Deflation Nation

A nation readjusts to the real world!

As we learned with president Bush, approval polls are to be taken not just with a grain of salt, but with an entire salt mine. Still, these declining Obama numbers are a welcome adjustment from the stratospheric high of his early presidency. The fact that this country is returning to a realistic view of the president and his administration is comforting. Not because I want Obama to fail, but because the power to instigate change is moving back where it belongs–in the hands of the people. The majority of whom no longer seem to be starstruck.

Everything, Nothing

Man with nothing tells man with crumb
You have everything, you have everything you need
Man with crumb tells man with whole slice
You have everything, you have everything you need
Man with whole slice tells man with box
You have everything, you have everything you need
Give some to me

Man with box tells man with pants and shirt
You have everything, you have everything you need
Man with pants and shirt tells man with bicycle
You have everything, you have everything you need
Man with bicycle tells man with shitty car
You have everything, you have everything you need
Give some to me

Man with shitty car tells man cleaning the street
You have everything, you have everything you need
Man cleaning the street tells the man baking the bread
You have everything, you have everything you need
Man baking the bread tells man with computer
You have everything, you have everything you need
Give some to me

Man with computer tells man with apartment
You have everything, you have everything you need
Man with apartment tells man in the suburbs
You have everything, you have everything you need
Man in the suburbs tells man with giant mansion
You have everything, you have everything you need
Give some to me

Man with giant mansion tells man with massive army
You have everything, you have everything you need
Man with massive army tells man with biggest country
You have everything, you have everything you need
Man with biggest country tells the sun that burns above
You have everything, you have everything you need
Give some to me

Sun that burns above tells planets to swarm round
Tells universe to expand then collapses on itself
Black hole pulls in stars and planets full of men
Then it starts over again and you have everything
You have everything you need and it is nothing.

Simple Form Of Life

[My first lyrics in like forever! Enjoy...]

 

Something’s moving through the ocean

Something’s coming down the tracks

Something’s lost between the stars

In a box car full of black

 

Something’s open and then shutting

With a thousand rows of teeth

White crosses in a cemetery

Wrapped in bloody wreaths

 

It’s a simple form of life

With a complicated ancestry

Primitive but effective

Self-destructive weaponry

 

Something’s coming through the forest

Something’s churning down the road

Something’s drilling to the core

With a luminescent glow

 

Something’s ripping into flesh

With eyes as black as stones

It rocks the boat and swallows

Every soul and every bone

 

It’s a simple form of life

With a complicated ancestry

Pathologically infectious

Self-mutating insanity

 

Something’s crawling from the shallows

Something’s diving from the trees

Something’s hiding in the egg case

As the comet gently sweeps

 

Something angles for a victim

In the office, on the street

Feathers on the front grill

Torque and talons underneath

 

It’s a simple form of life

With a complicated ancestry

Scales sharp as razor wire

Acid-tongued soliloquy.

Zombama

Here’s a striking t-shirt on TeeFury today that promises to be controversial. I’m not 100% sure how I feel about it.

I love how the artist subverts the political message, messianic iconography & appropriated artwork of the original, but it comes very close to disrespecting the office (as happened repeatedly with Bush).

I’m too afraid it would be grossly misinterpreted to actually wear such a thing. But still, it’s a bold and compelling image that tests our current political temperament, and that seeks to dismantle the unbelievable degree of hype surrounding the very human President Obama.

What do you think about this?

I’m A Frayed Knot

My illustrious Literate Housewife has tagged my bloggy ass with this random thing thingy. So I’ll reciprocate with the following, then tag 6 more suckas (do I still know 6 people with blogs?):

1)  I am no longer addicted to news and political op-ed on the Internet. Now I’m addicted to shopping online.

2)  During my irresponsible adolescent years, I let a hermit crab die of neglect.

3)  As someone who’s passionate about movies, I feel vindicated by the widescreen aspect of HDTV. Now, everyone who bought “full screen” DVD’s to avoid those black bars at the top and bottom will be complaining about the black space on the sides!

4) Utilizing Microsoft Paint within their operating system known as Windows, I draw whatever my kids tell me to draw. For example:

5)  I’m hoping that the tradition of suits and ties as the “neat dress” standard changes to something much more casual within my lifetime. To me, this is more important than the development of fuel cell technology.

6)  One of my biggest regrets is not learning to play a musical instrument when I was younger.

Now I’ll commence with the tagging:

• LeeAnn, M.D.
• Sheevil
• What To Fix
• Nicole
• LIFE in BITS
• Kary Nation

Rules:

• Link to the person who tagged you.
• Post the rules on your blog.
• Write six random things about yourself.
• Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.
• Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.
• Let your tagger know when your entry is up.

Remember, Not Relive

I want to remember the people, but not relive the day…

Down Under Jerky

Today I had the pleasure(?) of sampling “jerky” versions of three animals native to Australia–crocodile, kangaroo and emu. Thanks to co-worker Steve for bringing these fascinating packets of dried and cured fauna back from his recent trip.

The emu was my favorite, with the least gamy and somewhat turkey-ish flavor. The croc was not too bad either, though this particular jerked version was somewhat spicy. It had a faint taste similar to the smell that reptiles have at the zoo or pet store. It’s almost a fish-like taste, but more earthy. Which makes sense if you think about it!

The kangaroo was disgusting. I expected more of a deer flavor, but it tasted almost rancid and vaguely toward the rotting flesh end of the scale. So tie me kangaroo down, sport–and leave him for the vultures.

Maybe this is a silly experience to write about, but it does illustrate how far I’ve come since my recent bout with the stomach flu. Now I can eat salty and exotic meats with the best of them. :D

Mark E. Smith And The Meaning Of Wildlife

  VS. 

Back when I was a rabid fan of The Fall, I never imagined a day when I would read an article about Mark E. Smith’s murderous hatred of squirrels. Are they spoilt Victorian squirrels? And does he hit ‘em over the head with a 2×4? So many fan questions remain unanswered by the AFP report.

The most important tidbit we learn is that, according to Mr. Smith, “Squirrels mean nothing to me.” With this in mind, I need to pull out all 498 of my Fall albums and listen through them yet again. This time, searching for clues about the development of his cryptic philosophy regarding the meaning of squirrels.

As for the RSPCA, good luck with your efforts to silence Smith. No one’s been able to do that for the past 30 years. Also be aware that “R.S.P.C.A.” is exactly the sort of title he gives to his obscure and often vitriolic songs.

Now where did I put my pellet gun? It’s springtime here in Virginia and these songbirds are about to drive me CRAZY!

The Agony Of Unique

During a training session I’m attending this week, the instructor asked each of us to introduce ourselves and to share something unique about ourselves. For the first time in my life, I had no unique qualities to report. I simply said “there’s nothing really unique about me” to relieve the pressure of the moment. Then the spotlight moved to someone else.

Strangely, this seemed to be the most honest and correct answer. I’m suddenly SO OVER being unique.

 At some point during my early years in school, I embraced uniqueness as a defense mechanism against “coolness” (which was conformist), blandness (which is a far too easy and prevalent trap) and studiousness (which was, for me, impossible). Over the years it became my creed, as an outside-the-system kind of guy in school and an outside-the-box kind of thinker in the workplace. But while the concept of “unique” is fine on a personal level, it doesn’t really stir much reverence in general society.

One man’s uniqueness can be another man’s ho-hum. So why should I spout off about it to co-workers and pretend that it matters to anyone? If I had climbed Mount Everest blindfolded, or stowed away on a space shuttle flight, or resurrected a long-frozen wooly mammoth with a hair dryer and a car battery–well, then I might have spoken up.

Being truly unique is a lot of work. And while it was a perfectly reasonable goal when I was younger, now it hardly matters in the least. Perhaps this is part of being a parent. It’s now up to my kids to be unique, while I become the dad who isn’t supposed to be too freaky lest I risk embarrassing the girls in front of their friends.

I guess the most unique thing about me these days is that I just want to be as non-unique as possible and go relatively unnoticed. A true “behind the scenes” sort of character.

So why am I spilling all this out in a public blog?

April, Peaks Of Otter