Tuesday, December 26, 2017

2017 poem

What will the new year bring?


Two thousand and seventeen felt historical. 

At moments, it was more like, hysterical.

in the two thousands we made the reality star

twenty sixteen, we took it a little too far

A narcissistic monster, manufactured by a system

All he wants to know is if you are not with them

While thousands suffer, he won't hear their plight

Demented maniacs don't know wrong from right


Monday, December 11, 2017

the horses and space ark story

So I've been quitting pot successfully.  I haven't bought any weed for a very long time.  I still smoke with friends here and there but that's only about once a week, maybe twice a month.  I've been having a lot of really awesome dreams.  The night before last, I had a dream that I had superpowers and stopped this guy from stealing a motorbike by grabbing the back of the bike.  He went flying forward and when the cops were picking him up, I noticed they had Chandra with them, in custody.  I said I could take care of her and when they left, broke off her handcuffs.  We both flew off together and it was around that point where I started realizing that I was dreaming.  The small village was in a lot of detail below us but when I realized that none of this was real, I started thinking that I wouldn't be able to keep up the vivid imagination much longer.  The second I had that thought, the detail started going away, and we started flying over a low resolution type forest that kept repeating itself like an old cartoon.  I woke up soon after.

It made me think about how a lucid dream is not quite as great as a regular dream.  That when you're fooled in to believing the dream is real, it becomes more real.

I had another dream a while ago that has inspired a story idea.  I was training horses in the future where cars are banned for regular people.  The horse industry started coming back after oil became too expensive.  In it, I remember the horses becoming more and more resistant to being trained, like they were evolving to hate human beings because of what we did to the planet.

I was thinking of combining that story idea with another where we're making a modern day ark.  The story is that when oil and pollution becomes a problem, the creation of a giant space ship that will fly through space indefinitely becomes a possibility and an escape from our mistakes.

I was thinking that when the people start building this ark, stuff starts to change.  The horses start working with humans really hard to get jobs done and achieve this new goal of preserving life.  Even plants start growing better to feed the starving people.  The concept is that life is pushing us to get off the planet and it wants to achieve this goal with us.

There's a metaphor that connects with the original biblical ark story, where in the story, God gets the animals to help build the ark.  In my version, life itself is helping because we're all connected and nature wants to make this accomplishment as much as we do.

Another idea I want to share before I forget is a video game concept where you play as the Indigenous people of North America when the continent is being colonized.  The idea is that you try to steal their technology and use it against them and create an alternate timeline where the Indigenous tribes work together to fight off the Europeans.

Thursday, August 24, 2017

The oil connections

I've been thinking about Exxon, Rex Tillerson, and Russian oil companies.  I think they've been in the propaganda game for a long time.  I wonder if Rex was working with Putin on climate change denial and when Exxon started getting under pressure from the government, Rex saw that a move towards government control was the best way to solve his problems.  I wonder if they used the same propaganda machines they built when they were trying to convince the world that climate change isn't real.


Monday, July 17, 2017

Stanley Park


Stanley Park review

While searching for discs, I found this old beat up guy.

The owner said they were from the Winkler/Morden area which was a good 2 hour drive from Winnipeg (My hometown).  They asked if I was coming out to their tournament this year.  I wasn't sure if I was going to at the time but since I had a disc to return, it felt like a good idea.

The day before the tournament, I packed up a tent and made my journey.  The campsites were free and there were plenty available when I went.  While, some of the campsites are set up right next to some of the baskets, the course itself is pretty tight.  It offers some nice elevation changes as the area is in the Pembina valley.  A small creek runs through it, and some steep drop-offs add some danger to the shots.  The upkeep for the area seemed great, there were lots of nice open areas that were mowed and clean.  Dog owners would probably enjoy bringing their pup's as they would have a lot of space to run around in.  The park is surrounded by fields and forests.  It's far enough from any city that the night sky was full of stars.  Coyotes could be heard howling in the distance when the sun went down.  I loved it.

I returned my disc in the morning and while, it got rainy for the game, it was still a good time.

Out of all the disc golf courses in Manitoba, this is right up there with La Barriere as one of my favorites.

On my first night out, I only had a little bit of daylight left to preview the course.  I saw a car drive down in to the course area, it looked like a guy and girl in the vehicle but I didn't think much of it.

That was until I was around hole 2, throwing towards the wrong basket, I threw one that landed in the tall grass next to the creek.  That's when I spotted the car, not far across the creek from where my disc landed.  I tried to be quick about getting out of there but I was having so much trouble finding it, I bet they thought I was creeping on them.  I did eventually find my disc and got out of there.

So, overall, despite the weather and occasional love bird stalking, I really enjoyed making the trip out there.

Saturday, July 15, 2017

Bad hip and lost shoes

Yesterday I saw on FB that someone lost a couple discs at Happyland park.  I was feeling sore from playing earlier plus going to work but couldn't resist the call.  I've been getting pretty good at finding discs but by the time I got there, it looked like it was a fruitless effort right from the beginning.  Last year, people told me that most discs lost at HL never came back.  There were a couple guys that would play there often that people suspected of stealing them.  I played with them quite a bit when I had evenings available.  I go there and play by myself a lot and they always invited me to join, which was nice.  After seeing them recover discs with names and numbers of people I knew, I asked the people if they ever got their discs back and they said no.  People had seen me play with them and I didn't like being known as a "disc thief".  So part of me returning as many discs as I can was because of that.  I get up early, and check the creek when no one is there.  This gives me a chance to take my time.

Yesterday, I was rushing along the path and not only tripped, putting a sprain on my ankle, I slipped and fell in to the creek.  The grass is so long now, it's hard to see where proper footholds are.  When I got home, I put them out in the sun.  I was going to grab them before falling asleep but I must have passed out while watching a movie.  I'm really hoping my neighbor took them in, because they're not there now.

It's so early, the sun has barely started to come up.  I'll probably head over to HL soon to see if I can get in a round and scan for anything.  My plan for today is to head to the outback and play until it's too hot, then go to the beach and chill for a bit.  I might take a nap somewhere.  Then I'll head back and play another round or two.  I'm hoping that my hip pain goes away because that's a lot of disc golf planned.

Sometimes, I really do like the fact that I never had any kids.

Friday, July 14, 2017

Building a bag

http://www.discpath.win/

Using this app is a great way to find the holes in your bag.  Simply pick the discs that you're using and compare the flight path's with one another to see when you're taking discs that are too similar.  It's been useful for a newcomer like me who is still learning how to throw.

early hyzer

Up at sunrise, did 20 toe-touches, sit-ups, and push-ups followed by a jog.  I plan on playing 18-27 holes at the outback before going to work this morning.  I'm still trying to learn how to drive.  It's something the other players can do where I can only get decent scores at Happyland (the shortest course in Winnipeg)

So I'm working on one main thing, keeping the nose down.  One tip a friend told me, is to hold the disc like your going to shake someone's hand.  This is a particular handshake where your fingers are pointing towards the ground.  Keeping the thumb down helps keep the nose down.  When the disc flies on a plane, it can go much farther.

I'm also focusing on my follow-through.  Yesterday morning, I threw a shot that caused a sharp pain in my right hip.  I've been dealing with hip pain for many years now and throwing a RHBH (Right hand back hand) throw can cause the pain to flair up.  I need to remember to follow through with the throw so the brakes of my body aren't put down on my hip.  It's important to have a pain-less throw so I can practice 100+ drives in a day.

Thursday, July 13, 2017

Today's experiences, wet dogs and white owls

This morning I went to one of my favorite disc golf courses in Winnipeg, "The Outback" in Kilcona park.  What is it about dogs when they get wet, why do they think it's so hilarious to shake off right next to you?  The dog's owner was yelling no at him, which seemed quite futile given the results.  He jumped on me to add insult to injury.  This was right after I shanked my drive into the woods.

I threw my buzzz, given to me by a super cool guy in town after I had returned a bunch of discs in the spring.  After witnessing another player score an ace with a buzzz, following this crazy bee line at hole 11, happyland, I had to get one of my own.

So today, I was practicing driving with mid-ranges, I didn't expect it to flip to the right so easily.  The morning mist had covered the wet weeds, I was trying to find the right words to express the situation while looking at the mess I had to get through... I couldn't find them, but I suppose thistle dew.

I was about to dive in when the dog sprung in to the woods a few meters to the left of me.  The guy said, "Oh geeze... it's gonna grab it!"

I thought the dog was way off but I guess the scent gave it away, he bounced out and gave it to me without leaving any teeth marks.  I was still a little frustrated about being wet but now that I think about it, the pup was probably thinking, "sorry about fucking with you buddy, here's your disc."

Made me think, I should get a dog.  I would really love to have it for recovering discs like that.  I'm not sure how many other players have their dogs trained well enough to only get them when asked.

It would be fun to try and train one.

So I continued on my game and while picking up a disc, a white owl got scared when I got too close and flew to a different tree.  A beautiful snowy white owl.  I haven't seen one since I was younger.  I was with a guy who I won't name that was hunting.  He shot one.  I don't know why I need to get that out, but it was a shitty situation that made me appreciate... not killing things?

It was a very long time ago, but since then, it was last one I ever saw.  So today, it was a surprise and a delight to spot one that looked to me like a younger fella.  He didn't make a hoo noise but just shrieked at me.  I left him alone and continued playing.  I met up with some friends and played a round, while talking about the owl coming up to the same area, he flew by, and then another one did, and then we noticed another one looking down on us.

It was a whole family.

And those fuckers want to tear down that park.

Wednesday, July 12, 2017

Disc Golf

I've been thinking about focusing on disc golf when it comes to my writing.  I saw someone in Reddit looking for disc golf bloggers and I really feel like I can be a valuable asset for them.  I've got lots of little adventures that are interesting and I've been wanting to share them.

http://imgur.com/a/kHm4F

The photo's seem to work great for reminding me of all the little things I've seen so far this year.  Some ideas for things that I can write about:

When I find discs, I could do little interviews with their owners.

Happyland drama.  (The skatepark kids using the blocks from the retaining wall for doing tricks on.)

Repairing the broken sign

Course walk-throughs.  Showing pics/vids of the course to help new players find their way before they play.

How disc golf lessons can be applied to life.

Sunday, July 9, 2017

doing alright

I've been doing alright.  I haven't bought any drugs in over 2 weeks now.  I smoke some weed with my neighbor occasionally.  Yesterday I played 6 rounds of disc golf.  There are a lot of things, like disc golf, that feel like it's not quite the same without weed.  I'm trying to train my brain to think differently.  I had noticed that I was repeating stupid mistakes when I played while baked.  Learning how to get better and keeping track of all the little things is a lot easier when you have a sober mind.

I've been getting more dreams lately.  Last night I dreamt I was at work and stormed off over an accusation that I was smoking weed at work again.

I'm almost ready to go out and start playing a few rounds, it's not even 6 in the morning yet.  The sunrise at the crack of dawn was amazing today.

Wednesday, June 28, 2017

bother

Earlier in the spring, I noticed some skaters had taken some retaining blocks from the retaining wall at the park that I play disc golf in.  At the time, I was picking up garbage as I played and was trying to fix the disc golf signs that had been broken.  Seeing the blocks out of place, it bothered me to see that they took the blocks that were in use and didn't touch the ones that had fallen into the creek.  I took it upon myself to carry a block back.  It was difficult and I was sore so I left a note explaining how these blocks had a purpose and if they wanted to put them back, I explained how to do it.  The next day, the note was torn in half.  I took another block that day and figuring it was a decent lil morning workout, I continued to put the blocks back, one at a time, every morning.  When I was done, I took some blocks out of the creek and left them for the skaters.

They never used them, instead, they brought in a bunch of other cinder blocks and made an actual wall.  They poured concrete in it, put steel sheets on top and added an edge so they could grind on it.

Alright, whatever, it wasn't any of my business anyway.  Yesterday, I noticed the same blocks that I put back were gone.  The gravel that I poured in was on the ground.  Today, I found them set up by the skate park area again.  It really seemed like they took those blocks, in particular, just to spite me.

I guess it's working, because I'm bothered by this.  I'm thinking of phoning the park people or someone with the authority to do something about this.

Friday, June 23, 2017

Being ready for the future

In the flood of 97, the Canadian army assisted with sandbagging.

I'd like to join a group that just did that, people that help out in disasters like a soldier.

I'm thinking that to be fulfilled in what I do, I should be putting myself in dangerous situations in order to help others.

I should at least look into it.

I can tell that I'm putting a favorable image out there.  It's hard not to.  I'm wondering how easy it is to connect my real name to this blog and I've already put some things on here that make me feel vulnerable enough.  I don't want to post my weaknesses and how I'm trying to solve these problems that I continue to create.

I am weak sometimes.

I fail.

There are a lot of "I's" in this blog post.

All my life, who am I?

Tuesday, June 20, 2017

Quitting

I do this a lot.  I tell myself that I'm going to stop smoking weed, and I try.  I get frustrated around people and nobody really understands.  I've been thinking about getting help in this.  I've been able to quit by myself in the past but, a lot of the times when I give it an attempt, I fail.  Today, I'm out, it'll only be a matter of time before my mind starts expecting something that I won't give it.

I've read that this is a non-unified state of mind (part of me is saying yes, while the other part is saying.  I'm living in a state of chaos when I fight myself internally.

There's only one person driving this ship and that guy does not want to be a pothead today.

I miss my dreams.  I miss being witty.  I miss the people that I care about.

I will not miss my mark.

Monday, June 19, 2017

life path

Chandra has asked me to move in with her under the condition that I quit smoking pot.

It's something that I believe is possible and I just can't imagine a life without her.  I miss her and Tal a lot and I really do want to quit wasting my time in a lifestyle that is hardly ever sober.  If I'm ever going to get up, go to school and find a more fulfilling career, I can't do it while smoking weed everyday.  I want to unleash my potential and have the ability to be there for the people that I care for.  I want to be their hero.

It seems simple, but pot and I have had a long love/hate relationship that I need to get out of.  There's going to be periods of frustration and emotional meltdowns.  I can't let those break me down.  I need to handle stress and anxiety through different means.  Jogging sounds like a good activity to get into.

Getting into photo/videography sounds like something more valuable that I should put my money into.

Saturday, June 17, 2017

Heroes

I was watching one of those crime shows that deal with real life murders.  I think I had watched a few, I've "binged" on shows like forensic files before.  I hate that term being used positively.  There's an advertising campaign by shaw, a cable provider, that has a robot named "bingey"... "Hi, I'm bingey the robot, here to tell you about our new blah blah blah...", why are we praising "binge watching"?

So after watching a few, I was wondering about how many real life murders happened in that time frame.  We focus on these stories and watch it being told while new ones are happening around us constantly.  The people that make the shows are feeding off of it, they have a never-ending source of material.

This morning, I was reading about Syria, about how terrorists are holding a large population of people "hostage", shooting people as they try to escape.  There's so much going on there and it seems like we're getting minimal coverage of it.  I feel like there are a million stories worthy of being told right now, but we're all too busy watching re-runs of yesterday's "dramatic" crimes.  It's also mostly crimes from the USA.  Russia has gay people being killed and imprisoned for their sexuality, and Chechnya is probably just as close as some of these US cities, but it doesn't get the coverage like America.  Not even close.  I'm tired of Hollywood stories and sick of all these fake superhero films.

Where are the real heroes?

Thursday, June 15, 2017

A trashy dream

I had a dream recently where I was swimming with some friends having a good time.  The water was moving and I could feel stuff under the surface.  Looking, I could see that we were flowing over massive amounts of garbage.  We were forced to keep our feet up to keep from scraping against it.  Looking at everyone else, they seemed to just be like, "Yep, whatever...  What are you going to do about it?"

I don't dream very often these days, I'm fairly certain that marijuana affects dreaming, I also don't sleep in very much.  

This dream made me think about how we're in a society with piles of trash under the surface but we're all just ignoring it.

Ark Battles

Another story idea for today.

This one takes place in the near future.  Planet Earth discovers that it's going to die through our observations.  We have to build a space ship that can house people in it, indefinitely.

I was thinking of going with an asteroid event, but I've been playing with the idea of global warming or another human caused catastrophe.  A lot of the initial drama is people fighting to be the ones to go.  I would love to get in to the details on how this would be proposed.  I also need to find out how many people would be required to get enough diversification in the DNA of the population.  How much room would be needed for plants and animals?  Which plants/animals should be taken?

Do the people take tests?  Olympic style challenges to see who is the best from each nation/race?  IQ tests?

What would be done to prevent any unnecessary diseases or ailments from coming with?

How big would it need to be to house everything required where the life could survive indefinitely.

Hypothetically, what if we never really got any new huge breakthroughs when it comes to technology?  What if we're almost at the top and we're just refining what we have?  There is a wall when it comes to technology progress, every research tree has to come to an end eventually.

So if that is the case, how could we build this ship using what we have, now?  How long would it take?

I was thinking of writing about multiple generations of people, where it takes hundreds of years to build and thousands of years to get anywhere.  The initial construction takes place in space, using robots to build it out of an asteroid.  The humans go through test runs, living in isolated facilities.  They have conflicts and there are fights about which families should go.

People on the Earth that didn't pollute/harm it so much are upset because it's mostly the rich who are going and they are the ones that could have helped the planet but didn't.

So, I was thinking of making this a surprise to the reader later, but it turns out they built a second ark and they both used the same "exit strategy" on leaving the solar system.  They end up leaving in a long orbit of one another, where they pass close by each other every X amount of years.  They fight each other when this happens.  At some point, the power goes out, everything but the emergency stuff.  This cuts off the information and over time, they forget who they are.  It turns out that the other ship has hacked their system, even turning their robots against them before they board and try to take over.

Wednesday, June 14, 2017

The God code

This is a story idea about a new kind of inventing.  The concept is that in the future, we're going to be able to "hack inside animal brains" and copy that information into an super intelligent machine.

To fly drones better, a team of scientists study birds and by analyzing their brain waves, they've digitized their thought processes and in the near future we can fly drones like a bird flies.

While hacking the brain, we uncover something.  It shows that everything around us has been created by something, some call it the God code.  We discover that the planet is in a simulation, a controlled environment, that solar systems are like alien petri dishes.  While, many interpret this as proof that their religion is correct and churches become filled again (in the near future, religion is almost dead), the scientists diligently work to discover more.

They find out that whatever made them has died (God, our creator, is dead), but we've been left stuff to advance and help us encounter the true problems of the universe (some nemesis, maybe an alien?)

One idea I've been thinking of is how humans have gone through a series of challenges already.  Like, a lot of other species have had runs at dominating planet Earth and, while some had good runs, their lack of intelligence prevented them from a experiencing a planet wide extinction.  Or, rather, the life that used to exist, has evolved into something different.  

I sometimes think about how legs were evolved so fish-like creatures could exist on land, maybe intelligence evolved so Earth-like creatures can exist in space.

While, being at the top of the food chain might feel like that's all there is, what if we're actually competing against other aliens right now?  They're going through the same dominance/intelligence battle that we went through.

So the story could help bring this to light.  By discovering our creator is dead, we encounter that life was an experiment, or maybe our creator saw the ending come for her/him and "planted" us just so life could go on...

Maybe our next challenge, is to find our which species, galaxy-wide, is the most competent.

So, instead of this loving figure that's here to solve our problems, instead, it's a harsh emotion-less being that's putting us and other life-forms against each other to decide who should be the next successor to the "throne of the universe", or rather, uncover the secrets of reality.

The fight is necessary like the fighting of survival as fish in the ocean is necessary.

It's part of life.  Nature is metal and so are we.

Monday, June 12, 2017

Solo

It was Chandra's birthday party on the weekend.  I helped set up, but I didn't go.  I felt so tired and depressed that I felt like she would have a better time without me.  Some of her friends that were going to be there, I really didn't want to see and I couldn't imagine myself faking a smile for a night.  I've also been quitting drinking, more or less, I knew if I had anything, it probably would have lead me to saying something I'd regret.  I've also got this fucking athletes foot/jock itch driving me crazy and I decided to try a different product to clear it up.  So I went home and had a date with an antifungal cream.

I think I was feeling upset with myself because I told her I'd be taking steps towards

-Quitting drugs

-Going to school

-Getting a new job

and I haven't done anything.

I feel like I have a great potential that I am not fully realizing.  I don't care if it's an ego thing, I don't feel like it is... I think I have a strong mind and it should be put to use in the right place.  At least, I need to feel like I'm working towards something I chose and I believe in.

I've been thinking about talking to a doctor about being depressed but part of me knows that they're just going to give me drugs.  The reasons why I'm sad, I don't feel like it's abnormal, like I should feel sad and drugs are not the answer.

I don't feel happy about where we're going as a society.  I don't like building homes for an ever-growing, wasteful, self-indulgent species.  I try to live with minimal requirements, everything I own is a hand-me-down, I don't travel.  I mean, I'm kind of a bum, but, I feel like I might have my reasons.  Society wants me to go work 9-5, buy a big house, bigger t.v, etc... we just end up in a cycle of desire and our eyes are blind to the world that we're ignoring.

I never had any children, (that I know of).  I've seen a lot of people dedicate their lives to their children.  I had been working for Chandra and Tal, but I guess, it wasn't enough, and now I have nothing.  I have a cat that I come home to that I love, maybe too much.

Leaving this planet without any kids could be one of the best things that I can do for the Earth.  I wonder though, all the other people having kids, will they raise them the way I would?  Or are they feeding them the same, "God gave us all of the plants and animals for us to use." bullshit that my parents fed me?  Will they have the money to have a big family and continue to spread their ignorant ways across the planet.  Will I die building big homes for their children while I scrape by in some tiny house?


Friday, June 9, 2017

lost and lonely

Every morning I've been heading to a park that's close to me and I play a round of disc golf.  It's very therapeutic, I like to get out and play without worrying about anyone in the way.  I take my time and watch the animals.  My cat has gotten used to waking me up very early.  I keep letting her so she probably thinks she's doing a good job.  This morning, the sun was just barely up, I leaned over and saw her out like a light, sleeping hard.  I started petting her, gave her that signature, "what the?! oh it's you." purr/meow.

I really like my cat.  My (ex?) girlfriend's daughter is letting me watch her.  I don't know if my admiration for my cat is just how I am or if it's because it came from Tal.  I miss them a lot...  I saw them yesterday, helping Chandra move a dishwasher.  I felt like I was being used, but it was still nice to see them.

I washed my face when I got there, I hadn't had taken the time to wash up after work and it gave me an opportunity to cry.  Every time I go there, I struggle to keep myself together.  I appreciate being there but it hurts sometimes.

I told her that maybe we're not right for each other.  It's been almost a year of living apart and I don't get why we're living in this state of limbo.  She wants me to get my shit together but as far as quitting pot and working more, I haven't been doing it.  I've tried and failed a few times.  I promised that I'd take steps towards going to school and finding another job that I enjoy.  I haven't been doing anything with that.  She thinks we are right for each other and wants me to work on myself.

I've been thinking about looking for help.  There are some online sections that I could post in.

I think I need to move.  My neighbor is always offering to get me high, it's all he ever wants to do.  He's a nice guy and good friend but as far as getting away from weed, he only encourages me to give up on that idea.  I want to be strong, when I quit smoking cigarettes, I did it while living with a smoker.  It's not easy, but I managed that.

Pot is a drug that I've gotten really comfortable with.  I quit (sorta) drinking this year and it's not that big of a deal.  Pot is something that I've quit but every few months it keeps coming back.

I might not be able to quit it when it's so easily accessed.  Moving would make it easier.

Every morning, I get ideas on things to write about while playing disc golf.  I never get around to it though, usually when I'm done my round I have to go to work.  It seems like a topic that I always blog/journal about is quitting weed and working more.  I guess I don't expect anyone to ever read this so I use it as a pep talk to myself.  The results are usually the same.

I smoke too much pot and skip on work too much.

Lately, I've been playing so much disc golf that a hip that I've had problems with for a long time has been acting up.  I'll get sharp pains going up and down ladders, especially when I'm holding any weight.  It's been really hot and I get these itchy spots in sweaty areas.  Once it gets to the afternoon, I'm usually finding ways to bail and get away.

I wanted to go swimming yesterday, I thought it would be a good way to help get rid of the excess sweat and cool off.  After doing some work in the morning, I got a call from Chandra in the afternoon.  That's when she asked for help.  I didn't want to tell her that I wanted to go be a beach bum for the afternoon so I reluctantly agreed to help her.

She already has a dishwasher, she didn't like the look of the old one and said it wasn't good enough.  She always complained about "stainless steel" appliances because they're harder to clean but that's the kind she got.  I don't have shit, I don't get help for shit, I do my dishes with my old-ass looking dish pan hands and I'm fine with that.

She had these bruises on her arms.  She said they were from a door falling on her but they really looked like finger marks, like someone was holding her down.  I noticed a similar bruise pattern from much earlier in our relationship, when we were still dating.  I wondered if she was seeing someone else and if that person was rough with her.  Now I'm thinking that she's seeing this person again.  I hate suspicions like this.  I don't know if writing this down is the best idea.  I don't want to send the wrong message from just a feeling.  Does it matter?

What's the point in anything?

I'm confused, lost and lonely
I just need someone to hold me

You'll find nothing above,
so might as well go, below me.

Wednesday, April 19, 2017

I need to find a path

Looking at these pictures...

http://imgur.com/a/uyDQk

I feel like I want to be a photographer... and go to places where people run away from.

Saturday, April 1, 2017

Reddit comment about CyProps (Cyber Propaganda)


Propaganda has been around since forever - it is just taking advantage of a new medium

Knowledge Journies




How do you get from Tool's Lateralus album to Beautiful space nebulae pictures?  I have a trail of tabs I want to close, let me start with the most recent and work backwards.

"This region of the Carina Nebula is known as ‘Mystic Mountain’. In this composite image we see the chaotic activity atop a three-light-year-tall pillar of gas and dust that is being eaten away by the brilliant light from nearby bright stars. Jets of gas are also being fired from within the pillar by infant stars."


The Hubble space telescope has brought us so many great visuals but it's reaching the end of it's lifespan.  The fifth and last mission to work on the telescope was STS-125.  A mission that lasted almost 13 days.  Katherine Megan McArthur  was the last astronaut to be "hands on" with hubble.  (Technically, it was the hands of a robot that she was operating).

"Space Shuttle Atlantis carried two new instruments to the Hubble Space Telescope, the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph and the Wide Field Camera 3. The mission also replaced a Fine Guidance Sensor, six gyroscopes, and two battery unit modules to allow the telescope to continue to function at least through 2014.[3][7] The crew also installed new thermal blanket insulating panels to provide improved thermal protection, and a soft-capture mechanism that would aid in the safe de-orbiting of the telescope by an unmanned spacecraft at the end of its operational lifespan.[NASA 5][8] The mission also carried an IMAX camera with which the crew documented the progress of the mission for the Hubble IMAX movie"

Katherine McArthur is married to another astronaut, Robert Louis "Bob" Behnken and what was his wake-up call?



I sincerely hope they allowed him to have the intro song, Parabol beforehand, the two go together so well, I would have demanded it.  "Damnit, no space walks until I get the whole thing, I don't care if it's two separate tracks!"

It's probably my favorite by Tool. 

"Parabol"

"So familiar and overwhelmingly warm
This one, this form I hold now.
Embracing you, this reality here,
This one, this form I hold now, so
Wide eyed and hopeful.
Wide eyed and hopefully wild.

We barely remember what came before this precious moment,
Choosing to be here right now. Hold on, stay inside...
This body holding me, reminding me that I am not alone in
This body makes me feel eternal. All this pain is an illusion."

"Parabola"

We barely remember who or what came before this precious moment
We are choosing to be here right now
Hold on, stay inside...

This holy reality, this holy experience
Choosing to be here in...
This body, this body holding me
Be my reminder here that I am not alone in...
This body, this body holding me, feeling eternal
All this pain is an illusion

Alive!

In this holy reality, in this holy experience
Choosing to be here in...
This body, this body holding me
Be my reminder here that I am not alone in...
This body, this body holding me, feeling eternal
All this pain is an illusion

Twirling round with this familiar parable
Spinning, weaving round each new experience
Recognize this as a holy gift and celebrate this chance to be alive and breathing
A chance to be alive and breathing

This body holding me reminds me of my own mortality
Embrace this moment, remember, we are eternal
All this pain is an illusion

Thursday, March 30, 2017

The things you can do with 10,000 days

10,000 days from now, I'll be in my 60's, probably looking at retirement.

I've been building homes in Winnipeg for over 15 years now.  "I've been skipping work like a stone" lately:

It's OK, I'm not A-OK right now.

I told my family I don't want to be a carpenter anymore.  I've worked with them for a long time (picked up the trade from my dad) and I love them all but I need to do something else with my time.

I've been bouncing around with different ideas on what I want to do.  Teaching was one, writing in some way or another, photography and journalism are all things that I've been contemplating.  Politics has interested me lately, as well as cyber security.

I keep playing with ideas but it's gotten to the point where I can't just sit around talking about this stuff anymore.  It's difficult, but I have to just pick something and go.

There is this idea... this hunt for truth... that I keep wanting to pursue.

I want to hunt down lies and rip them apart like a wolf hunts down its prey.

 A picture can speak in any language and can tell many stories.  A photographer/journalist that goes to the dangerous places in the world.


I wouldn't mind doing that... at least for a few days.

Tuesday, March 28, 2017

Alexei Navalny

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-39404985?ocid=socialflow_twitter

"US state department spokesman Mark Toner said in a statement: "The Russian people, like people everywhere, deserve a government that supports an open marketplace of ideas, transparent and accountable governance, equal treatment under the law, and the ability to exercise their rights without fear of retribution."


"The most prominent critic of President Putin, Mr Navalny began his anti-corruption campaign with blogs aimed at state-controlled companies in 2008.
He moved on to opposing the ruling party, United Russia, calling it the "party of crooks and thieves".
He led massive protests following the 2011 election, the biggest in Moscow in December that year, after which he was arrested and jailed for 15 days.
He has said he will run for president in 2018, but a court has convicted him of embezzlement, which would bar him. He denies the charges, calling the case farcical."
Today, Alexei Navalny is my hero.  To rise up to the corrupt power and say, "Hey man... Fuck you!" but in a legal, by the books way is pretty awesome.  Kudos to you Mr. Navalny, I know I'm just one man, but you have my support.

Cat theatre!

I've been learning a lot about Russia recently.  A few days ago, I was asked to watch my friend's cat.  The last time I had a cat, I really wanted to prove that smart cats can learn tricks.  I taught her some simple things like fetch and how to jump on a chair on command.  I'd like to teach "Mew", my new cat, some tricks as well since she exhibits a lot of the same intelligent characteristics.  Yesterday I discovered that Russia has been running cat shows for years.  Peta has complained and I think that any show that involves animals has to be extremely careful but if they do a good job, I really like seeing what animals can do when we take the time to train them.


There are some newer "cat circus" shows on youtube.  Acro-cats brought some clever and absurdly cute ideas:

So, I've been wondering about what tricks I can teach Mew now.  It'd be fun to bring something original to the table.  The mind of a cat is a tricky one.  I believe Mew can be trained mainly because I can see she has a desire to impress plus, she really loves her treats.  It's something I noticed with my previous cat and I think it's key.

Yesterday, I started by holding the treat above a chair and issuing a command.  She doesn't get the treat until she sits up in the chair.  (She has to do this to reach the treat)  I'll keep doing this until I can take a step back and get her to do it without me holding the treat directly above her.  Eventually, Cinder, my previous cat, would listen when I pointed at the chair and she would sit patiently for her treat.

This is a primer for other tricks.  It's the most simple trick I can think of for a cat.  Once she's learned how to do this, I can start with other tricks.

I might do some research on what other people have done for more advanced tricks.

2152 days later

It's been a while.

I just left this comment on Reddit this morning (under my username, Batchet.  Also on Twitter with that name):

The climate denial machine is a propaganda machine that can be set to various modes. Exxon and Koch are not the only companies running one. Shell and other gas companies around the world put large amounts of money into convincing people climate change isn't real too. Does Rosneft or other monstrously large oil companies do the same?
Most likely. In fact, running an external climate denial propaganda campaign doesn't just sell more oil for a country like Russia, it makes our countries less educated. People believe scientists and science educators as "untrustworthy". Therefore, a disinformation campaign is not just an attempt to make more money, but an attack on a country's education and economy.
For a long time, the propaganda from both sides was about ideologies. When communism didn't work out, the Russians still pushed propaganda but for different purposes, election meddling and so on. I think both machines teamed up and started to sing the same "climate change denial" song.
I don't know how much climate denial money comes from what country, but I'm guessing since Russia's economy is so heavily invested in fossil fuels that it's likely that they make a fair contribution.
Another point to make is that both Rosneft and Exxon benefit from the ice caps opening up as they've put a lot of money into obtaining arctic oil. They literally teamed up to do this and it would seem to me that they both knew that climate change awareness could fuck up the whole thing.
Other countries may be guilty of these misinformation campaigns too. The more I learn about this stuff, the more complex I discover it is.
Simply put: When we can shut down these industries of lies, we'll be able to push forward much faster.