The Rhetoric

connections

Tue, 20 May 2008 03:00:06 -0500

I was watching a movie tonight and I heard a line that I will always remember. An old friend of mine said to me once, “We’ll always be friends.” It’s a concept that sometimes people think exists because of the memories and the thought that sometime later we can just pick right back up where we left off. Those words are really a line of crap.

Truly, we’ll always have the memories. Those are with us for awhile – at least until we repress them right? Being friends though is more than memories though; it’s about being connected in some way. I have friends who I haven’t seen in a long time, who I haven’t even had a chance to catch up with in awhile. I have friends who live hundreds of miles away. But there’s still a connection. There is still effort involved. Those people are my friends.

Those people who we knew and have moved on – those were our friends. We have lovely memories of them (or not) and we hope they are happy (or not). They are a part of us in they had a role in shaping who we are now. People come and go through our lives, and if we’re lucky there are a few who make it along for the ride for many years. We should cherish that. If we’re truly blessed we have precious few lifelong friends.

But I think I’ve finally learned to accept that sometimes when people go, they go away for good. And we move on. And it’s good.

She's what?

Mon, 19 May 2008 22:10:04 -0500

I'm so over the democratic race for the nomination. I'm just holding my breath so I don't smell the stink until it's done with. It's almost like it's a bad dream where your ex just won't make the dramatic exit you're waiting for. But I happened upon a strangely written article that appeared on my Yahoo! page tonight. It talks about Clinton as if we might not know who she is. Lines that end with:
"...Clinton, a New York senator, said in Maysville." A senator? What?
"...said Clinton, a former first lady." You're kidding?

Either it's a hint for her about her status in the race, or they really think we've held our breath too long?

(source: Clinton to Obama: Not so fast - Yahoo! News)

Great rides, clear head

Sat, 17 May 2008 23:51:56 -0500

This past week I had some great rides on the new bike. Being my first bike and first riding experience, I've taken it slow so as not to take a fast track to laying down my new bike. But I've gotten out into traffic a few times now, and I'm feeling pretty comfortable with it. Went down to the State Park a few times and had a blast riding around the twisty roads.

I've had other riders wave at me as I'm riding - suddenly I'm popular. The other day I actually had a guy on a lawnmower wave at me. I thought that was strange. As I'm riding away I see that he's still looking at me so I start thinking, maybe something's wrong with my bike. So I went back and he's off his mower now. He said he liked my bike, that his wife just got one, and he wants to know where I got the windshield from. He was a Harley rider himself. Although at that particular moment I think he was riding a Craftsman.

The thing I like the most about it (besides that it's just awful fun!) is that it clears my head. You have to focus a bit more when riding a bike - I do at least - than when driving a car. So there's not a whole lot else going on upstairs besides how you're going to take that next turn or what that car in the intersection is about to do. So rarely do I get to actually clear all the concurrent subconscious activity that it's very refreshing to have a clear head for a little while.

In other news, I managed to get an A in my last class.

2 months

Tue, 13 May 2008 21:14:57 -0500

As of today I made it 2 months smoke free! Thank goodness - I'm going to need the money for gas!

one off the bucket list

Sat, 10 May 2008 23:05:47 -0500

Have you ever had thoughts about doing something that many people would think is just a bit crazy? Not bad, not illegal.. just one of those things that is on the bucket list that you figure you'll never do. For some people maybe it's learning to dance or drag racing or jumping from a plane. I'm working on crossing something off my list... (not that I need a bucket list yet... but never too early to start).

1000 smokies

Thu, 08 May 2008 20:17:54 -0500

Quitnet emailed me today to let me know that since I quit I haven't smoked 1000 cigarettes. That's almost hard to fathom. I mean, imagine those all in one place - that's a lot of smokes. When did I have time for all that?

23 cents

Thu, 08 May 2008 18:06:57 -0500

So there are 1200 people in lines at Papa Johns all over north east Ohio. They are waiting for 23 cent pizzas. WTF? They're waiting like three hours. Don't they have anything better or more important to do? One woman was out there for hours with her one year old baby. C'mon...

as if...

Wed, 07 May 2008 23:17:41 -0500

I think it's a bad sign when in a classified ad it reads that a vehicle runs "as if nothing has ever been wrong." So something WAS wrong, but now it seems as if it wasn't? Hmm.. not good.

I think it's interesting that May is Allergy Awareness Month. Do we really need a campaign to let us know about allergies? I mean, usually its the watery eyes that reminds me.

Don't forget this is Arson Awareness Week so celebrate in an appropriate but legal fashion. I celebrated early by throwing my lighters away.

Male lesbians?

Sat, 03 May 2008 00:27:39 -0500

A new poll has found that "...men account for 2/3 of those who identify as lesbian or gay..."
I wasn't aware that men could identify as lesbian! Had I known I would certainly have done so. I mean I already have the flannels and the boots.

(source: Poll: Only 2.9 percent of Americans are LGB)

50 days

Fri, 02 May 2008 23:45:14 -0500

That's 50 smoke-free days. Quitnet tells me that's also about 906 cigarettes I haven't smoked. It's much easier to not be smoking at this point, and the decision every morning to not smoke each day is getting easier. Still have a ways to go though. Still doing the patch program, and it's working pretty well. About two more weeks on step 2 I think and then I'll be down to the last step.

15th Bi-Annual Toronto (Kansas) Queer Film Fest

Tue, 29 Apr 2008 22:32:02 -0500

In an ongoing tradition, several of the most snarky queer cinema critics got together for a makeshift film festival once again in Toronto, Kansas. Indeed they were the only 4 queer folks in one room for at least a hundred miles (and there were lights too!). For four evenings they perused some interesting films...
The films:
A Very Serious Person – 4.5 stars
Sordid Lives – 5 stars
Boys Love – 2 stars
Running with Scissors – 3 and a half stars, and half a crazy star

vacation flies

Sun, 27 Apr 2008 20:47:32 -0500

As in time flies, not fruit flies. I swear it was just Thursday and we just arrived. Alas, we are leaving tomorrow. We've had a lovely time. Yesterday we did a bunch of geocaching all around Yates Center and Iola, Kansas. We even placed a new one in Toronto, KS. Today we visited Courtney at her restaurant - she's doing well besides missing her voice a bit. Got to see the new cabins down at Toronto Point - might have to stay there sometime. It's all good. Gotta run...

Frogs are back

Wed, 23 Apr 2008 13:08:40 -0500

It's warm, the frogs are back in our pond, and they are noisy! (read: horny)

Butts

Sun, 20 Apr 2008 13:15:55 -0500

To celebrate being over a month (37 days) smoke-free, I present you with this disgusting picture. See, I am outgrowing my dirty habit.

I'm so mad I could...

Fri, 18 Apr 2008 23:13:47 -0500

...rip off my shirt? Well, it's not the first thing I do when I get upset, but a customer at my store did just that. He got so mad about his return that he threw it on the ground breaking it into pieces. The he stalked off while at the same time tore his shirt off! I don't think I've ever seen that happen in all my years of retail.
And he wasn't even good looking....