The Good, The Bad, and My Plan for Revenge

I'm a day late posting this, but I was just so dissapointed by the California Supreme Court's recent decision regarding "Proposition Hate" (aka Prop. 8). I have to admit I expected it though.

First the bad news. As much as we may wish it was otherwise, the role of the California Supreme Court is not to make new laws, but to interperet the laws. Prior to that evil, hatefull proposition back in November, 2008 (and I'm still amazed that a state that voted for Obama also passed discrimination into the law), the court only said that as they understood the law, denying gays and lesbians the right to marry their partners was a violation of the law as it stood. So, Prop. 8, which closed the "legal loophole" and made the definition for marriage in California "One man, one woman". That was the bad news. In short, the justices had no legal choice and said (in a 6 to 1 vote) that Prop. 8 would stand.

The good news is that the people who wrote the proposition up did not make it retroactive, which means that all the 18,000 people who were able to get married within the window of opportunity get to stay married. Either they did this out of stupidity (didn't think of making it retroactive) or out of oportunism (the didn't DARE make it retroactive). They may have thought, somewhere in the back of their tiny, spitefull little minds, that the law would prevent all future marriages as well as current marriages might make people less inclined to vote for it. After all, it's one thing to tell people they can't do something, it's quite another to take away something they already have. Possession is 9 tenths of the law after all. I just wish I had been able to find a really desperate ilegal alien who would have been willing to mary me before Prop 8 passed. Sigh.

Now, my plan for revenge.

The judges had now choice in what they did, so I'm not mad at them. But the people who chose to vote for that hateful proposition are another story. They chose to vote for discrimination. So I say we hit them where it'll hurt the most. If the "Eighters" say that two men or two women cannot get married to each other, I say they don't need our money supporting them. Boycot the red businesses (and let them know why), let the yellow business know they're almost worthy of receiving your money, and give hearty thanks and spend your money in the green businesses. Oh, and boycott anything and everything to do with Utah and Mormon owned businesses.

Here is a link to the Human Right's Campaign's "Buyers Guide for 2009".

I suggested this back in November, after the proposition passed (see "Stop Preaching to the Choir"). I thought it would work then, and I think it'll work now.

It will be hard of course, and relys to much on the honor system, but if any of you have a better idea, please tell me! GAYS ON STRIKE!!!!!

The Colors! The Colors!

Colors, and I'm including the so called "non-colors" of white and black, all have special symbolism's and meaning. You can send a message, however subtle, intentional or unintentional, with your choice of colors.

I've done some research, and here is what I've found out, and decided to share with you;

WHITE

White is the color (or lack thereof) that represents purity, neutrality, sterility and youth. White is the presence of all colors and represents peace, innocence, simplicity and security. In western cultures, it is used for weddings, but in may eastern cultures, it is the color for funerals. It is the color of hope. Hope for a new life in marriage, and hope for a new life after this life.

BLACK

Let me begin by saying I'm sorry I couldn't make the title of this section black as well, but considering how the background of my blog is black, I couldn't think of a way how. Black is the absence of all color, which lends itself to the symbolism of death as the absence of life. Black is also the color of the sexy bad guy and the color of intelligence (ex. graduation robes). It is the color of power and sophistication, as well as being the color of wealth. In fashion, black is a slimming color, and the color people always refer to when they say "This color is the new black."

GRAY

Gray (or Grey) is an in between color. It is the dividing line between the goodness of white and the evil of black. It is the color of elegance, stability, and wisdom.

RED

Red is the color of passion. It is the color of lust and appetite (the reason most restaurant's have an overall red interior for their decor is because red makes a person hungrier so they eat more). It is the color of strength, fire, sex and love, and in some eastern cultures it is the color of luck, celebration and wealth. Wear a bright red, and all eyes will turn to you.

ORANGE

Orange is energy and enthusiasm. It symbolizes a "Get-it done" attitude. It is the color of flamboyance and aggression, of playfulness, danger, and desire. It is a less intense or aggressive color than red and is calmed by the cheerfulness of yellow.

YELLOW

Yellow echoes the dual nature of red. While it can evoke feelings of happiness, when confronted with to much yellow people can become annoyed or angry. Yellow is the color of sunlight. Of joy, happiness, and optimism. Yellow is the color of hope (Remember the yellow ribbons?) It is also the color of wealth (gold) and prosperity, while at the same time being the color most often associated with cowardice and avarice. Yellow is a complicated color.

GREEN

Green is the color of nature, wealth, power, and joy, for all wealth has as it's ultimate source the power of nature, and nature always gets the last laugh and has the final word. Green is a soothing color to the eye, and brings to mind images of spring, youth and fertility.

BLUE

The best color to wear for a job interview is blue. Blue is simultaneously non-threatening, confident, and stable. It is the color of confidence and security (ex. police uniforms). Blue is a productive color, and more and more workplaces are going not only green but blue to maximize every moment of the workday. On the negative side, blue is the color of sadness and longing. Who hasn't had a case of the blues, especially when longing for the unobtainable.

PURPLE

Purple is the color of nobility, wisdom and sacrifice which is why it is used by the United State military award of The Purple Heart, to honor those attributes in people wounded or killed in combat defending U.S.A. from it's foes. It is a color symbolising wealth (since only the very rich could afford purple clothing in the past) and royalty (it was reportedly the favorite color of Egypt's Queen Cleopatra).

PINK

Pink is the "sister" color of red in that they are both the colors of love, but like most siblings, they are more different than similar in terms of their symbolism. Where red is the color of lust, desire and passion, pink is the color of tranquility, romance, and innocence. It is the color of the child-like.

BROWN

Brown is the color of dirt, and is therefore the symbol of the earthy. It symbolizes calm, boldness and depth, stability, steadfastness, and dependability (which is most likely why fascists most often use brown in their clothing and uniforms).

That's all I have for you for now. I know there are many more colors I could talk about, but I think these are enough for now.

I got the idea for this post after watching a movie called "The Handmaid's Tale", and how colors were used to indicate function and define roles. I found the concept fascinating, and did some further research (as I mentioned earlier) and discovered how colors can also be used to influence people.

This led me to thinking (selfish bastard that I am) that maybe I could get better results in dealing with people if I wear certain colors, depending on the situation I'm in and the outcome I desire, by wearing the right colors.

Regardless of the outcome, I'll keep you informed and let you know how it turns out.

Three Minutes of Stupidity

This last Thursday (5/20/09) my friend and roommate, Greg, needed a ride to work. After I dropped him off, I took a shortcut to get to work myself, and at one point along the way, I have to cross over some train tracks. On this particular day, there happened to be a train going along the tracks. A VERY long train.

Well, as you can imagine, the barrier arms were down and all the cars were stopped, waiting for the train to finish crossing, and the arms to go up again. So, I drove up to behind the last car, put it into park, and turned off my engine. I think I was the only one that did (turn off my engine I mean). All the other drivers left their engines running for just over three minutes, which I think was completely stupid.

I mean really! Would you go sit in your car while still in the driveway, turn on your motor and just sit there with it running for three minutes? Would you?

Aside from the fact that you're wasting gas, and I don't care how much it's come down in price recently, it's still way to expensive, it puts all sorts of junk and crap into the atmosphere! Can you say "Global Warming"?

I swear, I just wanted to go from driver to driver and scream at them "Do you want the ice caps to melt so we end up like the movie Waterworld? Turn of your f***ing engine!"

Some of you may be thinking "Maybe they needed to keep the engines running so they could run their air conditioners. Don't be so hard on them Wesley." People, it was 7:45 AM and 70*F outside. If you are so spoiled you need to keep the inside of your car below 70*F and cannot bare to put up with 71*F or more for just 3 minutes, pack up your stuff, quit you job and move to Antarctica where it's nice and cold, for now at least. With all the stupid people running their car engines when they're not going anywhere, it won't be so cold for much longer.

I Fell For it Again

It was over 9 months ago, last year, that I wrote about an asshole who toyed with my emotions and in his own somewhat subtle way let me know I was just his "Rice-A-Roni"* in a post I titled "What They're Really Saying", and I swore that I would never let something like that happen to me again. I guess I should have paid more attention to my own words.

I hoped I was wrong this time. I hoped you were different. I'm not sure now.

*"Rice-A-Roni": The ultimate 1970's television game show prize. The one thing that every contestant, on every show new they would be able to go home with no matter how badly they lost the game.

They're All There

Well, it took longer than I thought to go through all my posts finding the recipes I've posted since starting my blog, but if you'll look to your right (NO! Your right!) you will see the list of all the recipes I've posted on my blog.

I will add to the list as I continue to add recipes.

Remember, eat and enjoy.

Updating My Readers

Hi, everybody. It's been a while since my last post, but I've got a very good reason. Well, two very good reasons.

First, I've been cast in the Stockton Civic Theatre's production of "Annie Get Your Gun", but then I mentioned that in a previous post (Mac, the Prop Man). The reason I haven't been posting is all the time I've had to devote to rehearsals, and it's only the third day.

It's been a long time since I've been in an actual theatrical production and I forgot how much work goes into putting on a live stage show, let alone something as complicated and detailed as AGYG.

The second reason is that with this new demand on my time, I've had to schedule everything I want to get done to practically the last minute. I've got work, I've got the play, and I've got the gym to get my sad, overweight body into better shape (instead of pear shaped).

I've managed to get to the gym every morning for an hour of cardio on the treadmill for three days in a row! But to do that, I'm in bed by 9:30 PM to 10:00 PM, awake at 3:30 AM to get to the gym by 4:00 AM, so I can do my workout with enough time to get back home, and out the door again by 7:30 AM so I make it on time for work at 8:00 AM until quiting time at 4:30 PM, and then rehearsals promptly at 6:00 PM, after which, of course, the whole thing starts over again.

I don't have rehearsals this coming Thursday or Friday since they are still doing their production of "The Children's Hour" (and if you haven't seen it, "GO!", you won't be sorry), and I was told they never have rehearsals on those days when they have a show going on.

I'm not complaining though. I'm going to use that time to do a little baking Friday after work. I'm planning to take a big batch of my "Wesley Tollhouse Cookies" to the Saturday rehearsal, and another batch to church at Valley Ministries Church on Sunday.

Such a busy life! I hope you like reading about it, because I plan on keeping you informed.

New Blog Feature

I've been told by many (who don't want anyone to know they read my blog) that the recipes are what they are most interested in. So, I've added a new feature to my blog. If you look to your right (NO! Your right!) you'll see a list (partial so far) called "Straight To The Recipes".

Eventually, I'll have a list of all the recipes I've published so far, in addition to any and all future recipes (or as many as I can get away with).

I hope this makes it easier for you all to enjoy a good home cooked meal.

Keep reading, and I'll keep you all informed.

Mac, the Prop Man

The last few days have been wild, wacky, and stressful for me. Mainly because I auditioned for a part in the Stockton Civic Theatre production of "Annie Get Your Gun".

There were so many people at the audition, many of whom have been in SCT productions previously, and I was very nervous that I wouldn't do a good job, but hey, nothing ventured, nothing gained.

For my vocal (ie singing) audition, I sang, or should more accurately say, tried to sing "Different" as sung by Cass Elliot in the movie "H. R. Puffinstuff". A friend of mine had burned the music onto a CD for me, and made a few notes in the sheet music for whoever would be playing the piano at the auditions. I practiced by singing along to the CD for about two weeks prior to the try-out, and had it down cold. To make it even better, the accompanist is a professional from Broadway and told everyone who came that day that he could play anything. Well, leave it to me to pick the one song he couldn't play. It wasn't the song or sheet music per se, it was the notes my "friend" added. They were to lite to read, and so the song wasn't as good as I would have liked it to be.

Nevertheless, I was asked to come back for the dance auditions and reading of the script. During this phase, I learned I'm not a very good dancer (shocked, aren't you?). I read for several different parts, and was cast as a character called "Mac, the prop man". I'm not exactly sure who the character is, but it's experience and I intend to play it for all I'm worth. If I do a really good job, who knows what part they'll consider me for in their next play at SCT.

The next play they're doing by the way will be "The Producers", and SCT will be the first non-professional theatre company in California to produce the show. I'm hoping to get the part Mathew Broderick did on Broadway, the part of Leo Bloom. I'm sure the competition will be tough though.

Whatever happens, I'll keep you informed.

By the way, I have only one complaint about being cast as "Mac, the prop man". They spelled my name wrong in the cast list. It's Wesley not Weslie.