Mmmmm....chocolate.

Chocolate. Fondue. Waterfall. Fountain. Strawberries. Banana. Pineapple. Pretzels. Chocolate. Ghirardelli. Godiva. Nestle. Melting. Pouring. Dark. Delicious. Chocolate.

I hope that made your mouth water. It certainly got my craving going. 

Fortunately for me and my craving, we had a fondue party on saturday complete with a chocolate fountain and all of the wonderfully satiating ingredients I previously mentioned. But even after eating chocolate covered strawberries, pretzels, and the occasional pineapple, I felt like I needed something else. Something perhaps to cap it off. Wash it down. Milk. That would do it.

Problem: My house is full of 20 some people, and if I take out my gallon of milk everyone will want a glass.  And, being a courteous host I would give them all glasses, and offer even the one's who didn't ask, leaving me with no milk. 

Solution: Keep the milk hidden. Drink water.

Jump Roper or Rope Jumper?

This is fundamental question that will determine the rest of your life:

Are you are rope jumper or a jump roper?

While some may think it purely a semantic difference, I beg to differ. On the one side, you are jumping the rope without controlling the rope, and on the other you are jumping and controlling the rope. 

A jump roper is completely independent. He swings his rope and knows exactly when to jump. He lives in his own bubble, or rope loop (which ever you prefer more). A rope jumper jumps the rope, but does not control the speed or arc of the loop. He is left to the whim of the the person controlling the rope, or the roper. But, the roper is also controlled by the rope jumper. If there is no rope jumper he has no purpose. And, the rope jumper can opt not to jump if the roper goes to fast or is inconsistent. So perhaps the rope jumper has more power than it seems.

And, for the record, this is all literal. There is not an ounce of analogy that can be taken out of this. We are controlled by schoolyard games. Jump rope is their king. It governs our life. You can either embrace it, or it will embrace you (and the kind of embrace will be a deadly bear hug). Hahahha (read as if it were a maniacal laugh)

Obama's Youth Movement

Who wants proof that Obama's youth groups are brainwashed into thinking he's the next savior? 

This video shows how ridiculous it has become.  And here's another one.

The kids believe that they will only achieve because of Obama, not because of their own abilities, or their own opportunities as citizens of the United States. Don't get me wrong, Obama's quick rise can inspire, but it should also be taken with a grain of salt. What are his motivations? Why are so many so willing to jump into his proverbial tank? 

Do I think he's the Savior of Mankind? Or the Savior of this nation? Hardly. His constantly evolving image does more to dissuade me of his ability to be above partisan politics than it does to reassure me. 

Here are some things to consider:

1. He is a freshman Senator who has been running for President all of his first three years into a six year term.

2. He has zero foreign policy experience.

3. He has neither authored nor co-authored any substantial piece of legislation.

4. He has reached across the aisle to get things done only 17% of the time.

5. He has written two books about himself and his ideas (one an autobiography) with very ambiguous and misleading information regarding his past, his family, and his upbringing.

6. He wants to prescribe universal healthcare (revolutionizing vs. reforming=dangerous and impractical).

7. He supports massive government spending during a time of economic instability.

8. He has ties to corrupt Chicago fundraisers (Rezko), former-revolutionaries (Ayers), and his his main mentor according to his own words is his former pastor Jeremiah Wright (Marxist/black power), who he will not disavow.

9. He paints our military in a negative light calling it antagonistic, murdering innocents, being irresponsible in its duties, neglecting to point out its successes and good work.

10. He is a master of spin.

Those are some things to think about. I could make a list for McCain too, but it wouldn't be nearly as long, or as disconcerting.

Leggo my EGO

Ego. It has been drawn to my attention recently that it's good. But conditionally good. Because, apparently it's also bad. Conditionally bad. It depends on its focus. Ego can be used in the most typical sense (as a self serving ideal) or, as an outward self-promoting selflessness.

So, if one surrenders his ego to his fellow man he wins. However, if he surrenders his eggo to his fellow man, he loses. Hence, "Leggo my eggo" is a critical thing to remember (and entirely irrelevant). However, ego must be shared to be refined. If you are to grow as a individual in a stable way, you must make yourself vulnerable. You must leave your figurative waffle on the counter smothered in delicious syrup, and if you're really confident, ring the dinner bell. 

Here's an example:

I think I'm friggin' awesome at ping pong because I practice everyday and have never lost (this is obviously purely hypothetical). So, if I am to use my ego for good, I would challenge whoever whenever, not fearing a loss, being willing to submit to failure to improve. If I am a typical egotist I will not challenge all people, but only those that I can believe I can beat. If I am open to all challengers, I help teach those I beat, and learn from those I lose to. If I am closed to those better than me, and only open to those I deem worse, I will stagnate in my ability, and my ego will actually decline comparatively.

So here's my ego/eggo. Have at it:

Longest post ever.

This is my longest blog post ever. 

I am busy today with papers, the LDS General Conference, sleep, and none of your business. Have a nice day, and leave a message after the beep......BEEP!

To entertain yourself click here and listen to someone else's answering machine messages

The Dew

They say you should never go grocery shopping when you're hungry. And, I would say you should probably never write about food when you're hungry. I fail at both of those rules all the time.

I know I've probably mentioned from time to time, and even just recently, that "hole-in-the wall," "mom and pop" type restaurants and stores are the way to go, and I still feel that way. National and even local franchises are good for a quick fix if you're on the go, but if you really want to enjoy your eating experience, you should go elsewhere. It's about ambience, service, feeling at home, and extra care in each meal. Such is the case at my new favorite eatery.

The Dew. It is just a half block from my house (which makes it easy), and it is down to earth, yet super chill. They serve Boba drinks (Asian smoothies with tapioca balls), sandwiches, salads, french pastries, and a variety of drinks (from Mexican Coca-Cola to Apple Beer). It is run by a former student of BYU and his Chinese wife. And, the food they make is great. I recommend the Lemon Grass Pork sandwich, their noodle salad, and a peach Boba. But, any combination will go down well. They have guava, passion fruit, coconut, avocado, raspberry, and many other exotic and delicious varieties of Bobas. And, for me, the most important thing is the service. They are very friendly people and are prompt at getting your order done. I've had a few moments to talk to the owner, and he is a great guy. If that matters to you, and you like good food, you should go there. And, it's cheap too.

Dew Address:

669 East 800 North

Provo, Ut 84604

Tel 801-822-1878

Zenon-phobic

I am Zenon-phobic.

That should not be confused with being xenophobic, which I am not.

Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century and Zenon: The Zequel and Zenon: Z3 are unfortunately frightening realities. It was Disney pop-culture's view of what the future would be like (as if their view of today wasn't scary enough). The made for TV movie is complete with a teenie-bopper named Zenon with her cliquish friends and reflective pleather outfits. She exclaims things like, "Zetus Lapetus" in place of our contemporary lingo of "WTF."

Here is the plot of Z3:

High achiever Zenon Kar is competing to win the Galactic Teen Supreme contest and celebrate at the Moonstock Festival in the year 2054. When Zenon wants to beat handsome competitor Bronley Hale, she runs headlong into Moon preservation activist Sage Borealis. Sage is desperate to keep the Moon from being colonized and exploited and wants Zenon's help. Meanwhile Commander Plank and Aunt Judy's precocious new foster daughter, Dasha is star struck by Zenon and finds it difficult to stay put and out of trouble. During the last competition to win the Galactic Teen Supreme contest, Selena appears and threatens to destroy the Lunar Base. It's up to Zenon to save them and the others from this new deity.

Wow. That's great. I want to shoot myself now. We sure wouldn't want the moon to be colonized and exploited, with all its biodiversity and critical resources. Come on! Everyone knows it's made of cheese. And it's not even good cheese. And what is this with galactic deity and the Moonstock Festival's Galactic Teen Supreme Contest? I thought Neil Armstrong put an end to that. I don't know. I just don't know anymore.

When mindlessness becomes devoid of mindlessness what is left? Zenon.

Catcher in the Pumpernickel

I like bread. I like sandwiches. But, there are a lot of fakers out there. And, there are people who are innocent of the intricacies and nuances of the delicatessen. Being very familiar with what makes a good sandwich, I want to prevent the fakers from deceiving the innocents. I want the innocents to know of the goodness of the sandwich without having to ruin their unsoiled palate on garbage. I am therefore, the Catcher in the Pumpernickel.Holden Caufield wanted to protect innocence. As do I. But his was more broad. Mine is more bread. Pumpernickel is a derivative of rye and rye berries from Germany. Rye is therefore the larger issue of innocence, and pumpernickel then stands to represent the smaller (albeit critical) issue of delicatessen innocence.Subway, Quizno's, and D'Angelo's are trying to rape your palate (Please excuse my overly zealous metaphor, I'm making a point). They are homogenized and run by only moderately qualified people who are just trying to make a buck. They may have good sandwiches, but they are not delis.Delis came to being in this country in the Jewish boroughs of New York City. It is there that rye bread, pastrami, sauerkraut, sausage, cheddar, and everything good about sandwiches came to be. The reason that these particular ingredients were used is due to the often indigent circumstances of European Jews prior to their sustained immigration from the turn of the century leading up until after WWII. But they brought these great tastes, and fabulous culture with them. They are the root of good American sandwiches.
So, before you deliver your soul to the corporate franchises, get back to the root. Make a trip to NYC, or find a Mom and Pop store near you, where they have chutzpah, flavor, and a love of life and sandwiches. Don't settle for mundane homogenization. Go to where it's real, it's passionate, it's pumpernickel.

The new ELITE

For me, those who have the most money are not elite. Those who are old are not elite. Those who are physically attractive are not elite. To be elite one must make the most sense. That does not leave out those who are not as bright, and that does not leave out the smarties either. If you make more sense than most people, you're in.

Now here's the problem: What makes sense to me might not make any sense to you. To avoid this relativistic problem, I'm going to say what makes sense to me trumps your take. Always. I think it's a good assumption.

Here's another part of it: If you make sense to me on most things you're in. Total agreement is not attainable.

I wanted to make a list of the new elite, but I don't want to get any angry letters from people who do not want to be on it or vice versa, so I'll just throw out some initials, and you can just assume they are yours (PS - this is not an all-inclusive list):

SM, BC, MM, RM, JR, EJ, RS, RM, KM, PR, LM, JD, SN, MH, JM, CP, KM and IM

Bailout=FAIL.

I got word just now that the bailout proposal has been rejected by congress. I am elated. Federal funds should stop going to bailout private firms. They failed. I did not cause their failure. Neither did millions of other Americans.

Congress is just trying to cover their own stupidity. Since 1992 democrats have been pushing mortgage lenders to make high risk loans to the poor. Well guess what?! In a pinch, they can't afford them, and many of them were paying next to nothing anyway. We, as Americans need to think more about living within our means. If I cannot afford something I should not be able to buy it. But the government barged in and said credit scores don't matter, incomes don't matter, everyone DESERVES a loan. Well, we can see what happened following that mentality.

I am not holding the financial industry and mortgage lenders blameless, but it was DC that caused this problem, not NYC. NYC just exacerbated it on the false pretense that the housing bubble would never burst. Many saw this coming for years. Prices don't always go up, and debts have to be paid.

It's true, regulation is needed. We can't allow anymore high-risk loans. But, we must allow private firms to bailout the market, not the government. And short selling is not the problem. The idea that stopping short selling will help the market is asinine. Just enforce the laws on the books that call for transparency.