Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Comment in a singles profile

I once read an online singles profile which said the following:

"I have friends of all types, but I'm not looking for another "just friend" on here, and I don't have time for world-wide pen-pals -- even with otherwise great people. I promise I'm not a negative person, but because I am in the similars-attract camp rather than the opposites-attract camp and because there's no point wasting anyone's time by lack of full disclosure, things which are deal-breakers and complete turn-offs for me include the following: beer, liquor, smoking, chewing tobacco, gambling, lying, manipulation, cheating (on taxes, girlfriend, timecard, etc.), meanness, perversion, less-than-full-time employment or income of less than 80% of mine, long-distance (anything greater than 25 miles; Garland is on the NE edge of Dallas, TX in the USA), IQ less than 135, history of promiscuity/STDs, history of gay/bi, divorced (more than once, with kids, in the past five years, or for any reason other than her adultery or abandonment of you), shorter than 5'11", fat, under 30 or over 45, less than a full set of teeth, poor personal hygeine, not white/Caucasian, not a U.S. citizen from birth, lack of at least a bachelor's degree, poor grammar, poor spelling, living with parents/family, history of or current psychiatric meds or need thereof (that is if your psychiatrist, doctor, family, friends, coworkers, ex-girlfriends, ex-friends, or ex-coworkers think you need meds -- whether or not YOU think you do), criminal history (whether convicted or not), overall negative attitudes, lack of proven leadership experience, lack of real Christian faith, and lack of regular church involvement. That is not an exhaustive list, but is a good start. If ANY of those describe you, please do NOT write me... especially just to tell me that what is important to me shouldn't be important to me simply because it isn't important to you. You may like crawfish, caviar, or sushi, but I don't; likewise, the above are matters of personal preference to me. You've got your personal list of deal-breakers, too, even if you didn't post it. I'm just saving you time and energy if the above descibe you. Also, I'm going to let my subscription lapse, and will only renew it if I get mail; I will be very disappointed if I then spend (God's) money to renew it only to find mail which starts with, "I know I don't meet your requirements, but...." If you aren't the type of guy I'm looking for, please don't write me. There is somebody ELSE out there for you; may God bless you in your continued search for her."

Thursday, January 10, 2008

Freedoms that I cherish

Somebody once asked me what I appreciate having as an adult that I didn't have as a child. Various freedoms come to mind.

For example, growing up, our family was not allowed to set our Betamax player. Why? Because our mother was deathly afraid that it would catch fire. Shortly after we first got the VCR, I progammed it to record one of my favorite shows. When my mother found out, she went ballistic! I was thoroughly castigated for my stupidity; after all, did I not realize how dangerous this was? She insisted that we should never set the timer -- indeed, that we should never even leave the VCR plugged in when it was not in use.

Yes, it was pretty absurd.

Now, please don't get me wrong -- I know that she meant well, and that she had the family's welfare in mind. Still, it was a pretty silly thing to be afraid of, and it was a source of frustration for me. Here we had this wonderful piece of technology that was designed to record programs for our convenience, yet we were not allowed to use that feature, lest the house burn down.

Rats.

Tuesday, January 08, 2008

Likes and dislikes

A few semi-random rantings here.

Stuff I like:





James Herriott

Strawberry-banana yogurt

Kendra Todd

Mark Waid

Peter David's humor

Peter Falk



Stuff I dislike:





Profanity

Crude comments about women

Drug abuse

Lester, Farley, and Rodney

"Sarge"

Peter David's political views

Richard Dawkins and his attempts at pop philosophy

Adam Sandler

Adam Carolla

Guys who don't treat the women in their life right

Saturday, January 05, 2008

Stuff I've read

A few things that I've read recently:


  • Parts of Showcase Presents: Batgirl, Volume 1
  • Type & layout : how typography and design can get your message across, or get in the way by Colin Wheildon
  • Advertising for Dummies
  • A stack of articles from various trade publications on electronics and machine design
  • This boring book on ad campaigns. I can't even remember the title.
  • Various articles on intellectual property law



I also read this first-hand account regarding scammer E. Sharvit, who attempted to use his moving company to bilk a bunch of people. His name comes up in several online news accounts, all pertaining to his multiple cases of fraud. These shenanigans caused him to be kicked out of the country. I guess this goes to show what greed will do to somebody.