The Lunatic Fringe

One little meme

2009-10-08T15:32:40Z

Courtesy of snonsumr

Reply to this post by yelling "Words!" and I will give you five words that remind me of you (or that I randomly pick out of your interests list). Then post them in your Blog and explain what they mean to you.

I was given:
Rush (the band, not the blowhard)
Anarcho-capitalism
Texas
self-defense
evil snarky bastard

Rush (the band, not the pill popping, egomaniacal, hypocritical blowhard): Canadian prog-rock trio, probably one of the greatest, longest lived bands that will never make the Rock and Roll Hall of fame despite having rooms full of gold and platinum records. My favorite band both musically and lyrically.

Anarcho-capitalism: Sociopolitical theory which advocates the elimination of the State in favor of an individualistic truly free market society. Probably the closest thing to actual anarchy. It's a theory which I believe in more and more.

Texas: Greatest state in the union; was its own freaking nation for a while and my adoptive state. I wasn't born in Texas, but I got here as fast as I could, as the bumper sticker goes. When its not trying to be the belt buckle of the Bible Belt, it's a great state to live in. Oh and we gave the nation George W. Bush; you're welcome. And my birth state gave the nation Barack Obama; I'm sorry.

self-defense: snonsumr's probably nice way of saying "gun nut". Actually, self defense is a large part of my hobbies and interests. Anyone who reads this blog could figure that out. I have black belt in American Kenpo and teach Kenpo; I have a concealed handgun license; I've done tactical firearms training; I'm training to be a rifleman. It's also a passion of mine to teach other people self defense, because the confidence that comes from knowing you can defend yourself bleeds over into all aspects of your life.

evil snarky bastard: I have NO idea what is meant by this. It couldn't possibly be because of my sometimes wise-ass, sometimes sarcastic, sometimes sardonic sense of humor. Or that I take delight in friendly needling of my friends (who give it right back I might add). Yeah, actually it fits. All for that last bit; my parents were most definitely married. :)

So there you go.

So it's been a little while...

2009-07-30T04:58:59Z

So I haven't really posted much of any update recently. A lot of what I have to say has been able to fit in 140 chars or less. And even then, not much.

So as previous posts have said, the wifey and I are into shooting. And we compete in Cowboy Action Shooting (also know as Single Action Shooting). As I said, there are three stages; pistol, rifle and shotgun. We have a Stoeger Coach gun for shotgun stages, and until now had been borrowing/sharing our friend's Marlin lever action, and his Ruger Vaquero pistols. Well now we have our own equipment. In the last couple of months, we acquired a very nice, hardly used, Uberti Model 73 carbine as our rifle. And we recently picked up a couple of Cimmarron MP502 4 3/4" .357 pistols. Also got the required rigging for carrying said pistols with the period piece dress, so now I can't make any fun of those people who do Medieval Rennaissance Fairs any more.

On a related note, my wife found a nice modern semi-automatic pistol she liked. It's a Ruger SR9 and it fits her perfectly. She will, sometime soon, qualify for her concealed handgun license with it. It's a very nice gun. It's a compromise between a double action and single action trigger pull. I prefer a single action pull, as it's lighter and consistent. Her pistol has a bit more force behind it, being about a 4.5lb trigger pull, but every pull is the same. It fires nice and has some nice safety features as well. My only complaint is it is machined to very tight tolerances out of the factory. The factory mag springs are very tight and tend to misfeed until they are broken in.

My wife also found the Appleseed Project which teaches marksmanship. I bought two Ruger 10/22s as part of building a Liberty Training Rifle for the both of us. That will be coming up in August, so we are both pumped for that event.

Beyond that, job front is same old same old. Do more with less, and no matter how good your product does, we're still having layoffs. Joy. Recently had the roof replaced due to hail damage. The joys of home ownership and living in North Texas. Other than that, looking forward to a Kenpo Camp in a couple weeks, then Appleseed. Should be a fun August.

Happy Independence Day!

2009-07-05T00:55:47Z

Instead of reposting, since most of the points haven't changed in the last year (which is sad), here's the link to last year's entry.

Take a break from the cookout, fireworks, or TV marathons and read the whole Declaration of Independence. Consider how far we have strayed from the ideals this country was founded upon.

Any you cheapskates gunna buy a round?

2009-04-20T04:44:43Z

And with that double entendre began one of the stages of our Cowboy Action Shooting weekends. Da wifey and I have taken a liking to this sport, with her leading the charge by far in the enthusiasm department. There are three parts to each stage, a pistol, rifle, and shotgun part. Typically there is a sequence of fire to each of the pistol and rifle parts, and the shotgun part mainly revolves around shooting down folding targets.

We own and fire a Stoeger coach gun. We also have borrowed a friend's Marlin Model 94 lever action rifle, and use another friend's Ruger Vaquero pistols.

This was my wife's third time shooting cowboy action and her fourth time ever firing. This was my second time at cowboy action shooting, but I have at least 10-12 years experience with firearms. My wife is a wiz with the coach gun, doing better than me at both speed and accuracy. This weekend she missed 0 shots and did them quite rapidly. By contrast, I missed about 6 times total over 4 stages (16 total shots) and took much longer. I was slightly more accurate with the rifle, and we were about even with pistols. My worst was 118 seconds with 2 misses, da wifey's was 125 seconds with 2 misses. My best was 70 seconds with 1 miss. Her best was 80 seconds with 2 misses. Each miss counts for 5 seconds added to your time. Wifey also had one penalty one round which adds ten seconds.

We both thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and it was a really fun time with a great bunch of people. We also have a line on getting a used Uberti Model 66 at about half the cost. It's a great sport and alot of fun and we're looking forward to honing our skills.

Happy Slavery Day!

2009-04-15T13:20:12Z

Happy Tax Day. This is the day you pay Washington D.C. for all it does. Do you think you've got your money's worth? If I were paying a company for services like I pay Washington, I'd demand my freaking money back.

Luckily, Tax Freedom Day was two days ago. Although it varies by state, check the table for your state's tax freedom day. How does everyone feel having to work almost four months to pay for government?

Here's a little test you can do on your fellow citizen. Ask them how much they had to pay in federal taxes this year. If they answer "Why nothing, I'm getting some back!", you're dealing with a blind unthinking lemming. The kind that foolishly elect the "lesser of two evils" every four years.

Now, for all that negativity, to cleanse the palette, please go view someone with true talent. If this doesn't make you smile and just sit back and go wow, you ain't human.

A fufilling weekend.

2009-03-30T13:33:06Z

This weekend was the new date for our annual Kenpo Camp. We moved it from October to be a little more compatible with other camps around the nation and to improve turnout. It was a fun couple of days training with other Kenpoists. Only Mr. Sepulveda (head of our system) and Mr. Burks (our local highest ranking 7th dan) taught this year, but it was jam packed full of good stuff. I especially liked working the knife stuff this year, as we went over Knife Set 1 and 2, and then played around with some knife disarm techniques.

What made this extra special for me this year was the fact that, as a black belt now, I was invited out to dinner at Mr. Burks ranch. He lives about an hour outside of town and has a beautiful ranch where he trains horses. It was really neat to eat some awesome barbeque and share some camaraderie with the other black belts in our system that came to the camp. It was especially neat to sit and listen to Mr. Sepulveda and Mr. Burks regale us with stories from the rough and tumble days of martial arts in the U.S. in the 1960s and 1970s. Mr. Sepulveda has worked with and known a lot of guys in the martial arts genre (Chuck Norris, Van Damme, Steven Segal, Bruce Lee), so it was neat to get some "inside" stories about those household names.

In our system, we refer to the collection of black belts as the "Family of Black Belts", and I found that to be very true this weekend. I enjoy training with people who share the love of the art, and also don't have the egos or other problems that some people get when they attain the rank of black belt. We are all students of our art, just at different points in our study.

The soreness and bruises I have today are a worthy price to pay for the opportunity to train with and share that sense of family with other practitioners of my art.

Happy Pi Day!

2009-03-14T15:21:36Z

A very happy Pi Day to everyone. I can't wait for the Super Pi Day in 2015.

Citibank

2009-03-10T20:46:20Z

The New F***ing Citibank - watch more funny videos

What Kind of Soul Are You?

2009-03-09T20:41:07Z

You Are a Seeker Soul

You are on a quest for knowledge and life challenges.
You love to be curious and ask a ton of questions.
Since you know so much, you make for an interesting conversationalist.
Mentally alert, you can outwit almost anyone (and have fun doing it!).

Very introspective, you can be silently critical of others.
And your quiet nature makes it difficult for people to get to know you.
You see yourself as a philosopher, and you take everything philosophically.
Your main talent is expressing and communicating ideas.

Souls you are most compatible with: Hunter Soul and Visionary Soul

What Kind of Soul Are You?

Ah, my birth state

2009-03-06T15:35:42Z

As if the corruption rampant in the Chicago political machine and their governor making a laughingstock of the entire state, the Illinois Congress, not to be out done, has passed a resolution declaring Pluto to be a planet again.

Obviously the Illinois Congress is just in the pocket of the Plutonian lobby! I bet those Plutonian lobbyists just want in on the whole global warming deal.

Yet another reason I have no love for my ~~home~~ birth state.

Edit: Realized that home was inaccurate. Texas is my home state.

Final Count - gacked from ssrjazz

2009-02-18T19:41:10Z

Your life, according to ipod. The real randomness
RULES:
1. Put your iTunes, Windows Media Player, etc on shuffle.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS.
4. Tag 10 (or 25) friends.
5. Everyone tagged has to do the same thing.
6. Have fun!!!

1. If someone says "ARE YOU OKAY", You say?
Ready To Go - Republica

2. How would you describe yourself?
Chasing Cars - Snow Crash

3. What do you like in a guy/girl?
One Love - Prodigy

4. How do you feel today?
Sanitarium - Metallica (LMAO!)

5. What is your life's purpose?
What's On Your Mind - Information Society

6. What is your motto?
This Corrosion - Sisters of Mercy

7. What do your friends think of you?
Red tape - Agent Provocateur (Hey now!)

8. What do your parents think of you?
Slayed - Overseer - (What, what WHAT?)

9. What do you think about very often?
Come Undone - Duran Duran

10. What is 2+2?
Enae volare mezzo - Era

11. What do you think of your best friend?
Starry Eyed Surprise - Paul Oakenfold

12. What is your life story?
Dependance - Toby Emerson (Fuuuuck you!)

13. What do you want to be when you grow up?
Workin' Them Angels - Rush (uuhh...I'm seeing a theme here)

14. What do you think when you see the person you like?
Teenage Wasteland - The Who (Ok, I have NO idea what that means...)

15. What will you dance to at your wedding?
Body to Body - Front 242 (LMAO)

16. What will they play at your funeral?
Confusion - New Order (HAHAAHA...stop, I can't breathe!!)

17. What is your Hobby/interest?
Whiskey in the Jar - Metallica (No, I am NOT an alcoholic *hic*)

18. What is your biggest fear?
Punish Your Machine - Front 242

19. What is your biggest secret?
Feuer Frei! - Rammstein

20. What do you want right now?
Pride FC Theme

21. What do you think of your friends?
More Human Than Human - White Zombie (uuhh....)

22. What will you post this as?
Final Count - Toby Emerson

And another one gone...

2009-02-17T05:52:24Z

Well another year older. But this birthday was more special than most. My parents came down from Chicago for it. They haven't been down since the wifey and I got married 5 years ago. So it was a special treat to have them down, put them up, and show them the house and the area.

My wife has said I've been "beaming" these past couple days, and if so, it is only because I am happy at being able to show my parents all I've accomplished and also take care of their needs while they are here. They are getting on and my mother has some specific health and dietary needs. It's been a very good visit and they've enjoyed themselves while down here.

But there is entirely too much grey in my hair nowadays. And I find myself grousing about the behaviors of teenagers more and more. Someone get me my cane and Old Coot hat.

Double take

2009-02-11T17:39:25Z

Now, everyone knows that I love poking fun at liberals, especially since they are so emotion driven and illogical half the time. While I tend to have more in common with conservatives (other than on social/personal choice, and national defense issues), every once in a while I can needle them too.

A friend recently brought up this piece of crap legislation. Now, a bill like this is pretty much DOA. It goes too far, too fast and federal gun ownership licensing has been tried a bunch of times in the past and rarely even gotten out of a committee, much less a vote on the House floor. But anyways, my friend was exhorting me to join the NRA and help fight this bill. His eyes almost bugged out of his head when I simply replied:

I won't join the NRA, they are too liberal.

Of course, once I further explained my reasons for saying that his only response was "Wow, you really are hard core on gun rights."

Yep, that's me.

I am a geek...

2009-01-29T03:50:36Z

I made a geek funny today....

Me (discussing project I'm working on): ...and the problem is their implementation uses a lot of tight data coupling...
Amy (walking up): Coupling? I like coupling! Coupling is a fun pasttime.
Me: Well, you better be careful, because coupling could eventually lead to inheritance.

Ha. Ha. I slay me!

A new direction

2009-01-22T14:22:17Z

A some on my flist know my wife works for the Army Corps of Engineers. Actually, that's not accurate. It should be worked. She formally accepted an offer from a private company and gave her two weeks notice on Tuesday. The offer was for essentially the same salary, but she gets to work almost exclusively from home. So really, if you factor in cost savings with commuting and parking and time, it's a raise. She starts with her new company a week from Monday.

It is good that her job situation, which she's been unhappy with for the last 2 years, has ironed itself out and we can stay in this area. Now I can focus my own job search a little more. While we weren't opposed to relocating, in an ideal world, we'd get the house paid off first and be completely debt free.

I'm impressed with my wife. In this down economy she managed to get about 3-4 solid prospects off her resume. One which didn't pan out as the company didn't get the contract the job was contingent upon, but she also got a couple other good, serious opportunities. So even in this down economy there are jobs out there for talented people with a good work ethic. It also helps that the white-collar jobs have not been impacted to the level that blue collar jobs have been. Even with that, however, it's about 6-8 months to really find a job it seems.

R.I.P

2009-01-14T20:48:19Z

Rest in peace to one who would not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed, or numbered.

Edit: And Rest in peace also to one of the best villans of the Star Trek universe. One who will not need to go "round perdition's flames."

Yeah, we're color blind, sure....

2009-01-12T22:23:18Z

This story is full of things that annoy me. It starts off with a quote that just pisses me off:

"There's a heap of pride in voting for a black man," he says.

Really? There's a heap of pride in voting for someone because of their skin color? Now maybe this guy honestly thinks Obama is the best qualified for the job on his merits too, but that's not the impression I get. I mean, isn't voting for someone because of their skin color just as bad at a fundamental level as discriminating against someone because of their skin color?

For the first time ever, he says, black parents and grandparents can tell youngsters in rural America that through education, anything is possible -- that the White House isn't just for white folks.

Guess what? It has been possible for a long time. We've had black people serve in all sorts of high elected and appointed offices. Sure, Obama is a culmination of a goal, but it wasn't like the White House wasn't "just for white folks" prior to the 2008 election cycle.

"The important thing in life is to try to live and do the best you can," he says.

But he's contradicted his message throughout the entire article. Supposedly Obama is going to help them. But Obama believes if you do the best you can and you become successful, then you're supposed to "give back" and pay "your fair share"?

Ugh. I'm tired of people point to other people's race. We've come a long way, but racism and discrimination are best fought by the power of the marketplace, not the power of government.

And one more...

2009-01-03T17:17:22Z

Happy Birthday to one of my best buds, ssrjazz! May your day be great, relaxing and remind you that you'll always be just that tinny bit more decrepit than I am!

Happy Day

2009-01-02T17:44:34Z

Happy birthday to snonsumr!

A question

2008-12-29T00:57:56Z

You know, to date, I have never gotten a satisfactory answer to this question:

"With 6,000 years of recorded human history, in which we have tried various forms of organized government; kings, dictators, republics, true democracies, theocracies, etc. When do we admit to ourselves as a species that this experiment called government has failed?"

Food for thought.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-25T16:25:43Z

Merry Christmas to all! I hope that everyone is spending their Christmas with loved ones. As I wrote in our christmas note to everyone, it is easy with everything that has gone on in the world to lose sight of the fact that we are all blessed with family and friends. That is the real measure of the season.

And for the lighter side of Christmas, a unique Christmas song.

This makes me sick

2008-12-21T15:45:37Z

At least I'm glad to see the religious fundamentalists dropping all pretense of crap like Proposition 8 being about defending the "sanctity" of marriage. This move shows it's about one thing: hate.

And it would seem that Prop 8, while amending the California constitution to say that only marriages between a man and a woman are valid, efforts to nullify marriages made prior to that amendment would run afoul of the section prohibiting ex post facto laws. (Article I, Sec 9)

It is sadly ironic to me that we've come so far in inter-personal relations to have elected a bi-racial black man President, yet still manage to find a class of people to treat as different and outcasts.

While on the subject...

2008-12-16T14:19:08Z

You know that yesterday, Barack Obama officially became the President-Elect, right? You know that November 4th was not when he became the President-Elect, right?

Happy Bill of Rights Day!

2008-12-15T20:08:17Z

Happy Bill of Rights Day! For fun, read through the amendments and figure out which ones the Imperial Federal Government hasn't managed to trample, bend, or outright break.

Hint: There are only two that haven't really been broken, and a third depending on your view.

Not surprised here

2008-12-12T14:30:23Z

Your result for What Your Taste in Art Says About You Test...

Balanced, Secure, and Realistic.

16 Impressionist, -1 Islamic, -10 Ukiyo-e, -15 Cubist, -7 Abstract and -10 Renaissance!

Impressionism is a movement in French painting, sometimes called optical realism because of its almost scientific interest in the actual visual experience and effect of light and movement on appearance of objects. Impressionist paintings are balanced, use colored shadows, use pure color, broken brushstrokes, thick paint, and scenes from everyday life or nature.

People that like Impressionist paintings may not alway be what is deemed socially acceptable. They tend to move on their own path without always worrying that it may be offensive to others. They value friendships but because they also value honesty tend to have a few really good friends. They do not, however, like people that are rude and do not appreciate the ideas of others. They are secure enough in themselves that they can listen to the ideas of other people without it affecting their own final decisions. The world for them is not black and white but more in shades of grey and muted colors. They like things to be aestically pleasing, not stark and sharp. There are many ways to view things, and the impresssionist personality views the world from many different aspects. They enjoy life and try to keep a realistic viewpoint of things, but are not very open to new experiences. If they are content in their live they will be more than likely pleased to keep things just the way they are.

Take What Your Taste in Art Says About You Test at HelloQuizzy