Rumblings from the keyboard of Andrew.

September 16, 2003

A friend of mine told me the other day that I “missed a GREAT Folk and Blues!” Bah, like I had a choice! She made it sound like I was sulking or hadn’t wanted to go because I had better things to do. Well, I certainly didn’t have better things to do, but spending several hundred dollars for a four hour plane ride and two nights of music wasn’t high on my list of things that I’m able to do right now. Blah. My finances are dwindling, but heck, I’m making the most of it.

Speaking of making the most about it, I’m going to head down to the Bridgeport Brewery tomorrow afternoon with my Dad again. Gotta check on the application, you know. I’m not certain where I’m going to turn if that doesn’t pan out for me, but I’ll think of something. There are plenty of places that I wouldn’t mind working, but I just have to think of what they are. Naturally, I have not yet heard from the folks in Salem, so I’m calling it a total write-off by now. I wouldn’t call it a waste of time, but I’m a little put off by the unprofessionalism. I can understand not calling the applicants to tell them that they didn’t make the cut if there are 500 people in the running for a job, but when there are only 26 people applying and they’re cutting 15 or so people after the first round, that’s really not that many people to call up. Lazy government bums!

I read an interesting story today (on Fark.com, frequently called the “best website on the Internet” or something of the like, and certainly one of my favorite sites) about a restaurant in Seattle that’s making people sign a waiver to eat a dessert they call “The Bulge.” The waiver is actually a joke on the part of the owner, making fun of lawsuits against restaurants for making them fat (like there’s anyone out there who DOESN’T know that McDonald’s is bad for you!), but the dessert itself does sound pretty hefty. A banana is battered, rolled in sugar, deep fried, and served with ice cream, whipped cream, and macadamia nuts. Sounds like a banana split from hell, if you ask me. You know that Elvis used to eat deep fried pickles all them time? And last year, deep fried Twinkies were all the rage at state and county fairs. This year it was deep fried Oreos. Is there anything that CAN’T be deep fried?

Going back to my aside, though, Fark.com is the best site on the Internet for offbeat and interesting news. If you find yourself browsing Yahoo’s News From the Weird, chances are, it was posted on Fark hours before. I usually find myself going there about twenty times a day because it’s constantly updated. It’s usually one of the first places I go in the morning, and one of the last I hit before I go to bed. Yes, yes, I already know I’m an addict. But not many times go by that I don’t find myself chuckling, even outright laughing at either the stories they link to or the comments that people leave about them.

I saw that Hurricane Isabel, while downgraded from a category five to a category three, is still headed straight for the southeast of the United States. I hate to admit it, and I know it sounds very macabre, but that it was downgraded from a 5 to a 3 is a little disappointing. I mean, don’t get me wrong, the massive property damage and potential deaths that will result from the hurricane hitting the Carolinas is horrible, but when people were talking about one of the most powerful storms ever recorded headed straight for the US, you can’t help being a little curious to see what it can do. I think it’s the same instinct that makes people turn their head to look at car accidents, no? The movie “Twister” talked about F5 tornados being the “wrath of God”–I wonder how much more powerful a category 5 hurricane would be? And one a side note, when people talk about how destructive and chaotic Hurricane Andrew was, I still feel a swell of pride. Solidarity, brother Andrew. I remember watching TV when it was still Tropical Storm Andrew and thinking “Cooooooool. I’m a tropical storm!” Then just look what I turned into!

And lastly, I saw that General Clark is set to announce his candidacy for the office of the President of the United States. Now I know the name, but honestly, I don’t really know much about the man. What’s so interesting, though, is that the buzz about him (at least in the circles that I frequent online) says that a real Democrat is finally entering the race. Entering the race? Geez, it’s still a year before the actual election and it’s already being called a race. The editorial comics I’ve seen so far hint at the same thing, that finally there’s someone Democrats can rally behind. Now, since I’m a registered independent that means I’m not locked into a party and I like shopping in both camps, but that so many people have suddenly gotten excited about Clark being a candidate has sparked my curiosity, that’s for certain. We sure could use someone with the foreign policy experience, that’s for sure, and the positions he took on several key issues were right down my alley. I’ll have to keep my eye on him. I sure wasn’t excited about any of the other Democratic candidates so far, and I know I won’t be voting for the Republican candidate. One problem I have though: President Clark. President Clark. Brings an ominous feeling into my heart. Know what I mean, Michiko, Heather, Heather, Julie, and Dan? Sorry to the rest of you, just an obscure “Babylon 5″ reference.

That’s all I can think of for now. My stream of conciousness only goes so far with the television on in the background. It’s hard jumping from my writing to “Law & Order” and back again.

Posted in Beer, Geekery, General