Digitopus

The Beauty of Differences

I've got a lot to say, and no time to say it. Don't you hate that?

Until I have the time, though, let me just jump on here for a few - let you guys know I'm still around.

Yes, I've re-established my relationship with Love; I'm once again a believer. But being around your soulmate all day can do that to you. Sometimes I think I'm the luckiest woman in the world because I know, without a doubt, that I have found my other half. How then, I'm sure you're wondering, can I question Love? Well, that can best be summed up by one of my favorite quotes "It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it." - Aristotle. I feel that I can believe in Love, yet still question it. I believe I can honestly point out its bad points and possible falsehoods, while not allowing that to diminish my true feelings on the subject.

I was so damn busy this weekend - and since last weekend I was in Monroe for its entirety - I am not doing *a thing* this one coming. I always say that, and shit always comes up. And Easter is Sunday - fuck - so I have to give up my favorite relaxation day (again). Why are we celebrating Easter, I ask myself. My family cooks and gets together every year at that time, but none of us are extremely Christian - most of us aren't at all, in fact. My mother and sister consider themselves Gnostic, my brother is an atheist, I'm the self-proclaimed Buddhist-Pagan and my Dad worships a god named Bud Light. The rest of my family couldn't give a toss, but they call themselves Christian because they, like most people, just grabbed the religious moniker they were raised with since they weren't inclined to seek out their own or really gave a damn either way. I suppose it's just a good reason to all get together and enjoy a nice, sit-down-together dinner. But surely we can make ourselves get together like that without the excuse of honoring a holiday that means nothing to any of us? I don't believe that Jesus rose from the dead on Easter day - no more than I believe any of the other 'gods' did that were said to have risen on the same day in various ancient religions. I don't get how the religious aspects of the holiday got mixed up with hiding dyed eggs and eating chocolate bunnies either. But I still celebrate Easter. I guess that goes back to the Aristotle quote given above, eh? I can be down with Easter and still not accept its reasonings for existing. It's just another excuse to get off work, get together with family, eat and drink. That's the real reason we celebrate any holiday.

Friday - we have Friday off. Oh, bless you, Good Friday.

I just started playing a game called 1602 A.D. It's sort of fun - but rather difficult (the tutorials don't teach you crap). Has anyone else ever played this game? Any pointers? It's strategy - exploring new worlds, establishing new settlements and making them grow - all the while going to war and fighting off pirates. I played it enough last nite (in a Chardonnay-haze) that I dreamed about starting new settlements and searching for islands with iron ore deposits all damn nite.

Enough rambling - lunch is over and I've got to get back to work. We've begun, excuse me, I have begun, the arduous task of installing the new computer systems here at the office. I've got about 60+ left to go. And since I'm the only one doing it, and am only able to do 2 per day, you can just about guess what my work days are going to be like for the next two months. This, along with all of the other little problems that crop up and I have to solve while I'm setting up these new computers (first time hooking up to a big network - so it's new to me), is making work anything but fun. I usually enjoy my job, but this is just...a lot. A helluva lot and I'm frustrated that I'm not getting any help with it (which is not how it was supposed to go down). But what can you do when you are one part of a two-person i.t. team taking care of over 200 systems? Not much; not much at all.

So if you only hear from me sparingly this week, that is the reason. Sorry for the senseless ramble, but I do believe it's about all my brain is capable of coming up with right now. I can't think in coherent enough sentences to write anything viable when all that's going through my head is i.p. addresses, connecting to the domain, roaming profiles, and how-long-is-this-huge-ass-file-transfer going to take? Hope everyone has a good one.

Posted in Family, Girl Gamer, Religion or Something Like It | No Comments »

Joanne Webb is Innocent

I'm not sure what bothers me most about Joanne Webb being arrested for selling sex toys.

1. The fact that she was arrested period.
2. The fact that, in this day and age, this Texas town is still so deeply imbedded in their uber-Christian mentality that sex toys have to be listed as novelties to be even be sold. I mean, come the fuck on.
3. That the police department in Burleson obviously has nothing better to do than set up a sting operation to nail a woman that is selling sex toys to consenting (and most likely) married adults.
4. That two churches are now forbidding Webb and her family from attending. Let's cut the holier than thou crap, okay - or we saying none of the members have ever had sex or used a sex toy?! or
5. That paster Gloria Gillaspie is too dumb to realize how much of an ass she's making of herself admitting to the rest of the country that she gave counseling to women that bought vibrators - and somehow convinced them that it hurt their marriages. There are lots of problems in marriages today, and if these women honestly believe their sex toys are causing those problems...fuck, what can I say? I'm starting to get a real good consensus of the brain power of the people of Burleson, Texas.

There are so many things wrong with this entire situation that I can't even begin to list them all. Shame on Burleson and it's religious leaders for teaching these people to be ashamed of sex or their sexuality! How dare they condemn this woman who is doing something positive for people - these sex parties, where women get together to look over sex toys as they would tupperware, are often a way for women normally too embarassed to talk about sex or purchase toys to really open up around friends.

You damn sex-is-evil-and-dirty Christians! I know not all of you believe this way, I'm yelling at the ones that do. At the ones that go to churches like the ones that banned Joanne Webb and her family so her that her wicked, whorish ways could not taint their hallowed walls. At the type of people that complained enough that the police department had to arrest this woman simply so they could feel safe in their little, sexless town. Sex is beautiful - sex is fun - sex is REAL - and it ain't going nowhere. Pretending it doesn't exist and shaming people into thinking sex is dirty and sinful is wrong on so many terrible levels. Sex will always be around and, especially in today's culture, it's staring you right in the face. You're going to have to learn to live with it.

I cannot grasp how these people believe that God created something so wonderful that it creates life, a miracle that is god-like in itself, yet intended for it to be a SIN. Someone please explain that to me. On one hand, God claims he wants you to have babies and bring forth life, yet on the other, he doesn't want you having sex. Anyone else confused? God doesn't give a rat's ass if you enjoy sex; in fact, I'd bet all my money that he probably, actually hopes that you do! Because the God that created this world obviously has one helluva sense of humor and someone that deviously mirthful just has to like the idea of sex.

All I have to say is shame on you Burleson, Texas and rock on, Joanne Webb! You've got a fan here in Louisiana - fight 'em the whole damn way. It's the only way we'll ever truly free ourselves from the sexual repression that exists every day for normal men and women, and especially, for our homosexual friends. Sex is not wrong. And if it is, I don't wanna be right.

Posted in In the News, Rankled, Religion or Something Like It | No Comments »

Jesus vs Islam

This is one of the dumbest fucking emails I've ever gotten. Perhaps what makes it even more aggravating was what the person wrote that sent it out:

"The reason I am forwarding this e-mail is that it contains some "basics" I feel everyone should be aware of."

When you read the email, you might understand why this makes me so ticked.

The (stupid) email:

Allah or Jesus?
By Rick Mathes

Last month I attended my annual training session that's required for maintaining my state prison security clearance. During the training session there was a presentation by three speakers representing the Roman Catholic, Protestant and Muslim faiths who explained their belief systems.

I was particularly interested in what the Islamic Imam had to say.

The Imam gave a great presentation of the basics of Islam, complete with a video. After the presentations, time was provided for questions and answers.

When it was my turn, I directed my question to the Imam and asked: "Please, correct me if I'm wrong, but I understand that most Imams and clerics of Islam have declared a jihad [Holy war] against the infidels of
the world. And, that by killing an infidel, which is a command to all Muslims, they are assured of a place in heaven. If that's the case, can you give me the definition of an infidel?"

There was no disagreement with my statements and without hesitation he replied, "Non-believers!"

I responded, "So, let me make sure I have this straight. All followers of Allah have been commanded to kill everyone who is not of your faith so they can go to Heaven. Is that correct?"

The expression on his face changed from one of authority and command to that of a little boy who had just gotten caught with his hand in the cookie jar. He sheepishly replied, "Yes."

I then stated, "Well, sir, I have a real problem trying to imagine Pope John Paul commanding all Catholics to kill those of your faith or Pat Robertson or Dr. Stanley ordering Protestants to do the same in order to go to Heaven!"

The Imam was speechless.

I continued, "I also have problem with being your friend when you and your brother clerics are telling your followers to kill me. Let me ask you a question. Would you rather have your Allah who tells you to kill me in order to go to Heaven or my Jesus who tells me to love you because I am going to Heaven and wants you to be with me?"

You could have heard a pin drop as the Imam hung his head in shame.

Chuck Colson once told me something that has sustained me these 20 years of prison ministry.

He said to me, "Rick, remember that the truth will prevail."

And it will!

The truth will certainly prevail, Rick. And the truth is, I doubt seriously that you stood up at some religious convention and with your pearls of wisdom and bright-burning truth made someone suddenly hang their head in shame of a religion that they have not only been practicing all of their life, but that is also a religious leader of such religion. I'm surprised you didn't write into the story that you got a standing ovation.

And what kind of crap is this anyway - Jesus vs. Allah? I didn't know there was such a competition. What is this? Jesus 2, Allah 0?

And before we get all haughty over "killing non-believers",mister, realize that you're treading pretty damn close to hypocrisy here. It wasn't that long ago that Christians burned supposed witches at the stake, and put to death thousands that chose to worship other than their own belief system.

This email just pissed me off! What kind of an idiot do you think I am that 1.) I actually would believe such bilge truly took place and 2.) there is anything valuable or important or even basic that I must learn from this crap! All I see is another big-headed Jesus freak that is actually making a mockery of Christ and being the shining epitome of the hypocritical Christian. No, not all Christians are this way, and I hope that my Christian friends realize that I know this. But it is ones like these that threaten to burn down New Age bookshops, that propagate hate and judgement against others, and create websites with URL's like godhatesfags.com. And that, my friends, gets me mighty pissed off.

On a non-religious note, I have another i.t. pet peeve. I think I need to make a list of these "The Top Ten Things That Piss I.T. Tech's Off". Today I would like to add to the list the people that call me, or come to me, and say, simply, "My computer is broken." Stop - end of sentence. No explaining what the problem is, no telling me even what part of the computer is malfunctioning. It's as if they think I am some sort of pyschic pc-guru who can magically read their minds. I always have to prompt them with, "Okay. What's it doing?" Shouldn't this be the first thing they tell me anyway? Do you bring your car to the mechanic and say, "It's broken" and leave it there? Or do you give him some sort of explanation, "It's making this weird clicking noise everytime I change gears". Do you go to the doctor and say, "I'm broken"? Or do you give him a list of your symptoms so he can make a good diagnosis? Same thing with computers, people. I cannot touch the machine in front of me and suddenly know what ails it.

And I would just like to say that I feel oh-so sorry for all of those living up north right now. You couldn't pay me a million dollars to exist in such a climate. Not that it's exactly a picnic living in a state where it can go from 30 degrees to 70 degrees in one day (no, I'm not making that up), but there's no way I could live in a place where it's cold - freezing-ass, mind-numbing, teeth-chattering, even-my-damn-asshole-is-cold cold! Uh-uh, no thank you. So, to all those that do, you have my condolences (and warmest wishes).

Until later...

Posted in Email Etiquette, Religion or Something Like It | No Comments »

I’m Dumb

What a weekend I've had!

First, you've got to hear about my latest blonde moment. Remember when I went to the wrong doctor's office and locked my keys in my car? This almost tops that.

I decided, on the spur of the moment, to go to the movies Sunday night. Alone. I've always wanted to go to the movies alone - I don't know why - but I'd never gotten around to it. I decided this was the nite. I had 20 minutes to get ready and get there (it isn't far from my apartment), but I also had to stop and get gas in the car. I thought about waiting on the gas until after the movie, but I didn't feel like possibly getting stranded at the theater (Irony #1).

By time I got to the theater, I was in a mad rush. I made a hasty decision to leave my purse and only bring myself and my cash. I was in such a hurry that one thought zoomed through my mind as I shut the car door - "you just locked the keys in there". Oh well, no time to worry about it now. I went in and watched "Cold Mountain" (very good - just don't go see it if you're already kind of down - it's rather depressing) and came back out to hunt down a payphone. Not wanting to get stranded at the theater indeed. It took 30+ mins for my rescue to come.

You see, I was in Baret's car - but my car keys were on the same keyring as the ones locked in his car. He had to get one of my friends to come pick him up and bring him to the theater - thankfully he had an extra key for his car.

Irony #2 - The Main Irony of the Night - had to be the gigantic poster ad that I couldn't stop looking at in the theater lobby as I waited. It was for a Mazda vehicle (of course) and said in big, white letters: LIGHTS. CAMERA. CAR KEYS. Cute.

Yesterday I had off from work - yea! The reason was the inauguration of our new governor, Kathleen Blanco; Louisiana's first female governor. I thought it was pretty cool that she said her vows in English and Cajun French - a heritage that is truly dying from our state.

Baret had to be present at the ceremony, and he called me about mid-day to inform me that a particular crowd had arrived that I might have an interest in.

"They're here," he told me.

"They who?"

"The crazy Christian people with the crazy signs - from the website."

I knew exactly who he was talking about - my old friends at Westboro Baptist Church. We'd spent a holy Sunday perusing their site - and laughing our asses off (mixed with a good bit of honest bewilderment). These people...how can I find the words?

If you're curious as to what they're all about, I believe their URL sums it up nicely:
godhatesfags.com. Yes it is, and yes, they do.

They seem to think being gay or being accepting of gay people is the #1 worst sin that can be committed. They readily admit that, to them, God is not Love, God is Hate. They are also anti-American - some of their signs are upside down American flags. You might remember them from their picketing at the funeral of poor Matthew Shepard. Why would they put this poor family through more torment - what could the possibly have to say of such a tragic event? Well, I think this sums it up pretty well.

Our wacky friends at Westboro Baptist Church claim in their "Purpose" statement:
"GOD HATES FAGS" -- though elliptical -- is a profound theological statement, which the world needs to hear more than it needs oxygen, water and bread."

Yes, now knowing this, I, too, no longer feel the need for air or sustenance. It must be a miracle.

Truly, these people are demented. If you want a hoot, take a moment to check out their FAQ.

And what, you may ask, were the asshats of WBC doing picketing the inauguration of Louisiana's governor? I don't follow politics, but my best friend (who is gay) told me he read that she is all for gay rights. That's enough to bring the the freaks a-callin' - resplendent with their "Thank God for 9-11" and "Fags Burn In Hell" signs a-wavin'. What I wonder is what the fucktards would've done had they realized they were standing across the street from Baton Rouge's biggest gay neighborhood?

Really, I don't have to dog on 'em all that much - they make themselves look worse than I ever could, talented wordsmith or not. The scary thing is that there are gullible enough idiots out there that listen to and follow this man. I'm not Christian, so it's not for me to say - but if I were, I would be infuriated that such hateful people smeared my religion's name by calling it their own.

And I must leave you with this thought-provoking license plate that I saw yesterday. It said only:

4 Bush

As I sat and pondered over exactly which p-word representation of "bush" he was referring to I realized - either way you look at it - that's a pretty twisted thing to put on your license plate.

Posted in Baret, Non-Blonde Moments, Religion or Something Like It | No Comments »

Shower Mom…With Flowers

So I'm flipping through some ecards after just sending one to a friend who's had a run of bad luck, and I decide to look at the "Mom" ones. Maybe I can send one to my Mom who I haven't talked to in a few days and who I missing hanging out with. But they only offered one free "Mom-ecard" (sorry, Ma, your daughter's cheap) and it truly disturbed me. It said, upon clicking:

"All Mom's Should Be Showered With Flowers".

Sweet enough, right? After clicking again, however, it read:

"Mom, let me shower you!"

Somehow that just seems wrong.

I keep getting these amazing (amazingly stupid and irritating) emails at work.

One yesterday was a collection of art prints done by some woman of Jesus smiling and doing various things.

The email read "There's a new concept, Jesus smiling!! Isn't it beautiful?"

As I scrolled through the pictures, wondering how this huge email made it through the mail server, I was struck by the same thought that always appears when viewing pictures of "Jesus": Hi, Leonardo!

My little joke refers to the beliefs that Leonardo da Vinci is the one who faked the Turin Shroud, imparting his own image onto it. Since this seems to be one of the main sources of "this is how Jesus looked", I always make that joke. I don't know if the da Vinci story is true, but I've read some very credible findings that could back it. Whoever the white-skinned, soft brown-haired, baby blue-eyed man whose image is referred to as "Christ" is, he isn't Jesus.

Jesus was a dark-skinned Jew, not a pale-skinned European. I doubt his hair was fair, flowing and soft or that he ever wore white robes (not really conducive to the nomad lifestyle 'ole J.C. supposedly lived). So why do Christians hold so fervently to this iconography?

Worshippers of Pagan religions are considered polytheistic - as in they worship more than one god. In actuality, Pagans understand that All That Is can be worshipped in any form, as It is part of and in everything. The different iconic gods and goddess are all merely representations and different facets of the one, great power that is God & Goddess (the male and female energy of All That Is). The reason for this explanation is to wonder, then, if Christians worship an obviously false concept and image of Jesus Christ, and he is simply an extension of their one, great God - is this not the same? They know this isn't the true face of Christ (unless they're really stupid), yet they believe that it is a perfectly acceptable thing to worship as a representation of him. It is quite astounding, if you've never looked into it before, the blurring of the lines between Christianity and Paganism. They aren't as far removed as most Christians would like you to believe.

With that, I'm out for today. Have a good one.

Posted in Email Etiquette, Family, Religion or Something Like It | No Comments »

Wine on Sunday

I have taken up a personal crusade. It is something that has irritated me and even infuriated me since I first learned of its existence. I plan to write and rally and bitch and yell until the law that bans the sell of alcohol in East Baton Rouge Parish on Sundays is lifted!!

I refuse to accept a Christian ideal or preference being shoved down my throat by the government. The government should not be allowed to be religiously prejudiced. In fact, for all the ignorant outcries that we're taking "God out of America", I have this to quote, from our first president:
"The government of the United States is not, in any sense, founded on Christian religion."
- George Washington, Treaty of Tripoli in 1796

I might could even accept this slight aggravation on Sundays if it were not for the fact that this law is ridiculous - even, obviously, to those that uphold it. You see, you cannot buy liquor on Sundays - but you can buy BEER after 12:00 noon!! If this was such a huge religiously inspired regulation, okay. But the fact that they allow you to buy BEER simply because they were losing too much money banning all alcohol is a slap in the face. If the law can be bent, it can be abolished.

I happen to love a bottle of Chardonnay on a Sunday afternoon. It's one of my favorite treats. I can't tell you the times I've tried to purchase one - only to be reminded that I cannot purchase alcohol on Sunday. I used to do my grocery shopping on Sundays - and would stock up on all needed liquors for the coming weeks. Beer and much wine - but the wine always had to be put back.

Perhaps I am a Wiccan, needing a bottle of wine for an impromptu ceremony. I'm going to have to drive to another parish to get it.

This law is wrong. It's religiously discriminatory. It is shoving another's beliefs and ideals down the peoples' throats. It has no business being on the law books!! And this little hippie-heathen is going to do everything she can to get it off!

Posted in Exposition, Rankled, Religion or Something Like It | No Comments »

WWJD? Jesus Would Hold the Door for the Chick on Crutches

If I'm griping, you know I'm feeling better.

While Rush Limbaugh shouldn't have said what he said - simply because people are over-sensitive - it still isn't fair. You see, if some black commentator had made a comment such as, for example, "There's nothing special about Larry Byrd. The media's just shocked that a white boy can play ball." nobody would've thought a thing about that.

And on another note, I'm beginning to wonder - what ever happend to consideration and common courtesy in our society? Does anyone notice a severe lacking of these two things in the world at large? Does that bother anyone else?

Never is this more clear to me than when I travel to Angola State Penitentiary to visit someone dear to me. No, it isn't the inmates that are uncouth; in fact, most of them are deeply religious and extremely kind individuals. It is the people that are going there to visit their loved ones. You would think the common bond of everyone there having someone they love locked away would make a sort of comradeship, and to some extent there is. But mostly, I see a lot of rude and selfish people who are nothing but a huge group of hypocrites.

These are people that come straight from church still dressed in their Sunday finest and singing the praises of Jesus. No, I'm not making that up - they literally walk into the room and yell out "Jesus loves you! I love you! Praise Jesus!" These same people try to jump in front of me and nearly knock me down when going for the door - I'm on crutches, you know. These same people get on the bus and sit right down in the two front seats set aside for the handicapped - because they're lazy or feel self-important. And when I struggle my way up the bus steps (this is not an easy task for me), they give me this defiant look - as if to say, "I'm not moving." Have you ever walked down a bus aisle on crutches?

I don't get angry, I just get upset. You know that I'm not a Christian, but I believe a lot of the messages from Jesus (who I do believe existed and was a prophet - but I do not believe was 'the only son of God'). And every time I want walk up to them and quote that passage about "everytime you helped a stranger, you were helping me." How can people be so selfish and uncaring when it comes to their fellow man? I know that's a dumb question. The human race as a whole is just awful. Unless it's a crisis - like 9/11 when everyone joined together to help their neighbor - humans suck at compassion and consideration.

When I was first on the crutches, and not very good at it yet, I was leaving a restaurant. My friend was still at the counter, getting her change, and I was standing at the door. A woman had walked in and I asked her if she could open the door for me, please. I was very polite - even self-effacing because I hated having to ask for help. She let out a big, aggravated sigh and rolled her eyes. She opened it, cutting me daggers with her eyes the entire time.

It's not that I'm asking for sympathy, or even a kind hand, simply because I'm on crutches. I'm using this as an example to show how awful mankind can be. When you see the less fortunate, the down-trodden - aren't you supposed to help them? Or, at least, just smile or be kind? Aren't you supposed to do that to everyone?

On a lighter note - October is the beginning of good things. Good things never happen to me in September; in fact, very horrible things do. So I'm elated that it's over and it's all going to get better from here. So, I'm not in just a gripey mood - but a light-hearted one.

Favorite junk email title of the day:

evilteencunts

WTF?

Also - food for thought: Did you know the meaning of the word "sensual" is actually (or, at least, was originally):

deficient in moral, spiritual, or intellectual interests.

Posted in Exposition, Religion or Something Like It | No Comments »