Practical Penumbra

Attention, Googlers...

I saw this at Harvey's and I had to jump on the Bandwagon...

The following is a list from the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinal of those arrested when an Army recruiting station was vandalized on March 19, 2007:

Kelsey M. Kazik, 20, Milwaukee;
Sara Keiza, 17, Milwaukee;
Jillian Duckwitz, 21, Milwaukee;
Richard A. Ketcham, 22, Milwaukee;
Amy M. Barger, 19, West Bend;
Jessica L. Brooks, 18, West Bend;
Craig R. Barringer, 20, Waukesha;
Jonathon W. Wilson, 17, Wauwatosa;
David W. Clerkin, 21, Madison;
Derek W. Johnson, 17, West Bend;
Nathan J. Bartelt, 20, West Bend;
Thomas P. Buckholt, 17, Milwaukee;
Jeffrey G. Lavato, 18, West Bend;
Andrew L. Ortlieb, 24, Milwaukee;
Kathryn E. Jacobs, 20, Milwaukee

Unless you're applying to Greenpeace, kids, I don't recommend that you include this "hobby" on your resume...

Norman Vincent Who?

The other day I had the agonizing experience of watching the movie The Secret.

There's a couple of hours of my life I'll never get back.

It's not that I have anything against persuading people to think positively. You catch more flies with honey than with vinegar, after all. It's just that the film was so darn annoying! It seems to be aimed at the people who think The Da Vinci Code was a documentary, or that Oliver Stone needs to be a little more paranoid. The main theme seemed to be that there is a vast conspiracy to keep the Average Joe from finding out that having a bad attitude can cause you to have a bad day, and if you have a positive outlook, you will be more likely to notice the good things around you.

Of course, the "experts" who testified (including authors, philosophers, a professional "visionary" and--my personal favorite--a feng shui artist) all seemed to be of the opinion that if you wish for something hard enough, you'll get it, whether it's more money or more bills; that you "attract" good or bad to your life through some kind of quantum mechanical effect. As an example, they showed a man all worried about his bike being stolen, and carefully chaining it up. What happens? Oh, my! His bike is stolen! Didn't see that one coming... Interestingly, they did not dramatize what would have happened had he just parked it without chaining it...hmm...

Another dramatization showed someone worried about being late for work, and how traffic and "the universe" conspired to make that come true. A little while later, however, we were advised not to expect immediate results when concentrating on attracting money, love and success. I guess there is a time-delay built into good things, while the bad things are immediately available to those who imagine them.

There was one good thing that came out of watching this movie--I learned that there are professional "visionaries."

Yep--that's what I've decided I want to be when I grow up. I wonder what it pays?

It's spreading...

This week's stupid customer award goes not to a customer but to a customer servicer: a teller at my bank's drive-up window. I sent in my paycheck, a checking deposit slip, and a Christmas Club deposit slip. She asked: "Is this for two different accounts?"

*Sigh*

Disappointed

On Monday I found the best salad I have ever gotten at a fast food restaurant--Wendy's new Cranberry Pecan Chicken Salad with Berry Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing.

I went back on Tuesday for another one, and they had stopped carrying it.

*sigh*

Stuff

I hate doing laundry so much that I bought new clothes in order to put it off. Is that procrastination, or what?

My sister-in-law turned me onto Ted Bell, and I've read Hawke and Assassin and am working on Pirate. My only complaint is with the way he structures his books. He alternates chapters between various sub-plots, which is fine, but the time-lines are all off--one story occurs over the course of several hours, while the next happens over a couple of weeks. Meanwhile, the characters occasionally interact. That gets irritating.

I saw Happy Feet, and apart from the humans-are-bad-and-destroying-the-planet theme, it was very enjoyable. I liked the music, and the penguins have a high cuteness factor (although Mumble's appearance of perennial adolescence seemed creepy after awhile).

You have a what?

What were they smoking?

My city's new Smoking Ban ordinance defines "smoking" as the burning of any
"combustible substance in any manner or in any form."

It is an awful shame that restaurant patrons will no longer be able to enjoy a
candlelight dinner, a cozy fireplace, or even flame-cooked meal when the ban
takes effect June 1st...

Ten-second reviews

The Watchman by Robert Crais: Totally awesome, I couldn't put it down. I've always been fascinated by Joe Pike, and I loved it. I hope he does some more from Pike's perspective.

Casino Royale starring Daniel Craig as 007: for an "action" movie, the most exciting part was the poker game. I predict Daniel Craig is the next George Lazenby.

TGIS*

I've decided to start a campaign to have Fridays banned. It seems like all of the most horrible work days happen on Friday. It's bad enough that Friday is inventory day, and that because it's the start of the new work week ("new" movies always start on Friday) there are always a gazillion little details that need to be handled before we start selling tickets, but for the last two consecutive Fridays I've had movies brain-wrap bad enough to have to send the customers home with passes and spend a couple of hours draped in tangles of 35mm film. It's enough to make a grown woman want to sit in the corner and cry...

*Thank Goodnes It's Saturday

Signs of the times?

Actual sign I saw on the way home from work:

My brother once saw one that said:

What about it? Have you seen any that made you chuckle all the way home?

Math Made Easy?