend (or maybe one with two Sundays)?
Actually, I don't have Monday off. It would be nice, but then again, I got almost two weeks at Christmas, so it all comes out in the wash.

Twosome: Blind- It's holiday time once again (tomorrow silly!). Do you have to turn a blind eye to anything when these days come around? ...or are you surprised at what shows up?
Tomorrow will be just like any other day for me. Don't do anything special either good or bad. The cafe will be fairly empty tomorrow night, I have a feeling. :)

Threesome: Mice- Enough mousing around! Are you ready for tomorrow? ...or are you stopping by the pushcart people on the way home (I'm betting the guys and gals have really different answers on this one).
Since I have no out of the ordinary plans, I have no last minute stuff to do tomorrow. Now for tonight, on the other hand.... ;)

I actually figured out my taxes last night! I think this is some kind of record. I usually don't even think about it until March. I'm getting money back from the Feds, but owe the State a little. Overall, I'm getting way more back then I owe, but that's not the point!

Last night when I went to bed, it was so dry that I think the humidity level was negative. Sometime in the night, it started raining. It was raining most of the day, but the clouds are all gone now and the sun is shining. Ok, really, it's setting. I'm a little disappointed. We need way more rain then this. Plus, it still feels very dry to me. Almost like the rain was an illusion. Kinda like Francie's death on Alias. :) Yes, I've taken lessons from Dana.

Was very productive this morning, but kinda stalled this afternoon. Tomorrow, I hit clearing out our old bank account hard. And tomorrow I actually ask for the time off so I can go to the wedding.

Speaking of which, I had intended to try to buy a present tonight. But I'm thinking I'm going to put it off until President's Day sales this weekend. Along with cleaning the apartment. Beside, I only have 40 pages left in my book and there are new episodes of Buffy and 24 tonight. Plenty to keep me busy. No, I'm not procrastinating again, why do you ask?

Speaking of which, have I ever mentioned that I thought about going to Procrastinators Anonymous? I kept putting off heading to my first meeting.

Thank you very much. I'll be here all week.

Frustration is the name of the game today.

I was clicking right along on my bank rec. Thought I'd actually have it done on Monday for a change and I could move on to other things the rest of the week. Then I hit the deposit. I had to get together with Elizabeth, and we can't figure out what she did, but it doesn't add up at all. I went ahead with what I thought I had, and I'm only out of balance by $12,000. Pocket change, right? (And if you agree, I'll be happy to take your pocket change off your hands any time you want.)

Then there's the Amazon customer review message board. I've met some interesting people there and learned alot about the place. Frankly, I think some of them are the reason I'm as high as I am. But it's become a free for all with tons of off topic messages that get out of hand. Heck, it's the reason I came close to a rant against the anti-war crowd last week. But today's situation takes the cake.

Someone was accused of being prejudiced because of something he'd posted that was in questionable taste. He explained that away, but a couple of the anti-war liberals kept on him. As part of a further explanation, he said, "It's not like I sit around thinking X." Well, one of those two, a supposed reader, jumped on the "I sit around thinking X." part of the post and jumped all over him. Almost destroyed a friendship. When the whole thing was reprinted and she was made to face the music, she admitted she jumped to the wrong conclusion (barely), but then blaimed the other person because his font was small so she skimmed his message and said he should have written his post better. I'm not really involved, but I'm sick over the whole thing and really want to write her the riot act. It won't do any good. The good part of this whole thing is I'm out of there. It's not worth the blood pressure increases I get every day.

In other news - Alias. Francie's still dead. I will never forgive them for that.

I did hit the fitness center at lunch time. Took a late lunch to do it. But was told that I could work out at noon if there was someone there or not. (Of course, if it's locked up, I don't see how I can get in.)

And already I'm ready for another weekend like I just had. Not sure when it will happen since I'm now booked until after my birthday. Just found out that Joanne Fluke is signing her new book on my birthday. I'd prefer to go to the store she's signing at the week before, but can't make that. Guess what I'll be doing for my birthday afternoon this year. :)

The weather has been so nice around here lately. The wind really has been gone and standing in the sunshine it's warm. Not hot, but pleasant with a little cold nibble.

I have done nothing I didn't have to do since I last blogged. Heck, I even rearranged my errends, taking care of some of them another way. Like mailing in my renewal for Six Flags in stead of going in in person. I'm feeling much better then I was Friday. And I have more of the same planned for this afternoon. After I call my family. And before tonight's SNYF.

I decided to pick up the eye drops that my allergist recommended to me on Friday. And I've discovered that I'm just as bad with them now as I was as a kid. I had the hardest time getting one drop into each eye. My eye would close no matter what I was doing to keep it openned. And my aim was really off, too. Fortunately with the wind dieing down, my eyes aren't bothering me nearly as much.

And on that note, I need to head home to call the fam. Have a great rest of the weekend.

It's finally almost 5!!!!!

I went to see my allergist today. She wants me to come in every 6 months or so. Anyway, I'm usually in and out of her office in 15 minutes flat. If I'm not getting my allergy shots at the same time, I often don't have to pay to park in the lot (first 15 minutes free.) Today, I got there right when my appointment was supposed to be. And I didn't leave until an hour after it was past. Things were crazy in there. Must have something to do with the wind we're having here. Even though my allergies aren't super bad (because of the shots), they've still been bothering me all week. My eyes have a bloodshot tinge to them. My nose picks the worse times to run (like last night leading worship). But, I'm still able to function. I think I'd be dead on my feet if I didn't get shot.

I'm really feeling left out. Kurt was showing off his new cell phone last night. That makes me the only member of jr. high staff without one. But I just can't quite justify having one. Mainly because they cost so much. I don't get any calls at home, so why would I need to pay for another phone for no one to call me on? And maybe if I repeat this often enough, I'll actually believe it.

Don't think I'll be playing ultimate tomorrow. Of course, the wind seems to have died down now, but it usually picks up again at night. And trying to throw the disc in any kind of strong wind is not my idea of fun.

And I'm skipping Bible study tonight, too. Definitely won't be there next time because I'll be out of town for that wedding. (Assuming Phil actually gives me the time off when I ask for it.) I just can't make myself go out of the house tonight. Why am I struggling like this? O well, maybe a couple days of doing nothing will help me get enthused about doing things again.

We interrupt your regulary scehduled Thursday Threesome for this important announcement. I FINALLY GOT MY CHECK FROM JURY DUTY FROM BACK IN JULY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Granted, it's only $39, but still, it's nice to finally be done bugging them about it. Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming.

Time once again for the Thursday Threesome brought to us by your bathroom and The Back Porch.

Onesome: Shower- Shower or a bath? Which one works best for you? ...or do you have uses for both?
I shower. If I tried to take a bath, I'd probably take longer then I do in the shower and be late for work every day instead of just a couple times a week.

Twosome: Shave- How often do you shave? Ladies, what do you consider shave-worthy? Come on, you know what I mean ;) ! ...and guys: how about you? Any facial hair?
I have a goatee, so that area never gets shaved, just trimmed every week or two. I shave between 4 and 5 times a week, depending on how lazy I'm feeling. I never shave on Saturdays. I used to use an electric razor, but I now use a real razor and a semi-fog free mirror in the shower. And as long as we're talking shave worthiness, I must mention again that I do shave my head a couple times a year for a little while. Currently growing out from one such time again.

Threesome: Style- How much time do you spend in front of the mirror in the morning, fixing your hairstyle (and face, for the ladies).
I use the mirror to shave only. I haven't had enough hair to comb for almost 3 years now.

Don't forget if you want to play along to leave us a note on the Porch so we know where to find you.

So, I bet you'd like an update on my life if I'm through ranting. (And I think I am for the time being. I'm very close to a rant on anti-war people, but that's not going to happen today.)

Monday night, I talked to my family. Found out that Grandma is now living with them full time. The only reason she spent a weekend with my uncle is because they called up and told him to. They had a meeting with someone about alternatives at this point since she can't go live by herself at home. Uncle is convenience that the only option is to put her in a home, and as cheap a one as possible. Mom and Dad aren't convience that's the only solution yet, but Uncle has told them that's what they need to do and M&D should make all the arrangements. Um...why? Mom admitted to me at least that she can't do everything by herself. We'll just have to see what happens.

Meanwhile, I went out to get a wedding present for the wedding I'm supposed to be going to in a couple weeks. I checked every store I could think of, and the couple isn't registered at any of them. Anyone know the proper thing to do now? I've never been to a wedding where the couple wasn't registered.

Got a local network message from Matt while I was working on this. Says he and Jeremiah have to be back for a meeting at "22:15." Now, is that 9 or 10 PM? I accidentally hit clear instead of reply (Seems my evening for doing things like that.) and my computer when all wacky on me when I tried to get back in. Maybe I should head up to the caf and see if I can catch him before I leave campus. Planning to have my left overs from Sunday night for dinner and share then with Mary Tyler Moore. Hope I get word on season 2 soon. It was supposed to be released in March, but no one seems to know anything about that now.

This evening's rant is brought to us by my wonderful representatives here in lovely California. And I voted for not a one of them, as I'm sure you'll understand by the time you've finished this one.

Last night, I was flipping over to the O'Reily Factor on Fox News during commercial breaks for 7th Heaven. One of the segments was going to talk about 5 idiotic things going on in CA right now that the left was doing. Unfortunately, I didn't get to see all of them or you'd get to read even more from me.

First up, our wonderful governor Grey Davis has joyfully signed into law a bill that makes it mandatory to perform abortions before you get your OBGYN license to practice here in the state. So, in order to deliver healthy babies into the world, you must first learn to kill them. And you can object out for religious/conscience reasons, but then you won't get a full license so hospitals will pass over you when selecting doctors who can practice there.

Then this next one was the one that really hit close to home. The Secretary of Education has declared all home schooling illegal no matter the law says. It constitutes educational child endangerment. Didn't even know that existed. And so much for the "pro-choice" people in this country.

Now, the reason this really upset me was because I was home schooled for 7 years and my brother all the way through high school. We are both well adjusted members of society. In fact, I know I'm much much better off for the years I spent at home. And was my education ever in danger? I got a 4.0 the first year back in high school; my brother got a 4.0 in college. And that seems to be standard. I've known lots of home schoolers who started college early and were getting A's and B's. Is that really endangering children? And when we have such low test scores in the state with constant complaints about over crowding in class rooms, why the push to get more kids into the classrooms to get a sub-par education?

You want to test home schooled kids annually? Fine. But don't even think about making it illegal.

As an aside, I'm aware my spelling is still not what it could be (although quite often it's typos). But you should have seen what it was before I was home schooled. And my social skills have taken a long time to develop and still need some work. Again, you should have known me before. I am much, much, much better off for having been at home. And my brother had none of those problems what so ever, so it's more a case of me personally then anything having to do with home schooling.

Ok, time to calm down and go to dinner. Thanks for listening to both of these.

This morning's rant is brought to you by the idiots behind the TV show Becker. And I'll be ranting about sex, too. :)

Viacom has demanded that all its shows will deal with the HIV/AIDS problem. That's fine and their choice as a company. But Sunday's episode (which I finally watched last night) was exactly what I was afraid of.

One of the plots of the show concerned a young man who comes to Dr. Becker. The "good" doc thinks the patient might have gotten an STD, so he runs some tests. When the man returns, the doc gives him some condoms. That brings up this brilliant exchange.

Patient: I don't need to worry about AIDS. I'm not a homosexual, don't visit prostitutes, and even if I did, there's something that makes it all pretty much go away, right?
Becker: Congrats, you've reached a level usually only shown in Republicans and other lower primates.

Hysterical. Funny. The audience laughed.

So, for our happy ending, the guy finally decides that the rewards aren't worth it and using a condom, having safe sex, is the best possible way to stay safe. What's wrong with this picture? First of all, condoms truly aren't safe. They don't protect 100% of the time, and that one time they don't is enough. As much as Friends has moral problems, at least they admitted that much with Rachel's pregnancy. (And, yes, I watch Friends in spite of it all.) So, really, the "good" doc did nothing to protect the kid.

And that's the other thing. This young guy was 15. That's right, 15 years old. If they'd made him 20, I could have handled it better. But 15!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And not once did we discuss whether or not he should even be having sex with lots of different girls. (Which he was very proud of, BTW.)

If we truly want to stop the AIDS epidemic, we need to actually start teaching respect for yourself and self control. We are not animals. We can control our desires to eat, have sex, etc. That is the safest sex imaginable and the surest way to stop the spread of AIDS.

Not bad for a primitive Repub., huh?

I'm declaring today rant day on my blog. I'll have another for you this afternoon. (And I can't wait to see what kind of hits I get from this entry. :) )

I guess I should fill you in on my weekend. :)

Friday night would have been perfect, if it weren't for the fact that I did three loads of laundry (Yes, SIM, that was especially for you.) But I got all my laundry finished, finally. I tried to do it earlier in the week, and the wet loads to dry were backing up, so I decided to skip it. Now, if the dryers would all dry uniformly so I didn't have to waste money and time redrying a load....

Saturday, my alarm went off an hour earlier then I had intended for it to. So I finished my book before I went to ultimate. Heaven forbid that I actually went to play when they started playing. Got to the park right at nine. And proceeded to have a horrid time. One player was yelling at me every time I messed something up. Our records for the day were the same, but he chose to take out his frustrations on me, which didn't make me to happy. Then he and Pete got into a huge disagreement on whether it's ok to ram into someone when you're both going for the frisbee. Of course, since this is supposed to be a non-contact sport.... Needless to say, it wasn't the best morning of ultimate I've had. But it seems to go in spurts and I'm sure I’ll have a great day next week.

And, obviously, I survived my meeting with the internet psychos. Who didn't call me Brian and there were no towels in sight, for the record. :) We hung out and talked. I couldn't believe it had been four hours by the time I'd left. I have no clue how late they stayed, but I'm glad I left when I did. Barely made it home and to bed. And I left at 9 PM.

Not that I got a good night's sleep. The wind decided to pick up and rattle my window like crazy. I tried to make it stop by stuffing a couple rags on the corners, but I don't think that's helping.

And things are so dry around here thanks to that wind. My eyes hurt when I leave them open to do something silly like work. WE NEED MOITURE!!!!

Last night was a family fellowship after the evening service. Had a blast. And the hostess served a delicious meal and gave me some of the left-overs. Naturally, the cafe is sounding the best it has in a long time this week.

Alias wasn’t that good last night. Probably wouldn’t have minded it if it hadn’t been for last week’s episode. Really hope they know what they’re doing at Bad Robot.

So, it was a good weekend with lots of time spent with other people. Can I spend some time relaxing by myself now? (Yes, I completely understand where you're coming from, Susansuth.)