THE WICKED MESSENGER

I've been running for a few years now, maybe 5 or 6 years. I can't remember for sure. Maybe closer to 7 years. I know I ramped it up at the start when I stopped walking for exercise and started the "Couch to 5K" program with my wife. That led to me running more and more until I could go 3 miles per run. I don't like to stop and walk when I run, that's always been my way. I pushed myself for the first few years until I got to the 3 mile mark and then I was satisfied I had a respectable distance. I have tried to go faster but never really tried to mark much progress with that. Late last year I got inspired by my step daughter (who ran a half marathon) to see if I could go farther so I clocked in an hour run and went 6 miles. I tracked that using the Nike+ phone ap. This last xmas my wife gave me this year at a glance poster so I decided I'd make an entry for every time I ran. I put in the mileage and then added "O" for outside runs and...

Well it's been a while since I blogged or looked at this blog but I recently did a blog comment on Yeoman's Watch blog and to get it posted I had to list some personal data (email, name, etc.) and one category was "website". So I listed this blog and then came here and then decided to write a post. So a while back we had a chili cookoff at work. I often avoid work related shit, especially the company parties at xmas. This one I figured I would participate though, because I make good chili and have for years. At least I like it. I make it for my own tastes. It's based on a recipe from the Washington Post food section now long lost that I've mutated over the years. That recipe had the unlikely name of "Texas Democrat Chili" and I think it was featured back when Clinton was first elected. That I'm not sure about. Anyway google it and tell me what you find in a comment below. So the recipe is summarized a little farther down. I had decid...

Certain songs can make me cry. Like a baby. Usually when I'm alone. Especially when I'm fatigued or feeling sentimental. I don't know what else to do with songs like this but keep track of them somewhere. This must be the place. The song below has always been good for a few ounces from the ol' waterworks:

I watch a lot of Pat Condell videos on Youtube. Here is is latest one and it's a cracker! I used to watch a lot of the Amazing Atheist but he was always spewing saliva and ranting about shit I don't care about like Kiss and D&D, if memory serves. Sometimes Condell comes off all UK and stuff and I can't relate but this one made me snicker I also liked a Sam Harris video from a conference down in Australia. It's long but (as I said on FB) worth a look. Lastly, speaking of Sam Harris, I liked this essay which I read today: http://www.samharris.org/blog/item/on-the-freedom-to-offend-an-imaginary-god This stuff helps me get to sleep because my freakish fundamentalist upbringing sometimes returns to mind when I'm trying to fall asleep. What an abusive thing to teach kids such bullshit and lies. Sure glad I got out when I did and didn't fuck my kids heads with religious madness.

Well I wanted to get down here the true story about how I came to make a certain youtube video. A couple weeks back my brother in law and his son came up to see us from North Cacalacky. (I love saying that and I know it's probably lame to say, like I always thought folks from SF hated it when people said "Frisco"). Anyway, we had us a great time and they stayed overnight in our basement. We went out for dinner to a BBQ joint called Urban BBQ which is pretty good. I've made better ribs though, true fact. As it happened we ended up eating quite late into the evening. Later on I gave my nephew Nick a Seiko I've been wanting to get rid of but not doing because it's only going to raise ~$80 or so and the hassle is too great. Here's a photo of that: Yeah, that is one orange mother but it's also got the oem bracelet to swap on which tones it down and I think Nick was pretty jazzed, specially when he saw the display back and stuff. So in the end ...

So last Thursday was take you kids to work day and I had to help. I wasn't looking forward to it much but it turned out to be pretty fun. To get myself in the mood I wore a tee shirt to work: Halfway through my boss interrupted my little kid tour group (me and 3 fifth grade girls) to make me attend a meeting. That led to a lunch with my boss and his boss. My boss's boss used to be my boss. Anyway, he asked me what was the deal with the tee shirt and who Pianos Become the Teeth are and are they good or what? I always have a hard time fielding questions like that with any kind of honesty. Why? I usually sense that people just tune out my answer, particularly when I mention the words Punk, or hardcore. At least my boss's boss asked me something about the music, like if the singing was all screaming and could you understand any words at all. As I composed an answer of sorts he hit scan on his radio dial and that part of the conversation was truncated. I wasn...