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echoing the 25
which I just posted on Facebook. 25 Things Thingy.
Give 25 facts people might not know, yada yada, and tag friends to do it (not happening, you can volunteer yourself if you want).
What follows may be or likely is "old news" to the maryland festival and livejournal friends that make up about 3/5ths of my facebook friends list here, but there you go.
1. Lets get the big one out: I was born with a cleft lip. I keep the facial hair to hide it, 'cause even if "nobody notices", *I* still see it, and always will. The last remnant is that my nostrils are two different sizes - one is my mom's nose, the other my dad's.
2. I'm on a diet for weight reasons for the first time in my life. The beer gut has just got to go. Both my father and grandfather had strokes between 55 and 65 and I'm not going to join them in that statistic.
3. I had intolerance issues to a LOT of foods over the years, and it changed every few so one that would cause problems would suddenly be exactly what I needed and something else I had to eat was suddenly something I couldn't. I had years without whey products, then years without milk, and always had to avoid red dye products like KoolAde. Today, it's chocolate, and has been for over a decade.
4. I've been a sucker for sweettarts and smarties since I was 8.
5. I used to be a heavy gum-chewer but quit when I got braces and didn't go back. I only ever get some (*always* juicy fruit) just before getting on an airplane. I haven't been in a crash yet, so it must be working.
6. I quit a 2 (or 4) coke-a-day habit cold turkey 3 years ago. I now only have coke around Passover or when I'm in Europe, because in both cases, they get the Coke that is still sugar and not high fructose corn syrup based, so it tastes like it did 30 years ago. Lost 8 pounds just dropping the sodas.
7. In spite of keeping my caffene levels constant (through coffee and ice tea), I still had tremors and shakes in my hands for 4 weeks after quitting. Anyone who says high fructose corn syrup isn't bad for you besides being calories is lying.
8. I'll leave restaurants, particularly fast food places, if they don't have unsweetened ice tea.
9. California wines give me awful headaches, but Italian Chianti's don't, so I now finally have a wine I can drink.
10. Until I was 28, I never drank anything other than (good) beer. I couldn't tell the difference between whiskey, scotch, bourbon (yes, both whiskeys), rum, vodka, gin, tequila, formaldehyde, ambesol...they all had no taste at all and literally shut down my senses as soon as I smelled them. Discovering at a party the Glendronach 15 (all-sherry casking) changed everything.
11. It's *my* kitchen and *my* grill - 3 1/2 years working at a steakhouse has earned me that.
12. I refuse to do "everything" about anything. I'll sort laundry, wash, dry, carefully handle the delicates, and even sort the cleans, maybe even fold them: but I won't put them away. I'll do everything there is to do about the dishes...except put them away. I hate feeling like I'm the only one who does anything about those things, so I just won't finish it just to get rid of that feeling.
13. I'm a collector, especially for CDs and DVDs. If I start a series, I must complete the collection. Much of my huge classical and 80s collection, and my credit card debt, came from Tower Records' demise...
14. The only exception to that so far has been the new Battlestar Galactica. It drifted too far away from the premise, and the current situation is just total b.s. and I haven't watched a single one since season "2.5".
15. I greatly appreciate that it is now commercially viable to release my childhood back to me: "Old School" Sesame Street, The Electric Company, Robotech, Star Blazers, Looney Tunes Golden Collections, Disney's live action films (as well as the animated ones, of course), "Han Shot First", and the all-80s channels on XM Radio with the American Top 40 repeats.
16. I not only didn't major in history, I never got passed a 101/102 course (and flunked 102 the first time, 'cause I wouldn't read the crappy books we were supposed to). Everything I know is from my own reading on MY terms, the courses up to that point, and tv documentaries. And I do still read history, a LOT. Just not full books, but I get history and military history magazines, and read history blogs that are out there.
17. Two English teachers changed my life by changing my mind, literally. The first was Bob Mullen, who introduced me to Shakespeare, and also to the idea that we, as educators (even if not professional) should not put up with censoring the classic works for the sake of sexual or political correctness. "If love be blind", indeed.
18. The other was Ron Gainer, who introduced me to the works of James Burke (Connections, The Day the Universe Changed), totally re-inventing my internal framework not only of history, but of society itself as well. My trip to Florence, Italy would have been nothing but "well that's a pretty building" without that deeper explanation of the Renaissance and how thet Duomo of Florence was a key expression of it.
19. I dabbled in computers and played games before college, but didn't intend to become a software geek. It was only as my original goal of staying in physics started to go away (the maths were not necessarily too hard, but the 8:00am-ness of the classes was killing my concentration and any fun I might have gotten out of it) that I had to change. By then I was realizing I was already a half-way decent programmer in spite of not taking any classes at all, but the real clincher was walking into a "Vax lab" (MG-30, for you old farts) one winter day in early '90, taking off my coat, taking off my scarf, sitting down, and WHAM, I just felt like I could do this for the rest of my life. So I did.
20. I am never ever ever going back to school, and I decided this 14 years ago. Up until about 3 years ago, I was still having regular nightmares of walking into a class I'd been skipping out on (since I kinda knew the subject already) and then having the mid-term plopped in front of me, 2 days after it was too late to drop the course. The dreams have finally stopped, but I'm never going to put myself through that crap again. Ever.
21. I do worry about age discrimination, which is a problem in the software world ("either become a manager and stop programming, or we let you go 'cause we can hire 3 out of college for the same price" is very common). My current company I think is handling it well, by increasing the business logic difficulty of what we're working in such that a college kid wouldn't "get it".
22. I gave up on "pop" music more or less in 1987, replacing it first with "classic rock" (the local station started with a Beatles marathon on the very weekend of our junior prom - yes, I remember crap like this), then celtic music, then the modern progressive rock scene, then classical, and now my 80s retread (the new "classic" rock, I guess).
23. I never danced until after college. All of my Scottish, Irish, and English dance experience is all less than 15 years old. I only stick with the Morris now because my knees won't let me do more than one style anymore. I have a huge collection of instruments that I'll take much more seriously when the legs stop and go, "ok, that's it, you're done."
24. I never used to vote. I considered myself apathetically moderate or moderately apathetic. I figured the country would always progress and that would be that. Until '94, I had no idea there was a huge reactionary movement in this country, and that they had taken over one of the two parties to the exclusion of (as far as I'm concerned) anything remotely reasonable ever coming out of it. I realized I couldn't afford the luxury of apathy anymore. My right to be free from the politics of the closed-minded religious is too important to me. The Bill of Rights, so easily ignored and trampled upon by the previous administration, is too damn important to me.
25. I mean what I say when I say I'm not a "Christian" anymore. My beliefs have not changed (I'm not an atheist, though in reading I find "theistic rationalist", a term that describes some of the founding fathers including Washington and Jefferson, to be closest to how I see it now), what I consider my "relationship" has not changed, and how I read His words in the core Gospels (MML) has not changed. If anything, the more I read it and think about it, the simpler it has all become and the more deeply entrenched. But my own community has split, and has let something as stupid as "sex" drive a wedge between it that will never be healed. I felt and still feel betrayed, as up until that moment, I was there defending my particular church as being one of the more reasonable ones compared to the literalists that cause science education and civil rights politics so much grief. Christ and Christmas still give me joy to think upon, but "Christian" is now a word that only makes me nauseous, because it has become a synonym for hate-driven politics (against gays and women), the reactionary rejection of science and evidence, and lies after lies after lies after lies after lies, all aim for a revival of the horrible 17th century that NO ONE should ever have to live through again. Do NOT think I am kidding. I can cite a new example of a church being stupid, or a church leader telling a lie, even from a "mainstream" church, every single day. I have come to realize one simple truth about the 2 Great Laws: they are mutually bound. If you can not express your "love for God" except by showing hate for your neighbor, you are not loving God.
Give 25 facts people might not know, yada yada, and tag friends to do it (not happening, you can volunteer yourself if you want).
What follows may be or likely is "old news" to the maryland festival and livejournal friends that make up about 3/5ths of my facebook friends list here, but there you go.
1. Lets get the big one out: I was born with a cleft lip. I keep the facial hair to hide it, 'cause even if "nobody notices", *I* still see it, and always will. The last remnant is that my nostrils are two different sizes - one is my mom's nose, the other my dad's.
2. I'm on a diet for weight reasons for the first time in my life. The beer gut has just got to go. Both my father and grandfather had strokes between 55 and 65 and I'm not going to join them in that statistic.
3. I had intolerance issues to a LOT of foods over the years, and it changed every few so one that would cause problems would suddenly be exactly what I needed and something else I had to eat was suddenly something I couldn't. I had years without whey products, then years without milk, and always had to avoid red dye products like KoolAde. Today, it's chocolate, and has been for over a decade.
4. I've been a sucker for sweettarts and smarties since I was 8.
5. I used to be a heavy gum-chewer but quit when I got braces and didn't go back. I only ever get some (*always* juicy fruit) just before getting on an airplane. I haven't been in a crash yet, so it must be working.
6. I quit a 2 (or 4) coke-a-day habit cold turkey 3 years ago. I now only have coke around Passover or when I'm in Europe, because in both cases, they get the Coke that is still sugar and not high fructose corn syrup based, so it tastes like it did 30 years ago. Lost 8 pounds just dropping the sodas.
7. In spite of keeping my caffene levels constant (through coffee and ice tea), I still had tremors and shakes in my hands for 4 weeks after quitting. Anyone who says high fructose corn syrup isn't bad for you besides being calories is lying.
8. I'll leave restaurants, particularly fast food places, if they don't have unsweetened ice tea.
9. California wines give me awful headaches, but Italian Chianti's don't, so I now finally have a wine I can drink.
10. Until I was 28, I never drank anything other than (good) beer. I couldn't tell the difference between whiskey, scotch, bourbon (yes, both whiskeys), rum, vodka, gin, tequila, formaldehyde, ambesol...they all had no taste at all and literally shut down my senses as soon as I smelled them. Discovering at a party the Glendronach 15 (all-sherry casking) changed everything.
11. It's *my* kitchen and *my* grill - 3 1/2 years working at a steakhouse has earned me that.
12. I refuse to do "everything" about anything. I'll sort laundry, wash, dry, carefully handle the delicates, and even sort the cleans, maybe even fold them: but I won't put them away. I'll do everything there is to do about the dishes...except put them away. I hate feeling like I'm the only one who does anything about those things, so I just won't finish it just to get rid of that feeling.
13. I'm a collector, especially for CDs and DVDs. If I start a series, I must complete the collection. Much of my huge classical and 80s collection, and my credit card debt, came from Tower Records' demise...
14. The only exception to that so far has been the new Battlestar Galactica. It drifted too far away from the premise, and the current situation is just total b.s. and I haven't watched a single one since season "2.5".
15. I greatly appreciate that it is now commercially viable to release my childhood back to me: "Old School" Sesame Street, The Electric Company, Robotech, Star Blazers, Looney Tunes Golden Collections, Disney's live action films (as well as the animated ones, of course), "Han Shot First", and the all-80s channels on XM Radio with the American Top 40 repeats.
16. I not only didn't major in history, I never got passed a 101/102 course (and flunked 102 the first time, 'cause I wouldn't read the crappy books we were supposed to). Everything I know is from my own reading on MY terms, the courses up to that point, and tv documentaries. And I do still read history, a LOT. Just not full books, but I get history and military history magazines, and read history blogs that are out there.
17. Two English teachers changed my life by changing my mind, literally. The first was Bob Mullen, who introduced me to Shakespeare, and also to the idea that we, as educators (even if not professional) should not put up with censoring the classic works for the sake of sexual or political correctness. "If love be blind", indeed.
18. The other was Ron Gainer, who introduced me to the works of James Burke (Connections, The Day the Universe Changed), totally re-inventing my internal framework not only of history, but of society itself as well. My trip to Florence, Italy would have been nothing but "well that's a pretty building" without that deeper explanation of the Renaissance and how thet Duomo of Florence was a key expression of it.
19. I dabbled in computers and played games before college, but didn't intend to become a software geek. It was only as my original goal of staying in physics started to go away (the maths were not necessarily too hard, but the 8:00am-ness of the classes was killing my concentration and any fun I might have gotten out of it) that I had to change. By then I was realizing I was already a half-way decent programmer in spite of not taking any classes at all, but the real clincher was walking into a "Vax lab" (MG-30, for you old farts) one winter day in early '90, taking off my coat, taking off my scarf, sitting down, and WHAM, I just felt like I could do this for the rest of my life. So I did.
20. I am never ever ever going back to school, and I decided this 14 years ago. Up until about 3 years ago, I was still having regular nightmares of walking into a class I'd been skipping out on (since I kinda knew the subject already) and then having the mid-term plopped in front of me, 2 days after it was too late to drop the course. The dreams have finally stopped, but I'm never going to put myself through that crap again. Ever.
21. I do worry about age discrimination, which is a problem in the software world ("either become a manager and stop programming, or we let you go 'cause we can hire 3 out of college for the same price" is very common). My current company I think is handling it well, by increasing the business logic difficulty of what we're working in such that a college kid wouldn't "get it".
22. I gave up on "pop" music more or less in 1987, replacing it first with "classic rock" (the local station started with a Beatles marathon on the very weekend of our junior prom - yes, I remember crap like this), then celtic music, then the modern progressive rock scene, then classical, and now my 80s retread (the new "classic" rock, I guess).
23. I never danced until after college. All of my Scottish, Irish, and English dance experience is all less than 15 years old. I only stick with the Morris now because my knees won't let me do more than one style anymore. I have a huge collection of instruments that I'll take much more seriously when the legs stop and go, "ok, that's it, you're done."
24. I never used to vote. I considered myself apathetically moderate or moderately apathetic. I figured the country would always progress and that would be that. Until '94, I had no idea there was a huge reactionary movement in this country, and that they had taken over one of the two parties to the exclusion of (as far as I'm concerned) anything remotely reasonable ever coming out of it. I realized I couldn't afford the luxury of apathy anymore. My right to be free from the politics of the closed-minded religious is too important to me. The Bill of Rights, so easily ignored and trampled upon by the previous administration, is too damn important to me.
25. I mean what I say when I say I'm not a "Christian" anymore. My beliefs have not changed (I'm not an atheist, though in reading I find "theistic rationalist", a term that describes some of the founding fathers including Washington and Jefferson, to be closest to how I see it now), what I consider my "relationship" has not changed, and how I read His words in the core Gospels (MML) has not changed. If anything, the more I read it and think about it, the simpler it has all become and the more deeply entrenched. But my own community has split, and has let something as stupid as "sex" drive a wedge between it that will never be healed. I felt and still feel betrayed, as up until that moment, I was there defending my particular church as being one of the more reasonable ones compared to the literalists that cause science education and civil rights politics so much grief. Christ and Christmas still give me joy to think upon, but "Christian" is now a word that only makes me nauseous, because it has become a synonym for hate-driven politics (against gays and women), the reactionary rejection of science and evidence, and lies after lies after lies after lies after lies, all aim for a revival of the horrible 17th century that NO ONE should ever have to live through again. Do NOT think I am kidding. I can cite a new example of a church being stupid, or a church leader telling a lie, even from a "mainstream" church, every single day. I have come to realize one simple truth about the 2 Great Laws: they are mutually bound. If you can not express your "love for God" except by showing hate for your neighbor, you are not loving God.
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now with 4 side characters suddenly cylons? I'm just not buying it. it was shock value for its own sake, not because their world really needed it.
really, i have no interest in it at all. even in a made up sci-fi world, there's a level of "reality" and internal consistency that I expect, and BSG crossed that line.
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I'm not sure how the 5 cylons amonst the crew of Galactica (Yes, they revealed who the 5th cylon was.) is going to mesh with where the story is going. (Or how the other cylons even knew about their existance, but had no idea who they were.) This can turn out to be one major CF when it is all said and done, but as I said, the end is nigh, so I might as well stick around and see where it is going.
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Our teacher both showed us the film (the Zefferelli - the Decrapio version hadn't come out yet) and had let me read my copy from the Folger edition, which uses some text from the first Quarto that's slightly different from the Folio editions ("To hide her face, for her fan's the fairer of the two", rather than "the fairer face"), allowing him to explain how the early pressings were assembled, usually illegally from the actors' copies and memories.