Those Who Fail to Learn History...

Ok, first read this article about Hitler's rise to power from the Wikipedia.

Now fast forward to today and read this article about Hugo Chavez in Venezuela from Fox News today.

All I can say right now is that I sure hope the US doesn't elect a Chamberlain President in 2008.

Lyrical Thought #42

Mix Tape

Avenue Q

I wish that things were this easy, but then it also shows why they're so complicated.

Kate Monster:
Princeton.

He likes me.
I think he likes me.
Does does he 'like me' like me,
Like I like him?
Will we be friends,
Or something more?
I think he's interested,
But I'm not sure.

Come in!

Princeton:
Hiya, Kate!

Kate Monster:
Princeton! Hi!

Princeton:
Hi! Listen, I was going through my CDs
yesterday, and I kept coming across songs
I thouht you'd like, so I made you this tape.

Kate Monster:
Oh, that's so sweet!
Can I get you a drink? Or a snack?

Princeton:
Actually, do you mind if I use your bathroom?

Kate Monster:
Go right ahead.

Princeton:
Oh, thank you!

Kate Monster:
A mix tape.
He made a mix tape.
He was thinking of me,
Which shows he cares!
Sometimes when someone
Has a crush on you
They'll make you a mix tape
To give you a clue.
Let's see...
"You've Got A Friend"
"The Theme From 'Friends'"
"That's What Friends Are For"

Shit!
Oh, but look!

"A Whole New World"
"Kiss The Girl"
"My Cherie Amour"

Oh, Princeton! He does like me!

"I Am The Walrus"
"Fat Bottomed Girls"
"Yellow Submarine"
What does this mean?

Princeton:
Hey Kate, you might wanna not go in there for a while.

Kate Monster:
Princeton, thank you for this tape.
I was just looking at side A. Great songs!

Princeton:
Oh, well, did you get to side B yet?

Kate Monster:
No, not yet.

Princeton:
Oh, it's great! Check it out.

Kate Monster:
Yeah?

Princeton:
Right here...

Kate Monster:
"Stuck On You"

Princeton:
"Love Me Do"

Kate Monster:
"My Heart Will Go On"

I loved "Titanic"!

Princeton:
Uhh, it was all right.

"She's Got A Way"

Kate Monster:
"Yesterday"

Princeton:
"Goodnight Saigon!"

>From the Russia concert!

Kate Monster:
Oh. Great.

"Through The Years"

Princeton:
"The Theme From 'Cheers'"

Kate Monster:
"Moving Right Along"

Nice tape.

Princeton:
Oh, there's one more...

"I Have To Say I Love You In A Song"

Kate Monster:
Princeton, that's so sweet!
I've never gotten such a nice present from a guy.

Princeton:
Awww. Well, I'm glad you like it.
But, I have to go now. I'm gonna make one
for Brian and Christmas Eve and Gary and
Nicky and Rod and Trekkie Monster and everyone!

Kate Monster:
Oh.

Princeton:
Oh, and, uh -

Kate Monster:
Yes?

Princeton:
What are you doing tonight?

Kate Monster:
Grading term papers. But it's kindergarten,
so they're very short. Why?

Princeton:
Everyone's going to hear this singer at the
Around The Clock Cafe. Do you want to go with me?

Kate Monster:
Like, a date?

Princeton:
Sure! A date. It'll be a blast.

Kate Monster:
I'd love to come!

Princeton:
Okay! Well, I'll see you then.

Kate Monster:
Okay!

Princeton:
Okay, bye.

Kate Monster:
Bye!
He likes me!

Matt Maher Concert in Columbia

So like I mentioned earlier I went down to Rolla to visit and to go to Columbia for the Matt Maher concert. Well I batted .500 for the weekend. I got to Rolla ok, but going to Columbia that evening was anything but uneventful. Matt was driving and tried to swerve to miss someone's cooler that was on the roadway. Unfortunately he didn't quite make it far enough out of the way and the rear passenger side tire caught the cooler and went flat immediately.

Ok so two guys should be able to change a simple tire right??? Well apparently not always. We got the jack out and started taking off the lug nuts. Unfortunately the fifth and final lug nut just would not budge. After trying various methods of cajoling it off, we finally admitted defeat and called AAA. The tow truck driver showed up about 45 minutes later (we had no clue besides that we were between Jefferson City and Columbia so it took him a bit to find us). He had similar problems with that lug nut and had to resort to jumping on the lug wrench to break it free (his pneumatic wrench wouldn't budget it).

So once we were on our way again to Columbia at the whopping 50 mph that the spare allowed, we knew we weren't going to make it to the concert. Instead we went to Wal-Mart and got a new tire installed and then got supper at CiCi's pizza (mmm Mac and Cheese pizza). Thankfully let us know that they were meeting up at Steak and Shake after the concert so we met them briefly to chat and what not before heading back to Rolla.

The rest of the weekend was fairly uneventful. I'm now back in the frozen tundra of Jacksonville.

Headed to Rolla

Why you may ask would a single guy that already has a degree decide to drive to Rolla where there are 9 guys for every one female? Well does live there so I guess that's a good reason. Oh yeah and the side trip with him to Columbia to see Matt Maher is good too. Oh and at that concert I'll be seeing the wonderful ladies from Truman including and . Ok so I guess there's a good reason or two to drive to Rolla, MO.

Lyrical Thought #41

Hmm it's ironic that this is #41 and it's Super Bowl XLI...

1985 Chicago Bears Super Bowl Shuffle

*Chorus*
We are the Bears Shufflin' Crew
Shufflin' on down, doin' it for you.
We're so bad we know we're good.
Blowin' your mind like we knew we would.
You know we're just struttin' for fun
Struttin' our stuff for everyone.
We're not here to start not trouble.
We're just here to do the Super Bowl Shuffle.

*Walter Payton*
Well, they call me Sweetness,
And I like to dance.
Runnin' the ball is like makin' romance.
We've had the goal since training camp
To give Chicago a Super Bowl Champ.
And we're not doin' this
Because we're greedy.
The Bears are doin' it to feed the needy.
We didn't come here to look for trouble,
We just came here to do
The Super Bowl Shuffle.

*Willie Gault*
This is Speedy Willie, and I'm world class.
I like runnin' but i love to get the pass.
I practice all day and dance all night,
I got to get ready for the Sunday fight.
Now I'm as smooth as a chocolate swirl,
I dance a little funky, so watch me girl.
There's not one here that does it like me,
My Super Bowl Shuffle will set you free.

*Mike Singletary*
I'm Samurai Mike I stop'em cold.
Part of the defense, big and bold,
I've been jammin' for quite a while,
Doin' what's right and settin' the style,
Give me a chance, I'll rock you good,
Nobody messin' in my neighborhood.
I didn't come here lookin' for trouble,
I just came to do The Super Bowl Shuffle

(Repeat Chorus)

*Jim McMahon*
I'm the punky QB, known as McMahon.
When I hit the turf, I've got no plan.
I just throw my body all over the field.
I can't dance, but I can throw the pill.
I motivate the cats, I like to tease.
I play so cool, I aim to please.
That's why you all got here on the double
To catch me doin' the Super Bowl Shuffle.

*Otis Wilson*
I'm mama's boy Otis, one of a kind.
The ladies all love me
For my body and my mind.
I'm slick on the floor as I can be
But ain't no sucker gonna get past me.
Some guys are jealous
Of my style and class,
That's why some end up on their -,
I didn't come here lookin' for trouble,
I just get down to The Super Bowl Shuffle.

*Steve Fuller*
They say Jimbo is our man.
If Jimmy can't do it, I sure can.
This is Steve, and it's no wonder
I run like lightnin', pass like thunder.
So bring on Atlanta, bring on Dallas,
This is for Mike and Papa Bear Halas.
I'm not here to feather his ruffle,
I just came here to do
The Super Bowl Shuffle.

*Mike Richardson*
I'm L.A. Mike, and I play it cool.
They don't sneak by me 'cause I'm no fool.
I fly on the field and get on down.
Everybody knows I don't mess around.
I can break'em, shake'em,
Any time of day.
I like to steal it and make 'em pay,
So please don't cry to beat my hustle
'Cause I'm just here to do
The Super Bowl Shuffle.

(Repeat Chorus)

*Richard Dent*
The sackman's comin', I'm your man Dent.
if the quarterback's slow,
He's gonna get bent.
We stop the run, we stop the pass,
I like to dump guys on their -.
We love to play for the world's best fans,
You better start makin'
Your Super Bowl plans.
But don't get ready or go to any trouble
Unless you practice
The Super Bowl Shuffle.

*Gary Fencik*
It's Gary here, and I'm Mr.Clean.
They call me "hit man,"
Don't know what they mean.
They throw it long and watch me run,
I'm on my man, one-on-one.
Buddy's guys cover it down to the bone,
That's why they call us the 46 zone.
Come on everybody let's scream and yell,
We're goin' to do the Shuffle,
Then ring your bell.

*William Perry*
You're lookin' at the Fridge,
I'm the rookie.
I may be large, but I'm no dumb cookie.
You've seen me hit, you've seen me run,
When I kick and pass, we'll have more fun.
I can dance, you will see
The others, they all learn from me.
I don't come here lookin' for trouble,
I just came here to do
The Super Bowl Shuffle.

(Repeat Chorus)

Update Time

Ok so some of this some of you already know, but some of you don't so here goes. I'm guessing this won't be as long as 's update posts, but who knows.

Well the biggest thing going on right now came as a shocker to me when it started. A little bit before Christmas I got a call from an IT recruiter. I wasn't looking for a job, but I figured it can't hurt to listen to him and see what he had to say. He didn't have any jobs that I was interested in, but we did start talking about the job market in my area. One of the factoids that he gave me was that I'm currently making around $10K-$15K less than the average Network Administrator in my area. Too add insult to injury so to speak I found out that I'm not even on the low end of the bracket yet. Needless to say this opened my eyes and ears to the possibility of there being life after Dot. Realistically I'm not dissatisfied with my job itself, but some of the things that surround it make the possibility of change appealing including my current commute, location (I'd rather live in Springfield) and of course now my salary.

It's not like I don't already make a good living, but there are times where I wish I had a little more money to spend on things like a vacation or just the simple bonus of not having to worry about the correlation between pay day and bill due dates. I would also like to be able to put more away into savings, investments and my retirement account. Outside of pay distance and location are my biggest factors to consider. Right now it seems like I'm straddling between two worlds, one Quincy-centric and the other Springfield-centric. Work is in Mt. Sterling which is closer to Quincy. I live in Jacksonville which is closer to Springfield and besides church, most of the things that I do outside of work are in Springfield. This usually means that I end up driving the two hour trip from Mt. Sterling to Springfield at least twice a week if not more. It just gets to be a lot of driving. My car will be two years old in May, but I have over 47,000 miles already. It would be nice to have more time by just eliminating some of the driving.

In Dot's favor right now is that most of the projects that I proposed last fall made it into the budget this year instead of being cut. There are a lot of new technologies that I would get to learn about staying at Dot. On the flip side I recently asked my boss for the right to telework one day a week (Our programming staff gets two days a week.) and was flatly told no without any hint of room for discussion. Part of me at this point would love to find the dream job in Springfield and just cut bait on Dot, but for some reason I have a strange loyalty even with the pay and teleworking problems.

Well that sums up my job issues in a very large nutshell for now. No decisions yet, we'll see what happens.

Ok besides the work stuff, I've been keeping busy as always with Pastoral Council, Choir, Cantoring and I added Jazz band last fall. It's been fun playing with the Lincoln Land Community College Jazz Band. It's mostly community members so I wasn't the odd ball non-traditional student. I've also started taking private lessons on trumpet to try to catch up with the other trumpet players. I've been playing relatively easy music for so long that I've fallen into lots of bad habits. My teacher is working me back to proper form slowly, but surely.

Well for now I'm going to wrap this up and head to bed. Monday's are my long day because I leave home at 6:45am and don't get back until after jazz band at around 10:30pm.

Super Bowl XLI: The Battle of the Midwest

That's right, no east coast or west coast teams this year. Just the Chicago Bears and the Indianapolis Colts. Talk about two exciting conference championship games today. It should be a hell of a Super Bowl this year. Go Bears!

DA BEARS are SuperBowl Bound!!!

Oh yeah baby! Go Bears!!!

DA BEARS!!!

Ok so now that I've managed to give myself a sore throat from screaming at the TV for the last 3 hours I just have to say:

DA BEARS!!!

National Hugging Day

Apparently next Sunday is National Hugging Day so make sure to get your hugging muscles ready.

National Hugging Day

Scooby Dooby Doo

Iwao Takamoto, the animator that created Scooby Doo, passed away at age 81.

Prayer for Love

God, please help me find the love of my life. I want to discover love and share my love with someone else. Please guide me toward the best choices in life to find the right person. Amen.

Lyrical Thought #40

Hold Me Jesus
Rich Mullins

Well, sometimes my life
Just don't make sense at all
When the mountains look so big
And my faith just seems so small

CHORUS:
So hold me Jesus, 'cause I'm shaking like a leaf
You have been King of my glory
Won't You be my Prince of Peace

And I wake up in the night and feel the dark
It's so hot inside my soul
I swear there must be blisters on my heart

CHORUS

Surrender don't come natural to me
I'd rather fight You for something
I don't really want
Than to take what You give that I need
And I've beat my head against so many walls
Now I'm falling down, I'm falling on my knees

And this Salvation Army band
Is playing this hymn
And Your grace rings out so deep
It makes my resistance seem so thin

CHORUS

You have been King of my glory
Won't You be my Prince of Peace

Language, Signs and Translations

I just opened my new daily Italian phrase calendar and was thinking about languages and signs and how we translate them either right, sorta ok or just plain wrong and how meanings can change because of that. One of my goals is to someday learn Italian well enough that I can go visit my relatives in Italy without needing a translator or needing them to speak English(most do). The language though that I think everyone in my stage of life needs help with is the language of the opposite sex whether you are male or female.

Thousands of books have been written on the subject like Men are From Mars and Women are From Venus (I think they're really from Pluto (Which is a planet!)). What I want to know is why can't we just be blunt and all speak in English (or the vernacular of the region) when we go through the game(or maybe the puzzle) of relationships? Wouldn't it be a fresh and novel approach instead of flirting with subtle "signals" that neither side understands 100% of the time that we would instead have a conversation like:

"Hi my name is Joe."
"Hi Joe, my name is Jane."
"Jane, I think you're pretty."
"Oh really?"
"Yes I do. Would you consider going out with me?"
"Yes I think so, let's talk and get to know each other."

Instead we spend time trying to read signals. Now am I saying that I've got the guts to do this? Nah probably not, but man wouldn't it be simpler if we had that kind of guts? So in case women are reading, just be blunt with me and let me know what your thinking. I don't read signals well. I thought the last woman was telling me to bunt!

New Years' Resolution #1

Finish my Cisco Certified Security Professional(CCSP) certification. I've got 2 of the 5 tests done. I scheduled number 3 for January 19th so now I have a date to shoot for. After that I plan on doing number four in February and fine in March. Once that's done I shift gears to Voice over IP and start the CCVP. Maybe someday someone will recognize me for doing this with more money... or at least that's the hope.

QOTD

"God has created me to do him some definite service; He has committed some work to me which he has not committed to another. I have my mission; I never may know it in this life, but I shall be told it in the next. I have a part in a great work; I am a link in a chain, a bond of connexion [sic] between persons. He has not created me for naught. I shall do good, I shall do His work; I shall be an angel of peace, a preacher of truth in my own place, while not intending it, if I do but keep His commandments and serve Him in my calling." -- John Henry Cardinal Newman

New Years 2007 Quiz

Since I like following umrguy42's lead at things...

2007 Looking Ahead
No 1 word answers please. Explain your replies.
In 2007....
will you try to eat healthier?:	A constant struggle, but yes.
will you take up some form of excercise?:	Yes, the only question is for how long.
what new things will you try to learn?:	Well I'm continuing my trumpet lessons to get better at that and I'll be doing more Cisco Certifications. Beyond that I'd like to try to start learning Italian.
will you try to improve your financial situation?:	Yes, working on that now.
are there any bad habits you hope to break?:	Yes, need to stop comfort eating.
are there any fears you'd like to try and overcome?:	Yes, fear of rejection.
will there be any lifelong goals you'll try to accomplish?:	Yes, but only with God's help will that happen.
will you move to a new place?:	Maybe, depends on question 4.
what new things will you try for fun and adventure?:	Not sure.
will you try a new look?:	Well if the exercise works and I stick to it, yes.
will you try to eat something you've never had before?:	Maybe
will you be getting any tattoo's?:	Nope
will you be getting any piercings:	Nope
will you try a new hairstyle or color?:	Maybe, never know. Gotta do something with the invasion of gray.
will there be any charities you'll be active in?:	Yes
Holidays and Occasions
Have you made any new years resolutions?:	Sorta
Do you have any plans on keeping them?:	Hopefully
If you fail before the year is up, is that it or you gonna try again?:	Well it's the same as last year so I'm trying again.
Do you have a Valentine?:	Only in my dreams.
If not, do you want one?:	I would give a lot for that yes.
What do you want for your birthday in 07?:	True love.
Will you party for St Patricks day?:	Maybe... Matt?
How about Mardi Gras?:	Nah
What would make Christmas in 07 the best ever?:	Being in love again.
This Or That
2007; New beginning or Same old shit:	We'll see, 2006 was the same old shit.
See what life brings or Make things happen:	Yes
Single life or a serious relationship:	I'm hoping for serious relationship.
New love or Make a current love stronger:	New love
Party more or Party less:	about the same
New Job or Raise/promotion at the current:	Yes
Work harder or Relax more:	Relax more
Save money or Stop being so cheap:	save money
Travel more or stay home more:	Travel more hopefully
Make new friends or Spend more time with current friends:	Yes
Top 5's
Top 5 Places to go in 07:	NPM National Convention in Indy, Networkers in LA, Florida, Italy (I wish), and whereever I find Love
Top 5 Famous people to meet in 07:	John Chambers, Linus Torvalds, Ron Santo, President Bush, Bill O'Reilly
Top 5 People to see more in 07:	Future Wife, Michelle, Christine, Matt, the Truman gang
Top 5 Things to do in 07:	Cubs Games, Bears Games, Hang out with my Friends, travel, find true love
Top 5 Ways to improve yourself in 07:	Loose weight, learn new things, take better care of myself, Love more, trust more
And Finally
One new years wish to make your 07 truly Happy:	That God will show me a bit more of his plan for me to answer my constant question of "What's the buzz? Tell me what's a happening."
Take this survey | Find more surveys Bzoink - The Original Survey Site

QOTD

"Here's to The New Year. May she be a damn sight better than the old one, and may we all be home before she's over." -- Colonel Harry Potter (M*A*S*H)