As November 1st draws near....
I don't have a bucket list. At least not a formal, written list. One of my favorite television characters, "Anthony DiNozzo" of NCIS has a written bucket list. Here it is:
1. Master the art of Kung Fu.
2. Drive a 1965 Aston Martin DB5 like the one in Goldfinger.
3. Discover the meaning of life.
4. Catch a shark.
5. Date a Bond girl and/or Miss Universe.
6. Ride in a motorcycle ball of death.
7. Write letter to Roger Ebert re: his reviews of Full Metal Jacket and Benji the Hunted.
8. Develop a catch phrase.
9. The luge.
10. Tell Dad it's okay.
11. Watch all Hitchcock films in order of release (including both versions of The Man Who Knew Too Much), pausing only for bathroom breaks.
12. Experience a Wonder of the World (besides Gibbs).
13. Learn to play the bass.
14. Kick McGee's butt at some video game.
15. Create DiNozzo coat of arms.
16. Ride a Ferris wheel naked. (oops…did that already)
17. Get and pass on Gibbs' recipe for steak.
18. Visit Bogie's grave.
19. Discuss Paris.
20. Give a motivational half-time speech.
21. Find Jimmy Hoffa, dammit.
22. Finish memoir.
23. Make cameo in the movie version of memoir.
24. Let friends get closer.
25. Try space tourism.
26. Tell her.
I think this is an excellent list. I'd point out that there is only one of the original seven Wonders of the World that survives (the Great Pyramid of Giza) and the Aston Martin DB5 used in Goldfinger was a 1964, not a 1965. Finding Jimmy Hoffa would be awesome. For years I suspected that if someone had removed all of the makeup from the face of the late Tammy Faye Messner (nee Bakker), one would find Jimmy Hoffa. Turned out that was not the case. I am also convinced it is impossible to truly master the art of Kung Fu, because no matter how much you learn, someone will always know more than you.
There are a few things I'd like to be able to do while I'm still here on Earth. Visit a number of places in Europe. Stand beside the Great Wall of China. Revisit Old Faithful at Yellowstone. Make one more shopping trip to the city of Seoul. Eat a meal of real kobe beef and fugu in Japan. But I've been to most of the great national parks in our nation, traveled to a number of other nations. I have walked the path of Moses' Miracle in the Republic of Korea (shown below).
I read that Brittany Maynard visited the Grand Canyon, completing her bucket list. I'm glad. It is indeed an amazing experience to visit that special place. I now think I have a better understanding of why she is choosing the path of ending her own life this Saturday.
My body is essentially broken. I need oxygen to walk more than a very short distance. While my heart problems are stable, they are not good. I spend many hours of the day fighting physical fatigue. I'm in constant pain in one form or another all day long. But my mind is still quite sharp. I get to make a positive difference in the lives of my clients and my students. I enjoy intellectual pursuits. My mind is fully engaged.
Ms Maynard's illness would eventually take that aspect of her life away. I would not want to live either, were my mind to be seriously addled by the ravages of an illness. My thoughts will be with her on November 1st, and thereafter.
* * *
Veracity. Credibility. Are these traits that we care about in choosing our next president? I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that there are a lot of people who don't mind voting for someone who has "embellished" their record.
If Hillary Clinton decides she is running for that office in 2016, will this get a lot of airplay come general election time:
Perhaps to be followed by this more in depth version:
The fact is, she lied. This wasn't a simple mistake, like claiming to have visited 57 states or claiming to have won a primary election in a state where the candidate wasn't even on the ballot. This was an out and out, bald faced lie. A lie for no good reason, except to make her experience look better than it was.
Sometimes it isn't the lie itself. I didn't care if President Clinton lied about having sex with Monica Lewinsky, until he did it while under oath. Once you swear an oath to tell the truth, telling the truth is the only choice. Especially when you've sworn a separate oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States and you're a member of the bar. There is almost certainly a similar situation involving every other person who will be campaigning to be our next president, although perhaps not as well known.
So why does this bother me? Because I'd much prefer to see political campaigns where candidates talked about the real issues, the real problems of our nation/state/locality and their proposals for solving them. That would be worth listening to. Much more so that "So and so lied."
* * *
A woman posted something on Reddit that is getting a lot of attention. I read it and just shook my head. Not at her, but at the people who treated her in the way she described in her posting. You may read it for yourself here: http://www.reddit.com/r/TwoXChromosomes/comments/2k3osv/people_are_just_so_mean_to_ugly_women_please_be/
Here's an excerpt of the portion that really pissed me off: "There was a photographer going around the club, taking pictures of the people there. I assume it was for some promo for their website or something. He got to our group, and literally circled us several times, taking several pics from different angles. I was kind of psyched about this, so I did my best to look like I was having a good time, made sure he could snap me at my best. But after a while I realized he wasn't circling us to get our best angles. He was trying to get a frame without ME. If I moved closer to the center of the group, for instance, he would tilt his camera a little the other way. I couldn't believe it until finally, he actually came up to me and asked me to get out of the shot."
I'd like to make that photographer walk around in society for a couple of days as this woman, so he can perceive what he did from her perspective. There may be a legitimate argument for a marketing plan to only show the "beautiful people" in their advertising materials. That doesn't excuse out and out rudeness. It doesn't excuse what he did and what he said.
I have a message for this woman. She isn't "ugly" and she shouldn't think of herself as such. That the men she's encountered thus far aren't interested in her based solely on how she looks in a nightclub isn't important. What makes someone special isn't external beauty. It's internal beauty. "Shallow Hal" is a funny movie but it points out a very important fact. Outward appearance isn't nearly as important as what is in a person's mind, heart and soul.
I feel her pain. When I was in the crazily first-dating phase of my life after my second marriage ended and my rebound relationship had crashed, I went on a blind date with a nice lady (or so I thought). We had common interests. I was in the midst of getting back in shape and losing more than 60 pounds of excess weight, but I'd only just begun that journey when we went on our one date.
We had fun. Dinner and a movie. I enjoyed the movie, the food (she picked the place) and the company. Afterward I told her I was interested in calling her to arrange another date. She demurred, saying that she just didn't feel any kind of connection.
Months later, I ran into her at one of the speed-dating dinner things. We didn't share a table, but we met up in the bar after the dining/trying to meet portion of the evening was over. She came over to where I was sitting and asked to join me. After refraining from responding "join me, am I coming apart" I invited her to sit. She marveled at my changed appearance (I was also dressing better at this point than I had before). She told me she was very interested in going out on another date.
She was quite nonplussed when I declined. She asked me why, when I'd said before that I was interested. I told her I was at the time, but after learning she was apparently very shallow my interest had waned. She seemed upset by this and then let me know she was. So I let her know that I was still the same person she'd met months earlier on the inside. The only thing that had changed was my external appearance. Obviously it was that appearance that she wasn't interested in before. Now my appearance was vastly improved in her eyes and she was interested. Too bad for her.
So, author of this Reddit piece, take heart. When you do find a man who has the proper set of values, he'll be a keeper. And in his eyes, you will indeed be beautiful.
* * *
Random Ponderings:
I don't think kids should be getting actions figure toys based on "Breaking Bad" but I don't think they shouldn't be sold at all. This is a case of where parents need to exercise control over their kids. Maybe Toy R' Us can set up a section for toys for adults that are clearly labeled as "not kid appropriate."
One of the women who aided Canadian military reservist Nathan Cirillo before his death from an attack in Ottawa said she spoke to him even though he was unconscious. She said she'd been in a coma once and she heard everything. I don't disbelieve her, but that wasn't my experience.
Death hoaxes like the one earlier this week involving Nancy Reagan aren't funny in any way.
Kat Von D has every right to be upset about the fire that destroyed her tattoo parlor on N. La Brea but someone who is a public figure shouldn't be criticizing the media for doing their job in reporting on her and this tragedy.
I've never tried the Dan Dan Soup at P. F. Chang's and after learning one serving has 7,980 mg of sodium in it, I never will. That's more than 4 days worth of sodium in one meal. Ouch!
If a member of the Egyptian royal family went to school to learn how to be a plumber, would he then be accurately described as a pharaoh faucet major?
Some guy appearing on the dating show "Baggage" said he needs to powder his "junk" daily. Way too much information.
The mayor of Houston is claiming that her daughter was initially denied a Texas drivers license because she has "two moms." I think it was less about that and more about the extremely onerous requirements for documents to prove identity required by Texas law.
There is no way I'd ever partake of the "snake massage" which doesn't involve a happy ending but instead involves the massage therapist placing numerous king snakes and corn snakes on your back. Just the thought of this makes me shudder.
After seeing the facilities of the Gotham Club at AT&T baseball stadium in San Francisco I think I'd go even though it would mean watching the Giants.
Kudos to TLC for cancelling "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo" after the mom began seeing her old flame, a convicted child molester.
* * *
No This Date in History this blog.
1. Master the art of Kung Fu.
2. Drive a 1965 Aston Martin DB5 like the one in Goldfinger.
3. Discover the meaning of life.
4. Catch a shark.
5. Date a Bond girl and/or Miss Universe.
6. Ride in a motorcycle ball of death.
7. Write letter to Roger Ebert re: his reviews of Full Metal Jacket and Benji the Hunted.
8. Develop a catch phrase.
9. The luge.
10. Tell Dad it's okay.
11. Watch all Hitchcock films in order of release (including both versions of The Man Who Knew Too Much), pausing only for bathroom breaks.
12. Experience a Wonder of the World (besides Gibbs).
13. Learn to play the bass.
14. Kick McGee's butt at some video game.
15. Create DiNozzo coat of arms.
17. Get and pass on Gibbs' recipe for steak.
18. Visit Bogie's grave.
19. Discuss Paris.
20. Give a motivational half-time speech.
21. Find Jimmy Hoffa, dammit.
22. Finish memoir.
23. Make cameo in the movie version of memoir.
24. Let friends get closer.
25. Try space tourism.
26. Tell her.
I think this is an excellent list. I'd point out that there is only one of the original seven Wonders of the World that survives (the Great Pyramid of Giza) and the Aston Martin DB5 used in Goldfinger was a 1964, not a 1965. Finding Jimmy Hoffa would be awesome. For years I suspected that if someone had removed all of the makeup from the face of the late Tammy Faye Messner (nee Bakker), one would find Jimmy Hoffa. Turned out that was not the case. I am also convinced it is impossible to truly master the art of Kung Fu, because no matter how much you learn, someone will always know more than you.
There are a few things I'd like to be able to do while I'm still here on Earth. Visit a number of places in Europe. Stand beside the Great Wall of China. Revisit Old Faithful at Yellowstone. Make one more shopping trip to the city of Seoul. Eat a meal of real kobe beef and fugu in Japan. But I've been to most of the great national parks in our nation, traveled to a number of other nations. I have walked the path of Moses' Miracle in the Republic of Korea (shown below).
I read that Brittany Maynard visited the Grand Canyon, completing her bucket list. I'm glad. It is indeed an amazing experience to visit that special place. I now think I have a better understanding of why she is choosing the path of ending her own life this Saturday.
My body is essentially broken. I need oxygen to walk more than a very short distance. While my heart problems are stable, they are not good. I spend many hours of the day fighting physical fatigue. I'm in constant pain in one form or another all day long. But my mind is still quite sharp. I get to make a positive difference in the lives of my clients and my students. I enjoy intellectual pursuits. My mind is fully engaged.
Ms Maynard's illness would eventually take that aspect of her life away. I would not want to live either, were my mind to be seriously addled by the ravages of an illness. My thoughts will be with her on November 1st, and thereafter.
* * *
Veracity. Credibility. Are these traits that we care about in choosing our next president? I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that there are a lot of people who don't mind voting for someone who has "embellished" their record.
If Hillary Clinton decides she is running for that office in 2016, will this get a lot of airplay come general election time:
Perhaps to be followed by this more in depth version:
The fact is, she lied. This wasn't a simple mistake, like claiming to have visited 57 states or claiming to have won a primary election in a state where the candidate wasn't even on the ballot. This was an out and out, bald faced lie. A lie for no good reason, except to make her experience look better than it was.
Sometimes it isn't the lie itself. I didn't care if President Clinton lied about having sex with Monica Lewinsky, until he did it while under oath. Once you swear an oath to tell the truth, telling the truth is the only choice. Especially when you've sworn a separate oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States and you're a member of the bar. There is almost certainly a similar situation involving every other person who will be campaigning to be our next president, although perhaps not as well known.
So why does this bother me? Because I'd much prefer to see political campaigns where candidates talked about the real issues, the real problems of our nation/state/locality and their proposals for solving them. That would be worth listening to. Much more so that "So and so lied."
* * *
A woman posted something on Reddit that is getting a lot of attention. I read it and just shook my head. Not at her, but at the people who treated her in the way she described in her posting. You may read it for yourself here: http://www.reddit.com/r/TwoXChromosomes/comments/2k3osv/people_are_just_so_mean_to_ugly_women_please_be/
Here's an excerpt of the portion that really pissed me off: "There was a photographer going around the club, taking pictures of the people there. I assume it was for some promo for their website or something. He got to our group, and literally circled us several times, taking several pics from different angles. I was kind of psyched about this, so I did my best to look like I was having a good time, made sure he could snap me at my best. But after a while I realized he wasn't circling us to get our best angles. He was trying to get a frame without ME. If I moved closer to the center of the group, for instance, he would tilt his camera a little the other way. I couldn't believe it until finally, he actually came up to me and asked me to get out of the shot."
I'd like to make that photographer walk around in society for a couple of days as this woman, so he can perceive what he did from her perspective. There may be a legitimate argument for a marketing plan to only show the "beautiful people" in their advertising materials. That doesn't excuse out and out rudeness. It doesn't excuse what he did and what he said.
I have a message for this woman. She isn't "ugly" and she shouldn't think of herself as such. That the men she's encountered thus far aren't interested in her based solely on how she looks in a nightclub isn't important. What makes someone special isn't external beauty. It's internal beauty. "Shallow Hal" is a funny movie but it points out a very important fact. Outward appearance isn't nearly as important as what is in a person's mind, heart and soul.
I feel her pain. When I was in the crazily first-dating phase of my life after my second marriage ended and my rebound relationship had crashed, I went on a blind date with a nice lady (or so I thought). We had common interests. I was in the midst of getting back in shape and losing more than 60 pounds of excess weight, but I'd only just begun that journey when we went on our one date.
We had fun. Dinner and a movie. I enjoyed the movie, the food (she picked the place) and the company. Afterward I told her I was interested in calling her to arrange another date. She demurred, saying that she just didn't feel any kind of connection.
Months later, I ran into her at one of the speed-dating dinner things. We didn't share a table, but we met up in the bar after the dining/trying to meet portion of the evening was over. She came over to where I was sitting and asked to join me. After refraining from responding "join me, am I coming apart" I invited her to sit. She marveled at my changed appearance (I was also dressing better at this point than I had before). She told me she was very interested in going out on another date.
She was quite nonplussed when I declined. She asked me why, when I'd said before that I was interested. I told her I was at the time, but after learning she was apparently very shallow my interest had waned. She seemed upset by this and then let me know she was. So I let her know that I was still the same person she'd met months earlier on the inside. The only thing that had changed was my external appearance. Obviously it was that appearance that she wasn't interested in before. Now my appearance was vastly improved in her eyes and she was interested. Too bad for her.
So, author of this Reddit piece, take heart. When you do find a man who has the proper set of values, he'll be a keeper. And in his eyes, you will indeed be beautiful.
* * *
Random Ponderings:
I don't think kids should be getting actions figure toys based on "Breaking Bad" but I don't think they shouldn't be sold at all. This is a case of where parents need to exercise control over their kids. Maybe Toy R' Us can set up a section for toys for adults that are clearly labeled as "not kid appropriate."
One of the women who aided Canadian military reservist Nathan Cirillo before his death from an attack in Ottawa said she spoke to him even though he was unconscious. She said she'd been in a coma once and she heard everything. I don't disbelieve her, but that wasn't my experience.
Death hoaxes like the one earlier this week involving Nancy Reagan aren't funny in any way.
Kat Von D has every right to be upset about the fire that destroyed her tattoo parlor on N. La Brea but someone who is a public figure shouldn't be criticizing the media for doing their job in reporting on her and this tragedy.
I've never tried the Dan Dan Soup at P. F. Chang's and after learning one serving has 7,980 mg of sodium in it, I never will. That's more than 4 days worth of sodium in one meal. Ouch!
If a member of the Egyptian royal family went to school to learn how to be a plumber, would he then be accurately described as a pharaoh faucet major?
Some guy appearing on the dating show "Baggage" said he needs to powder his "junk" daily. Way too much information.
The mayor of Houston is claiming that her daughter was initially denied a Texas drivers license because she has "two moms." I think it was less about that and more about the extremely onerous requirements for documents to prove identity required by Texas law.
There is no way I'd ever partake of the "snake massage" which doesn't involve a happy ending but instead involves the massage therapist placing numerous king snakes and corn snakes on your back. Just the thought of this makes me shudder.
After seeing the facilities of the Gotham Club at AT&T baseball stadium in San Francisco I think I'd go even though it would mean watching the Giants.
Kudos to TLC for cancelling "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo" after the mom began seeing her old flame, a convicted child molester.
* * *
No This Date in History this blog.
posted by me at 11:15 AM
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