Please be gentle. After all, it is my first time….trying to create a, um, blog, that is.
The love of my life gave me a “gift certificate” to create a new blog account. As someone who has lived with me for nearly eight years, I suspect she’s joined the legion of family, friends and co-workers who have heard more than enough from me.
So now I can ramble on in cyberspace, and maybe, just maybe, someone will pay attention to a sentence or two.
How to describe myself? An interesting question for someone who isn’t terribly fond of being characterized. Politically, I don’t line up squarely as either liberal or conservative, something I’m quite proud of. I’m bothered by the hypocrisy and demagoguery on both ends of the political spectrum, and the “us vs. them” mentality that is becoming more pervasive with every election. That said, I’ve never pulled the “R” lever for President, and I don’t expect I ever will, and I think our country would be in better hands if a lobotomized monkey were running the show (no insult intended to lobotomized monkeys). I take the more conservative stances on some issues like crime and the military, but vehemently oppose any effort to amend the Constitution to prohibit homosexual marriage and am strongly pro choice.
I was dumbfounded by the fact that people can be forced to choose between eating and taking life-saving drugs in this country and no one seems to care, yet a split-second shot of Janet Jackson’s nipple caused a national furor and cries that our country is going to heck in a hand basket. Hey, I don’t want to see that sight myself, but this country has its priorities out of kilter.
On some more lighthearted topics, as you might have guessed from the title of this humble abode, I am a BIT of a Simpsons fan. Not quite a fanatic, though I do have a room in my house largely dedicated to my collection of yellow souvenirs. But since that room also has some of my other interests reflected, I’d say I’m just a borderline nut case for the Simpson clan.
I’m also very much a game show junkie. As a youngster, I probably watched less cartoons than most kids (though I digested my fair share of Scooby Doo and Battle of the Planets), and way more Joker’s Wild, Match Game and To Tell The Truth. Ken Jennings’ recent record-breaking streak on Jeopardy was a thrill for me to watch, probably in the same way watching Michael Jordan was for basketball lovers, or Tiger Woods for a golf nut.
I’ve tried to get on Jeopardy four times—and failed each and every time, proving beyond any doubt that I’m just not that bright. I did pass a test for a short-lived game show called Trump Card, but shortly after taking the test, the show was cancelled, putting an end to that idea. I think I’ve gotten as close as I’m ever going to get during a trip to Disney World, when I made it into the “hot seat” for the Who Wants to Be a Millionaire—Play It show. I managed to reach the 32,000 point level, earning me a shirt and a hat, and a pin for each question I answered correctly.
Musically, I tend to go for what’s often called “soft rock” on the radio, though that’s not all I listen to. “Santa” delivered a shiny new iPod for Christmas (those elves are good—they got the Apple logo right and everything), and so far I’ve filled it up with 3 gigs of Faith Hill, Shania Twain, Martina McBride, Billy Joel, the Beach Boys, Aerosmith, Van Halen, ‘80s pop and more. It makes for quite a music mix on the train ride in to work—from “Manic Monday” to “Barbara Ann” to “Walk This Way” to “This Kiss.” Find me a radio station anywhere with THAT kind of mix.
I don’t go to movies that often—who can afford it?!?!—but manage to get to see some, and I enjoy watching flicks at home. Besides the Star Wars films, which I’d never miss on the big screen, I enjoy some of the super hero series (Batman and Spiderman), love the Pixar films, and generally enjoy lighthearted comedies as an escape from daily life.
Most recently, we saw Meet the Fockers. Ignore the critics who panned this one. The addition of Dustin Hoffman alone to the mix was fantastic. Even not being a big “Babs” fan, she was a riot as Ben Stiller’s mom.
I’m sure I’ll expand on all of those topics as time goes by. And in a week or so, I’ll be closely watching the NFL playoffs in either end of Pennsylvania as the two teams I’m rooting for (the Steelers and Eagles) begin heading towards the Super Bowl. For a long time I figured there was no way both of those teams would ever be good enough in the same year to content for, let alone make, the big game. So what happens? The Eagles are the best in the NFC, and the Steelers in the AFC, and it’s not beyond the realm of possibility that they’ll meet in Jacksonville. (Yeah, I know, I just jinxed it.)
Wishing you and yours a happy 2005.
