Romney's Hair

I find it a little disconcerting that as I stood at my check stand today, I saw the headline on USA Today that said Romney has pulled ahead in the campaign race because of women, but not for the reasons you might think.  As I read the article I was reminded of a part in season two episode four on New Girl, where the character Schmidt is pretending to be a Romney.  It feels almost like foreshadowing now because the episode is constantly making reference to Mitt Romney's hair, and just how attractive it is.  Three girls in the episode are even part of some weird Romney fan cult.

Feeling Wicked

So, just went and saw Wicked the musical with my wife celebrating our anniversary of six years.  Almost as long as we've been married we've tried to go and see a showing, and it just so happens that the opening night here in Seattle's Paramount theater was the week of our anniversary.  So I got us tickets and we spent a wonderful evening there.

And let me tell you, the show was worth the wait, both for me and my wife.  I could tell it was with her because she didn't here a single word anybody said  through the entire performance.  Even though these were hundred dollar tickets in most cases, there were still those rude movie idiots that can't keep there mouths shut.  And not even they could ruin it for my adorably absorbed wife.

For me, though, the icing to this particular theatrical event was the craftsmanship.  The stage sets worked seamlessly, and really seemed to be from a different world.  And the set was so all-inclusive even the clockwork dragon hung at the top of the theater had its role to play.  The costumes were amazing, every detail thought of and stitched into place,  and the use of props within the costumes to produce things like wings on monkeys and a baby in a montage-style scene were remarkably well done.  The choreography was staggering to, though to most the subtle details might have been lost.   Even the theater its self lent to finely detailed set.  The Paramount theater seemed built for this musical, with it's elaborate moldings, handcrafted seats, and fantastic acoustics, it helped to create a totally immersive experience.

All in all this was a fantastic show and I would gladly see it again as many times as I could.  To anyone reading this article, if you have a chance to go and see Wicked live, do so without hesitation. Its amazing.

The Silent Revolution

With all of the political and economic turmoil running rampant in the world, as citizens of the United States, we often forget we are a free people, and that we can exact change without the need of a bloody revolution.  And even better than that, we can change things just by simple actions in our everyday lives.

If you have a problem with the price if food there is nothing really stopping you from going out and growing your own, just persona hesitation and doubt(and maybe zoning requirements, but even those can be changed).  If we have problems with political policy, we can run for political office and change the policies on our own.

So what I'm calling people to do is participate in a silent revolution.  Stand up and make personal changes, run for office, grow your own food, run your own business, charge your own prices, just don't sit there.  Get up, be productive, and do something.  Embrace the reality of your freedom.

Complexity

So I was working on a CG copy of a human hand, and I just had to marvel at the complexity of it.  There is so much work that goes into things like a hand, and we always take them for granted.

Ridiculus Tax Notions

So, I had one of thee most ridiculous conversations with a lady in the checkout line today. She was complaining about Washington state taxes and how she felt we should move to a state income tax. I said that I disagreed, I liked the current tax model be cause everyone gets taxed, and as a percentage, its equal to everyone.

This lady looked at me, completely earnest, and said that that wasn't fair, the rich should be taxed more than anyone else.

As I said, this is ridiculous, and I feel like discussing why. First, let's discuss the English usage of fair.  As a word, fair has many subtle and nuanced meanings, but as a general concept, we who speak English accept that when something is fair, that it is also equal.  As it pertains to this story, fair would imply equal treatment of all parties involved.  So, this lady is, in essence, saying that the only way to fairly treat the rich is to unfairly tax them.  See the problem?

Now, as my second point, I'd like to bring up something my wife pointed out.  Who is to judge what's fair and what's not?  What if the wealthy person you're taxing is a philanthropist, and would willing donate to good causes?

This whole issue is ridiculous, and persecuting the wealthy, or anyone else, is not a solution, its a problem.

Disturbing Places on the Internet

Okay, this blog was really started so that I could rant and muse without diluting the other blogs I write.  So I'm sorry if all it seems like is complaining, because that is probably what it will be.

So, on to the subject.  I stumbled upon something that bothers me immensely.  The xkcdsucks blog, and its little sister, xkcd-sucks.  These two blogs bother me, not because of their subject matter, but because the people who write them are so devoted to hating something.  And its something stupid.  And whats worse is they think it matters. 

Now, I can understand if it is something physical, in the real world, like my mother getting burned by the purchase of her iPod, a device she says is more difficult to operate than it was for her to raise eight kids.  She ranted for what seemed like months over it, and would still probably get angry at it if you asked her what she thought of it.  But you know what, she's pretty much given up it.

But the people involved with xkcdsucks just don't seem to let go.  They keep posting and posting, sometimes getting people to succeed them when they get tired of writing just to continue their gripe.  It isn't even that they are tired of hating the comic, they're just tired of writing!

There, I've given my rant, and you know what?  By tomorrow, I'll most likely have forgotten or gotten over this, and will no longer care.