gRegorLove.com

Flying Books

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 10:26:35 -0600

Check out this lovely animated short film about the love of books. It's been nominated for the Animated Short Film category of the 84th Annual Academy Awards.

The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore from Moonbot Studios on Vimeo.

Who Wants a Valentine's Day Card?

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 21:54:56 -0600

Last year I embarked on a project to write more letters. I was successful and had great fun with it, though it has now been several months since the last letter. While thinking about this, I was reminded of Valentine's Day coming up. I figured it would be a good opportunity to send out some homemade cards, so that's exactly what I'm going to do. If you would like one, just fill out the form! I am not very good at drawing, but I have been known to make some pretty entertaining homemade cards nonetheless. Even if we do not really know each other, just tell me a bit about yourself and I will gladly make one for you. This is for gals and guys, by the way.

Eleven Things I Did in 2011

Mon, 2 Jan 2012 11:11:21 -0600

I. Went with Erica and Rachel to see Ben Folds play in Milwaukee. BEN FOLDS!

II. Went to Isha and Jeremiah's college graduations, and MST3K'd Jeremiah's since we were in an overflow room they broadcast the ceremony to.

III. After plenty of talk over the years about moving “someday,” I thought about it more seriously and made plans to move to Chicago. June was the deadline I gave myself and I moved May 1st.

IV. Bought a new-to-me car, a Scion xB.

V. GOLD RINGS! Went to IKEA for the first time. I successfully avoided buying ALL THE THINGS.

VI. Got a cat.

VII. Went to Josh and Isha's wedding, just barely making it in time.

VIII. Went to some great concerts: The Naked and Famous, Eisley, Oh Land, Shiny Toy Guns, Mark�ta Irglov�, and Trans-Siberian Orchestra.

IX. Went to Cornerstone Festival for the 15th time.

X. Ate more Giordano's than in any previous year. There's one located two blocks from my apartment.

XI. Hoped.

Idea from Brooke.

A Christmas Whirlwind

Wed, 14 Dec 2011 20:19:12 -0600

Life has been busy and Christmas is approaching more quickly than I had imagined, but that did not keep me from taking some time to decorate my apartment. I am rather proud of the result and it has helped get me in the holiday spirit. Listening to lots of Christmas music has helped, too.

This weekend I am visiting my mom for an early Christmas because next Wednesday I am flying to Florida to spend Christmas with my dad. This will be the first time I have spent Christmas in such a warm climate. That should be interesting. I am looking forward to relaxing and things slowing down for a bit.

I hope you have a good Christmas. Don't forget to slow down and appreciate the things that really matter.

The Finish Line

Wed, 30 Nov 2011 22:52:08 -0600

And National Blog Posting Month (NaBloPoMo) draws to a close. It was more difficult this year, largely because work kept me so busy. It seemed quieter in the comments this year, too. I'm not complaining, because I know my own busyness kept me from keeping up with many other blogs and I was not a frequent commenter myself. I felt rushed and I probably was not writing my best posts, but it was still a good experience to get back into writing regularly and putting something out there, however incomplete. Practice, practice.

Thanks for reading.

Legalese is Not Fun to Read

Tue, 29 Nov 2011 22:44:24 -0600

The National Defense Authorization Act is a federal law that specifies the budget of the United States Department of Defense each year. In the past few days it caught my attention because, allegedly, it would give the president the power to imprison without trial civilians anywhere in the world, including the United States.

The bill is S.1867 and the sections in question are 1031 and 1032 under Subtitle D.

Section 1031 affirms that the president has the authority to detain “covered persons” and defines “covered persons” as anyone involved in the September 11th attacks, part of or supported by al-Qaeda, the Taliban, etc. Then it describes the possible disposition of those detained. These include detention without trial until the end of hostilities, military trial, transfer for trial, and transfer to a foreign country.

Section 1032 says that those who are detained under section 1031 are required to be in military custody until their disposition. Subsection (b) notes: “The requirement to detain a person in military custody under this section does not extend to citizens of the United States.”

Reading these sections carefully, I believe that the concerns are valid. Section 1031 allows the government to imprison anyone, including United States citizens, claiming they are terrorists or associated with terrorists. They may then be held in “Detention under the law of war without trial until the end of the hostilities . . .” They do not need to prove their case, just accuse.

Section 1032 gives the appearance that United States citizens would be exempt, but all it really says is that they're not required to be detained in military custody. In other words, it is discretionary. It is not explicitly prohibited.

I am not surprised by this, sadly. It has already happened without this legislation. See: Jos� Padilla. He was held without charge for three and a half years before being released to civilian courts. He was then convicted of criminal conspiracy charges. He was never charged or convicted for the “dirty bomb” plot he was detained all those years for.

There was an amendment that would have curtailed these sections, but it was shot down today. Rand Paul introduced an amendment to simply strike Section 1031, but it is unlikely that will be met with any more approval in the Senate.

If this concerns you, I would recommend researching it further and contacting your senators (quickly).

See also:

Sometimes You Feel Like a Nut

Mon, 28 Nov 2011 22:19:15 -0600

Art from Malaysia

Sun, 27 Nov 2011 23:45:39 -0600

I recently discovered the artist Tang Yau Hoong on Flickr and I really like his work.

Styles

Charlie on the Road

So Long, Old World

Unusually Elitist, and Timeless

Sat, 26 Nov 2011 18:52:38 -0600

I have returned from a restful holiday. After our Thanksgiving lunch, Mommer and I worked on a puzzle to avoid sleeping the (entire) rest of the day. Thankfully there was no “beeping lamp” episode this time.

In the evening there was this show Punkin Chunkin on Discovery. When it started out, it sounded like it was just about some people who build small catapults that fling pumpkins small distances. I was thinking 100 feet, tops. But it was so much better than that. These people built some serious trebuchets, catapults, and air cannons, launching pumpkins thousands of feet. The record this year was around 4,300 feet�almost a mile. It was quite fun to watch; the participants really get into it and there were thousands of people attending. They donate to good causes, too, like St. Jude's Childrens Hospital. Who wants to enter next year's “Chunk”?

Friday afternoon I spent around Indianapolis seeing some friends. We got dinner at Scotty's Brewhouse, played Apples to Apples (My words were “unusual,” “elitist,” and “timeless.” I put it together as “Unusually elitist, and timeless” and decided that could be the promotion for my brand of cologne.), and watched Elf, signalling that Christmastime is here.

Today we slept in and went to Chick-fil-a for lunch, then lazed around and napped for a bit before I hit the road back to Chicago. Tonight I get to see Marketa Irglova in concert; I'm looking forward to that.

I hope your holiday was relaxing and filled with people you love.

Hurley

Fri, 25 Nov 2011 22:19:42 -0600

The cutest dog: