Changing the world

I wound up cleaning my friend list on here.

Admittedly, most of these were deleted accounts. And a few were suspicious, given a friends only post I made wound up in the hands of two people I have no desire to talk with ever again. As such, the leak was either here or G+, so both lists have been trimmed a bit.

If I unjustly defriended you, and you want back on, please comment here. Not like LJ is exactly alive any more, but I'm still here lurking sometimes.

Well, I e-mailed the itinerary I have in my head to Mom yesterday, then called her last night to confirm she got it. completely forgetting today is "Hyper Friday" in Columbus. (For those of you who don't live in Columbus or pay attention to OSU football, Hyper Friday is when the Alumni Band plays 10-15 minute gigs all over Columbus to rally up the city for the anuual OSU-Michigan game. Which is like a statewide holiday. And usually falls on or around my birthday.) So, I ended up waking her up, since she and my brother were heaed to catch the tour bus around 4AM this morning.

Well...I should mention I sent her pics of both me and John. (Mine was ( this picture ) that I don't like since it makes me look a bit like Charlie at the beginning and end of Flowers For Algernon.) Mom's comment was "When did you get all that black chest hair?" To which I of course responded, "I don't know, it just kind of grew on me."

Then I confirmed John was getting an appropriate hostess gift for her. (I'm taking her a 22oz Beck's, since she loves German beer.) John's getting her some Jams and Jelly from his neck of the woods. (I explained Mom's postulate that when bringing a hostess gift to someone in another region, one must bring a locally made product unavailable in the region you're visiting. This is also true of gifts for visitors coming to town to make presentations etc.) Given Mom's allergy to honey and inability to have caffiene, most of the options John came up with were out. I reconfirmed normal fruit works, and that he should avoid any of the new fruit & hot pepper jams that seem to be gaining popularity.

Then she reminded me jelly can't travel in carry-on luggage, for reasons other than TSA flight regulations. (Now mind you, I told John this story, but I forgot the punchline.) When I was 6 or 7, on one of the 2 trips we made to Los Angeles for a wedding, we went to Knott's Berry Farm. (Side note: I rode my first roller coaster while we were there.) Well, Mom bought some jelly to bring home. Fast forward to Mom (around 46 or 47 at the time), Nana (Lord she'd have been 70 something), my brother (10-11), and me at LAX trying to fly home. The security pulled her aside as we were entering the terminal. Seems the "dark bottles" in her bag were setting off the alarm. The best part of the entire situation was the older African American guard who pulled my aged mother aside and said "OK, Lady, show me your gun", completely deadpan. We still laugh about that on occasion.

Well, my laundry is drying, then I get to pack. John's getting me at work tonight, so I'm trying to get EVERYTHING ready before hand. Much love to all of you, and I'll catch up on everything next Thursday.

First off, I feel like holy hammered shit. Spent my last hour of work puking what felt like engine grease.

Second, a very good man died today. My cousin of some sort, Robert Herbon passed on this afternoon.

Bob, an Ordained Lutheran minister, was one of my faves among the cousins. He was also one of the few who didn't become a Teutonic asshat after consuming mass quantities of beer. He married Mary V., another of the Brunhilde's in my mother's generation of my family. Mom also pointed out that in the last year, she's lost 2 cousins and her brother. what she left unsaid was the idea that she's got a target on her back for the scythe to swipe. And I can offer her no comfort there, since the way Lois is going (along with her Christian Science faith), the way Dan's going, Mom's probably going to be the last of her generation pretty soon. I know Lisa doesn't mean to do it, but she's not helping with her vulture-like prescence around Mom on occasion.

And the worst part is I will probably go through this as well. Being the youngest in my generation on both sides of the family (and having lost Lois Gamble, I'm already down a cousin. My half-sister Pat died a couple decades ago.), I'll probably get to watch as my cousins and brother, half-brothers and and half-sister die as well. Not to mention Mom, whenever that happens. (I'm praying for a long lifetime on that last one, but the woman is 71 and starting to get a few age related problems.)

I've said before, I was born into an old family. The next generation after me started on Dad's side before I was born, and I think Becca and Ria are 2 and 3 years younger than me. Most of my generation is married off and having children of their own. So I have a feeling most of the family gatherings will be funeral in nature over the next few years.

In the meantime, I guess Bob promised to make the Detroit Tigers get out of their slump once he got to Heaven.

So, My mom comes up today for the last day of the State Fair. Before we can even pull out on Neil, She starts venting about Lisa. Lisa, it seems, has been bugging mom about how much she has left to pay on her house, and started dropping hints about how she and Richard want to move in when she dies.

First off, it's rude. Second, it's presumptuous.

I guess mom's starting to realize that Lisa really does think I should be written out of the will. I suddenly feel like I'm trapped in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. The worst part is mom telling me she's concerned Lisa will encourage Richard to ignore the living will she has written, and use the power of attorney he gets if she is unconcious, etc. to fuck her over royally. I think she was hinting that she'd like me to do it, but I don't live in Urbana, and therefore would be useless, since it takes an hour to get there.

We also had a very long talk about mom's rather New Age beliefs. I don't think mom is quite ready to make the switch to something else, religion wise, but hereing her discuss how she's a spirit guide is really awkward, sice we never really discussed my pagan days.

But the fair was fun. I had a Bahama Mama and a chocolate shake. Mmmm. I need to walk all of it off now, since that was major caloric intake.

Like I told gothic_oreo, I have about 3 posts just from this weekend. One of which, to be written later, is for me alone.

Ok, It started Friday with me going to Dayton to visit taocub, his husbear, and the two nutty roommates. As it happened, the boss was visiting. I got to ask her about an old friend of mine who seems to have vanished into a lightless hole (His wife, who I could spend days talking about, and none of it would be good.) So, this trip involved much gossip about my Dayton friends from that line of the friends tree, and lotsa coffee. I also happened to run into my old roommate, the evil Josh. (OK, so I was stalking him...I knew he'd be working and we went thru his Drive-Thru. I'm kind of hoping he didn't see me in the car.)

Basically, the fall-out seems to be that someone I used to care about a lot (nothing sexual, mind you), has more or less jumped off the deep end. Not that this is a surprise to anyone who lived through the drama of her fake relationship, but still, I was very sorry to hear that if anything, she's worse.

taocub and I also spent a lot of time discussing religion. I'm still processing most of that conversation, problem being that my mind is again seeking familiar models of expression in which to relate to the new model he presented.

So, Saturday, I go home to Urbana. No one bothered warning me that Lisa (the bitch sis-in law) had her entire Dad's side of the family there for Rachel's B-day. Not that I mind, after all Aunt Bonnie is a Reform Rabbi, and I could talk a bit about questions I was having without feeling stupid. However, Lisa does not get along with her step-mother, and we got to watch the backhanded compliments and daisy tipped swords of polite family sparring. Fortunatly, Rachel and Brandon seemed remarkably oblivious.

So then it was back to Mommie Dearest's place. Which meant helping dye eggs and stuff candy in baskets. (And I remarkably avoided pointing out that most of the was she was putting Easter together come str8 outta Pagan rituals. You should be proud.) Right before she went to bed, she informed me that my Evil Uncle had invited himself to dinner the next day. I was livid. I mean Paul is one of the few people i really feel like pissing on his grave when he dies. I mean, I truly loathe him.

And he didn't dissappoint. His idea of Dinner conversation was talking about "sissies". AKA, gay men are all pansies. And of Course, he and mother decided to tag team bait me to get a rise out fo me. I kept my temper until after Paul left and mom started going off on Indian Casino's. Not that I actually care, however the arguement she was using against them was full of holes. Amazing how we can argue for things we don't care about, yet keep silent on the things that matter.

I will go more indepth about specifics later this evening.

Evidently, my month of EQ is up, since it told me that my billing info is incorrect. I'm hoping those that got me addicted will run me to the nearest store to get a pre-paid card soon. This is like being without ciggies and caffiene in the morning. So, since my usual time killer is not an option, I've been cleaning. The bathroom is clean, and next comes the trash.

What really sucks is that I haven't had a decent social interaction (work not included) since Wednesday afternoon. And my friends are all on their way Toledo for a wake. My prayers go with them.

Speaking of work, mom called me at work tonight. It seems the old bat is getting honored by her old high school (Bexley, for those who know anything of Columbus) in September. Evidently, she's an outstanding alumni. All this did was serve to remind me that my 10 year reunion will be in about a year. Not that I want to go. I, in fact, hope that all of the people I graduated with end up in the hell of being flayed alive. The only way I'd go to deal with those stuck up assholes would be to rent a sexy escort and claim him as my life partner just for sheer spite.

And in the "my family really does hate me" department, I got my first Xmas card today, complete with a handwritten note and pictures. I'm really tempted to send Hannukah cards to my family this year, just to see how many heart faliures I can inspire. Which reminds me, Shalom Shabbat and Happy Hannukah! I'll probably make latkes on Tuesday, since I am bound and determined to celebrate something this week.

Which reminds me, I forgot a story last night. I decided to get cappucino Thursday morning, which required a trip to United Dairy Fuckers, the only thing other than the homeless shelter open on Thanksgiving in downtown Urbana. So, I go and get French Vanilla cappucino, which here in Columbus and back in Dayton is not a big deal. In Urbana, however, the only people who drink cappucino are women and faggots. To paraphrase Heathers, if you don't have a beer in hand, you might as well be wearing a dress. The locals were eyeing me like I had just walked in nekid or something. I would have given a gender theory lecture, but then I would probably have ended up in the hospital. The weird part is that Urbana is trying to turn the downtown area into an "Arts District". I guess people are already trying to denounce the plan as Sodom and Gomorrah reborn in Small-town Ohio. G-d knows we can't abide by permanent residents being faggots and dykes. Which is sad, since Urbana's gay community is really small, and exists under a permanent stigma. One of many reasons I like the sort of Metropolitan anonymity that comes with living in Cap City.

Gah. Getting moody again.

I didn't sleep well last night, and my sinus cavity is clogged up, making me sound like one of the zombies in Night of the Living Dead.

My brother got here around 9AM so we could go to Skull session. Kind of fun, particularly since the old bat I call mommie was conducting. Sorry, I feel like shit, and I'm ready to bite people's heads off. Well, we go to the game, where I ended up paying $5.50 for a fucking hot dog and 12oz. cup of Coke that was mostly ice. Dasani water was going for $3. Well, we get up to our seats and sit there for an hour and a half waiting for the game to start. The pre-show was ok; the Alumni band dwarfed the regular band (not a big surprise, since OSUMB has a set number allowed in each section), and the cheerleader reunion was going on as well. So the first quarter starts. I made it about 5 minutes before I was too sick to remain. I actually was just going to the bathroom and I got so sick I couldn't go on. So I walked home, bought Rich a 2 Litre of Diet Pepsi and a 2 Litre of Sunny D for myself. What an exciting life I lead.
So I get home, call Richard's cell phone, and I tell him what happened. He came back after the half, only to see me sprawled out on the couch. I think I talked to him for a minute, but I honestly couldn't tell you. Oh, and the motor on the living room fan blew pout, so I had to put the porch fan in a chair facing the living room so I could sleep.
So I sleep off the side effects of my cold and allergy medicine, and get up just in time for work. I get to work still feeling miserable, and find out our unit manager is probably going to get fired this month. I guess he stopped by Heniegate (a party in front of the Shoe) before he showed up to work. So, I guess he showed up drunk off his ass with marajuana Mardi Gras beads around his neck. Tim, our DM, was there. Now Steve's trying to claim it was his Thyroid. Yeah, whatever, Steve. So anyway, it was me and Jon-boy and grass-girl trying to handle Saturday football dinner rush, and I was the only person ion the store who knew how to toss dough. Guess what I did all night in between nose blows? Mom called the store around 8:30 to make sure I was ok, since Rich had called her. (side note: I made the mistake of mentioning that my immune system is shot to hell right now to my brother. I was joking, since I've been sick all freaking week. Well, needless to say, Rich took that and ran with it. And people wonder why I used to dream of being an orphan.)
So anyway...Work was really long tonight. And our AC condenser is leaking. And I have to go back in tomorrow at 4. I really wish I could afford to call off. No I don't, since if I did, I'd get the fun of Xenos boy's return home around the same time as the roommates. And since no one here respects my dying wish of peace and quiet...
So anyway, that's my life for the evening. Again, if I've been short tempered or just plain rude in comments on here, please forgive me. I'm under the influence of medicine.

Before I begin this summary of tonight's guilt and redneck madness, let me take the time to welcome jo_munch and chicagoguy to the friend list. Be warned, I don't offer refunds. And longtime readers should be impressed that I didn't use "misanthropy" in the intro.

Okies. Went to the library after waking, mainly because I had to run to Ghetto Kroger's to get Fair tickets form mom and Rachel. Well, that and I had to return a few books before I incurred the fines. I ended up getting Christopher Moore's Bloodsucking Fiends out, which is now waiting for me to complete The Public Works Trilogy, which I've been getting done very slowly. Current progess is that I'm halfway through, mainly because I got motivated last night before bed. I must admit that his explination of Atlas Shrugged gave me a better perspective on where Ayn Rand was coming from, particularly since we ignored most of Ms. Rand's biography in high school.
So I go to Kroger's. I get my tickets, and find out Les Miserables is coming to Columbus at the beginning of September. *drools* I love Les Mis. And it would be nice to see it again, particularly without the whole "We rode 15 hours on a bus to New York, and haven't slept yet" vibe. And I also got a form to see a taping of Jepardy! at the Schott.
So, Mom and Rachel get here about half an hour after I get back. We head to the Fair, and Mom rode the carosel and spinning bear ride with Rachel. I had no desire to ride either. Then we met up with Rich at the Schmidt's pavillion for a lovely dinner of sausage. Here starts the guilt. I offered to take mom and Rachel to the fair. Mom insisted on paying me back for the tickets, and got mad when I used my own funds to coer part of dinner. But by the same token, Mom didn't have that much cash on her. By the time we got through with Fair food, Mom had $3 to her name. And she wouldn't allow me to shrug off the tickets. I felt like I was trapped in The Grapes of Wrath. The woman doesn't even try, and she still makes me feel 3 inches high.
So, Rachel and Mom went to see the choir, while Rich and I headed over to see Ted Nugent. First off, our tickets were 5 rows from the stage. Ted's stage was set with a BIG American flag backdrop, and he himself had a shirt made out of the flag. I remember when using the flag for clothing was offensive, not patriotic. The times they are a changing. His amps had AK-47's attached to the fronts of them, fer crying out loud. For the curious, he opened with "Free for All". Then he proceeded to play a bunch of new songs, most of which consisted of him a) repeating the same phrase repeatedly, b) telling everyone he hates to "Kiss my ass", or c) telling us to crucify him. The highlight to this segment was the sign-language interpreter, who was dancing like a biker chick. And for the record, there were more mullets at Ted than at Poison.
Somewhere in there, he made a huge rant that covered gun control beiing bad, NRA being good, liberals being bad, and he wore a camoflage Stetson while doing it. He also bitched about terrorism, drunk driving, drugs, and a bunch of other things, most of which were accompanied by the white trash around me cheering at the top of their lungs.
So, after playing "Stranglehold", he ends his first set. He comes back out with a Native America headress and sings about the buffalo. At the end of that, he shot a flaming arrow at his guitar. He missed, hitting an amp. One more encore, a song that I didn't recognize, and Rich and I were off. Free tickets or not, I can think of much better places I could have been tonight. Although he was better than Danzig or Powerman 5000.
Well, Richard and I walk back, and we talked a lot about Mom's upcoming birthday, when she will be 67. The family is throwing a shindig (a good majority of Mom's side of the family was born in August, so they throw a big bash for everyone) at Richard's house on Saturday. Fortunately, I will be in Port Clinton. Richard said he was trying to come up with creative excuses to get out of it. Neither of us are fond of our uncle or cousins. And not without reason. Mom, I will find a good gift for, and help her celebrate this landmark. The rest of them can rot.
So, that was my day. I can't wait for the freaking weekend.

I'm back, and I had 61 new messages in non-junk mail alone. I'll give a better summery of my weekend in hell below...
( drama )

Mom has ommited me to going to another freaking wedding next weekend. Problem is that I can't afford the time off work. And of course, she's in Hawaii right now, so getting ahold of her to see if I can guilt her into letting me NOT go is near impossible. I just called, figuring that with the weekend, rates are low, but she's at a parade and about 5 hours(?) behind EDT there. Grr.

I think I'm going to go read Calvin and Hobbes before work.