What About The Future Generations Of Rodent Minions?
With the recent national elections, it's not surprising that my Friends List is more active than usual. Simply because it's been awhile since my last journal entry, I think I'll jump on the posting bandwagon.
The Potluck Friday Halloween party at Sarah and Justin's house was immensely enjoyable, as I anticipated it would be. For some reason, I usually experience a slight bout of anxiety when it comes to Halloween, mostly arising from indecisiveness when it comes to a costume. However, I often seem to find inspiration and conjure a decent costume at the last minute, much as J predicted. Fortunately, as every day contains at least a minuscule fragment of Halloween for me, I suppose I'm more equipped for this type of scenario. Using various possessions and materials throughout my house, I decided to go as an Arakkoa, the magical bird-people from World of Warcraft. As I anticipated, J got it right away, and most of the other WoW people did as well once explained. It was phenomenal hanging out with everyone, including people I rarely have the opportunity to see, like Siouxsan and Dave. I don't have any pictures myself, but both Sarah and Siouxsan have pictures, many of which will likely be posted at a later date.
Speaking of people I haven't seen for ages, many of us made a trip to Walnut Creek on Saturday to see Courtney perform in the musical 42nd Street. Although the ultra-fluff, hyper-enthusiastic musical isn't the type of production I would normally see, I thought the quality of the performances themselves were mesmerizing, especially Courtney's. It's a shame that Sarah didn't incorporate any singing in her last movie, as Courtney can do that beautifully in addition to dancing and acting. Fun times were certainly had, especially conversing with her afterward; it's just unfortunate that the weekend when there's lots of traveling and activity is the weekend it finally decides to rain. Oh well, what's a little extra moisture amongst friends, right?
Like many others, I exercised my right to vote, which I have for every election since I've been old enough to vote. Although I'm quite pleased with the overall results, I find myself somewhat devoid of any potent enthusiasm and disaffected by the charisma of others. I thought that Obama would win the presidency, and I'm intrigued by the many potential changes which will occur with him in power. However, I'm not as elated as many of my friends appear to be. I voted for him, but I was torn between voting for him and Cynthia McKinney of the Green Party, for in many ways, I'm concerned that he might be too moderate for my tastes. Ultimately though, I doubt one could be a successful politician with more leftist beliefs than that of Obama, at least not in the current political atmosphere. Plus, it's nice to finally choose the winning presidential candidate; however, I could argue that by choosing Gore in 2000, I did choose the winning candidate if the president were actually elected democratically by the people.
I'm relieved that Proposition 4 failed, although historical precedence has demonstrated that such propositions will consistently fail in this state. Fortunately, Proposition 2 did pass, and although farm conditions are far from ideal for animals, at least there are some standards for their humane treatment. Plus, with lesser density, the spread of disease is easier to control, likely improving the quality of the meat for my carnivorous friends.
Conversely, although I'm not completely surprised, I'm thoroughly disappointed that Proposition 8 appears to have passed. Despite the characteristic of the marginalized group, it's inappropriate and fundamentally wrong to alter a constitution in order to justify state-sanctioned discrimination. It's likely, based on the many legal questions that arise from this Proposition, that it will be channeled and stricken before it is ever enforced; however, should it actually be ratified, I predict that ultimately it will be overturned by the Supreme Court much like Sodomy laws were years ago with a federal mandate. In the meantime, in order to comply with the Proposition without being discriminatory, California should revoke all marriages and replace them with civil unions. This is especially appropriate since civil unions offer the same rights as marriage, just with different terminology. The issue of marriage can be relegated to the church and other religious institutions, thereby allowing it to have its hallowed and/or exclusive characteristics without interfering with government. Besides, this really is more consistent with the separation of church and state anyway. Then again, most of the people that advocate for Proposition 8 are the same type of people that advocate for more church involvement in state, assuming that it's their church.
In other news, Athena and Saffron both appear to be doing well... and although Unexpected Guinea Pig Multiplication Day, also known as Athena's birthday, has passed almost a month earlier, I can't help but continue to spoil them both; it's their wheeting and overall cuteness. Speaking of guinea pigs, I got a Heifer International catalog to donate livestock to underprivileged countries. One of the options (although I couldn't find it on the main page of the website) was to donate a trio of guinea pigs to Ecuador, and although I support ending poverty and spreading the joy of guinea pigs, the end result would be that the guinea pigs would be eaten for protein. So... I don't think it's quite the catalog for me.
Apparently, there's quite a list of people interested in doing Heavy Petting. If I can arrange a time for rehearsal when it's convenient for me, I'll probably bring it back, as I might as well maximize my output since I've committed to being in Sarah's piece for the upcoming Telemark Show. I'd like to do a new one as well, but I doubt I can find the time or resources to choreograph another piece. So, if you're interested in Heavy Petting (and who wouldn't be with a provocative name like that), let me know.
Lastly, in highly random news, if there's one person who rivals Ian in terms of being socially unaware, it's Vigil. She randomly came over to my place on Saturday afternoon with one of her friends, and I was quite delighted to see her. Fortunately, she didn't need to bring over twenty of her friends at 3:30 in the morning. Anyway, she recommended that I have a "Dirty Thirty" birthday party; I must say that I'm intrigued, and I do intend on having a birthday party this year, however, it likely won't be dirty. I'm guessing the closing rhyming adjective would be flirty, which would still be fun.
In the immensely improbably scenario that the political landscape erode further, perhaps I'll consolidate my powers and start that rodent uprising. I better do it now in fact, as the reproductive rights of squirrels are under attack. Won't someone think of the children? Well... that's it for the rambling, I'm out of here.
The Potluck Friday Halloween party at Sarah and Justin's house was immensely enjoyable, as I anticipated it would be. For some reason, I usually experience a slight bout of anxiety when it comes to Halloween, mostly arising from indecisiveness when it comes to a costume. However, I often seem to find inspiration and conjure a decent costume at the last minute, much as J predicted. Fortunately, as every day contains at least a minuscule fragment of Halloween for me, I suppose I'm more equipped for this type of scenario. Using various possessions and materials throughout my house, I decided to go as an Arakkoa, the magical bird-people from World of Warcraft. As I anticipated, J got it right away, and most of the other WoW people did as well once explained. It was phenomenal hanging out with everyone, including people I rarely have the opportunity to see, like Siouxsan and Dave. I don't have any pictures myself, but both Sarah and Siouxsan have pictures, many of which will likely be posted at a later date.
Speaking of people I haven't seen for ages, many of us made a trip to Walnut Creek on Saturday to see Courtney perform in the musical 42nd Street. Although the ultra-fluff, hyper-enthusiastic musical isn't the type of production I would normally see, I thought the quality of the performances themselves were mesmerizing, especially Courtney's. It's a shame that Sarah didn't incorporate any singing in her last movie, as Courtney can do that beautifully in addition to dancing and acting. Fun times were certainly had, especially conversing with her afterward; it's just unfortunate that the weekend when there's lots of traveling and activity is the weekend it finally decides to rain. Oh well, what's a little extra moisture amongst friends, right?
Like many others, I exercised my right to vote, which I have for every election since I've been old enough to vote. Although I'm quite pleased with the overall results, I find myself somewhat devoid of any potent enthusiasm and disaffected by the charisma of others. I thought that Obama would win the presidency, and I'm intrigued by the many potential changes which will occur with him in power. However, I'm not as elated as many of my friends appear to be. I voted for him, but I was torn between voting for him and Cynthia McKinney of the Green Party, for in many ways, I'm concerned that he might be too moderate for my tastes. Ultimately though, I doubt one could be a successful politician with more leftist beliefs than that of Obama, at least not in the current political atmosphere. Plus, it's nice to finally choose the winning presidential candidate; however, I could argue that by choosing Gore in 2000, I did choose the winning candidate if the president were actually elected democratically by the people.
I'm relieved that Proposition 4 failed, although historical precedence has demonstrated that such propositions will consistently fail in this state. Fortunately, Proposition 2 did pass, and although farm conditions are far from ideal for animals, at least there are some standards for their humane treatment. Plus, with lesser density, the spread of disease is easier to control, likely improving the quality of the meat for my carnivorous friends.
Conversely, although I'm not completely surprised, I'm thoroughly disappointed that Proposition 8 appears to have passed. Despite the characteristic of the marginalized group, it's inappropriate and fundamentally wrong to alter a constitution in order to justify state-sanctioned discrimination. It's likely, based on the many legal questions that arise from this Proposition, that it will be channeled and stricken before it is ever enforced; however, should it actually be ratified, I predict that ultimately it will be overturned by the Supreme Court much like Sodomy laws were years ago with a federal mandate. In the meantime, in order to comply with the Proposition without being discriminatory, California should revoke all marriages and replace them with civil unions. This is especially appropriate since civil unions offer the same rights as marriage, just with different terminology. The issue of marriage can be relegated to the church and other religious institutions, thereby allowing it to have its hallowed and/or exclusive characteristics without interfering with government. Besides, this really is more consistent with the separation of church and state anyway. Then again, most of the people that advocate for Proposition 8 are the same type of people that advocate for more church involvement in state, assuming that it's their church.
In other news, Athena and Saffron both appear to be doing well... and although Unexpected Guinea Pig Multiplication Day, also known as Athena's birthday, has passed almost a month earlier, I can't help but continue to spoil them both; it's their wheeting and overall cuteness. Speaking of guinea pigs, I got a Heifer International catalog to donate livestock to underprivileged countries. One of the options (although I couldn't find it on the main page of the website) was to donate a trio of guinea pigs to Ecuador, and although I support ending poverty and spreading the joy of guinea pigs, the end result would be that the guinea pigs would be eaten for protein. So... I don't think it's quite the catalog for me.
Apparently, there's quite a list of people interested in doing Heavy Petting. If I can arrange a time for rehearsal when it's convenient for me, I'll probably bring it back, as I might as well maximize my output since I've committed to being in Sarah's piece for the upcoming Telemark Show. I'd like to do a new one as well, but I doubt I can find the time or resources to choreograph another piece. So, if you're interested in Heavy Petting (and who wouldn't be with a provocative name like that), let me know.
Lastly, in highly random news, if there's one person who rivals Ian in terms of being socially unaware, it's Vigil. She randomly came over to my place on Saturday afternoon with one of her friends, and I was quite delighted to see her. Fortunately, she didn't need to bring over twenty of her friends at 3:30 in the morning. Anyway, she recommended that I have a "Dirty Thirty" birthday party; I must say that I'm intrigued, and I do intend on having a birthday party this year, however, it likely won't be dirty. I'm guessing the closing rhyming adjective would be flirty, which would still be fun.
In the immensely improbably scenario that the political landscape erode further, perhaps I'll consolidate my powers and start that rodent uprising. I better do it now in fact, as the reproductive rights of squirrels are under attack. Won't someone think of the children? Well... that's it for the rambling, I'm out of here.