Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Friday, February 22, 2008
Phoenix Observation # 6: Winter ain't so bad.
I have a feeling my some of my posts have been downers lately, so I'm going to switch gears for a second. It's been a while since my last one, so let's get to it:
Phoenix Observation # 6: Winter ain't so bad.
I could've written this post a while ago, since the weather has been nice here for a while, but I really feel I had to let my thoughts ripen. After a blazing hot summer, I was beginning to doubt the move. Fall was alright, but I really missed the color changes and the crunchiness of leaves under my feet. I don't think a bunch of landscapers sawing off old palm fronds counts as "shedding leaves"... But I thought that was about as good as it was going to get.
Turns out I was wrong. Autumn just rolls by a little late around here. Suddenly in January leaves turned brown and started falling off the trees in my neighborhood. Then I started hearing the familiar sound of 500 HP gas-powered leaf blowers coralling twigs and leaves into small piles. Doesn't anyone own a rake anymore?
Well, Fall turned to Winter real fast, and it got a little cold. Nothing close to what I was used to in Virginia, but it was brisk enough that biking back from the bars became a little less enjoyable (rockin' the alliteration). I started having to wear a jacket on my 2-block walk to work. I started ordering hot instead of cold drinks at Starbucks. Oh, and it started raining semi-regularly.
After two years in the Northwest, I'm used to rain. Getting soaked on the walk home for lunch because I didn't bring a jacket that day is okay. At least there's a dryer at home. Given this ambivalence towards rainy weather, I get to focus on the benefits of a little moisture in the Valley of the Sun: For once, everything starts to turn green. The jagged yellow, brown and red mountains that are spread throughout the city start to grow some foliage.
I realized something when I first started looking into moving to Phoenix. If you look at the satellite images of the Phoenix-area on Google Maps, everything looks pretty green when you are zoomed out far enough. Hell, the Salt River even looks like it's flowing. It's not until you zoom in about two thirds of the way, and it switches over to the high-res shots, that you start to appreciate how barren and brown the landscape is around here. Obviously, the two shots were taken during different parts of the year, and when I got here, things looked a lot more like the zoomed-in shots. Now, after living in Phoenix for almost a year, the valley is starting to resemble those zoomed-out images... Hmm... there's a metaphor in there somewhere.
I'll end this post with a picture from a hike this past weekend. It struck me as rather absurd that the grass that has sprouted all around makes the short, red cactuses look out of place, when in fact it is the other way around. Enjoy.
Phoenix Observation # 6: Winter ain't so bad.
I could've written this post a while ago, since the weather has been nice here for a while, but I really feel I had to let my thoughts ripen. After a blazing hot summer, I was beginning to doubt the move. Fall was alright, but I really missed the color changes and the crunchiness of leaves under my feet. I don't think a bunch of landscapers sawing off old palm fronds counts as "shedding leaves"... But I thought that was about as good as it was going to get.
Turns out I was wrong. Autumn just rolls by a little late around here. Suddenly in January leaves turned brown and started falling off the trees in my neighborhood. Then I started hearing the familiar sound of 500 HP gas-powered leaf blowers coralling twigs and leaves into small piles. Doesn't anyone own a rake anymore?
Well, Fall turned to Winter real fast, and it got a little cold. Nothing close to what I was used to in Virginia, but it was brisk enough that biking back from the bars became a little less enjoyable (rockin' the alliteration). I started having to wear a jacket on my 2-block walk to work. I started ordering hot instead of cold drinks at Starbucks. Oh, and it started raining semi-regularly.
After two years in the Northwest, I'm used to rain. Getting soaked on the walk home for lunch because I didn't bring a jacket that day is okay. At least there's a dryer at home. Given this ambivalence towards rainy weather, I get to focus on the benefits of a little moisture in the Valley of the Sun: For once, everything starts to turn green. The jagged yellow, brown and red mountains that are spread throughout the city start to grow some foliage.
I realized something when I first started looking into moving to Phoenix. If you look at the satellite images of the Phoenix-area on Google Maps, everything looks pretty green when you are zoomed out far enough. Hell, the Salt River even looks like it's flowing. It's not until you zoom in about two thirds of the way, and it switches over to the high-res shots, that you start to appreciate how barren and brown the landscape is around here. Obviously, the two shots were taken during different parts of the year, and when I got here, things looked a lot more like the zoomed-in shots. Now, after living in Phoenix for almost a year, the valley is starting to resemble those zoomed-out images... Hmm... there's a metaphor in there somewhere.
I'll end this post with a picture from a hike this past weekend. It struck me as rather absurd that the grass that has sprouted all around makes the short, red cactuses look out of place, when in fact it is the other way around. Enjoy.
Friday, February 15, 2008
"...point it at whatever you want to die."
Okay, are we going to talk gun control this time? Or are we going to wait until it happens all over again next year?
While the government tramples all over the Constitution, do you think they could scuff the 2nd Amendment up a bit?
No, I would not feel safer if everyone was carrying a gun.
No, I do not believe all these people would be getting guns anyway, even if they were illegal.
No, I do not believe the killers are monsters that could not be stopped.
No, I do not think guns are the same as cars, knives, rope, etc, or whatever else you can compare them to.
In the immortal words of Kurt Vonnegut, from Deadeye Dick:
"...killed by a machine which should never have come into the hands of any human being. It is called a firearm. It makes the blackest of all human wishes come true at once, at a distance: that something die. There is evil for you. We cannot get rid of mankind's fleetingly evil wishes. We can get rid of the machines that make them come true. I give you a holy word: DISARM. "
While the government tramples all over the Constitution, do you think they could scuff the 2nd Amendment up a bit?
No, I would not feel safer if everyone was carrying a gun.
No, I do not believe all these people would be getting guns anyway, even if they were illegal.
No, I do not believe the killers are monsters that could not be stopped.
No, I do not think guns are the same as cars, knives, rope, etc, or whatever else you can compare them to.
In the immortal words of Kurt Vonnegut, from Deadeye Dick:
"...killed by a machine which should never have come into the hands of any human being. It is called a firearm. It makes the blackest of all human wishes come true at once, at a distance: that something die. There is evil for you. We cannot get rid of mankind's fleetingly evil wishes. We can get rid of the machines that make them come true. I give you a holy word: DISARM. "
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Dang Whippersnappers!!!
I cannot explain to you how frustrating it is to have someone come and smash the largest, most expensive, window of your house. Especially when it is 1300 miles away and you are trying to rent it out!
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
I Cannot Stress This Enough...
As a democrat living in one of 22 Super Tuesday states, I was faced today (actually, more like 3 weeks ago since I vote by mail) with a choice between two very different candidates. Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton. Who will you choose?
Do not vote for Hillary Clinton today.
The arguements for Barack Obama are many, and they have been touted on newspapers, blogs and other media incessantly for weeks, so I won't rehash them. Obama is running a positive campaign, and unfortunately this means we do not get to review the negative aspects of a Hillary Clinton candidacy enough. Let me give you a few points on which to mull.
1. She voted to authorize the use of force in Iraq.
I'm sorry, but this should be a deal breaker for any serious progressive Democrat. After 5+ years, haven't we had enough of this mess? Regarless of whether we are accomplishing anything in that country, the waste of money, goodwill, reputation, and above all life, should make one pause to think. Honestly, consider whether we want someone running for our half of the country that helped put us in the current international morass. Vote for McCain if that's what you want. Enough war...
2. We want a president, not a politician.
Yes, I'll be the first to admit that the Clinton machine is a magnificent political machine. It is backed almost entirely by large special interests that have a lot riding on this election. When the tide started to turn to the Democrats favor back in 2006, lobbyists began jumping ship from the Republican camp, with hopes of garnering favor with the future Democratic president. At the time the most "electable" candidate was Hillary Clinton, and they have been showering her with money since.
With Obama's campaign rising to prominence only recently, his backing is primarily from the bottom up, and he is less beholden to these corporate lobbyists. Sure, he has some big name backers as well, but I can guarantee you many of them are behind him purely with the intent of upsetting Hillary, and he owes them no favors. Speaking of favors, how many do you think were left un-repayed from Bill's time in office? I'll bet it's a few.
3. Let's surprise the rest of the world.
Yes, yes, America's first female president would be amazing. However, it is much less impressive when this woman has the same last name as a president from 8 years before? Do we really want to go Bush, Clinton, Bush, Clinton? Who's next, Jeb? The world expects us to elect Hillary. They believe we are predictable and averse to chage. Let's be honest... electing Hillary would not be change. It's a vote for politics as usual. The only thing that changes is the party identification of the person in the White House. That means nothing if that person is just like every other career politician out there.
Also, it's going to blow everyone in the Middle East's, and the rest of the world for that matter, mind if we elect Obama... I'll let another blogger state it more eloquently.
4. McCain would beat Clinton.
Okay, so pollsters have been wrong a lot this year, but I truly do believe this one... McCain has crossover appeal, Clinton does not. Something like 35% of the voting public wouldn't vote for Clinton unless she was running against Osama Bin Laden. I firmly believe Barack Obama can bring independants, and even some Republicans, over to his side.
I hardly believe my opinion matters to my few readers halfway through Super Tuesday, but this is how I feel. Flame on?
Do not vote for Hillary Clinton today.
The arguements for Barack Obama are many, and they have been touted on newspapers, blogs and other media incessantly for weeks, so I won't rehash them. Obama is running a positive campaign, and unfortunately this means we do not get to review the negative aspects of a Hillary Clinton candidacy enough. Let me give you a few points on which to mull.
1. She voted to authorize the use of force in Iraq.
I'm sorry, but this should be a deal breaker for any serious progressive Democrat. After 5+ years, haven't we had enough of this mess? Regarless of whether we are accomplishing anything in that country, the waste of money, goodwill, reputation, and above all life, should make one pause to think. Honestly, consider whether we want someone running for our half of the country that helped put us in the current international morass. Vote for McCain if that's what you want. Enough war...
2. We want a president, not a politician.
Yes, I'll be the first to admit that the Clinton machine is a magnificent political machine. It is backed almost entirely by large special interests that have a lot riding on this election. When the tide started to turn to the Democrats favor back in 2006, lobbyists began jumping ship from the Republican camp, with hopes of garnering favor with the future Democratic president. At the time the most "electable" candidate was Hillary Clinton, and they have been showering her with money since.
With Obama's campaign rising to prominence only recently, his backing is primarily from the bottom up, and he is less beholden to these corporate lobbyists. Sure, he has some big name backers as well, but I can guarantee you many of them are behind him purely with the intent of upsetting Hillary, and he owes them no favors. Speaking of favors, how many do you think were left un-repayed from Bill's time in office? I'll bet it's a few.
3. Let's surprise the rest of the world.
Yes, yes, America's first female president would be amazing. However, it is much less impressive when this woman has the same last name as a president from 8 years before? Do we really want to go Bush, Clinton, Bush, Clinton? Who's next, Jeb? The world expects us to elect Hillary. They believe we are predictable and averse to chage. Let's be honest... electing Hillary would not be change. It's a vote for politics as usual. The only thing that changes is the party identification of the person in the White House. That means nothing if that person is just like every other career politician out there.
Also, it's going to blow everyone in the Middle East's, and the rest of the world for that matter, mind if we elect Obama... I'll let another blogger state it more eloquently.
4. McCain would beat Clinton.
Okay, so pollsters have been wrong a lot this year, but I truly do believe this one... McCain has crossover appeal, Clinton does not. Something like 35% of the voting public wouldn't vote for Clinton unless she was running against Osama Bin Laden. I firmly believe Barack Obama can bring independants, and even some Republicans, over to his side.
I hardly believe my opinion matters to my few readers halfway through Super Tuesday, but this is how I feel. Flame on?
Friday, February 1, 2008
It's Superbowl Weekend
It's official, Phoenix is being invaded by revelers. Not only is the big game going down in Glendale, but Scottsdale is hosting the FBR Open golf tournament this weekend as well.
The most obvious sign of the celebrity invasion is of course the absence of Cristal on the liquor store shelves... I mean, come on, how can I enjoy a football game without a bottle of $350 champagne?
P. Diddy, you've screwed me for the last time!
I'll post a recap on Monday. I can promise you, if I run into Pete Wentz this weekend, I will kick him hard in the nuts...
The most obvious sign of the celebrity invasion is of course the absence of Cristal on the liquor store shelves... I mean, come on, how can I enjoy a football game without a bottle of $350 champagne?
P. Diddy, you've screwed me for the last time!
I'll post a recap on Monday. I can promise you, if I run into Pete Wentz this weekend, I will kick him hard in the nuts...
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