Assorted odds and ends

Need to get to sleep, so I'll keep this entry brief (I hope!)...

Dug around for some pix I took back in 1999 (or so) of a trip up to Crater Lake, Oregon... haven't been able to find the pix though, but I might do some digging a bit later. However, in the process I came across some other pix of previous trips and furry cons that I hope to post to my website when time permits. (Actually, I've got a rough draft up, but it's nowhere near ready to publicize...)

Also had a couple of miscellaneous thoughts... around the time I started this LJ, I often clamored to be around friends, especially on the weekends, when I was mostly bored. Now, though, I've taken on a completely different perspective:

One friend I used to hang out with a lot on weekends hardly leaves his place, which by itself is okay... but one of the downsides is that I get bored quite easily. In the past I'd take a blank sketchbook and do some sketches (but I'll be the first to tell you that I'm not very good at it), but I've had very little inclination to keep that up. Not only that, I end up wasting gas to make the trip to basically end up doing what I could do at home for free. What's funny/ironic is that I used to think the same thing about going to furry cons, but my perspective on that has changed, too.

On a lesser note, another friend is perpetually broke, so we don't hang out as much... because I end up paying for him as well as myself. Back in the mid-90s, when I met another friend in L.A., it was worse, because (a) I'd drive down for an hour to go from West L.A. to Irvine, and (b) I'd end up providing transportation and funding for any outings. Both of those get old very quickly.

And both friends wonder why I don't hang out with 'em very much. Not that I don't want to hang out at all, but I just can't afford to do it on a regular basis, is all. Or rather, I can afford to do it on a regular basis... I just prefer not to.

Okay, did I say I was going to keep it short? I lied....

Like I said, my perspective on going to furry cons has changed, and perhaps quite a bit than from a few years ago, before I started my LJ. Back then, I often wondered what the point was of spending the time and money to go to a con, when all I'd see myself doing was staying in the room and watching TV the whole time. I could do the exact same thing for free at home. FC04 at least put all that into a completely different perspective. While some use furry cons to sell stuff (read: make a living) and others use it to buy stuff/artwork/etc., my main purpose of going to a con is to meet people... some that I haven't seen in a few months, others that I haven't seen in years.

And in closing, some thoughts on an issue that I'm sure could/would open up a big can of worms:

Lately there have been several legal decisions allowing or barring same-sex marriages here in the U.S. San Francisco's court is supposed to come down with a ruling on whether or not such marriages are legal. While I personally don't approve of such marriages based on my beliefs/upbringing, I have to admit (rather reluctantly) that there really isn't any legal basis for barring such marriages. Or rather, perhaps the only way you can legally bar such marriages is if you legally define "marriage" as a lifetime partnership between a man and a woman.

Thoughts? Comments?

American Idol

Saw "American Idol" tonight... to be honest, I haven't really been following the show, but tonight was special: the show had its first of 3 contestants from Hawaii performing. The other 2 will be performing in the next 2 weeks.

This week's Hawaii contender was Camile Velasco, from Haiku, Maui. Judging by her performance as well as the judges' reactions, I think she smoked the competition. Of all 8 performers, she was apparently the only one who demonstrated clear potential, although she apparently chose a ballad to sing... the judges were apparently looking for something more "hip-hop" since that's what she sings.

Not only was this an episode I followed closely, it was also one where I kept persisting in calling to vote for her after the show ended. It took me half an hour to call-in a vote from my apartment... then later, after my mom told me she'd tried and finally given up, I kept trying and finally managed to cast a vote from her house.

I don't know how people can call in multiple votes, but it's definitely a challenge.

Still, I plan to brave the phones over the next 2 weeks to at least give the Hawaii folks a chance. I would definitely like to see someone from here become the next American Idol, but... only time will tell.

(no subject)

Thought a bit tonight about where my life is headed. I've been corresponding somewhat with my sponsors in Nebraska and though the move sounds exciting, fresh and new, I'm not all that eager to leave home.

Still, familiarity does breed contempt... and I think I really do need a change of pace.

In retrospect, I think moving every 3 years is about right. Any earlier and you feel like you're a gypsy. Any longer and you've begun to sink your roots and it's harder to leave.

I've also discovered that it sucks to be bored at work. In my case that's probably raising a lot of warning flags because it means I'm either procrastinating on something or I'm not being proactive enough to do something... or both. I chalk it up to laziness on my part, but I think I've also gotten stuck in a rut and just felt disinclined to try to get out of it.

That's probably why moving would be a good move for me... someplace different, something new.

Of course I'll still miss home, and I expect to be burning a decent chunk of my leave to come back and visit. But it'll probably be limited to once a quarter, or twice a year... I don't think I could afford to come back for longer, and I still want to make time to go to furry cons too. For now, I'm penciling in Howloween 2004 and Further Confusion 2005. Anything else is iffy at this point.