Today is a Monday. I called in sick to work today. Was I actually sick enough to miss work? Absolutely not. Here's the thing though: After weighing the reasons I should and shouldn't go to work, the facts were overwhelmingly in favor of me calling out. I figured I should present them, so as to justify my decision.
1) I hate my job. Sure if everyone who hated their job called out of work on a reg, there wouldn't be many people ever making it to the office. But I'm still a student and this job is just an employment fling of sorts, therefore a day away doesn't affect my career. Add to that the fact that because I am an independent contractor, if anything happens to me on the job (broken arm, severed vein, mental meltdown) I'm the only one responsible. One day away from the job is one day less that I have to worry about physical/psychological scars. So there.
2) One of my favorite things in the world is a rainy day at home. One of my least favorite things in the world is going to work at a job I despise on a rainy. A rainy Monday going to work sets the week up for a miserable run. A rainy Monday at home shortens the week, and relaxes a person early on for any in-work "storms" that they may encounter during said abbreviated week. Let's not forget also that one of my favorite pastimes ever is sitting on my porch with my guitar, a book, breakfast, heck anything as long as I'm surrounded by the showery ambience. It's just the best. Niiiice.
3) My car has not fared too well in the rain lately, so why risk the slippery commute to Media. God forbid something would happen to my car, then I'd really be in trouble.
4) I start at the work study job today, so I will be contributing somewhat to society, and I'm going to be getting a head start on a lot of school work I have to do for the semester ahead. It's actually going to be a productive day, and one that will feature yours truly in a superb mood nonetheless.
5) Monday's with Desmond are awful. He usually has a freak out within 15 minutes of getting off his bus, causing me to make a mental pros and cons list where the evidence for leaving immediately is astounding. After I make the commitment to at least get through the day, it draaaaaaaags and draaaaaaaags since the class doesn't have much going on during a normal Monday. Tuesdays we have a lot of scheduled activities for the kids and the DevilDez, so the day goes by much faster.
6) I need some extra time to study who I like in this Colts-Saints Super Bowl matchup. My playoff picks have been more inaccurate than Donovan McNabb's career passes in clutch situations. (expect many references to Five in the months before Phillies season starts) I figure I will be able to read up on the teams and trends and actually make an intelligent selection for this year's big game. I am really excited for it, and still believe that the day after the Super Bowl should be a National holiday so that the 3% of the country that doesn't watch it will feel compelled to.
7) I spent a chunk of Conference Championship Sunday (second biggest week in the pro football season) working on a school project for a "Team Building" class, taught by an ex-sorority girl. A class in which I will at some point have to interview people involved with greek life for an intricate project we have to do on group oriented organizations. The thought that I will have this class for an entire semester induces easily more vommit than I spewed a few days ago when I legitimately was sick. The point is, if I'm putting in time on a Sunday for an absurd "class" while the NFL playoffs are on, I have to make up the hours somewhere. Enter rainy Monday...
8) Of course, the most important reason of all is this very entry. Hey, when the blog starts slacking you've got to at least attempt to get it back on track. I hope that Dez will see where I'm coming from and understand. If not, I hope that at least you will.
Monday, January 25, 2010
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Standing During an Earthquake
Tangent right off the bat: I'd like to begin by thanking the group that rallied on 17th street in support of convicted Cop Killer and former black panther Mumia Abu-Jamal: You guys really gave me perspective on what "pathetic" really looks like. Sure I'm in my 132nd year of school with no girlfriend and no exact career path, but it could be worse. I could be pissing on the memory of Martin Luther King Jr. on the national holiday meant to be a tribute to his legacy while simultaneously wasting a beautiful day off to excrete liberal propaganda on a city street. I can't believe three decades after the fact there are still people out there who celebrate the death of a servant of the law. It's absolutely despicable. But that rant aside, I have to get to the real issue of this entry...
On Sunday afternoon, I was talking with friends about the tragic earthquake in Haiti. I brought up the fact that Voodoo was very commonly practiced amongst the Haitian people. I also brought up the fact that Pat Robertson, a well known and controversial evangelical christian conservative, drew connections between natural disasters and behavior by cultures that was in direct disobedience of Biblical Law. To me, I said, it's not out of the realm of possibilities that these things are connected. Boy, did that get people fired up. Everyone scoffed, wrote the idea off as complete idiocy, and joked about it sporadically throughout the rest of the afternoon. I faked chuckles to avoid a fiery religious/political debate that might ruin the group's chemistry on what had been a relaxing day to that point. But here's my forum to address it and clarify anything I said that may have sounded wrong at the time...
First of all, I do not believe that God caused the earthquake in Haiti because of spiritually immoral citizens. But the bottom line is, I do not know why it happened. If you believe in an omnipotent and omniscient god, you believe that all things are controlled by that divine being. Even if you believe that evil caused the earthquake to happen, it would still be an act of God, because God reigns over all things, including evil, so he would have had to allow it to happen for a reason. Period.
Secondly, the same people who instantly say that Pat Robertson is wrong are just as big of fools as he is. Why? Because last I checked, no earthly being knows God's plan in its entirety. Blatantly denying one person's perspective on why something bad happens is indirectly claiming that you have some sort of divine insight on the matter. You may have a theory on why bad things happen, but that's all it is. It's not fact and no one should present it as such, no matter who they're affiliated with or what side of the argument they happen to fall on.
If your spiritual/life compass is the Christian Bible, you've seen the precedent God sets for immoral societies. They at some point will end in destruction. The fact is that although the Christian God is a God of Love, he also is a God of divine justice. It's difficult to think that God allows (or makes) bad things to happen because we don't want to view that side of Him. But God's wrath does exist, and all will be judged.
My prayers are with the Haitian people as they deal with the devastation surrounding them. I know believers from the country, and missionaries currently serving there, and have no doubt that God can bring unimaginable good out of disaster. I really have no idea why this happened to the people in and around Port-au-Prince. And I don't support Pat Robertson. I just think making claims on what God is and isn't doing is as ignorant as saying that the practice of Voodoo is theologically upright.
It's sad to me that a lot of times the christian viewpoint and the right-wing one seem so easily interchangeable. There's no political party that truly has a holy cause or Christ-centered goals, just individuals in different arenas of government who share the faith. I don't ever want to be a card carrying member of the fill-in-the-blank party, in fact I think political fights are often for those who have little else of importance to debate about. Issues of the soul, religion, and salvation, however, constitute subjects that an individual has to stand their ground on.
Even in an earthquake.
On Sunday afternoon, I was talking with friends about the tragic earthquake in Haiti. I brought up the fact that Voodoo was very commonly practiced amongst the Haitian people. I also brought up the fact that Pat Robertson, a well known and controversial evangelical christian conservative, drew connections between natural disasters and behavior by cultures that was in direct disobedience of Biblical Law. To me, I said, it's not out of the realm of possibilities that these things are connected. Boy, did that get people fired up. Everyone scoffed, wrote the idea off as complete idiocy, and joked about it sporadically throughout the rest of the afternoon. I faked chuckles to avoid a fiery religious/political debate that might ruin the group's chemistry on what had been a relaxing day to that point. But here's my forum to address it and clarify anything I said that may have sounded wrong at the time...
First of all, I do not believe that God caused the earthquake in Haiti because of spiritually immoral citizens. But the bottom line is, I do not know why it happened. If you believe in an omnipotent and omniscient god, you believe that all things are controlled by that divine being. Even if you believe that evil caused the earthquake to happen, it would still be an act of God, because God reigns over all things, including evil, so he would have had to allow it to happen for a reason. Period.
Secondly, the same people who instantly say that Pat Robertson is wrong are just as big of fools as he is. Why? Because last I checked, no earthly being knows God's plan in its entirety. Blatantly denying one person's perspective on why something bad happens is indirectly claiming that you have some sort of divine insight on the matter. You may have a theory on why bad things happen, but that's all it is. It's not fact and no one should present it as such, no matter who they're affiliated with or what side of the argument they happen to fall on.
If your spiritual/life compass is the Christian Bible, you've seen the precedent God sets for immoral societies. They at some point will end in destruction. The fact is that although the Christian God is a God of Love, he also is a God of divine justice. It's difficult to think that God allows (or makes) bad things to happen because we don't want to view that side of Him. But God's wrath does exist, and all will be judged.
My prayers are with the Haitian people as they deal with the devastation surrounding them. I know believers from the country, and missionaries currently serving there, and have no doubt that God can bring unimaginable good out of disaster. I really have no idea why this happened to the people in and around Port-au-Prince. And I don't support Pat Robertson. I just think making claims on what God is and isn't doing is as ignorant as saying that the practice of Voodoo is theologically upright.
It's sad to me that a lot of times the christian viewpoint and the right-wing one seem so easily interchangeable. There's no political party that truly has a holy cause or Christ-centered goals, just individuals in different arenas of government who share the faith. I don't ever want to be a card carrying member of the fill-in-the-blank party, in fact I think political fights are often for those who have little else of importance to debate about. Issues of the soul, religion, and salvation, however, constitute subjects that an individual has to stand their ground on.
Even in an earthquake.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Commuter, Bahama Come on Pretty Mama
I'm trying to put together a big blog about the characters from my work, but I couldn't help but post my random thought of the day...
I really enjoy a commute to and from work, with one gigantic "if"...If there is no (or very little) traffic on the roads to the job.
So many people have to face hours of traveling time stuck in bumper-to-bumper madness while they're trying to put bread on the table. It can be such a major factor in weighing different employment opportunities. For instance, my brief run working at a car dealership taught me 2 things. One is that I don't ever want a job hustling cars and two is that I'd rather be selling myself on the streets of Philly than automobiles in a place that would necessitate using the Schuylkill Expressway. Luckily that's not the case now, and I travel traffic free on I-95 to and from Elwyn, the radio accompanying me throughout. Oh, and don't get me wrong, the best commute is one that could be made comfortably on foot, or one that wouldn't require any travel at all. But I can still enjoy a ride as long as I'm not doing school zone speed limits the duration of the trip.
Also, I could never carpool. At least not with a morning person. I suppose if someone were as yawny and grumpy as me I wouldn't mind it. But I would rather walk to Media every day than be in the same confined space as a Chatty Kathy when I'm trying to survive an early morning. I appreciate morning people when they are either A, on my talk radio station while I'm driving or B, handing me my Dunkin Donuts as I attempt to fuel my empty human tank. Don't get me wrong, I can appreciate a morning here and there, but the frequency with which I can enjoy a winter morning is exponentially less than one in the spring or summer.
Oh Spring, please come soon...
I really enjoy a commute to and from work, with one gigantic "if"...If there is no (or very little) traffic on the roads to the job.
So many people have to face hours of traveling time stuck in bumper-to-bumper madness while they're trying to put bread on the table. It can be such a major factor in weighing different employment opportunities. For instance, my brief run working at a car dealership taught me 2 things. One is that I don't ever want a job hustling cars and two is that I'd rather be selling myself on the streets of Philly than automobiles in a place that would necessitate using the Schuylkill Expressway. Luckily that's not the case now, and I travel traffic free on I-95 to and from Elwyn, the radio accompanying me throughout. Oh, and don't get me wrong, the best commute is one that could be made comfortably on foot, or one that wouldn't require any travel at all. But I can still enjoy a ride as long as I'm not doing school zone speed limits the duration of the trip. Also, I could never carpool. At least not with a morning person. I suppose if someone were as yawny and grumpy as me I wouldn't mind it. But I would rather walk to Media every day than be in the same confined space as a Chatty Kathy when I'm trying to survive an early morning. I appreciate morning people when they are either A, on my talk radio station while I'm driving or B, handing me my Dunkin Donuts as I attempt to fuel my empty human tank. Don't get me wrong, I can appreciate a morning here and there, but the frequency with which I can enjoy a winter morning is exponentially less than one in the spring or summer.
Oh Spring, please come soon...
Monday, January 11, 2010
Donovan McNabb: Vomiting During Games and Making Fans Vomit After Them
So as usual today I had a chronic case of the Mondays, one of the most deadly diseases to a person's general state of mind. Winteritus and Lack-of-Sun syndrome, as dangerous as they may be, are only seasonal illnesses.
A case of the Mondays can strike at the beginning of any week, year-round. Ok, you get the point, I was in a crappy mood. Who's the last person I want to hear open their multi-million dollar pie hole when I'm already ticked off? You would be accurate in saying the quarterback of the Philadelphia Eagles, far more accurate in fact than he was throwing the ball against every good team he played this season.
I'll throw 2 quotes out from losing quarterbacks this weekend.
The first is from a future first ballot hall of famer with 3 Super Bowl wins and the second is from a sarcastic little punk who has never understood how to accept the public scrutiny that comes with being a star athlete.
1) "I'd have been booing us, too, the way we played. That's [the fans] right. We just didn't play well, and you've just got to give those guys credit - they played well in all phases, and really put it to us."
2) "We won 11 games. We didn't win 16, I'm sorry for that. But you know what - we had a great season. We did a lot of explosive things on offense. [Whether] they were winning teams or not. I can't control that. But we beat some fairly decent defenses. We can't control what their record is at the end. But one thing we can control is winning the ballgame."
One guy is a proven winner and leader who thrives in clutch situations and despises losing. The other is a whiny, wanna-be funny, "leader" that will make obnoxious comments after an unbelievably humiliating loss. "We didn't win 16. I'm sorry for that"?!?!? Who says stuff that is simultaneously that idiotic and that instigative to a town that lives and dies with its football team's success?
Look, you've got guys like Brady and Manning (and about 10-15 other starting qbs) who understand what legitimate success is, and don't call a season "outstanding" in which a divisional opponent beat you 3 times and embarrassed you two of those times (as McNabb did). SHUT UP DONOVAN, SHUT UP DONOVAN, SHUT UP DONOVAN!!!!!!
Has #5 had some great moments in Philly? Of course, no one with half a brain would argue that. But how quickly people forget that when we made our run of 4 straight NFC championship appearances that(other than one year) the NFC in that time period was by far the worst conference in NFL history. But the past could be argued about endlessly, but still has little to do with our current predicament.
We need to make a change. It's time to bring in Kolb at least for a couple years to see if the guy can lead a team and be the future of the franchise. The issues are much deeper than just the quarterback on this team clearly. But that is where it all starts, and that's the first thing that needs to happen going forward.
A case of the Mondays can strike at the beginning of any week, year-round. Ok, you get the point, I was in a crappy mood. Who's the last person I want to hear open their multi-million dollar pie hole when I'm already ticked off? You would be accurate in saying the quarterback of the Philadelphia Eagles, far more accurate in fact than he was throwing the ball against every good team he played this season. I'll throw 2 quotes out from losing quarterbacks this weekend.
The first is from a future first ballot hall of famer with 3 Super Bowl wins and the second is from a sarcastic little punk who has never understood how to accept the public scrutiny that comes with being a star athlete.
1) "I'd have been booing us, too, the way we played. That's [the fans] right. We just didn't play well, and you've just got to give those guys credit - they played well in all phases, and really put it to us."
2) "We won 11 games. We didn't win 16, I'm sorry for that. But you know what - we had a great season. We did a lot of explosive things on offense. [Whether] they were winning teams or not. I can't control that. But we beat some fairly decent defenses. We can't control what their record is at the end. But one thing we can control is winning the ballgame."
One guy is a proven winner and leader who thrives in clutch situations and despises losing. The other is a whiny, wanna-be funny, "leader" that will make obnoxious comments after an unbelievably humiliating loss. "We didn't win 16. I'm sorry for that"?!?!? Who says stuff that is simultaneously that idiotic and that instigative to a town that lives and dies with its football team's success?
Look, you've got guys like Brady and Manning (and about 10-15 other starting qbs) who understand what legitimate success is, and don't call a season "outstanding" in which a divisional opponent beat you 3 times and embarrassed you two of those times (as McNabb did). SHUT UP DONOVAN, SHUT UP DONOVAN, SHUT UP DONOVAN!!!!!!
Has #5 had some great moments in Philly? Of course, no one with half a brain would argue that. But how quickly people forget that when we made our run of 4 straight NFC championship appearances that(other than one year) the NFC in that time period was by far the worst conference in NFL history. But the past could be argued about endlessly, but still has little to do with our current predicament.
We need to make a change. It's time to bring in Kolb at least for a couple years to see if the guy can lead a team and be the future of the franchise. The issues are much deeper than just the quarterback on this team clearly. But that is where it all starts, and that's the first thing that needs to happen going forward.
Friday, January 1, 2010
New Year/Decade Dreams & Resolutions
Since 2010 has officially arrived, I figured that it might be good to not only make some resolutions for the year ahead, but also for the next decade. Ok, maybe just for the next year is enough. Remember those time capsules you make as a tyke and years later dig up what thoughts/goals/feelings you originally buried? I hope to look back on this blog proudly having accomplished the majority of the resolutions. Usually it takes about 2 weeks for all New Years resolutions to be obsolete, but it feels like an essential attempt at self-motivation either way. The following things have vastly different levels of importance in my life, so they'll just be thrown out there in no particular order...
1) GRADUATE!!! It's been a long, mostly bumpy, ride but I am 12 credits away from snagging my diploma in May.
Nothing will stop me from achieving cap and gown eligibility at this point. Nothing.
2) I am fully resolved to take a flight out to Chicago to visit Tommy Boy, and catch a game at historic Wrigley Field. I wonder how the home fans would handle me in left field heckling their own player. And knowing what a crazy semester it will be for me, I'll be ready to cut loose big-time in the windy city. I hope I make it back alive. That should be the real resolution.
3) Mas blogos por favor! I will have more blog entries in 2010 than in any year previous. I'm projecting 150 after my 109 output in 2009. I'm 1 for 1 a day into the new year. So far so good.
4) I will have a six-pack by summer. Ok, this one's the biggest resolution cliche of them all, I know. I still have to have it in here. Is it an issue of vanity? Of course that plays a part, and anyone who works out would be a liar if they said that the mirror reflection has nothing to with it. But it's more than that.
It's an issue of work ethic and challenging oneself physically and mentally. And being ingrained in good habits now will make them stick easier for years to come. Don't get me wrong, I'll never be a health nut, and don't expect to be Jack Lalanne when I'm an old geezer. On the flip side, I know that I can't eat entire pizzas and chicken coupes as a meal forever.
5) Lyrics lyrics lyrics. I want to complete all my unfinished original works, write a few more, and freestyle at least 2 times with random groups of brothas. Have to get a few performances with an audience. There's zero excuse for me being even the least bit bashful about playing for a crowd. I'm a loudmouth who brings alot to the table as an artist, yet I haven't tapped my potential in this realm yet.
6) This is always a tricky one given my luck with women, but it still makes the list: I will be a man and approach/get digits of a dame that I'm digging. Yes, this opens me up to a whole lot of crazy as I've discovered in the past, but that's a necessary evil of the courtship game. This resolution has two addendum: 1) More chat initiation at places like Kohls or a coffee shop and less at night spots. 2) The father of my favorite tv character once tells him, "Life is too short to dance with the fat chick." I'd like to think that "the fat chick" for me has nothing to do with looks at all. It's about settling, wasting time with someone because it's convenient. Convenience is nice when your talking about proximity to a store with bread and milk, but not when you're talking about dating.
7) Find a home church. This may help out with #6 also, although it's tough to find a believer who isn't too "churchy" these days. That's an issue for another day and entry, but anyways...It's tough to stay grounded in Truth when you don't feel comfortable at one specific place of worship. Going to different churches on different weekends isn't easy to do. You open yourself up to not attending anywhere some weeks because there's no specific place that's part of the routine, and you feel like your in no man's land. Still, finding a home church is a fundamental aspect of growing in faith and there's no excuse for not gettin yo' Sabbath Day on...
8) Survive Desmond till June. If I have any interest in still pursuing a job in the special needs field after dealing with the 10-year-old I'm a one-on-one for the first half of 2010, it will be a miracle. As frustrating as it will be, I kind of relish the challenge. If I come out on the other end stronger and more experienced in the field, it was worth the stress along the way. Still, even the slightest sign that it's negatively impacting other areas of my life such as school and I'm going to have to pull the plug on the Dez project and find another 9-5 that won't push me to institutionalization.
9) Play one game of beer pong with V-Dub Wright. We were 1-0 in 2009, bringing our career record as a team to 1-0. I think we should play one game a year for the next few years then retire undefeated, when I'm in my late 20's and Val is in her early 40's.
I'm sure there are numerous other resolutions I haven't mentioned, but that's enough for tonight. I have to pace myself for 364 more days of 2010 and you have to start making your own resolutions instead of reading this brain lard.
Happy New Year ladies and gentlemen!
1) GRADUATE!!! It's been a long, mostly bumpy, ride but I am 12 credits away from snagging my diploma in May.
Nothing will stop me from achieving cap and gown eligibility at this point. Nothing.2) I am fully resolved to take a flight out to Chicago to visit Tommy Boy, and catch a game at historic Wrigley Field. I wonder how the home fans would handle me in left field heckling their own player. And knowing what a crazy semester it will be for me, I'll be ready to cut loose big-time in the windy city. I hope I make it back alive. That should be the real resolution.
3) Mas blogos por favor! I will have more blog entries in 2010 than in any year previous. I'm projecting 150 after my 109 output in 2009. I'm 1 for 1 a day into the new year. So far so good.
4) I will have a six-pack by summer. Ok, this one's the biggest resolution cliche of them all, I know. I still have to have it in here. Is it an issue of vanity? Of course that plays a part, and anyone who works out would be a liar if they said that the mirror reflection has nothing to with it. But it's more than that.
It's an issue of work ethic and challenging oneself physically and mentally. And being ingrained in good habits now will make them stick easier for years to come. Don't get me wrong, I'll never be a health nut, and don't expect to be Jack Lalanne when I'm an old geezer. On the flip side, I know that I can't eat entire pizzas and chicken coupes as a meal forever. 5) Lyrics lyrics lyrics. I want to complete all my unfinished original works, write a few more, and freestyle at least 2 times with random groups of brothas. Have to get a few performances with an audience. There's zero excuse for me being even the least bit bashful about playing for a crowd. I'm a loudmouth who brings alot to the table as an artist, yet I haven't tapped my potential in this realm yet.
6) This is always a tricky one given my luck with women, but it still makes the list: I will be a man and approach/get digits of a dame that I'm digging. Yes, this opens me up to a whole lot of crazy as I've discovered in the past, but that's a necessary evil of the courtship game. This resolution has two addendum: 1) More chat initiation at places like Kohls or a coffee shop and less at night spots. 2) The father of my favorite tv character once tells him, "Life is too short to dance with the fat chick." I'd like to think that "the fat chick" for me has nothing to do with looks at all. It's about settling, wasting time with someone because it's convenient. Convenience is nice when your talking about proximity to a store with bread and milk, but not when you're talking about dating.
7) Find a home church. This may help out with #6 also, although it's tough to find a believer who isn't too "churchy" these days. That's an issue for another day and entry, but anyways...It's tough to stay grounded in Truth when you don't feel comfortable at one specific place of worship. Going to different churches on different weekends isn't easy to do. You open yourself up to not attending anywhere some weeks because there's no specific place that's part of the routine, and you feel like your in no man's land. Still, finding a home church is a fundamental aspect of growing in faith and there's no excuse for not gettin yo' Sabbath Day on...
8) Survive Desmond till June. If I have any interest in still pursuing a job in the special needs field after dealing with the 10-year-old I'm a one-on-one for the first half of 2010, it will be a miracle. As frustrating as it will be, I kind of relish the challenge. If I come out on the other end stronger and more experienced in the field, it was worth the stress along the way. Still, even the slightest sign that it's negatively impacting other areas of my life such as school and I'm going to have to pull the plug on the Dez project and find another 9-5 that won't push me to institutionalization.
9) Play one game of beer pong with V-Dub Wright. We were 1-0 in 2009, bringing our career record as a team to 1-0. I think we should play one game a year for the next few years then retire undefeated, when I'm in my late 20's and Val is in her early 40's.
I'm sure there are numerous other resolutions I haven't mentioned, but that's enough for tonight. I have to pace myself for 364 more days of 2010 and you have to start making your own resolutions instead of reading this brain lard.
Happy New Year ladies and gentlemen!
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