So, what are you doing other than gaming and work, nowadays?

avatar! wrote:

Razakin wrote:

PerfectZer0 wrote:

People read into things way too much.  No need for any psycho babble b.s.  I shouldn't have written anything. But if EVERYONE MUST KNOW....

1.  They target my only two rose bushes (both are still small and the new growth gets eaten off, gee I wonder whats been doing that.)

2.  Jack Rabbits are disease ridden vermin.  I don't care to have them around.

3.  They're ugly.

Yeah, I can understand on those cases why you get rid of them. Well, not the ugly part. But opinions are opinions right. Hopefully they'll learn to leave your roses alone.

It's true that rabbits, as well as any other animal can be vectors for disease. ANY other animal. Still, the best way to control pests is to

1)erect a fence. That is proven to be the most effect method against most pests, and you don't have to shoot anything.
2)There are also various repellents that work very well (there are special rabbit repellents in fact), and again you don't have to shoot anything.
3)noisemakers have also been proven to be effective against pests, including rabbits, and you don't have to shoot anything.

I realize that some people like to shoot animals. I think it's very unfortunate that people feel they are "superior" to all other animals and that they are entitled to kill/eliminate anything they don't like. I'm certainly not against hunting for food. I'm also not saying that's how you (PZ) feel, but I would hope you consider looking into some non-lethal alternatives. The rabbits are just doing what is natural to them, and they certainly don't mean any harm.

Seriously I don't need ppl judging me or giving me advice about friggin pest control on my own property.  I live in Northern Nevada and own 5.6 acres. Jack rabbits are nasty creatures here, you kill one, two more pop up.  I wish there were more coyotes around to eat these fuckers.

avatar! wrote:

PerfectZer0 wrote:

Seriously I don't need ppl judging me or giving me advice about friggin pest control on my own property.  I live in Northern Nevada and own 5.6 acres. Jack rabbits are nasty creatures here, you kill one, two more pop up.  I wish there were more, coyotes around to eat these fuckers.

Yes, coyotes are natural predators, but there are relatively very few left. Why aren't there more of them? Because people nearly exterminated them, since they viewed coyotes as disease ridden, ugly, pests.

Blarg.

Last edited by PerfectZer0 (Jul 08, 2012)

I finally found myself a nice copy of Richard Matheson's classic, "I Am Legend" and am about 1/2-way through (it's a quick read). Despite it being some 50+ years old, it's still thrilling, and I have to say far better (and different) than the numerous adaptations that have been made into movies. In fact, watching the Will Smith adaptation was rather painful...

avatar! wrote:

I finally found myself a nice copy of Richard Matheson's classic, "I Am Legend" and am about 1/2-way through (it's a quick read). Despite it being some 50+ years old, it's still thrilling, and I have to say far better (and different) than the numerous adaptations that have been made into movies. In fact, watching the Will Smith adaptation was rather painful...

I watched the original version with Vincent Price earlier this year. It was "primitive". I still haven't yet seen the "Omega Man".

Been trying to level build and trick out my character in real life.

Trying to find a new job; besides spraying (or pepper spraying) my resume all over the place, I'm trying to network, join some professional associations, maybe even talk to someone at the local Chamber of Commerce for good leads.

Also tossing around the idea of a career change, maybe going back to college, getting a Master's degree, or SOMETHING.

Trying to exercise and eat healthier, ultimately carve out my abs; the exercising is the easy part, once I know what kind of exercises I ought to do, trying to learn how to eat healthier, that's a bit more complicated for me.

Fencing gives me a good reason to work out, and eat healthier; I'll be able to perform better if I do.

Also got some foreign language programs (French, Mandarin Chinese) that I really ought to listen to some time.

I've certainly got my share of books stacked up for me to mow through. Maybe I'll actually learn something.

Also trying to get out more, meet new people, heck, maybe even try and find myself a nice girlfriend. I'm kind of finding out, that, by my age, it's practically impossible to find a girl who hasn't had sex already. The thought is definitely a source of depression for me. Let's face it: If a person's willing to have sex outside of wedlock, they're not destined to remain in a martial, or otherwise committed relationship, until death. 'Cuz, otherwise, everyone's got AIDS an' s***.

What can I say; I'm a big fan of stability. I'm kind of a boring person that way, I guess. Getting tired of my otherwise nomadic way of life. Always migrating from one residence, from one job, from one girlfriend, to the next.

Sean Connery: "Losers always whine about doing their best (or trying), but winners go home and f*** the prom queen."

Well, I'm not about pre-marital sex, and I think it's rather shallow-minded and short-sighted to just presume that a prom queen would actually be decent girlfriend (or suitable to have sex with), but the man has a point: No one likes a whiner. In other words, I really ought to stop trying and get to doing.

Last edited by Dartannian (Jul 25, 2012)

Dartannian wrote:

Also trying to get out more, meet new people, heck, maybe even try and find myself a nice girlfriend. I'm kind of finding out, that, by my age, it's practically impossible to find a girl who hasn't had sex already. The thought is definitely a source of depression for me. Let's face it: If a person's willing to have sex outside of wedlock, they're not destined to remain in a martial, or otherwise committed relationship, until death. 'Cuz, otherwise, everyone's got AIDS an' s***.
...
Sean Connery: "Losers always whine about doing their best (or trying), but winners go home and f*** the prom queen."
Well, I'm not about pre-marital sex, and I think it's rather shallow-minded and short-sighted to just presume that a prom queen would actually be decent girlfriend (or suitable to have sex with), but the man has a point: No one likes a whiner. In other words, I really ought to stop trying and get to doing.

I think it's a bit short-sighted to say that if someone has sex before marriage, then they're "destined" to get divorced. In fact, I'm not sure where you get that notion from? OK, my guess (and please correct me if I'm wrong) is that you get this notion from your religion. The only people I've met that had the same opinions as you are those that are very religous individuals (not just Christians by the way). Now, I'm not saying they're bad people and certainly everyone is entitled to their opinion, but the point is that people are different and just because they don't lead the same lifestyle you do, that does not make them cheaters/evil/or have various STDs. Likewise, how many prom queens have you known? If you want to hold off sex until you are married, that is perfectly your right and your business. I don't think it would be fair of people to criticize you for such a decision. Likewise, I question your notions, which by the way do not agree with statistics.

Last edited by avatar! (Jul 25, 2012)

avatar! wrote:

I think it's a bit short-sighted to say that if someone has sex before marriage, then they're "destined" to get divorced. In fact, I'm not sure where you get that notion from? OK, my guess (and please correct me if I'm wrong) is that you get this notion from your religion. The only people I've met that had the same opinions as you are those that are very religous individuals (not just Christians by the way). Now, I'm not saying they're bad people and certainly everyone is entitled to their opinion, but the point is that people are different and just because they don't lead the same lifestyle you do, that does not make them cheaters/evil/or have various STDs. Likewise, how many prom queens have you known? If you want to hold off sex until you are married, that is perfectly your right and your business. I don't think it would be fair of people to criticize you for such a decision. Likewise, I question your notions, which by the way do not agree with statistics.

I don't know why I bother trying to argue points with people who aren't going to believe me or acknowledge my point of view, when they're just going to accuse me of bias, even though they themselves have an agenda they want to promote to the exclusion of others.

My views have been shaped by my experience; simple observation, really.

I have a couple of cousins who had partners they never married, and had children by them; both ended up either separating from their partner, or getting dumped.

I have a friend who was married for precisely the time of ONE MONTH before getting divorced. His girlfriend/wife had sex with him BEFORE they got married.

And then there's my co-workers; no matter what job I've worked (and I'm usually the youngest person wherever I work, with everyone else being from the Baby Boomer Generation) there's no shortage of people who're either currently divorced, separated, or on a marriage that isn't their first marriage. They always insist in shoehorning their grief into normal conversation; be it about their ex-spouse, the children they had by that spouse, or mentioning that they're on their second or third person (spouse), or about how they think their step children are dirt; I asked all of them if they'd had sex prior to marriage. The answer was always "Yes."

It's just really distressing for me to hear about no matter what. These people feel miserable with their lives, and it comes through in what they say, and how they say it.

They say that the divorce rate for married couples in the U.S. is 50%. That's half of all marriages! It's hard NOT to believe, in the face of everything I've heard and seen!

It kind of has me convinced that, no matter who I marry, they'd probably end up just marrying for sex - covering sex with marriage so they don't seem lewd - and then divorcing for money.

AS A GENERAL RULE, if you're the type to have sex out of wedlock, you're not the type to stick around! If you just want to have casual sex, you're not interested in a committed relationship! People who take that stuff seriously save it for marriage! There are exceptions...there are people who have casual sex, and then eventually find someone they end up permanently married to...but they're exceptions to the rule.

Last edited by Dartannian (Jul 25, 2012)

So 50% of marriages end in divorce... that sounds like the canonical number. That also means 50% of marriages don't end in divorce. Now, you can't seriously believe that of the marriages that "stick", that nearly all those people waited until marriage to have sex? Just from the statistics, as 1:2 chance of having a "successful" marriage is pretty good! I'm not arguing with you that people who just want casual sex are not going to be marriage material, that I agree with. However, I disagree with many of your other statements. By the way, in this study, 95% of Americans have had sex before marriage. And guess what? They've been doing it for decades!!

http://www.guttmacher.org/media/nr/2006 … index.html

The divorce rate was much lower in the 50s. Although this does not cover everything, the graph below will show how the divorce rate has climbed over the years. Yet, most people have always had sex before marriage... so what does that mean? That sex before marriage is not the reason for high divorce rates.

http://www.bsos.umd.edu/socy/vanneman/s … vorce.html

That said, I'm not trying to talk you out of your ways (which I take it are religious in nature). However, the reasons for high divorces are not due to merely having sex before getting married.

Sorry if you feel insulted, that wasn't my intent. You're telling me I'm alienating you and everyone else here, but it's also a two-way street: I'm the one who feels alienated from everyone else who isn't me.

Really, it's just a general rule I've set for myself: Don't date girls who've previously had sex, and don't date girls from previously failed marriages; it never turns out well. Not for me, at least. But GOOD LUCK trying to find someone like that, right?

Don't mind me, I've just become really disillusioned with life and existence. It's just a lot of "My word, I didn't think you were like that!" Her: "What're you getting so upset about? You sound like my father..." lately...crazy kinky !@#$ that women, nay, people in general are into these days, the expectations that they have; they cover it up for a reason.

If it's any consolation, I don't necessarily go for hardcore Christian girls, either; they tend to be racist against all races that aren't White, even if the people in question have assimilated into the American lifestyle, and adopted Christianity themselves, and they also tend to be discriminatory against other religions; if I married (or even dated) one of them, they'd probably insist I lose the friends that I actually have.

I'm a very middle-of-the-road person; unfortunately, that's only the best position if you're intent on getting run over.

I think I'm just going to stop talking about this now. I'm gonna go listen to some music, and just chill out or something...

Last edited by Dartannian (Jul 26, 2012)

Jodo Kast wrote:

One of the strangest things I ever heard another guy say occurred after a new female employee came to work....

"I'd like to f--- her."

"Why? She's pregnant," I stated.

"Because she fucks," he stated.

Ok. So some guys actively seek out women with kids, because it sort of guarantees that they will get laid.
Life can be really funny sometimes.

That guy, is a loser. Really, I don't use that term more than a few times a day when reading the news, but yeah, loser. When I read/hear people talk like that, I can totally understand where Dartannian is coming from. Mind you, I don't agree with many of Dartannian's notions, but a guy like that [the employee] has no self-respect nor respect for anyone else.

avatar! wrote:

That guy, is a loser. Really, I don't use that term more than a few times a day when reading the news, but yeah, loser. When I read/hear people talk like that, I can totally understand where Dartannian is coming from. Mind you, I don't agree with many of Dartannian's notions, but a guy like that [the employee] has no self-respect nor respect for anyone else.

Nowadays, those men are called MILF hunters. I read that there are even GILF hunters. If you're intrigued by sexual oddities/perversions, then there is a good book for that. I was in a state of shock from beginning to end while reading this:

http://www.amazon.com/Billion-Wicked-Th … d+thoughts

And now for something completely different.

ANYWAY, so I have this tech job at this tech company (which will remain unnamed); the pay's decent (I'm able to make ends meet, anyway) and the commute's a ways, but the scenery on the way is kinda nice; a drive before work kind of psyches me up and motivates me for the day ahead.

Obviously, I can't tell you where the place is located, but if you're ever driving through a lush green forest on a two-way black asphalt-paved road, and pass by a security gate at the base of a small mountain, chances're that's the corporate drive leading up to my office.

The particular office for the company I work at is located on a small mountain; it's referred to fondly as "The Office on the Mount" by those of us who work there, and the campus consists of about 3 separate buildings. Literally, the buildings are located at the top of the slopes; the summit's pretty small. Keep in mind, this isn't even the company's headquarters; it's just one of their very many offices in the world.

I work in one room, around one table, with about 5-6 other people at a time.

There's only one problem with the job: THEY ACTUALLY HAVE AUTOMATED ROBOTS SURVEILLING US. They're those classic-looking robots, that have either roundish or squarish heads, and their bodies are either rectangular or trapezoidal in shape; they move around on treads. They also have arms.

And if it looks like we're goofing off, or sleeping on the job, they TAZE us. Not the kind of tazer that knocks you out, it's more like a cattle prod for humans; it just stings like getting minutely singed when cooking something. Still, it snaps you back to attention.

My point is, THESE ROBOTS ARE PROGRAMMED WITH ALGORITHMS TO RECOGNIZE IF SOMEONE IS "GOOFING OFF" OR NOT. Many times though, it's undeserved, and people have gotten tazed when they really WERE working or researching. The worst place to end up with one of these robots harassing you is in the bathroom. Y'know, 'cuz of the water? They'll also chase you away from the water cooler after a time. It's a "Loiter-free" workplace. And they disclose all of this before you decide to work for them. Of course, upstanding citizen you think you are, you don't think it'll be a problem.

Unfortunately, it reached the last straw for me yesterday. I got stung in the back of my waist while sitting at my computer, while I was trying to calculate the weight that a certain product would be able to withstand, and maybe figure out how to improve its frame, so it could sustain more weight.

I turn around, and I see "Clank" right there (that's my little pet name for 'im), so, do you know what I do? I grab him by his little orb-shaped head, and his body and arms start flailing and wiggling underneath him, but he's not able to connect me with his tazer when I hold him at arm's length.

I take him to the stairwell, and you know what I do? I f***ing toss him down one flight of stairs. Just ONE flight of stairs. *Clash!* He stops moving, and there are just sparks pouring out of him. I totally just DESTROYED company property. And you know what? I DON'T CARE. At least, that's what I thought. Just as soon as I'm able to understand what I just did, I see the shadow of a LARGER robot coming up from around the corner of the stairwell.

I get out of there, so the robot doesn't see what I look like, and I get back to my room. I don't say anything to anyone. Assumingly, the same robot that was coming up the stairwell eventually enters our room. I think it was the same robot. Everyone else is busy working, and doesn't notice him. Within my peripheral vision, over the top of my computer monitor, I can see him: He's one of those dark grey ones, who's about taller than any of us; he parks himself behind one of my co-workers. And then he gestures at me, as if to say, "I'm watching you," he does that thing where he points at his two eyes, and then points both fingers at me. These robots have achieved self-sentience. Some of them, anyway. Somehow, it knew it was me. It can't see around corners, but it knew it was me. And then he leaves the room quietly without saying anything. Interestingly enough, these robots don't report back to management if they find someone goofing off; they just sting them, and leave it at that.

Afterward, after some time, my "workplace bestfriend" approaches me, and tells me he knows what happened. About the smashed robot, and the larger robot that has my number. He hands me what looks like a police-grade flash light; it's one of those heavy ones that's half the size of a baseball bat. But, secretly, it's actually a tazer that would disable any of the surveillance robots! Apparently, all my other co-workers, ALL of them, secretly carry these around with them, and zorch any robot that dares harass them. I always wondered why some robots just seemed to bit standing around, doing nothing. As far as management has been concerned, the robots just fritz out from time to time and stop working. Apparently, only their arms are insulated from electrical shocks, since they use tazers, but their bodies are not.

My "workplace bestfriend" tells me to sit in the back corner of our room from now on, away from the door, so everyone else can look out for me. One of these days, though, we'll definitely have to zorch big dark grey.

...

[Highlight] And then I wake up and realize it was just a big bad stupid dream.[/Highlight]

(C) 2012 Dartannian Panthereo IV

Last edited by Dartannian (Jul 26, 2012)