In General

Dear 2024,

You can go fuck yourself.

Sincerely,
Me

Continue reading Dear 2024, Go Fuck Yourself...

On the way to a family gathering in Dallas this past weekend, Jacob made a comment on how it was too bad we couldn’t just think of someplace and be there instantly. I told him that sounded cool, and then asked everyone in the car this:

If you could travel anywhere, at anytime, instantly—where would you live?

The only rules are: you can travel directly to public spaces, your own property, or where you’ve been explicitly invited, and then only during a specific window.

Continue reading Where Would You Live?...

On this day, 36 years ago, I was born. That’s right, today is my birthday! 36 is a pretty insignificant birthday in the grand scheme of things, though I do find it amusing that I’ve now lived my second 18 years. Whereas it seemed like the first 18 years took absolutely forever, the last 18 years have flown by.

Continue reading 36 Years Ago Today...

Here are a couple timeless pieces, just in time for the "Christmas in the workplace" season:

I Am In A Funk and Holiday Update

Hey folks...I'm just sorting through all that's gone on since the last post. It's been uneventful for the most part.

The trip to Boston for Tech-Ed was a lot of fun, though Tech-Ed itself was a little lacking. When I wasn't in a session, Julie and I could be found walking all over Boston, checking out all of the sights. We did the Freedom Trail, we did the Public Garden, Boston Common, the North End, U.S.S. Constitution, churches and more churches, MIT, Harvard, rode the "T", and even took the commuter train out to Lincoln to visit an old roommate. All in all, a very good trip.

Over the 4th of July weekend, Julie and I took the boys down to her parent's beach house. It was packed (the house, that is) -- 11 people and 2 dogs! The people broke down like so: 6 adults and 5 children, ages 2 1/2 to 6 years old, and all boys. We did finally get out on the water for a little shark fishing, though we didn't catch one. I did, however, catch a ribbon fish and a couple of speckled trout, though the trout got away.

The boys have been with me all month, which has been very nice, if not quite a bit hectic.

Oh, before I forget, I took Julie to see Les Miserables in Dallas for her birthday. This is one of her favorite shows, but it was the first time I had ever seen it. I really enjoyed it.

Well, that's it for now...

According to a Fort Worth Star-Telegram article, the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History has decided to show the IMAX film Volcanoes of the Deep Sea.

Museum Director Van Romans, with the blessing of the board of directors, reversed the museum's decision and said the film will open in Fort Worth "before summer." The film is already being promoted on the museum's Web site.

"We're going to show things that have scientific credibility, and people can make their own decisions," Romans said Wednesday. "That's a very personal choice. But we are a science and history institution. We have a responsibility to the public to share with them."

Carol Murray, director of marketing for the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, said the museum decided not to offer the movie after showing it to a sample audience, a practice often followed by managers of Imax theaters. Ms. Murray said 137 people participated in the survey, and while some thought it was well done, "some people said it was blasphemous." In their written comments, she explained, they made statements like "I really hate it when the theory of evolution is presented as fact," or "I don't agree with their presentation of human existence."

I heard about this for the first time on my drive to work this morning. I quickly found a New York Times article on the subject, which is where the text above came from.

In all honesty, I was not likely to see this film, even if it was shown in Fort Worth. The fact that now I can't see it locally, due to the narrow minded views of some, really burns me up. The increasing power of religious fundamentalists scares me.

I am disappointed in the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, and I am embarrassed to live in such a narrow-minded community.

As I come across them, I will post additional links on this subject:
Imax Theaters Reject Movies Containing Evolution

Looks like folks in Norway view the "Hook'em Horns" sign a little differently than us.

Saluting the Longhorns, or satan?

I hope you all have a nice Thanksgiving holiday.

I'm heading down to Austin in a bit for some turkey with my sister and brother-in-law, and then some Texas football tomorrow afternoon.

Today is the 3-year anniversary of something I’d rather forget. It’s been 3 years since I left Colorado. Some of my long-time readers might recall a post from August of 2002 where I said it was the 1-year anniversary of my departure from Colorado, and wonder what the heck I’m talking about now.

In August of 2001, I was hired by a company in Fort Worth, Texas. Our house in Colorado hadn’t sold, and we had a 1 bedroom apartment in Fort Worth available to use practically free of charge for a couple of months. So the plan was for my wife and 13 month-old son to stay in Colorado until the house sold, or as long as made sense. To my wife, about two weeks made sense. On September 5th, 2001, my dad and I flew up to Denver to pack the house and move everything to storage in Fort Worth, while my wife and son joined me in the tiny 1 bedroom apartment.

On September 8, 2001, I was busy driving a big ass moving truck through southern Colorado, across northeastern New Mexico, and down into the Texas panhandle. I’ve not been back to Colorado since.

Before we moved to Colorado, I went practically every year since I was 6 or 7…sometimes twice a year (to ski, snowboard, and camp). Now, here we are three years later, and I am dying to get back, if just for a visit…just a few days. Work keeps getting in the way, or perhaps I keep letting it get in the way. Maybe it is time to rearrange my priorities and take a little break. I’ve got old friends to catch up with, and maybe even a new one or two to meet in person for the first time.