I watch Grey's Anatomy every week. Not because I like the show. I used to like the show. But now it's so over the top, it's become a parody of itself. Like Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure, it's so bad, so unbelievable, that you have to watch. If you haven't watched last night's episode, stop reading, because I've got to get a few things off my chest.
People cannot have sex with ghosts. I refuse to believe this. I will allow that there might be supernatural things out there. I will not allow that you can have sexual intercourse with them. You do not get to have sex with your dead fiance and then have sex with your current alive boyfriend the next night. This is some form of cheating. I'm convinced of that.
How is this hospital even allowed to stay open? Every doctor is emotionally or physically involved with another doctor, the interns are doing black market surgeries on each other, the patient's wishes seem to take a back seat to the doctors personal moralities, but it's ok because everything is done in the name of love? I don't get it.
What Shepard sees in Grey is beyond me. She's quite possibly the most annoying person alive. Or at least she would be if her roommate wasn't having mental breakdowns and sleeping with her imaginary friend
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I just read that gas dropped below $2 a gallon nationally. Did anyone out there ever think we'd see this again? I remember thinking in high school that we'd never see $2 a gallon gas in Oregon because people would riot. I also remember thinking that I'd start riding a bike to work if gas ever hit $3 a gallon. I filled up the other day for $25. It's like having a 50% off coupon!
The Beavers are two games away from becoming Pac-10 champions. It's still weird to think about. Everyone is going superstitious because nobody wants to be the person who jinxes the team. People won't even mention the words Rose Bowl. I will. I'm pretty sure Mike Riley and Jacquizz Rodgers aren't going to read my blog. Rose Bowl Rose Bowl Rose Bowl. Maybe if I go say it three times into the mirror with the lights off, Keith Jackson will appear and tell me who is going to make it to Pasadena. Perhaps I should start making voodoo dolls wearing Arizona and Oregon gear.
Work has been painfully slow. I'm super excited to go to Wisconsin for Thanksgiving because I know that when I come back, there'll actually be work to do. Please note that I'm also excited to go for other reasons, that was just the reason that pertained to this blog. I was actually reading some of my old blogs yesterday and found a survey (remember those things?) where I listed a bunch of things I wanted to do before I die. Among them was see the Beavers play in the Rose Bowl. That is the only one on my list that I can't control. Sure will make my last days on earth more peaceful if I'm not fighting death saying "just one more year God? Please, I still haven't been to Pasadena!"
Reading the old blogs was pretty entertaining. I laughed at some stories I'd forgotten and it made me remember how I felt about certain things at certain times. I'm thinking about copying them all into a word document and maybe one day printing them all out so that Jonah can see what his dad was doing in his mid 20's. Although I'm thinking there's a pretty distinct possibility that the only person that would find that interesting is me.
Friday, November 21, 2008
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Civil War gone wrong
Usually I try to write blogs that I think most people will find interesting. This will not be one of those.
I feel like I'm a pretty big OSU fan, and I feel most people would agree. But I feel I have a secret that most people would view as a traitorous viewpoint.
I don't hate all things Duck.
There, I said it. I call them the Ducks, not the Ucks. I refer to the city they play in as Eugene, not Spewgene. And I call them the University of Oregon, not Whoregon. I don't particularly have anything against the colors yellow and green.
It seems these days you have to prove your fandom by denouncing everything related to your rival. Even before I decided to go to Oregon State, I was a Beaver fan. A lot of that has to do with my family being from Corvallis. From me going to games at Parker Stadium as a kid. From getting to high five Gary Payton as he left the court as an eight year old.
Sure there's a few things I don't like about U of O. I think the football coach has an extreme aversion to complimenting the success of others. I think their announcers show a bias more extreme than most. I really have nothing against U of O's basketball team. I think Ernie Kent is a good coach, I think they have exciting players that are fun to watch. I root for them every time they aren't playing the Beavers. Does that make me less of a Beaver fan? I don't think so.
One thing Beaver fans like to bag on is Oregon's jersey collection. The baseball team just unveiled their new jerseys....all six of them. Here's a news flash for you though: OSU also has six baseball jerseys! Here's some other things that people like to bash Oregon for that I don't agree with:
*Ducks are copying the Beavs by wearing black. This makes no sense to me. By that logic, who was Georgia copying when they wore black jerseys? Who was Duke's basketball team copying when they unveiled black jerseys? What school hasn't had a "blackout" game this year? OSU fans are lucky that black is one of our school colors....saves the department money when we have a blackout. Speaking of money......
*Oregon is only good because of Phil Knight. So? Phil Knight started out selling shoes out of the back of his van. Is it Oregon's fault that nearly every person in the known world now contributes to his pocketbook....including everyone who wears official OSU gear. He gives $100 million that he wants spent exclusively on athletics.....so guess what? U of O spends it on athletics! They spend it on new uniforms, new facilities, and new sports. Speaking of which......
*Oregon was jealous of OSU's baseball success so they brought baseball back. Again, no. Oregon State's success made it easier for U of O to bring baseball back for sure, but this had nothing to do with trophy envy. This has everything to do with money. Which sport do you thing generates more revenue, baseball or wrestling? When's the last time you saw 10,000 people show up at an Oregon wrestling meet? Amazingly, that's probably how many people are going to show up with Oregon plays baseball in Portland. OSU's success made its own baseball program turn a profit for the first time ever. Why shouldn't Oregon try to capitalize on that? Oregon State is thinking about bringing back track and field. Does that have anything to do with the popularity of Oregon's track program? Probably. Are they doing it because they're jealous? You won't hear any self respecting Beaver fan say that.
Oregon fans do the same thing. They refer to OSU as OSewe, a clever pun referring to a football player stealing a sheep who happened to be part of a study on animal homosexuality. I don't think I've ever stopped someone wearing green and yellow to yell at them or berate them. Yet this will happen over and over again in a few weeks when the Civil War takes place.
As usual, a few bad apples ruin it for everyone. Unfortunately, this vocal minority always gets the most publicity because of the noise they make. And now I've fallen prey to their trap too. I've spent an hour crafting this blog to respond to their lunacy.
Guess that makes me a lunatic too.
I feel like I'm a pretty big OSU fan, and I feel most people would agree. But I feel I have a secret that most people would view as a traitorous viewpoint.
I don't hate all things Duck.
There, I said it. I call them the Ducks, not the Ucks. I refer to the city they play in as Eugene, not Spewgene. And I call them the University of Oregon, not Whoregon. I don't particularly have anything against the colors yellow and green.
It seems these days you have to prove your fandom by denouncing everything related to your rival. Even before I decided to go to Oregon State, I was a Beaver fan. A lot of that has to do with my family being from Corvallis. From me going to games at Parker Stadium as a kid. From getting to high five Gary Payton as he left the court as an eight year old.
Sure there's a few things I don't like about U of O. I think the football coach has an extreme aversion to complimenting the success of others. I think their announcers show a bias more extreme than most. I really have nothing against U of O's basketball team. I think Ernie Kent is a good coach, I think they have exciting players that are fun to watch. I root for them every time they aren't playing the Beavers. Does that make me less of a Beaver fan? I don't think so.
One thing Beaver fans like to bag on is Oregon's jersey collection. The baseball team just unveiled their new jerseys....all six of them. Here's a news flash for you though: OSU also has six baseball jerseys! Here's some other things that people like to bash Oregon for that I don't agree with:
*Ducks are copying the Beavs by wearing black. This makes no sense to me. By that logic, who was Georgia copying when they wore black jerseys? Who was Duke's basketball team copying when they unveiled black jerseys? What school hasn't had a "blackout" game this year? OSU fans are lucky that black is one of our school colors....saves the department money when we have a blackout. Speaking of money......
*Oregon is only good because of Phil Knight. So? Phil Knight started out selling shoes out of the back of his van. Is it Oregon's fault that nearly every person in the known world now contributes to his pocketbook....including everyone who wears official OSU gear. He gives $100 million that he wants spent exclusively on athletics.....so guess what? U of O spends it on athletics! They spend it on new uniforms, new facilities, and new sports. Speaking of which......
*Oregon was jealous of OSU's baseball success so they brought baseball back. Again, no. Oregon State's success made it easier for U of O to bring baseball back for sure, but this had nothing to do with trophy envy. This has everything to do with money. Which sport do you thing generates more revenue, baseball or wrestling? When's the last time you saw 10,000 people show up at an Oregon wrestling meet? Amazingly, that's probably how many people are going to show up with Oregon plays baseball in Portland. OSU's success made its own baseball program turn a profit for the first time ever. Why shouldn't Oregon try to capitalize on that? Oregon State is thinking about bringing back track and field. Does that have anything to do with the popularity of Oregon's track program? Probably. Are they doing it because they're jealous? You won't hear any self respecting Beaver fan say that.
Oregon fans do the same thing. They refer to OSU as OSewe, a clever pun referring to a football player stealing a sheep who happened to be part of a study on animal homosexuality. I don't think I've ever stopped someone wearing green and yellow to yell at them or berate them. Yet this will happen over and over again in a few weeks when the Civil War takes place.
As usual, a few bad apples ruin it for everyone. Unfortunately, this vocal minority always gets the most publicity because of the noise they make. And now I've fallen prey to their trap too. I've spent an hour crafting this blog to respond to their lunacy.
Guess that makes me a lunatic too.
Monday, November 10, 2008
What's my computer trying to tell me?
I was going to write this blog about annoying banner ads. I understand that they make sites like MySpace free, which I am all for. But who comes up with these things?
They used to be the most mind numbing games imaginable. "Drill for Oil faster than Bush to win a cell phone!" "Slap the sumo belly!" and on and on. Apparently those ceased to be effective, so then we had the easiest quiz ever. "Which actress appeared on Friends?" and your choices were Miss Piggy, Kathy Bates and Courtney Cox. But then the ad companies got smart. They started tracking the websites you went to, and based on that information, they were able to post banner ads based on your browsing. Look up sports info? There'd be a banner ad with a chick in a bikini saying "it's ok to look." Look up information on breast feeding and an offer for a subscription to a parenting magazine appears.
So while I'm reading a friend's blog, I notice a flashing banner. It asks "which Jonas Brother would you date?" That's what prompted this blog. I swear I haven't been looking up anything Disney, Hannah Montana, or young teenage boy related. I doubt my wife has either. So I come to write this blog. The banner ad at the top says "Lance Bass shares his extraordinary experiences."
I don't think I can explain this away. Let's just say I disagree with what my computer says about me.
They used to be the most mind numbing games imaginable. "Drill for Oil faster than Bush to win a cell phone!" "Slap the sumo belly!" and on and on. Apparently those ceased to be effective, so then we had the easiest quiz ever. "Which actress appeared on Friends?" and your choices were Miss Piggy, Kathy Bates and Courtney Cox. But then the ad companies got smart. They started tracking the websites you went to, and based on that information, they were able to post banner ads based on your browsing. Look up sports info? There'd be a banner ad with a chick in a bikini saying "it's ok to look." Look up information on breast feeding and an offer for a subscription to a parenting magazine appears.
So while I'm reading a friend's blog, I notice a flashing banner. It asks "which Jonas Brother would you date?" That's what prompted this blog. I swear I haven't been looking up anything Disney, Hannah Montana, or young teenage boy related. I doubt my wife has either. So I come to write this blog. The banner ad at the top says "Lance Bass shares his extraordinary experiences."
I don't think I can explain this away. Let's just say I disagree with what my computer says about me.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
I Voted
Being conservative in Oregon means I don't see things fall my way very often in November. But I'm cool with that. I don't own the state. I don't own the country. If someone gets elected or a measure gets passed that I disagree with, it's because there's more people here that want something else. It's nothing to get mad about.
I voted for John McCain. I voted for him primarily because I agree with him that nuclear energy needs to be a primary source of energy for the country moving forward. All the other stuff was secondary to me. Voting for John McCain in Oregon is sort of like hopping on a train knowing your stop isn't on the line. Obama won, and I'm cool with that. Even John McCain is cool with that. In his concession speech (which was fantastic, and if he'd talked like that throughout the election, he might've had a puncher's chance), he said:
"These are difficult times for our country. And I pledge to him tonight to do all in my power to help him lead us through the many challenges we face.
I urge all Americans ... I urge all Americans who supported me to join me in not just congratulating him, but offering our next president our good will and earnest effort to find ways to come together to find the necessary compromises to bridge our differences and help restore our prosperity, defend our security in a dangerous world, and leave our children and grandchildren a stronger, better country than we inherited."
And I agree with that. I ride with Obama now, just like I rode with Bush before that. He's the president. Don't get me wrong, Bush didn't do a very good job of leading this country, but then again, it's kind of hard to lead when there are people doing everything in their power to undermine your every decision. A lot of people in this country thought that way. Our government was set up so that no one person could have too much power. Unfortunately, that makes it extremely difficult to get things accomplished efficiently.
Another election thing that just boggles my mind is this gay marriage fiasco. This country has voted time and time again to deny its gay citizens the same rights that straight ones enjoy. That's the country we live in right now. It may be another 40 or 50 years, but it will change, much the way this country has changed its attitude towards women and people of color. I think that pro gay marriage people are handling this right though. Sure they're angry and upset, but they continue to try and change the system legally and without undermining the leadership of this country. I wish every group of people with a cause could approach things this way.
I voted for John McCain. I voted for him primarily because I agree with him that nuclear energy needs to be a primary source of energy for the country moving forward. All the other stuff was secondary to me. Voting for John McCain in Oregon is sort of like hopping on a train knowing your stop isn't on the line. Obama won, and I'm cool with that. Even John McCain is cool with that. In his concession speech (which was fantastic, and if he'd talked like that throughout the election, he might've had a puncher's chance), he said:
"These are difficult times for our country. And I pledge to him tonight to do all in my power to help him lead us through the many challenges we face.
I urge all Americans ... I urge all Americans who supported me to join me in not just congratulating him, but offering our next president our good will and earnest effort to find ways to come together to find the necessary compromises to bridge our differences and help restore our prosperity, defend our security in a dangerous world, and leave our children and grandchildren a stronger, better country than we inherited."
And I agree with that. I ride with Obama now, just like I rode with Bush before that. He's the president. Don't get me wrong, Bush didn't do a very good job of leading this country, but then again, it's kind of hard to lead when there are people doing everything in their power to undermine your every decision. A lot of people in this country thought that way. Our government was set up so that no one person could have too much power. Unfortunately, that makes it extremely difficult to get things accomplished efficiently.
Another election thing that just boggles my mind is this gay marriage fiasco. This country has voted time and time again to deny its gay citizens the same rights that straight ones enjoy. That's the country we live in right now. It may be another 40 or 50 years, but it will change, much the way this country has changed its attitude towards women and people of color. I think that pro gay marriage people are handling this right though. Sure they're angry and upset, but they continue to try and change the system legally and without undermining the leadership of this country. I wish every group of people with a cause could approach things this way.
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