Sunday, April 18, 2010

Oh My Blog Award Drunk Post



So the Rock 'n' Roll gourmet bestowed upon me the Oh My Blog award on Friday and I've just gotten around to writing my post. I know, I'm horrible.  When accepting this award you must do one of the following:

1. Take a photo of yourself first thing in the morning (no brushing of the hair, putting on proper clothes, etc)
2. Blog while exceedingly drunk for 15 minutes
3. Write about your most embarrassing moment
4. Make a vlog a.k.a. a video blog
5. Share the soundtrack of your childhood

You know I'm picking number two...


So, you must forgive me if this post is about nothing at all other than my drunken ramblings. And also forgive any grammatical errors and such.  I have no shame in this as I know nobody reads this anyway.

My drink of choice isn't hard liquor or beer or any of that cool stuff, but instead is a bottle of Port.  So you see the level of dorkdom I'm dealing with.  I personally see nothing wrong with getting drunk off of a dessert wine, but I'm sure most of you will so just don't knock it til you've tried it.  I don't know if I qualify as "exceedingly drunk" yet but I'm finding it hard to type so it's now or never.  It's been forever since I've gotten drunk so this was the perfect excuse.  You'd think that after being unemployed for a few months I'd at least enjoy myself.

Speaking of which, I'm going to be starting work again in about a month.  They offered me a position starting May 3rd but I want to move at the same time as my husband so we have to wait until mid May. I so need to start working again to feel like a human being.  Being unemployed sucks.  There's only so much housework, Rock Band, WOW, and doting on the pets that I can stand.  Speaking of which, my puppy is freakin cute.



It took me like forever to get that picture of him.  Partly because he was excited and partly because I'm drunk and couldn't figure out how to get the picture from my phone to my blog expeditiously. (yeah big word!!!)

I'm really not a very clever blogger when I'm drug.  All I want to talk about is what I like and what I don't like.  I like my puppy, my hubby, wine, Family Guy, and computers.  This was in no way influenced by the fact that all this was within my sight while writing this.  Okay, it is perhaps a bit biased.  Something I hate, that freaking Ford commercial they play all the time.  It's a local commercial that I tried to find, but forgot the name of the dealership already so instead I decided to post this:





Ha! Freaking hilarious and slightly annoying, but mostly hilarious.  I like a guy that can make fun of himself.  That's why I married my husband.  I would insert embarrassing photo or funny story here, but he might never forgive me.  And I don't want to piss him off yet.  I still want to have his children.  And I'm sure our bi-racial children will be exceedingly beautiful and hopefully not as retarded as either one of us. 

Okay my fifteen minutes are up and I'm sure this is fifteen minutes of your life you are sad you'll never get back.  Sorry.  Now on to watch videos that I remember being funny back when I was stoned in college.

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Time Has Not Been Good to Some

The story and picture can be found here


It has been almost eight years since the Afghan girl's true identity was discovered, and 26 years since the original picture was taken.  I've seen the picture of the Afghan girl many times and am always struck by how great a picture it is and how beautiful the girl's eyes are.  I have also seen the picture of her much older self and am struck by how time has not been particularly good to her.  It is understandable.  She has had a rough life of refugee camps, hard work, poverty, a harsh environment, and probably has several children.  It is sad that women like this become concealed behind the veil from the time they are teenagers throughout the rest of their lives. 

This woman's picture inspired many to donate to building schools and improving the quality of life in Afghanistan.  Who knows how many other women and girls are out there with similar stories that will never be heard because of an oppressive culture?  It makes me sad for them and thankful for my culture all at the same time.  Chances are, though, that she doesn't want us to feel sorry for her because she doesn't know anything else.  Yes, she realizes she's poor and would like more money for things and a big nice house, but that's likely where her aspirations end.  Even if she was given the opportunity to move to America or England and start a new life, shed the burqa and move on, she would likely turn it down.  Very few people relish the idea of having their world turned upside down.


Pictures are amazing things that give us the opportunity to relive a moment, to experience things we've never actually seen, and to meet people we've never really met.  National Geographic pictures do this better than most, and honestly I wouldn't subscribe to the magazine if it didn't have those wonderful pictures.  Oddly enough, even when I get the chance to visit places I've seen pictures of in NG, it doesn't always look as great in real life as the picture made it seem.  I suppose we romanticize things we aren't actually experiencing.  A picture of the desert may look pretty, but once you're there and dealing with the heat, dust, sun, and wildlife it is a whole different situation.  My pictures seem to turn out the opposite.  Nothing I take a picture of is ever as awesome (or horrible) as it was when I was there experiencing it.  I guess that's the mark of a true photographer; taking an experience and making the picture so much better.  For now I guess I'll stick to letting others take the pictures.

I realize this is a disjointed post of ideas, but one idea led to another and I just went with it.

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Wii Workout Routines - The Good and the Bad



I used to be a fairly fit person.  Then I got out of the Army and decided to do whatever I wanted.  Whatever I wanted included fast food and sitting around all day.  So I gained some weight.  Once I had to buy new pants I decided to start watching what I eat and work out again.  But, it was still sort of cold outside and I am inherently lazy.  My first choice was to try something I could do from home - video games.  Ok, not exactly video games, but the Wii game console has pretty much cornered the market on workout games.  I guess they have to have a niche in some market as their graphics suck and you can't even play DVDs on the Wii.

So, I bought and tried out a variety of workout games for the Wii.  Some of these games turned out to be helpful in kick-starting a workout routine while others fell miserably short.  This is by no means a comprehensive list, but if you've considered trying some of these out you may want to read this.   Also, if you've tried out some Wii fitness games that aren't mentioned here, let me know how they worked out for you.

Wii fit Plus - This is the most popular (and most expensive) of the Wii workout games.  It comes with the balance board as well which is required for most of the other programs.  Even though this program has a bunch of games that make working out fun, they aren't exactly the most challenging.  In fact they are more suitable for children and the elderly.  There are some exceptions, notably the yoga workouts and the strength training.  Even then the number of repetitions aren't enough to gain much benefit for an already (mostly) fit person.  This program focuses a lot on improving balance more than anything.  This has pretty much become my go-to for a cool down workout or something to do on my rest days.  Also it's something to do when I'm bored but don't want to just sit on the couch or stare at a computer screen.  You can set goals for weight loss (or gain) and track it daily with this program.

Wii Active Personal Trainer - This is by far the best of all the workout CDs for the Wii.  You can set the difficulty level to whatever suits you and you can add to their 30 day challenge workouts with either a custom workout or choose from one of the pre-made workouts.  The intensity is just right for me and has a good mix of cardio and strength training.  There are also sport events mixed in with the more mundane exercises which keeps things interesting.  The disk comes with a resistance band, but I ended up switching it out for one that has a stronger resistance level so that I could get more out of my workouts.  The workouts on their own are a bit short (average of 20 minutes) but it is a good start and I always add to it.  You can also keep track of any additional workouts or fitness activities you do as well as your nutrition. 

Jillian Michaels Fitness Ultimatum 2010 - The title sounds impressive and this workout ain't no joke.  I wouldn't recommend this if you are a couch potato just looking for a little something to get you going or if you are seriously overweight and looking for a low impact workout.  The reps are pretty high for each exercise and there is a lot of running mixed in with the routines.  The running set-up is better for this one than for the other CDs because you are running through a virtual island rather than on a track or just watching someone run in place.  Every time I do one of these workout routines I feel like I've truly gotten a workout.  The tone of this disc is more serious and there aren't any "fun" exercises or routines to choose from.

My Fitness Coach 2 - This is pretty much useless.  The workout routines aren't very long or very difficult (even at the highest difficulty level I could set it to) and you have to be very precise in your movements for it to count as a good rep.  Even the running has to be in time with your "coach" and all you get to look at is the coach running in place.  Boring.  The graphics are bad even for the Wii.  It boasts providing nutritional information as well, but that is also useless.  When meal plans include things like mushrooms or sardines on toast for breakfast I think I'll pass.

Essentially none of these workout CDs can stand alone, but a couple of them are a good start.  I make a point of getting up in the morning and starting the Wii Active which doesn't take very long, and after that I add to my workout, emphasizing whatever muscle groups I'm focusing on that day.  I may also add a workout DVD into the mix for some cardio or yoga.  But the Wii is great for getting off the couch and doing something, setting goals for yourself, and having a set routine without paying a personal trainer or paying gym fees.    

Thursday, April 8, 2010

Confederate History Month?



Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell issued a proclamation stating that April would  be Confederate History Month.  This in and of itself would have been controversial but it was made even more controversial by the omission of slavery in the initial proclamation.  The proclamation has since been revised and is on the Governor's website.  McDonnell initially omitted slavery because he "focused on the ones [reasons] I thought were most significant for Virginia".  He had to have known he was stirring up a hornet's nest.  

The two previous Democratic Governors did not recognize Confederate History Month because they viewed it as a polarizing event that would only serve to divide Virginia along racial lines and would not contribute to the state's progress.  The current Republican Governor decided to bring back the observance.  As a result, this controversy has not only stirred up racial disputes but also political ones as well, i.e. equating Republicans with racists, etc.  

I think this whole situation is good for us.  Why?  It gets us talking about this issue.  The Civil War happened long ago, but that doesn't mean we should forget about it.  We shouldn't demonize the South for their role either.  Most Confederate Soldiers were poor men fighting for their way of life, even though their way of life is backwards and criminal by today's standards.  We should discuss the Civil War in its context and remember the bad choices that we made, and the sacrifices that were made on both sides.  We should most definitely include slavery in this discussion because omitting it is sugar-coating the war, and that is something we should never do.  

Slavery was a part of the American way of life for a hundred years. We can't run away from that fact.  That doesn't mean our ancestors were all white devils, but they surely made some very bad choices.  Personally I have both a Confederate Soldier as an ancestor and a Union Soldier as an ancestor.  I don't view one with any more disdain than I do the other just because of the location he was born in and the culture he was born into.  I believe it would be appropriate to observe a Civil War month in which we honor the Confederate Soldiers, Union Soldiers, and slaves.  I'm sure there are many who disagree with having any sort of observance of this incident, but time has a way of making us forget and forgetting the Civil War and the reasons behind it is something we shouldn't let happen.   

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

She Wears Short Shorts and Ends Up Dead



No I'm not talking about a street-walker, prostitute, or loose woman.  Well, at least I don't think she was any of those things.  I'm talking about an incident that occurred on Easter Sunday when a 42 year old woman shot and killed a 19 year old woman that came to her house for Easter dinner dressed in shorts that were too short.  Those must have been some provocative shorts. {insert fashion-victim joke here}

I'm all for setting young folk straight about the proper attire for semi-formal occasions, but yelling at or say shooting someone in the head in order to get your point across seems to be going a little too far.  If it was God that the 42 year old was trying to appease, I don't think he is any happier now that Daisy Duke is dead.  And if it was other relatives that the 42 year old was trying to impress, I don't think they were very impressed by the site of brain matter in the driveway.  The worst part of all this (aside from the murder) is that the young woman was in the process of leaving when the shooting occurred.  Way to shoot a person in the back.  Maybe the 42 year old was just jealous of the 19 year old's awesome gams (why we ever stopped using this slang term I'll never know, but I'm all for bringing it back).

Despite the fact that it appears as though people are losing their minds nowadays, it is more likely that this has been going on for ages and no one really noticed.  Now that we have internet and tv we can see every little retarded thing that every crazy lady, psychopath, and murderer does on a daily basis.  This overload of information is great for entertainment value but gets depressing after a while.  Not to mention the fact that it is easy to get paranoid upon hearing about all the murderers, rapists, and just outright insane people out there.  A while back I read a history book on early America that talked about the common occurrence of people, even women, traveling alone and staying in an inn in a room with strangers of various genders.  This was made possible because people weren't as paranoid and also probably because no one changed their clothes except once every couple of weeks or so.  There was probably the occasional psycho that preyed upon strangers, but they were subsequently caught and hanged or no one ever found out what had really happened to poor Aunt Mae who went on a trip by herself.  Either way, random violence didn't factor heavily into most people's thoughts back then.  Oh for the good old days.

Then again, the good old days often allowed domestic violence and incest to continue unchecked.  It was the family's problem and no concern of the community's unless it became a public issue.  Now you have everyone getting all up in your business and calling child services when you spank your kid in public.  I guess we just have to take the good with the bad.  Either way the story I cited above is a perfect example of the degradation of society on both ends of the spectrum.   

Monday, April 5, 2010

WOWtastic



As I've recently gotten back into playing WOW (World of Warcraft for all you non-players out there), I've once again been amazed at the sheer number of people who play this game.  I don't want to over-generalize and say that anyone who plays this game is a loser and has no life (after all, I play this game and like to think I have a life).  There is definitely a large majority of WOW players that fall into this category though.  I've only been playing for a few days and already I see some of the same players on here day after day no matter what time I log in.  What kind of life do these people lead? 

I don't so much have a problem with those players who have a real job and choose to play WOW in their free time after work and on the weekends, unless of course they have kids.  Spending that much time online when you have kids that need your attention is just asking for trouble.  Unless you're kid is sitting beside you playing in the same guild as you, in which case you have a whole new set of problems.  The people I really worry about are those that don't seem to have a job and are online playing WOW ALL THE TIME.  How do they survive?  Who brings them food and pays the rent?  Who pays for their computer and internet bills?  And also, how can normal players like me compete with WOW addicts like that?  The answer: we can't.  So we log out and go on with our real lives.

It's sad that there is actually a thing called WOW addiction and sites like WOW detox out there for people who want a support group.  If you are questioning whether or not you are a WOW addict you can take the WOW addict quiz but  chances are, if you asked that question then you probably are addicted.  There are numerous sites out there for those seeking advice on how to quit.  Here's my advice: cancel your subscription, remove the game from your computer, and find something else to do!  If you can't manage just playing a few hours a week or just on the weekends then you shouldn't be around a computer at all.

Then again, I shouldn't be surprised that there are people out there like this.  Numerous run-ins with them in-game show me the caliber of individuals I'm dealing with.  A few days ago, while online questing I had another player stalk me and continuously challenge me to a duel while simultaneously goading me on and cussing me out.  He continued doing this for over 30 minutes while I went about my business.  Why play online if you aren't actually going to play and instead decide to follow someone else around?  My husband got online and started messaging him when the guy asked him "umadbraw?".  WTF? Who talks like that?  This quote is now a running joke we have when we just want to sound retarded.  I'd like to think this guy was just a bored teenager but chances are he was probably a fifty-something, overweight, ugly, grown man with no social skills.  Perhaps it's better if these people just stay home and play online games.  The world may be better without them.

Friday, April 2, 2010

Beautiful Blogger Award



As my friend over at Rock 'n' Roll Gourmet has bestowed upon me the Beautiful Blogger Award, as required by the terms of the award I must now reveal seven things about myself. (Btw, her blog has some of the best recipes and cooking tips, check it out)  I'll try to make it "seven little known facts about myself", but that is pretty difficult.  Here it goes...

1.  I almost drowned when I was about three years old.  I don't remember it, but I've heard the story from my family several times.  I was visiting my grandparents and they had a man-made pond across the street from their house.  I went across the street with my grandfather so that he could feed the fish.  Apparently he wasn't very good at watching three year olds because they next thing he heard was a splash.  He turned around only to see my hair floating in the water.  He grabbed my hair and pulled me out.  Great babysitting huh?

2.  I played drums in my high school marching band.  I should warn you now that this is just the first of several nerd facts about myself.  I was in the percussion section in middle school and tried out for marching band in high school and got second chair so I played snare.  My senior year I was drum-line Captain and Band President.  Hey, I may have been a dork but at least I was good at it.

3. At my high school graduation I read "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" by Green Day as a poem.  I was third in my class, so as a consolation prize for not getting an automatic scholarship I got to read a poem.  Everyone always reads something boring so I read a Green Day song instead.  It was a new song then and so not nearly as dorky a thing to do then as it sounds now. 

4.  I got married at the age of 19 to my high school sweetheart.  Boy was that a mistake.  We got divorced a year and a half later.  He went from being a smart dude to flunking out of college the first semester, getting a good paying job and then quitting because he didn't want to work a lot, and he'd go clubbing with his friends without telling me.  In retrospect I think he was probably doing drugs too but I was too naive back then to be able to tell.  Young people do silly things. 

5.  While in college I worked as a student research assistant at the Archaeology Lab.  It was fun and boring at the same time.  I got a chance to catalogue the remains of Native Americans before the remains were to be returned to the burial sites.  How many people get the chance to work with human remains that are thousands of years old?  But, most of the time my job consisted of the more mundane task of counting pottery shards (pieces of pottery), which by the time I had quit numbered in the tens of thousands of pieces.

6.  While in college I also had to get up early in time to make the doughnuts.  I worked at Dunkin Donuts and later at a bakery preparing and serving donuts.  I actually think that was a fun job, mostly because coffee and doughnuts are two very awesome things.  I probably had the most unhealthy eating habits at that time. While at work I could eat as many doughnuts and drink as much coffee as I wanted.  If I had stuck with that job I'd be as big as a house.

7.  I play WOW.  For those of you who haven't arisen to epic-dork status yet, that means World of Warcraft.  I don't profess to be any good at it, which is even worse if you ask me.  If you're going to be a geek at least do a good job of it.  I haven't played regularly enough to get the experience in yet though.  I've played off and on whenever I've had a good computer and good internet access as well as tons of free time, which you can imagine I didn't have for most of my time in the Army.  Now I've gone back to playing, thanks largely to my new and improved computer and huge monitor.  I've got a Night Elf Hunter named Yusra on the Emerald Dream server, but I'm only level 52 now...I know, I've got work to do.

I realize that most of these facts have to do with things that happened over ten years ago, but most people know about me being in the Army for the past six years, being deployed twice, etc.  Also, I pretty much just started writing things in chronological order and didn't get much further than college.

So, next I must pass on this award to five blogs that I like.  Several of the blogs I like have already received this award, so this will go to those that have yet to get it which only equals three.  Here it goes:
- Cognoramus is a great blog by an Army friend of mine.  He writes on a variety of topics but is particularly knowledgeable when it comes to the Military, financial advice, and politics.  He's an intelligent guy with a lot of insight.
- The Southern Fried Skeptic always has intelligent, insightful, and biting comments on current events, politics, and religion.  Even if you don't agree with him, it's still thought-provoking and he has a lot of valid points.
- That's News to Me! hasn't posted in a while, but when she does it's pretty cool stuff.  She's a writer/journalist type so her writing is top-notch. 

Thanks to everyone that reads my blogs.  If you have a blog that you want me to check out, just let me know.