Great cover of the Tom Petty tune
May 30, 2010
The Taco Test
Another quiz, because it was my birthday yesterday and I'm feeling lazy this Sunday
You Are Hilarious |
 You are light hearted and fun loving. You look forward to each new day. You are easy going and happy. You enjoy everything in life. You are a person of strong taste. You are adventurous in what you like. No one would describe you as hot-headed. You maintain your cool no matter what. |
This really wasn't fair; in the last question,
"What extra would you like with your taco?"
The choices were: Guacamole, Queso or Sour Cream. I chose sour cream, but I'd like all three on my taco, plus shredded lettuce and a few bits of tomato and onion. I think of a taco as a "Mexican hamburger".
I chose chicken for my taco, but would settle for any of the other choices, although I've never had a fish taco. I've never seen them offered anywhere around here.
May 29, 2010
My Birthday's Color
Your Birthday is Purple |
 You are the independent type. It's hard for people to peg, label, or stereotype you. You enjoy people and things from all walks of life. You're incredibly open minded. You tend to be a bit fickle and even moody. You can end up hating what you love and vice versa. Your preferences and actions can be a bit mysterious at times. It's hard to predict what you'll do. |
May 28, 2010
ethereal
ethereal\ih-THEER-ee-uhl\
adjective;
1. Light, airy, or tenuous.
2. Extremely delicate or refined.
3. Heavenly or celestial.
4. Pertaining to the upper regions of space.
5. Chemistry. Pertaining to, containing, or resembling ethyl ether.
The first four definitions of ethereal are the most common; I've seen the word used in all sorts of writing subjects - sci-fi, angels, anti-bellum, etc., but the last one brought back a hazy memory of my dad taking one of his work boots, spraying a rag with starting fluid (ether) and sticking it into the boot. He then took a young male cat (and I can't remember which one, was a LONG time ago), stuck his head in the boot and when the kitty quit kicking, pop quickly castrated it.
I've never done it, but I expect castrating a cat is much like castrating a pig...well, except for the teeth and claws bit, hence the boot and anesthesia, crude as it might have been. I once tried to give a cat a bath because of accidentally dousing it with naptha. I'm not for sure which had more slash marks when I was done, me or the shower curtain.
My dad and I castrated a large boar for a neighboring farmer; the hog was so big we had to put it in a cattle chute to control the animal. (The hog was large enough to put a saddle on! ) I can't recall how many times my dad had to stop and sharpen his knife while performing the surgery, but it was quite a few. and when trying to finish up each testicle, the ol' boar would tug of war the flesh away from dad in one final but futile attempt to retain his masculinity.
The "pig fries" were large enough to fillet and would have covered a fair-sized dinner plate - that is, if one were inclined to eat that. I've had pig testicles before and they were a bit gamey. My dad always said a good brining would take that gaminess out, but we never ate them again.
The hog later died, but it wasn't from our surgery; it got locked out away from water.
I bet I've castrated quite a few dozens of pigs, but it's been a long time. I've also milked a goat, but there's not any funny stories about that, just a few memories of squirting the milk at our cats and dogs.
Another animal story, then I'll stop, I promise.
We used to have huge toads around our house. We always kept large vats or buckets of water in the yard for our pets and the toads could be seen there during the day, nestled in amongst the cool damp earth and tall grass around the hydrants. At night time they would come into the garage where sometimes dad and I might be doing something, working on some project.
I expect they liked the cool cement floor during those hot summer nights, but they really liked to nab the june bugs and moths that would be attracted to the lights and would often hit the floor. The big ol' toads would be sitting there, sometimes three or four of them, sometimes only one, waiting on the bugs. A june bug could hit, lie on its back -stunned a bit, probably- and the toad would turn like a tank on treads, take a deliberate hop towards the struggling insect, perhaps another short hop to close the distance- then rocking delicately forward and with a flick of the tongue so fast it was hard to see, the toad would bring the bug into its mouth.
We had one toad dad was very fond of. Pop was welding something one time, and not knowing the frog was near his feet, dropped the stub of a super-hot welding rod on the frog's back. It scarred the frog, (like a distinctive mark, I'm sure it scared it some, and probably hurt like a mother, too, wouldn't you think?) but it lived, prospered and grew huge and kept coming back into the garage for several summers after that. Dad and I once fed the creature several dozen june bugs; so many that we could feel them crawling around in the toad's belly. The ol' toad stayed there in one spot, all that night and most of the next day, too stuffed to move.
Y'know, come to think of it, my stories like this certainly aren't ethereal by any stretch, 'cept for the starting fluid bit.
Don't Ask, Don't Tell
This just popped up in my reader:
Ron Paul, three Texas Democrats buck parties on gays in military
It caught my eye because Ron Paul was mentioned in the title, but also because of the "DADT" policy that's been in place since the Clinton administration. I didn't agree with the previous policy of banning gays outright and I didn't agree with the DADT policy either. There should be no "policy" at all in regards to gays in the military. (and without researching it, I would wager that's Ron Paul's stance, too.)
Granted, the military is a special case and civilian laws don't always apply, but this is more of a human rights specific case. Isn't "all men are created equal" one of the tenets of our society?
Also, I've seen argued that unit cohesion and effectiveness would be damaged with the overt inclusion of gays. I wonder how "covert" inclusion was any different? I'd think that in most cases, people wouldn't know others are gay unless they were told by the gay person. Contrary to TV and movie stereotyping (and some by gays themselves), all gays don't lisp when they talk nor mince when they walk. Sheesh. I've known gay guys who were more "manly" than were some of my hetero friends. (I've also known some lesbians who were more manly than ME, but that's another story)
It also seems a shame to waste talent and manpower (or womanpower, to be fair -grin-) Not all, but many of the gay folks I know are smart, creative and hard-working - good qualities to possess for the military (or for civilian life). I never was in the military, but I was and still am a good shot. I also like to think I'm fairly courageous, semi-smart, and, in my youth, quite physically fit - good soldier material.
That doesn't mean I would've been a good soldier. No, I can also type like a big dog and I expect it's easier to find someone to pull a trigger than it is to type and file the morning report.
In other words, if I had been drafted or joined the military, I'd have probably been some colonel's clerk. And I'm not gay.
What I'm trying to say is it's silly to stereotype all gays into the "gawking, lecher" type that would destroy a platoon of fighting men. Plus, I would think it would be easier for heterosexuals to accept a fellow fighting man in the unit than it would be to include females.
(and I'll admit I don't think women in direct combat units is a good idea. Pilots of fighter planes, captains of warships, etc., sure, but not fighting alongside of men. )
Plus, there are military regulations that severely curtail interpersonal relationships between people in the service. A captain can not have a personal relationship with a private...even if they are of opposite sex. I don't understand why these rules can't simply apply to all in the military. Catch two gays in a compromising position? Drum them out, same as would/should happen with an opposite-sex couple.
Off the soapbox; I'm prejudiced in many ways, but this "gays in the military" controversy has always bothered me...not just because the policy is wrong, but because we feel the need to have a policy at all.
On a related, local note: Our own Mac Thornberry voted against the bill. While I very, very seldom vote Democrat, in this next election I will have to do as I've done the last few elections and either vote Libertarian for the office, or leave all boxes unchecked. He's been in office since '95. I won't criticize his record here, but it's my opinion he's been in there long enough.
Update
Texas lawmakers explain why they bucked their parties on vote
Rep Ron Paul,
R-Lake Jackson
Paul, the maverick libertarian, ditched his Republican comrades and voted for the repeal.
"I have received several calls and visits from constituents who, in spite of the heavy investment in their training, have been forced out of the military simply because they were discovered to be homosexual," Paul said.
"To me, this seems like an awful waste. Personal behavior that is disruptive should be subject to military discipline regardless of whether the individual is heterosexual or homosexual. But to discharge an otherwise well-trained, professional, and highly skilled member of the military for these reasons is unfortunate and makes no financial sense."
Them's my sentiments, 'zactly. Thank you Dr. Paul.
May 27, 2010
waxing
waxing\WAK-sing\ , verb;
1. To increase in extent, quantity, intensity or power.
2. (Of the moon) to increase in the extent of its illuminated portion before the full moon.
3. To grow or become.
The moon has been waxing full over the last couple of weeks and we're now in a full moon. I might need to howl tonight. (Correction, the full moon is Saturday night, my birthday as it happens. I probably won't howl, though.)
The way I tell if the moon is waxing or waning is to see how the moon's "shape" corresponds to the letters "D - O - C" If the moon looks like a filled in "D", then the moon is waxing or coming full. When it looks like the letter "C", then the moon is waning.
(If someone tells you it's waning, they might not be talking about the moon. It could very well be Elmer Fudd caught in a thunderstorm)
The procedure is reversed if you're in the Southern Hemisphere; the letters are "C-O-D". This is better explained at Moon Phases - Names and images of the 8 phases of the moon
I wanted to include a moon widget, but the darned thing takes over the entire post and "wraps itself" around my comments. I signed up at the site to get the code, but then had to jump through hoops to find it. I also wanted to nab the code for the image (and not javascript) version, but it never let me sign in. Oh well. Life's too short to waste time on such crapola.
The old reliable Wunderground still offers up all sorts of stickies for your blog or website, including this moon graphic:
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