Wednesday, August 23, 2006

People Of The World

Dear People of the World,

I like you all, but you sure piss me off a lot. First of all, just so you know, the word "escape" does not have an 'x' in it. Quit saying "ex-cape", that sounds incredibly stupid. Also, "nucular" is not a word. And will you please stop torturing and needlessly killing animals? They are our neighbors. We need them. You need to flip the channel from MTV to MSNBC every now and then. You need to express yourself much more often, but in a constructive manner. Please realize, wearing excessive amounts of jewelry does not make you look cool. It makes you look pathetic and desperate for attention. And yes, your shit does in fact stink.

To my religious friends out there, you are not better than anyone else. Your god, or gods, or whatever else, is/are no better than the other deities out there. No matter your belief, you are no more or less right about the nature of our existance. Truth is not tangible. It is merely an idea. A collective perception. And the only real truth is that we don't know. We all need to stop acting like we do. Let's postpone this arrogant dick-war until we actually understand more about it. I have had enough of it! We need to concentrate on more important things right now, like learning how to coexist on a peaceful level.

To my fellow Americans... We are not superior to the rest of the world. We have our own disgusting issues. The idea of what our country should - and was meant to - stand for is extraordinary. However, what it currently stands for is mostly shit. I am not seeing the greatness we too often presume to show. We need to speak out more. Our voices are not heard because we choose to remain silent and take it in the ass. We need to stand up for our beliefs and quit playing the part of victims just because it's easier. Inform yourselves. Go out and vote. Break up the wretched two-party regime. Get off your lazy, fat asses and do something productive for a change! Give a shit for once in your lives. Learn about yourself. Aspire to improve.

Help us all make the world a better place. While it may be true that ignorance is bliss... it is also true that knowledge is power. I only hope you prefer the latter.

Sincerely,
---Ryan

Saturday, August 19, 2006

Short Takes (Part A Lot)

  • Last Friday, I got paid. I also finally got to pick my car up from the shop. $297. Everthing is fixed now, except for the fuel sensor. It's not working for some odd reason. So I had them order a new one and I'll take it back in a week or so. For now, I will take it in next weekend for an oil change and ease it through a carwash one of these days. Car issues are becoming bearable... The bank account, well that's another story. Other bills paid off on Friday... $350.
  • The next day -Saturday - I drove across the state to Tri-Cities... more specifically, Pasco. A good friend of mine (Rob) whom I hardly ever get to see had a surprise birthday party planned. So his wife Adriana had invited me long ago and I was happy to go. It was great so see them again, and the party went very well. Rob's other friends, Brian & Kristi, also came down from Coeur D' Alene (Idaho) for the party. Saturday night, we had a drinking party which was fun as hell and very refreshing for me. Sometimes I forget how fun it can be to have friends I can physically hang out with. And when I get that chance, I sure as hell enjoy every single minute of it. (Many pictures were taken, and many drinks were downed, so there will no doubt be some interesting pics headed my way soon. For any of you who are curious enough, I'll have to share some of them.)
  • Monday - My dad took me downtown to the Moore Theater to see Toad The Wet Sprocket! I swear, I have the best dad ever. We both think they are a great band, and they were. Two words quickly come to mind: fucking & amazing. I actually got my dad listening to Toad a few years back, and we've been enjoying more and more of their stuff as time goes by. We have even tried playing a couple of their songs in jams too. He's convinced I sing quite a bit like Glen [Phillips, Toad's lead singer]. I consider that a huge compliment of course. Though, we haven't even really had a chance to record any Toad stuff yet. When we do, I'm sure the first one will either be Something's Always Wrong or Stupid, two of my personal favorites. More on that later... Oh, and for those of you who are still curious, the opening act was a talented guy by the name of Matt Nathanson. He was pretty entertaining, and a hell of a good singer. His voice reminded me of a cross between Glen Phillips and John Rzeznik [of Goo Goo Dolls]. At one point he led a crowd sing-a-long to a cover of Journey's Don't Stop Believin'. Very cool! I have a feeling he's going to make a name for himself down the road...
  • Skip ahead to today... the next Saturday. I have been cleaning my apartment for the past couple days, and moved into the master bedroom. I'm finally all situated now, and I'm enjoying having a bit more room to spread out in. The cleaning and moving is all done now, and that's a good thing, because I'm out of energy and need to relax for awhile. I will be meeting with a potential roommate tomorrow afternoon and will show them the place. If all goes well, they will like the place and decide to move in. If that happens, my life will suddenly get back on track and in a much better place. That's a lot of stress that will lift from my mind. So at this point, I'm trying to remain optimistic about the whole thing. I'll keep you all updated on that.
  • Among everything else on my mind lately, I have also come to a couple other decisions. I have decided to cancel any plans I have been meaning to make for a Vegas trip in the near future. As badly as I probably need a vacation, now is frankly not a good time to have that on my plate. All thoughts and considerations on that are hereby postponed until further notice. However, I am still planning on purchasing that treadmill once I get back on my financially stable feet. Most importantly, I am seriously considering checking into hypnotherapy as soon as my living situation is stable. I have always been interested in hypnosis, and I would love to explore my childhood traumas, or lack thereof, and really get inside my seemingly deep and impenetrable mind. I figure the more I can learn about myself and who I really am, the better. Especially while I have my good medical insurance...

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

Dear World...

Dear World,

You have been beating the shit out of me all year so far. And I find it deeply disturbing how you seem to enjoy kicking me while I'm down on the ground writhing in pain. It is because of this, I offer some advice to you...

Enjoy it. Enjoy every single minute of it. Enjoy it all while you can, because once I am able to get back on my feet and dust myself off, I am going to kick your fucking ass.

Sincerely,
---Ryan

Monday, August 14, 2006

Fortune For The Day

So this evening I reheated some leftover chinese food from last night. And upon opening my fortune cookie, I read the following:

"There is a true and sincere friendship between you both."

I read this and couldn't help but snicker to myself. It made me think about my two brain hemispheres and their continuous competition with one another. And the fact that they often make me feel like two different people inside. The only difference here is that I'm not convinced those two people even like each other.

Thursday, August 10, 2006

Hmmm

I think it's very possible I might end up moving.

Then again, I might not.

I think I want to move back home to Moscow.

But I might not.

I might move over to Spokane.

But I might not.

I could easily end up moving to Vegas in the next couple days.

But maybe I won't.

I might find a good potential roommate over here in the Seattle area too.

And I might not.

I might just look for a new place to live.

Or I might not.

I think I'm ready to settle down and live with a woman I care about.

But I might not be ready.

I think I can seduce anyone I want.

I might not be able to.

I think my possibilities are limitless.

But maybe they aren't.

I think I'm on the verge of a complete nervous breakdown.

......

Yeah.

Yeah, I think I may just have one of those real soon.

Friday, August 4, 2006

Our Beautiful World (Chapter 1)

China Orders Mass Slaughter of Dogs
By CHRISTOPHER BODEEN, Associated Press Writer
Fri Aug 4, 10:08 AM

SHANGHAI, China - For the second time in days, Chinese authorities have ordered a mass slaughter of dogs to curb a rabies outbreak _ drawing criticism from animal lovers but also support from many who say it's the only way to contain a disease that kills more than 2,000 Chinese a year.

Officials in the eastern city of Jining plan to kill all dogs within three miles of areas where rabies has been found, the official Xinhua News Agency said Friday.

The measure came in response to the deaths of 16 people from rabies in Jining in the last eight months, Xinhua said. It didn't say when the slaughter would begin or how the animals would be killed. It said the city had about 500,000 dogs.

Rabies cases are on the rise in China, with 2,651 reported deaths from the disease in 2004, the last year for which data was available. Only 3 percent of the country's dogs are vaccinated against rabies.

Last week, a county in southwestern Yunnan province killed 50,000 dogs, many of them beaten to death in front of their owners, after three people died of rabies.

The slaughters have outraged animal rights groups, who call them cruel and a sign of government incompetence in dealing with rabies, an often fatal disease that attacks the nervous system but which can be warded off with a series of injections.

"I think this is completely insane," said Zhang Luping, founder of the Beijing Human and Animal Environmental Education Center.

"What's more, this really damages our national image and sets a really bad example to show how lazy and inconsiderate those local government officials are," Zhang said.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals called such killings a "hideously cruel response," in a statement on its Web site.

After last week's slaughter, the group canceled about $300,000 orders for merchandise made in China and called for a boycott of Chinese-made products to protest what it calls widespread cruelty to animals in the country.

The killings in Yunnan prompted unusually pointed criticism in state media, with many commentators saying it signaled how little capacity the local government had to deal with routine health issues.

Other slaughters have been reported elsewhere in China this year, although the government says it has no standard policy of destroying dogs.

Zhang, the founder of the Beijing education center, said there were no laws under which citizens could stop the killings. However, she said she and other animal protection activists were reaching out through the media to try to change policy.

"I think this brutal and cold-blooded campaign should stop as soon as possible," Zhang said.

People who answered the phone at Jining's city government and the epidemic control center refused to comment or said they weren't authorized to release information to the media.

The World Health Organization has not directly criticized the slaughters, but WHO experts have said they underscore a lack of coordination and other problems within China's health care system.

The killings have also prompted a slew of impassioned postings in online forums.

"Tens of thousands of people die in traffic accidents each year, but we don't ban cars. Dogs are simply easy to persecute," said one unsigned posting on Xinhua's electronic bulletin board.

"People opposed to killing dogs ought to think how they'd feel if they or a relative was infected with rabies. Are people's or dogs' lives more important?" said another, also unsigned.

Thursday, August 3, 2006

Lost

I would cry, if only my android brain had the capacity. My life washes over me. It always has. It always will. Wave after wave of frustration pushes me under as I struggle to breathe. Eventually, I am going to drown.

I have always recognized the fact that the problem is in me. Therefore, I am the only one who has the ability to correct it. And I have tried and tried to do just that. But the sea of life knows. It knows what I'm up to and it will never allow that to happen. It will continue to have its way with me until I either give up the fight or am completely drained of the energy to keep myself afloat. Both options result in the same outcome. Somewhere deep down, I refuse to take either of those routes.

I've never felt more alone than I do right now. You might say that I am a castaway of sorts. Yet, I am not surrounded by palm trees and gardens of sand. Instead, I am lost amid a sea of people. People whom I cannot relate to and have nothing in common with. People seemingly alien to me. More simply, I am Waldo. And the only one who can possibly find me...... is me.

So far I have insisted on continuing my search. I search for possibilites. A small plane overhead. Perhaps some material to build a raft. But my scope of vision only reaches out so far. Anything beyond is mere speculation and fantasy.

The outside world hides many beautiful things that I will never see... or hear.... or experience.

Wednesday, August 2, 2006

Things That Make You Go... WTF?

As I was walking to work today, I saw a man on a bicycle wearing a backpack at an intersection. He appeared to be yelling at someone who wasn't there. To this seemingly imaginary person, he exclaimed:

"... you dick-sucking fucking faggot! ... Mother fucker! ... Get off of me, you dick-sucking fucking faggot!"

Then I noticed him turning to head my way. I immediately decided not to make eye contact with this person, so as he passed, I didn't. But as I continued walking and keeping to myself, I couldn't help but think about his thought-provoking philosophy.

And eventually, I came to the conclusion that yeah... that pretty much sums up the week for me too.