« February 2004 | Main | April 2004 »
March 31, 2004
Acadia
I'm heading up to Acadia National Park in April. Gonna be a fun time...
I had met this cool woman in Iceland. She turned out to be a Park Ranger and she works at Acadia... She's been kind enough to invite me up and she's going to host me while I am there...
Really looking forward to a few days off.
Posted by Samer at 11:09 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
March 30, 2004
Ride like the radioactive wind
I came across this site today, and let me tell you something: This is what the internet should be about.
It is a first person account of a bike ride through the dead zone near Chernobyl. Lots of pictures, a very unassuming commentary. Just brilliant.
Go look... You will be moved.
Posted by Samer at 09:07 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 23, 2004
Sedna
So, NASA's got us a new planet. People who were bitching that Pluto is too small to be a planet (and I was on that side) were already bitching that Sedna is too small to be a planet.
Well, planetary scientist Alan Stern has written a good article explaining why it should be a planet after all. And you know what? I am convinced. Gravity does rule.
Posted by Samer at 10:44 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
March 20, 2004
'Would you erase me?'
I saw "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" last night. I highly recommend this movie. If you want to know more about it, take a look at Yahoo! or at IMDB.
This movie is a powerful and very thought provoking movie about two people who try to erase each other from their memories. In this movie, that is done through a medical procedure that this doctor does. We follow as the main character comes to grips with what it means to lose all of those memories.
It is brilliantly done. Well written, well directed, well acted. It fucks with your head and it plays with your emotions. It is more romantic than comedy.
Having said all that, the question in the subject line is posed in one of the posters for the movie.
If you could erase someone from your memory, would you?
Everything about them would be gone. Every moment. Every painful memory. Every single bad thing they ever did to you. Every bit of fun you ever had. Every happy thought. Every lesson learned, every tear cried, every laugh. All of it gone. Nothing left but emptiness.
Would you do it?
My first instinct is to do it. There are two women who I let into the depths of my heart and they hurt me in different ways and at different times. One of them, the pain was so deep it was almost fatal.
But I had some great memories with the both of them. I had some wonderful times. I learned some amazing things. And all of those good things, the things that got diminished because of the pain, would be gone. I don't want that.
And one of these women, still in my heart, has fixed things. So much so, I consider her one of my best friends. And, while I would be able to move on and find someone else to give my heart to, I would not have my best friend.
So, my long winded answer is "no". I would not want the pain gone, because I would also lose so much more than the pain.
Posted by Samer at 09:05 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 19, 2004
Mmmm. Meat.
That made me laugh. Now I am craving meat.
Posted by Samer at 08:34 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Gay Apocalypse
I don't often post political content on this blog, because most politics these days just pisses me off. But I read this last week and I just have to share.
The column, by SFGate's Mark Morford, is titled "Where Is My Gay Apocalypse? Over 3,500 gay marriages and, what, no hellfire? I was promised hellfire. And riots. What gives?"
My favorite bit:
I believe I have been misled. I was told repeatedly in extra-glowing terminology by multiple raging Bible-quoting drones that The Good Book expressly forbids gay marriage and gay sex, and to engage in either spells imminent doom and instant social bedlam and there are specific verses all about it.
Is this true? Are there actual verses decrying gay marriage? Are they anything like those other Biblical verses, about the rules and regulations surrounding marriage that are making the rounds on the Net right now? Real verses. Actual verses. Verses o' sanctimonious fun. Have you seen them?
Like this: "Marriage shall not impede a man's right to take multiple concubines in addition to his wife or wives." (II Sam 5:13; I Kings 11:3; II Chron 11:21).
Or maybe: "A marriage shall be considered valid only if the wife is a virgin. If the wife is not a virgin, she shall be stoned to death." (Deut 22:13-21) Isn't that cute? Isn't quoting Bible verse fun? Ask your local pastor about that one.
And later, this parenthetical:
(Oh, and while we're at it, God also really hates shrimp. Maybe you didn't know. Shrimp are evil, as are all shrimp eaters. Clams, too. Hey, it's in the Bible. You can look it up. Why the Right is attacking homosexuals in love and not, say, Red Lobster, remains a mystery.)
Go read the rest, it is quite entertaining.
Posted by Samer at 08:19 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 18, 2004
A Cigar
Remember the poem I wrote a couple of weeks ago? A lot of people told me they thought it was about a woman. About 'L' to be exact.
It isn't. Honestly. It is about a cigar. An Avo XO Intermezzo, to be exact.
Yeah, I know all about a cigar not being a cigar. Shut up.
Posted by Samer at 11:52 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 17, 2004
A Full Pint
When I order a pint of beer, I want a full pint. I don't want a 14 ounce glass masquerading as a pint. If you've got it, I'd rather a 20 ounce pint.
But when I order a pint at Capitol City, and you bring me a beer with an inch and a half of foam on the top, I'm going to send it back. Again, and again.
And when I get the manager over, I don't want her accusing me and the two others of drinking from the glass to make our point.
And I really don't want to hear that "stouts are more carbonated" than other beers. Don't try to bullshit me.
I want to hear what she finally offered: a round on the house. I'd have settled for a top up.
Oh, and one more thing: When I order a shepherd's pie, I want a shepherd's pie. I do not want an Irish lamb stew. No matter how good it is.
Posted by Samer at 11:53 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 16, 2004
She's Baaack, part deux
Y'all remember Skarlet, don't you? She's the one who inspired me to blog.
Well, she's not been doing too well recently and has been doing her blog in an on-again, off-again fashion. Hopefully, she's back to being on-again for a while. And hopefully she's doing much much better.
Go read her stuff, she's brilliant.
Posted by Samer at 06:44 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Flour
Thanks to a friend of mine, I am now the proud owner of The King Arthur Flour Baker's Companion: The All-Purpose Baking Cookbook. I can't wait to start baking up a storm. I'll have to make you something good, MP...
Posted by Samer at 08:52 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 15, 2004
In case you missed it...
... I'm back and I've got an attitude.
Posted by Samer at 08:00 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
The Thick White Line
If you are going to drive, you need to know a few things. One of those things you should know is why there are all sorts of lines and markings on the roads.
Now, you might think they are there because someone had a lot of extra paint and decided to have some fun. You'd be an idiot.
You might actually know that they are there to tell you something about where you car can and should go. If you ignore that knowledge, then you'd be a fucking idiot.
Let me be perfectly clear: Someone put that thick white line there so that when the pretty little light turns red, you will stop your car before it. That way, the nice little pedestrians won't have to walk around you and walk in the middle of the freaking road staring down on coming traffic.
Now, if after all that you still can't figure it out, then you must be a Washington area "professional" driver.
Posted by Samer at 07:58 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack