One More Day

One more day of working on this thesis. That's good because I think I have about only one more day in me. On Monday I just have to make the appropriate number of copies, on the appropriate bond and plain paper, turn it in for binding, and that's it! Can you believe that I'm required to turn three copies in to the school (2 which are in bond paper, which was $25 for 500 sheets), and then pay to the school a binding fee of $15 per copy, or $45 total! And that's just for the school; if I want one or more bound copies for myself, it'll cost me an extra $15 per copy over and above what I must already provide to the school for posterity. This kind of reminds me of how executions work in China; if you are to be executed, you family must first purchase the bullets that are to do the job. It's probably too late to arrange a Chinese execution for myself now, so I'll most likely just have to pay the fees, and graduate.

I'm really looking forward to just having a job right now, and then not necessarily having to do anything after work, or on the weekends. I've really been neglecting my pursuit of Bigfoot, UFO Studies, Conspiracy Theories, and so on, and hope to catch up on some of these inane, nonsensical things, instead of having to be so serious all the time. Maybe just for a little while, at least.

Jesus Christ

This is a song by the itinerant hobo singer of the 1930's Great Depression era, Woody Guthrie. It was played as the last song and the last act, of Michael Moore's new film, Capitalism: A Love Story (a must see!). I think Jesus Christ may have been a Socialist (!), as the film implies, with all that sharing and caring for the poor!

Jesus Christ
Woody Guthrie

Jesus Christ was a man, who traveled through the land,
A hard-working man and brave
He said to the rich, "Give your money to the poor,"
But they laid Jesus Christ in His grave

Jesus was a man, a carpenter by hand,
His followers true and brave
One dirty little coward called Judas Iscariot
Had laid Jesus Christ in His Grave

He went to the preacher, He went to the sheriff,
He told them all the same
"Sell all of your jewelry and give it to the poor,"
And they laid Jesus Christ in His grave

When Jesus come to town, all the working folks around,
Believed what he did say
But the bankers and the preachers, they nailed Him on the cross,
And they laid Jesus Christ in his grave

And the people held their breath when they heard about his death,
Everybody wondered why
It was the big landlord and the soldiers that they hired,
To nail Jesus Christ in the sky

This song was written in New York City,
Of rich man, preacher, and slave
If Jesus was to preach what He preached in Galilee,
They would lay poor Jesus in His grave

Home

This song reminds me of when I was in college, and on a trip for several weeks to the Yucatan in Mexico. A stranger amongst different people, a different language, a different culture, I remember walking by myself up to an abandoned, vine covered, fenced-off building in Merida, Mexico, which turned out to be an old abandoned U.S. Consulate office, and gripping the fence, staring at the building and its signs, and just thinking about home....


Home
Michael Buble

Another summer day
has come and gone away
in Paris or Rome...
but I wanna go home
mmmm...home

I may be surrounded by
a million people I
still feel all alone
just wanna go home
I miss you, you know

And I've been keeping all the letters
that I wrote to you,
each one a line or two
I'm fine baby, how are you?
I would send them, but I know that it's just not enough
my words were cold and flat
And you deserve more than that

Another aeroplane, another sunny place,
I'm lucky I know
but I wanna go home
I got to go home

Let me go home

I'm just too far, from where you are
I wanna come home


And I feel just like I'm living
someone else's life
It's like I just stepped outside
when everything was going right,
And I know just why you could not come along with me,
this was not your dream
but you always believed in me...

Another winter day
has come and gone away
in either Paris or Rome
and I wanna go home
Let me go home

And I'm surrounded by
a million people I
still feel alone
Let me go home
I miss you, you know

Let me go home
I've had my run,
baby I'm done
I gotta go home

Let me go home
it'll all be alright,
I'll be home tonight
I'm coming back home

Love The Girl Who Holds The World In A Paper Cup

Danny's Song
Loggins & Messina


People smile and tell me I'm the lucky one,
And we've just begun
Think I'm gonna have a son
He will be like she and me,
As free as a dove
Conceived in love,
Sun is gonna shine above

And even though we ain't got money,
I'm so in love with you honey
And everything will bring a chain of love
And in the morning when I rise
You bring a tear of joy to my eyes,
And tell me everything is gonna be alright

Seems as though a month ago I was Beta Chi,
Never got high,
Oh, I was a sorry guy
And now a smile, a face,
A girl that shares my name,
Now, I'm through with the game,
This boy will never be the same

And even though we ain't got money,
I'm so in love with you honey
And everything will bring a chain of love
And in the morning when I rise
You bring a tear of joy to my eyes,
And tell me everything is gonna be alright

Pisces, Virgo rising is a very good sign,
Strong and kind,
And the little boy is mine
And now I see a family where there once was none,
Now we've just begun,
Yeah, we're gonna fly to the sun

And even though we ain't got money,
I'm so in love with you honey
And everything will bring a chain of love
And in the morning when I rise
You bring a tear of joy to my eyes,
And tell me everything is gonna be alright

Love the girl who holds the world in a paper cup,
Drink it up,
Love her and she'll bring you luck
And if you find she helps your mind,
Better take her home,
Don't you live alone,
Try to earn what lover's own

And even though we ain't got money,
I'm so in love with you honey
And everything will bring a chain of love
And in the morning when I rise
You bring a tear of joy to my eyes
And tell me everything is gonna be alright

Quit, or Evicted ???

While watching Big Brother this Sunday, (I semi-follow the show, and usually only pay half-attention when its on, as it's semi-interesting, yet usually not interesting enough to garner my complete attention), I learned that the moron bodybuilder Jesse was kicked off last week's show, which was kind of a surprise because it seemed like he was running things for awhile in earlier episodes. Well, on this Sunday's show, Chima and Natalie were nominated for eviction. Chima had been trying to get rid of MMA karate guy Russell for a few shows now, but some shifting alliances put her up on the block and kept Russell safe. Later Sunday evening, the Web news was saying that Chima had been "expelled" from the show. You could tell that she had become increasingly frustrated with several roommates, and then with being nominated for eviction, well, she was about to blow. Apparently, if I'm understanding this right, after the live show completed this Sunday, she did! It's uncertain at this point what actually happened, but some sources (Wikipedia) are indicating that she threw a microphone into a jacuzzi, and then refused to pay for it, after an outburst of some sort. Also, she was apparently upset because her recent win as Head of Household was rendered useless by some new device that producers threw into the game, making her apparently succeptible to being put on the nomination block when normally she wouldn't have been. If that's the case, I'd be pissed too! I'm also wondering if some comments she made about Russell (who is Lebanese) as being a "terrorist" a few shows ago (and he was 'terrorizing' several cast members, as she had said, although calling him a "terrorist"-she could perhaps have chosen another word -) had something to do with her eviction/decision to leave the show. Here's a supposed email from Chima, explaining things in her view, from the following site, posted Sunday, August 16:

www.realitytea.com/2009/08/16/chima-simone-speaks-out-i-quit-big-brother/

“Yes, I did in fact quit the show, although there are reports on EW from CBS to the contrary. Big Brother would like everyone to believe I was kicked off for not following the rules, but I went to the producers repeatedly over the past couple of days wanting to leave….wanting out of that house!

As crazy as that house is, the producers NEVER want the world to think or know that we houseguests DO LEAVE when it becomes futile to stay. I lost faith in the show & my ability to remain committed to this game. All of the remaining housemates know I wanted to leave and that is why any conversation concerning me is cut in the live feed because they don’t want America to hear the truth about my voluntary departure.

Do you really believe that I would be expelled for tossing my microphone when past houseguests have only been kicked off for violence & threats of violence? You know better, as do I.

It’s better that I left. I did what was best for me in this game and that was to leave. When I chose to play & play hard the power I did earn was completely usurped by a game piece never used before in this game and my HOH reign was rendered useless. I have no regrets. As cliche’ as it sounds, until the public is a part of a human pressure cooker, then the judgements should cease.

I find it interesting that my personal attacks on Russell have been highlighted, but his attacks on me pushed under a rug. Selective portrayals? I think so. Russell did terrorize the house, especially the women in the house. Why America constantly finds men attacking women okay, yet vilifies the woman defending herself, will always confound me. But what’s done is done, now BB fans can find a new woman to hate. I didn’t sign up for what I was exposed to & I left gladly. It was the principle of the matter, the $500,000 prize be damned. That’s all for now! Take Care…’


Well what do you think, and more importantly, do you care?
(It's interesting, but I don't really care that much. I really did want to see Russell out of there, though.)

Soon and Very Soon

Of all the music performed at the memorial/tribute to Michael Jackson, on this day at least, this was my favorite one



Song and words by
Andrae Crouch

Soon and very soon
We are going to see the King
Soon and very soon
We are going to see the King
Soon and very soon
We are going to see the King
Allelujah!
Allelujah!
We are going to see the King

No more crying there
We are going to see the King
No more crying there
We are going to see the King
No more crying there
We are going to see the King
Allelujah!
Allelujah!
We're going to see the King

No more dying there
We are going to see the King
No more dying there
We are going to see the King
No more dying there
We are going to see the King
Allelujah!
Allelujah!
We're going to see the King

Soon and very soon
We are going to see the King
Soon and very soon
We are going to see the King
Soon and very soon
We are going to see the King
Allelujah!
Allelujah!
We are going to see the King

Three Cups of Tea

I like to think of these three little girls on the cover as

the "three cups of tea"



"If you want to thrive in Baltistan, you must respect our ways," Haji Ali said, blowing on his bowl. "The first time you share tea with a Balti, you are a stranger. The second time you take tea, you are an honored guest. The third time you share a cup of tea, you become family, and for our family, we are prepared to do anything, even die."

That quote from village headman Haji Ali to climber-turned-schoolbuilder Greg Mortenson, still gets to me, each time I read it. Mortenson was receiving a lesson in slowing down, in learning that the Balti people had lived in the mountains of the high Karakorams of Pakistan for thousands of years, that they would be there for thousands more, and that they had the patience of the mountains in waiting for their school to be built. Mortenson learned that "American time" and the rush to build and complete projects, would not work in this ancient land, and therefore learned to accomodate Balti ways. What one really learns though, in this amazing book, is that the "primitive" peoples of Central Asia, famed for their hospitality, are absolutely true to their word when they say such things; it is ingrained within them. When Mortenson first encountered the Balti by accident, wandering almost dead into a Balti village from a failed climbing expedition in the Karakorams, he was stunned and moved beyond words, by how these tremendously poor people had received him. He noted that on his first night in the village, in the home of headman Haji Ali, when all were asleep, he had been covered in a blanket covered by sewn-on small mirrors, obviously the most prized possession of these villagers, while they had covered themselves in thin, worn hides and cloths. They soon slaughtered an ibex (a type of mountain goat) for him, something that was of a great material value to a community which very rarely could afford to eat meat, in celebration of an honored guest to the village. Mortenson was so taken by these people, that he vowed to return one day and build a school for its children, who had been studying outside in the elements, many times by just writing figures in the dirt, and usually without a teacher for guidance. Thus were the beginnings of the CAI, the Central Asian Institute, or one man's initial efforts in what became a program of building schools throughout the Karakoram-Himalayan highlands, as well as ultimately into Afghanistan. The beloved Dr. Greg, or Dr. Gri-ek, (who is actually a nurse by training, known forever forward as The Doctor as soon as he treated his first Balti patient) decided that instead of climbing mountains as a goal, building schools in this region, with a particular emphasis on the education of girls, was not only a worthwhile ambition, but could actually work to stem the rising tide of terrorism in the region by giving girls equal worth and opportunity with which to later shape their communities, while allowing for boys other options than the Saudi-funded madrassas which all-too-often preach a distorted Islam and a hatred of the West. I think that "Dr. Greg", stumbling into that Balti village sometime in the early 1990's, has found the key to the fight against terrorism and ignorance through the work that he has decided to undertake as his life's ambition. It's funny sometimes how the answers to such complex issues can be so simple. As simple as a Balti headman and his village community who can remind us what the word "civilization" in fact really means.