Many years ago in Mr. Culbertson's 10th grade english class, there was a student who sat a few seats behind me. I think his name was Chris (?) and he was one of those "head-banger" types who listened to bands like Pantera and Corrosion Of Conformity. One seemingly random day he told me that I should be called "two bucks fifty" (not fitty). I'm not sure what it meant or why he said it. The name never stuck and once or twice some annoying characters would say it. Like most things from high school it faded into oblivion.

Posted in: Random,

I would be lying if I said that I didn't have any fun over the July 4rth holiday. I joined my family for a weekend stay at a retreat center by a lake near Waterford. Although I had some reservations on going, I guess I did enjoy myself.

While we were there, I thought about how inconvenient certain things were (note that we did have both electricity and running water). And I found it ironic that with years of "independence" that people had now become so dependent on luxuries (e.g. things like air conditioning). In my opinion americans are spoiled. Most take for granted many of the freedoms that they have and overlook the important things. I'm speaking generally of course. On July 4rth americans are supposed to "celebrate the ideals of freedom and opportunity that this nation holds dear". In reality, there need not be a special day for this. Everyday everyone should take a moment and realize what they have. Their freedom, their abilities and their life. Everything else is a luxury.

Posted in: Life,

After spending some time in my garage today, I have a new "wish". Pushing aside wealth, fame, looks, and knowlege is a desire to have packing materials reduced. Items for purchase should not come in large boxes with excessive packing. I could live without all the foam and crumpled paper. If you break something when taking it home, well then, you should be more careful!

Does this post have a personal slant? Oh yeah, you bet!

Posted in: Random,

Well the verdict is out. Even though the Supreme Court said that they found University of Michigan's undergraduate point based admissions model unconstitutional, they still left the door open for race to be considered as a factor for admissions. Sadly, this will keep affirmative action policies in use across the United States for many years to come.

It is naive to think that there is no racism left in this country but I think it is a bigger mistake to think that affirmative action addresses this problem. There is affirmative action in the classroom, next undergrad, next grad, next law school and med school, next the workplace, next... Can anyone say for certain when it will end?

Short term solutions create long term problems.

Posted in: Politics,

The other day I finally finished watching Office Space for the first time (I know, I know). Watching any movie with my brothers always implies a fiery debate afterwards. The issue this time was about modern "comedy" and what is defined as "funny" with American audiences. We watched Mr. Deeds a few days earlier and the thing that bothered my older brother was that he thought some jokes were just too stupid to be funny (ie. "frost-bite foot gag"). I disagreed, it is stupid but not so much that someone would not get a good laugh out of it. Although the Sandler flick was much cleaner than the profanity laiden Office Space, he liked the latter better. Reason? Subject matter of course: a satire about software engineers and contentment with jobs. What more can you ask from a movie?

For me things can only be funny if you can relate to them. All the material around them is irrelevant. No one likes to be caught in some perpetual "inside joke". We ageed on that. We also agreed that Office Space in a lot of ways had a sense of realism which is required for good humor. Now the place where opinions part is another aspect of comedy: the shock or wacky punchline. In reality, anything goes. Should it? I cannot stand things like South Park (sorry guys) or Tom Green movies, but love watching re-runs of wild Chris Farley (rip) or Will Farrel skits. The ironic thing is that what passed a few years ago as inane, outlandish or obscene is mild by today's standards. What can you do? If you want to get a good laugh, then don't expect too much. Hey, if it's funny then laugh. If not you can always watch the Simpsons.

Posted in: Funny, Movies,