12.23.09 Christmas Presents!
Well, Danielle and I exchanged gifts tonight: I got the complete Farscape
12.08.08 The Doghouse: sexism has a double standard!
Watch this:
11.18.08 Letters to God
Poor Joyce. She wanted a puppy and God gave her a baby brother. You can’t always get what you want …
11.04.08 I shoulda voted Lando …
I felt compelled to vote Palpatine, but now I’m regretting it …
See more funny videos at Funny or Die
05.10.08 Moving Day Fiasco
Yesterday Danielle and I moved from our apartment into a friend’s house, where we’ll be staying for three weeks.
This was possibly the worst move I’ve ever attempted.
04.21.08 Intersection
This weekend saw a lot of action.
Danielle and I participated in Intersection. Along with several students from IWU, ISU, and some folks around the community we worked at Kids Club East in Bloomington. I really struggled with selfishness all week; every time I thought about getting up to start the day at 8:30 I was filled with dread and loathing that left me feeling pretty much like the scum of the earth.
We spent the day cleaning the daycare center. It was quite a lot of work. I’ve never cleaned so many toys in my life. Some of them were quite grimy. This is in no way a slight on the good people at Kids Club East, as I’m certain they are quite busy with the kids who come by. Speaking of which there were some wonderful children there who were incredibly cute.
After spending the day cleaning and playing with kids Danielle and I were both happy to be child-less at this point in our lives. Someday definitely, but thank goodness it’s not right now.
We missed out on the evening’s celebration of the day’s work due to a prior engagement. It would have been nice to see photos and video of what the other two groups of folks were up to (either organizing a senior citizen’s dance or working with homeless people at the Jesus House).
One thing I’m realizing very much lately is just how many opportunities there are in this community to get involved; people are always organizing things and helping those in need. Maybe it’s the presence of State Farm, but there are a lot of good neighbors here.
02.21.08 The Lesson of Legotown
Rethinking Schools Online has a great piece about social justice, modeled via a Lego® brick economy. It’s a great read that really led me to think about how children develop their thinking. In times like this I’m happy I’m not a parent yet, but in any community sense similar mental mores are passed along and subconsciously created, modified and replaced constantly.
One of my “passions” would be playing board games. I especially enjoy games with a deeper level of economy and politics. I’m fascinated by what comes out of playing a game with friends: feelings of frustration at not getting your way, the joy of winning, the experience of helping someone else, etc. I think games really teach us a lot about ourselves, if we’re willing to pay attention.
Through my experience I’ve learned about my beliefs by playing games (both board games and physical competition). I used to put a lot of stock about myself as a person in how well I played games. That’s changed a bit, and I’m happy to say that I am in a position to teach some of the vague lessons I’ve learned to others in the same context. Gaming to me is an enjoyable time of self-discovery through an abstraction.
Of course, it’s not always this way, sometimes I just like playing Carcassonne.
02.20.08 Oh That PETA
A PETA activist is changing her name. I hope this gal knows what she’s doing. When she’s in her 60s and still known as FishingHurts will she still be happy about this decision?
And as for the “.com” part, ever hear of “dotcom”? Pronounced the same way, and I’m certain she’s doing this for the airtime on cable news anyway. Talking heads would have to promote the site then…
01.22.08 Namaste
Today I started yoga. Very interesting time. Our instructor was 9 months pregnant and still quite a bit more limber than I am. I suppose a journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step.
We exercised for over an hour, and I feel quite worn out. Remembering when to breathe is gonna be tough.
All in all, I’m excited to be working out with my wife.
12.14.07 House Meets Google
One of my favorite televisions shows is House. One of its running gags involves the auto-immune disease Lupus (which my grandmother has).
Well, Google has brought back its Zeitgeist for 2007 and guess what: Lupus is a frequently asked question.
I’m convinced that this is due to its recurring theme in House. If so, totally neat.
