Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Honor the Earth: Impacted Nations: a traveling art show

[Feel free to skip the next post down. But if you do read it, remember, I like to make Grumpy Old Man jokes (I'm talking about my intro), so while I try not to distort the truth, read some humor into it. I'm no Dana Carvey, but I think I'm funny anyway.]

I took some pictures of the artworks on display at work. I thought you'd be interested. I think it's good stuff that deserves to be advertised. Go see an exhibit.

I don't know that these two are necessarily my favorites (the picture is, but there are a lot of close seconds), but I wanted to show a couple of pieces to indicate the variety of works on display. There is also a blanket called "Peace and Friendship Forever?" depicting some of the promises America has made and broken with the indians.

Oh, I see the "Media Coverage" links, at the bottom of the page I've linked in my title, take you to more images from the show. And here's that blanket, though there is a LOT of detail that doesn't show in that picture. I'm not showing the picture that I have because I didn't want to shrink it down to a bloggable size. I wouldn't want to do that without permission anyway. I got to that page via the "Artwork, Artist Statements and Biographies" link on the main page.







I've been sitting here for a half hour, trying to distill my thoughts about my ancestors and ancestry, the present state of indian/white relations, the meanings of the artworks... A lot of thoughts... Some of my ancestors may have been involved in oppressing others of my ancestors... All the misunderstandings and warmaking.

Oh! I've been there! On top of some of those peaks! What he describes, in the artist's statement...you feel it.

Well... Shall I be a true philistine now and smash the reverie?

No. I won't. Real life will do that soon enough. Indeed that's what a lot of the exhibit is about.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

I took that damn IPIP-NEO test

I don't much care for their interpretation of my current opinions about my current job performance as meaning that I'm lazy and do shoddy work. No, I'm unambitious, bored *&%^less, angry at myself and some of my family members that I find myself in this situation... But! The customers are not now and have never been the problem; I treat them as human-beings with dignity and needs that I know how to fulfill. Work is the one place where I can make a perfect product without interference from a bunch of smart-ass kibitzers - indeed, due to the lack thereof.

I may not have been sufficiently honest about my anger levels, or perhaps, didn't relate the questions about my anger level to the questions about my work performance.

With that cheery introduction, here are my results. Oops, wiped out the formatting, let's see if I can edit it. Here:
http://www.personal.psu.edu/faculty/j/5/j5j/IPIP/ipipneo300.htm ">IPIP-NEO Narrative Report

This report compares Alekiller [I thought that was a clever semi-anagram for my name] from the country USA to other adult men. (The name used in this report is either a nickname chosen by the person taking the test, or, if a valid nickname was not chosen, a random nickname generated by the program.)
This report estimates the individual's level on each of the five broad personality domains of the Five-Factor Model. The description of each one of the five broad domains is followed by a more detailed description of personality according to the six subdomains that comprise each domain.

A note on terminology. Personality traits describe, relative to other people, the frequency or intensity of a person's feelings, thoughts, or behaviors. Possession of a trait is therefore a matter of degree. We might describe two individuals as extraverts, but still see one as more extraverted than the other. This report uses expressions such as "extravert" or "high in extraversion" to describe someone who is likely to be seen by others as relatively extraverted. The computer program that generates this report classifies you as low, average, or high in a trait according to whether your score is approximately in the lowest 30%, middle 40%, or highest 30% of scores obtained by people of your sex and roughly your age. Your numerical scores are reported and graphed as percentile estimates. For example, a score of "60" means that your level on that trait is estimated to be higher than 60% of persons of your sex and age.

Please keep in mind that "low," "average," and "high" scores on a personality test are neither absolutely good nor bad. A particular level on any trait will probably be neutral or irrelevant for a great many activites, be helpful for accomplishing some things, and detrimental for accomplishing other things. As with any personality inventory, scores and descriptions can only approximate an individual's actual personality. High and low score descriptions are usually accurate, but average scores close to the low or high boundaries might misclassify you as only average. On each set of six subdomain scales it is somewhat uncommon but certainly possible to score high in some of the subdomains and low in the others. In such cases more attention should be paid to the subdomain scores than to the broad domain score. Questions about the accuracy of your results are best resolved by showing your report to people who know you well.

John A. Johnson wrote descriptions of the five domains and thirty subdomains. These descriptions are based on an extensive reading of the scientific literature on personality measurement. Although Dr. Johnson would like to be acknowledged as the author of these materials if they are reproduced, he has placed them in the public domain.

Extraversion

Extraversion is marked by pronounced engagement with the external world. Extraverts enjoy being with people, are full of energy, and often experience positive emotions. They tend to be enthusiastic, action-oriented, individuals who are likely to say "Yes!" or "Let's go!" to opportunities for excitement. In groups they like to talk, assert themselves, and draw attention to themselves.

Introverts lack the exuberance, energy, and activity levels of extraverts. They tend to be quiet, low-key, deliberate, and disengaged from the social world. Their lack of social involvement should not be interpreted as shyness or depression; the introvert simply needs less stimulation than an extravert and prefers to be alone. The independence and reserve of the introvert is sometimes mistaken as unfriendliness or arrogance. In reality, an introvert who scores high on the agreeableness dimension will not seek others out but will be quite pleasant when approached.

Domain/Facet........... Score 0--------10--------20--------30--------40--------50--------60--------70--------80--------90--------99
EXTRAVERSION...............10 **********
..Friendliness.............24 ************************
..Gregariousness...........31 *******************************
..Assertiveness............0
..Activity Level...........14 **************
..Excitement-Seeking.......55 *******************************************************
..Cheerfulness.............11 ***********

Your score on Extraversion is low, indicating you are introverted, reserved, and quiet. You enjoy solitude and solitary activities. Your socializing tends to be restricted to a few close friends.

Extraversion Facets
• Friendliness. Friendly people genuinely like other people and openly demonstrate positive feelings toward others. They make friends quickly and it is easy for them to form close, intimate relationships. Low scorers on Friendliness are not necessarily cold and hostile, but they do not reach out to others and are perceived as distant and reserved. Your level of friendliness is low.
• Gregariousness. Gregarious people find the company of others pleasantly stimulating and rewarding. They enjoy the excitement of crowds. Low scorers tend to feel overwhelmed by, and therefore actively avoid, large crowds. They do not necessarily dislike being with people sometimes, but their need for privacy and time to themselves is much greater than for individuals who score high on this scale. Your level of gregariousness is low.
• Assertiveness. High scorers Assertiveness like to speak out, take charge, and direct the activities of others. They tend to be leaders in groups. Low scorers tend not to talk much and let others control the activities of groups. Your level of assertiveness is low.
• Activity Level. Active individuals lead fast-paced, busy lives. They move about quickly, energetically, and vigorously, and they are involved in many activities. People who score low on this scale follow a slower and more leisurely, relaxed pace. Your activity level is low.
• Excitement-Seeking. High scorers on this scale are easily bored without high levels of stimulation. They love bright lights and hustle and bustle. They are likely to take risks and seek thrills. Low scorers are overwhelmed by noise and commotion and are adverse to thrill-seeking. Your level of excitement-seeking is average.
• Cheerfulness. This scale measures positive mood and feelings, not negative emotions (which are a part of the Neuroticism domain). Persons who score high on this scale typically experience a range of positive feelings, including happiness, enthusiasm, optimism, and joy. Low scorers are not as prone to such energetic, high spirits. Your level of positive emotions is low.

Agreeableness

Agreeableness reflects individual differences in concern with cooperation and social harmony. Agreeable individuals value getting along with others. They are therefore considerate, friendly, generous, helpful, and willing to compromise their interests with others'. Agreeable people also have an optimistic view of human nature. They believe people are basically honest, decent, and trustworthy.

Disagreeable individuals place self-interest above getting along with others. They are generally unconcerned with others' well-being, and therefore are unlikely to extend themselves for other people. Sometimes their skepticism about others' motives causes them to be suspicious, unfriendly, and uncooperative.

Agreeableness is obviously advantageous for attaining and maintaining popularity. Agreeable people are better liked than disagreeable people. On the other hand, agreeableness is not useful in situations that require tough or absolute objective decisions. Disagreeable people can make excellent scientists, critics, or soldiers.


Domain/Facet........... Score 0--------10--------20--------30--------40--------50--------60--------70--------80--------90--------99
AGREEABLENESS..............45 *********************************************
..Trust....................70 **********************************************************************
..Morality.................59 ***********************************************************
..Altruism.................16 ****************
..Cooperation..............46 **********************************************
..Modesty..................62 **************************************************************
..Sympathy.................23 ***********************

Your level of Agreeableness is average, indicating some concern with others' Needs, but, generally, unwillingness to sacrifice yourself for others.

Agreeableness Facets

• Trust. A person with high trust assumes that most people are fair, honest, and have good intentions. Persons low in trust see others as selfish, devious, and potentially dangerous. Your level of trust is high.
• Morality. High scorers on this scale see no need for pretense or manipulation when dealing with others and are therefore candid, frank, and sincere. Low scorers believe that a certain amount of deception in social relationships is necessary. People find it relatively easy to relate to the straightforward high-scorers on this scale. They generally find it more difficult to relate to the unstraightforward low-scorers on this scale. It should be made clear that low scorers are not unprincipled or immoral; they are simply more guarded and less willing to openly reveal the whole truth. Your level of morality is average.
• Altruism. Altruistic people find helping other people genuinely rewarding. Consequently, they are generally willing to assist those who are in need. Altruistic people find that doing things for others is a form of self-fulfillment rather than self-sacrifice. Low scorers on this scale do not particularly like helping those in need. Requests for help feel like an imposition rather than an opportunity for self-fulfillment. Your level of altruism is low.
• Cooperation. Individuals who score high on this scale dislike confrontations. They are perfectly willing to compromise or to deny their own needs in order to get along with others. Those who score low on this scale are more likely to intimidate others to get their way. Your level of compliance is average.
• Modesty. High scorers on this scale do not like to claim that they are better than other people. In some cases this attitude may derive from low self-confidence or self-esteem. Nonetheless, some people with high self-esteem find immodesty unseemly. Those who are willing to describe themselves as superior tend to be seen as disagreeably arrogant by other people. Your level of modesty is average.
• Sympathy. People who score high on this scale are tenderhearted and compassionate. They feel the pain of others vicariously and are easily moved to pity. Low scorers are not affected strongly by human suffering. They pride themselves on making objective judgments based on reason. They are more concerned with truth and impartial justice than with mercy. Your level of tender-mindedness is low.

Conscientiousness

Conscientiousness concerns the way in which we control, regulate, and direct our impulses. Impulses are not inherently bad; occasionally time constraints require a snap decision, and acting on our first impulse can be an effective response. Also, in times of play rather than work, acting spontaneously and impulsively can be fun. Impulsive individuals can be seen by others as colorful, fun-to-be-with, and zany.

Nonetheless, acting on impulse can lead to trouble in a number of ways. Some impulses are antisocial. Uncontrolled antisocial acts not only harm other members of society, but also can result in retribution toward the perpetrator of such impulsive acts. Another problem with impulsive acts is that they often produce immediate rewards but undesirable, long-term consequences. Examples include excessive socializing that leads to being fired from one's job, hurling an insult that causes the breakup of an important relationship, or using pleasure-inducing drugs that eventually destroy one's health.

Impulsive behavior, even when not seriously destructive, diminishes a person's effectiveness in significant ways. Acting impulsively disallows contemplating alternative courses of action, some of which would have been wiser than the impulsive choice. Impulsivity also sidetracks people during projects that require organized sequences of steps or stages. Accomplishments of an impulsive person are therefore small, scattered, and inconsistent.

A hallmark of intelligence, what potentially separates human beings from earlier life forms, is the ability to think about future consequences before acting on an impulse. Intelligent activity involves contemplation of long-range goals, organizing and planning routes to these goals, and persisting toward one's goals in the face of short-lived impulses to the contrary. The idea that intelligence involves impulse control is nicely captured by the term prudence, an alternative label for the Conscientiousness domain. Prudent means both wise and cautious. Persons who score high on the Conscientiousness scale are, in fact, perceived by others as intelligent.

The benefits of high conscientiousness are obvious. Conscientious individuals avoid trouble and achieve high levels of success through purposeful planning and persistence. They are also positively regarded by others as intelligent and reliable. On the negative side, they can be compulsive perfectionists and workaholics. Furthermore, extremely conscientious individuals might be regarded as stuffy and boring. Unconscientious people may be criticized for their unreliability, lack of ambition, and failure to stay within the lines, but they will experience many short-lived pleasures and they will never be called stuffy.

Domain/Facet........... Score 0--------10--------20--------30--------40--------50--------60--------70--------80--------90--------99
CONSCIENTIOUSNESS..........23 ***********************
..Self-Efficacy............27 ***************************
..Orderliness..............54 ******************************************************
..Dutifulness..............39 ***************************************
..Achievement-Striving.....1 *
..Self-Discipline..........32 ********************************
..Cautiousness.............33 *********************************

Your score on Conscientiousness is low, indicating you like to live for the moment and do what feels good now. Your work tends to be careless and disorganized.

Conscientiousness Facets

• Self-Efficacy. Self-Efficacy describes confidence in one's ability to accomplish things. High scorers believe they have the intelligence (common sense), drive, and self-control necessary for achieving success. Low scorers do not feel effective, and may have a sense that they are not in control of their lives. Your level of self-efficacy is low.
• Orderliness. Persons with high scores on orderliness are well-organized. They like to live according to routines and schedules. They keep lists and make plans. Low scorers tend to be disorganized and scattered. Your level of orderliness is average.
• Dutifulness. This scale reflects the strength of a person's sense of duty and obligation. Those who score high on this scale have a strong sense of moral obligation. Low scorers find contracts, rules, and regulations overly confining. They are likely to be seen as unreliable or even irresponsible. Your level of dutifulness is average.
• Achievement-Striving. Individuals who score high on this scale strive hard to achieve excellence. Their drive to be recognized as successful keeps them on track toward their lofty goals. They often have a strong sense of direction in life, but extremely high scores may be too single-minded and obsessed with their work. Low scorers are content to get by with a minimal amount of work, and might be seen by others as lazy. Your level of achievement striving is low.
• Self-Discipline. Self-discipline-what many people call will-power-refers to the ability to persist at difficult or unpleasant tasks until they are completed. People who possess high self-discipline are able to overcome reluctance to begin tasks and stay on track despite distractions. Those with low self-discipline procrastinate and show poor follow-through, often failing to complete tasks-even tasks they want very much to complete. Your level of self-discipline is low.
• Cautiousness. Cautiousness describes the disposition to think through possibilities before acting. High scorers on the Cautiousness scale take their time when making decisions. Low scorers often say or do first thing that comes to mind without deliberating alternatives and the probable consequences of those alternatives. Your level of cautiousness is average.

Neuroticism

Freud originally used the term neurosis to describe a condition marked by mental distress, emotional suffering, and an inability to cope effectively with the normal demands of life. He suggested that everyone shows some signs of neurosis, but that we differ in our degree of suffering and our specific symptoms of distress. Today neuroticism refers to the tendency to experience negative feelings. Those who score high on Neuroticism may experience primarily one specific negative feeling such as anxiety, anger, or depression, but are likely to experience several of these emotions. People high in neuroticism are emotionally reactive. They respond emotionally to events that would not affect most people, and their reactions tend to be more intense than normal. They are more likely to interpret ordinary situations as threatening, and minor frustrations as hopelessly difficult. Their negative emotional reactions tend to persist for unusually long periods of time, which means they are often in a bad mood. These problems in emotional regulation can diminish a neurotic's ability to think clearly, make decisions, and cope effectively with stress.

At the other end of the scale, individuals who score low in neuroticism are less easily upset and are less emotionally reactive. They tend to be calm, emotionally stable, and free from persistent negative feelings. Freedom from negative feelings does not mean that low scorers experience a lot of positive feelings; frequency of positive emotions is a component of the Extraversion domain.

Domain/Facet........... Score 0--------10--------20--------30--------40--------50--------60--------70--------80--------90--------99
NEUROTICISM................89 *****************************************************************************************
..Anxiety..................56 ********************************************************
..Anger....................38 **************************************
..Depression...............89 *****************************************************************************************
..Self-Consciousness.......99 ***************************************************************************************************
..Immoderation.............99 ***************************************************************************************************
..Vulnerability............82 **********************************************************************************

Your score on Neuroticism is high, indicating that you are easily upset, even by what most people consider the normal demands of living. People consider you to be sensitive and emotional.

Neuroticism Facets
• Anxiety. The "fight-or-flight" system of the brain of anxious individuals is too easily and too often engaged. Therefore, people who are high in anxiety often feel like something dangerous is about to happen. They may be afraid of specific situations or be just generally fearful. They feel tense, jittery, and nervous. Persons low in Anxiety are generally calm and fearless. Your level of anxiety is average.
• Anger. Persons who score high in Anger feel enraged when things do not go their way. They are sensitive about being treated fairly and feel resentful and bitter when they feel they are being cheated. This scale measures the tendency to feel angry; whether or not the person expresses annoyance and hostility depends on the individual's level on Agreeableness. Low scorers do not get angry often or easily. Your level of anger is average.
• Depression. This scale measures the tendency to feel sad, dejected, and discouraged. High scorers lack energy and have difficult initiating activities. Low scorers tend to be free from these depressive feelings. Your level of depression is high.
• Self-Consciousness. Self-conscious individuals are sensitive about what others think of them. Their concern about rejection and ridicule cause them to feel shy and uncomfortable abound others. They are easily embarrassed and often feel ashamed. Their fears that others will criticize or make fun of them are exaggerated and unrealistic, but their awkwardness and discomfort may make these fears a self-fulfilling prophecy. Low scorers, in contrast, do not suffer from the mistaken impression that everyone is watching and judging them. They do not feel nervous in social situations. Your level or self-consciousness is high.
• Immoderation. Immoderate individuals feel strong cravings and urges that they have have difficulty resisting. They tend to be oriented toward short-term pleasures and rewards rather than long- term consequences. Low scorers do not experience strong, irresistible cravings and consequently do not find themselves tempted to overindulge. Your level of immoderation is high.
• Vulnerability. High scorers on Vulnerability experience panic, confusion, and helplessness when under pressure or stress. Low scorers feel more poised, confident, and clear-thinking when stressed. Your level of vulnerability is high.

Openness to Experience

Openness to Experience describes a dimension of cognitive style that distinguishes imaginative, creative people from down-to-earth, conventional people. Open people are intellectually curious, appreciative of art, and sensitive to beauty. They tend to be, compared to closed people, more aware of their feelings. They tend to think and act in individualistic and nonconforming ways. Intellectuals typically score high on Openness to Experience; consequently, this factor has also been called Culture or Intellect. Nonetheless, Intellect is probably best regarded as one aspect of openness to experience. Scores on Openness to Experience are only modestly related to years of education and scores on standard intelligent tests.

Another characteristic of the open cognitive style is a facility for thinking in symbols and abstractions far removed from concrete experience. Depending on the individual's specific intellectual abilities, this symbolic cognition may take the form of mathematical, logical, or geometric thinking, artistic and metaphorical use of language, music composition or performance, or one of the many visual or performing arts. People with low scores on openness to experience tend to have narrow, common interests. They prefer the plain, straightforward, and obvious over the complex, ambiguous, and subtle. They may regard the arts and sciences with suspicion, regarding these endeavors as abstruse or of no practical use. Closed people prefer familiarity over novelty; they are conservative and resistant to change.

Openness is often presented as healthier or more mature by psychologists, who are often themselves open to experience. However, open and closed styles of thinking are useful in different environments. The intellectual style of the open person may serve a professor well, but research has shown that closed thinking is related to superior job performance in police work, sales, and a number of service occupations.

Domain/Facet........... Score 0--------10--------20--------30--------40--------50--------60--------70--------80--------90--------99
OPENNESS TO EXPERIENCE.....60 ************************************************************
..Imagination..............87 ***************************************************************************************
..Artistic Interests.......89 *****************************************************************************************
..Emotionality.............27 ***************************
..Adventurousness..........51 ***************************************************
..Intellect................71 ***********************************************************************
..Liberalism...............14 **************

Your score on Openness to Experience is average, indicating you enjoy tradition but are willing to try new things. Your thinking is neither simple nor complex. To others you appear to be a well-educated person but not an intellectual.

Openness Facets
• Imagination. To imaginative individuals, the real world is often too plain and ordinary. High scorers on this scale use fantasy as a way of creating a richer, more interesting world. Low scorers are on this scale are more oriented to facts than fantasy. Your level of imagination is high.

• Artistic Interests. High scorers on this scale love beauty, both in art and in nature. They become easily involved and absorbed in artistic and natural events. They are not necessarily artistically trained nor talented, although many will be. The defining features of this scale are interest in, and appreciation of natural and artificial beauty. Low scorers lack aesthetic sensitivity and interest in the arts. Your level of artistic interests is high.

• Emotionality. Persons high on Emotionality have good access to and awareness of their own feelings. Low scorers are less aware of their feelings and tend not to express their emotions openly. Your level of emotionality is low.

• Adventurousness. High scorers on adventurousness are eager to try new activities, travel to foreign lands, and experience different things. They find familiarity and routine boring, and will take a new route home just because it is different. Low scorers tend to feel uncomfortable with change and prefer familiar routines. Your level of adventurousness is average.

• Intellect. Intellect and artistic interests are the two most important, central aspects of openness to experience. High scorers on Intellect love to play with ideas. They are open-minded to new and unusual ideas, and like to debate intellectual issues. They enjoy riddles, puzzles, and brain teasers. Low scorers on Intellect prefer dealing with either people or things rather than ideas. They regard intellectual exercises as a waste of time. Intellect should not be equated with intelligence. Intellect is an intellectual style, not an intellectual ability, although high scorers on Intellect score slightly higher than low-Intellect individuals on standardized intelligence tests. Your level of intellect is high.

• Liberalism. Psychological liberalism refers to a readiness to challenge authority, convention, and traditional values. In its most extreme form, psychological liberalism can even represent outright hostility toward rules, sympathy for law-breakers, and love of ambiguity, chaos, and disorder. Psychological conservatives prefer the security and stability brought by conformity to tradition. Psychological liberalism and conservatism are not identical to political affiliation, but certainly incline individuals toward certain political parties. Your level of liberalism is low.

The questions were about criminals, not lawbreakers. I differentiate between the two. Some laws are criminal.

Saturday, November 22, 2008

After that crack, TF

I'm going to have to post some pix of the Mormon rellies:

Wait, there's a boy missing... Oh, there he is with his Dad:

I can't really feel too guilty about invading their privacy or anything; they blog here. But, hey! If you go over there, don't be leavin' any snarky comments or anything: that's my niece and nephew, and, I guess, my great-niece and -nephew (Holy crap, I'm old!). And they're the nicest people in the world! Hopefully they think the same of me.

I don't want them feelin' the need to backtrack you back over here and find out what I'm really like.

Hey, doesn't my niece, here, look a lot like this gal?

Friday, November 21, 2008

Since it's, like, 15° out tonight

it seems like an appropriate time to post a couple pix of my niece's wedding in Muskogee, OK, from last June. (Okay, okay, I just found the old camera.)



Some of you may recognize the grizzled character in the first pic. Yup, Ron's alive and well. That's my mother and my Grandma behind Aliina, along with a bunch of cousins and Aunt Linda and Uncle Joe. I'm particularly fond of Aliina's pose in the second picture.

Oh, that's Aunt Paula, there, too (in the first pic). And that might be my sister, the bride's mother, up by my truck.

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Hayley Westenra is a New Zealander, eh?

What an extraordinary talent she is! I found her in the Celtic Woman group and I was intrigued by the fact that she didn't seem to be with them all the time, so I had to find out what was up with that. She shows off her Kiwi accent at that site. Subtly different from Aussie - I can usually tell who's what between the two accents, but I couldn't tell you how.

The Wikipedia article says she's Dutch and Irish. I suppose, there must be Dutch people in a place called New Zealand. Westenra's a Frisian name.

I'll be picking up more of her stuff.

What? You don't think it's bourgeois to like a beautiful woman with a beautiful voice? I'd say "love," but there are...you know...implications.

Monday, October 20, 2008

What I did over the weekend

I'm somewhat proud of myself. Saturday, I put the pool away. It looked clean enough to me, but I did have to vacuum out all the leaves and the water. Then I pulled it out of the shade to dry in the sun. Then I rolled it into a ball twice the size of the box, jammed it in as best I could and stowed it in the shed.

Good enough.

I started to rake the front yard then, but I decided it'd be better just to run the bagging lawn-mower over it. Looks good.

Sunday we overslept for church. The wife started b... uh, nagging at 10:15. That's when we have to be in the car and on the street to get to church by 10:30. She was up at 8:00. Therefore she's virtuous and we're not.

You know what I'm thinking.

Anyway, well, the furnace hasn't been working this fall. The indicator light said everything was just dandy, but it wouldn't turn on. Laurie called Ron and handed the phone to me. Ron walked me through a bunch of tests and we got the bugger running. Well, I had to go to Menard's and get a new thermostat, but everything's working now.

More later.

Friday, October 03, 2008

Events lately

Two weekends ago, we went to the Pine City Fall Gathering. Last weekend we went up to the Inlaws lake place and this weekend I'm running the MTC Marathon.

That's the outline. Maybe I'll flesh it out when I'm not bummed out at losing the big game in Washington. Maybe these guys will help.

Thursday, September 18, 2008

I suppose the people who still stop by here are aware

that my tagline, or whatever you call it, "Seeking transcendence one relationship at a time" is a bit of satire. But since nobody's mentioned it, I figured maybe I should say something.

Any suggestions for how I could make it funnier?

[Edit-5/16/2010: Good thing I quoted the tagline, eh? Since I changed it. It's actually quite a brilliant line. I think I changed it out of guilt.]

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Oh, good. It's clearing up. (Not for the squeamish.)

[Before I get to that, remind me to say something about Snopes' Sarah Palin articles before the election. I've got that page sitting open now and I'm about to use it for something else.]

Yesterday was my last chance to take a really long run before the Marathon. I had the day off, so I decided to run down from the house here to Victory Memorial Parkway, south to Wirth Parkway to Cedar Lake Parkway and on over to Lake of the Isles. The whole route is just beautiful, except for the plain old city streets in this neighborhood.

Let's see if I can find some good images... Not so good of Memorial Pkwy, it was taken too early in the spring... Here's the Theo Wirth Golf Course as it will look a few weeks hence, I ran by that... I've gotta get a new digital camera. Somehow ours didn't make it back from Oklahoma. Oh! There's Brownie Lake! I like to look at that as I run by.

This guy's got some pix of the Cedar Lake Bike Highway. I run for a mile or so alongside that on the pedestrian path. And this pic is definitely Lake of the Isles, not Lake Calhoun. If you flip through those pix, there are several of Lake of the Isles. Calhoun is a big, round thing. Oh, this is better!

When I get a new digital camera, I'll post some good pictures.

Well, the run went just dandy, though it took me four and a half hours. I'm sure it was a full twenty miles, maybe a little more. Wouldn't want to peak too soon, don't you know. I was draggin' my a-- pretty bad by the time I got home. That was at 1:12, I started at 8:40 AM. It's been tough to train consistently this year, for the same reasons it's been tough to blog consistently. Some of the same reasons, anyway.

But... This is where the squeamish might want to turn away. I got in the shower and soaped up, when suddenly the call of nature became urgent enough, that I got out of the shower all soapy to take care of it. My pee was all red! Real red! And then I got nauseous and dizzy. I'm not sure if that was just squeamishness or if I had really lost that much blood... I feel exactly the same way if I watch someone take blood out of my arm, whether its a lot or a little. I can't watch that. Now I know what happens if I see it coming out of my you-know-what.

I still needed to rinse off the soap, but I was afraid of what might happen if I didn't sit down, so I sat down in the shower stall to rinse off. Thank God! Next thing I know, I'm at a party where everybody's talking and moving like a vidoetape on fast-forward, I open my eyes and can't figure out what the hell's going on or where I am. I was having such a nice nap, why do I have to get up now? What the...? Oh, I'm in the shower!

I'm still too soapy, the shower head is still in my hand so I finish rinsing; apparently I was in a stable position, I hadn't flopped over much... Now I have to get up and get the towel. Okay, that worked out OK, but I rushed through the drying and grabbed a pair of shorts in case my daughter, who was due home from school any minute now, walked in on me. Put the shorts on and went to the next room to flop on a mattress we have on the floor.

Then the doorbell rang. I'd locked her out.

The details get rather mundane after that. I read somewhere that blood in the urine is a common occurrence after a long run. Don't bother the doctor unless it persists longer than a day or two.

So, I guess I'll just monitor the situation for another day, and if I'm not happy with the progress, I'll go bug somebody about it.

So that's what's on my mind. How about you?

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Welp, we stopped by the DQ on the way home tonight...

We bought a couple squishy burgers (bbq sandwishes) and a couple hotdogs and a load of Buster Bars... The wife's got a new job with the local school district and we were over helping her set up her room.

Speaking of jobs [and I usually don't, but] the SuperMegaCorp I work for just got bought by SUPERDUPERMEGACORP. Word is, there'll be no noticeable changes down at my end right away. We'll undoubtedly start seeing signs of reorganization inside a few months. I think I'll find it interesting to observe this process from the underside. Those who find my pro-business naivete irritating will be happy to hear that I'm potentially facing some hard schooling.

Friday, July 11, 2008

We've been having critter troubles lately.

A week ago last Friday, a squirrel managed to drown in our pool. So I got to pick him out (could have been a "her" for all I know - I'm pretty squeamish about looking, and I'm not well enough versed in squirrel parts to know if I could tell, anyway). Rigor mortis had set in, so it was like handling a little, furry statuette. That told me he'd been there awhile, but not too terribly long.

I bagged him up, and threw him in the dumpster. I forgot to say any words of condolence to his relatives. "He was a cute little guy..."

So we drained the pool, mopped it out and refilled it.

No sooner did we get that done, when my daughter comes down and informs me that we've got a raccoon on the back porch, eating the cat's food. The wife and I head out to scare it off and the bastard casually rips a hole in the screen and jumps out. So I put the windows back in and blocked the door with boards.

Next day, after church, we stopped at Fleet Farm and bought a live trap. I set it up by the porch, tossed in some cat food, and woke up Monday to find another cute little critter napping in the cage. I went back inside, put on some leather gloves and went out to haul him away. He'd rolled the cage on its side, so I had to roll it back. When I started to reach for it with my hand, the little bugger transmogrified into a demon, screamed and lunged at my fingers. Kinda took me aback. So I rolled the trap over with the bottom of my shoe. Got to see a couple more of those lunges. I picked up the cage and, carrying it out away from my side brought him around to the truck and loaded him in the back. I dropped him off in a park on the east side of the Mississippi. I don't think he'll find his way back.

Tuesday morning, before dawn, my wife and I are wakened by the screen porch door slamming and banging. Again. That was one of the symptoms of the previous feral burglar. I didn't do anything about it right then, except reboard the door, then I forgot about him until, late that night, when I was headed to bed I hear clattering and banging of the boards falling over. So I went roaring out the door... I think I had some kind of weapon, but I don't remember what. Fortunately, he hadn't quite made it in when I did that.

This time, I boarded, barred and blocked the door with every heavy thing I could find. He didn't come back that night.

I set up and baited the live trap again last night and woke to find another napping raccoon in it this morning. Hopefully, not the same one. Repeat of previous performance, but this time I took the litter p----rhead out east of 35W, just in case it was, indeed the same one and he knew the route from the park across the river straight back to my house.

I feel a little bad about something, though. All my friends are hunters and trappers (and fishermen, though that's beside the point), and I'm none of those things. I'm itching to get a pelt. I've never seen a litter of 'coons with less than three...I think the term is "kits."

The sibling or parent of those two twerps better keep that in mind.

Thursday, July 03, 2008

I was watching some more episodes of The Beverly Hillbillies

again tonight. It really was a funny show.

Did you know that Irene Ryan died with a million dollars in the bank? Left it all to the whippersnappers.

Hard to hold her wealth against her: she was brilliant!

Sunday, June 08, 2008

Steve needs to read The Mainspring of Human Progress

Henry Grady Weaver would not have objected to me spending a sunny afternoon making this with a magnifying glass:
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Weaver was a disciple of Rose Wilder Lane and Isabel Paterson.

Sunday, May 25, 2008

This seems like pretty good stuff to me

EARN YOUR FORTUNE IN
FINDER'S FEES
The Easiest Money You'll Ever Make!
by: J.F. (Jim) Straw
Would you like to earn $75,000 per month for 5 years?

One Finder did. He saw an item in a newsletter offering 10,000 barrels of Crude Oil per day for 5 years. Putting that seller together with a buyer at a small refinery, he earned a fee of only 25¢ per barrel, and collected his fee of $75,000 every month for 5 years.

How about trading less than $1 in postage and a couple hours easy work for $100?

Not a big fee but it was so easy another Finder couldn't pass it up. Reading a "collectors" magazine, he came across an ad seeking some college memorabilia from a college near his home. He made some local telephone calls, located the items wanted, wrote a letter, and earned an easy $100.

Do Fast-Food Franchises interest you?

More than one Finder makes staggering fees each year by just finding "locations" for fast-food franchises. Others earn smaller, but consistent fees, finding locations for Vending Machines and Coin Operated Games. It takes some research, time, and an eye for consumer buying habits, but some of the fees would boggle your mind.

Two Finders - Two Fees!

One Finder had a "seller" offering a warehouse full of closeout & surplus inventory. The other Finder had a "buyer" looking for closeout & surplus inventory. They saw each other's listings in the same newsletter. After a few telephone calls and letters, they earned over $25,000 each.

Did you know there are firms in this country who "manage" hotels, mobile home parks, apartment buildings, etc., for the absentee owners?

Those firms often pay substantial Finder's Fees if you can find properties for them to manage.

Would you believe over $50,000 per year by just matching Newspaper Classified Ads with the Telephone Book Yellow Pages?

One Finder makes that much and more each year by just matching-up the wants & availables in Newspaper Classified Ads from neighboring areas with the Yellow Pages in his town and other Classified Ads from other newspapers.

If you can think creatively, you might be able to pull-off one like this!

A company had been trying to dump a huge volume of lead weights for ages. They couldn't find a buyer. Then a creative Finder figured out that those weights could be used in the commercial fishing industry. His creative thinking was rewarded with a substantial Finder's Fee.

Television Advertising pays big bucks to Finders, too!

NO! You don't have to run any TV advertising. Just find people who need TV advertising and connect them with TV stations who will run their ads. Of course, first you have to strike a deal for "dead" air time.

It would take a couple hundred pages to tell you about all of the Finder's Fees earned in machinery & equipment deals.

As you probably know, there are literally hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of pieces of machinery & equipment setting around, in almost any industry you can name. Find a buyer. Earn a fee.

If a product or service can be sold or bought, there is a potential Finder's Fee just waiting for a Finder with the "know-how" to earn it. There are Finder's Fees to be earned in every small town or big city, in every state and country. All you need to do is match-up the buyers and sellers, put them together, sit-back and collect your fees.

And...you can start your own Finder's Fee business for less than it would cost you for a good meal at a fine restaurant. - All you really need is a typewriter, business letterhead, and a telephone to get started.

"Why would any company pay a Finder's Fee?"

There are over 240,000,000 people in this country -- and millions of businesses (small, medium & large). Can any business know of ALL of the sources of supply, potential buyers, or providers of necessary services? -- Not on your life!

Why should a company spend thousands of dollars, and tie up essential employees to do nothing but research the existence of these suppliers, buyers, and providers -- when they can easily let a Finder go to the trouble of locating the contacts they need. And, those fees are considerably less than what they would have spent if they had done the research themselves.

Finders EARN their fees by weeding-through the unqualified leads and flakes; by following all of the dead-end paths; and eventually putting their hands on a real, honest-to-goodness source, buyer, or whatever. -- THAT is what a Finder gets paid for doing.

A company, or individual, who pays a Finder's Fee, pays it so they won't have to chase down all of those unqualified leads, blind alleys, and dead-ends.

It is really far easier than you might imagine...but...if you don't know how to do it (and do it right), you may chase down all the blind alleys without ever finding a profitable match. - That's what happens to most amateur finders - a lot of blind alleys but NO Fees!!

I've spent over 30 years of my life as a finder - gathering facts and doing the things that you need to do to be a professional finder. Starting with a $42 unemployment check, I became a multi-millionaire.

During those 30-plus years, I made every mistake ever made by amateur finders - until I learned how to do it right. -- I have earned Finder's Fees for locating everything from a World War II bayonet (for a collector) to buyers for Oil Field Equipment.

Over the past 10 years, I have watched as literally thousands of men, and women, have tried to become Finders. - Most of them don't even know, for sure, what a Finder's Fee is, or how a Finder earns those fees.

The real tragedy of this situation is that there are literally millions, upon millions, of dollars out there just waiting to be claimed by someone who can "find" the buyer, or seller, needed to complete the transaction.

What Is A FINDER?

Unfortunately, most people...even many of those who call themselves "finders".....don't really know "what" a finder is, or how to start earning Finder's Fees.

In order to define what a Finder "is," let's first point out what a Finder "is not."

A FINDER is NOT a PRE-SELLER -- Pre-sellers accept a selling price from a product source, add-on what they feel to be a fair margin of profit, and sell the item. After they make a sale, they then buy the product and ship it to the buyer.

A FINDER is NOT a DEALER -- Dealers take-on a product, or service, for continuing promotion and sales. They are responsible for the distribution of a product, or service, from the prime source to the end user.

A FINDER is NOT a REPRESENTATIVE or AGENT for either the buyer or seller. -- Representatives & Agents are empowered by their clients to negotiate the purchase, or sale, of specific products or services. They can legally sign documents obligating their clients.

Too many "supposed" Finders are not really Finders at all -- they are Salesmen, Agents, Representatives, and/or Pre-sellers.

A Finder is nothing more than a "match-maker" for a fee. The professional Finder simply matches QUALIFIED buyers with QUALIFIED sellers, or vice versa - "FOR A FEE!"


Finders DO NOT sell anything; except their knowledge.
Finders DO NOT negotiate anything; except their own fees.
Finders DO NOT add-on their profits.

"Contacts Are A Finder's Stock in Trade"
"Contacts" are the bread and butter of the professional finder. All he is really selling is names & addresses of QUALIFIED contacts.

The following are the most important points to remember:


(1) Be a FINDER; not an Agent, Representative, Salesman, or Pre-seller. DO NOT try to sell anything; simply offer QUALIFIED contacts to your clients who offer a Finder's Fee. Nothing more.

(2) As a FINDER, let your contact and your client negotiate their own deal; once you have brought them together.

(3) Use the finest materials (letterheads & envelopes) available, and maintain the most professional business approach in all of your dealings.

(4) Furnish only QUALIFIED contacts to your client. UNqualified contacts only come from UNqualified "amateur" finders.

(5) NEVER give your client the name & address of another Finder. When you do, you start a Daisy Chain, and are not entitled to any form of Finder's Fees.

(6) READ...READ...READ...ever increasing the number and quality of your contacts.

(7) Keep chronological and complete files of all of your correspondence (even telephone calls) with both your contacts and your clients.

(8) Always FIND IT FIRST, before contacting a potential client. This one action, alone, will save you a lot of money in paper that doesn't go into the waste basket.

(9) If you don't get a response from the potential client, DO NOT do what childish amateurs do ­ DO NOT blame the advertiser; blame yourself. You probably didn't offer the potential client what he wanted; so, try again, or give up, on that particular finding opportunity.
NOTE: If one advertiser doesn't respond to your contact offer, you should keep your eyes open for a similar Finder's Fee opportunity; to which you can make the same offer. - BE SURE to re-confirm your contact.


(10) The "key" word in being a successful finder is PATIENCE. The reason most amateur finders never earn their first fee is because they push for a fast close. They try to negotiate the deal for the principals. DO NOT do it!! Let your principals close their own deal, in their own time. A "right" deal will close itself. A "wrong" deal will never close; no matter how hard you push and shove.
As a finder, you can work anywhere you want, at any time you want - just by keeping your eyes & ears open. Even an offhand comment overheard on the street can lead to a finder's fee.

Whether you live in Podunk, or Metropolitan New York City, you can earn constant, and sizable, Finder's Fees all year, every year.

Your family, friends, business associates, and local merchants (as well as people all over the nation, and around the world) can make you a fortune -- if you know who will pay you a Finder's Fee for information you hear and see every day.

Using the information in this report, you can be well on your way to earning your fortune in Finder's Fees.

This report was excerpted from the complete, master course, "Finder's Fees - The Easiest Money You'll Ever Make" by J.F. (Jim) Straw; the only professional finder to ever write on the subject. The complete, master course has been the bible of professional finders since 1978. -- Available in our Power Tools for Entrepreneurs.



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J.F. (Jim) Straw
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Dalton, GA 30720-8029
jfstraw@businesslyceum.com
Be sure to mention you saw it in the Business Lyceum.
Copyright - 2006, J.F. (Jim) Straw. All rights reserved.

Saturday, May 10, 2008

Oops!

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I was trimming my hair today, when the guard fell off. So the only option I could see was to do this.

Oh, well. It was on my list of things to do before I die.

Don't worry. My daughter still looks like this:
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Monday, April 14, 2008

I need to thank Rosie when I get home

for all her help this morning. My wife had to get up and head out early today for work and I had to get the kids up and out alone.

I was up late typing up some papers, so I was having a heck of a time getting out of bed. Rosie saw that and got Lena up and dressed and made sure she went potty. Hopefully, they both ate something. I had a glass of milk, but I just realized I didn't check into whether they had anything.

Anyway, I couldn't have done it without her, and I'm grateful. I'm afraid I was mostly gruff and grumpy at the time. She did a good thing and deserves something special for it.

Friday, April 04, 2008

David Broza

is the greatest genius of our age.

OK, he's got serious competition from Tiger Woods. But I, personally, get more joy from music and this guy puts an extraordinary amount of joy into his music and gets back what he puts in. Maybe more.

Is it bourgeois to be passionate about great jazz? Maybe not, but Broza transcends labels and styles and classes with his jazz. He stands on the shoulders of giants, no doubt. But he's on top.

He was born in Haifa, Israel, son of the first folk singer to sing in Hebrew, met many world famous musicians who made pilgrimages to the Holy Land and came to see her, then they moved to Spain, where he learned their styles and songs, and America, where he learned our jazz and rock-n-roll.

You can see it all in the PBS special: David Broza at Masada: The Sunrise Concert. I'm especially enamored of the Israeli singer (I'll probably misspell this) Kelee; a gorgeous woman with a magnificent voice. And the Jamaican water drum player, Sujya(?), who beat with his hand on a Kerr jar that he dipped in a tub of water, to marvelous musical results. And the Hebrew/Arabic duet he did with a Palastinian band leader who so joyfully sang with David and the child chorus their song of peace and love. Though I understood not a word, I raised my hands to heaven during that song. From their lips to God's ear.

What they showed on PBS had one flaw: it was only one hour. I could have stood another three or four.

Awesome!

Sunday, March 02, 2008

My daughter's just like me.

I guess this goes here. I try to do things about my bourgeois lifestyle here. I know I promised to do a better review of the new production of My Fair Lady today, but I've been rather busy since I made that promise. It rates every positive thing that can be said about it, I kept finding myself grinning during the performance - it may well be the best musical ever, and these guys really do it brilliantly.

Maybe that's as much as I need to say. But back to my daughter:

We're talkin' the older one. Tonight we were talking about her homework project, somehow the subject turned to geology and she ran up to get a library book she checked out today to show me what the MOHS scale is. That's the same rock hardness scale I learned in junior high, but I didn't know the name. Apparently there's another scale for minerals that I wasn't aware of. I should have asked about that.

I tested her personality at INFP, which is pretty similar to my INTP, but I keep in mind that I'm not a professional, and I have to wonder if that personality type might be more common among children. It strikes me as an immature way to think to me, but then all you bastards look childish to me. You're all getting worked up over some insignificant BS.

The thing about INTPs is that we're as close to Spock as humanity has to offer. We think like him, but we keep finding ourselves freaking out over some damn thing.

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Here's a homely topic

My four year old daughter just took care of the whole pooping issue all by herself. It fell to me to check her work, and it appears that she did everything perfectly.

I exclaimed, "You're a Big Girl now!"

You can understand my excitement, I'm sure. Hangin' around poop...well, that's not where I want to be. Poop is yucky.

But, it occurred to me to wonder, what are the other major signs (or whatever) of growth?

I'd especially be interested in what milestone I should work to pass next.

Monday, February 04, 2008

So, the Giants won

And, since my last post, that applies to both the NFC Championships against my Packers and the Superbowl.

And, guess what? I'm one of the guys who dissed them both times. They look like a team that can't handle what they're going to go up against until the game ends. I mean, how can a team that barely eaks out a win in every game keep that up through the Superbowl, where they faced the best offense anybody's ever seen?!

[Here's a great recap.]

Answer: the Giants' defense is better than any we've ever seen. They make great offenses look like amateurs.

If they can do that to the Patriots, it makes me feel a helluva lot better about my Packers. In fact, since the Pack took them into overtime, it makes me think that "we" [yeah, like I had a hand in it somehow] might have beaten the Patriots. Favre seemed to be pretty well protected in the NFC Championship game. The Giants' D were all over Tom Brady.

If only there weren't this other team out there.

Hey! It's absolutely THE Cinderella Story that every American kid dreams about when he's out in the yard tossing a football to himself. With 2 minutes and 30-something seconds to go in the game, the Giants get the ball back deep in their own territory and Eli Manning engineers an 83-yard drive - in the face of fierce opposition - with two major completions to David Tyree...well, I guess the NFL frowns on unauthorized published descriptions of their games, but it ended with an easy-looking TD completion to Burress with just over 30 seconds left.

It would have taken a miracle for Brady to pull it out at that point. Brady tried his best to provide that miracle, and nobody would have put it past him, but the Giants' D wasn't allowing any miracles yesterday.

[OMG! You didn't see that screw-up, did you? If you did, well, I confused Tyree with Moss in the last two drives. ACH!]

I tend to notice things like blocking and pass protection when I'm watching games, and both defenses were tearing the O-lines up, so when I see a defensive struggle it takes a while for me to figure out what went wrong. It looked like incompetence... but I was focussing on the wrong side of the ball.

Saturday, January 26, 2008

"TERENCE, this is stupid stuff..."

is the first line of my favorite poem of all time. It's by A.E. Housman, and I think he put it at the end of his collection (linked to the title above), A Shropshire Lad, because he saw it as I do - as a kind of dessert after eating the meat and vegetables of the rest of the book. Unfortunately, it's Baked Alaska following plain (but healthful) fare.

It's difficult to say anything about Housman's poetry in general, or A Shropshire Lad in particular, that he doesn't say himself in "Terence." Although, one thing he doesn't say, in any of his writings, is that the darkness of them may have been the result of the fact that he was a gay man in Victorian and Edwardian England. And abstinance didn't make him as happy as he could have been.

"Terence" is Housman's justification of the dark subjects he usually wrote about. And even knowing that - how uninspiring it sounds - I love it because it's such a personal story, with a clear moral (though without sacrificing the story, or forcing the rhyme-scheme) and a wonderful ancient history lesson to boot.

The thing's kind of a mini-epic - and it's funny, informative and sobering.

Saturday, January 12, 2008

I...OMG! The Packers are playing today!!

OK! The game's tied 14-14! You can say I haven't missed anything.

Snowin' hard at Lambeau Field! Awesome.

Fumble...the Pack's got it!

I'm not gonna do a play by play ... Favre lobs a TD!
.......

Oh, isn't that fun? Blogger just wiped out my brilliant description of Favre's escape from the sackers and the shovel pass for first and goal that set up an easy three yard run for touchdown.

The Pack has now tied the team record for first half points in the playoffs with 28.

Seattle scored a Field Goal. Score now 28-17.
.........
OK, after all that crap, the score is now 42-20. A new Packers record for post-season points.

The Packers finally have to punt. Crap!
.......
Special Secret Double Delux Bistro Burger!

Wait to buy it until the owner gets back in charge.
......
Nobody's able to move the ball in this weather.
........
Seattle pulls a couple running plays and the game's over!

Favre 173 yards, 3 TDs. And my daughter was impressed by the announcer's mention of the snowball.