Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Halloween Party is Back
The Halloween party is back from vacation and scheduled for Saturday Oct. 31st. My plan is to have "Rock Band" set up in the garage for folks to play with instead of having a live band. I need to either rent a system, borrow one, or go buy a Wii, but I'll figure it out. I'm going to try to keep it small this time around, but the invitation list is already pretty big.
Monday, September 28, 2009
To Florence and Back
I rode my bike to Florence and back over the weekend with Kat's dad, Gary. The total mileage was about 136 miles in two days. This is something I've been wanting to accomplish for about a year since the last time Kat and I drove out to the coast. It's hard to believe that I actually did it. Gary was a big catalyst for getting it done, with his infectious enthusiasm, experience, and detailed planning.
My biggest concern with the trip was having the stamina and endurance to do the trip one day and then turn around the next day and do it again. We started doing shorter rides over the months leading up to this one. We did 30, 40, and 50 mile rides in preparation. Saturday we rode 62 miles there and then Sunday we did 74 miles back. It was intense, but I survived with minimal injury. My knees and ass are still a bit sore, but not as bad as some of the previous rides.
We had a great time together, chatting during the ride, talking to random locals in the small towns we passed through, and wandering around old town Florence. I'd love to do something like that again, but not right away. I'll need some time to rest up.
My biggest concern with the trip was having the stamina and endurance to do the trip one day and then turn around the next day and do it again. We started doing shorter rides over the months leading up to this one. We did 30, 40, and 50 mile rides in preparation. Saturday we rode 62 miles there and then Sunday we did 74 miles back. It was intense, but I survived with minimal injury. My knees and ass are still a bit sore, but not as bad as some of the previous rides.
We had a great time together, chatting during the ride, talking to random locals in the small towns we passed through, and wandering around old town Florence. I'd love to do something like that again, but not right away. I'll need some time to rest up.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Comcastic Rate Hikes
Looks like Comcast is at it again. It seems like only yesterday that they raised their rates for high speed cable internet $2 and now their going to raise their rental fees as well. Read more here.
I'm glad I decided to purchase my own D-Link router and modem a couple months ago, so I won't be feeling the sting this time. I just hope they don't change their service so much that I'll need to "upgrade" again.
I'm glad I decided to purchase my own D-Link router and modem a couple months ago, so I won't be feeling the sting this time. I just hope they don't change their service so much that I'll need to "upgrade" again.
Friday, June 19, 2009
Crazy Lady Sez...
Had a weird experience this morning I had to share. There's this crazy lady that comes into our office building sometimes and wanders around. I don't know if she talks to the lawyers or the property managers or what, but she always looks pissed off at someone. She wears several layers of clothes: a puffy jacket over a dress over some jeans with a baseball cap. She has stringy white hair and big thick glasses. I see her around town sometimes, yelling at people and writing their names down in a book and threatening to sue them. Well I was just finishing up my breakfast at the 'Wich House downtown and getting on my bike to ride into work when she passed by and said "You should get a job". I was stunned for a minute and called back to her in a puzzled voice "I'm going to my job right now" to which she simply retorted without missing a beat "You should go earlier". I just laughed. She had a point.
Still, I wonder what it was about my appearance that made me a target for her scorn. My hair is getting a little long, but the quality of my biking gear should have been a tip off that I'm not exactly destitute. I was tempted to get into a deeper discussion about how long I've had a job, that I own my house, how much I make a year and that I'm not a damn dirty hippie, but I came to my senses and realized that this woman was a lost cause. My ego is not so fragile that I needed to defend it against her meager attacks. Instead I choose to share her wise advice to all "You should get a job, and if you have one go earlier".
Cheers
Still, I wonder what it was about my appearance that made me a target for her scorn. My hair is getting a little long, but the quality of my biking gear should have been a tip off that I'm not exactly destitute. I was tempted to get into a deeper discussion about how long I've had a job, that I own my house, how much I make a year and that I'm not a damn dirty hippie, but I came to my senses and realized that this woman was a lost cause. My ego is not so fragile that I needed to defend it against her meager attacks. Instead I choose to share her wise advice to all "You should get a job, and if you have one go earlier".
Cheers
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
2008 wrap-up
There isn't a good way to start one of these year-end letters so I'm just going to jump right in. I apologize for not staying in touch with everyone. I tend to forget about the rest of the world when I get wrapped up in my daily routine and then suddenly another year has gone by without a single word leaving my own fortress of solitude. 2008 was no different and came and went in a flash for me, but I'll try to summarize the highlights. In general you can peek in on recent events on my flickr photostream here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/deviouspics
January - February 2008: Kat took me to see her childhood stomping grounds (Bend, OR) while there was still snow on the ground. We stomped around town and then in snowshoes on Mt. Bachelor. We had a couple snow days in Eugene during February and we got outside to play in it a little bit. Kat and I always enjoy playing hooky together. At some point during this time we upgraded our old CRT to a new 42” Plasma TV. It's really the only way to go for playing old-school console video games on. Oh, and lesson learned: don't put the TV on the same circuit as your dimmer switch for the outside lights, the buzzing can be quite maddening.
March - April 2008: Kat and I headed up to Washington to see everyone for Easter. It was great seeing everyone out at Grapeview before we had to run and catch the last ferry over to Seattle. We had a great time just exploring the city and getting more familiar with it for the next couple days. We did a fun little underground tour, laughed at some silly roadsigns, and ate some really amazing food. After we got home it was almost time for the kitties' 4th birthday. Kat planned and threw a fantastic sushi party for Gryphon & Phoenix and our friends, which went over very well. In April my folks took us to see “Sweeny Todd” in Portland which was the first time I had seen it on stage. It was very impressive. Also in April, Kat and I celebrated our 2nd anniversary together and I turned 32. I have to say, being in my 30s has turned out to be very excellent.
May - June 2008: Not satisfied with just replacing all the ceilings, floors, outlets, light-fixtures, and wall colors in the house the year before I decided to take on another home improvement project. I upgraded my hot water heater to a solar assisted water heater system, complete with two large collector panels on the roof of the garage. After tax rebates I plan to get back this year the system will have run me about $4K. Over the last 6-months I've seen a consistent 33% savings on my electric bill. I'm pretty happy about it. We went down to see “The further adventures of Hedda Gabbler” in Ashland and spent some time with Kat's folks, and then again later in Bandon, Oregon, they took us to pet the really big kitties as a gift to Kat. In June Eugene became a sports mecca as the Olympic trials were held at Hayward field.
July - August 2008: Our friends from board-game night started a cover band called “Rockness Monster” which eventually morphed into the original band “Half-shark Half-Jesus”. By this time HSHJ was doing very well and getting gigs in town. They've continued to play very well and add to their playlist and add venues to their gig list. We've been loyal groupies all this year. During the Summer Chris, Toni & the kids came back to Oregon for a long visit and they finally got a chance to come down to Eugene and check out all the work we put into the house. We only got out camping once last year, which is a shame because we generally have a great time doing it with friends. We did get out hiking a few times, including a hike at Silver Falls where we had a very frank but hypothetical discussion about getting engaged. Kat's 10 year high-school reunion was in Bend so we headed back down there again. I enjoyed being a tag-along and chatted up the other non-Bendite significant others while Kat caught up with her old schoolmates. A good friend of ours, Austin, had moved away to Portland during this time so a bunch of us went up for a visit and called it “Austinpalooza”. Once again my folks were kind enough to send Kat and I to see “Phantom” in Portland the next weekend. We'd both seen it before, but it's always good to see again. I finished up the Summer by taking the train up to Seattle with my old buddy Sunny and spending the weekend at a geek-fest called “Penny Arcade Expo”. It was great, but we were both exhausted by the time the train got back to Eugene on Sunday.
September - October 2008: Kat and I started making plans and saving money to go to Mexico in October instead of spending all that time and money on another huge Halloween party. That didn't stop us from splurging and buying a new mattress together though. We also started shopping for swimsuits. Lesson learned: retail stores don't carry many swimsuits in the “off-season”. Apparently people don't swim in the Fall. We also started sun-tanning in preparation for our trip. I got a bad burn from the beds the second time we went. They don't give refunds. I felt like Tim Allen from “Christmas with the Kranks”. Kat's sister, Molly, came to town for a visit over her birthday during this time. She also turned 32 last year. Then it was time to go to Mexico. We flew to Cancun and then were bussed to our four star resort on the Mayan Riviera. It was the wet season there, but that didn't stop us, we just glad it was warm rain. The musty smell of our rooms reminded my faintly of my time in India. We were very busy while we were there and had an outing planned for just about every day. I found a decent time during one of the day-trips to get down on one knee to fetch a mood ring cleverly stored in a locker and ask Kat to marry me. She was pleasantly surprised and said “yes” before she could come up with a clever retort. When we got back it was time to make our costumes for Halloween. Kat had been working on her Link from the Zelda games costume for about a year now and it was finally complete. I learned to sew in a few days and made myself a Cardboard Tube Samurai costume, which confused just about everyone who had not gone to PAX with me. We got dressed up and went to a HSHJ show and enjoyed the efforts of others and attended their parties.
November - December 2008: Kat and I celebrated our engagement with friends by shooting each other with laser guns at the local pizza and laser-tag joint. Then we excitedly watched the election with friends the next night. Kat's folks rented a place for us in Yachats, Oregon, so we went out there for a nice romantic weekend. The next weekend we celebrated Kat's 29th birthday by invited friends over and playing party games on our N64. Then it was time to get ready for turkey-day. I'd invited both Kat's folks and my own to our house this time around. We had a nice visit with everyone and ate a ton of food. Kat's friends Kara & Aaron visited us briefly that next weekend. In December, Kat finished up her school preparations and had her last day working for Planned Parenthood. She got to have almost an entire month of break before the beginning of her Masters of Education program at Pacific University here in town. During that time we had a mock holiday party with our game night friends, a week of snow days, and Kat found a real engagement ring that she really liked. Then she was off to Mexico again, this time with her parents and sister to spend the holidays together. Mom & Dad drove down to Eugene to pick me up and take me with them back to South Carolina to visit Chris, Toni & the kids. We had a hard time getting out of Portland with the icy weather and ended up spending an extra night in Houston on the way over. I spent a week with everyone in South Carolina away from the first white Christmas in Oregon for years. I was glad to get back to Eugene and see Kat again before the new year, but I soon fell ill and spent the first week of 2009 with a fever.
That pretty much gets us caught up to today. I hope you all had a great 2008 and here's hoping I get to catch up with you in person before another year goes by.
Cheers,
Jeff, Kat, Gryphon & Phoenix
January - February 2008: Kat took me to see her childhood stomping grounds (Bend, OR) while there was still snow on the ground. We stomped around town and then in snowshoes on Mt. Bachelor. We had a couple snow days in Eugene during February and we got outside to play in it a little bit. Kat and I always enjoy playing hooky together. At some point during this time we upgraded our old CRT to a new 42” Plasma TV. It's really the only way to go for playing old-school console video games on. Oh, and lesson learned: don't put the TV on the same circuit as your dimmer switch for the outside lights, the buzzing can be quite maddening.
March - April 2008: Kat and I headed up to Washington to see everyone for Easter. It was great seeing everyone out at Grapeview before we had to run and catch the last ferry over to Seattle. We had a great time just exploring the city and getting more familiar with it for the next couple days. We did a fun little underground tour, laughed at some silly roadsigns, and ate some really amazing food. After we got home it was almost time for the kitties' 4th birthday. Kat planned and threw a fantastic sushi party for Gryphon & Phoenix and our friends, which went over very well. In April my folks took us to see “Sweeny Todd” in Portland which was the first time I had seen it on stage. It was very impressive. Also in April, Kat and I celebrated our 2nd anniversary together and I turned 32. I have to say, being in my 30s has turned out to be very excellent.
May - June 2008: Not satisfied with just replacing all the ceilings, floors, outlets, light-fixtures, and wall colors in the house the year before I decided to take on another home improvement project. I upgraded my hot water heater to a solar assisted water heater system, complete with two large collector panels on the roof of the garage. After tax rebates I plan to get back this year the system will have run me about $4K. Over the last 6-months I've seen a consistent 33% savings on my electric bill. I'm pretty happy about it. We went down to see “The further adventures of Hedda Gabbler” in Ashland and spent some time with Kat's folks, and then again later in Bandon, Oregon, they took us to pet the really big kitties as a gift to Kat. In June Eugene became a sports mecca as the Olympic trials were held at Hayward field.
July - August 2008: Our friends from board-game night started a cover band called “Rockness Monster” which eventually morphed into the original band “Half-shark Half-Jesus”. By this time HSHJ was doing very well and getting gigs in town. They've continued to play very well and add to their playlist and add venues to their gig list. We've been loyal groupies all this year. During the Summer Chris, Toni & the kids came back to Oregon for a long visit and they finally got a chance to come down to Eugene and check out all the work we put into the house. We only got out camping once last year, which is a shame because we generally have a great time doing it with friends. We did get out hiking a few times, including a hike at Silver Falls where we had a very frank but hypothetical discussion about getting engaged. Kat's 10 year high-school reunion was in Bend so we headed back down there again. I enjoyed being a tag-along and chatted up the other non-Bendite significant others while Kat caught up with her old schoolmates. A good friend of ours, Austin, had moved away to Portland during this time so a bunch of us went up for a visit and called it “Austinpalooza”. Once again my folks were kind enough to send Kat and I to see “Phantom” in Portland the next weekend. We'd both seen it before, but it's always good to see again. I finished up the Summer by taking the train up to Seattle with my old buddy Sunny and spending the weekend at a geek-fest called “Penny Arcade Expo”. It was great, but we were both exhausted by the time the train got back to Eugene on Sunday.
September - October 2008: Kat and I started making plans and saving money to go to Mexico in October instead of spending all that time and money on another huge Halloween party. That didn't stop us from splurging and buying a new mattress together though. We also started shopping for swimsuits. Lesson learned: retail stores don't carry many swimsuits in the “off-season”. Apparently people don't swim in the Fall. We also started sun-tanning in preparation for our trip. I got a bad burn from the beds the second time we went. They don't give refunds. I felt like Tim Allen from “Christmas with the Kranks”. Kat's sister, Molly, came to town for a visit over her birthday during this time. She also turned 32 last year. Then it was time to go to Mexico. We flew to Cancun and then were bussed to our four star resort on the Mayan Riviera. It was the wet season there, but that didn't stop us, we just glad it was warm rain. The musty smell of our rooms reminded my faintly of my time in India. We were very busy while we were there and had an outing planned for just about every day. I found a decent time during one of the day-trips to get down on one knee to fetch a mood ring cleverly stored in a locker and ask Kat to marry me. She was pleasantly surprised and said “yes” before she could come up with a clever retort. When we got back it was time to make our costumes for Halloween. Kat had been working on her Link from the Zelda games costume for about a year now and it was finally complete. I learned to sew in a few days and made myself a Cardboard Tube Samurai costume, which confused just about everyone who had not gone to PAX with me. We got dressed up and went to a HSHJ show and enjoyed the efforts of others and attended their parties.
November - December 2008: Kat and I celebrated our engagement with friends by shooting each other with laser guns at the local pizza and laser-tag joint. Then we excitedly watched the election with friends the next night. Kat's folks rented a place for us in Yachats, Oregon, so we went out there for a nice romantic weekend. The next weekend we celebrated Kat's 29th birthday by invited friends over and playing party games on our N64. Then it was time to get ready for turkey-day. I'd invited both Kat's folks and my own to our house this time around. We had a nice visit with everyone and ate a ton of food. Kat's friends Kara & Aaron visited us briefly that next weekend. In December, Kat finished up her school preparations and had her last day working for Planned Parenthood. She got to have almost an entire month of break before the beginning of her Masters of Education program at Pacific University here in town. During that time we had a mock holiday party with our game night friends, a week of snow days, and Kat found a real engagement ring that she really liked. Then she was off to Mexico again, this time with her parents and sister to spend the holidays together. Mom & Dad drove down to Eugene to pick me up and take me with them back to South Carolina to visit Chris, Toni & the kids. We had a hard time getting out of Portland with the icy weather and ended up spending an extra night in Houston on the way over. I spent a week with everyone in South Carolina away from the first white Christmas in Oregon for years. I was glad to get back to Eugene and see Kat again before the new year, but I soon fell ill and spent the first week of 2009 with a fever.
That pretty much gets us caught up to today. I hope you all had a great 2008 and here's hoping I get to catch up with you in person before another year goes by.
Cheers,
Jeff, Kat, Gryphon & Phoenix
Friday, October 24, 2008
We're Engaged!
Kat and I are finally engaged. I proposed during our Mexican vacation (details to follow soon) and she accepted. I gave her a placeholder ring until we go shopping for permanent rings after the holiday season is over.
Kat is an amazing, funny, sexy, beautiful, smart, and wonderful woman. I love her immensely. She is so very good to me and lets me know all the time how much she loves me in return. The last two and a half years with Kat have been very healthy and deeply satisfying. I couldn't imagine a better partner to spend the rest of my life with.
We are both looking forward to getting married someday, but not any time soon. I'm thinking it will be some time after she's finished grad school and found a job she likes and we're otherwise not distracted with other grand plans. For now we're both very happy to be where we are in our relationship, and everyone we've told seems very happy for us as well. My heartfelt thanks goes out to everyone who loves us and has given us support.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Halloween Party 2008 - Hiatus
I'm not going to throw a Halloween party this year. I've lived in Eugene, off-campus for 12 years now and I've only skipped the party one of those years. My elbow was broken and in a sling in 2003 and I didn't feel very up to it then. This year Kat and I will be spending a good chunk of October in Mexico and I probably won't feel like doing much when I get back. My garage is full of unused furniture, building materials, bikes, and other junk that I haven't gotten around to dealing with since we remodeled in November of 2007. I don't plan on having that figured out in time for October 31st. I'd much prefer to attend other parties this year. Lastly, we did a lot of remodeling in November and December 2007 and the house looks really good for once. I don't want to have another party like last year, I can't afford to do the same cleanup/repairs. If I bring it back in 2009 I'll probably try to keep the guest list manageable.
Monday, October 29, 2007
Halloween Party Round-up
Catch up on my blog at MySpace
http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendid=69254932&blogid=323538203
http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendid=69254932&blogid=323538203
Wednesday, September 05, 2007
Return from Catalina Island
I enjoyed my weekend with Kat at Catalina Island despite many of the minor annoyances we encountered. Highlights included:
1. old rickety wooden, crazy vertical explosive and backwards roller coasters at Knott's Berry Farm
2. cheering our voices raw and drinking too much beer at Medieval Times
3. fun boat ride and snorkeling in the ocean soon after getting to Toyon Bay
4. a Kat-guided tour of the CIMI camp and learning more about this significant part of her life
5. plenty of time to relax and read a silly fantasy book
6. warm nights and beautiful clear sky for star gazing, and "sleeping" on the beach
7. long and short hikes with great views
8. sea-kyaking and swimming in the ocean
9. Sea-mammal sightings
10. Bison sightings
Lowlights included:
1. screaming, rude, and annoying children and 'tweens and their oblivious parents
2. stifling hot weather during the day and the inevitable sun-burns
3. big ugly bruises from being thrown around against the restraints in the rides at Knott's Berry Farm
4. staying at the crappy Rodeway Inn Friday night
5. over-eating
6. disorganized camp staff, including crappy maps to wrong long-term parking lot
7. overpaying for parking in general
8. not getting enough sleep due to hard sand, "soothing" ocean sounds, no air-conditioning, and crappy mattresses
9. spending way too much time in LAX
10. having the feeling that I lost something on the trip but not knowing what it is
Here are some pics: http://www.flickr.com/photos/deviouspics/sets/72157601863271927/
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
How I became a SubGenius
For the uninitiated, the Church of the SubGenius is a disorganized parody religion that makes fun of serious organized religions while at the same time combines elements from them with whacko conspiracy theories, UFOs, cryptozoology, and many other popular paranoid beliefs. Their members are made up of perverts, weirdos, nerds, geeks, and all other sorts of outsiders who don't identify with the normals.
I recently paid my thirty-bucks to become an ordained minister in the Church of the SubGenius (via the Church of Universal Life). I haven't picked my SubGenius yet name and I'm asking for feedback on that so please leave a comment with suggestions for my SubGenius name. So far I've been considering Reverend Loki Eris Puck.
SubGenii believe in a primal force called Slack which is the true pursuit of life. Is it a coincidence that I call myself a professional slacker, or that one of my favorite card games is "Chez Geek" in which the goal is to obtain the most Slack? SubGenii believe we are the offspring of Yeti and early man, and that Yeti once ruled the city of Atlantis. They believe one day the UFOs will bring about the final Rupture and only card carrying SubGenii will be allowed on the escape pods piloted by sex goddesses.
Let's look at what has led me to the decision to throw my lot in with this fringe-element pseudo-cult of paranoid freaks.
Of course my family and upbringing has something to do with it. I grew up with only an older brother for a sibling, which taught me the harsh lessons of living in an authoritarian society. I love my brother, but I can't deny the impact he had on my burgeoning psyche. I also learned to rebel against authority in subtle and indirect ways since he was bigger and stronger than me it was unwise to rebel overtly. I identified with being the "anti-Chris" and did things differently than my older brother did. If I couldn't make my mark on the world by doing things first or better than my brother then I would do it differently. I rebelled against anything I felt was "normal".
My mother always encouraged my imagination and radical thinking while at the same time expressing her own brand of non-denominational spiritual thought. She fed me a steady diet of science-fiction and fantasy books and movies. For as long as I've had an imagination I've been entertained by the bizarre, the strange, the dark, the unknown, the horrifying, and the supernatural. I also learned from her that you can be a moral, spiritual, and just person without being specifically religious.
My love of horror and dark literature led me to the likes of Edgar Allen Poe and H.P. Lovecraft, essential to familiarizing myself with the original American masters of horror. Lovecraft's particularly skewed and paranoid view of the cosmos in particular has had a lasting effect on me and he has inspired countless more. He exposed the world to the mythos of Cthulhu and the fabled Necronomicon which make their appearance in so many derivative films and novels.
I love bad films, b-movies, and MST3K style entertainment. I have a soft spot in my heart for the legend of the Loch Ness monster (is it a coincidence that my friends decided to call their band Rockness Monster?), UFOs (I want to believe!), and bigfoot-yeti-abominable-snowman-sasquatch-skunk-ape-missing-link. I've always wanted to believe in the legend of Atlantis, the Greek, Celtic, Egyptian and Norse gods (is it coincidence that my mom named our first family dog Loki?), and the Illuminati super-conspiracy.
I was destined for a life of geekiness. I played Dungeons & Dragons, I played video games, I memorized Monty Python movie quotes, and eventually I chose a career in computer programming, rounding out my geek quotient (or G.Q.).
Attending college and ultimately living in Eugene has exposed me to many different view-points and beliefs: some radical, some conservative, many somewhere in the middle. I recall taking a very mind-opening psychology class called "Critical Thinking" in which I learned to never take anything at face value and always analyze the motives of the messenger.
I listened to NPR, read internet news blogs, and developed a view of the world as being run by inane megalomaniacs that rule over the clueless masses who let themselves be easily subjugated. People lie to themselves on a daily basis, believing that the governments are here to help and protect us. Once you realize that you are lying to yourself and that you are pulling the wool over your own eyes, that's the first step to becoming a SubGenius.
Recently I've begun attributing significance and meaning to the insignificant and coincidental. Of course all metaphysics and spirituality derive from the aforementioned mental gymnastics.
I just finished reading the Illuminatus trilogy (which someone coincidentally left at my house after a garage sale some years ago and I only now finally got around to reading), which manages to interweave all my favorite themes into a convincing if somewhat schizophrenic narrative whole. Suddenly I became aware of other elements in my environment which supported its subversive and skewed view of the world. My daily internet news blog, Fark.com, mentioned The Church of the SubGenius. I'd heard about it before and seen the iconic 50s style clip-art images of J.R. "Bob" Dobbs, so I decided to read up on it. I was amazed to see the same symbology and core tenants of the Discordians, a supposed semi-heroic anarchistic branch of the Illuminati. I already owned a card game called "The Illuminati" which coincidentally was largely based on these books. Recently the card game released a supplement called "INWO SubGenius". I want it now.
I've developed a habit of listening to Podcasts while at work. Some of my favorite include: Air out my shorts, EscapePod (coincidence?), PseudoPod (sister podcast of escapePod but focused on horror including many lovecraftian-style submissions), The Drabblecast, and now the SubGenius Hour of Slack radio show.
It was after listening to an hour of hilarious and insightful ramblings from Reverend Ivan Stang and pals that I decided "what-the-hell" and sent in my $30. I'd taken the hint, all the synchronicity was more than I could stand, and I surrendered to the self-hypnosis.
The paradoxical and oxymoronic irony of joining an "anarchistic group" is not lost on me. I think it's part of the charm: belonging to a religion that is decidedly anti-religious, proclaiming my "individuality" just like everyone else in the group, and claiming to be part of a secret society that is blatantly out in the open.
So, please leave your suggestions for a really cool SubGenius name or any other comments relating to my transformation into a self-hypnotized anarchistic paranoid geek-freak.
Links to stuff:
http://www.subgenius.com/
http://www.subgenius.com/ts/hos.html
http://web.mac.com/normsherman/iWeb/Site/Podcast/Podcast.html
http://pseudopod.org/
http://escapepod.org/
http://theitspot.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illuminati
http://www.sjgames.com/illuminati/index.html
http://www.sjgames.com/inwo/
http://www.sjgames.com/inwo/SubGenius/
http://www.sjgames.com/chezgeek/
http://www.fark.com/
I recently paid my thirty-bucks to become an ordained minister in the Church of the SubGenius (via the Church of Universal Life). I haven't picked my SubGenius yet name and I'm asking for feedback on that so please leave a comment with suggestions for my SubGenius name. So far I've been considering Reverend Loki Eris Puck.
SubGenii believe in a primal force called Slack which is the true pursuit of life. Is it a coincidence that I call myself a professional slacker, or that one of my favorite card games is "Chez Geek" in which the goal is to obtain the most Slack? SubGenii believe we are the offspring of Yeti and early man, and that Yeti once ruled the city of Atlantis. They believe one day the UFOs will bring about the final Rupture and only card carrying SubGenii will be allowed on the escape pods piloted by sex goddesses.
Let's look at what has led me to the decision to throw my lot in with this fringe-element pseudo-cult of paranoid freaks.
Of course my family and upbringing has something to do with it. I grew up with only an older brother for a sibling, which taught me the harsh lessons of living in an authoritarian society. I love my brother, but I can't deny the impact he had on my burgeoning psyche. I also learned to rebel against authority in subtle and indirect ways since he was bigger and stronger than me it was unwise to rebel overtly. I identified with being the "anti-Chris" and did things differently than my older brother did. If I couldn't make my mark on the world by doing things first or better than my brother then I would do it differently. I rebelled against anything I felt was "normal".
My mother always encouraged my imagination and radical thinking while at the same time expressing her own brand of non-denominational spiritual thought. She fed me a steady diet of science-fiction and fantasy books and movies. For as long as I've had an imagination I've been entertained by the bizarre, the strange, the dark, the unknown, the horrifying, and the supernatural. I also learned from her that you can be a moral, spiritual, and just person without being specifically religious.
My love of horror and dark literature led me to the likes of Edgar Allen Poe and H.P. Lovecraft, essential to familiarizing myself with the original American masters of horror. Lovecraft's particularly skewed and paranoid view of the cosmos in particular has had a lasting effect on me and he has inspired countless more. He exposed the world to the mythos of Cthulhu and the fabled Necronomicon which make their appearance in so many derivative films and novels.
I love bad films, b-movies, and MST3K style entertainment. I have a soft spot in my heart for the legend of the Loch Ness monster (is it a coincidence that my friends decided to call their band Rockness Monster?), UFOs (I want to believe!), and bigfoot-yeti-abominable-snowman-sasquatch-skunk-ape-missing-link. I've always wanted to believe in the legend of Atlantis, the Greek, Celtic, Egyptian and Norse gods (is it coincidence that my mom named our first family dog Loki?), and the Illuminati super-conspiracy.
I was destined for a life of geekiness. I played Dungeons & Dragons, I played video games, I memorized Monty Python movie quotes, and eventually I chose a career in computer programming, rounding out my geek quotient (or G.Q.).
Attending college and ultimately living in Eugene has exposed me to many different view-points and beliefs: some radical, some conservative, many somewhere in the middle. I recall taking a very mind-opening psychology class called "Critical Thinking" in which I learned to never take anything at face value and always analyze the motives of the messenger.
I listened to NPR, read internet news blogs, and developed a view of the world as being run by inane megalomaniacs that rule over the clueless masses who let themselves be easily subjugated. People lie to themselves on a daily basis, believing that the governments are here to help and protect us. Once you realize that you are lying to yourself and that you are pulling the wool over your own eyes, that's the first step to becoming a SubGenius.
Recently I've begun attributing significance and meaning to the insignificant and coincidental. Of course all metaphysics and spirituality derive from the aforementioned mental gymnastics.
I just finished reading the Illuminatus trilogy (which someone coincidentally left at my house after a garage sale some years ago and I only now finally got around to reading), which manages to interweave all my favorite themes into a convincing if somewhat schizophrenic narrative whole. Suddenly I became aware of other elements in my environment which supported its subversive and skewed view of the world. My daily internet news blog, Fark.com, mentioned The Church of the SubGenius. I'd heard about it before and seen the iconic 50s style clip-art images of J.R. "Bob" Dobbs, so I decided to read up on it. I was amazed to see the same symbology and core tenants of the Discordians, a supposed semi-heroic anarchistic branch of the Illuminati. I already owned a card game called "The Illuminati" which coincidentally was largely based on these books. Recently the card game released a supplement called "INWO SubGenius". I want it now.
I've developed a habit of listening to Podcasts while at work. Some of my favorite include: Air out my shorts, EscapePod (coincidence?), PseudoPod (sister podcast of escapePod but focused on horror including many lovecraftian-style submissions), The Drabblecast, and now the SubGenius Hour of Slack radio show.
It was after listening to an hour of hilarious and insightful ramblings from Reverend Ivan Stang and pals that I decided "what-the-hell" and sent in my $30. I'd taken the hint, all the synchronicity was more than I could stand, and I surrendered to the self-hypnosis.
The paradoxical and oxymoronic irony of joining an "anarchistic group" is not lost on me. I think it's part of the charm: belonging to a religion that is decidedly anti-religious, proclaiming my "individuality" just like everyone else in the group, and claiming to be part of a secret society that is blatantly out in the open.
So, please leave your suggestions for a really cool SubGenius name or any other comments relating to my transformation into a self-hypnotized anarchistic paranoid geek-freak.
Links to stuff:
http://www.subgenius.com/
http://www.subgenius.com/ts/hos.html
http://web.mac.com/normsherman/iWeb/Site/Podcast/Podcast.html
http://pseudopod.org/
http://escapepod.org/
http://theitspot.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illuminati
http://www.sjgames.com/illuminati/index.html
http://www.sjgames.com/inwo/
http://www.sjgames.com/inwo/SubGenius/
http://www.sjgames.com/chezgeek/
http://www.fark.com/
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