Back in my day

The longest day of my life is when I was like 18 or so. It was the day I had my wisdom teeth removed. It did all of them at once. This is the one day of my life I was forced to do nothing but lay back and watch TV in dull by powerful pain. This was still in the early days of the Information Age, before serious portable games, smartphones and the Internet. I've had no days longer since that day. I've had many days that have left me wondering where the day has gone.

It's weird now to discuss a time before the Internet. Sure, it kinda existed before 1994, but not in any way that is meaningful to us today. What makes this kinda ironic is that my generation is one of those generations that is going to be able to talk about how things used to be. Not in some silly way like "candy used to cost 5 cents", but in a real paradigm shift sort, like those old-timers that used to talk about the horse and buggy in times before cars. From those old-timers we get the stereotypical story of having to "walk 10 miles in the snow to school up hill both ways." What will my tale be for my grandkids? I imagine it would be something like like "Back in my day, we didn't have the Internet. I used to have to drive in a car in bumper to bumper traffic to get to a building called a library in order to use my library card just read a book." I'm sure the question from my posterity will be, "What's a car, grampa?"

What car did I end up getting?

I was at a Buick dealership on fine, early summer day checking out what Buick had to offer. My opinion is that this is a brand whose audience is quickly disappearing. I tried both major 2008/2009 offerings. I cannot image anyone under the age of 70 (currently) buying one of these cars. There is no attempt to even pretend to be modern. I cannot imagine myself being interested in these cars even when I reach 70. I imagine this brand will either need to be reinvented or will go the way of Plymouth.

Anyway, while I was at that dealership, I noticed this new car in the show room. I didn't even know what it was or what brand. It turned out to be the Pontiac G8 GT. I liked the car a lot. It had a lot of amenities while sporting one of the biggest engines on the road. Quick, tons of power, and very maneuverable. All that for a price tag in the high 20's to low 30's. By far, this car is the most bang for your buck! It is both fun and practical at the same time.

My wife and I didn't buy it that day, but it was definitely added to our list of options. We continued looking around for cars, as we've been doing for about 18 months so far. Near the end of summer, we were literally within a day or two from by the Chevy Malibu LTZ. This is another great car that is tremendous value for your money. It is more equipped than many luxury cars that cost 2 times as much, even sporting a reasonably powerful V6. But then I found out that the 2009 Pontiac G8 had been added to the GM Employee Pricing program, and the deal was sealed. We got a brand new 2009 Pontiac G8 GT that week.

It is a decision where we did not have to take as a comprise. This is something we really wanted, and for a great price. We tried several brands of the Japanese and American varieties. (Neither of us will touch European or Korean, though we prolly wouldn't mind getting a new BMW for free.) The only two makes that seem to make cars that interest us for the right prices are Infiniti and Chevrolet/Pontiac.

As part of my purchase, I traded in my old Acura TL-S. I liked that car, but I love my new Pontiac G8 GT. Given the huge problems I had with my not so old Acura car, I'm not too worried about the American vs. Japanese quality argument. Especially since the G8 is made in Australia anyway.

Car hunting

Allie and I have been car hunting for a long time. We’ve test driven a multitude of vehicles. We’ve given a second look at a myriad more. The reason for all this is the fact that I currently have a rather nice car, with a rather nasty habit. My Acura TL-Type S 2003 is a great car except that it needs a new transmission every 11,000 miles or so. Not good for the long run once the warranty is up. At this point, I don’t mind the nickel and dime costs associated with the average car once off warranty. I just don’t want to get hit with a $4000 repair bill and a week long car rental every 10 months or so. So, we need to trade in my TL for something else.
While car hunting, I’ve discovered features that used to be special only to the higher end cars are now included in the average cars. Of particular note, the high trim of 2009 Chevrolet Malibu has more features than my old TL, all for 10K less than what I paid for my car 6 years ago, and for nearly 15K less than the current price for a new TL. The level of quality across the mainstay brands keeps going up. Reliability is something that fluctuates, so it’s a good idea to always keep an eye on Consumer Reports and other sources. Right now, it appears some GM brands are doing well, while others haven’t quite got things figured out yet.
Given what I’ve been looking for, GM cars have been attracting my attention more than others. This surprizes me. Then again, I pretty much hate all the car brands for one reason or another. In general, I tend to gravitate towards American and Japanese, and show less interest in Korean and European cars. OMG, have you see the Smart Car? How dumb is that? Anyways, we think we know what we will end up with soon.

I'm am a Search Assist search item

It appears that I am now a Search Assist item on Yahoo! I was a little surprized at this discovery. The search item is "fcsuper rebel". This is completely unexpected. I wonder how often a term has to be searched before it is added as a search item. More amazing is that "fcsuper rebel" is a Search Assist item, yet "fcsuper" is not. It might seem more likely that just "fcsuper" is searched more often rather than "fcsuper rebel". Weird.

The term still gets a "do you mean" statement at the top of the page with a suggestion for "fc super". I still own the top spot of that search too. It's a little lonely at the top, as the gaming product "FC Super" now dominates the search of that item. I have to wonder if someone at that company named it after me. :) What are the chances of something as unique as FC Super showing up twice in the our world in my lifetime? I got a feeling that I should be glad to get the website http://www.fcsuper.com when I did. At least I own my name sake's web address.

Testing the Publishing Waters

Here's my start at writing and publishing on Amazon for the Kindle and Mobipocket for Palms and such:

Amazon: My Start as a publisher

Mobipocket: My books so far for Palm

Written times

Writing isn't coming easy to me right now. It's not for any particular reason, just that I've been doing a lot of it. Not on this blog obviously, but in other venues. So, even now there's nothing really on my mind. I mean, I had another pretty good weekend and all, but reading though my past entries, I find that I talk a lot about weekends. I don't think I will stop. Just not in the mode today for that. Other topics that interest me are being covered in other areas, such as my SolidWorks Legion website. It's been taking of much of my writing energy. Even now, I'm have a couple of article projects that are waiting to be penned on that site.

At this point, I'm mostly rambling, but then again, that's what a journal is for sometimes. As I write in this blog over time, I've discovered things about myself, and my writing style. I talk about myself a lot, but that's a given since this is about me. Also, I tend to write in contrasts. I'll make a statement, then mitigate or offset it with a "but". I wonder how many "buts" I've writing, not just on this blog, but in all my works, and even in my daily speech. As someone famous once said, "But, there be no buts." Not true here.

That's really all the thoughts I have today, other than to say this is likely one of the few truly personal thoughts diary-like posting I've ever made on this blog. Well the inner thoughts be surfacing here? Hmm...

It's about me

It is easy to think one’s life has not measured up to the expectations one’s own heart and mind. Accomplishments made diminished are held low. Even the proud braggart is ultimately over compensating for feelings of inadequacy. Yet each person must face the truth that we are here for a reason. Accomplishment is not measured by comparison to others, but on the merit of the deeds and thoughts of the inner person. Each person must admit to themselves that they are worthy; worthy of love, joy, and peace; worthy of that which we earn. In this, life is a calm excitement. It is the excitation of living in which having a calm spirit brings success.

We are blessed with our time here on Earth. This blessing is a chance to us. But extension, our responsibility here is for our self. We earn more than each of us can possible know in one life. Many lives must be experienced to gain the full value of our being. We reside beyond existence, yet held in stasis within this world, within this Universe. It is more than what we can see, but much less than our lifespark. The universe cannot be held equal to the value of my life, or the lives of any other. Yet, somehow we are all contained within its ether.

It’s about me. Each of use can say this for our self. It is about me. This world is not so random. It is intertwined, full of incidents, but never accidents. The world revolves around me. At the same time it revolves around each of us equally. Our paths lead one place; that which is beyond the infinite. In this, the minor day to day living, the rut, and the daily grind are nothing less than us inching towards our ultimate destination.

Even though each of us is on our own journey, we are collectively moving together. Each of us a cell in the greater organism; a piece of the whole that so much greater than what we can possibly see. It’s not our need to know full extent of things. Knowing would hinder and distract too much. We must focus upon the task laid before us. Life; its purpose is to live. Me; this is my purpose, to live my life. Is it really so simple? The answer to that is up to me.

Thank you to the Cosmic Consciousness for the time and worlds in which to speak. Enjoy.

Works of Art (Part 2 of 2)

To continue on from my previous discussion, I had two other surviving shoe polish on card stock paper works from my time spent bored working in a mall shoe store when I was a kid. This one can have a multitude of meanings. The title Faeryland Coitus only reflects one interpretation. I believe I did this one as contrast to my shear boredom. I created excitement from nothingness. There are many objects in the painting (or should I call it a polishing?). In some views, it could be seen as a lot of different fairies doing naughty things. From another perspective, it could be a hands smashing something between them as they clap together. It could also be two figures engaged in acts of carnal lust with tornado like movement. It ultimately represents my desire to be freed from my imprisonment.

The long evenings would wear on. So much so, it felt like I could turn to dust and melt away into the wind.This is what my last surviving work depicts. This is why this work is titled Blown. Here I am a disappearing face that is dissolving, even as I grin outwardly. The image could also been seen as my acceptance of futility, like the rock battered by ocean tides. The colors show my despair and anguish. Are there other figures in the background mocking me? Is that my blood polluting a body of water?

Of course, I've not touched this medium since that time. It represents a very specific period in my life in a form of expressed that was based directly on the experience itself. It would be like a gardener making works of art out of garden tools instead of the flower arraignments or garden features. I couldn't make works out of the shoes themselves, so I used the next best medium available. For me, this is how art is. Something that represents a moment in time, but not only that, it is also derived directly from that moment, created to record the moment from the very material that makes the moment what it is. These moments are somewhat spaced out in my life. It's just when something strikes me a certain way; that's when this part of my nature materializes.

Works of Art (1 of 2)

I once worked at a shoe store in some mall. It was a small store. Most of the time, I was the only person. This was around the time when I was about 17 or so, and likely sometime during the period following the start of the Persian Gulf War. The day the war started, the malls where empty. Attendance at the mall never really recovered while I worked there, even after the war's end. I had many long hours to do nothing. I was supposed to look busy to make it seem as though there was always activity within the little store, but there was no one in the mall for which I could look busy.

Being 17 and being stuck, I began to explore my limited surroundings. For whatever reason, I started playing with the shoe polish. I don't know how or why I got started with this. In secret, I started making miniature paintings with the shoe polish. I still have three of those works. I don't consider them half bad for what they are: shoe polish on card stock paper. I may be the only person in history to explore this medium. Here is one those surviving works.

This one is Girl catching up. It depicts one girl running after another that is impatiently waiting. The color represents the angst between the two and perhaps a bit more. In modern terms, one might call them frienemies. The inspiration may have been some of the girls that frequented the mall.

I may display the other surviving works soon.

Life Confuses Me.

My simple statement about me: "Life confuses me and I'm comfortable with that confusion."

I don't need to have beliefs about things I don't know or can't confirm. I tend to develop notions, but I generally understand that these are just ideas that should not be taken as more than that. So, yeah, there is a lot about this world I don't understand; and I don't need to understand them to live my life.