Statistic: 1 in 6 comment-writers will be a human

Since I have some time today and I'm feeling incredibly unmotivated to do much of anything, I decided to post another entry. I know, it's a miracle that I'm posting more than once in a week! I can't believe it either.

Yesterday I had my eye exam at LensCrafters in Altoona. Since I've been having these persistent headaches, I figured it wouldn't be such a bad idea to get my eyes checked. Plus, it may help me figure out why I've been having these headaches constantly for over two weeks now. It turns out that my prescription changed by the tiniest of margins, and the optometrist said that it probably wouldn't be very useful to change my lenses. She also wants me to see an ophthalmologist because I have a brown spot on my retina that's been there at least since two years ago (the last time I visited the eye doctor). It hasn't grown at all, so that's good news. But she just wants to have it rechecked just to be sure that isn't the cause of my headaches. I don't think it is if it's been there for such a long time and my headaches just started, but I guess it won't hurt to have it checked. I just hope I can find someone that takes my insurance, because that appointment is going to be expensive.

While I was in Altoona yesterday I met up with Ingrid. It's always fun to see her and chat. I'm actually surprised that I've kept up a friendship with her all these years since I met her my sophomore year of undergrad. I usually can't keep friendships going for that long because people move away. I'm glad we keep in touch though. We have lots in common, too, from watching the same tv shows to having similar political ideologies. So, we usually have lots to chat about. We spent a bit of time chatting about the shows we watch, since it's the month of premieres. We also talked a bit about politics; most of the time was spent Bush bashing, mainly because that seems to be so easy to do. All in all, it was a very nice visit.

I also went to see a movie with her yesterday, since that seems to be a tradition for us. We saw Just Like Heaven. Yeah, I know it's a chick flick, but most people that know me should know that I'm a softy. It was actually a lot funnier than I thought it was going to be. I was literally laughing out loud for a good chunk of the movie. I'd definitely recommend it.

During the half hour of previews and commercials before the movie (OK, I might be exaggerating by just a little, but I don't think it can be by that much) there was a commercial for Lost. That was one commercial I didn't mind. And I think that show would be amazing to see on the big screen. It's already impressive just on TV, but to be able to see it larger than life would be so cool. The surround sound would be great too. The only other thing that I saw in the pre-show entertainment is a movie with Uma Thurman and Meryl Streep that looks quite funny. I can't remember what the name of the movie is, but it looks like it has a good premise. I'd be tempted to see that one, if I remembered its name when it comes out.

At the doctor's appointment on Friday, the cause of my headaches could still not be determined exactly. He still thinks it's a tension headache, which really isn't all that surprising. So, now I'm on a muscle relaxant and a small dosage of an anti-depressant to see if that doesn't get rid of the headaches. The muscle relaxant seems to be sort of working. I don't notice the headache as often anymore. So, hopefully this will continue.

Last week there was the career fair at the Bryce Jordan Center. It's a nice thing to have available to the general student population, but it got kind of annoying. This was mainly because in order to get a decent parking spot, one would either have to get to the BJC before 9am (which I really have trouble with) or drive around for ten minutes waiting for a spot to open up. So, I'd usually have to park pretty far from where I'd like. It really didn't help on Wednesday because they close off one entire line of parking spots for the quarterback club, or something else equally annoying. That day was especially hard to find a decent spot.

The one nice thing about Career Fair last week is that there were plenty of people all dressed up walking around. I always find that people in general are very attractive when they're dressed up. Even people I wouldn't necessarily find attractive in ordinary circumstance tend to become more attractive to me when they are dressed up. In my opinion, there's nothing hotter than a well-dressed man. And there were plenty around campus last week to turn my head. And Thursday most of the ROTC students were in dress uniforms, which is also somewhat of a turn-on, for the same reason as being in a suit and tie. It's the same type of look.

Speaking of ROTC, the Marine Corps ROTC was having a car wash at the McDonald's on North Atherton today, and believe me, I was incredibly tempted to go and have my car washed by them. However, common sense took over in me, because it's supposed to rain tomorrow and Tuesday. I figured it would be a waste of a car wash if I had it done today. Plus, I was getting really hungry after I got done grocery shopping, so I needed to get home.

At some point I really need to get motivation to do stuff while I'm at home besides watching tv and playing on the internet. I do have to start studying for the candidacy exam, and I'd like to do some work at home every once in a while. I just can't seem to find the motivation. I have a feeling I know why that is, and I've covered it in therapy, but it's too long a description to go through in this entry. Perhaps in a future entry I'll go into more detail about it. A small part of my lack of motivation is the constant headache I have. It's hard to focus on anything when you're in pain.

Well, I guess that's it for now. Tonight is more season premiere tv for me. Desperate Housewives and Grey's Anatomy start their new seasons tonight, so I'm going to be camped out in front of my tv for two hours tonight. I swear I'm addicted to too many shows. But I can't help it. I love escaping into these shows. They definitely beat reality.

I guess that's it for this entry, since it's getting to be pretty long. But one thing before I stop. I know in my last entry I encouraged comments. Well, of the six comments I got, only one was from an actual human being (props for Karen). So, I will still encourage comments, but if I get more spam comments, I may start having to use word verification whenever anyone comments. We'll see, though. Maybe I'll be surprised this time.

Anyway, it's definitely time to finish this entry. More will come at some point. Maybe I'll surprise myself and write another one in a couple days. Don't count on it, but it could happen!

Bush, Hurricanes, and TV

Well, I finally have a bit of time and lots of things to write about (some frivolous, other not so much), so I think now is as good a time as any to do it.

Where should I start? I'll start first with a wonderful picture I "borrowed" from Karen's journal. I know it's a little late, and it should be filed with my last entry, but I didn't feel like editing that one, and it's too good a picture not to have in my blog anywhere. So, here goes. It's from http://www.dailykos.com. It's the banner on the bottom that's funniest. I'd say that pretty much sums up our president.

One more picture to show. This one I found one day while I was bored at work. I was looking at the NHC website (see sidebar for link) and I found out that there were three hurricanes right in a row in the eastern Pacific Ocean. That's pretty cool, and I don't think it happens very often. Here's that image from Tuesday. There's Jova on the far left, Kenneth on the far right, and in the middle is Max. I think that Kenneth is now a tropical storm and Max is a tropical depression, so this image is probably when those two were at their peaks. Hurricanes in the Pacific don't seem to last as long as they do in the Atlantic, nor do they seem to get as strong. Part of that reasoning could be that we don't really hear about hurricanes in the Pacific that often. I also think that the Pacific tends to be cooler, which tends to keep hurricanes from gaining too much energy.

Now there's Rita in the Gulf. I feel quite bad for those people that just evacuated from New Orleans and the surrounding towns and parishes. They moved over to Houston, and probably some other parts of Texas, and now they have another hurricane aiming at them. I'd be surprised if these people wanted to move back to the shoreline anytime soon.

On to some more frivolous things, like TV. Fall TV is here! I always enjoy when all of my favorite shows return. Last week, this week, and next week all have season premieres on of shows that I watch regularly (some of which I'm borderline obsessed with). Gilmore Girls season premiere was last week, which is pretty early for a WB show. The season premiere was so great, with Luke saying yes to Lorelai's proposal, and the whole town finding out about it. Some of the funniest moments came from Miss Patty and Babette. Whenever characters in the town get involved in things, hilarity ensues. The only thing I don't like is the way that Rory is acting. She doesn't seem like Rory lately. I'm sure that will change, but it's a little frustrating right now. Although, I knew her and Lorelai's relationship couldn't stay the way it was forever. Relationships change, both on TV and in real life.

Let's see. What else? I watched the season premiere of Lost tonight. I had to tape it last night because I went to play poker. It was pretty good. We finally find out what's in the hatch. For anyone that might stumble upon this blog and actually watch Lost, but haven't yet seen the premiere, I won't reveal anything. However, it seems that with every question that gets answered on that show, three more present themselves. But, it keeps you hooked, which is a sign of good writing and a great show.

I also watched the season premiere of Arrested Development on Monday. (If you haven't been able to tell, I'm addicted to TV.) I haven't watched this show as regularly as I could have, because it keeps switching time slots. It has got to be one of the funniest comedies I've seen. I've only watched an episode here and there, but after this season's premiere, I think I'm going to have to make it a point to watch. The humor is very quick-paced, so you need to be sharp to keep up with it. But if you can, it's really great. I can see why it keeps winning Emmys.

Speaking of which (I needed to segue into this subject somehow), I watched the Emmys last Sunday as well. First of all, I'm glad Lost won best drama, because it is one of the better dramas I've seen in recent years, at least on a major network. I'm a little disappointed Desperate Housewives didn't win best comedy, but not entirely surprised because I don't really consider Desperate Housewives to be a comedy. But I thought of any of the other shows that were nominated, either Scrubs (which is seriously overlooked) or Arrested Development should have won. Not Everybody Loves Raymond. It's an ok show, but I don't think it's the best comedy around. But, that's just my opinion.

Also, I still don't understand why Gilmore Girls can never get nominated for an Emmy. I realize that it's on the WB, and because of that doesn't get a lot of viewership. However, it is, in my opinion, one of the best written shows on TV. And Lauren Graham is one of the most talented actresses on any show. But, they keep getting overlooked. And then they have Lauren Graham present at the Emmys this year. What a slap in the face! But, there's nothing that can be done about that.

OK, enough about TV. I really should stop writing for now since I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow at 8:45 am. I'm not too pleased about that, but it's the only slot that was available to see the same doctor I saw last week. I've had this persistent headache that just doesn't seem to want to go away. So, hopefully tomorrow the doctor can figure something out besides it being a tension headache. I also have an eye appointment on Saturday, just to see if it's because I need a new prescription for my glasses. So, hopefully one of these two appointments will solve my problem.

Before I stop, I'd like to invite anyone that reads this blog to leave a comment and tell me how you stumbled upon it, unless you got it from my IM profile. I'd like to know if anyone out there is reading this. I also put up some link to other blogs/journals of friends (although one of the blogs is just a random one I came across that is written quite well and tends to be pretty funny) and some other links to other common websites that I visit occasionally. I guess that's it for now. It's definitely time to start thinking about going to bed.

Katrina Part II: Bush Bashing

It's been a week since Katrina first made landfall. I've pretty much been keeping track of the news of this disaster since it first happened. Before I get into writing this entry, I should probably start with some warnings to those that might read this entry. First, to any Bush lover who might read this, you'll probably become pretty upset with what I have to say. If you really feel like flaming me, go ahead, but if you do submit nasty comments, I'm probably going to ignore them, unless they are well thought out. And I'll be the first to admit that I was never a Bush supporter and never will be. Most of my rants on how he handled this would be the same if it were a Democrat in office, or an independent, or any other third party that has some slim shot at getting elected. Second, this entry may contain some expletives. I'm not sure how nice and civil I'm willing to be with all that's gone on. I think that's about it for now. On to the entry....

Obviously I'm incredibly enraged by the response of most people in charge in this disaster. Now, this isn't only about Bush, although he does carry most of the blame in my opinion. I'll start with the people in charge in Louisiana. (Yes, this entry is going to be mainly about New Orleans because that's what's been focused on in the news lately.) They do carry some of the blame. They should have done anything within their power to do what needed to be done before the storm hit. Use school buses and any other means of mass transportation to get people evacuated who have NO other means to get out of the city. If nothing else, you can at least make sure the shelter you're sending these people to has an adequate amount of food and water available for people to use for a decent amount of time. They didn't even do that much. However, after the hurricane struck and devastated a large chunk of the Gulf coast, I think the local people in charge were doing everything in their power to help people out.

Now on to the Bush rant. While the people on the local and state level were trying to cope with the tremendous disaster they had on their hands, where was Bush? Our "fearless leader" was on a five-week (!) vacation at his ranch. Five weeks?? I realize that running the country must be a very difficult job, and I certainly would not want to do it myself. But it does seem like Bush is on vacation more often than he is working. I mean, really, how many average people in America actually have at least five weeks of vacation a year? I'm guessing very few. And of these people, can they take all their weeks of vacation at once? Probably not. But that's beside the point. It seems that every time there is some sort of crisis in the world or right here at home, Bush seems to be at his damn ranch in Texas. And this was no exception.

And where the hell is Cheney through all of this? I haven't heard his name in a while. My guess is that he's at some undisclosed location so no one can find him.

So, anyway, Bushie's on vacation for fours weeks prior to Katrina's landfall. Then he waits an extra two days after the landfall to say, "Oh, I guess I should cut my vacation short and help the country I was elected to run." Yes, he cut his vacation short by two days. Two?! That's it? If I were him, and I'm glad I'm not because I don't need that kind of stress, I would have been on a plane back to the White House a couple days before the hurricane hit. Especially since it was pretty obvious to just about anyone that the hurricane was actually going to make landfall somewhere along the Gulf. I mean, it barely passed over Florida and was continually gaining strength. And I know that hurricane predictions aren't always the most accurate, but most of the time the hurricane does move within its "cone of error." So, it shouldn't have been surprising that the hurricane was heading towards the Gulf coast. And it was a category five hurricane up until nearly landfall. I know that what the different categories mean is not exactly clear to everyone (hell, I'm not really sure what the difference is between a cat 4 and a cat 5, except the winds are stronger in a cat 5) but considering it was at the highest level it could go on the Saffir-Simpson scale, most people had to know it was going to be a devastating hurricane.

Our fearless leader then flies over the scarred area just to see what kind of devastation really occurred. Well, that's nice, especially days after the hurricane hit. Then he has the audacity to say that the results going on are "not acceptable." Really. Like we couldn't see that from the beginning. That's like the pot calling the kettle black. He spends an extra two days on vacation while there are people (most of them probably his supporters, perhaps until now) starving, drowning, and all other sorts of nasty ways to die. And he basically says things aren't getting done. What I would have done is the following. I know the storm is going to hit somewhere along the Gulf. I'd have units sent out to strategic locations with food, water, medicine, and the means to get any people that didn't evacuate out of town. These locations would be far enough away so they wouldn't be affected by the full force of Katrina, but close enough that they could get to the devastated areas within a day. And I wouldn't mind if I were stepping on the toes of the people in charge at the local and state level. Things needed to be done and done quickly. At the least, I'd work with them right away and tell them my plans. It just seems like such an obvious thing to do.

So, the results are "not acceptable." What does Bush do from here? He says he's going down to the coast to have a walking tour and see the devastation for himself. While that sounds all nice and everything, really, I think it's detracting from what could be going on. First of all, he'd need some security while he's down there, since, by that time, things have already started to descend into anarchy. So, that's taking away from what security is already there trying to keep the peace. Second, does he really need a first hand look at how bad everything is there before he starts sending in troops and supplies for the survivors? I don't think so. Third, I really think the only reason he went down to MS, AL, and LA is to show people that he's a "caring" person, and to get a few photo ops in. I saw some of his press conference in Biloxi on Friday because that pre-empted my soap for a bit. I don't know if it's just because I've never liked Bush, but I could have sworn that while he was talking about all the work that needs to be done, he had some sort of weird smirk or something on his face. He just didn't look sincere. At least not to me. I'm sure Bush supporters will disagree to no end on this point.

Also, courtesy of "Wait, wait, don't tell me" on NPR, I heard quite the doozy of a quote from our fearless leader. He said, "I don't think anyone anticipated the breach of the levees." Really? How can he possibly say that? I've heard studies say that the levees would only withstand a category three storm. Obviously Katrina was a little bit stronger than that. I've also heard that some of the money going into studying the levee system was diverted away from that for some reason or another. (I'm sure the Iraq war had something to do with it.) So, really, it shouldn't have been a surprise to him, or anyone really. Everyone should have expected something like this would happen at some point. I realize that it is usually people's inclination to procrastinate to no end (I'm no exception), but New Orlean is below sea level. Surely a city as big and prominent and full of history as this one should have some sort better protection from flooding. I mean, the levees are made of dirt! I would think a stronger material is in order. Plus, the fact that they are only built to withstand a moderate strength storm is just laughable. Granted, category 4's and 5's don't happen that often, but often enough to warrant some extra protection, I'd think. But, no, the government doesn't want to spend money on things like protecting cities from natural disasters. Terrorism is the big concern lately.

While terrorism is something important to be concerned about, I think our country's welfare is also equally important. We have so many troops in Iraq and all around the world taking care of other country's problems that it doesn't seem like we have enough here in our own country to take care of ourselves. Now, this isn't just a Bush thing either, but he seems to be a big culprit recently, with this seemingly unending (with no plan for an exit) war in Iraq. I'm not even qualifying it as a war on terror, because I can't justify it as being a war on terror from the beginning. Now it may be with all the anti-American sentiment in Iraq. But I'm getting off topic here. The point is that there aren't enough troops, seemingly, in America to have responded in a quick fashion to the devastation from Katrina, no matter what Bush seems to think. Part of his news conference on ABC last week was directed at how many troops are in Iraq, and Bush basically said that we can handle it here even with the smaller number of troops here. Whatever.

I've heard from one of my friends that Bush has a 46% approval rating on how he's handling things with regards to Katrina. And he has a 47% disapproval rating. (Apparently 7% of people either don't care, can't decide, or live under rocks somewhere and have no idea what's going on.) Frankly, I'm surprised that it's that high.

It seems to me that we could relate this disaster to a terrorist attack. I mean, isn't this the type of this the Department of Homeland Security was preparing for. Well, I guess not exactly the type of thing, since it didn't come from Osama. However, this does show how woefully underprepared we are for this kind of disaster. Honestly, I'm quite afraid of what would happen if there was another terrorist attack, God forbid. Since we can't seem to respond to a hurricane in a reasonable amount of time, I'm really worried.

I truly think that as soon as this disaster is cleaned up that there should be some sort of ramifications on Bush and his administration. I'm thinking on the order of impeachment. It seems necessary to get him the hell out of office. (And this isn't just coming from me because I've never liked him. I'd feel the same way if it were a Democrat.) People get fired all the time for gross incompetence. Why not the President too? Clinton almost got impeached because he had an affair. Bush has had hundreds more people die on his watch that could have been avoided. I don't think anything is going to happen to him though. He'll remain in office for another three years. He is the morals president after all. That's why he remained in office, even though I value honestly pretty highly as a moral, and he doesn't seem to care if he's lying to people.

OK, I guess I should get off my soapbox for now. I just had to rant about what's happening. Things could have been handled so much better, but they weren't and people who could have survived this tragedy have died because of the lack of quick response on the federal level. I know as soon as the devastation has cleared up sufficiently, the blame game will start (it already has) and Bush will probably worm his way out of this scrape too. I find unnecessary death unacceptable, and at the moment, I find Bush and his administration unacceptable as well.