Travelling blues

Travelling always puts me in sort of a down-on-KC type of mood. It doesn't really hit until after I've been back a day or two. I think it takes that long for me to process the contrasts of where I've just been to where I am. The honest truth is, I've never visited a place that I didn't thoroughly like more than KC. This place is horrible. The climate, the culture, the politics... the only thing it has going for it is the church I go to, my friends, and family. That's all the really important stuff, anyways, so I'm good with that. But it would be nice to enjoy the same people with a much more enjoyable back drop.

What triggered this for me was the humidity. We just returned from Albuquerque last Wed night. They are over a mile high and in the desert. It was hot, sure, but never reached 100 and there was zero humidity. The air was fresh and clean. The air was also thin enough to boost my riding speed by a solid 4mph! The views are incredible. Not only is the landscape scenic, but the thinner atmosphere and high mountains lends itself to spectacular skyscapes. Oh that we remembered the camera! It has been a long time since I've seen the moon with such clarity and so large, and it kept popping in and out of the clouds which were wreathed around it with some dramatic style. The moon there must shine five times brighter than it does here in the lowlands.

2008 Voting Guide: Which lizard best suits you?

Percussivity duped me into reading his favorite pentalogy, The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy (which at least I could read for free online as opposed to buying a hard copy cleaverly disguised as a Bible so I could read it during church services like some people). In book four, 'So long, and thanks for all the fish', there is a very profound passage that really spoke to me about the current conundrum of American presidential politics.

To set the background for you a bit: a spaceship has just boldly landed in the middle of London, on the earth as we know it...

After a long, heart-stopping moment of internal crashes and grumbles of rending machinery, there marched from it, down the ramp, an immense silver robot, a hundred feet tall.
It held up a hand.
``I come in peace,'' it said, adding after a long moment of further grinding, ``take me to your Lizard.''
Ford Prefect, of course, had an explanation for this, as he sat with Arthur...
``It comes from a very ancient democracy, you see ...''
``You mean, it comes from a world of lizards?''
``No,'' said Ford, ``nothing so simple. Nothing anything like so straightforward. On its world, the people are people. The leaders are lizards. The people hate the lizards and the lizards rule the people.''
``Odd,'' said Arthur, ``I thought you said it was a democracy.''
``I did,'' said Ford. ``It is.''
``So,'' said Arthur, hoping he wasn't sounding ridiculously obtuse, ``why don't people get rid of the lizards?''
``It honestly doesn't occur to them,'' said Ford. ``They've all got the vote, so they all pretty much assume that the government they've voted in more or less approximates to the government they want.''
``You mean they actually vote for the lizards?''
``Oh yes,'' said Ford with a shrug, ``of course.''
``But,'' said Arthur, going for the big one again, ``why?''
``Because if they didn't vote for a lizard,'' said Ford, ``the wrong lizard might get in. Got any gin?''
``What?''
``I said,'' said Ford, with an increasing air of urgency creeping into his voice, ``have you got any gin?''
``I'll look. Tell me about the lizards.''
Ford shrugged again.
``Some people say that the lizards are the best thing that ever happened to them,'' he said. ``They're completely wrong of course, completely and utterly wrong, but someone's got to say it.''
``But that's terrible,'' said Arthur.
``Listen, bud,'' said Ford, ``if I had one Altairan dollar for every time I heard one bit of the Universe look at another bit of the Universe and say `That's terrible' I wouldn't be sitting here like a lemon looking for a gin. But I haven't and I am...''

I hope this guide helps some of you to sort out this election, especially for those who are going to vote for 'Party A' simply to stop 'Party B' from gaining a victory. A vote for 'A' or 'B' is really a vote for the lizards. Choose wisely, lest the wrong lizard should win! And thanks to Percussivity for taking a few minutes to create the pic for this post!

Amused.

Not in the sense of being entertained, but rather of being uninspired. I simply have nothing to say, but felt it necessary to say something if, for no other reason, than to break the awkward silence. I also wanted to avoid having my blog get egged with premature declarations of death or ambivalence and other malevelont things. Hence there is some necessity in not having too much time pass between posts.

Percussivity has finally found a way of getting me to read the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. The best line so far is definitely... "Rome wasn't burnt in a day." I'm saving that one for just the right occasion- likely a meeting at the City- as a sniper spends time sanding down a bullet meant for a special target.

Speaking of sniping, last weekend I got to play paintball for the first time in probably ten years. I had a terrible time with fog on the lenses but, nevertheless, it was an awesome time. My son is now hooked, too, which is even more awesome because it means I will get to revive that part of my life but now with my son. Freaking awesome!