Everyone seems to want to "Go Green" these days. All the advertisers have picked up on it--packaging now loudly proclaims this or that product as "Green!" or "Environmentally Friendly!" Big celebrity names are no doubt using it to bolster their own careers, or just to maintain a good public image. Big companies are jumping on the bandwagon too, with requirements that "green" supplies be ordered (which equals more money spent) --in the middle of the biggest economic downturn in my lifetime. Naturally there is some genuine concern for the planet and the environment involved--but also a large dollop of concern about the company's public image. What percentage of the whole does each of those occupy? Being a pessimist, you can guess my thoughts on that. Sitting through training about "Being Green" (unless it's taught by Kermit the Frog) is not my idea of a good (or even truly productive) time.
Is going green really "all that"? Let's put it this way--when I found out CFL bulbs last up to 9 years and use only a fraction of the electricity of incandescents, AND that they're not much more expensive, I was sold. You made a better product that uses existing technology in a more efficient way, AND you made it almost as affordable as the old product? Sounds great!
The only downside? What they don't advertise is that those bulbs can't just be tossed in the garbage when they burn out. They have to be recycled a special way because they contain mercury, a poisionous substance that we can't just throw in a landfill. I'm hoping they have fairly convenient ways to recycle these ticking time-bombs I just bought 9 years from now when they burn out. =P
The annoying part is that most of the "Green" products and technologies are much more expensive than standard products, and some have other serious side-effects, like my poisonous light bulbs. And things like recycling can be great if good, accessible facilities/services are in place for people to use, but enough of a royal pain to make you want to purposely avoid them if not. It's easy for big companies and big celebrities--and even governments--to say "Be green! It's important." But if they don't put their money where their mouths are--i.e. in providing easily accessible, user-friendly recycling services, and reasonably-priced, "green" alternatives to current products that won't require a haz-mat suit to throw away, people aren't going to go for it. I recently moved from house in a smaller city that provided a dedicated recycling bin for residents and picked it up with the weekly garbage. I now live in an apartment complex in a larger city with no recycling bins anywhere in sight. Personally, I'm too lazy to put much of my own hard-earned free time into running all over town with bags of recyclables in tow. So guess what happens?
"Green-ism", like any movement, has good points that are frequently carried to extremes. And "Green" training, "Green" celebrity endorsements, and "Green" advertising on every aisle at the grocery store is plenty extreme enough for me, thanks. To the big shots out there trying to promote this--not a bad idea, but for pete's sakes, shut up and DO something to make it more accessible to the common man. Until you do, don't expect it to ever be truly effective.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Why "Going Green" makes me feel green around the gills
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Why hurting--oops, I mean dating, sucks.
You know what is worse than finding out the once-love-of-your-life is now married? The irony that she's married to Mr. Wright :P *sigh* (well, that and the surmise that she's no longer active in the church).
Whoever said the universe doesn't have a sense of humor has clearly never met me.
Why does love have to suck so much? Why is dating such a pain? We meet a new person, get to know them and understand them--get a window into their world, so to speak--and then it doesn't work out and we lose that window, and most everything we were starting to see within. That specialness is gone. Yes, friendship is nice and can have some of that specialness--but it's never the same.
I can't complain about lack of dates, since that is going okay for me. Nothing super-fantastic as of yet, but I'm trying.
The whole process of connecting with another person that way--and then losing them when it doesn't work--just strikes me as sad. I know it doesn't always happen that way--but it has often enough with me to be saddening.
So once you've loved someone--and I mean truly loved them, not just dated for a bit or whatever--and then you lose them, does it ever really go away? It sure doesn't seem to for me, but I wonder how others have felt about that.
A poem I was thinking about recently (don't be too impressed, I found it inside the booklet of a Cure CD). Think it kind of applies to my thoughts on the sadness of dating & ending relationships.
We look before and after, And pine for what is not;
Our sincerest laughter With some pain is fraught;
Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thought...
For any who might have hoped for a clever, verbose posting here, I apologize. This one's scattered and rather disjointed. Just something I was thinking about--and since I happened to also think that I don't post on my blog enough, well here we are.
Latest Book I finished:
Watership Down, by Richard Adams
A book about a group of rabbits that leave their home and travel to a distant hill to start a new colony. Sounds odd (and it is), but cleverly done with some memorable, enjoyable characters & fun adventures. Worth a read. 50 cents from DI (I love bargain books at DI). I was curious to read it because I saw the animated film as a very young child and can only remember being terrified of the vicious "bad guy" rabbits that slashed the good rabbits with their claws. I couldn't get to sleep for a while that night, terrified of violent bunnies coming up my bunk bed to slice & dice me (I was probably 5 or 6 at the time). It's a little violent (not a book for young children), but overall quite enjoyable.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Moving, shaking, and......well, just moving.
I rented my very first apartment (that I've gotten all on my own) tonight. Crazy eh? Now I just have to pack my stuff so I can actually move in. Still some little details to worry about, but the main part is over, which is a huge relief. I can finally have friends over and do movie nights! And show off my cool TV! And leave dirty dishes in the sink whenever I feel like it!
Anyway, the complex is really pretty--big trees, lots of shade, really quiet & a really nice neighborhood. It's not as much closer to work as I wanted, but it's an awesome price for the size (767 sq ft). Check out some pics on their website. And I checked--my balcony is big enough for a hammock stand :D
And now I can also start looking into buying a house without jumping into anything too quickly.
My sis & her hubby & baby are going to move into my old room, so that will be cool too. I'll get to see them and my little nephew on a regular basis. Good times! :)
And this weekend is my family's Easter Brunch at a big park, the following week my sister's family will be here for a visit, and the week after that is a midsingles conference in SoCal. I think it's going to be a good month.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Why Call of Duty 4 rocks--and why nuclear energy is scary
So you don't think I'm totally blowing off the holidays: Merry Christmas! Looking forward to spending some time with family, and especially some time away from work. Now on to the topic at hand.
So I just finished the single player campaign in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. WOW. The intensity, the realism, the graphics--this is an amazing game. I boycotted it when it first came out because my system couldn't run it--and after that just never got into it. (I was also a little disappointed that the series left their WWII roots). But I got it for 1/2 price a couple weeks ago (Black Friday sale), so I've been playing the single player mode. Even within the first few levels, I was amazed. One took place on a cargo ship in the North Atlantic, where you were searching for a stolen nuclear device. By the end of the level, the ship was sinking--and you had to race across catwalks that were literally turning sideways to escape before you went down with her. And that was not the most intense level--really cool stuff. Infinity Ward, who developed this game, really outdid themselves with this one. If you have a computer that can run it--or a game console (like Xbox 360) and you like FPS games--I recommend this one. Do beware however, this is not a kid's game. There is some violence that is more severe than previous games in the series. That did bother me, but I didn't find it bad enough that it stopped me from enjoying it. My favorite level, however, is what brings me to my second topic.
The former town of Pripyat, Ukraine was home to about 50,000 people until the fateful day in 1986 when the soviet nuclear power plant at Chernobyl suffered a meltdown/explosion. I was 11, so I don't remember much about it--just that this big scary thing happened in a country where the government was really mean to the people. I knew it was scary and sad, but not much more than that. In recent months, I happened to learn about Pripyat--where else? Online! With a BA in History, an interest in old things comes naturally to me. Learning about an entire town where people had been forced to evacuate in about 36 hours, leaving almost everything exactly the way it was on that day for the next 20 years, was fascinating to me. A ghost town of the nuclear age, if you will. So I started looking up pictures and reading about it. Talk about creepy--a whole area, where people couldn't go for years without fear of radiation poisoning. Guard posts blocking off roads, warning signs--no, this isn't a movie. It's real. It really happened--a group of people no different than you or me were living their lives in their town (which was only a bit smaller than the town I lived in at the time), and they heard an explosion, and saw a huge plume of smoke in the distance. Shortly thereafter, they were told to evacuate and that they would be gone for 1-2 days at most. After they were safely away--"sorry, you can't ever go back there. Forget about your old family photos, your clothes, anything you left behind. And if you do try and go back, you'll be shot or get sick and die." Can you imagine? It's so hard to fathom. And along with the pictures of a ruined town with stuff strewn in the streets, a public pool now empty and dry with old garbage in the bottom, a rusty ferris wheel towering over it all--it becomes eerie, creepy and morbidly fascinating at the same time.
And while writing this, it occurs to me that there was a small nuclear power plant operating within several miles of my town when I was growing up. I camped near there once as a boy scout. Maybe it shouldn't be quite so hard to fathom? What if it had been my town forced to flee our homes, and not to come back for decades afterwards? I have a vivid imagination, but wow--that's tough to get my head around. Public vote shut the plant down in the late 80's, apparently due to low efficiency and rising costs--but the explosion of a few years before at Chernobyl can't have been far from those people's minds when they made that decision. Say what you will, but I'm sure glad to have been living in a democracy where people could make that choice. Holy cow.
So due to my mildly morbid fascination with Pripyat, my favorite level is one where, on the trail of said nuclear device, your character has to sneak into--guess where? Pripyat, to find an evil dictator in hiding with some nationalist rebels in the abandoned town. The game developers created a detailed map of the town for the the game, and I was looking forward to 'virtually' exploring the town through the game, since I probably won't ever get there in real life (not sure I want to either). The level was so intense however, I didn't get much chance to do so--I was too busy running from crazed nationalists. I did find a more limited version in multiplayer that I was able to explore, though. Pretty cool--and creepy.
To read more about Pripyat, click here.
To see photos, click here.
Some comparison shots (COD4 vs real life) for you (click for full image):
Sunday, November 2, 2008
What the heck am I doing on here anyway?
Well, I noticed that I haven't posted anything on my blog in a few months--and according to my friend Shauna, that means you're not a "real" blogger. So, while I'm not committed enough to be a "real" blogger, I thought I might as well put something in so I don't seem like a complete slacker.
I used to do family Halloween parties for my cousins every year--and though it was exhausting, I had alot of fun doing it. I'd plan for months in advance, devise new games each year, hand-draw an elaborate invitation, spend hours decorating the house, usually getting done just in time to hear the first knock at the door (okay, so I often was still finishing after that knock at the door). Inevitably, there were disappointments in the process. Some people would leave early, stating they had to get up early the next morning. I'd arrange a contest or something that required guest participation, and only a few people (or none) would participate. Or I'd just realize it wasn't as big a deal to anyone else as I was to me. Finally it reached the point where I found that I was more and more tired trying to get everything done in time for the party. I started to resent it when people didn't have time or offer to help, and to even resent having to do the preparations period. In short, it became less of a fun hobby, and more of a chore that I didn't feel like I had the time or energy for anymore. Another thing had happened too--in the passing years, my audience had grown up. And like most grown-ups, their tastes, time constraints and interests had changed. It started to feel like people weren't enjoying having the party as much--and since I was starting to feel the same way about planning it, it seemed wise to let it go. I still love Halloween-I happily tell people it's my favorite holiday (yes, including Christmas, though I like Christmas too). But it's sad to me not having anything to get excited about anymore. I still record Halloween specials to watch, or rent scary movies. But I really miss picking out new props & decorations to buy, and decking the house out in black & orange. I miss coming up with new ideas for props I can build, and thinking of something cool I can draw for an invitation. I don't really want to do a yard haunt (some punk kids would probably steal half my props the first night), so I dunno--maybe I need to volunteer for a haunted house or something. *sigh*
This Halloween I went with my friend Shauna to take her son trunk or treating, then we went to a party in the bay area. The party kinda sucked--not a good thing to hang your hopes for your favorite holiday on, ya know? Poor attendance, a DJ who thought excessive bass made up for his cruddy music selection and the fact that half the songs only lasted 30 seconds, and a dearth of really creative costumes (though Shauna got points for a well-researched costume of Ash from Pokemon) made for kind of a bummer event.
It's also a little annoying that Halloween doesn't get its fair share of street cred as a holiday, ya know? We get days off for the birthdays of dead presidents and for....uh, laboring--but the only holiday that allows you to dress up like Abraham Lincoln or Papa Smurf without being carried off by the men in the white coats and we get nuthin.' NOT COOL.
So, to help us all feel a little more Halloween 'love, enjoy the following pic (click to enlarge):
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Opening ceremonies, or why Yao Ming is the MAN.
Please note: This post is not about the government of China--it's about the people of China. I do not agree with the human rights violations and other poor practices China's government has committed-but I have been happy to watch the citizens of China being able to shine.
Also: If you haven't watched the opening ceremonies yet and are planning to--beware, there are spoilers in here.
Though one had to overlook the fact that so many millions were being spent on something frivolous--sports games instead of more social programs to help the greatest portion of China's population, the agrarian poor--the spectacle here was fantastic. My personal favorite was the part when square pillars moving up and down formed into moving art--patterns of ripples in a pool of water, for example. The best part was the discovery that this amazing effect was not being made by fancy computers, but by MEN inside those pillared shapes that were moving them up and down. It boggles my mind to think how hard that effect must have been to pull off.
It also touched me to see and hear about how much these games mean to Yao Ming. As China's most famous athlete, he's the symbol (albeit a very, very large one) of what hosting these games means to the Chinese people. He broke his foot several months ago and there were fears he wouldn't be able to play in the games. But he worked his tail off in rehabilitation to make sure he'd be able to be there and play for his country at this historic moment. Announcers talked about how much of a dream it was for him to be able to play for his national team, in his home country. And despite not being fully recovered, he's doing just that.
On TV, the announcers called this "China's Coming Out Party"--and it certainly is. These games are a Coming Out Party for almost a third of the world's population--people with great talents and abilities who've waited decades to show the world what they can do. They've been kept behind closed doors all this time--and their government is finally creaking those rusty-hinged doors open and allowing the curious world to peek inside. And more importantly, allowing their people a small peek out.
In ancient times, the Chinese were an intelligent, creative people who contributed a great deal to our world. Gunpowder & fireworks, the compass, paper--all Chinese inventions. Were it not for the incredibly rocky history they've had, I have no doubt that China could be an amazing country today. The world currently stands in awe of the Japanese, a small island nation with seemingly endless talents for creating high quality electronics, creative video games and entertainment, and cars and trucks of a workmanship that puts ol' Henry Ford to shame. Imagine if there were 1.3 BILLION of those people. Among that large a base population, how many brilliant inventors and creative artists might there be? How many new ideas? Had the histories of China & Japan been swapped--who knows what the creators of gunpowder, the compass and paper would have come up with by our modern century?
If this trend continues--it's going to be something to see when those doors open wide. Granted, there's a good ways to go yet. But when the Chinese people can finally join the rest of the world and share their talents and abilities, their ideas, just watch out. Our Chinese brothers and sisters may just have a lot to share with the rest of the human race. I'm looking forward to it.
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Ducks fly together....and so do colleges and famous animators.
So over the past several years, I've noticed a number of times that the mascot for the University of Oregon bears a striking resemblance to the world's most famous duck. See for yourself:
I've seen it on an occasional T-shirt, baseball cap, and the other day on the side of a semi truck (of all places). Being a fan of said duck, I thought "hey, that's cool. I wonder if Disney knows about it?" Turns out (thanks to Wikipedia, the dispenser of all knowledge) that they do! Apparently back in the early days, drawings of the Oregonian web-footed mascot started to resemble Uncle Walt's favorite fowl more and more. Eventually, one of the coaches from UO, who happened to know Walt, met up with him and asked permission. And since Disney was actually run by a talented, creative individual at that time (rather than the pack of money-grubbing, bloodthirsty executives that charge $25 for a hot dog at Disneyland nowadays), they got it. Amazing what a handshake could do back in '47, eh?
After seeing the noble duck on the side of a semi the other day, I started thinking having a T-shirt with him on it would be nice (since the Disney people can't seem to make a good Donald t-shirt to save their lives), and I started to look online for one. Nothing. I found loads and loads of Oregon swag, but only ONE lame t-shirt with my revered duck on it. I looked everywhere, no luck.
But the wikipedia article had one more nugget of knowledge to share. Turns out that the Disney company (sans Walt and already reforming into the all powerful, cash-worshiping empire we know today) renegotiated the license of their character in the 70's, and a time or two more since then. In the most recent one, they forbade (or at least severely limited) UO from selling merchandise with their character's likeness on it outside of the state of Oregon. And since UO was becoming a big-time sports school, and wanted to market their junk to the masses, um...en masse, they demoted the dauntless duck to "secondary" logo in favor of a stylized "O" that has all the enigmatic charm & personality of your average kitchen appliance.
And since I'm a duck fan and not a sports fan--I can only respond to this in the manner our dear duck friend would respond:
UPDATE: Wouldn't you know it, right after I get done with my cleverly-worded rant about a t-shirt, I find this. Get one of your own and support Donald! (and UO, if you're into that sort of thing).
