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halfgeek.net halfgeek.net 2008-06-04T06:14:05+00:00 How Sweet it Is tag:halfgeek.net,{gmt_date format="%Y"}:?id=2637 2008-06-04T06:14:05+00:00 2008-06-04T06:14:05+00:00 2008-06-04T06:14:05+00:00 Christine

Politics <img class="pic" src="weblog/image/obama.jpg" align="right" height="420" width="300">Is it possible that this could be the face of America of 2009 and beyond?  I almost cannot believe it. But tonight, he managed to secure the nomination from the hands of the well-established  and well-known Clinton family, and did so without having to sell his soul to negative campaigning or lobbyists dollars. And let's hope such a trend continues. I gave my first donation for Obama's campaign tonight, partially because I feel kind of weird giving money to one Democrat over another. I figure let the process work itself out. But I feel tonight is the eve and kickstart to the general election. Surely, it will be treated as such (no matter if and when Hillary decides to concede.) Time to take on McCain. There was a time I admired McCain. Iraq War and his lack of fire against torture has been the deal breaker there. He might not be as bad as Bush, but he has shown his lack of character. And character is everything to me. Which is why I've supported Obama and didn't support Hillary. Incidentally, I am most disappointed by Hillary's campaigning this year. There was almost an entitlement to her candidacy. As if, she thinks she deserves it, as if she is the golden egg that we must all uphold with reverence. Surely, she's an American Democratic Senator and that should amount for a level of respect and admiration. And she's a strong and confident woman, which we women should admire. But that's where the praises end. I think the breaking point for me, was with her comments a couple weeks ago, regarding RFK's assassination and why that somehow should be a reason she stays in the race. Okay, you just don't make mention of that. Ever. I remember during the Clinton impeachment trial when there were reports of gunfire heard near the White House. Surely nobody had the bad taste to ever discuss the "what if one of those shots actually hit somebody." Definitely nobody mentioned it with political ideas in mind. Especially not a former first lady who at the time was going through that very fear. It was just too much for me. Enough was enough. She is no face of feminism. Feminism is to make the playing fields equal, not claim special treatment or action based on gender. The fact that she brings up "sexism" itself makes her "feminism" suspect. Granted, it exists but I can notice that on my own without her feeding it to me like I should feel sympathy for her and vote for her simply because she too has a set of ovaries. Obama has been likely discriminated against far more than she has for his skin color. Oh but exchange the word "black" for "muslim". There you go. Obama is a class act, a true genuine article as far as I can see. Intelligent, wise, diplomatic, non-radical. End to the war, end (hopefully) to the Patriot Act, end to not signing the Kyoto treaty, end to picking hacks for the Supreme Court.  Return to prestige and accountability. It's not even about the man Obama. It's about the movement that follows the man. A movement that I'm glad to be a part of. I can't wait for 2009. The quarterly update tag:halfgeek.net,{gmt_date format="%Y"}:?id=2579 2008-05-08T19:08:22+00:00 2008-05-08T19:08:22+00:00 2008-05-08T19:08:22+00:00 Christine

General Hello?... ...[silence].... Hello, I say? Is there anybody out there?... ...[a cricket chirps in the background, otherwise, nothing]... Okay, I know I deserve that. I've been deplorably bad about blogging. But what exactly do you do when you feel you have nothing to blog about? Memes? I am not going to go that route. Youtube videos? Can be entertaining from time to time, but after awhile it just gets dull. Okay, so I had things I could have blogged about. Like for example, my Dad had his cystoscopy again and he is still cancer-free. Or in March/April, we took a two and a half week trip to <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/wolfie/sets/72157604203043973/" target="_self">Costa Rica and Panama</a>, where I actually saw a quetzal? Not just any old quetzal, but two <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resplendent_Quetzal" target="_self">resplendent quetzals</a>. Sim <strike>ran</strike> walked in a marathon. I think we are pretty close to finally having a democratic nominee (although I may be wrong, Hillary should be the next celebrity endorser for Energizer batteries.. She keeps going.. and.. well, nevermind). Oh yeah, and I have found myself becoming addicted to <a href="http://twitter.com/halfgeek" target="_self">tweeting</a>. And I am not proud of that. I'm in the process of a new site design completely. Time to blow away the old, and usher in the new. I can accept that I have increasingly gone through these dry periods. Get into it for a few days, then just lose my voice completely. But it's not like I've fallen off the planet. I'm still very active online. I just sometimes feel I lost my voice. So, I'm redesigning the new site around this fact, incorporating what one could call <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Micro-blogging" target="_self">micro-blogging</a>. Social networking has so become the rage lately, and I want a little bit going on in my site also. It's about time. Now, I've been looking at some of the old linkers to my site, and I see many of them removed me. Fair enough, I know I do not deserve any patience. I'm not holding up my end of the deal, I'm not terribly exciting. But I do hope to move back into it. Especially with the upcoming elections. At times, I can just talk and talk and talk and talk politics and Sim gets to listen and listen and listen and listen. And I know he's just not that into it like I am. So stop wagging the lips, and start flicking the keys, Christine. And I must not fret that most of my readers have moved on. Because when I first started blogging, I knew nobody was there to read it and I still did it anyway. There comes a time when you have to do something for the good of you, not for the good of everyone else. And it's a little nice to feel you're speaking to a smaller audience again. It takes the pressure off a bit, especially when talking about more controversial topics. Anyway, for those of you still around. I thank you for being so patient. I will try not to disappoint again, the new site design will help. You will see what I mean when it is unveiled. Cheers! Super Tuesday tag:halfgeek.net,{gmt_date format="%Y"}:?id=2578 2008-02-06T07:02:24+00:00 2008-02-06T07:02:24+00:00 2008-02-06T07:02:24+00:00 Christine

Politics So as one would expect, I've been tearing the hair out of my head having to listen to the spin spewed out by the mainstream media outlets. But I've been watching it devotedly wanting to know who's coming out ahead. And by the looks of things, between Obama and Clinton it seems pretty evenly split. I think Hillary has a slight lead. But with that said, Hillary was expected to do a lot better tonight. So all in all? It was Obama's night. He took majority in possibly 13 of the 22 states. Hillary got the larger states, but I'm sure those at her campaign are sitting slightly uncomfortably in their seats. And.. well? I can say I like that. I have withheld any of my opinions and preferences up til this point as I can admit I've been holding out for the possibility that my man Al Gore would run. But I'm doubting that is to be this time. So I can say I'm definitely on the Obama side. Yes, it's about the war. And it's also about how much dirty money she accepts from lobbyists. And it's about how ugly former president Bill Clinton is getting trash talking Obama (ok, Bill, shut the f*** up, you're ruining the respect I hold for you.) It's about how much I get inspired by Obama's orations. I felt shivers up and down my body while I heard him speak. And while I know I can be swayed by such things and I'm to not be seduced by words, I feel such an inspiration from him. But the biggest reason I support Barack Obama is his: Tonight on CNN, Ari Fleischer said that he hopes Hillary gets the nomination because there's a bigger chance for the Republicans to beat Hillary running than to beat Obama. And I will accept any candidate who has the higher chance of throwing the Republicans out of the White House. No President McCain. No President Romney. No President Huckabee. I want no part of that. So go Barack, go! Stewart vs. Colbert vs. Conan, the final showdown tag:halfgeek.net,{gmt_date format="%Y"}:?id=2577 2008-02-05T17:28:17+00:00 2008-02-05T17:28:17+00:00 2008-02-05T17:28:17+00:00 Christine

Funny Okay this is just too good to pass up sharing. I stayed up way past my bedtime last night to catch it, and when I found the video up on YouTube this morning, I could not resist.... enjoy! <object height="355" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/OLfvf-L8pXc&rel=1"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/OLfvf-L8pXc&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="355" width="425"></object> All three are such funny funny men. My god. ;) The cat's got her tongue tag:halfgeek.net,{gmt_date format="%Y"}:?id=2576 2008-02-02T23:03:22+00:00 2008-02-02T23:03:22+00:00 2008-02-02T23:03:22+00:00 Christine

General Oh my my my. Has it really been a full month since I last blogged? Shameful. I manage to get the photoblog ready each day. I post links to del.icio.us every day just about. And as a result, this poor little blog suffers. Well, I think it's time I take this in a new direction. I guess I have these periods of not really wanting to say much. I do things, of course. Like for example last weekend I went to a fancypants restaurant and had probably the best creme brulee I've ever tried. It was flavored with cinnamon and orange. Dear me, it was good. And my family's going through a bit of an ordeal as my 99 year-old great aunt Mildred is currently in the hospital with pneumonia. Who knows if and when she'd be able to return back home. This, in turn, caused my mom and dad to cancel their trip to Myrtle Beach, which makes all of us pretty sad and bummed out. Oh yeah, and a re-injured my back just after New Years which laid me up for awhile (still not back to 100% yet, either). And Sim went to Chicago, I've been playing a hell of a lot of Sims2, we got a new electric oven range which we adore, and Rock Band has been announced for the Wii. I'm going to redoing the site, something entirely different. Think of a mix between a blog and a link poster like del.icio.us. Something that I can post to daily with a random link or there, but of which I can also post a long personal blog post as I occasionally am known to do. And what the hell, get some photos in there also. Should be fun. I can't just *stop*. It's just not going to happen. Even if I had no readers left, I'd still go to it. I'm not here for the popularity, just for the diary aspect (which is good, as I'm sure most of my readers have forgotten I exist. ;)). Now I'm off to Ikea. We're looking to replace our countertops in the kitchen (HURRAY) and we need to figure out about how much it'd cost us.... just to see what our options are. :) Ciao! PS- Congratulations to N & <a href="http://www.thecatandus.blogspot.com/" target="_self">Z</a>, who welcomed a baby boy into their family this past month. So glad it all worked out, now if we can just have a name and a photograph or two... ;) tag:halfgeek.net,{gmt_date format="%Y"}:?id=2575 2008-01-03T18:01:03+00:00 2008-01-03T18:01:03+00:00 2008-01-03T18:01:03+00:00 Christine

Current Events <a href="http://cliffschecter.bravenewfilms.org/blog/23206-new-footage-of-the-bhutto-assassination-proves-the-musharraf-government-is-lying" target="_self">Compelling</a>. Definitive proof that Musharraf's government is lying about Bhutto's assassination. <object height="350" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Vq-DwHXx4oI&border=0&rel=0"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Vq-DwHXx4oI&border=0&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="350" width="425"></object> Happy 08 yeah! tag:halfgeek.net,{gmt_date format="%Y"}:?id=2574 2008-01-01T10:22:06+00:00 2008-01-01T10:22:06+00:00 2008-01-01T10:22:06+00:00 Christine

Holidays Well I can't let 2008 pass without at least one semi-drunk post. Okay I'm not so drunk! Honest! Okay I spilled my drink on me and almost pulled the tablecloth with me when I got up from the table. Other than that, I swear you'd think I'm completely sober. Look at how well I type! We had a fantastic party as usual. Second one in a row spent at our place. It seems the full of the night was spent eating. And I'm not exagerrating. I think my week in Michigan made me all overly ambitious to spin my wheels in the kitchen, and so I made entirely too much food. Of course, I didn't realize that Jo was going to bring pinwheels & baked brie (holy god, why haven't I baked with puff pastry before?) Along with that, I did up thai chicken sate with peanut sauce, mini margharita pizzas on pita bread, antipasto platter with italian cured meats, cheeses, feta-stuffed olives, and balsamic-marinated cioppino onions (my personal favorite), tzatziki with my pita chips (a party of mine isn't complete without it), salsa and chips, and red grapes. And Kim brought her punch bowl and made champagne punch with two*** bottles of champagne, triple-sec, pineapple juice & ginger ale. It was too easy to drink... of which I did.... and I lost track of the number after 4 lowball glasses. Jo told me that champagne can cause headaches, so I'm dutifully drinking water to try to make that less so. We played a bit of Guitar Hero and otherwise just talked (why does it seem I mention every New Years' that I had a bit of a young girl crush on Airwolf pilot <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001821/" target="_self">Jan-Michael Vincent</a>? I managed to mostly clean up in the kitchen, but the rest will have to wait til the morning. My energy is at a low now. So good night, sleep tight, enjoy your first moments of 2008. The year all Democrats have waited for since 2004. Zzzzzzzonk. PS- We bought ourselves a new <a href="http://www.whirlpoolappliances.ca/en/Products/GERC4110SB.html" target="_self">oven range</a> in the Boxing week sales. Will take a couple weeks to get it ordered, but I'm super-excited. Yee! The bags are packed and I'm ready to go tag:halfgeek.net,{gmt_date format="%Y"}:?id=2573 2007-12-27T13:10:17+00:00 2007-12-27T13:10:17+00:00 2007-12-27T13:10:17+00:00 Christine

Travel Well I'm in a better place than I was the other night. Maybe that's because I'm not all hopped up on decongestant medicine. Who knows for sure. But in about six hours we're heading out of here and back to Seattle, where we will collect our car and drive the last length back home to Vancouver (either tonight or tomorrow morning, depending on what shape we're in). I do hate those damn goodbyes, but thankfully this time my niece is coming along and so she will hopefully create a happy diversion from the tearful sad little waves from afar. And then, I hope there is no flight delay for that flight. Because when we get to Minneapolis, we only have a 40 or so odd minute layover before our flight to Seattle departs. While that'd be fine with no delay, we're in midst of winter here and so I'm a bit worried. But what's the worst that could happen? We have to stay a bit longer in Minneapolis to catch a later flight? We have to spend the night in Minneapolis? None of these things are so bad. So.... we'll see I guess. Perhaps it'll be like last time, and our Seattle flight will also be delayed. We'll see, I guess. One thing I do know is that it was a great idea to bring the Wii home. My dad's been joking that we'll have to leave the Wii behind to make room for our Christmas gifts. They really really loved Wii Sports, especially bowling. Even my mom played a few games. Anyway, I look forward to just getting home and sleeping in my bed. And hopefully Sim isn't coming down with what I had. He says he is, but I'm not sure if he's teasing me or not. I'm glad he took Friday off from work so he has vacation now through the weekend. Anyway, hope everyone had/are having a good holiday and will have a smashingly great 2008.