We went X-country skiing yesterday in Allegany. [inlink]matthew,692[/inlink] Somehow I always seem to pick the wrong trails. I have memories of these awesome exciting trails, but everytime we go it ends up being fun but quite exertionesque. Yesterday we definately managed to go uphill like 300% more than downhill. And while I realize this confounds the laws of physics my shaky legs will attest to it. So, in order for us to not repeat the same mistakes this time we actually drew arrows on our little map indicating which direction not to take next time. We'll see...

Today is rainy and gray. What to do? (e:matthew) wants to go to Home Depot to get new tortoise care building supplies. Which may end up being it.

We got X-Men Legends 2 the other week. We are about 2/3rds of the way through but the games keeps freezing at this one point. We've tried like 5 times to get past it and are very frustrated. The whole rest of the game worked fine, I think that there may just be too much going on for my three year old Gamecube. The disc itself looks fine-no scratches or smears. I also tried replaying various other parts and they seemed to be fine. The freeze just plays this really irritating buzzing noise until you turn it off. Any Gamecubers out there have any suggestions, or experienced anything similar? I will be so sad if I don't get to whomp Apocalypse's ass!

Thanks for the party-space, (e:jessika). Wish we could have talked to you more, but your couch was so comfy (and at that time not puke-covered).

And, after a two week period of diminishing pain, my back is "back" to normal.

So, at the aforementioned party, I joined the discussion mentioned by (e:paul) with (e:ejtower). It was pretty fun. I forget sometimes how much fun it is to have a purely academic discussion. Makes me almost miss school...almost.

His post hits on some of the points that we talked about. He and I are agreed that true innovation and invention are best inspired by free markets. They inevitably tend to maximize effectiveness and reduce cost without any outside interference. We both think any "green" revolution must be market driven. We both think that federal/governmental intervention oftentimes stymies this same innovation. Why make the next energy/food source when the one you're banking on is guaranteed profits not through marketability but through government subsidies? He managed to convince me that he's a pretty smart guy. Who counters your argument that energy is necessary for cyborgs to work with an argument that oil is just another energy-rich oil, many of which are growing right now in a field near you?

We differed in our opinions on government. (E:jtower) wants to abolish government. That may not be quite right: he wants there to be no government (we didn't really discuss the method of disposal). According to him, government inhibits the natural rights of people, or in his words, government "justif[ies] our infringements on each other's right to life". My question is, without government, who protects your individual right to life? I suppose we are all responsible for protecting our own rights, unless we have powerful friends/relatives who decide to help us. I think one of the purposes of government is to provide a base level of survival for everyone. It makes those people who would just die, I guess, able to survive, if minimally. It gives everyone (or at least most) an opportunity to compete with those with lots of powerful (can we just say rich?) friends/relatives. Of course it doesn't always work that way. Most people have no chance of becoming powerful. But, at the same time, most people have the opportunity to survive, without having to earn it on the free market. If you believe in the right to life, shouldn't you want everyone to have this opportunity, regardless of connections to already existing power?

So we could have another discussion on the function/effectiveness of government (which I'm sure the Larson brothers would happily participate in). But I just can't see how a realistic anarchy (and I do mean in the political sense) would ever come to exist. And I worry that ideas of unfettered marketplaces play right into the hands of the entrenched power that exists in our world. Does Wal-mart really need less government oversight?

P.S.: If any opinions expressed here don't actually belong to the owners expressed above, please feel free to comment or clarify.

Ridiculously for a 26 year old who is not obese, I am getting ever worsening back problems. Yesterday I woke up and had horrible shooting pains whnever I moved my left leg in the wrong way. The pain is centered somewhere between my lower back and left hip. It is very hard to locate exactly, it seems to come from deep inside, there's no massage that even touches it. So I went to work and sat through another ridiculous lesson (at my job we have a week of training every year, and after 4 years of the same lessons they are becoming intolerable) with pain shooting through me with every sublte movement. I dosed myself up with Advil which worked mildly, then Motrin (which perhaps worked better or maybe the pain was naturally wearing off). It is so embarrasing to have to gimp around the workplace. There's nothing outwardly wrong, just a weird hesitating half-limp.

Today the pain was better, and now it's almost gone. I realized that this happens everytime around training time and am hesitantly attributing it to the extended period of sitting that I have to endure. Now, my job in general is sitting, but at least I can move around, take a stroll, and just stand up and stretch more. I think I will use my newly-gotten health insurance (first in over 5 years!) to go to a doctor and, even if they can't do anything-which I suspect, at least get some real pain meds (which would be the first time I was taking them for pain :) )

We Are Scientists, huh? Well I guess maybe I'll see someone there. Maybe even someone who'll talk to me. I do have a position for friend that's recently opened. Any takers?

After what seems like weeks and weeks of house guests, visits to family, and best friends leaving (I already miss you, (e:flacidness)), I am finally sitting here typing in an otherwise empty house. Very nice.

Today I did what seems to be my favorite thing to do. I leisurely woke up, had a nice cup of really strong coffee, and surfed the web as I slowly came to life. Next was a bit of cleaning, the dishes, followed by the creation of egg salad. I'm in the process of eating the newly-cooled goop right now...yummy.

I decided I should try out my Christmas gift from (e:paul)'s momma: a big ole crock pot. I looked for a likely recipe in the slow-cook cookbook which was also from mother maria. Then I headed down to the coop for the ingredients. I learned what herb de provincal is from a nice lady there, I think she might have been a volunteer, but alas they didn't have any. She suggested I use a combination of marjoram, thyme, and maybe a dash of tarragon, since garlic and pepper were already ingredients. Hope it works. Then I tramped all the way to the Hodge liquor store for the requisite dry white wine. Not a bad day for a walk at all.

My Chicken Stew Provencal is currently crocking away. It smells good so far.

Now I just need to convincce my sugar daddy that this is what I should do everyday! :)

Haruki Murakamii.

Good read. Just read what I believe is his first novel, A Wild Sheep Chase. I've read a couple others, maybe even posted about them...Wind-up Bird Chronicles was also very good. So far his protagonists are without names. Not that they don't have one in their world, just that it's not ever shared with us. How important is a name anyway? In the Wild Sheep Chase, I don't think anyone has a name: just her, me, he, etc... A world where everyone is a pronoun (it's interesting that even at this level, we still can tell who's a boy and who's a girl).

His main characters are almost always normal, even übernormal. Then somehow through seemingly coincidental events become involved in very strange happenenings indeed. Through it all the main character stumbles, generally using his ordinariness to good advantage. It's the adventure that we all want to have, the once in a lifetime complete removal from mundania (anyone ever read Piers Anthony?).

If you're still not interested then I'll give you one final thought to get excited about: whale penis.

Enjoy, gentle readers, enjoy!