David's Tangled Thoughts

While I was doing some cleaning this morning, my computer was running through some songs that I have. One of the ones that popped up was Parokya ni Edgar's "Mr. Suave." I went on study abroad to the Philippines in 2003 and while I was there, this song was all the rage it seemed like. I didn't even have regular access to a radio but still I heard it everywhere. I absolutely hated it. Hated It. But somewhere deep inside me, I actually thought it was a fun song. Kinda one of those "it's so stupid, it's funny" kind of things. So here, for your amusement or torture, is a video. I don't think it's the real music video. If it is, then my memory is horrible. P.S. For those who closely watched, KKK in the Philippines does not have the same meaning as KKK does in the United States.

Would you think less of me if I said that I wouldn't mind seeing the Spice Girls back together in concert? Oh yes, I have listened to them and enjoyed it. I just found out that they are doing a reunion tour. Man, they look old. And Posh kinda looks like Jaime Pressly there.

I’ve been interested lately in this story about the Fairness Doctrine . Some Democratic senators want to open up debate on reintroducing this back for radio. For those of you unfamiliar with the doctrine, very basically it’s this: If a radio station broadcasts a controversial topic, it has to give fair and equal time and treatment for both sides of the argument. Although the Fairness Doctrine used to be in effect, the FCC pretty much scrapped it. It’s plain to see that the revival of the doctrine is to counter conservative talk radio. Conservatives dominate the AM airwaves with talk radio. The two biggest commentators are Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity . And with an audience of over 20 million for Rush alone, you can see that talk radio reaches and influences a significant part of the electorate. A bit worrying when you are on the left. Now, I’m not questioning the legality of the Fairness Doctrine. What I do question is why does the left feel the need to bring it up? Fairness Doctri

Years ago before high speed internet was fully available on MSU's campus, I made my first website. It wasn't much but I didn't think it was half bad for a person who had never heard of html. The university's directory used to have, as part of its information, links to people's websites. Then for some reason, they took the links down. I eventually lost my web address but after some digging, I have found it once again. Click here . Hello from 2017! A few years ago, MSU swept away all the personal email storage accounts for former students. As such, my homepage is no longer hosted and is lost. :(

I very rarely buy albums. The first couple times that I did, I ended up being disappointed . Who wants to pay $12, $15, or more bucks for only a couple of songs? Instead, I buy my music individually or I borrow my sister's CD's if she has them. Occasionally , I'll record a broadcast. It may not be of the best quality, but it really doesn't matter to me all that much. Mat Kearney * may be a fortunate exception. After hearing his song, "Undeniable" and then sampling his other songs, I am seriously considering getting this album that is pictured. I half joked with someone saying that I would definitely get a ticket to the now-cancelled Kelly Clarkston tour because he was going to be her opening. *Visit his website. His songs play on it.

Just when I thought that cherry season was over and done with. Bam! Time to pit. Normally, I would have found something else to do but I was eager to get the DSL up and going so I was willing to deal with it for a bit.

An article from the BBC says that there is a class divide when it comes to the social networking sites, MySpace and Facebook . There was a SIX MONTH study on something that I could have told you right off the bat. The research suggests those using Facebook come from wealthier homes and are more likely to attend college. By contrast, MySpace users tend to get a job after finishing high school rather than continue their education. Now here's something that was missing from the report which may put in another facet to this "research." Until recently, Facebook was only open to university students. MySpace is open to everybody. So yes, Facebook is going to have a different demographic than the other site. Geeze. Who handed out the grants to those numbskulls? I've got an account at both. Add me!

I've got a second interview on Thursday. Yay!

Mr. Provis , this is for you. DC Judge J. Bartnoff ruled against Judge Roy L. Pearson in his pants lawsuit against the Chung dry cleaners. Not only that but she also ruled that Judge Pearson has to pay the Chungs’ court fees. It remains to be seen, however, if Judge Pearson also has to pay the Chungs’ attorney. In the news broadcast, the Chungs’ lawyer said that he expects Judge Pearson to appeal. My advice to Mr. Pearson is to take it like a man. Article here .

<---See Also: Movies I was talking about the new Transformers movie that is coming out with my sister. She told me that Wonderland Cinema (the local movie theater) won't get it on opening day. She heard from one of her friends who heard from one of his friends that works there, that an issue had cropped up between the theater and Paramount Pictures . I don't know if it's true but the story is that Paramount wanted Wonderland to raise their prices. Wonderland said they would not. Paramount then decided to delay the distribution of their movies to Wonderland. If it turns out that this is true, then good for Wonderland. They provide such a value that Niles gets people coming in as far away as Elkhart, Indiana. Why? Because they are dirt cheap. It's a bare bones operation and is probably why they are able to sell tickets at $3.50 ($2.50 for matinées). Compare that to Movies 14, Showplace 16, and Celebration which charge about $7.00. At Wonderland, I get away

Some acrobats came to town today. Erin and I went to see 'em. They were great to watch for street people performers. The tongue-to-tongue-to-tongue fire transfer was interesting too. Yes, it went just about the way you're imagining it. The mark, Mark. His wife was not amused. And they didn't seem to worry when he said that he had a bad back. Death Concussion-defying heights!

Friend of a friend: Wow. You're tan! Me: I've always been tan. Friend of a friend: So... you tan all year? Me: I was born this way. I have a tendency to think on a different wavelength that the people I talk to. It's only after I think about it later that I realize I can be such a bitch and then I laugh about it.

My dad makes me so angry sometimes. Look, I admit that I messed up a lot during my undergrad. I pay for it every time a rejection letter arrives in the mail and gets pinned on my wall. If I could, I would go back and do things differently but I can't. I can only move on from here and make the most of what I do have. So when I told my dad of my intentions of going back to school, he seemed no more interested in my plan than in Berlin's weather forecast. I wasn't asking him for money but I was fishing for a, "go get 'em." I would have settled for a, "Good luck." Nothing. I know that I'm going to be on my own this time and its got me scared. Even more so since I have doubts about my LSAT score being high enough. There are so many ways I can do this but it is all dependent on something that I owe rather than possess--money. How am I going to get my hands on enough of it? I feel incredibly paralyzed.

Okay old people, does anyone remember the old 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea rides that used to be at Disneyland (the one in California) and the Magic Kingdom (the one in Florida)? I barely remember them and what I do remember of it was the long line, the cramped conditions, the stifling atmosphere, and tentacles wrapping around the sub as it shook. Dad took the family down to Disney World and its Magic Kingdom in 1999 and I was hurt to see that the ride had been closed down. (I was even more pissed to find out the next time we visited, they took down the Skytram) The next few times we visited, the ride area was turned into a character greeting place called Ariel’s grotto. You could still tell that a ride was supposed to be there though. Then the last time we were there in 2005, the area had been filled in and a play place built. An article in the June 25th issue reported that Disneyland had overhauled the ride and reopened it. It’s no longer the 20,000 Leagues ride though. It’s n

New York City’s Mayor Bloomberg announced his leaving of the Republican Party fueling suspicion that he is going to run as an independent for the 2008 Presidential Election. I immediately thought to Minge’s comment about the emergence of a third party in U.S. elections. Although Mayor Bloomberg is not setting up a third party, it does make people wonder if he can pull the election off and stick it to the two dominant parties. And the news today was doing its fair share of speculating. Every election I can remember (with the exception of Dukakis vs. Bush 41) has always had a third party boogie man. And I can always remember conversations in which people would get this glassy eyed look and imagine what it would be like if a third candidate could beat the Republican and Democratic candidates. Even as a young person, I never gave much thought to anyone who didn’t have an “R” or “D” after their names. They simply weren’t important. The only reason you paid any attention at all, for p

I'm afraid that I am going to have to delay putting up more My World pictures on this blog. I'm on dial-up and my blog takes too long to load or it will simply quit the process. But more are on the way I promise.

I live only miles away from the north-south continental divide. This is the intersection of Dayton and Buffalo and it is here that you can see the only part of Michigan that drains into the Mississippi. Well that might not be entirely true as there might be a small area at the Wisconsin-Michigan border but for the Lower Peninsula, this holds true. Also from this place you can view all the way into Indiana which is a couple miles away. Trucks traveling on the toll road can also be seen. Because of the flat and clear terrain, this area is great for stargazing. Only the lights of South Bend to the south east cause problems with viewing.

There are number of choices that I can go with to get where I want to be. I still haven't received my LSAT score back. But it still might not be enough even if I did better than by best practice test. I just looked up MSU's stats and the average score of admitted students went up by ten points! So I may be waiting it out and try again next year. While I wait, I may be going to work full time. I've got an interview with an insurance company for a sales/marketing position. What I'd really like to do is go back to school but that would mean living completely off loans. The first choice is to go back for another BA. This time it would be Criminal Justice . MSU has a good school and I don't think that it would be too difficult reapplying to the college and then having my Poli Sci credits transfer. After political science, criminal justice seems to be the next area of interest for me. I've also thought about applying to another university for graduate school s

Minge recently had a post about the 1980's and asked his readers what they remembered. Japanesewhispers mentioned The Mysterious Cities of Gold . I got a little excited because I remembered that cartoon from my childhood too. But I immediately thought of Spartakus and the Sun Beneath the Sea which ran back to back with Cities of Gold on Nickelodeon . Basically it is about this civilization that exists at the center of the Earth. Their artificial sun is dying so they create Arkana to travel to the surface and find help. She picks up two children and a man named Spartakus and together they have to travel back through the various worlds to get back to the center of the Earth. The show is French being called, Les Mondes Engloutis. I really wish that I could get my hand on the English copies. Unfortunately only the French made videos for sale. I always thought that Arkana reminded me of my mother.

Here a couple of pics of the church that I belong to-St. Paul's Lutheran. The congregation belongs to the Michigan district of the Missouri Synod. Up until my confirmation, our services were pretty conservative and deviated little as the church seasons came and went. Divine Worship II every single week it seemed like. Shortly after my confirmation the pastor transfered. No one talked about it. When I asked my parents about it, all they said was that there was some kind of issue between the pastor and the Board of Elders. Rumor had it that Pastor K. had been caught by an elder buying lottery tickets. Because gambling is a no-no in the church, he got flak for it I guess. We had transition pastor for a while. Then an orthodox pastor stayed for a while before he accepted a call out west. The current pastor is alright even if he is a bit of a ham. St. Paul's used to have a number of vicars coming through for training. Our last one caused quite the commotion. After the 9-1

From WLNS : A new poll says Michigan voters may support the idea of a part-time state legislature. The poll was recently conducted by the Detroit News and WXYZ TV. 51% of voters surveyed said they support the idea of having a part-time legislative government while only 33% opposed it. Another 16% was undecided. I could get behind that. As for Congress, while I think it may not be a good thing put them on part time, but I would like them to shorten their session down to four months. The rest of the time, they should be be working in their districts working for their constituents.

It's raining like crazy in the plains but we're dying of thirst here in the Great Lakes region. We need some rain soon. Here are some pics from my back yard.

^Almost clear skies but very hazy. It feels like the Philippines around here. Time to hit the beach.

This is the Chamber of Commerce but used to be the old Library. I think, though, that the city keeps its records in this location. This is the "new" library which is located about two blocks north by City Hall.

This was the Niles movie theater, also known as, "the Ready." It's name was the Ready 4 (for) because it only had four screens. The building used to be a traditional theater house. On the upper level you can see the balcony and the stage. Two screens occupied what was the lower level of the theater. And the last is where the backstage was. It had a lot of character and I was upset that they decided to close up and relocate to the Wonderland retail store building. The new theater has new amenities and more screens but I still miss the old theater. Wonderland may not be the most attractive building, but when you can see current movies for $2.50 or $3.50, you wind up not caring.

Wow, Tyler Whitney is popping up all over the gay blogging circuit but the rest of America doesn’t care. Mr. Whitney is an 18 year old staffer for a Republican candidate for President. He was outed. This has caused a little firestorm amongst the gay bloggies with many calling this guy a bigot, an a-hole, and even worse. The way some people have responded to this, Mr. Whitney is fit to be tied to the stake and burned for not being a good little gay. I do not deny that Mr. Whitney has done some pretty offensive stuff. Carrying anti-gay placards that aren’t even fit to be called “homophobic” certainly strikes points against him. However, as I read more about him the more I genuinely feel the need to reach out and hug him. Because I know that he has got to be feeling pretty alone. He’s getting grief from two communities who are openly hostile to which he belongs -conservatives and gays. I have to ask though, is he really deserving of such scorn? Look, his “crime” is working for an

Downtown Niles hasn't always looked this. To be frank, it used to be pretty damned ugly. Up until a few years ago, most of the buildings were covered up in aluminum in a pitiful attempt to make the buildings look more modern. Then the town got a grant from the state government for a historic renovation of downtown. Most of the aluminum siding came down and building faces restored. (I remember the four buildings where the Main Street Antique Mall is now, used to be a huge gray slab.) Some buildings such as these have retained them. In addition, the sidewalks were bricked and shrubbery planted. Also, the street lamps were removed and replaced with period replicas. The town now has an ordinance that requires any new buildings to have a certain historic appearance. There was talk about putting in a roundabout at the north end of Main Street by city hall. Instead a bank was built. The Newman Building (Niles Corner or First Source Bank)is one of my favorites. Can you see how

This area of Michigan has a large contingent of families of German decent. For instance, I am 37.5% German. My grandparents who were the first born here in America were not introduced very much to their own culture. My great-grandparents came over on the ships and their language and many of their customs died with them. World War II certainly didn’t help things. However, some families around here have held on to their past and some are still able to speak German. I can see a little bit of the German side in my dad and Grandma. Both can speak a few words and phrases. Dad will occasionally cook up German cuisine. Saurkraut? Practically a family dish. I haven’t been to a family reunion in over seven years despite the fact that our family reunions take place every year and are always within the county. (The B__s* don’t travel far from home.) The last one I’ve attended was the Heritz family reunion. The experience was a little odd for me since I don’t consider myself part of th

Considering Minge’s comment yesterday on my dad’s rifle, I thought that I would post about gun rights and a little bit about gun culture in the United States. Today’s picture is of a gun shop that is in Niles about five streets down from where I used to live. Even when I was young I looked at it with mild amusement. It was near the worse neighborhoods in Niles. In fact, the last street riot was one or two blocks over. So it seems to me that it is perfectly situated. Growing up, I was always around guns. Rather, I was always around people who used guns. While on a military base, men could be walking around with assault rifles and I wouldn’t give it a second thought. What I really would have liked to have seen were the laser guns that the military supposedly was supposed to be developing. Now that would have been cool. When Dad retired, I lived with my grandparents for some time. Grandpa was a hunter so I was exposed to that. I’ve even seen him use a pistol on the farm to k

As always, clicking on the picture will link to a larger copy. Everyone likes pictures so I thought that I would start posting more of them. For the next week or so, I’m going to start putting up pictures of places that are around where I live. No matter where you live, there’s always something to see or do. If nothing else, it should give you a glimpse into my world. While I claim that I am from Niles, I actually live in Galien. Well, technically I live in Weesaw Township. The Village of Galien has a population of about 500 people. The picture you see here is of “downtown.” While the village boasts of significant businesses, the three worth noting is the Bungalow bar, The gas station (also known as The Pro), and Eats N Sweets. Recently, our grocery store and Chemical Bank closed. Oh and the high school that I graduated from, closed but reopened as an alternative education center. When the post office goes, the village will probably be declared dead. This is downtown Niles.

As I was watching the evening news, one of BBC News' leading stories was about the Republicans blocking a vote of no confidence in the Senate over Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. I lost my patience. Since when did Congress become a parliament? A vote of no confidence does jack shit around here. If the Senate has got something on this man, then start the impeachment proceedings. Otherwise, stop wasting Congressional Record space on this political shit and get to the real work. [mutters] You trade in one group of dumbasses for another...

I'm back! ...Hello? Hmm... I've just got back from the exam and I've got quite a bit that I want to blog about. Sadly my brain has turned to clay. But I'll give it a shot. Days Ago: A couple of job leads had me hoping about the area. I'll be calling back tomorrow for a marketing position. I keep it as a positive point against the wall of rejection letters that is being filled. I even attended a job fair at the new casino that is being built in New Buffalo where they didn't even bother to interview me. But, that may because they didn't have a booth for the position that I applied for. On top of all that, I crammed like mad for the LSAT which I don't think helped me as my score kept on going down with each practice test I took. Sunday Family Visit: I took Sunday completely off from worrying about the LSAT and the job hunt. I figured that I needed a break and since my family was here it was a good as time as any. To my surprise, my cousins Jason and

Normal posting doesn’t resume for about another week but I needed to get this post in here. I swear if I make it to Tuesday without a complete melt-down… Uncle Jeff is coming up from South Carolina soon. Dad is going to be holding a mini-reunion for him along with the rest of their siblings (Uncle Kenny, Uncle Art, and Aunt Julie). Of course the family matriarch would not miss seeing all her children in one place, so Grandma is going to be there as well. I may duck out. My sister has given me warning that I’m probably going to be ambushed. Aunt Julie has been probing for gossip on my love life. Grandma has been asking my dad. In fact, Grandma even cornered me at last year’s Christmas party. Thankfully, Aunt Jessica (Uncle Art’s wife) deflected some of the attention for me. During Uncle Jeff’s last visit a couple years ago, he was talking about his son and how he was worried that he didn’t seem to have a girlfriend. (His son is younger than me by over a year.) I think that I