Diary of Drewcifer

Norton Annoyance

2009-11-10T18:24:00.000-08:00

From a comment I left on the Norton website after discovering that none of their Norton software works today:

My subscription expired. I'm disappointed that your software was apparently a lease agreement, as it no longer works. I assumed my subscription was for updates and updates to definitions. Given the issues I've had with the software not installing correctly when upgrading from earlier versions of your software and the software slowing overall system performance and now you completely disabling me internet security, there's very little chance that I'll ever do business with you again.

Merry KKKristmas!

2009-10-25T10:03:00.001-07:00

Why bother with the traditional lighting of the cross on your gay neighbor's front yard when you can get this from the Amerikkkan Family Association! (Also, good for use against jews and other mud people.)

In Case You're Feeling Good About Your "Cage Free" Eggs

2009-10-22T07:30:00.002-07:00

The Problem with Eggs

2009-10-22T07:10:00.000-07:00

Nine Days

2009-10-19T12:07:00.000-07:00

I've got nine days off from work. I exhausted much of my energy during the first two days detoxing and weaning myself from coffee. Today is much better. I seem to be a little less nice without caffeine, but I'm hoping this is a temporary condition.

Getting in the Christmas Spirit

2009-10-12T17:34:00.001-07:00

Thanks to Shelby Lynne, I'm getting and early, Southern, white trash start on Christmas.

When I Worked at BOSS

2009-10-12T13:59:00.000-07:00

At the Castillo de San Marcos

2009-10-12T13:52:00.000-07:00

Mortal Thoughts

2009-10-03T21:39:00.003-07:00

I'm not sure if it's because a friend's sister is likely dying this weekend (perhaps already dead) or just my own doings, but my not busy moments have been filled with thoughts of how someday I'll be dead. Actually, my thoughts have been more general than that. It's probably more accurate to say that I've been thinking of how we will all be dead. And I've been wondering what's the purpose of our living or ever having lived. The more Darwinian side of me quickly answers that our sole purpose is to reproduce and anything else, like poisoning the environment or killing thousands of people in Iraq or anywhere else, doesn't really matter. But I suppose that reproducing does not really matter either. Each of us will be dead and ultimately so will our planet and everything else that we know or think we know or will ever know or ever think we know.

In my better moments I jump away from these stomach sickening feelings to, at least internally, articulated resolve to live in a manner that embraces the moment that we are each given. Despite my best buddhisty aspirations and respirations, my better moments are somewhat short lived lately.

You know the best part of it is that it doesn't really matter, at least not tonight.

VTO Day

2009-09-25T07:46:00.002-07:00

Today is a Voluntary Time Off Day at the City of Berkeley. I'm kind of taking it off. I'm heading out to a meeting in San Leandro this morning to work on a project funded by the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (HERA).

achieved Cambodians

2009-09-25T07:42:00.002-07:00

I recently entered the world of Facebook. I've not spent much time figuring things out, but I'm very amused by having to type random words to affirm my humanity. At least for now, I'm enjoying speculating what it might mean to me to have "achieved "Cambodians."

Quote of the Moment

2009-09-23T19:58:00.002-07:00

"...it also made me think about how we can face the horror of our world and still allow for joy. I tend to get into this place where I don't allow myself to enjoy life because there's so much bad stuff happening. Now I'm coming to a place where I can feel joy. We can allow ourselves to enjoy life and appreciate the miracle we've all been given and to appreciate humor and beauty....I find personally the more I can open myself up to the horror and really allow myself to feel the full range of feelings about what's happening, then my ability to feel the good aspects opens up in the other direction. If we live in denial, if we try to avoid knowing about it and our role in the horror, then there's falseness to the joy." --- Chris Jordan

Ordinated

2009-09-13T17:48:00.002-07:00

I had the honor of attending a friend's lay initiation at the San Francisco Zen Center yesterday. I was pleased and humbled... and ever so slightly amused once or twice.

Reverend Drew

2009-08-29T13:47:00.001-07:00

I was at lunch with some of my co-workers this week when one of them asked me if I'd ever thought about being a minister. It seemed genuinely asked in a way that didn't seem judgment laden. I took it as a compliment, but was slightly startled by it, nonetheless. The answer is; "Yes, but...." As I stumbled with how to move forward with my answer, one of my colleagues suggested; "Had a little trouble with the whole belief in God thing?" I gratefully grabbed on to a self-declaration of agnosticism and headed for a verbal exit. I think I was bit nervous about two of our new staff sitting nearby, one of whom's partner is attending GTU to become a minister.

Quote of the Moment

2009-08-22T07:02:00.001-07:00

"... there's a fine line between looking like you're totally rocking out and looking like you're crapping in the woods." --- Erik Price

Funk

2009-08-19T22:38:00.002-07:00

I'm looking forward to a four day weekend this weekend. I feel like I've got no real energy left. Each morning I wake up, somewhere between 2 and 5. I drink some liquid energy and trudge off to work, usually arriving somewhere between 6:30 and 7:30. I do whatever it is I do there until somewhere between 4:30 and 6:30. I BART back to the nearest station and either drive, get picked up or walk the two miles up hill home.

Quote of the Moment

2009-08-19T22:26:00.002-07:00

Whether you suffer or not depends on many circumstances. The cold air can be painful if you are not wearing enough clothes, but with proper clothing, cold air can be a source of joy. Suffering is not objective. It depends largely on the way you perceive. There are things that cause you to suffer but do not cause others to suffer. There are things that bring you joy but do not bring others joy.

Quote of the Moment

2009-08-08T11:25:00.000-07:00

What is God so afraid of, that he must through his servants destroy all life on earth? - Derrick Jensen

Old Dawg

2009-07-26T10:51:00.002-07:00

In the last couple of days, I've been thinking about the last 30 years. My 30th high school reunion was this weekend. I chose not to make a cross country trek for it. I went 5 years ago, for the 25th, and really appreciated it....

Friday evening I gave the cat an appetite stimulant. It was a big capsule that I had to try twice to manage to get her to choke it down. Anyway, not long afterwards she was trying to jump on the futon in the spare bedroom. I was just about to bend over and pick her up 'cause she's been really sick and not eating much for days. But before I could get over to her, she jumped for the futon. The futon is maybe two feet off the ground. She didn't come close to making it. She couldn't even get a grip to hang on with her one from leg/paw. She looked at me as she banged into the side of the cushion and fell to the hardwood floor. I scooped her up. She was mad. She did not want comfort. I put her on the futon, where she sat swishing her tail for a few minutes. When I returned a few minutes later, she allowed me to pet her. She purred....

This morning r and I drove to Tiburon with the dog, Raven. We walked around the beautiful location where r works. She and Raven headed down across some rocks, so that Raven could wade/swim in the water a little. (By the way, Tiburon is Spanish for shark.) Raven and r finished with their little water excursion after Raven swam out three or so times to retrieve a stick. Coming back up from the water I watched as Raven attempted to leap from one rock to another. I cringed as she came up short. Her chest slammed into the edge of the rock. She looked at me as slid out of view between two rocks. I yelled at r, who was teetering precariously between multiple, slippery rocks. Raven reappeared - a little more slowly than I'd hoped and looking a little shaken.

Song of the Moment

2009-07-25T09:12:00.001-07:00

Toes

Sundaaaaaay

2009-07-12T11:42:00.002-07:00

After a very lazy Saturday, I'm hoping for an almost equally lazy Sunday. As I was reading the NY Times this morning, it dawned on me that I may be missing festivals that I enjoy in SF and the East & North Bay. I remember that Fillmore happened while I was in Detroit.

Tell Me It Isn't So

2009-07-11T18:07:00.002-07:00

Walkin' The Dog

2009-07-11T17:21:00.003-07:00

I've been reading books by Walter Mosley lately. I just finished reading Walkin' The Dog. A couple of weeks ago, I read The Right Mistake. I'm trying to get my hands on Always Outnumbered, Always Outgunned. One afternoon a month or so ago, I was coming out of the El Cerrito del Norte BART station and ran into a woman sitting outside what looked like an over sized vending machine. I noticed the machine before and was little intrigued by the Contra Costa County Library putting a vending machine at the BART station. I took advantage of the promotion to get a library card for Contra Costa County, where I currently live. I've not been checking out the Mosley books from the "Library-A-Go-Go" machine.

Harm Reduction

2009-07-08T06:07:00.002-07:00

Derrick Jensen has signed on as a regular contributor to Orion Magazine. Here's his latest contribution.

Detroit, Hawaii, Chicago, San Antonio, Wichita, Memphis, Antananarivo...

2009-07-06T15:32:00.008-07:00

These were a few of the places that sent forth members of r's family to get together in the Detroit area over the 4th of July weekend. I flew out last Wednesday to meet r, who flew out almost a week before. I took a red-eye and got there before noon on Thursday. r and her father picked me up at DTW and took me to eat lunch at a place in Royal Oak. I ate a "paneer burger" that was on their special menu. It was outstanding!

It was my first time getting to meet the Hawaii-living members of the family. It was great!

It's funny, the more I learn about r through opportunities like this trip, the closer I feel to her.

We left the critters at home with a pet sitter that we hadn't used before. He seems to have done a good job, but it really is hard to tell. Maybe next time we'll set up a nanny cam or something.

Z-R has been sick. She was ill enough that I almost cancelled my plans to join folks in Michigan. Fortunately, right be before I left she quit barfing and we spent another $140 for some follow-up tests at the vet that seemed to indicate that her Chronic Renal Failure (CRF) was not in any kind of precipitous decline. We paid about $300 for pet sitting from Wednesday evening through Sunday evening. I stopped off today and paid the sitter.

I also wandered about today and did some grocery shopping. Z-R barfed again today. She only barfed once while we were gone. I'm doing cat laundry now.

I'm very glad to be home. It's a gorgeous day here!