Ducks: Queen of Frickin' Everything

I'm feeling so out of it today. I think the sleep thing... um... lack thereof... is finally starting to take a toll other than a mental one. I've got a sore throat, and I feel so lethargic and sore I can hardly function. Plus I'm feeling sort of depressed and just generally yuck. It's one of those days when I sit down to do something, but I can't really focus enough to get anything done. And I worked really hard last night before bed getting all of my current projects together, figuring out where I am and where I need to be, so I could sit down today and start planning to actually get something done.

Yeah, well, all that's come out of that is a nice pile of paper and the sense that I can't get anything done. I'm so tired, I just want to go back to bed. *sigh*

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You know it's a bad day when a good LOLCat barely gets a chuckle out of you.

http://blog.esaba.com/projects/catphotos/catphotos.php?image=20480395.jpg

But at least there was a chuckle. Oh gods, will no one cheer me up?

I need more coffee. And sunlight.

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I was just going to avoid the news entirely today, as it's just as depressing as everything else. More so. Earthquakes, financial markets collapsing, political bullshit. But I did find one positive thing, a sign that sometimes justice can prevail decades after a hideous crime takes place.

Man, 92, to be deported for aiding Nazis.

The story itself is horrible, of course. I mean, we learned about these horrors in school. We hear stories of them among our friends and family. But reading about them, seeing people finally brought to justice for their part, makes it real in a way that no history book or TV special ever could.

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So, I have a question. Does anybody on ANY of my friends' lists find the Cavemen from the Geico commercials amusing? At all? I'm still flabbergasted that they greenlighted a SERIES about them. I bet they don't make it past the pilot, 'cause dude. It's just not funny. I find them so annoying now that I can't remember if the original joke ever was funny!

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Man, the IJ server sure is robust today! I'm actually impressed that it's held up as well as it has over the past week, considering the load it's had to pick up! In the literal and metaphorical sense. *G* I have to say, I really love it here so far. squeaky and insanity are the shit, and they really busted their butts to make us feel welcome. They went out of their way to make sure our questions get answered, our issues addressed, and our concerns smoothed over. What other service would bother? Of course there's no guarantee that things will stay this friendly and open forever -- I mean, I'm sure squeaky won't be able to run this place by himself forever, and the more chefs stirring the pot... well, the closer you get to being Live Journal. But for now, I feel comfortable here. The only downside I've seen is that my friends are scattered all over the place, and I'm having a hard time keeping up with two friends' lists on top of everything else I have to do.

But I have to say, feeling like my freedom of expression is safe for the time being is well worth the small hassle of trouble keeping track of things. *snuggles Insane Journal*

I'm slowly working on paring my LJ back to basic status, getting rid of icons (which HURTS -- so far I've only been able to pare down to 33, and I need to get down to SIX) and trying to figure out what format and mood theme I'll use so I can continue cross-posting. I will also be closing down my communities there -- or actually, leaving posts informing people that all activity will be moving to my communities on IJ.



I know people are insisting that we let this go and move on... especially those of us who HAVE moved on, but... I think the discussions going on here are relevant for far more than just our own communities -- they're imperative for life on the Internet at large as well. So as long as there is something interesting going on and I'm paying attention, I'll feel free to discuss it here.

Thanks to kita0610 for the first three links.

* Nazi Tits are fine, but BREASTFEEDING IS OBSCENE OMGZ!
* LJ's new policies are VERY clear. They say *mumblemumblegrumblecontradictlietapdancemumblemurmurwhispergobbldeygook*!
* Fanfic is NOT ILLEGAL. Stop making yourself a whipping-fan!
* The First Strikes are being handed out, and they are just as stupid, arbitrary, and contradictory as we cynical types thought it would be! The one that makes me go BWUH? Is the one where cluegirl got a first strike for a picture she took off line a week ago. Yes. LJ clearly means to be fair and even handed with their policies, and all other fan activity that's not PotterPorn is absolutely in NO danger at all, no sir. /sarcastic voice.

The delicious and fantastic thenyxie breaks it all down in the simplest terms for us.




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An interesting turn in politics -- Edward encourages Democrats to reject lobbyists' money to fund their campaigns. Now, I think I've been pretty clear that my hat currently perches on Obama's head, but I will clearly vote for whomever the Democratic party puts up. But Edwards impresses me on a lot of levels because of his whole populist thing, plus his wife. So I wouldn't feel too bad about supporting him, either. I wish I could articulate more completely why I don't like Hillary. I mean, I should, right? I'm a huge fan of Bill (although it has been rightfully said that Hillary is NOT Bill) and she is a strong, confident, powerful woman. But I just don't trust her. It makes me wonder if that's why I don't like her. If it's part of the internalized misogyny that makes me say things like, "I don't like women as a rule," and "I prefer to hang out with men rather than women." Those things have changed as I've gotten older, but still. I remember when I was younger, I always felt like hanging around with women my age was more like a game of one-upmanship and Get The Guy than a real relationship. Now that I'm older and dealing with a different kind of woman (GEEKS RULE! W00t!), the dynamics are very different, and I find the company of women much more comfortable.

But how can I know that subconsciously, those old feelings aren't still there, and effecting how I feel about Hillary running this country? Or is it really my surface reasons, that I don't trust her to protect women, that I don't trust her not to just be the same old same old, just wearing a skirt? I don't know, and it worries me.



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So here's some food for thought: If you have a spouse on Second Life, are you cheating on your real life spouse? I've always sort of wondered about this. There was a time back when the internet and chatting were new when the lines between cyber life and RL weren't so blurred -- the two were completely separate, and I didn't feel like having cyber sex was cheating on your real-life partner. But as time's gone by, I'm not sure I'd be so sanguine about it now. Especially when you're talking about something like Second Life, where you are actually living a whole virtual life. Just because you're not physically there doesn't make the emotions any less real. So you may not be *physically* cheating, but you are most definitely emotionally and psychologically, and isn't that worse? (with the exception of danger from diseases, of course). Frankly, with the work I do now, my online life takes up the vast majority of my life. I have far more online friends than real-life ones, and I spend entire days on the Internet without talking to anyone outside my family at all.

What do you think?

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I think from now on you should just add a default lament about the pain and agony of dial-up from now on, kay? *G* I've gotten kicked off at least four times today, at the most inopportune moments. *sigh* Alas. To make myself feel somewhat better, I'm going to begin working my way through the complete Monty Python's Flying Circus collection, which I haven't done in at least a year or two.