User:	usekh
	Date:	2008-08-30 02:50
	Subject:
	Security:	Public

I really have no words for this? beyond WHAT THE FUCKING FUCK?
http://community.livejournal.com/sf_drama/1367284.html

And worse, this is not like arse-fuck North Virginia, this was in Australia.

	User:	cpip
	Date:	2008-08-29 12:34
	Subject:	[Politics] Palin as McCain's VP choice.
	Security:	Public

All I can say is that I'm giggling like a schoolboy over one of the website's that's been promoting Palin's candidacy: VPILF.com.

Yes, I'm pretty sure it means exactly what I think it means.

Yeah, I'm just snickering.

Oh, this campaign has its moments of sheer entertainment value.

	User:	bethshan
	Date:	2008-08-29 08:59
	Subject:	Maine....the Whatever State
	Security:	Public

From Dave Berry:

DENVER -- The Democratic presidential convention finally reached its dramatic and historic climax Thursday night as Barack Obama, appearing in a stadium packed with nearly 80,000 wildly cheering supporters, kicked a 67-yard field goal to defeat the Oakland Raiders in overtime. He also formally accepted the Democratic nomination, thereby becoming the first Hawaiian-born Indonesian-educated African-American ever to become a major-party presidential candidate since Al Gore.

I was on the convention floor Wednesday for the historic roll-call vote that nominated Obama. The roll call is one of the most entertaining parts of any convention, because it's when the state-delegation chairpersons, before casting their votes, name the various things that their states are proud of, as in:

``Madam Secretary, the great state of [name of some state that no normal person would ever call ``great''], where the wind blows horizontally and water goes down the drain counter-clockwise; birthplace of the inventor of a key chemical component of Cool Ranch Doritos; home of the world's largest organically grown rutabaga . . . ''

I am not exaggerating by much. One highlight of Wednesday's roll call was when John Knutson, chairperson of the Maine Democratic Party, said -- and I am not making this quote up -- ``The sun comes up in Maine first in the nation. And we feel very honored to be . . . to have that as our singular . . . whatever. Privilege.''

Maine: The Whatever State.

( Read more... )

	User:	bethshan
	Date:	2008-08-29 07:57
	Subject:	Contrary to Obama...
	Security:	Public

McCain does get it:

McCain picks Alaska governor as running mate

	User:	elena23
	Date:	2008-08-29 09:40
	Subject:
	Security:	Public

Hello livejournal land. First of all, happy birthday to our friend

	User:	nikwdhmos
	Date:	2008-08-29 08:00
	Subject:	Mostly just guitar last night
	Security:	Public

Too sore still for Kung Fu, so I played a little UT2004 and practiced guitar until my fingers couldn't hold down the strings any more.

Writing Ugh

The reason I didn't write yesterday is that everything I've been writing recently seems like crap. Maybe I'm wrong about that -- but I rarely am. I usually can force a decent story out, but not these days.

I feel like I wrote myself out somehow. Maybe I need to go to the Dallas Museum of Art again.

Guitar

I practiced all the chords I know and tried to learn how to switch smoothly between them. The switching is still a long way off, but I can consistently play the chords. Here's a list of what I've learned:

A, Am, A7*, B7, C, C7, D, Dm, D7, E, E7*, Em, G, G7

I got to the end of the workshops for the first big chord lesson, but then he started going through some note exercises and I realized that it's been so long since I read music that I can't read it any more.

So I went back to the first lessons, and did all the note-reading exercises for the first 2 strings. I think the 3rd string will be easy, but I've never really been comfortable with the notes on strings 4-6, especially 6. So I guess now I get to learn them better!

---
* I actually haven't practiced these enough. I just remembered that I knew them. I guess I need to make a list

	User:	cpip
	Date:	2008-08-29 08:28
	Subject:
	Security:	Public

Back: Still sore, but a bit less so in some regards. Woke up with it worse, but it feels like it went pop in the shower and maybe something popped back into place.

Friday before a 3-day weekend. Purr.

Remember, get-together tomorrow, sometime. Really, whenever folks want to show up, we'll be there. (Well, okay, I won't be there before about 1:30 or 2 pm. But Jen will be.)

Tonight, I begin the chili. Tomorrow, we serve the chili. CHILI MUST BE SERVED! THE HUMANS MUST BE SERVED! Ahem.

I am more tangential than I used to be in this thing, I think.

	User:	not_in_denial
	Date:	2008-08-29 22:22
	Subject:	Something Beautiful
	Security:	Public

( You are about to view content that may only be appropriate for adults. )

	User:	hippoiathanatoi
	Date:	2008-08-29 11:51
	Subject:	Helping Hands
	Security:	Public

This week there was a small revelation. Hands. Specifically, their position. It matters.

I mean, I knew that before, but I thought I had mine at an okay height. Today, my instructor had me raise my hands quite a bit above my default position, and I found it made a big difference when it came to doing what she wants me to do with my shoulders (that is, getting them back and getting them relaxed).

I am not sure if she noticed it because I was decided to try Murphy without the help reins (actually, I forgot them, but I had been thinking about skipping them since during my last private lesson I rode without them and she suggested they may have been hampering me), and that changes his head position and my hand position a bit.

We continued to work on circles, and while it was a bit of a struggle at first, I did find I got better results without the help reins. Especially once I got my hands raised up a bit. I feels to me as if Murphy is easier to get into a proper form without the reins, and he also feels more supple. However, the form is less steady, perhaps because he's so supple.

Once we were done with the warmup, we did the same exercise for most of the lesson, just varying the direction. We'd start by trotting on the long sides and then walking on the short sides, which included a 10 meter circle. Then we'd switch to walking on the long sides and trotting on the short sides and through the circle. Plenty of transitions between straight and curved paths to pay attention to, and transitions between walk and trot (sometimes at the same time as the straight to curved or vice versa transitions). Just the thing to make Murphy nice and supple, and towards the end he was getting kind of liquid.

So, now I have another body part that I need to get used to having in a different position. I'll have to be careful not to overdo it, though.

	User:	karjack
	Date:	2008-08-29 02:36
	Subject:	The home stretch.
	Security:	Public
	Mood:	tired

Despite it all, I got in 1100 words. Today's unsolicited advice: just get it out. If it looks like crap tomorrow, at least it's crap you've gotten out of your system.

( In other news, I'm reading The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins. )

	User:	captain_jester
	Date:	2008-08-28 23:49
	Subject:	It seems I associate with Light/Kira for a reason
	Security:	Public

Your result for The Supervillain Archetype Test...

The Megalomaniac

Ambitious, Intelligent, Calculating

Take The Supervillain Archetype Test at HelloQuizzy

	User:	not_in_denial
	Date:	2008-08-29 13:36
	Subject:	Artists Block
	Security:	Public

( You are about to view content that may only be appropriate for adults. )

	User:	spiralpegasus
	Date:	2008-08-28 23:05
	Subject:	Yes, We Can
	Security:	Public
	Mood:	American

"And it is that promise that 45 years ago today, brought Americans from every corner of this land to stand together on a Mall in Washington, before Lincoln's Memorial, and hear a young preacher from Georgia speak of his dream.

The men and women who gathered there could've heard many things. They could've heard words of anger and discord. They could've been told to succumb to the fear and frustration of so many dreams deferred.

But what the people heard instead -- people of every creed and color, from every walk of life -- is that in America, our destiny is inextricably linked. That together, our dreams can be one.

"We cannot walk alone," the preacher cried. "And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back."