Uncensored Thoughts

Wii

2008-07-19T17:01:00.000-05:00

I'm so excited, I just bought a Wii and a Wii Fit today.

My brother bought one last year and I was excited to see that the entire family (including my mom who never plays any video games) was getting into it. It actually has become a way for everyone to bond during holidays. My brother kepts bugging me and telling me to get one. I resisted saying that I would just come home from work and bowl and that was the last thing I needed.

Then we got my brother the Wii Fit for his birthday at the end of May and as soon as I tried it, I said now I have to get this. I've been on the lookout for them, but as anybody who is trying to get one knows, they are a hot commodity. But I was feeling lucky today and was happy to find that a K-Mart in the city had 2 of the Wii Consoles left (I got the last one) and Best Buy had 56 Wii Fits when I called and there were only 5 left in the store when I got mine. I just went on Amazon.com to get my extra remote control, remote control chargers, and Wii Fit battery charge pack.

RCN - Last Straw

2008-06-30T17:48:00.000-05:00

You know, I've posted about RCN in the past. I had enough at my old place and canceled all services with them back in April last year. You might remember my I Hate RCN post.

But then I bought my condo and our building has a contract with RCN so I pay $19.01 a month in my assessments for basic cable. I decided to treat myself at the end of last year and I called up RCN and got their extended package. I got the little converter box along with all of the premium channels. Granted HBO was only free for 3 months, but I thought it was reasonable to pay an additional $18.48 for all the other channels, plus on demand, and you gotta love that little guide that pops up.

Then today, I got my bill and it was $29.32. WTF? When I called up they said that my original rate was only for 6 months. I told them that nobody ever told me that when I signed up. All I was told was that HBO was free for 3 months. Since I already pay $19, if they are going to add another $10 to my bill, I'll just cancel. The guy on the phone tried to give me a $10 discount for 12 months, but that was only for internet or phone service so he couldn't give it to me.

So I just canceled. When he told me that I was charged for 2 days (yesterday and today), I asked if the cable would be shut off at midnight. He said no it should be shut off now. So I confirmed that I had to pay for today, yet it was already shut off and he said yes. That just made my decision to cancel all the better.

Although I would've liked to have been able to watch tonight's episode of Weeds before canceling, I used to watch it online before and I can do so once again. I will miss on demand however. But with the extra $18.48 in my budget each month, I might just go an reinstate my Netflix subscription.

Meditation

2008-06-16T21:37:00.004-05:00

I discovered Meetup.com a couple of months ago and joined a Weekly Meditation Group. I've been going for the past 11 weeks and it has really made a difference in my life. I'm thinking it has even helped with (what some have called) my bouts of ADD. = )

I don't know why it took me so long to find meetup, but it really is a great way to meet people. That's one of the reasons why I haven't been blogging alot lately, just been busy going out, enjoying the city, and meeting new people.

Corporate Challenge

2008-05-22T22:41:00.002-05:00

Well I did it once again. I completed the Corporate Challenge for my second year in a row. It wasn't too bad this year. I think the cold weather helped me out alot. Even though we seemed to find out about it later this year and I had less time to train, I'm pretty impressed with how well I did. As I was running on the treadmill these last couple of weeks, my goals was to get the 3 1/2 miles done anywhere between 45 minutes and an hour. Tonight I jogged/walked/ran it in 39 minutes. I probably could have done it even faster if I didn't exert so much energy walking around for 30 minutes before the race trying to find our company's tent. My parents even came to cheer me on. Its kind of funny because I always have some kind of family support there. Last year my brother came out and this year my parents. I guess they know I'll never do a marathon so they might as well come and see me do this. = )

I hope everyone has a happy and safe Memorial Day Weekend!

21C Museum Hotel

2008-04-30T15:16:00.003-05:00

I realize that my last couple of posts haven't really been positive, so I figured I would blog about something more positive today.

I've never really been a huge fan of Louisville, KY (probably because my old corporate headquarters used to be here). However, I just got into town and I'm staying at this awesome hotel. It's called 21C Museum Hotel. It is a cross between a contemporary art museum and a hotel. Not only are the rooms awesome (there is an iPOD and docking station in here), but the hallways, and everything are really cool.

I took some pictures on my blackberry and I'm in the process of posting them all on FlickR.

Just Getting Comical Now

2008-04-26T10:21:00.002-05:00

Just when I thought my adventure was coming to an end ....

Well we finally landed in Chicago a little after 11pm. I took the L (Chicago's subway/elevated track system) and a bus to the airport since I left right around rush hour time. However, by the time I got my bag it was around midnight and I didn't think the bus ran that late so I decided to screw it and just take a cab. That is until I went outside to the cab line and it was about a block long and when I asked people said it wasn't really moving.

At that point, I thought screw it, I'll just take the blue line and if the bus isn't running, I can take a cab home from there. So I got on the blue line and after looking at the map and the fact that it was close to 1am at this point, I was trying to remember where I had to go when a nice guy got up and asked where I had to get to and explained to me that starting on Friday night, they start construction on the blue line so we actually only go 2 stops, then have to get off the train and a bus will take us to the next 2 blue line stops and at the second one, you can get back on the train to go home. I along with a couple of other people who thought the blue line would be better than waiting for a cab, were starting to see the error of our ways, but at this point it was too late.

At any rate, at least the bus was there waiting for us and although it seemed like forever, got us back to the blue line. During the bus ride, I decided to call a cab to pick me up at my stop. I told the cab company, I would be there in about 20 minutes, and asked if a cab could be there by then. He said they would call back with a confirmation. So a couple of minutes later they called back with my cab number. Then a couple of minutes after that, I get a call saying my cab is waiting for me, how long should they wait (at this point you can only have them wait 5 minutes) so I did. Knowing good and well that I was still on the bus and I asked the cab to be there in 20 minutes and only 5 or 6 minutes had past, but I thought screw it. If the cab got there that quickly, there are probably plenty in the area.

So we finally get back to the blue line and although the only way that you can get there is by walking or taking the bus, it still decided to wait there for a good 5 to 10 minutes. Keep in mind, I only had to go 2 more stops after this and the wait was starting to get on my nerves. Although there were two nice guys on my train and the one guy gave the other guy a beer and asked if I wanted one. Since I don't drink beer, I had to decline, but we started talking and it made the wait go by a little quicker.

I don't know how it happened, but as soon as I got off the train and got my barings on the street and started walking to the corner, a cab saw me and stopped. Here, I thought my luck had changed. I hopped in and he put my bag next to me so I decided to scoot over to the other side of the minivan seat. I sat there for a second and was like, something feels wet and/or cold. I wasn't sure if it was just my ass not used to the cold outside or if it was actually wet. So I moved over a little more and was like yeah that's wet. At this point I felt the seat and my pants (keep in mind it is almost 2am at this point and I'm a little slow) and confirmed it. So I moved over and asked the cab driver if someone spilled something. He reached over and felt the seat and then smelled it and was half annoyed and half laughing. He was like damn it, I just cleaned this cab. He then said that he just dropped off this older lady who was drunk and when she got out of the cab, he thought he noticed the back of her dress wet, but he didn't think she urinated in his cab. I was like ewww gross, I just sat in someone elses urine. I was hoping someone spilled a beer or something, but then I thoroughly disgusted. Not only was my ass wet, but I also touched the seat and now I didn't want to touch anything until I could get home and disinfect.

The cab driver was a nice guy, and I felt bad that he now had to clean it up. But as soon as I got home, I peeled off my clothes and hopped in the shower to disinfect. I guess I should only hop in cabs with those vinyl seats from now on. That way at least you can see the liquid on top of the seat if its wet.

Airline Update

2008-04-25T20:12:00.002-05:00

I really appreciate it when said air traffic control (see earlier post) delays my flight just in time for the storm to go through Chicago so my flight can be delayed even more. Then I appreciate it even more when United waits until the we are cleared to check their equipment to find out the hydraulics aren't working properly. I appreciate it even more when another plane arrives, but when our 3 flight attendants and pilots are asked if they are willing to work overtime to get us all home and the pilots and only 1 flight attendant say yes so we can wait another hour and a half for a new crew.

Scheduled flight departure: 2:43pm
Estimated flight departure: 9:15pm

Priceless!

And they wonder why they lost their pensions.

You Suck Air Traffic Control

2008-04-25T14:21:00.002-05:00

OK Well maybe not all air traffic control, but definitely those in charge of the Chicago OHare airport. This is the second time in about a month where my flight has been delayed a couple of hours because air traffic control has shut down the airport.

The first time was Sunday, March 30th. I was flying from Austin, Texas to Chicago and I was already going to land around 9pm and thought that might be a little late and then I ended up getting home after midnight. Not my idea of a fun time when I have to get up and go to work the next day. That time it was because there was alot of air traffic and they were staggering flights to ease traffic or something like that.

I'm not really sure what the deal is now, but I've already been at the New Orleans airport for about 2 hours and now I find ou that my 2:43pm flight isn't going to takeoff until around 5:45pm and I'm not a happy camper. If I would've known this, I would've spent another couple of hours on Bourbon Street. But no, now I'm stuck in the damn airport.

Now before I get a bunch of nasty comments, I know that air traffic control has a really hard, stressful job and I know they are responsible for landing all of the flights and do a damn good job of it, blah, blah, blah. But as I'm sure everybody knows, we don't realize how good of a job people do until something goes wrong. But that doesn't give me much solice right now.

Well now that I purged that out of my system, I think I'm going to go and find a bar. Happy Jazz Fest everyone!

2008 CORPORATE CHALLENGE

2008-04-22T20:26:00.002-05:00

Well I went and did it again. Since I moved into my place about 9 months ago, I've vowed to check out our workout facilities and well ... actually workout. I just canceled my Bally's membership since they are charging me $16 a month to just sit at home and watch TV after work and not use their facilities either.

So yesterday we got the email at work that our company was joining the 2008 Corporate Challenge and I decided to signup for the second year in a row. I figured this would force me to go to the gym to prepare for the 5K or 3 1/2 mile run. And yes, I actually have to train to run 3 1/2 miles.

I just got back from the gym in my building. It took me almost an hour but I walk/jogged/ran 3 1/2 miles. I figured since I still have about a month, I should have plenty of time to improve that time.

Along with getting me in shape, it is also for a good cause. If anybody is going to be in the neighborhood, come on down to Grant Park to cheer us all on. It should be a fun event.

2008 Beneficiary:
Bears Care Organization

Bears Care is committed to improving the quality of life for people in the Chicagoland community, especially disadvantaged children and their families, through targeted programs supporting education, youth athletics, and medical research and health awareness programs focusing on breast and ovarian cancer.

DATE: MAY 22nd
TIME: 7:10 pm
@ GRANT PARK

Airplane Etiquette 101

2008-04-02T22:28:00.000-05:00

I was in Austin, Texas at the end of last week for work and I decided to make it a Thursday/Friday meeting so I could spend the weekend there and visit family. It was my first time in Austin, so I decided to make the most of it and booked a 5:30pm flight home on Sunday.

I should know better than doing stuff like that because I was thinking landing in Chicago at 8pm would be kind of late. Then of course Chicago had to get foggy and air traffic control decided to slow traffic down and I ended up sitting in the airport for an extra hour and a half and then on the plane for an extra hour and a half waiting for clearance. This is what brings me to the topic for today, airplane etiquette.

When I boarded the plane, I was suppose to have an aisle seat next to a younger guy (I don't know if he was still in college or a recent grad) and he said his friend was sitting in the window seat in front of him and he was wondering if I would like to switch seats so they could sit together and talk. I figured I don't really need the aisle since there were only 2 seats on each side so I figured I would be nice and so I swapped. Although I did say, depending on who sits next to me, I might change my mind. And he laughed and said he totally understood because he had to sit next to some smelly guy on the flight down.

I thought I had lucked out when the plane finished boarding and the seat next to me was free.

What I didn't know was that the guy sitting behind me was worse than a 3 year old and while we were sitting on the runway decided to play with the tray putting it up and down and constantly hitting the back of my seat in the meantime. I mean really people, do you think I can't feel that shit. No one is happy just sitting on the runway for over an hour, but do you have to make it worse by constantly knocking my chair? Trying to keep my patience I just switched to the aisle seat, hoping his friend was a little more courteous.

Then I figured I would make the most of our delay and read the book for which our company reading group was meeting about next week. Since my seat wasn't constantly being kicked, I figured I wouldn't get motion sickness at this point, but noooooooooooo Beavis and Butthead behind me don't know how to hold a conversation in a normal voice. Luckily I had my iPod with me and I have a relaxation/meditation track that runs for about an hour. So I was able to pump up the volume on that to drown out their conversation and still be able to concentrate on my book. Needless to say I finished the entire book after about 30 minutes into the flight and didn't feel the least bit guilty to recline my chair to the fullest.

You know at this point, I think everybody knows where the damn emergency exits are, how to fasten their seatbelt, and that the seat cushion can be used as a floatation device. What we should really hear at the beginning of every flight is airplane etiquette 101.

1. The person in front of you has feelings too, stop kicking your seat, fumbling around in the seat cushion, and playing with the tray table. Get your shit situated and sit still. This isn't romper room damn it.

2. If you know someone else on the plane, good for you, but the rest of us would like a quiet flight so shut the fuck up. Don't shout across the aisle or better yet stand in the aisle talking to people. This isn't the lunch room.

3. If someone is reading, listening to their iPod, or watching a movie on their laptop they don't want to shoot the shit with you. Take a hint buddy. If you want to say hi before takeoff, fine, but then shut your trap. Most people don't even like to introduce themselves until landing. That way you can get the pleasantries out of the way and then de-board the plane. I'll be cordial enough to help pass your drink to and from the flight attendance, but no talking is required. Unless you want to buy me a drink and then I'll say thank you and get my drink on.

Uh Huh Her North American Tour Dates Announced...

2008-03-20T20:01:00.003-05:00

I received this email today and I just bought my tickets to the Chicago concert. Tickets are only $12 a piece in Chicago but Ticketmaster charges $4 per ticket for a convenience charge and then another $4.50 for the order processing. But it is still cheap considering you'll see Leisha Hailey in the flesh.

I don't know about everyone else, but Leisha Hailey is my favorite actress on The L Word so I can't wait to see her in person. AND I've already downloaded some of Uh Huh Her's first songs and I like them. Even though Madonna's new CD comes out on the same day, I'll have to run and get that before the concert starts.

Uh Huh Her

March 20th, 2008

NORTH AMERICAN TOUR!

A tour has finally been announced for Uh Huh Her...beginning April 29th in Chicago, IL. If you don't live in North America, don't worry as more dates will be announced later this year in other parts of the world.

April 29/Chicago, IL/Double Door/Buy Tickets
April 30/Minneapolis, MN/Varsity Theatre/Buy Tickets
April 30/Minneapolis, MN/Varsity Theatre/Buy Tickets
May 1/Lawrence, KS/Jackpot/Tickets On Sale 3/22
May 2/St. Louis, MO/Duck Room/Buy Tickets
May 4/Dallas, TX/The Loft
May 7/Nashville, TN/Exit / In
May 9/Orlando, FL/Social/Tickets On Sale
May 10/Miami, FL/Studio A/Buy Tickets
May 11/Tampa, FL/Orpheum/Buy Tickets
May 12/Atlanta, GA/Vinyl
May 14/Washington, DC/9:30 Club
May 15/Philadelphia, PA/North Star
May 16/Northampton, MA/Pearl Street
May 17/Boston, MA/Paradise/Buy Tickets
May 20/NY, NY/Highline Ballroom/Tickets on sale 3/21
May 21/Montreal, QC/Petit Campus
May 23/Toronto, ON/Mod Club

COMMON REACTION OUT MAY 20TH!

UHH is set to release their new album on May 20th!

Big Wins for Huckabee and Obama

2008-02-10T08:10:00.000-06:00

Unfortunately I was in Phoenix last week for work and couldn't pay as much attention to the Primaries as I had liked, but last night was a bit of a surprise. I was hoping Obama would pull through as he did, but Huckabee? That just cracks me up, the man doesn't have a chance in hell of winning the nomination, but he was the big winner last night. I love to see the Republican party so separated by geography.

According to CNN (my trusted source for news), the Democrats need 2,025 delegates to win, here's where they are thus far ...

Clinton 1,100
Obama 1,039

The big question is what happens to John Edwards' 26 delegates. This is a close race that is going to be fun to watch.

The Republicans need 1,191 delegates to win

McCain 714
Romney 286 (what happens to these delegates?)
Huckabee 217

Romney dropped out because he knew he couldn't catch up to McCain and wanted to do what was best for the Republican party. I guess even though all the other candidates hated Romney, he ended up doing what was best for the party. Huckabee on the other hand, even after Romney dropped out, is still in 3rd place. I think he thinks he is another George Bush and he will win through divine intervention.

Although I think McCain will be harder to beat in the general election, I just don't like Huckabee and I don't know what I would do if we had another upset like 2004 and he ended up being our next president. Call me an "evil doer", but religious extremists of any faith are a dangerous thing.

Uncensored Thoughts Officially Endorses Obama

2008-01-27T13:35:00.000-06:00

Well it was a hard decision, but earlier today I decided to vote for Obama in the Primaries. Luckily there was an early voting place open today so I just got home from casting my vote.

I was on the fence up until today. I read the article in which the New York Times endorsed Hillary saying that she is the only one that has an actual plan for change instead of just talking about change. But then I went to Barack's website and read his Bluepoint for Change to see he has a damn good plan for change too.

Really all of the democratic candidates have similar views on all the major issues. If you want a good overview, check out the CNN issues website where you can click on the issue and see where all of the candidates (both democrats and republicans) stand.

You can also see where Hillary stands on the issues on her website. Although I was kind of disappointed that I couldn't download one document that shows all the issues. Both John Edwards and Barack Obama have these, but on Hillary's website, you have to click on each of the issues to find out more. Not a huge thing, but annoying none the less.

Although all 3 (Obama, Clinton, and Edwards) all pretty much have the same stance, Edwards just doesn't do anything for me. Really the toss-up was between Obama and Clinton. From the beginning I've been a supporter of both and since the issues are so similar I thought it would be cool to elect the first female president. However, over the past couple of weeks I've been disappointed in the way the Clintons have been conducting their campaign. If you are saying you want to be an agent of change why go back to the usual "win at all costs" campaign slander.

Not only that, but from the very beginning I've heard about how some people just hate Hillary and that is what the republicans are counting on to get their voters to the polls on election day. The fact that she is such a polarizing figure doesn't do much to move this country forward for change. We need someone who will unite the United States of America. And although I enjoy living in a blue state, I agree with Barack when he says he wants to be the President of the United States and not a red or blue state.

I'm pulling for Barack. Of course if Hillary wins the primary and gets the democratic nomination, I will support her as well in November, but I just think it won't be as hard of a fight if Barack is our nominee.

Illinois Early Voting

2008-01-26T10:17:00.000-06:00

If you live in Illinois and are registered to vote, you can vote early for the primaries. It doesn't matter where you live in Illinois, you can vote at any of the early voting stations. If you wait until the primaries, you can only vote at your assigned voting place.

If you want to know more, check out this article on the CBS website.

You can also click here to see where all of the Early Voting stations are according to the Illinois State Board of Elections.

You have until the end of the month to vote early so really you have no excuse not to participate in this great democratic process.

Happy Voting!

Funny How History Repeats Itself

2008-01-23T19:06:00.000-06:00

I'm reading this book and just came across an interesting quote and I wanted to share.

It is referencing the 1920's and Prohibition ...

"So, what was the point of the Volstead Act other than religious fundamentalists imposing their radical views on others through political muscle? In retrospect, the Congressional enactment of Prohibition marked the beginning of the end, at least temporarily, for the pre-First World War evangelical movement as average citizens, who had been stunned into silence by the vitriol of the prohibitionists, started rebelling in ways that made the temperance movement shudder."

It's funny how history seems to repeat itself. Once again in this country, we find ourselves fighting the religious fundamentalists. Hopefully the masses will start rebelling sooner rather than later as they did back then. I'm thinking election time is the perfect time.

Metra 10% Rate Increase on Feb 1st

2008-01-15T22:07:00.001-06:00

I was a bit shocked today on the train ride home when the conductor announced that starting February 1st, there will be a 10% rate increase. 10%!!!! WTF! I believe that outpaces inflation just a bit.

I think Springfield needs to get back to work and find a solution to this. Between Pace, CTA, and Metra, if we want Chicago to be a Green city, we might want to think of providing affordable public transportation.

Maybe instead of Daley trying to figure out how to raise my taxes in order to win over the Olympics, he should think about affordable transportation for the residents and those potential International visitors if we were to win the bid for the Olympics.

According to an article in the Tribune, this rate hike will just be the first of many if Springfield can't find a way to fix this.

www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-mxa111707transitp24nov17,0,6151424.story

Car Repairs

2008-01-14T21:30:00.000-06:00

Well I brought my car to the shop today and it ended up costing me $344. I ended up saving about $100 because they were able to get the key out and the sensor stayed in tact so I didn't need to get my key re-programmed.

I'm just keeping my fingers crossed that this will be my only major car expense this year.

Not My Day

2008-01-10T20:43:00.000-06:00

Today has not been my day. It all started this morning. I woke up and got into the shower and after a couple of minutes, my showerhead broke off and I had water spraying everywhere.

I bought this dual shower kit at the end of October and the my lower one just fell apart.

You can see that the part that screws on just broke apart.

Not only did it scare the shit out of me, but when I adjusted the dual shower head so the water only comes out of one showerhead, my water temperature fluctuated dramatically. So instead of my usual hot shower, I got an extremely hot shower followed by an extremely cold shower.

That was annoying, but I figured I still have my receipt and the box so I would just go to Menards after work to exchange it. Then one of my co-workers invited me to a promotional event this evening so we left the office early and he drove me to my car at the train station so I could meet him at the event in the Loop.

He dropped me off at my car, I got in, and then I couldn't get the key into the ignition. I played with it for a couple of minutes before calling my dad. He said my mom had the same problem with her mini-van and asked me if I had a hammer. I did because my mom bought me one of those safety hammers after I locked my keys in the car over a year ago. Unfortunatley the key wasn't only sticking out a little bit but a considerable amount so I couldn't hammer it in. Then my dad said he would call Ford to see if they had any suggestions. They said it sounded like the ignition switch thingy was corroded and I needed it replaced.

My next step was to call AAA and since we have a premier membership, they will tow my car up to 100 miles so I could get it to the repairshop by my parent's house. I wasn't sure how to get back into the city and to work tomorrow, but first things first. So I called around 5:30pm and they said it would be about an hour. At around 6:30pm they called and said the tow truck broke down and they called another company who said that there is a problem with Ford Focuses between 2000 and 2005 with the ignition and that the driver could probably fix it and they wouldn't need to tow my car afterall. But it would be about 40 minutes. I was starting to get cold since it is 37 degrees and raining right now, but I remembered I had some of those hot pickets in my glove box so I moved them around for the 2 minutes in order to get them warmed up and it looks like those things have an expiration date because it didn't get hot and it made my hads black. I tried all 3 and none of them were good.

Finally around 7:30pm after I was freezing, hungry, and had to pee, the tow truck showed up and he was able to get my key all the way into the ignition.

So now I can start the car, but I can't take the key out of the ignition. I'm having my department holiday lunch tomorrow (I know we are a little late) so I'll be damned if I work tomorrow. I'm sure my car will be safe if I lock the doors even if my key is in the ignition. Then I'll just work from my parent's house on Monday while I'm getting the car repaired.

I'm really getting sick of my car repair bills. I bought my condo back in July after having a heart to heart with my car. I thought we had an understanding that it had to last me a couple more years until I'm able to build up my savings account. After all it is only 7 years old and I'm cutting down on my driving by taking the train to work the majority of the time. But nooooooo, I spent $57 on repairs in October and then $615 in November. I'm just hoping that this ignition thing doesn't cost too much.

The L Word Premiere

2008-01-09T20:11:00.002-06:00

I went with a friend to The L Word premiere in Chicago on Sunday. It was fun, but as when you watch anything with a huge group of people, you always miss something because of laughter or applause so of course I had to watch it again on Showtime when I got home. The real reason to go is because they give you the 2nd episode on DVD so you can see it a week before it airs.

I am soooo excited about this season. It looks really good.

Who's your favorite character?

Obama and Huckabee Win Iowa Caucuses

2008-01-03T22:28:00.000-06:00

Well it looks like the 2008 Presidential Election is starting to heat up now.

Obama 38%
Edwards 30%
Clinton 29%

Huckabee 34%
Romney 25%
Thompson 13%
McCain 13%

I can't wait to see what New Hampshire does in 5 days.

I'm still torn between Obama and Clinton. I'm actually shocked that Hillary came in 3rd behind Edwards. I thought it was going to be a toss-up between Obama and Clinton for 1st and 2nd place. I need to do some more research on the where they stand on the issues. I know they say immigration will be the deciding factor in November, but I'm concerned about more than just that.

These are the issues that I want to judge the candidates on:

Environment
- Can I hear about renewable resources (hydropower, windpower, solarpower).
- How about higher fuel standards? Hybrids and technology beyond...

Health Care
- Can every American get it at a reasonable price?
- Will the pharmaceutical companies and the insurance companies stop telling our physicians the best way to treat us?

Education
- Can America be known for the best and brightest once again?
- Is every student who graduates from high school able to read and write?
- Is every high school graduate able to go to college?
- If your smart enough for college, let's find a way to finance it?

Iraq - War on Terror
- When the hell are we getting out?
- Can we use policy to make America safer?

Immigration
- Let's secure our borders (and I don't mean building a wall)
- Let's reward people who do it by the book
- Let's not give people who don't do it by the books an easy out

Homeland Security
- Secure the borders
- Do what the 9/11 commission suggested

Equal Rights
- Keep the separation between church and state.
- Let the churches decide who should get married, and have the states allow all adults to have a civil union. Give all Americans the same rights and privledges.
- Screw don't ask, don't tell. If someone wants to fight for this country, let them do it openly.

Abortion
- Its a woman's right to choose.
- Keep the separation between church and state.
- What's best for a woman's body should be left between her and her physician not the politicians.

Guns
- Let the hunters hunt, but you don't hunt with handguns, and semiautomatic weapons.
- What's wrong with background checks.
- If parents can be held responsible for what happens to kids who drink in their house, why aren't they responsible for what kids do with the weapons in a house.

Stem Cell
- Once again, let's keep the separation of church and state.
- Allow scientists to see the potential of this.

Social Security
- Save my social security
- What happened to my surplus? If your war took my social security money, I want it back.

Taxes
- Cut out the pork, and fund what matters.
- Stop giving corporations and the top 2% a break.
- Let's balance the budget without cutting the programs that matter to the most.

That's all that I can think of at this point, but I reserve the right to add more at any time.

Tis the Season ... To Spend Money

2007-12-28T19:26:00.000-06:00

Well it seems like I'm on a roll this week. I don't know if it is becaues of Christmas or I'm just getting sick of sticking to my budget, but I decided to treat myself this week.

Since my cell phone gets a crappy reception in my building, I decided to bite the bullet and upgrade my home phone. Now at least I have the option to make long distance phone calls if I have to although, I'd prefer to use my cell.

Yesterday I decided that I was sick of basic cable. RCN has a contract with my building so basic cable is included in my assessments each month, but I've decided I want more. So I called yesterday and ordered some premium channels and I am getting all of them. Well HBO is free for 3 months and then I'll cancel that, but now I have digital cable and I'm watching The Preacher's Wife right now. I forgot how much I missed that little guide button and On Demand.

As a side note, what ever happened to poor Whitney Houston. What has she done lately?

Smoke Free Illinois Act

2007-12-22T21:08:00.000-06:00

I'm sorry to all you smoker's out there, but as a non-smoker and someone who is allergic to smoke, I was happy to see that I'm not the only one counting down the January 1, 2008 Smoking Ban in Illinois.

http://www.smokefreeillinois.org/

If your interested in reading the official act, click here.

Now I really can't wait for the New Year. Imagine going out to a bar all night and not smelling like smoke when you get home. OH it will be a beautiful thing.

If you don't live in Illinois, I found this chart on wikipedia that was helpful. Now I have a list of places to visit on vacation.

Click on the picture below and it will open in a new window and you'll actually be able to read the chart.

Chicago's Red Light Cameras

2007-12-10T21:07:00.000-06:00

Since my original post, I've done some research. It turns out someone is already making a map of all of the red light intersections in Chicago (and other cities). However, their list has duplicates. But if you live in a city other than Chicago, this is a great list to start out with.

Thanks to MJ (see comment below), I found that the City of Chicago website lists all of the intersections with Red Light Cameras.

I got the list and mapped all 59 locations of Chicago's Red Light Cameras. Let me know what you think.

I was happy to see that I only pass one red light intersection on my way to the train station every morning.

Chicago Red Light Cameras

2007-12-08T09:20:00.000-06:00

I have had this on my mind for a while now, but I didn't take the time to write about it.

Chicago Red Light Cameras

WTF!!!!!!

This would be a great idea if made the streets of Chicago safer. Instead it is nothing more than a revenue generator. You know, I used to like Daley (before I knew anything about him or what he does), but now that he has raised my property taxes and wants to raise the amount of these tickets (it is already $90), I've had a change of heart.

I got a ticket in the mail a couple of months ago for the intersection of Foster and Western in Chicago. Be careful, there is a camera at this intersection. From the pictures, it was obvious to me that I made a right turn on red. I am usually very cognizant of the No Turn on Red signs so after I got the ticket, I went to the intersection to see if there was a sign there. No signs so I took pictures and was ready to take this ticket to court.

At the hearing, the judge reviewed the case and asked me why I was disputing it. When I told her that I made a turn on red and that wasn't prohibited there and I wasn't sure why I got the ticket. She said that the no turn on red wasn't the issue and asked me how long I was at the light. How in the hell am I suppose to remember was the first response that jumped into my head, but did I was addressing "your honor", I said well from the pictures it looks like I had to wait for a truck in oncoming traffic to complete their left hand turn and then when the intersection was clear, I made the right turn. To that she replied, how long do you think you were there. So I said a couple of seconds. What I didn't know is that along with the pictures that I got in the mail, there is video. So she reviewed the video and then said oh you are so close. This is the closest that I've seen, but technically you didn't make a complete stop and you rolled. She asked if I would like to see the video and I said I sure would and sure enough, I was the closest thing to a stop that you can do, but technically wasn't stopped long enough and was guilty of the $90 ticket. What got me is that she said this is the closest I've seen, but sorry. She also told me there was a guy who did make a complete stop but it was over the white line so he was guilty as well. To that I say WTF? If there was a cop sitting right behind me, he wouldn't have given me a ticket for that. But she did make me feel better when she said this doesn't go on your record as a moving violation. That made me happy because I don't have any moving violations or any violations on my record, but then it just pissed me off. If I did go through a red light, that is a moving violation. The fact that they don't see it that way, just exposes it as a revenue generator.

So I paid the damn ticket, but I vowed to decrease the revenue potential of the city by publishing a website that lists all of the intersections with red light cameras in the city. That way you can blow through all the red lights that you want so long as they aren't at these intersections.

So I'm asking that anyone who has ever gotten a red light ticket to post the intersection in the comments. I will put up a separate website and even map them out so we know which roads to avoid.

I have seen one at the intersection of Peterson and Western and I got a ticket from one on Western and Foster. What about you?

Check it out.

Google - Not Good For Someone with OCD

2007-12-08T08:38:00.000-06:00

OK I'm the first to admit that I have a mild case of OCD. So on a Friday night when I'm too tired to go out and its just damn cold out here in Chicago, I turn to Google for some short-lived entertainment. Combine that with the struggle of cutting off communication with my ex and you can see where I'm going with this.

I did find it to be perfect timing that I decided to Google the ex and a new article was just published yesterday.

Check it out here.

This was one of the problems with our relationship ... religion. I couldn't understand why someone would voluntarily succumb to the censorship of Notre Dame. I thought it would be funny to send an email saying Merry X-mas, but another problem with our relationship was that little things that I thought were funny, weren't interpreted that way. So I resisted the urge and turned to my blog instead.

But I guess I did get a little glimpse into the religious right through this article. Beforehand, I couldn't understand what kind of people could re-elect W, now I see where their priorities are and that logic isn't a good tool to combat it.