Life without the media... almost.

I have been without radio for a while now. My iPod has been used more now than ever. I've got two dozen, mostly technology, podcasts to which I've subscribed. The only political exposure now is the 10 minute segment I catch on the radio while I shower, and the water-cooler conversations at work. I think Obama is a paper candidate propped up by the ultra-rich democrats, and just another smooth-talking lawyer. McCain is probably a nicer guy, but I don't like his politics either. "Bob Barr for President!", I say.

http://www.bobbarr2008.com/spread-the-word/

I am finally catching up on my housework, and getting ready to update OGGoO. I have more ideas than time. Time, time, time. Sadly, there never seems to be enough of it.

Hmmm... What did I do on the 4th of July?

I slept until 3pm, and apparently I left my cell out in the truck. So after checking in with the voice mail, I took care of the Oglesby's hermit crab, went shopping for food, and drove out to the suburbs of the greater metropolitan area of Ohio county.

Food, Fireworks, and Friends. I had a good time, got back around 1:30am, chatted for a couple of hours and then finally ZZZzzz...

My immersion into podcasts is already flooding me with interesting idea, tips, and topics to pursue. Yesterday and today I was focused on the culture around "GTD", or Getting Things Done. I don't remember exactly what let me to the topic, but it may have been a reference to the "Hipster PDA" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hipster_PDA

David Allen is the dude who wrote the book. http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-Free-Productivity/dp/0142000280 His main website is- http://www.davidco.com/

And I am listening to a YouTube of him now- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qo7vUdKTlhk

There is an interesting app MonkeyGTD, that I am going to play with and read the code. http://monkeygtd.tiddlyspot.com/#MonkeyGTD It is a self-contained HTML and Javascript application.

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"We all carry within us our places of exile, our crimes, our ravages. Our task is not to unleash them on the world; it is to transform them in ourselves and others." -Albert Camus

I listened to a podcast with Dan Ingalls as the guest. He belongs in the hall of fame as a member of the first generation ubergeek.

http://research.sun.com/people/mybio.php?c=394

Listening to his history and the evolution of Smalltalk really took me back to the 'golden years' of personal computing.

*up on soapbox*

I am on day three of "little to no radio". I have filled that space with podcasts, my iPod is loaded with nothing but podcasts. I really feel that my time is better spend listening to the programs that I choose, rather than listening to NPR prattle on with the "we-love-obama" orgy. I like McCain personally, but I don't agree with is politics. The Obama-lama-rama coverate, his speeches and his fans annoy me to no end. Obama is a paper tiger, a liberal stool, elevated by the ultra-rich liberal Democrats. He is just another lawyer and has as much depth as a sheet of paper. Surrounded by nut-jobs, he has not done anything even close being noteworthy. Why the press is so facinated with him and his so-called phenomenon, is beyond my ability to tolerate. If I donate to public radio, I am complaining about NPR and I no longer support thier efforts. Not a dime from me. Terry Gross and Fresh Air are already on my list of things that suck. It is a good thing that our local talk radio has Dennis Miller on in the same time slot.

I am activly eliminating every bit of traditional media from my life. They are mostly a waste of time. No TV, no news on the radio. Certain sources on the Internet will be my sole actively monitered new source. Piss-off ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, New York, LA and Hollywood.

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"The art of living... is neither careless drifting on the one hand nor fearful clinging to the past on the other. It consists in being sensitive to each moment, in regarding it as utterly new and unique, in having the mind open and wholly receptive." -Alan Watts

I spent quite a bit of time getting organized at work. With the IBM Lotus Domino wrap-up, there are lots of loose threads to chase. Scott is on vacation this week, and Markus is in his last week of Metrology hell. Its really difficult to get anything other than the day-to-day stuff done with two people out.

Sophie and Lucy's dance recital was postponed (canceled) until they can resolve the issue of finding a place to host the event. I think the fine school system of Daviess County Kentucky needs to get their collective heads out of their collective butts. But that is just me. OK, its not just me but I'll leave it at that.

I'm done watching the machine run, I think it is time to wander home and listen to my new podcast only iPod setup.

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"Zen is not some kind of excitement, but concentration on our usual everyday routine." -Shunryu Suzuki

It seems that my blogging experience and/or practices revolve around moments of introspection. My lack of routine helps maintaining the 'empty mind' state, but impedes my ability to focus will and motivation at a particular task.

This realization has caused me to move my Zen calendar to my desk and work and I will try to quote from it each day. That is a small step to a larger goal.


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"Always aim at complete harmony of thought and word and deed. Always aim at purifying your thoughts and everything will be well." -Gandhi

The Evils of Popular Politics

The entire system of re-electing politicians entrenches the existence of the federal government. There are few people who would like to see the "big" government taken apart and passed back down to the states. Outsource the huge "entitlement" programs to private businesses, then let state and county governments buy those administrative/insurance coverage programs.

The federal government can do very little to our fair nations economy to spur it upward. It can do a great deal to squash it. The housing market crash is not a national problem. It is about banks making stupid loans to people who didn't have enought sense to say no. They are the ones that should pay for their mistakes, not all of us. It was not a natural disaster or something out of thier control. It was and act of bad judgement, and for that the lesson needs to be learned. The Government to the Rescue will not fix anything.

As for candidates, I think I've narrowed it down to liking Fred Thompson or Ron Paul. Though not a perfect fit, they are close. Neither Mit Romney or John McCain give me a warm fuzzy and will probably leave me voting Libertarian in 2008

I have so many scraps of paper that need to be translated into posts. *sigh* There is simply not enough time.

Today I dropped a PC on my big toe at work. It hurt. It still hurts. There is no broken skin, but if it doesn't feel better by tomorrow, I may have broken a toe. Otherwise, work was fairly productive today.

I started working on Sophie's and Lucy's PCs tonight. I need to by two small desks, and a bed. I've got a table full of paperwork that still needs to be processed. *bleh*

Jason came over tonight and we went to Starbucks. For the record, T-mobile sucks for charging for WiFi. I hope the county-wide WiFi project ends that douchebaggery. Panera Bread and Beef O'Brady's are free WiFi spots. I'm not sure about Books-a-Million, but Jason and I will find out soon.

It's after my bedtime now. Time to sleep.

Making Time

So far the first two weeks of this year have slipped by me. But I did well today to change direction. I keep a calorie point tally for my food today, and I hit the treadmill for 60 minutes. I had my iPod in the car, but I didn't want to go back outside for it.

I need to write here, a bit every day, to keep on top of things. The process should help me keep focused on my goals. There are many things for which I need closure and resolution. At least there are enough things in my reemerging social life to keep me distracted these days.

Well I have bills to pay, chores to do, and I have to be in bed by 11:30 pm (new rule).

There are simply too many things to do. Even with the elimination of TV from my routine, great ideas go unrealized and mundane tasks compete for precious time. Tonight, the mundane drudgery is ignored and I am loose, prowling my intellect into the void of my creativity. May my will keep the momentum of the activity of this evening.

Living Without Television

TV is the great thief of time. Most of us watch it passively, accept what comes on, or ignore it and allow it to fill the background of our existence. Our brains have become numb with the paltry offering of the networks catering to the lowest common denominator among us.

I have replaced TV with exercise and radio. I choose to watch movies. And there are a few Internet offerings that are worthwhile. http://dl.tv/ is a carry over from the expatriates of TechTV before it became the caffeinated teenage gamer network, G4. G4 ruined a wonderful network, I could not stomach the transformations of my shows into pale shadows of their former selves. DL.TV takes me back to the good old days.

I should be posting here more often. I have a couple of journals that could be transcribed here, when the wounds heal.

BellSouth took 18 days to tell me I couldn't have DSL. The phone service had already been set up. I was so mad, I canceled everything. If I have to pay for a cable modem, I am better off getting a cell phone and ditching the land line. BellSouth has sent me a bill, I am going to have to write my reply since calling them will cost me money. I will object to paying the installation fee, since my order was never fulfilled.

I've lost about 45 pounds since January 1st. I'm lifting twice the weight I started with at the beginning. Physically, I feel better that I can remember. I still need a better routine, idle time is my worst enemy right now. And my notebook is acting freaky. I need to do more writing too.

Goodnight.

M and I are separating. This is the first night in my apartment. There are a great many things that I will put pen to paper, but this is not the place. Tomorrow is another day.

The dark day. No further comment.

Crunch time. Power shopping. Christmas is closing in fast, and I need to be looking for presents instead of writing this blog entry. Got a visit with Daniel a couple of weekends ago, Will and the rest of the family too. Work seems to be going better and the online gaming is been fun. I want to see Apocolypto and Eregon, so I guess I need to sneak away since the kiddos can't watch.

We also need to work on Christmas cards. That is a big To Do. I'm not sure what M has planned, but I'll bet it is another Christmas picture. Getting late, need sleep.

Returning. Well I haven't posted in a while. Other home server projects have been keeping me distracted. Not to mention Neverwinter Nights 2, which is the game of the day. I've got the truth about hillary/nancy blogs going, to start as a collection of material for the domains. Maybe I should just forward them to the blogs. Hmmmm. Well, it is about time for NWN. More to post later.

The news has almost stopped babbeling about the 'meaning' of the election. Like they know anything. I've started gathering crazy-lady "NANCY NEWS" for the web site. I'll have to get focused and finish the site set up. "thetruthaboutnancy.org" will be a fine compliment to the hillary site. I have a great internal debate whether to keep it serious, or humorous (onion-style).

Need time, focus, and sleep to do massive web-presence improvement weekend. Maybe over the Thansksgiving holiday, while I avoid black friday shopping.

Time to hide your head in the sand!

No really. If the political ads aren't enough, the news about the political ads is absolutely stifling. I am now in avoidance mode for all news: local, state, national, world. I don't know too many people who would really change their opinion because of some TV spot. And it really saddens me that TV has such a large influence on the vote, with 30 seconds worth of mud slinging.

The issues haven't changes too much from the last election really. But if you want a real change vote Libertarian or some other third party.

The on-line gaming went well. I've got a bunch of wrapup work to do now. Sent e-mail out to other Brescia buddies. I'm finding NPR particularly annoying this week for some reason. I think they need to fire their political editor and make a fresh start of it. There is no debate on any issues, just experts yapping and people whining. It is not the government's job to see to it that you have a good life. And diplomacy only works when both parties actually talk. Nut-cases like Venesuala, Iran, and North Korea just irritate me because talking for them is stalling, until they can make a real pest out of themselves. No one seems to mention that.

Sooo tired. Need sleep.