Miscarriages and Abortions

This past weekend was pretty special for my family and I. While my brother was in town for Thanksgiving, we met with our priest to name my mom's two miscarriages. First we got to talk with Fr.J about when it happened, and how it affected us. It was difficult to hear my mom talk about those miscarriages. I never realized how much pain something like that can bring, and I never really thought much about it until now. I was too young to remember much of anything, but I guess it had quite an impact on my family, and my mom especially.

It is difficult to think that I have two more brothers. It's like I never really believed it until now. Patrick Hill and Daniel Jacob. What great names. Family names. I knew that my mom had two miscarriages, but it hasn't been until this weekend that it really hit me what that means.

We had a service on Sunday for my brothers. We sang "Memory Eternal." What a fitting song. Memory eternal for two brothers who I have no memory of. I have mixed emotions about the whole thing. It is good to know that they have names, there is something real about being able to call them by name.

So these events have led me to think a bit about abortion and miscarriages and all of that. It is sad to think that some couples actually try to get pregnant, have difficulty doing it, and are devasted when they miscarry. Then there are others who have sex hoping not to get pregnant, are devasted when they do, and are relieved when they can get rid of the Nuisance.

I am obviously against abortion, and find it difficult to understand the opposing view. Please feel free to enlighten me if you or someone you know is pro-"choice." Anyways, those are my thoughts for the day. Feel free to comment.


I am proud to say that Indiana received an "F" in NARAL's "state-by-state report on the Status of Women's Reproductive Rights." See How Your State Did.

Links on the topic:

Pro-Life
Orthodox Church in America's 10th All-American Council
National Right to Life Homepage
LifeNews.com Homepage

Pro-Choice
NARAL: Pro Choice America
Pro Choice Public Education Project

Gobble Gobble

Mmmmmmm...Turkey. I was lucky enough to eat three turkeys in a 22 hour period this past weekend. And it was gooooooood.

First was Wednesday night with the guys. We had a deep fried turkey that Philioque brought to a crispy perfection. Then we chased it down with a little Wild Turkey, compliments of Rab. Then we topped the night off with some Island Texas Hold 'em. Rab took us for a ride. My brother was in town for the night, so that was fun to have him around.

Then Thursday afternoon was spent at the old lady's place. Oven roasted turkey compliments of Patricia. Randy had the great idea of going around the table spelling THANKSGIVING, each person saying something they are thankful for that begins with whatever letter we were on. I thought I was in 3rd grade again when I did that with Christmas cards and such. Jon got the "A" and was thankful for "apples and alcohol," but changed his answer when his wife Allison, while holding baby Annika, gave him a look and said, "No. Now tell us what you really mean." I was thankful for Saturdays, Sundays, and Super Salads. Then we watched the Colts win again.

Then the main event was Thursday around six. Family and friends over at the folks. Slowly smoked turkey compliments of Pops. Lots of laughs, good times. Walkers showed up for dessert and we laughed about old times. Broke out ol' Tilton for a traditional spiritual kick. Then watched the Pacers win again.

It was a great weekend and I have much to be thankful for.

Annoying Blogs: Finally, the Positive side of them

Okay, there are lots of blogs out there that are annoying, and that's understandable. I know not everyone has the same tastes as me, and if the annoying ones weren't out there, I would have nothing to post about today. So there's one good thing.

Also I realize that blogs should be primarily for the benefit of the person writing them, not for the reader. So if you find my blog annoying, I didn't write the stupid thing for you to read. That's another good thing.

Then as I was surfing through some blogs, I got so frustrated at one because it was annoying and a waste of my time, I closed the browser window and stopped surfing. Then I realized what a waste of time it is, even if I find a good blog. So I stopped wasting time reading about things that I don't care about. That's another good thing.

Then I got so bored at work again that I found myself back on the net browsing through boring blogs to pass the time. What would I do at work without them? And that's another good thing.

Steve wrote a post that describes most of the blogging things that annoy me. But the one that inspired this post came from someone who had these on their site:



That's right, you can adopt a "Useless Blob". What? Okay, that was enough for me. Although I guess they are a little fun. Kinda. I guess you could get used to them. I'm kind of attached to the Canadian one. He's a bit slower than the others. Hmm... And the site that these are found on is pretty entertaining. Spacefem.com. Especially the Stick Man Deaths. Check it out.

John Green= Indy's "Bartman"

John Green of West Bloomfield Township has been identified as the person responsible for throwing the cup at Ron Artest in the Pacers-Pistons Brawl. No doubt that he will become to Indianapolis and Pacers fans what Steve Bartman became to Chicago and Cubs fans.

Lets hope that the fans responsible for throwing crap during the game receive their just reward, just as Artest received his. Along with the Pistons and their breakdown in security.


Mark Cuban praises Pacer Fans: "Thank you to all the Pacers fans and the city of Indianapolis."

Hairy Men: Cheer it, or Shear it?

I hope you've all seen the Seinfeld episode where Jerry shaves his chest and is told by Kramer that it'll grow back twice as thick. If you haven't, it's hilarious. This is in fact a wive's tale as Jerry originally believes. Anyways, this episode is the unfortunate inspiration for this post. Reader beware: this post contains material that may upset your stomach and/or question your manhood.

I'm sure we've all had friends who have shaved their legs, or chest or back for one reason or another. I know swimmers who do it all the time. Oh, and I'm talking to the guys here. Of course we know women who shave their legs (hopefully).

This tale is my unfortunate encounter with someone who took shaving a bit too far in my opinion. It was a normal Friday afternoon in a college dorm like any other, where guys were finishing their last classes for the day, and preparing for a fun weekend to come. Myself and a few friends were in our dorm, when we heard a soft humming sound coming from the bathroom. We didn't think much of it, as there were many strange sounds that often came from this bathroom, and this particular sound seemed inoffensive in comparison.

Eventually I had to go use the little boy's room, and my life would never be the same. As I entered the bathroom, the humming noise go louder. I recognized the familiar sound of an electric shaver. Nothing wrong with that. But as I looked to my left, expecting to see a roommate cleaning up for the evening, I saw the raw backside "Steve." He was crouched in the corner with his back facing me, and he was looking over his shoulder like a little boy who's trying to hide something from his parents or something.

I said to Steve, "Steve. What in the name of all things holy are you doing?" Or something to that effect.
Steve: "Man, I'm just shaving my pubes."
Me: "Oh. Okay."
Right. So I went ahead and did my business, and left the room. As I told everyone else in the entire dorm what I had seen, we were all in agreement that this was not normal behavior. A few of us went back into the bathroom to confirm what I had seen, and to figure out why he was doing that.
Steve: "I've got a date tonight and you never know what could happen."
Oh, of course. Well, that explains everything. Okay, carry on then.
Well, we made fun of him for about a half hour or so. Then we made him sanitize the entire bathroom.

So now my question is: should Steve be considered a freak of nature? And believe me, he is, whether this instance warrants that definition or not. And also, shouldn't men just leave what God allows to grow alone? And also, what woman would Steve be doing this for? Don't answer that. Anyways, you don't have to answer any of these questions. I just thought it was a funny story. Please keep your comments as wholesome as possible.

Motown Madness

I'm sure by now everyone has heard about the Pacers-Pistons brawl. I won't bore you with details, because it's all over Sports Center, and eventually we'll hear enough of this to make us all sick. Check the links at the bottom of the post for commentary.

I am already sick. Just watching the highlights is disgusting. I can't believe people act like that. Being a HUGE Pacers fan, I realize that I am extremely biased. I'm also an Artest fan, although I admit that he often seems mentally unstable, and was not justified in his actions. He's definitely an idiot for what he did and I'm sure he'll be punished.

But I'm even more disgusted with the fans of Detroit. I mean, that is just sick what they did. What kind of sick bastard throws beer, chairs, clothing, cups, bottles, and sucker punches at the players they pay to come see? Anyways, I can't really go into it all right now. I'm pretty upset.

I don't know what the NBA is going to do. I just hate that it happened to the Pacers. Hopefully this will ignite Indianapolis fans into being the loudest and toughest crowd to play against...with class.

Next time Pacers and Pistons meet? Christmas Day, here in Indy. Gonna find out who's naughty and nice.

Articles on Pacers-Pistons Brawl:
Associated Press
Local Sportswriter: Bob Kravitz-Indianapolis
Local Sportswriter: Mark Montieth-Indianapolis
Local Sportswriters: M. M. and S. S.-Indianapolis
Mark Stein-ESPN
Local Sportswriters:M.L. Elrick and Shawn Windsor-Detroit
Local Sportswriter: Michael Rosenberg-Detroit
PACER FANS SHOW SUPPORT

Boredom, Buddies, and Beer

I was bored off of my butt at work today, when the phone buzzed. An old buddy of mine called out of the blue to see if I wanted to grab a bite for brunch. Boy was I excited.

I hadn't seen him in a long time, so i was becstatic(what?). My buddy and I, we'll just call him Busty, went to Blimpies to bring home a subbbb. Then we bustled over to Busty's place and met up with his brother, BRyan.

The three of us began to bring back old memories, and bit our subs as well. After we were done, Busty brought back some home made beer. It was called Mr.Beer. It was a pale ale, and not half bad.

So then we got buzzed off of Mr.Beer and subbbbs before heading back to our boring lives. They to work, me to blog.

There's something special about drinking beer with old buddies. Especially with good subbbbs. And especially if it's homemade beer. And especially if you have to go back to work afterwards.

Learn how to make your own beer.

ABC: "Another Booty Call?"

If you happened to miss the ABC promo aired just before Monday Night Football on, well, Monday night; then you missed the next controversial prime-time programming "affair." The promo showed a towel-clad Ms.Sheridan (Desperate Housewives) in the locker room with Terrell Owens in full uniform. She eventually lost the towel and jumped into his arms.

Yes, Disney has come a long way. (Disney owns ABC) The saddest thing about this was that I wasn't shocked at all when I saw it. That kind of thing just seems like the norm nowadays. The only reason I even blog about it now is becuase there was an interesting article in today's sports page about it. I guess good ol' Coach Dungy is pretty upset. He goes as far as to call it racism. Dungy is awesome. I'm glad I'm a Colts fan.

Needless to say, the promo was tasteless, pointless, unedifying, and stimulating. Like most television these days. Just a bunch of trash. Ah well. "Are you ready for some football?"

DUD!!!

I forgot to mention that I saw a preview for the movie,Son of Mask. Words cannot describe how terrible this movie looks. I felt embarrassed to watch the preview. Like when someone on stage messes up and you feel sorry for them. That's how I felt. Jamie Kennedy made a big mistake. It seriously annoys me that a lot of money is spent to make movies like these. And it's even more annoying that someone will go watch it. Seriously, who sits around and is like, "I know! We'll make a sequel to the Mask called, Son of the Mask! Brilliant!" And then they get money for it. Whatever. Please don't see this movie.

The Polar Express

Yesterday I saw
The Polar Express .
Now, I hate the fact that it cost dang near twenty bucks to go to a movie with a date, and personally, almost no movie is worth that price. However, if you are a frequent movie-goer and don't mind prices, then you should go see this movie.

Tom Hanks was awesome, which is weird because it's just his voice. But they make his character so much like him somehow. I can't explain. And all of the characters are so believable. I've never read the book, but I'm guessing they didn't change much.

The main characters are kids that I swear I know personally. The animation is incredible. And they do a great job with the scenes and making them feel dream-like. Whatever process that's called.

It was nice to feel like a kid again, get excited over little things, let my imagination loose for a bit, and actually believe in a train that takes you to the North Pole. I liked the music too, for whatever that's worth.

Anyways, if you have a kid, you should definitely take them to this movie. And if you want to feel like a kid again, you should definitely see this movie. I was impressed.

My favorite character? The ghost. Followed closely by the know-it-all.

Annoying Co-workers!!!

Okay, I hate to use this blog to vent, but it's my blog, and darnit I'm venting.

I'm at work right now, and I sit about six feet behind one of the most annoying people on the planet. It's like whenever I go flying, why do I always sit next to the biggest creep who wants to talk the whole time? This guy thinks he knows everything, and likes to talk about it. He gives advice to everyone, whether it's asked for or not. And he cusses all the time. I mean seriously, why waste good cuss words? They should be reserved for special moments and not wasted on day-to-day rabble.

Now all of that is very annoying, but the kicker for me is that he chews tobacco all...day...long........... Who chews tobacco at work!? I work in an office for crying out loud! And he spits his cud out into a little styrofoam cup that just sits on his desk all day looking at me. It's disgusting. And all day long I can hear that "Squirt" from his tar filled cheeks to the bottom of that defiled cup. I feel like a cat being rubbed the wrong way. It's like nails on a chalkboard. I'm going crazy.

Anyways, please please please, leave a comment that talks about your worst co-workers. It would make me feel so much better to know there are worse. And it may make you feel better. And it's fun to make fun of people who annoy you. Please leave a comment on this one. Take the time. It'll go a long way.

Great Website

I may have found one of the best websites out there: Answer Bag.
Check it out.

Jury Duty: Woohoo!!!

A couple of weeks ago, I was wandering through our daily mail, hoping for a check from Ed McMahon and Publisher's Clearing House; when before my wandering eyes should appear a letter from the state government, and eight tiny words, "Sir, you have been summoned for jury service." Oh joy.

If you've never been summoned for jury duty, you're missing out on quite an experience. I had never been, and was looking forward to it about as much as I look forward to sticking my tongue in a meat-grinder. It was honestly not all boring.

First they crammed us all in an assembly room that didn't have enough chairs, so people were standing or sitting on the floor. Well, actually they did have enough chairs, it's just that the elected councilmen who use that room refuse to let those summoned for jury service to sit in their virtual Lay-Z-Boys.

Then a group of us went into the courtroom to see if we would be selected to serve as jurors. I liked listening to people give reasons why they couldn't serve. My favorite was the lady who had to take someone to chemo the next day:
Judge: "Please rise and state your name."
Lady: "Lady." (I don't remember, and wouldn't tell if I did.)
J: "And why wouldn't you be able to serve on this case."
L: "I have to take someone in for chemo tomorrow morning."
"Chemotherapy?"
"Yes ma'am."
"And who is the person that you're taking in."
"Um, it's my dog ma'am."

I guess it was only funny to me becuase she was trying to avoid stating the fact that it was her dog going in. Anyways, it was funny at the time.

Then we got to hear the attorneys question all of the potential jurors. I never got to be questioned, which was very disappointing. I would have made a great juror. That part of the day was the least boring.

So after I sat and listened to them talk to everyone but me, they selected the twelve, and I was free to leave. I was proud to have been able to serve my country. And the best part is that I have been informed that I will receive 14 US Dollars as compensation for my services. So that after six dollars for parking, and the loss of a full day of work, I will actually be up about -$120 dollars or so.

I love jury duty.

Toilet Humor

I can remember at a very young age looking forward to reading clever anecdotes on the sides of the walls in bathroom stalls. Whenever we would take road trips, I would prefer to use stalls over urinals for three reasons:
1) The ability to flush without using my hands.
2) Less hairs and cigarette butts in the toilet.
3) Reading the clever anecdotes.

As a matter of fact, to this day I prefer stalls for the same reasons.

Now, like most things in a bathroom, you have to make your way through a lot of useless crap: All of the "Steve T. was here-12/25/04" and "For a good time, call Andrew Walker" or just the random "F yous" and other curse words. But for the determined stall seeker, if you look hard enough, you can find some real diamonds in the rough. Or "jewels in the turd" as a wise man once said.

Here are some of my personal favorites. Please leave a few of your own. Perhaps I'll make a top ten if I get enough responses.

1) Here I sit, all broken hearted. Tried to poop, but only farted.
2) (Placed on wall behind toilet) If you can read this sign, you should be using the urinal.
3) Here I sit in misty vapor, searching for some toilet paper. How much longer must I linger, before I have to use my finger.
4) I aim to please; you aim too please.
5) What are you looking on the wall for? The joke's in your hands.

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Life in the Shadows

ELECTION DAY 2004!

Whether you're voting for a Liberal Weiner or a Right Wing Nut Job, please vote today. That is all. Oh and check this out for an election day laugh:
Weiners and Nuts