This is one of those
"tagging" exercises.  I wasn't actually tagged, but I thought it was a
fun one, so I stole it.  If you're interested or need some blog-fodder,
have at it!

1. Post a picture that is worth a 1000 words.

2. Write a limerick about a Xangan you admire. Include reasons why you admire the Xangan in the limerick.

The one I know here is named Bouree / Musique with her joyous "hooray!"/ But better watch out, / when religion's about, / your beliefs she can certainly puree.
3. Do you have a secret blog and if so why? If not, why not?
Well, no.  Anything not worth making public isn't worth making public to a few less people.  What you see here is all I'm willing to post (though IM and Email have quite a bit more lattitude)

4. Write out three wishes for other people and say why you wish those things.

I
wish my brother success in Medical school--he's going to invest a lot of time there, that I know.

I wish Mossi the best of luck with her piratey BF--she's a good kid and deserves a good man.

I wish better health for Kitten--she's sufferin', I know.

5. If you had to make something with a grapefruit and two rubber bands what would it be?

Fruit-chucks!

6. Did you ever practice french kissing, and if so, on what, or how?

No

7. What is the most disgusting thing you've ever eaten?

Warmed-over steam-table brats with cheese in them.  I think I was even given food poisoning for trying it.

8. What is the most feminine (if you are a man) or masculine (if you are a woman) thing about you?

I know all about duvet covers and window treatments, and use both.

9. If you have pets, what are their names, and what inspired you to name them that?
I got a plant--it doesn't talk much.

10. Write a three line story about a time you were caught doing something wrong.

I was giving a shoulder rub to a relative stranger, long ago.  My hands wandered where she didn't want them.  Her friend yelled at me later.

11. Using roughly 50 words, say nothing.

Well, I had a problem with my shoe, so I had to go to quincyville, which is what we called Shelbyville at the time.  Now, the ferry cost a nickel--which, at the time, had bees on them, "Gimme 5 bees for a quarter!", you'd say.  So I tied an onion to my belt...

12. Tell us about the worst job you've ever had.

Ever wonder, when you receive a carefully folded and stuffed envelope of glossy corporate pap, if machines do it?  Machines would tear the paper, which is too glossy.  No, the paper must be glued, folded, and stuffed, by hand.  It is a tedious procedure, and best done part time.  I only had the job for a day, years ago, but yep, made me reconsider a life on marijuana.

13. Create a new breed of human. What does it look like? What does it do? How does it procreate?

This one looks perfect.  That is, it can re-shape itself, once a day, to look exactly as the public expects perfection to look.  Of course, it doesn't have too much of a brain--that part of the head is full of the sensory organ that detects what the public wants, and it has no genitalia--it can go commando in public, and none will be the wiser.  It serves only as a barometer of how screwed-up the public view of perfection is, since it frequently takes shapes that are underweight, oversized, or unbalanced.

14. What do you think is the biggest threat to humanity right now?

Buttholes who think the only path to success is paved with dead bodies.

15. Tell us about what your dream job would be.

I
want to write and edit others' writing.  I want to be well compensated
and to travel.  I want to help others realize their greatest passions.

16. Who is the last person you wanted to kiss?

My G.F.

17. How do you eat an oreo?

Twist, lick, crunch.  Milk isn't as portable.

18. What would you say is your defining characteristic?

Arrogance when I can do well, shyness when I can't (or think I can't)

19. What is your cause?

Lessening the stupidity of the world.

20. Link one site that you have found that is useful or that makes you laugh.

www.fark.com   Best newsfilter in the web, and entertaining also.

Things go differently when you have a lady in your life.  I had forgotten how different until recently.  This sweet thing who, 12 days ago, came up to me, and who, 6 days ago, had rode around the city with me, has put me in a different mode (or, rather, a new spin).
--You plan a day around some evening activity.  Most times, the daytime has plans (like work), or nighttime does (going out, scouring the city for women).  But the evening time now belongs, in part, to her.
--New missions when shopping.  Sometimes, all you want is an electric kettle, a water-filtering pitcher, and a copy of Samurai Showdown.  But now, you wonder what she wants, and if you can get it for her, and how she'd feel.
--More cell messages and phone calls.
--Some songs now resonate more clearly.  The M. Sweet reference in the title, and the song I'm listenin' to, seem appropriate.
--The general pathos that surrounds the single is partially shed.  I was calmer towards fellow man this week (though machines are still irksome).

[Edit:  who is she?  Well, she's cute, pretty smart, mostly vegetarian, quiet, averse to loud noises, into physical contact, and pretty much a sweet thing.]

"Chance favors only the prepared mind." Isaac Newton

Tonight, I packed, then wore, my tan pants and a colorful shirt.
Tonight, I took time to shave.
Tonight, I made sure I had cash to tip my server.
Tonight, I went to the same bar / nightclub / arcade.
Tonight, I made sure I was well bathed.
Tonight, I was a gentleman, and an athlete.

Tonight began as it has for several dozen weeks in a row.

Historically, none of these has got me too much attention, and none has taken me down any special path (the notable exceptions know who they are).  Tonight, however, I met a pretty girl, a nice girl, a smart girl.  And then I met another.  And they like me very much.

Sometimes fate favors the prepared.

1. Egg nog or hot chocolate?
Egg Nog!  The only time of year when it's available!

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just set them under the tree?
Wrapping's for elves.  He spends all year on his reindeer, and the list

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white?
Colored--and make them DANCE!

4. Do you hang mistletoe?
Nah...reminds me of how the apocalypse started (Norse mythology--look it up).

5. When do you put your decorations up?

As soon as Thanksgiving's come down--around Dec. 1

6. What is your favorite holiday food?

Black cherry jello, mixed with coca-cola, black cherries, and cream cheese.  Mmm-MMM!

7. Favorite holiday memory as a child?

Lighting candles all by myself--fire was a big deal to me then (as now).

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa?

When I learned the truth about Jesus.

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve?
Yes, indeed.  And each night after, if we had them waiting for us.

10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree?
No tree (not for this Jew)--I stand my menorah on the counter and stand the candles in it.  Sometimes, I hang a keychain on my car keys.

10a.  Real or fake tree?
Real--leave the fake-os to Wal-Mart and budget galleria.

11. Snow! Love it or dread it?
It's
beautiful!  All Christmases should be white, and it should be
pretty and white during the entire month of January.  After that,
I've had my fix. 

12. Can you ice skate?
No.  But I think I could, maybe, if I tried.

13. Do you remember your favorite gift?

Super Nintendo--the god of video games (in its day)--that took an extra 5 days to get because of unscrupulous retailers.

14. What's your favorite thing about the holidays?
Presence.  Everyone is here.  And presents--everyone gives.

15. What is your favorite holiday dessert?
That jello!  So damn good.

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition?
Latkes--the ten-step process of making potatoes into pancakes involves four major appliances, three big bowls, and a huge mess the whole family can join in on.

17. What tops your tree?
Again--no tree--but I'd guess a big star.

18. Which do you prefer giving or receiving?
Receiving.  Since I don't see people all year, I have to quiz everyone else in a game of "guess what they care about".  Trying to give it away the right way is an exercise in budgeting, mind-reading, and so on.  I broadcast my list, so people usually get it right.

19. What is your favorite Christmas song?

Christmas?  Rock Around the X-Mas Tree, Dreaming of a White Christmas, O Holy Night (when I get presents), Carol of the Bells, and maybe O Tannenbaum. 

For Chaunkah?  Yodim Atem (What is it for?), Maos Tzur (Rock of Ages), Al Hanisim (Time of Joy), and anything NOT written by, written for, or sung by little kids.  Little-kid Chaunkah music usually sucks as bad as Little-kid Christian rock.

20. Candy Canes! Yuck or Yum?
Oh...my...goodness...my second-favorite holiday food (4th, whatever).  It's like mainlining sugar, since the peppermint moderates all.  It makes any following food good.

21. What's number one on your Christmas list this year?
A honing steel of TSA-pants-pissing size.  It's in the mail--somewhere.

1. Flip to page 18, paragraph 4 - in the book closest to you right now, what does it say? -"Make no mistake, the astronomical cost of building a Ratte would not have been offset by its strengths.  Once deployed..."

2. If you stretch out your left arm - as far as possible, what are you touching? - my headset--ideal for FPS games and Blockades.

3. What's the last program you watched on tv? - Broncos beat the Cardinals!  Woo!.

4. Without looking, guess what time it is. - 10:54? (11:20...sad)

5. Except the computer, what can you hear right now? - my dishwasher

6. When was the last time you were outside and what did you do? - I walked from my car to my place, bringing in my luggage.

7. What are you wearing? - MAroon shirt, tan cargo shorts, tight white socks, black stretchy belt (and underwaer).

8. Did you dream last night? If you did, what about? - yes; girls

9. When was the last time you laughed? - when I saw TSA screeners handling food with their blue gloves, contaminating them.

10. What's on the walls, in the room you're in right now? - white paint, and the shadows of a lamp.

11. Have you seen anything strange lately? - Does McCarran International Airport, Las Vegas count?  How about slot machines IN a terminal.

12. What do you think about this survey? - "Meh"

13. What's the last film you saw? - James Bond: Casino Royale--now THERE'S some action.

14. If you became a multimillionaire, what would you do with the money? - buy a house, spend a few months getting a better job, and put the rest in Mutual Funds

15. Tell us something about yourself that most people online don't know. - I'm not falling for THAT again.  OK, I think the Internet really *is* for porn.

16. If you could change ONE THING in this world, without regarding politics or bad guilt - what would it be? - Every third-world leader above the rank of small-town councilman would have to (re-)learn everything there is to know about the free market, wealth of nations, and the perils of being a jerk.

17. Do you like dancing? - WOOOOOO!

18. George Bush? - W.?  He's like Kennedy--charismatic, a little weird, responsible for a bad war, and too damn good at PR to get thrown out on his over-rich arse.

19. What do you want your children's names to be, girl/boy? -Sara / Jonathan

20. Would you ever consider living abroad? - why?  Is the U.S. so bad?

Edit: Sarah...right.  I forgot about that...also, I was changing planes last night in Vegas, and flight delays stuck me there for 3 hours.

I was going to add "Sell Out" by Reel Big Fish, since it's also about this, but Guns 'N' Roses is cooler.  The contrast is sharper, too.  Reel Big Fish is (as far as I can tell) comedic about 95%; it's a big shift for the same front man (his name escapes me) to sing:
"...got to do it well / you got to give the other fella he^^!"
and then, later, throw up:
"...warm, safe place / where as a child I'd hide, / and pray for the thunder and the rain to quietly pass me by."
[Edit: I meant, the front man of Guns 'n' Roses did "Live and Let Die", not Reel Big Fish.  Grammar, I know.]

Likewise, Boston probably had a greater ground-breaking with "Long Time / Foreplay":
"Well I'm takin my time, I'm just movin' on. / You'll forget about me after I've been gone."
but made main-stream breakthroughs with:
"More than a feeling (more than a feeling), / when I hear that old song they used to play (more than a feeling)."

I suppose every band's talent eventually needs a place on the pop charts for some kind of commercial success.  I also wonder, for the sake, if the big, pop-chart breakout sellout hit has become the new raison d'etre (that is, reason for being) for any particular band.  Guitar Hero 2 (and 1, for that matter) brings this up, since a lot of the songs are main-stream songs, not necessarily "artsy".  Just something to ponder.

Remember, in April, when I stated that the path wandered for me after college?  It turns out that my mentors (and parents) never stopped observing my life.  Recently, I was given a good talking-to (thank you, parents) and given a few new objectives:
--more sleep.  I HAVE gotten by on 4 or 5 hours' sleep, but it dulls the senses, closes the mind (making troubleshooting difficult), and shortens temper.  Notably, this negates any lingering positive feelings from the previous night.
--better temper.  Among other things, this has made friendship difficult.  By reducing my sugars and getting more sleep, I hope to fix this.
--the weight.  I've been a healthy (?) 240 for years now, resistant to many things, and it's about time (now that the rest of my life is stable) that I fixed it--before things go bad.
--social life.  There're plenty of things I like doing, and really ought to find those places where I can do them.  The continuous flood of video games isn't entirely healthful, I know.

More on this if I decide I want to.  Also, I have added some pictures with teeth in them.  Nice idea.

P.S.  Puzzle Pirates has no "levels" per se.

Well, the 2nd worst song has been playing over the TV for some time, in 30-second segments--popping into commercials like V.C. chopping down the ranks of my sanity as we pick our way through the jungle of evening prime-time entertainment.
    Whoever chose "Sad Eyes" by Robert John for a major movie preview (which, incidentally, doesn't deserve the dignity of being named here, based on the awful previews) deserves a blade in a very uncomfortable place.
    Question:  Why are we inexplicably drawn to falsetto men for major hits?  What happened to the quality of music that suddenly we NEED this?  And no, I don't consider "makeout music" to be any excuse whatsoever--surely there are better songs to use than too-high treacles.
    In that vein, what else explains the popularity of:
    1) MacArthur Park, Richard Harris
    2) Sad Eyes, Robert John
    3) [Anything], John Mayer (embarassing tidbit--I've used this one--a few years ago)
    4) Goodbye Stranger, Supertramp
I ask you!
    And yes, I have copies of these--in digital format--but never intend to use them again.
    Note: the BeeGees, while high, don't exactly count--their format doesn't annoy me as much.

I grew up with quite a few advantages.  No man can help how he is born, but I think I made the most of them.  The result is the reasonably intelligent, pretty well-adjusted, fairly solitary and generally stable person that writes this today.
    It doesn't take much time, rattling around this world of ours, to find people whom the world has not been as kind to, and it becomes a duty--no, an honor--to help them cope, somehow.
    Last night, I helped a woman come to terms with a life she nearly lost control of, and a man she could no longer deal with.  She was crying before it was over (If you happen to be reading this, cry now, but keep going--it's nearly done).
    And it was the best feeling in awhile to know that I made a difference, somehow in her life.

    As much as the world needs the privileged, the privileged need the world.

I vote.  It's a warm, patriotic feeling akin to stopping crime with your bare hands, or writing intelligent blog entries about fallen senators (like Foley, or Santorum).
    So, yeah, I flexed my rights.  For the next year, I can pontificate on politics with impunity. 
    So, yeah, commies suck.  That's all for now.