Renegade Blogger

Graduation Day

renegadeblogger — Tue, 06 Jun 2006 20:09:36 +0000

It’s Monday morning; in just a few hours I’ll be a high school graduate. I tumble downstairs to grab some breakfast and examine what went wrong with the world. I pick up the front page of the Plain Dealer and discover…again just a high-class newspaper it is. Lets examine the front page. The big headline, in bold, with some ugly picture of Ken Blackwell reads “Politics’ new wild card: blogs.” We need some history here. A while ago the PD decided to do away with this section called the Metro section on Mondays. It had more local interest news, not national news, which should be featured on the front page. To the left of that is a teaser for some dude named Carl Pettersson (holding some glass trophy) and below that is this blurb type thing called Metro Monday. It lists news about Casey Coleman learning his cancer has spread, some new myspace knock off and some grave new coming oil wars. To the right of that is a large picture of several Iraqis holding a coffin under a headline that reads, “Iraqis mourn after 21 killed” with three page article that’s later continued on page…A13. Damn, there had better have been a lot of news to bury this on the 13^th page. Anyway, below that is some thing about traditions featuring old ladies in outrageous hats. Oh, I almost forgot, there is some mention of the Canadian terror plot, that’s next to the Iraqi article.

So I open up the paper and…local interest, Canadian terror plot, ads, local news, something about mycrib (huh?), FBI’s newest subject, ads ads, where there’s construction in the greater Cleveland area, ads, something about the Cincinnati Reds nonprofit group, editorials, blog article (continued), ads, a bunch of AP blurbs, some article about falling ants, AND THEN! Finally! The rest of the article about the Iraqis. I’m glad I have a high school diploma so I can read about blogs. I can’t wait to see what I can do with a college one.

Hats off to the Plain Dealer, you really showed us Clevelanders that absolutely no important news happens on Sunday…or ever for that mater.

Songs while typing:
Cheeseballs in Cottontown/Bela Fleck
Swiss Protection/Eddie Izzard
Wide Open Spaces/Dixie Chicks

Cross Posted at Progressive U

Again I borrow!

renegadeblogger — Tue, 06 Jun 2006 00:08:15 +0000

This guy over at Vintage again writes something that I find very profound, and again I offer it to those poor poor soles that wander onto my site

"As a generation, we are socially accepting and internationally minded. We are activists, much unlike our silent parents. The internet links us–to members of our generation both in America and around the world–and there is a sense that we are all in this together. There is a sense that the generations before us have done us wrong–from the policies of George W. Bush to the allowance of the Middle East to spiral so far downwards following the world wars. As a generation, we are optimistic. We await the day when we turn old enough to rank higher, change more, and do better. We await the day when we will right these wrongs and make future generations respect our label–our Millennial label."

~Vintage, Generation Gap, posted May 30th 2006.

Very very well said…

Been awhile

renegadeblogger — Fri, 02 Jun 2006 00:01:12 +0000

It’s been awhile, I must say. Graduation is Monday, various people are throwing parties and prom was this past weekend (I think). I actually had a lot more fun at prom than I thought I would, amazing what a girlfriend who likes to dance can do for ya. I had perhaps the most unusual prom night, consisting of donuts, rockin out in my car and falling asleep on her couch I have to say that, and the events that transpired were awesome.

I think I’ve kinda lost my nitch for posting here; nobody wants to read about the average Joes life. I mean, honestly. I have however been thinking about a slogan that I could put on a vinyl sticker. The world of stickering I think is awesome. A less…illegal? Activity, but none the less one that involves personal expression and a display of art, if one wishes to consider it. I’ve thrown up a few Smiling Disease stickers around the city, but those didn’t last to long and like most other things I get into it kinda dwindled, but now that I have a job and a whole summer to enjoy perhaps I’ll get into it a little bit more…

Thoughts?

Songs heard while writing:
Rise/Craig Armstrong
Helena/Nickel Creek
Anda Y Ve/Akwid

If only

renegadeblogger — Sun, 07 May 2006 22:39:50 +0000

Anyone hear about what’s goin on in Congress recently? No? Me either. It’s kinda like “who gives a rats ass.” More politics, that’s all you really need to know. Congress and the UN are finally starting to move on Darfur. Bout time if you ask me, I had information ready for PAC near the halfway point last year that listed many of the atrocities that have taken place in Sudan, never did get around to showing it. I also find it sad that America needs celebrities to get acting on something. Live 8, poverty, AIDS, and now this; we need some famous movie star to say take us by the coats and give us a firm scolding. What we need is a firm slap in the face and a bullhorn in our ear telling us to wake up a look around at what’s going on in the world. Maybe then we can start to advance our foreign policy. “Ignorance and arrogance is bad foreign policy” <— A good bumper sticker right there.

When will we, as an American public finally realize that there is a world happening, and that at times (Global Warming, wars, terrorism, poverty, disease, trade etc) there is a global market and other people in the world that we need to care about them as well. If only

if only if only
the wood pecker sighs
the bark on the trees was as soft as
the sky
as the wolf waits below
hungry and lonely
he cries to the moon
if only if only

Tipping

renegadeblogger — Wed, 03 May 2006 22:39:46 +0000

We seem to be living in an age of tips. The new suggested tip for a waiter is twenty percent, your paper deliverer asks for a tip around the holidays, the concession stands at sporting events have a cup set out and other restaurants have tip jars placed prominently by the register. I wont knock these tip jars; I myself have walked home some nights with 15 plus dollars in cash just from my tip jar. However for myself and many of the other recipients of these tips its different than the traditional waiter tips. Waiters aren’t paid minimum wage. They rely on the tips to make up the difference (kinda shitty if you ask me); with wait staff I have no problem with tipping 20+ but for me, the guys behind the counter at Caribou and at Brugers Bagels, its different. Traditionally we get paid at least minimum wage, if not more and, well, yeah, those extra few bucks do make a big difference when the checks are distributed. Seeing a check for the hundreds as opposed to the tens would.

In my opinion two types of people have brought about this age of tips. Those that are greedy and want you, the customer to think that they aren’t paid minimum wage and just want your money. Then there are those that simply are looking for a little thanks and a little extra to take home at the end of the night. Like me, there have been times that I expect to hear the clink of money in the jar, and when I do I know its time to take a step back and say “hey, your getting paid a nice chunk of change, tips should be like the icing on those cupcakes over there, more than enough.” Like we were taught, you must not expect or want something and then it will come your way. Taoist? It’s when I find myself forgetting about that jar and just helping the customer that I end up hearing the clink of change in the glass jar. So if you ever do stop by a service place and see a tip jar and cant decide. Just take a step back and think: they help you out?