Friday, June 4, 2010
A year of pent up rage
OK, so it's been over a year. To my knowledge, only one friend of mine reads this thing *waves to Misty* but she has been telling me to get back to it.
Saturday, May 9, 2009
Happy Mother's Day
Every Mother's Day it seems, the articles circulate about how much moms would get paid, if only they got paid for being moms.
I understand the idea of getting the public conversation going and appreciate the importance of good parenting. But there's the rub, GOOD parenting-INVOLVED parenting-is what's important. And parenting implies dads, as well. So the good intentions of such articles usually get lost as nutjobs who think moms really should get this imaginary money start mouthing off.
You know what? Moms do get paid. They get paid in food-covered kisses and shitty macaroni art. And every other day of the year, I'm told how worth it being a mom is. You love your job? Good, now shut the fuck up about your paycheck.
I understand the idea of getting the public conversation going and appreciate the importance of good parenting. But there's the rub, GOOD parenting-INVOLVED parenting-is what's important. And parenting implies dads, as well. So the good intentions of such articles usually get lost as nutjobs who think moms really should get this imaginary money start mouthing off.
You know what? Moms do get paid. They get paid in food-covered kisses and shitty macaroni art. And every other day of the year, I'm told how worth it being a mom is. You love your job? Good, now shut the fuck up about your paycheck.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
"Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out."
What the hell makes anyone think that quotes--inspirational, religious, or otherwise--are in any way appropriate on work emails? In my estimation, it's just as bad as using Comic Sans on... anything, really.
Just in case I'm not making myself clear...
No one at work gives a flying fuck what inspires you and they damn sure aren't inspired by some stupid little quote at the bottom of your emails. During the work day, no one gives a shit what Mother Teresa said. No one cares what your favorite bible verse is. No one likes the "clever" little way you view life or adversity or anything outside the day's business.
If you have useless crap like that on your work emails, you're an unprofessional twat.
Monday, January 26, 2009
No one likes getting punched in the gut by perfume.
The way I understand it, your sense of smell tends to "go" when you get older. Apparently, no one who is actually old understands this.
If it only took two pumps of your perfume when you were 20, it only takes two pumps of your perfume when you're 60. Please, just believe me on this.
Someone should invent a technology that can tell how old a person is by touch. It should be applied to perfume and cologne bottles in such a way that when it recognizes old people fingers, it absolutely doesn't spray more than the amount necessary to smell nice without also knocking over everyone within a 10 foot radius. Said technology will then reset no sooner than 24 hours later.
I'd ban the sale of perfume and cologne to old people, but then they'd just get youngins to buy it in a vaguely ironic 180 of the kid outside 7-11 begging adults to buy him a forty of Schlitz Malt Liquor. Besides, I wouldn't want to be a complete asshole about this.
I realize there are plenty of people with perfectly young olfactory senses who offend the same way. They should simply be drug out in the street and shot in the arm. At least the kids don't wear Opium.
If it only took two pumps of your perfume when you were 20, it only takes two pumps of your perfume when you're 60. Please, just believe me on this.
Someone should invent a technology that can tell how old a person is by touch. It should be applied to perfume and cologne bottles in such a way that when it recognizes old people fingers, it absolutely doesn't spray more than the amount necessary to smell nice without also knocking over everyone within a 10 foot radius. Said technology will then reset no sooner than 24 hours later.
I'd ban the sale of perfume and cologne to old people, but then they'd just get youngins to buy it in a vaguely ironic 180 of the kid outside 7-11 begging adults to buy him a forty of Schlitz Malt Liquor. Besides, I wouldn't want to be a complete asshole about this.
I realize there are plenty of people with perfectly young olfactory senses who offend the same way. They should simply be drug out in the street and shot in the arm. At least the kids don't wear Opium.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Cheap Bastards
Is $200 (per couple) really too much to pay for three days worth of events at a high school reunion? I figure my failure to baulk at this number is either a sign of my success and/or the taint of living in the Washington DC area and dealing with high prices on everything.
Now I get that we're in hard economic times. For the most part, I grew up living below the poverty level. I'm not trying to be insensitive, but some of the people crying about this sound like cheap bastards. I understand the reluctance for people who have to travel. I happen to be making a twelve hour drive, so add to my $200 entry fee the gas, hotel, and food involved to be able to see these folks after a decade (even I am staying with family friends for at least part of this trip to save money--I'm not against frugality). I do not understand the motivation of the people who live there to complain, though. I suppose when you're in podunk nowheresville Georgia, $200 might very well be a lot of money...
I am so glad I don't live in that pissant know-nothing tiny town. You couldn't even pay me enough to move back to that state, proximity to a big city be damned.
Despite my hatred for BFE, Georgia, I am looking forward to this reunion. It's nice to have something to show for my ten years away from hell.
Now I get that we're in hard economic times. For the most part, I grew up living below the poverty level. I'm not trying to be insensitive, but some of the people crying about this sound like cheap bastards. I understand the reluctance for people who have to travel. I happen to be making a twelve hour drive, so add to my $200 entry fee the gas, hotel, and food involved to be able to see these folks after a decade (even I am staying with family friends for at least part of this trip to save money--I'm not against frugality). I do not understand the motivation of the people who live there to complain, though. I suppose when you're in podunk nowheresville Georgia, $200 might very well be a lot of money...
I am so glad I don't live in that pissant know-nothing tiny town. You couldn't even pay me enough to move back to that state, proximity to a big city be damned.
Despite my hatred for BFE, Georgia, I am looking forward to this reunion. It's nice to have something to show for my ten years away from hell.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Sarah Palin
Despite glaring proof in her own family that abstinence only sex education doesn’t work, this brood mare is likely still going to support it. From what I hear, she doesn’t even believe in the use of condoms, either. She just had her fifth kid, and at 44, is it any wonder that it was born with Down Syndrome? Statistically, she was kinda asking for it. But really, how much time does she actually spend with the kids since she’s such a busy politician? I’m sure her nanny will keep her insulated from understanding what real families go through who have special needs kids. (OK, I don't really know if she has a nanny. Though if she doesn't have one now, I imagine she won't be able to be the Veep without one. That or dear old dad will play daddy and mommy. In either case, the woman will remain clueless as to life in the real world for working class families.)
Obviously, this is the move the Republican Party needed to get those evangelicals on board. What better way to get them salivating at the mouth than to put in front of them a pro-life nutbag who (from what I hear) doesn’t even care about possible danger to the life of the mother? (It has been confirmed that she doesn’t support abortion even in cases of rape or incest, though.)
I can only hope that women are smart enough not to fall for the bullshit. It’s like they expect women are going to all of a sudden think to themselves, “She has a vagina. I have a vagina. Why, I should vote for her!” Somehow though, I don’t hold out much hope for the average American to see through the pandering on this one.
I’m ok with new blood and not a ton of experience being in the White House, but damn if I want that wench so close the presidency. And let’s face it, with John McCain’s age, Palin will be closer to the possibility on a daily basis than most Vice Presidents have been. I heard, but have yet to confirm, that her husband used to work for BP and that she sued the Interior Department to get polar bears off the endangered species list. So maybe she’s not new blood after all…
Obviously, this is the move the Republican Party needed to get those evangelicals on board. What better way to get them salivating at the mouth than to put in front of them a pro-life nutbag who (from what I hear) doesn’t even care about possible danger to the life of the mother? (It has been confirmed that she doesn’t support abortion even in cases of rape or incest, though.)
I can only hope that women are smart enough not to fall for the bullshit. It’s like they expect women are going to all of a sudden think to themselves, “She has a vagina. I have a vagina. Why, I should vote for her!” Somehow though, I don’t hold out much hope for the average American to see through the pandering on this one.
I’m ok with new blood and not a ton of experience being in the White House, but damn if I want that wench so close the presidency. And let’s face it, with John McCain’s age, Palin will be closer to the possibility on a daily basis than most Vice Presidents have been. I heard, but have yet to confirm, that her husband used to work for BP and that she sued the Interior Department to get polar bears off the endangered species list. So maybe she’s not new blood after all…
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Retro Rant
I'm still not planning to bring all my old rants over here, but this one was one of my favorites when I wrote it. Looking back, it could use some tweaking, but I'm not in the Navy anymore, so I'll let it stand as is, in all its pissed-off goodness:
OK, so I have a MySpace account as well as this one, but I don't blog there. There is a link to my LJ there, but only one or two people from there actually come over to read it that I know of.
At any rate, they have these bulletins and I suppose it's a pretty cool way to get out information to a lot of people, as individuals repost and so on. For the third time since I've gotten the account, I've witnessed some of my friends posting "support the troops" stuff. I see at least 5 support the troops magnets on peoples' cars every time I drive somewhere around here. Speaking of cars, let me just go ahead and list the magnets/stickers that piss me off the most (that I usually see together all on one car): Support the Troops, God Bless the Troops, and God Bless America--all or most with American flag motifs. They're usually also accompanied by Bush/Cheney stickers, but I digress--this rant isn't about them.
So back to what I was saying... all this "support the troops" stuff really annoys me. I am in the military myself, and apart from the magnets people buy from the USO, I'd like to know just how this supports the troops. Now, I wasn't there for, but understand the difference between this show of solidarity and what happened with Vietnam veterans, but seriously... it seems to me that it's all people who aren't in the military patting themselves on the backs for saying, "Thank you," when all they really need to do is say, "Thank you." And not with a pathetic sticker or a bulletin post or a blog. Write to people on deployment; send care packages; cheer when people return from deployments; give to the USO.
I just don't get the "I support the troops" thing when there's no action to back it up. Sorry, but walking all the way around your car to put the sticker on it or taking the time to cut and paste some lame poem doesn't count as action in my book. Oh, and neither does praying for them. Sorry, but that "God bless the troops" shit pisses me off even more--I didn't ask for, nor do I need some stranger's concept of omnipotent blessings. And while I fully understand that you mean nothing but good things by it, why don't you think outside your own little box for once and realize that there are MUCH more universal ways to say/do/mean good things that don't have anything to do with religion? And whether or not you think it's harmless, it's an insult to my intelligence when you say there are no atheists in foxholes. Now, how is insulting my intelligence "supporting" me exactly? Yes me... I AM the troops. I'm in the military, so I think I have every right to this particular rant. I've been on a deployment, and I am serving my country. No one can call me unpatriotic for not putting an American flag sticker on my car like the masses.
To me, it's the same as people who feel the need to advertise their religion on bumper stickers. It's your religion; it should be a personal, spiritual thing... being proud of it is one thing, but certain stickers are quite "holier than thou" about it, and that's the same to me as magnets that "support the troops." Don't put a magnet on your car telling me you're proud of something; go out and fucking DO something! Until you do, you're only supporting the guy in China who made the magnet.
OK, so I have a MySpace account as well as this one, but I don't blog there. There is a link to my LJ there, but only one or two people from there actually come over to read it that I know of.
At any rate, they have these bulletins and I suppose it's a pretty cool way to get out information to a lot of people, as individuals repost and so on. For the third time since I've gotten the account, I've witnessed some of my friends posting "support the troops" stuff. I see at least 5 support the troops magnets on peoples' cars every time I drive somewhere around here. Speaking of cars, let me just go ahead and list the magnets/stickers that piss me off the most (that I usually see together all on one car): Support the Troops, God Bless the Troops, and God Bless America--all or most with American flag motifs. They're usually also accompanied by Bush/Cheney stickers, but I digress--this rant isn't about them.
So back to what I was saying... all this "support the troops" stuff really annoys me. I am in the military myself, and apart from the magnets people buy from the USO, I'd like to know just how this supports the troops. Now, I wasn't there for, but understand the difference between this show of solidarity and what happened with Vietnam veterans, but seriously... it seems to me that it's all people who aren't in the military patting themselves on the backs for saying, "Thank you," when all they really need to do is say, "Thank you." And not with a pathetic sticker or a bulletin post or a blog. Write to people on deployment; send care packages; cheer when people return from deployments; give to the USO.
I just don't get the "I support the troops" thing when there's no action to back it up. Sorry, but walking all the way around your car to put the sticker on it or taking the time to cut and paste some lame poem doesn't count as action in my book. Oh, and neither does praying for them. Sorry, but that "God bless the troops" shit pisses me off even more--I didn't ask for, nor do I need some stranger's concept of omnipotent blessings. And while I fully understand that you mean nothing but good things by it, why don't you think outside your own little box for once and realize that there are MUCH more universal ways to say/do/mean good things that don't have anything to do with religion? And whether or not you think it's harmless, it's an insult to my intelligence when you say there are no atheists in foxholes. Now, how is insulting my intelligence "supporting" me exactly? Yes me... I AM the troops. I'm in the military, so I think I have every right to this particular rant. I've been on a deployment, and I am serving my country. No one can call me unpatriotic for not putting an American flag sticker on my car like the masses.
To me, it's the same as people who feel the need to advertise their religion on bumper stickers. It's your religion; it should be a personal, spiritual thing... being proud of it is one thing, but certain stickers are quite "holier than thou" about it, and that's the same to me as magnets that "support the troops." Don't put a magnet on your car telling me you're proud of something; go out and fucking DO something! Until you do, you're only supporting the guy in China who made the magnet.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)