Four More Years

We returned home last night from our Christmas vacation to South Carolina with my little brother in tow. His living with us will be interesting, but I think our experience with an exchange student last year has prepared us for another "third wheel." And he even speaks good English!

My wife and I will be celebrating our fourth wedding anniversary tomorrow. It may seem small to some, but when I think about all of the couples our age who have gotten married, I can probably name more marriages that have ended than marriages that are still together. I don't think that divorce has finished making inroads into our cultural mindset. When I was growing up, I used to hear that half of marriages ended in divorce. It must be more than that, now.

Anyway, I guess I'm pretty proud of myself for holding onto a wife for as long as I have. Tomorrow, I'll be drinking to four more years... or maybe I'll just save the drinking for New Year's Eve.

Need God?

Hey... there's a great site that's advertised on the side of I-20 in Georgia:

www.needgod.com

I actually went to this site when I got to our hotel tonight because the billboard made me so curious. I kept trying to get out of the whole hell thing, but you just can't do it (if anyone figures out how to do it, please let me know!!!). It was kind of odd, because it asks you something about if you've ever told a lie, and I was honest... I've told a lie. Then, at the end, it asked me if I was concerned about hell at all and I clicked, "No."

I TOLD ANOTHER LIE!!!

Has needgod.com caused me to sin due to curiosity? If you are curious about something and you click it, even if you don't agree with it, is it still a lie, or is it not a lie if you're just trying to see what happens? I think the people at needgod.com need to think about this... Maybe they can put something on there that says, "In reality, I am concerned about hell, but I just want to see what happens if I PRETEND that I am not." My conscience would be a lot more clear if they would word it like this. I really don't want to go to hell... really... seriously, now. I'm kind of hoping for the whole heaven thing, personally. Reader(s), please let me know if I added to my sins or not.

On Account of a Couple of Jackasses...

On this last night of my holiday visit with my parents, my dad and I watched Patton. What a movie!

It's always good to see that you're not the only one who is concerned about victory and success in a world full of people who are only concerned with keeping things quiet and not stepping on anyone's toes. The world is populated by mediocre people, which makes it difficult for us folks who like to press forward and achieve something worthwhile. Perhaps, the most memorable quotable was when Patton's column was being kept from crossing a bridge by a cart being pulled by two donkeys. Patton yells to those on the scene:

"You let a column be stopped and strafed on account of a couple of jackasses!?"

Patton then took out his ivory-handled pistols and took care of the problem. This is quite a metaphor for nearly any situation one encounters in life.

Peace On Earth

There are two things that are immediately apparent from the above photo:

1. Secretary Rumsfeld has, evidently, found his true calling, and
2. The GI receiving his meal is not impressed.

It looks like it's going to be a Merry Christmas. Anyway, wishing all of my reader(s?) Peace on Earth, goodwill toward men (and women, I suppose), and all of that good stuff. With these people watching over us, who wouldn't feel safe?

Skeletor, where did you put my nail scissors?

I was watching the news the other day when I saw that Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff (a.k.a. "Skeletor") endorsed the Transportation Security Administration's new policy of allowing small scissors and blades onto airplanes. My first reaction was relief, as I have grown tired of leaving my Swiss Army keychain apparatus at the airport. Most common-sense Americans know that Skeletor is right by saying that explosives pose a far greater threat than my keychain knife and scissors do. Unfortunately, our great nation is not only populated by common-sense Americans, but also by LIBERALS, who have reacted hotly to this announcement. Here is a quote from Edward Markley of Massachusetts:

"travelers heading off to airports across the country will be disturbed to know that the Bush Administration is now making it easier for the next Mohammed Atta to terrorize passengers at 30,000 feet by allowing sharp objects back on planes."

The picture that this statement conjures of some turban-wearing, knife wielding Arab really makes me laugh, especially if you think of him making ninja moves or something with nail scissors in one hand and a less than four-inch knife in the other. "WHAAH! I am Mohammed Atta! I have come to terrorize you dirty infidels!"

I may be laughing, but Hillary Rodham Clinton does not find this picture to be a bit funny. In a letter to Skeletor himself, she reminds the Secretary that, "The 9-11 Commission highlighted the fact that box cutters and knives were used to carry out the hijackings aboard aircraft used during the September 11th attacks."

Wait a minute, Senator Clinton... Are you telling me that a few fanatics with box cutters and small knives overwhelmed an entire plane full of Americans?

I suppose that's EXACTLY what she's telling us... the same thing that President Bush and countless others told us happened on 9/11. Now the same Bush administration is telling us that these same small blades are not a threat!? Four years after the fact, a few guys taking over a plane with box cutters seems ridiculous, but how many nonsense stories were we willing to swallow in the shock that followed 9/11?

It makes you wonder if there's something that Bush, Rodham Clinton, and Skeletor ALL know that they are not telling us. Vast right-wing conspiracy my ass. Hillary's right there in the middle of it.

And proud we are of all of HIM...

Sometimes, there's a man... and I'm talking about Andrew, here... who does NOT fit into his time or place... an man whose talents are being wasted in some backwater shithole when they could be put to better use in more worthy endeavors.

He's spent most of the last year working under an editor who would be unable to achieve on a level field of play. Instead of settling for a life of mediocrity and thanklessness, Andrew is seeking out a new field on which to achieve... Oklahoma.

Andrew is an inspiration to anyone who finds themselves in a situation that is less than acceptable. We all need a little inspiration to be true to ourselves once in awhile. Although I regret the departure of a great friend, I am happy beyond measure for him.

Take 'er easy, Dude... I know you will.

The Proper Glass

Lately, my wife's gotten into a weird habit of drinking grape juice out of a wine glass. After observing this silently for awhile, I finally made a little quip about the oddity. I think the timing of the quip coincided with the first time that she asked ME to pour her a wine glass of juice. I can suffer quirks silently until I have to become actively involved.

"Wine glasses are for sipping," she said, "Since wine glasses are good for sipping, I like to use the proper glass."

"The proper glass for grape juice is a SIPPY CUP!"

It's amazing what seems proper to some people.


Enjoying grape juice or some other proper beverage of choice


Definitely NOT the proper container!

Obligatory Post

The Thanksgiving Break really threw me off. A week off of work doesn't leave one with the urge to get things off one's chest.

Work pretty much sucks, and as another coping strategy, I'm going to continue a quest that I began in high school: I'm going to memorize The Raven. I never forgot the first two stanzas, although I was working on those nearly ten years ago. It'll give me something to do and feel like I am embarking on some sort of scholarly pursuit.

It's sad when you are a teacher by trade and yet you do not feel such a scholarship gap in your life that you have to create your own intellectual rabbit trails.

Such is my life.