A Quick Update

....'cause I have places to go!

Long story short, I haven't been blogging as much as usual because (insert drumroll)

I Got A Job!!

I now work as a test engineer with CTDI (a Bellsouth, AT&T and Verizon contractor)

The work is good, the pay is good and, best of all, it's second shift (so I can still do the self-employment thing on the side).

the only down side is the 40 mile round trip commute....... I just might have to bite the bullet and buy a new car, but I'm not sweating it.

As soon as I adjust, I shall resume posting with the regularity of a fat man on a bran muffin binge.

You can't always judge on first appearances......

.......and sometimes you really wish you didn't.

I got this lighter the other day when I was out and found that fire was the only element standing between relative calm and a 4-alarm Nic-fit (Dang Zippos..... they'll never be perfect until they come out with a model that's got a gas guage).

Long story short...... this particular one is apparently some kind of undercover redneck.
Or at least that was my first impression.

Perhaps it's my Northern side speaking here, but isn't that the wrong thing to be proud of?
Yeah sure, I like Gone With The Wind and all, but hasn't just about everything worth mentioning to be proud of happened AFTER the Civil war?

I don't know about you, but I think it's time that Southerners come up with a new symbol to represent the region and the progress it's made since antibellum times. Something that brings about thoughts of stuff like:
The literary contributions of Southern writers.
The battles won in the fight against racism and bigetry, and those who fought them.
Industrialization (heck, Mercedes Benz's are made in Alabama!)
The space program. (You don't see 'em landing, launching or building any rockets in North Dakota!)
Scientists and scientific discoveries (who'da thunk that there would have been so many uses for the lowly peanut?)
...............just to name a few things.

Nope, nothing wrong with a little Southern Pride........ I just wish that saying so didn't cause people to wonder just what you mean by that, and that it could be symbolized by something other than the battle flag of the old south.

Happy Birthday MTV!

As of this date in history 25 years ago, nothing so formitable had come before, or for that matter since, the inception of MTV occured.

I still remember the tender young age at which I was introduced to this phenomenon (9... or was it 10?, nevermind, there it was, bands, playing music........On TELEVISION, no less!). Awsome, and at once strange....... and different. Yeah, the first time was heavy on the REO Speedwagon and Rod Stewart, but there was also The Prentenders, The Who and some Bowie........ all announced by The Buggles.

In the latter days came Remote Control, and even later Liquid Television, with the intoduction of Bevis and Butthead with (though still an unadmitted favorite, should one ask, cause she was just a cartoon) Daria and Aeon Flux.

I call out to all of my generation; Do you remember the promo in which the spectre of Death knocked on the door of a young man who answered, "Sorry, I'm watching MTV", and then replied politely with"OK, I'll wait until it's over." ?

Good thing we didn't take that seriously!

Sure, they don't show videos anymore (at least not when I'm watching), and the tribute (along with a rerun of the first day of programming) was shown by VH1 (admittedly because the people now in charge said that it would be a detrement to their younger audience to aknowledge their current age), but I still owe a debt nonetheless for who they were when I was who I was then.


No matter what you still gotta love the day that video killed the radio star, 'cause even if MTV sucks today, it's history, man, like the day man landed on the moon!