"I love all my dogs. I love every dog I ever had. I remember 'em all and I love every one of 'em. In my lifetime I have had me a bunch of different dogs. Because you do keep getting a new dog, don't ya? You just keep getting one dog right after another. That's the whole secret of life...Life, is a series of dogs..."
- George Carlin
I haven't posting here recently because I've been busy with work and all my free time is taken up by my writing my novel. It's slow going though and a lot of days I end up just sitting there agonizing over how to approach a certain paragraph. My first major decision was whether to write the story in the first or third person. I ultimately chose a first person perspective. The other thing I've learned is how little I actually know about how to use proper punctuation and grammar. I learn something new everyday by consulting my grammar books. I'm still working on the first few pages, so this is going to be a marathon.
Today I started writing my novel. How far did I get, you ask? After several hours, I wrote.....one word. At this rate I should be done with the first chapter in about seven years or so. Nonetheless, it was a good word, I think. I'm going to look at my manuscript with fresh eyes tomorrow and edit my word, if necessary. My goal is to have at least one sentence by the end of the week. Wish me luck.
As I walked up to the theater entrance, ticket in hand, who did I see standing there but Indiana Jones himself...well, actually it was the theater manager wearing an Indiana Jones hat. But even that small gesture got my heart pumping in anticipation. I would rank the Indiana Jones movies as follows:
Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was over-the-top, non-stop action with scenes that made you laugh out loud and made you remember how thrilling it was to first hear the now-familiar theme song. I plan on seeing this again in the theater and my final judgment is that this is a fine addition to the Indiana Jones series.
Only ten more days until we get to see Indiana Jones IV. The Raiders of the Lost Ark is my favorite out of the trilogy so far. I think the first film of any trilogy or series is hard to beat, simply because it's fresh and new. In my opinion, the first movies of the Back to the Future, Karate Kid, Harry Potter, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Spider-Man were all the best ones. There are some exceptions, like Superman II and Terminator II, which I liked better than the first in the series. The Lord of the Rings is unique in that all three movies are equally awesome.
I can't believe that Harrison Ford did some of his own stunts again for the latest movie. Isn't he like 65 years old? Remember in Raiders of the Lost Ark, when he gets thrown out of the front of the truck, crawls underneath the truck, and gets dragged by his whip behind the truck? Well, that was really Harrison Ford being dragged down the road!
I'll never forget the first time I saw Raiders of the Lost Ark. I must have been in 5th or 6th grade when it came out. My friends and I used to play with the automatic garage door opener and pretended it was the rock wall that Indy has to crawl through in the beginning. We used to jump over imaginary pits and run away from imaginary round boulders. We tried to buy a whip but our parents' didn't let us...in hindsight I think it might have been for the best, hahaha.
"The Vog" is not the sequel to the horror movies "The Mist," or "The Fog," but it's a real-life phenomenon that's occuring here in Hawaii. Here's an explanation from Yahoo News:
"...in March, Kilauea volcano opened a new vent and began spewing double the usual amount of toxic gas...crops are shriveling as sulfur dioxide from Kilauea wafts over them and envelops them in "vog," or volcanic smog. People are wheezing, and schoolchildren are being kept indoors during recess...Sulfur dioxide, a pollutant that is also generated by burning coal and oil, can lead to asthma and other respiratory illnesses and aggravate lung and heart disease. When combined with dust and sunlight, it makes vog. Mixed with atmospheric moisture, it produces acid rain...The wind has blown vog to Oahu, some 200 miles to the north, bathing Honolulu in a light haze. (The vog is no threat to the U.S. mainland, some 2,500 miles away.)"
I've been slightly affected too because my eyes are itchy and my nose runs. Folks on the mainland will probably never experience this, but maybe you better shut your windows tonight, just in case, because you never know when the monsters will come creeping up to your room in........THE VOG.....muhahahahaha.
A Proclamation by the President of the United States of America
Americans who trace their ancestry to Asia and the Pacific Islands have contributed much to our Nation. During Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month, we highlight their importance to our great Nation.
Asian/Pacific Americans have made our country better with their talents and hard work. Their values and commitment to family and community have helped shape and strengthen America. These citizens speak many languages, honor countless traditions, and practice different faiths, but they are bound by a shared commitment to freedom and liberty. The diversity among Asian/Pacific Americans adds to the cultural fabric of our society.
Asian/Pacific Americans have enriched our culture, excelling in many fields, including education, business, science, technology, government, sports, and the arts. We especially honor those Asian/Pacific Americans who have answered the call to protect the cause of freedom by serving in our Armed Forces. These brave men and women set a powerful example for all Americans.
As we celebrate Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month, we are reminded of the richness of the Asian and Pacific cultures. Asian/Pacific Americans enhance the American experience and contribute to our country's legacy of diversity.
To honor the achievements and contributions of Asian/Pacific Americans, the Congress, by Public Law 102-450, as amended, has designated the month of May each year as "Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month."
NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim May 2008 as Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month. I call upon the people of the United States to learn more about the history of Asian/Pacific Americans and their many contributions to our Nation and to observe this month with appropriate programs and activities.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-ninth day of April, in the year of our Lord two thousand eight, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-second.
GEORGE W. BUSH
The first thing I did this morning, even before I opened my eyes, was to reach out with my left arm to see if my dog was still sleeping on his doggy bed, or if he had shuffled over to my wife's side as he likes to do sometimes. On this morning, my hand felt a warm, fuzzy, breathing little ball of fur. As I touched him, my dog let out a big sigh. My day had begun.
From Salon.com:
"The Bum Bot, which is powered by four car batteries and trucks about on a three-wheel scooter, is outfitted with a spotlight to frighten people away, an infrared camera that beams back live video images, a loudspeaker through which Terrill can address alleged ne'er-do-wells, and a turret-mounted water cannon that can attack at a moment's notice.
Using a remote control, Terrill commands the bot to roam nearby streets -- when he sees people he thinks ain't welcome 'round these parts, he warns them away with the loudspeaker, and if they're obstinate, he may unleash other weapons in the bot's arsenal.
Homeless advocates are up in arms, justifiably; neither Terrill nor his vigilante bot have any legal jurisdiction over his streets, and surely we don't want to live in a world in which engineers are free to build their own bot-weapons to unleash upon the citizenry."
Personally, I think this is pretty cool. Then again, I think that anything that has to do with robots is cool. I'm such a kid.
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