Topics

Anybody?

I've done exactly one, before.

At least, he does, according to the GoP legislators in Georgia...

No, really.

They spent FOUR HOURS in a closed-door session obsessing over it:

http://www.motherjones.com/mojo/2012/11/georgia-senate-gets-52-minute-briefing-united-nations-takeover

Somebody got about an hour of it recorded, but was removed from the meeting.

Seriously.

This is the last goddamn straw.

I can't take it any more.

drought conditions over the summer affected the corn and soybean crops, which led to less pork feed, which led to declining livestock herds, which will lead to a bacon and pork shortage, according to Britain's National Pig Association

http://blogs.sfweekly.com/foodie/2012/09/next_year_may_bring_bacon_shortage.php

RIP, Harry.

http://io9.com/5934884/rip-harry-harrison-creator-of-the-stainless-steel-rat-bill-the-galactic-hero-and-soylent-green

This was actually filed, in a court of law, in the United States.

Well, barely, it IS Alaska, but, still...

http://www.turningleft.net/images/director-for-the-division-of-elections.pdf

This guy filed a lawsuit claiming, I shit you not, that Obama is not qualified to be president, because he is black (or, rather, mulatto).

Gotta love this city.

For those of you who have never visited our fair city, I'm here to tell you, it has its quirks.  Something here I have found entertaining is that the distance of a single block can completely change a neighborhood.  One street may be perfectly fine, I'd walk down it after dark without a second thought.  The next street over, you could get knifed for just being the wrong shade of the wrong color.

It being that the cost of gas is now such that the tank of gas I would need to get me to work and back for a week costs more than a monthly bus pass, I bus to work and back most days.  Fortunately, living in the city makes this practical, and doable with one transfer downtown.

From downtown, to get home, there are several routes I can take home which run a block or two from my place.  Bus 27 or 28 up Broadway has reasonably normal humans, with the occasional homeless guy smelling of urine and booze, screaming toddlers, and, when I'm really lucky, a couple shrieking their private problems at each other.  Taking bus 17 or 19 up Westminster can be more interesting, since the neighborhoods they run through are, to put it mildly, rougher.

The scene last night on the ride home:

There I sat, on the bus, in one of the seats facing the aisle, three teenage boys standing in front of me.  As the designers of the bus had a sick sense of humor, this put their crotches pretty much in headbutting range.  Every last one of them was wearing their pants halfway down their asses, held on by, near as I could tell, nothing but friction and the collective "dear God, I don't want to SEE" prayers of my fellow passengers. 

I was debating striking up a conversation with the young lady beside me, saying how wonderful it is that the prison culture of young gay men advertising their willingness to take it up the ass by wearing their pants at half mast has emboldened those of a like mind on the outside to adopt the fashion.  However, I realized that she was staring... and admiring...

When is that apocalypse, again?  I'll bring the marshmallows...

So, my cell phone rings.  It's the benefits manager at the university that let me go back in June.

They're hiring, since the chick that was supposed to take over my duties had a stress-caused stroke within a month, went out on leave, ran out her medical leave, and never returned.  (No word on her current condition, I DID ask.)  The boss who let me go is semi-retiring to three days a week.

The benefits manager asked if she could call me, and was told that I would certainly be considered, the boss would go to bat for me... but I have to apply TODAY, and send an email essentially begging for another chance.

Pros:  The benefits are excellent.  Salary would be less than I was getting, but more than I am getting.  I know the place, I know the people, I know the job.  Free tuition, good medical, lots of vacation time.

Cons:  They need me NOW, and I'm committed here until the end of February.  Screwing this place would also screw the temp agency, which has saved my bacon several times.  I know the people, and they treated me poorly when I was down...  and the one who would be there as my full time boss once boss semi-retires is unavailable today to discuss, she is on vacation in Hawaii.

What do?

It's late, and I've had wine, but I can't believe that I'm the only one who's noticed this: in the five or six years of posting here, and despite the petty interfaith shit flinging we do on a regular basis, there is this.

We have reached consensus.

Our little tribe has done a LOT of talking, and we've changed our minds quite a bit. TOWARDS each other.

Our core ideals and outlook are, at their heart, aligned. We've stripped away the outer biases, and now we only fight over our inner ones.

Who's going to argue over TGRRs prophecy? Cain's insights? Cram's IRL plots? Kai's science?  ECH's cooking?

We transformed from a bunch of strangers figuring things out into a group of friends, relating our daily struggles.

I don't really know how to say this without it sounding sort of insistent, but:
Wouldn't this be the time to compile all of these core ideals and observations into another Principa-level document? A sort of "progress report"? Maybe?

I like this idea.  (And, hi, Nyx, I don't think we've met.)

It has also sparked another idea...

What do y'all think of a project tentatively called, "Who Are We?"  This is off the top of my head, suggestions are welcome.

I'll collect pieces we write about each other.  No hit pieces, but not just gushing, tell me how you see somebody.  Several somebodies.  Make them funny, make them interesting, make them real, make them up.  Email them to me (one spag per email), I'll try my hand at editing them together, pick the best few I get for each poster.

Also to include, send me your best "Who are we?" bits.  (I love those, but will only use the ones you send, since that'd be permission... and search is borked, and they happen in random places.

Essays about the place in general.  What is peedee.com?  Tell me about shit here.  Tell me about douchenozzle n00bs.  Tell me about how we make you think, how we make you feel.

Default will be no author names, unless requested.  Don't ask me "who wrote that?"  I ain't saying, but if somebody recognizes your writing style, it ain't my fault.

If someone does not want pieces about them included, I will respect that, of course, just drop me an email.  If y'all prefer, I can run the finished "this is what I have on you" by people before it goes up for an, "oh, god, no."

Pics.  Artwork.  WOMPs.

What do you think?  Format will probably be a webpage, unless somebody wants to hold my hand through making something paper out of it.

Broken out of Roger's thread to see if it's got legs. 

Somebody apparently needs a refresher course on the whole checks and balances thing.

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/12/18/gingrich-ill-send-a-u-s-marshall-to-arrest-any-judge/

If he, as President, disagrees with a decision by a judge, he'll have him arrested, dragged before a congressional hearing and impeached.

But, hey, the good news is, Newt got a big endorsement today!

A dating site set up specifically for cheaters bought him a nice, big billboard.



ETA:  Link to above endorsement.  Oops.

Got this recipe from a co-worker.  They have been well received (meaning "people devour them like hordes of locusts").



What You Need
1 pkg. (8 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
1 pkg. (16.6 oz.) OREO Cookies, finely crushed (about 4-1/4 cups), divided
2 pkg. (8 squares each) BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate, melted. (I used chocolate chips, and, when those ran out, a Hershey's dark chocolate bar, instead, worked fine.)

Mix cream cheese and 3 cups cookie crumbs until well blended.
Shape into 48 (1-inch) balls.
Dip in melted chocolate; place on waxed paper-covered baking sheet.
Sprinkle with remaining cookie crumbs. Refrigerate 1 hour or until firm.
Store in tightly covered container in refrigerator.

If I were in a position to be shopping...

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20111121/us-tec-digital-life-tech-test-nook-tablet-glance/

Storage: The Nook Tablet has 16 gigabytes of storage plus a memory-card slot. Of the built-in memory, all but 1 gigabyte is reserved for content bought from Barnes & Noble.

That, right there, means I won't be buying a Nook Tablet.  If I pay for the bloody thing, they don't get to tell me what I can read on it.

Fox News.

http://current.com/community/93509968_anonymous-vows-to-shut-down-fox-news.htm

Apparently, the 5th of November, Anonymous is planning a hit on the Fox News website.

Y'all know Dan Savage.  He's the advice columnist that set up the "Spreading Santorum" website, tagging ol' Frothy with a Google problem that just won't go away.

Herman Cain is next in his sights.

Herman apparently has decided that being homosexual is a choice.  Period.  End of discussion.  Kids just wake up one day and decide, "nope, I just WANT to be gay."

Dan Savage, rather predictably, has taken offense.

Has he reacted by turning his readers loose in a frenzy of "what kind of horrible sex act can we name after this guy?"  Nope.  He's being, I must say, VERY reasonable.  He's offering Mr. Cain the opportunity to prove his point.

Dear Herman,
If being gay is a choice, show us the proof. Choose it. Choose to be gay yourself. Show America how that's done, Herman, show us how a man can choose to be gay. Suck my dick, Herman. Name the time and the place and I'll bring my dick and a camera crew and you can suck me off and win the argument.
Very sincerely yours,
Dan Savage

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/21/dan-savage-herman-cain-oral-sex-gay_n_1024315.html

http://www.cracked.com/article_19479_the-6-most-mind-blowing-things-ever-discovered-in-space.html

Yeah, Cracked.com is a fucking strange place to find this stuff, but...

Some cool shit is out there.

See how much the Tea Party loves America??

They're gonna save America by refusing to hire ANYBODY, not a SINGLE person, until the rest of us straighten up and do what THEY want us to do.

Resolved that: Our President, the Democrats-Socialists, most of the media, and most of those from Hollywood, have now encouraged and supported "Occupy" demonstrations in our streets, which are now being perpetrated across the globe, and which are being populated by various marxists, socialists and even communists, and are protesting against business, private property ownership and capitalism, something I thought I'd never see in my country, in my lifetime.

I, an American small business owner, part of the class that produces the vast majority of real, wealth producing jobs in this country, hereby resolve that I will not hire a single person until this war against business and my country is stopped.

http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/tea-party-nation-urges-businesses-stop-hiring-order-hurt-obama

http://thinkprogress.org/health/2011/10/12/341070/house-gop-proposes-so-called-let-women-die-bill-that-lets-hospitals-deny-life-saving-care/

"Pro-life" my rosy pink ass.

We have a serious problem with science journalism. A big one, in fact, and today that problem takes the form of a giant, prehistoric squid with tentacles so formidable that it has sucked the brains right out of staff writers' heads.

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/10/the-giant-prehistoric-squid-that-ate-common-sense/

It is not the business of a Doktor to tell you pleasing lies.

I was told, just last night, that the response I made to a direct question dented someone's ego.  It was an honest answer...  It just wasn't the answer that would stroke his ego. 

Yeah, I'm all done with pretty lies.  I'm through with telling a man what he wants to hear, just to spare his fragile little feelings. 

It starts off with the little stuff.  "No, it's no problem."  "Really, sweetie, I don't mind."

The next thing you know, you've "I don't mind"ed yourself into doing shit that, a decade ago, you never imagined you'd tolerate.

No more.  Fuck that noise.

Guess what, boys?  I may not be ready for another relationship, just yet...  But I'm a hell of a lot closer than I've been in awhile, and maybe, just maybe, I'll look around a bit and window shop.  See if maybe the feet I've got under me will hold my weight. 

But, it's gonna be different, this time. 

I'm through changing my words, changing my SELF in order to fit around your lives.

I've got my own life.  I'm through breaking myself in places so I can fit around you.  I'll bend... but by all that's holy, I'm not going to be the only one who bends, this time.

I'm not going to be as easy to get along with as I used to be, maybe...  And I'm gonna do some damage, here and there.

But you know what?

I'm worth it.

No, seriously...



http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/05/pictures/110520-spy-plane-area-51-cover-up-crash-cia-conspiracy/

I want to tell you all about the man I married.

This guy... Where do you start? Loyalty. Honor. Those are, if anything, the things that run deepest in him. When he gives his word, he keeps it. When he sees a thing that should be done, he does it, not because he expects anything, but because it should be done.

Maybe he wasn't the most romantic guy on the planet, but he tried. He wasn't a sending flowers kind of guy... but he knew lilacs were my favorite, so, when we bought our home, the first piece of landscaping was putting in a lilac for me.

I don't need to be his whole world. Nobody needs that kind of pressure. But, having US be the center of both of our worlds, that works out just fine. WE come first, no matter what, that's all that really matters. We have room for ourselves, sure, but nothing that is for me, nothing that's for him, can mess up US. We support each other, he never tears me down, or makes me feel less than I am.

He's not perfect, but he's got my back.  He's my best friend, my love, and I hate the thought of living without him.

So, that's the man I married.


I hope I meet him, someday.

How can we not have these?

http://www.cracked.com/article_17127_5-deadly-sci-fi-gadgets-you-can-build-at-home.html?wa_user1=4&wa_user2=Tech&wa_user3=article&wa_user4=recommended

Dear Public Transit Riders,

Look, we're all in the same situation.  For whatever reason, instead of driving, we're all cramming ourselves onto a bus to get wherever we're going.  How about we all agree on some simple rules, to make it suck less, and to keep me from bringing a machete along tomorrow, hm?

1.  If you have your children with you, control them.  I love kids, I do.  However, if you can't keep them in their seats without screaming at them so loud I can't hear my music through my headphones, you need to rethink SOMETHING.  If you fail even then, kindly walk.  Duct tape them down, if you must.  (Having that handy is useful for the volume issues, too.  Just sayin'.)

2.  For fuck's sake, shower.  Marinating in perfume or cologne does NOT count.

3.  The next time I stand, patiently waiting for the bus for 15 minutes, and you shove your ass into the air space I left between myself and the unshowered drunk standing on the curb, I WILL shove you both under the incoming bus.

4.  If I am reading, leave me the fuck alone.  I don't want to play "my kindle is cooler than your nook."  I don't want to discuss what I'm reading, or hear about what you read last, I want to read my book.

5.  Don't ask me for bus money.  Especially don't stand near me at the stop, step on in front of me, THEN realize you can't pay and expect me to cover you so I can get home. 

Pretty simple, assholes.  I don't ask much.

Don't ask what's in the long, thin package tomorrow, and you might get where you're going with all your limbs.

Constitution?  Fuck the constitution, force-feeding the kiddies MY faith is more important!



http://www.aclu.org/blog/religion-belief/shoc-king-disregard-constitution

When you're moving through life, you see a lot of things.  Chances...  Opportunities...  Gateways.

Once in awhile you see a gate that you want to move through...  Something you want to try, a chance you want to take.  Maybe you rattle the gate, see if it will move.

What if it doesn't?  Climbing over, bashing it down, those are options, sure, but not the same as the gate opening and letting you in.

Some gates weren't meant to be opened.  Some of them are there to let you enjoy the view for awhile, take a rest, draw some strength while you consider the possibilities... before you move on.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2011/09/19/beast_exploits_paypal_ssl/

Hackers seem to have cracked SSL...

Scientists baffled for a decade?  Can't figure something out?

Let the gamers at it.

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/09/18/online-gamers-crack-aids-enzyme-puzzle/

http://dvice.com/archives/2011/09/researchers-dev.php

http://www.npr.org/2011/09/17/140550044/glowing-kittens-fight-aids?sc=tw

A collection of the world's rudest hand gestures.

http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2011/09/the-worlds-rudest-hand-gestures/245238/?google_editors_picks=true#slide1

Looking at all of these gathered in one place is enough to make you puke.

http://www.politicususa.com/en/the-consequences-of-evil-republican-legislation-since-2010

They got the story wrong.  They usually do, but they don't usually screw them up this badly.

It's a beautiful story,if you look at it right.  A man imagines his ideal mate. creates her form with his own hands. and his love and faith are enoug to bring her to life.  Stone to living, breathing flesh, to happy ever after.

We'll ignore the "no woman is perfect, you have to build one to find one" implication.

That's not how it happens, though.

I loved him, you see, but he never felt the same way about me.  I was stupid enough to keep on loving him, keep on hoping, month after month, year after year.

That's how a living,breathing heart gets turned to stone.

Finding a couple of mites actually doing the nasty as they get caught in a blob of tree sap is apparently pretty exciting.

http://news.discovery.com/animals/40-million-year-old-sex-act-captured-in-amber.html

They tell me that the sign of a great person is the ability to lose with grace and dignity.  I've been thinking about that a lot, lately, and trying to work my way past the hurt, and the pain, and the rage.

Well, the game is over.  I didn't think of it as a game, I never did...  I never thought there'd be a "winner" and a "loser" in this.  I meant it when I said "forever," and you didn't.

Fine.

Maybe you meant it, but, in my world, "forever" doesn't mean "until some slut comes along and waves her tits in my face."  But, hey, if that's what you wanted, well, then, that's what you've got, now.

You've got a girl who would cheat on her man to grab somebody with a bigger paycheck.  And she's got a man who'd cheat on his wife.  And me, I got left with nothing.

You know what?

After due consideration, I don't think I need to lose with grace and dignity... because I didn't lose anything worth losing, after all.

Y'all have heard about this one, yes?  At the Teabagger debate, Ron Paul was asked about a hypothetical young man who decided not to buy health insurance, wound up in a coma, and needed medical attention.  He was asked if he should just be allowed to die, or be treated and, if treated who should pay.  The crowd yelled out that he should be allowed to die, and not a single politician said shit.  Ron Paul waffled, but, essentially said that individuals should pay for their own health care, or that churches should take up the slack.

http://blog.chron.com/rickperry/2011/09/tea-partiers-cheer-to-let-uninsured-die-ron-paul-says-let-churches-help/

Here's an interesting bit of trivia.  Ron Paul's campaign manager for his 2008 presidential campaign, Kent Snyder, apparently could not obtain medical insurance from his employer (Ron Paul), and, as a result, died owing $400,000 in medical bills...

http://blog.buzzflash.com/node/13007

Once upon a time.  (That's how all stories are supposed to start, isn't it, children?)  Once upon a time, there was a woman.  Some say she was the first.  Some say she was created by the gods as a punishment upon mankind.  It si said that the gods loaded her down wight gifts, but nobody seems to know what most of those gifts were.  Some say they were gifts to "seduce" men, but then, theo nes telling the story are mostly men, and hearing a man blame women for his own weakness is hardly anything new, is it?  (Yeah, women do it, too, but how often do you hear that a MAN is the root of all evil in the world?)

Anyway, however she got it, this particular woman had one particular gift.  It was given to her, but some asshat told her, "It's all yours, but, whatever you do, don't open the damn thing."

Yeah, like THAT was going to work out. Give any monkey a box, sooner or later, it's going to get opened.  Tell that monkey NOT to open it, and the lid will be off the minute your back is turned.

(I know, you've heard the story.  Shut up and listen, or fuck off.)

So, eventually, she opened it.  She pulled the lid off the jar, or box, or whatever it was, and all the evils in the world flew out.  The little ones were first.  "Light" evil.  Jaywalking in front of oncoming traffic and making you slam on the brakes.  Talking in the movie theater.  Giving away spoilers for the book you haven't read, yet.  The petty shit that drives you buggy.  Then bigger stuff, and bigger.  By the time the woman got her shit together enough to slam the lid back on, some pretty big shit was out in the world.  Rape, murder, the big guns.

Then she heard a voice from the box.  It was beautiful, and begged for her to let it out, too.  So, like any decent horror story, the stupid bimbo opened the box and let out the last thing.

According to the story, that last thing was "Hope."  The story says it got shoved in the box to make all that evil bearable, sort of an apology, "Oops, we let her turn the world to shit, here, this will make it so you don't jump off the nearest bridge."

Bullshit.

Here's the truth.  What settles to the bottom of a big box of evil isn't bright and shiny.  Oh, it was hope, all right.  It's that beautiful voice that whispers in your ear that everything is going to be fine and wonderful.  You've heard it.

"Just work harder, you'll get that promotion you deserve, it won't go to the chick down the hall just because she's blowing the boss.  She doesn't actually do any WORK around here..."

"Keep on buying those lottery tickets, sooner or later ONE of them will hit, and you can stop eating Ramen noodles."

"If you just have the house PERFECT, and don't say anything to make him angry, he won't hit you any more."

"Love him enough, love him HARD enough, and he'll feel the same way.  Just keep trying, never mind anybody else."

You've heard it.

It's full of shit...  And sometimes, it's the biggest fucking evil of them all.

Limbs entwined, breath mingling,
Soft sounds. Yours. Mine. Ours.
Spiraling, control abandoned.
Rising. Reaching.
Something shining, just out of reach,
Until...

Awake.

Alone.

Again.

http://www.myfoxny.com/dpp/news/man-with-erection-problem-arrested-for-robbery-20110901-ncx

I believe that people are basically decent,
     But then some asshole will fuck with your life,
          Just because he can.
I believe the people are basically bastards,
     But someone will be there when you need him,
          Just because.
I believe life gives everyone what they deserve,
     But sometimes terrible shit happens,
          And nobody understands why.
I believe life is chaos, one random thing after another,
     but sometimes when you lose something precious,
          You find something better.
I believe that believing in anyone just leaves you open to hurt,
I believe that believing in no one is a terribly lonely way to live.

In short, I believe we're pretty much all fucked, no matter what.

I hadn't heard about this...  They've apparently managed to create something that will hunt down and kill specific cancer cells.  (It doesn't get 'em ALL, and they haven't figured out how to get the things safely inside a human, so, not a cure, but...)

http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/09/synthetic-genetic-circuitry-tuned-to-kill-specific-cancer-cell.ars

Well, at least SOMEBODY is doing the research.

Japan has apparently developed a new wind turbine that will (at least in theory) TRIPLE the output of windmills, making wind power cheaper than nuclear.

http://www.mnn.com/green-tech/research-innovations/blogs/japanese-breakthrough-will-make-wind-power-cheaper-than-nuclea

http://gawker.com/5836317/college-student-schools-rick-santorum-on-his-ludicrous-gay-marriage-position

"That's not evidence!"

Two young adult siblings, now 20 and 23, sue their mother for "bad mothering."  These kids, raised in a $1.5 million home by their attorney father (who, not incidentally, acted as their lawyer) requested over $50,000 for such horrible acts as:

...she failed to buy toys for one and sent another a birthday card he didn't like.

The alleged offenses include failing to take her daughter to a car show, telling her then 7-year-old son to buckle his seat belt or she would contact police, "haggling" over the amount to spend on party dresses and calling her daughter at midnight to ask that she return home from celebrating homecoming.

http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/world/52469658-68/garrity-card-court-lawsuit.html.csp

What really boggles me isn't so much that the father is using the kids as a personal "fuck you" to their mom (she filed for divorce in 1995), but the fact that it took TWO YEARS for a judge to throw this shit out of court.

YouTube recording of what they're thinking is a star being destroyed by a black hole...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKdJllO8zH4&feature=player_embedded

It's an op-ed piece, no idea how accurate these charts are.  Interesting, if true.

http://www.opednews.com/articles/Three-Charts-To-Email-To-Y-by-Dave-Johnson-110829-565.html

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/3775346/Jungle-warrior-wasp-with-massive-mandibles-discovered.html

Seriously!  What the FUCK?

http://www.newsdaily.com/stories/tre77k1te-us-fossils-life/

Particularly interesting since the microfossils were apparently formed before there was a heck of a lot of oxygen to play with, they're sulphur based.

Yeah, I'm an optimist, sometimes.  Don't worry, life is working on beating that out of me.

But, came across two articles this morning that give me hope for humanity.  A little, anyway.

The state of Illinois kicked Catholic Charities in the teeth.  The court ruled that the state can cancel year-to-year contracts with them (that have been in place for 30 years) because they refuse to place children in homes with same-sex couples.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/20/catholic-charities-illinois-adoption_n_931893.html

And, a court ruled that a California teacher who stated that creationism is "superstitious nonsense" can not be sued for violating the First Amendment.

"In broaching controversial issues like religion, teachers must be sensitive to students' personal beliefs and take care not to abuse their positions of authority," Judge Fisher wrote.

"But teachers must also be given leeway to challenge students to foster critical thinking skills and develop their analytical abilities," he said. "This balance is hard to achieve, and we must be careful not to curb intellectual freedom by imposing dogmatic restrictions."

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Justice/2011/0819/US-judges-rule-for-teacher-who-called-creationism-superstitious-nonsense

Maybe my life wasn't everything a girl dreams of, but I was doing okay.  I had a husband I was crazy about, one I believed in, that I trusted.  I had a home. Not a palace, sure, but it was ours, and I loved it, too.  Pets, hobbies, enough cash to splurge now and then...  For America, I was doing just fine, and pretty fucking awesome, compared to some.

Then it all came crashing down.  My husband wasn't half the man I thought he was.  I lost my home, my job.  Money's tight, these days.  They say money isn't anything, but having it beats the fuck out of having to decide if you're paying the credit card bill or eating.  Even my hobby got a kick in the teeth, since he brings that slut he's banging around.  My car is falling apart around me, and I'm not sure how I'm going to replace it.  I've had people I thought were friends prove they aren't, either by walking away, or by sticking in a knife. 

I'd thought people were basically decent.  Now, I occasionally wonder if we wouldn't be better off if aliens came down and carted off 90% of the population as lifestock and bombed the rest of us back to the stone age.  I thought I was a good person, who cared about everyone.  Turns out I can be a bitch who can tear into someone she at least used to be in love with.

The world isn't black and white any more, Dok.  Somebody smudged it up with shades of gray all over the place.  Trust isn't yes/no any more, it's how much do I trust someone, and with what?  Life isn't good/bad any more, it's better than yesterday, or sucking harder than last week.  Pieces are great, sure, and some people have been awesome, but a lot has gone to the suck.

So...  here's what I don't get, Dok...  With all this shit coming down trying to break me, to kill me, why is it I feel more alive than I have in years?

Seriously.

http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2011/08/octomom_nadya_suleman_looking.html

http://m.gizmodo.com/5825880/tiny-pirate+hunting-helicopter-is-the-newest-terrifying-way-to-get-tased

WANT.