Christmas.
Its pretty much over. We can tell because the stores are gearing up for Valentines Day. Eggnog can still be bought, but we're coming close to the last batch of the season. People are either returning their gifts or returning them. Some people may be saving their gifts to hand off to some poor schlub, but, lets not deal with those bastards.
I wanna talk about this particular bastard.
I got an iPod. hell. Yes.
I've been buying more crap from the iTMS than I have in months. Hell, I'm buying episodes of This American Life for christ's sake. I'm playing with iTunes, making playlists and correcting my id3 tags. If I hadn't felt like a loser before, I'd be doomed now.
Anyway, I should sleep. I have things to do. Things like...clean my room, sleep and such and such.
Goddamn, but Blogger is against me today. Anyway, I wanted to write this for all to see: an example of my family interactions.
"Fairytale of New York. Ah, What would christmas be without Drunken Irishmen singing?"--Gina, age 10
"Chanukah"--Me, age 27
I only have a few minutes before I have to get ready for work... I had a lot I wanted to say, but I've been working on other things...such as finding games and utilities for my Palm Pilot.
I have this plan to visit friends all over the country every month. It seems more ambitious than it really is. I just have the money and at least one day off per month...so why the hell don't I travel?
The answer to that, and other questions, may happen later today. In any event, time for work.
So, I think Will is the only person who regularly comments on my blog. I'd like more people to comment, but, I can't really provide any decent incentive. I mean, if my crappy writing skillz can't get you to write a comment, then nothing can.
I mean, if you people wanted money, you're talking to the wrong person...I mean, reading the wrong website, blog, whatever.
Anyway... I decided on a few things:
1) As much as i love giving gifts, I really need to pay more attention to my money.
2) I'm voting for Dean.
These two things are closely related. I cannot give Dean my money, so I'll probably donate a wee bit o'my time. Why? Because someone has to beat Bush. I'm speaking of a victory more significant than the Appellate Courts saying, "Um, Mr. President. You have to follow the Constitution. Just because you're brother cheated for you, and the Supreme Court gave you the election doesn't meant you can do
Everything you want."
This is why I can't write legal briefs. I use too many sneer quote.
I'm voting for Dean for two reasons: 1) he has the best chance to beat Bush and 2) he doesn't back peddle like Kerry. I'm just not a big fan of Gephardt. Edwards is too green (not environmental, he's just a noob). Kusinich, Braun, Sharpton don't have a chance. I'm very concerned about the Supreme Court....as we should all realize from y2k, our nation's highest court can have a dramatic impact on us.
Maybe later, I'll write about christmas stuff or something personal. right now, I'm torn between looking up more stuff on Dean or just surfing...
The Benefits of Having a Badge
Roughly once a year, I have the opportunity to use my Badge for something. Sometimes it means I get to go into buildings without being searched. Rarely, I get discounts at movie theaters or stores. By far the most exciting thing I get to use my badge for is getting aggressive, punk asses to back off. I was beginning to get worried that I wouldn't get to do that this year, but my fears were completely unfounded. There are enough assholes in the city of Chicago to keep me on my toes...
What happened was this: My mom wanted to have dinner with my brother in the city, and after much debate we settled on a some French Bistro in Wicker Park. Traffic wasn't bad, but parking was insane. I decided to give into the Valet system, as I didn't want to have my mom walk far. Anyway, as we pull around the block, we see my brother waiting for us on the corner to make sure we didn't get lost. I roll down the window so my mom can say something. As I was beginning to be insulted by my brother's lack of faith, some guy crosses the sidewalk in front of my car. I then hear my brother say the next few phrases:
"Relax. Is it that big of a deal to take two steps to the left?"
"I said relax, you could go around the car."
"What are you going to do about it?
I see the guy walking back to stare down my brother. This is dangerous, because Tony also has an event that occurs once a year. This event is known far and wide as Tony's Destressing time. It consists of my brother yelling at someone other than myself, or very rarely, a violent act directed towards anyone. The violent acts only come into play when he feels that someone he care about is being threatened. Given the proximity of my mom, and given that today was Chemo day, I'm sure he was ready to have his Destressing time...
I'm not sure my mom was aware of the male posturing that was going on outside of the car, but I was. I quickly turned right, and parked the car. I didn't bother to turn it off. My mom got out and started towards teh building, and then noticed that a short man (5' 4") was standing very close to my brother.
This is the time where I brought out my badge.
I walked up and said, "Is there a problem here?" in the same tone of voice used by cops, gym teachers and other individuals who like to be condescending.
he replies, "This guy is talking shit."
I retort, showing the man my star, "IS there a problem here?"
He responds, "What fuck is this?"
I reply, "Its my star. My badge. Now, why don't you back off?"
My brother says, rather cheerfully, "Its a star, he's my brother, what the fuck are you going to do now?"
Guy looks at my brother, and says, "He's talking shit."
I say, getting ready to explain how he can get arrested for laying a hand on me, and I can still (legally) kick his ass, "Why don't you back off now before we have a problem."
He, getting angry, says, "What the fuck?"
I say, "I'm going to count to five. If you're not out of my face by the time I hit five, we'll have a problem. 1...2...3..."
He walks away at three.
I yell after him, "Best idea you've had all night sir!"
Tony and I discussed this for about a fifteen minutes afterward, and we both agreed that we kept our cool mostly because our mom was there. She was a bit taken aback by the display, but not completely surprised. Tony explained it best, "I was looking after mom, and that jerk was just trying to pick a fight. He didn't have to say anything to mom, and he could have walked to steps to the left to avoid the car." I figured he had calmed down enough, as he used the word jerk instead of asshole. Tony only swears when upset... I, however, was jittery for another fifteen minutes. Its amazing how quickly we were ready to do something incredibly stupid, and then how quickly we were able to calm down. Everyone at dinner--Jackie, Tony's girlfriend, and Mike, our long time friend--was astonished as well.
Tony and I, I believe, didn't think it was a big deal. It was something that we know our dad had done a couple of times in his life. We just overreacted in typical Gleason fashion. Still, it was a very predictable over reaction.
Vacation's don't end. Real life just catches up Damn quick
Real life catch up #1: My huge raise was just a lie.
It turns out that the County, in their efforts to be either devious or stupid, decided to tack on my retro pay with my last pay check. So, this time, I get taxed more money. Great job guys! Keep up the good work!
Real life #2: I am not your child's parent
Parents need to tell their children that they cannot go out and smoke weed whenever they want. That is what college is for. It is not my job tell children or enforce the rules of the home. I suppliment the rules of the home, I do not replace them. So, parents, if you're reading this, don't be afraid to ground your kids. If they give you lip, walk away. If they start to act up, lock them in. If they run away, call the cops, then call me.
Real Life #3: Phone calls to strangers
My mom has a friend who has a niece. I'm supposed to call her to help her get a job in Probation. She called me to "answer my questions about social work" while I was visiting Brian and Debz. Sound Fishy? Yeah, that's without me mentioning the "Match Making?" email I saw. So what does my mom ask me when she is about to sleep? "Did you call that Girl, ever?" Like a dutiful son, I called her and sounded like a bumbling idiot. Contrary to a number of moronic romantic comedies, it is not cute to be a bumbling idiot. I did my job and planed my foot squarely in my mouth. I am not keen on talking to complete strangers over the phone, unless i'm at work and i've identified myself as a probation officer. Then, for some odd reason, things seem to go oh so much easier.
Anyway, the transition back to Real Life is much easier when you have a plan to visit the West Coast for New Years.
One of my friends needs to learn how to draw, so we can have a webcomic.
Yeah, I know that a number of them tank, and even more aren't funny, but it sounds like a great idea.
