Busy Monday, Busy Tuesday

Ladies and gentlemen, yesterday was exceptionally busy, but exceptionally awesome. Today's shaping up to be about the same. I didn't have time to put any news together, but I want to make a point of saying that I have awesome friends.

I've talked on a number of occasions about Father Time, and my beloved sister Mighty Mo. On the occasion of the week after my birthday, I want to talk about two of my other friends: Gus, and Big Red.

First thing's first: on the evening of my birthday, Big Red, Mrs. Red, and Little Red called me, and I heard the word "Ready?" and then they launched into a brilliant rendition of "Happy Birthday". Big Red is a particularly good friend, because I've been meaning to send him a Legionnaire Stikfas since early February, and finally mailed it last week - so late, in fact, that I was able to send a copy of the Gitmo Cookbook that I'd gotten as a spare when I ordered my own.

And then, there's Gus. I got a call last Monday wishing me tardy congratulations on completing my twenty-seventh year, and inquiring of my mailing address. By the end of the week, stuff started showing up. Although I don't post my "Stuff Fly Wants" lists (Father Time just groaned audibly) with the intention of them becoming "give me stuff" lists, Gus made use of the list by ordering three items that have been on there for a long time:

Britain and Ireland Map

Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Middle East Map

Reno 911! - Season 2

The only item that hasn't arrived yet is the Britain and Ireland Map, so I'm stoked about that. And the maps are laminated - that means they're bachelor-proof! Fantastic.

Even from three thousand miles away, my college buddies (save for Rampage, who could be dead and I wouldn't know about it) continue to be fantastic friends. Thanks, Gus and Big Red. You guys are awesome.

That's it for today, tune in tomorrow for more. Thanks, folks!

Fly Report: 14th July 2009

Good morning. Even a year and a half later, it's still impossible to get skank stank out of low pile carpet.

It's 13° Centigrade and cloudy in Kirkwall. In Cody, the forecast calls for a high of 73° Fahrenheit with sunshine.

A barrel of oil is trading at $60.31. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is at 8331.68. The exchange rate is $1.62 for £1, or £0.62 for $1.

Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day is gorgeous. The picture at the Orkneyjar Photoblog is not new.

Today's scripture reading is Psalm 82. The Fly is currently reading Goldfinger by Ian Fleming.

Consecutive days without CCG: 264

I can breathe.

Shooting Paintballs at Hobos

Happy Monday, folks. I swear that this week will not be as obnoxiously bad as last week was, even if it requires me to shoot paintballs at hobos. First, the news.

Fox: New Al Qaeda Book on 'Muslim Spies' Paints Picture of Weakened Group, Experts Say

BBC: 'Rude' French are worst tourists - *snicker*

BBC: Destination Tripoli: Is Libya ready for an era of mass tourism?

BBC: Economic crisis boosts Dutch Calvinism

Guardian: Obama and Sarkozy check out woman's butt

Guardian: Steven Spielberg's HBO mini-series, "The Pacific"

Guardian, Times: Gaddafi demands return of Lockerbie bomber in first meeting with Brown - I think Crazy Uncle Muammar is finally losing it... More... Than he had already... Okay.

Wired Danger Room: Amid Arms Race, US Trains Up South Sudan Army

AFP: Russia asks Kyrgyzstan for Second Airbase

Failblog: Reading Fail - Why would that woman ever need to know how to read?

Today's video is alternately titled "Saving Private Ryan Prank" and "Saving Private Ryan on $100 Budget". It's hilarious, but they botched it: "Paint it Black" by the Rolling Stones was at the end of Full Metal Jacket. Even so, it's hilarious. The smoke grenades? Priceless.

Yup.

Fly Report: 13th July 2009

Good morning. If this week is as lousy by Wednesday as last week was, I'm going to need a paintball gun and a map of the local railroad infrastructure.

It's 14° Centigrade and cloudy in Kirkwall. In Cody, the forecast calls for a high of 80° Fahrenheit with isolated thunder storms.

A barrel of oil is trading at $59.60. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is at 8146.52. The exchange rate is $1.62 for £1, or £0.62 for $1.

Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day is gorgeous, but it once again has almost nothing to do with astronomy. The picture at the Orkneyjar Photoblog is not new.

Today's scripture reading is Psalm 81. The Fly is currently reading Goldfinger by Ian Fleming.

Consecutive days without CCG: 263

Where might we find a lamb as white as snow?

AMF: Thank God this Week is Over

I'm very much not thrilled with this week. Here are the many, many news stories that have logjammed in the last few days.

Report: Saudis Give Nod to Israeli Strike on Iran (Times, AFP);

Times: Biden hands Ayatollah easy scapegoat (supplemental: AFP)

Iranian Clerics Declare Ahmadinejad Re-Election Illegitimate (Fox, Guardian, Times) - People are still protesting in the streets of Tehran and declaring "death to the dictator", too - let's hope they keep it up. And speaking of protests...

Scores killed in China protests (CNN, BBC, Times); Rioting Uighurs and a fading dream. Between the Uighurs and the Tibetans, China has some issues on its hands. I don't think people appreciate just how difficult a time this so-called "emerging superpower" is going to have with maintaining its borders in the coming decades.

BBC: Historic Bible pages put online

Times: Barack Obama makes basic error over balance of power in Kremlin

FSM: Landslide Ahmadinejad an Unwelcome Visitor (Mashad pilgrimage) - Apparently the "landslide" win of Mahmoud Ahmedinejad hasn't afforded him the gravitas to make a traditional pilgrimage to Mashad for newly-elected presidents. Very interesting.

AFP: Japanese imperial army maps to go online - This is very cool, whether you're a fan of Japan, military cartography, or just cool things that are being done with the Internet.

BBC: Who is Neil Armstrong? - Apparently Neil Armstrong is basically a recluse, has only done a couple of interviews in the last forty years, and refuses to discuss any aspect of his feelings on the moon landing. This is a really, really interesting article, and I particularly think that Father Time would appreciate reading it.

Times: Germany awards 'new Iron Cross'; Germany honours four soldiers with new version of Iron Cross - I actually think that this is really cool. The Iron Cross dated back to before Adolf Hitler ever came to power, and as with many things that really had nothing to do with Nazism, it was culled following World War II. Very interesting, if nothing else.

Times: Welsh Guards bear brunt as Afghan death toll rises

AFP: Taliban launch 'operation' against Marines

AFP: Germany orders 405 armoured fighting vehicles: company - Germany's performance in Afghanistan has been lackluster, to put it gently. Let's hope that this order represents a real commitment by the Bundeswehr to start pulling more weight internationally.

Michael Totten: The Real Quagmire - Michael Totten interviews a former Israeli military prison guard about the situation in Israel and "Palestine".

CNN: Love hotel business zooms despite downturn - If you're unfamiliar with Japanese "love hotels", this article will shock and entertain you. When I was dating the Little Jabbering Foreigner, she said that she and her friends used to use these hotel rooms as a place to go drink when they were underage.

BBC: 'No green light for Iran attack' - After Joe Biden claimed that the United States wouldn't stand in Israel's way, The One almost immediately shot that comment down. Great coordination, kids.

BBC: Yemenia 'may cancel Airbus order' - Rough times for Airbus - their planes keep falling out of the sky.

Guardian: China's dollar delusion: Dethroning the US dollar as the world's most powerful currency might not be in China's long-term interests

FSM: Giving Israel Credit Where It's Due: A British Military Expert Tells Truth to Prejudice

Times: British troops put at higher Afghan risk

Times: Troops in Helmand 'could defeat' themselves

FSM: Newt Gingrich: How Team Obama Hijacked "Change" And How We Can Take It Back

UPI: Mumbai attackers depend on Gulf funds - One of the things that people ignore is that the Iraq War was waged in large part to deny Saddam Hussein the ability to provide funding to international terrorist groups, which he did openly and brazenly. If you dry up the funds, the groups can't operate.

Guardian gallery: satellite images

Times gallery: British troops in Afghanistan

Times gallery: US Marines: Operation Khanjar

For my dear friend, Gus, I'm posting part two of the Hot Facts Girls' Fitness Facts series. It's mostly redundant information, so I'll say again: gentlemen, this video is volume optional.



Let's hope that next week isn't as terrible as this week has been. Have a good weekend, folks.

Fly Report: 10th July 2009

Good morning. I lost everything I could ever want, ever dream of.

It's 13° Centigrade and cloudy in Kirkwall. In Cody, the forecast calls for a high of 81° Fahrenheit with sunshine.

A barrel of oil is trading at $60.20. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is at 8183.17. The exchange rate is $1.63 for £1, or £0.61 for $1.

Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day is gorgeous. The picture at the Orkneyjar Photoblog is not new.

Today's scripture reading is Psalm 81. The Fly is currently reading Goldfinger by Ian Fleming.

Consecutive days without CCG: 260

And the water, it was icy, as it washed over me.

Fly Report: 09th July 2009

Good morning. I didn't need all of this, and I certainly didn't need it all at once.

It's 14° Centigrade and cloudy with wind in Kirkwall. In Cody, the forecast calls for a high of 79° Fahrenheit with sunshine.

A barrel of oil is trading at $60.74. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is at 8178.41. The exchange rate is $1.60 for £1, or £0.62 for $1.

Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day is cool. The picture at the Orkneyjar Photoblog is not new.

Today's scripture reading is Psalm 80. The Fly is currently reading Goldfinger by Ian Fleming.

Consecutive days without CCG: 259

It's no secret that a conscience can sometimes be a pest.

Bollocks

Things I did last night instead of writing up a post:

had a horrible swim workout, later in the day than I'd wanted, which kept getting interrupted by people trying to share my lane (which was very disruptive)

went grocery shopping

cleaned out the dishwasher

did some additional dish washing in the sink

made another fruit salad (recipe forthcoming)

I went to bed at 2130, having done none of the following things that I actually wanted and/or needed to do:

pushups and situps

reading

writing a blog post and/or HTML code for my website/archive project

an Arabic lesson

Since I accomplished several things yesterday (prior to arriving back at VDS), my hope is that tonight will be productive. However, yet another limiting factor has been placed on me, in the form of:

silly denomination-mandated training for people working with kids for Vacation Bible School

prepping my ruck for tomorrow's yomp

So, those will probably kill at least two hours of my night, if not more. Hopefully, I can get something scraped together for posting in time for tomorrow.

Ugh.

Fly Report: 08th July 2009

Good morning. Saith Gus: "That's the kind of love that only happens in cheesy '80's movies. Sadly, that love is dead."

It's 13° Centigrade and rainy in Kirkwall. In Cody, the forecast calls for a high of 77° Fahrenheit with sunshine.

A barrel of oil is trading at $62.36. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is at 8163.60. The exchange rate is $1.62 for £1, or £0.62 for $1.

Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day is beautiful. The picture at the Orkneyjar Photoblog is not new.

Today's scripture reading is Psalm 79. The Fly is currently reading Goldfinger by Ian Fleming.

Consecutive days without CCG: 258

It's a bitter pill I swallow here.

Top Eight (of Ten)

Hey, folks! I don't have any news stories to share today, but I mentioned last week that I'm trying to put together a list of my top ten favorite websites of all time. I only have eight at the moment, but I figured I'd share them with you.

Jawas Explained - The Global War on Terror, explained in Star Wars terminology? Excellent, accurate, and entertaining to read.

History of Israel & "Palestine" - This article is a bit of a polemic, and it rambles a bit, but the history is accurate. If you want to understand the good reasons to support Israel over the "Palestinians", this is the article for you.

Aliens Cause Global Warming - This is a great speech that was delivered by the late Michael Crichton. If you're a member of Al Gore's Manbearpig cult, you ought to read this article to gain some perspective on the actual legitimacy of the Gore's pet issue.

Dispelling the CIA-Bin Laden Myth - Richard Miniter is an excellent author, and this article makes short work of disproving the asinine and pervasive lie that America "created" Osama bin Laden.

King James VI & I - If you can excuse (or mute) the obnoxious midi music, this page about James VI of Scotland/I of England is really pretty fascinating. Most people have heard of Henry VII, or Elizabeth I, or Queen Victoria, or George III (may he endure excruciating torment forevermore); few Americans have even heard of King James, or the contribution he had to Western civilization and the Christian faith.

Redneck Neighbor - Do you want to wet your pants laughing? If you haven't read this webpage yet, you will (wet your pants laughing). A man discusses - with pictures! - the drunken redneck antics (and "home improvements"!) of his hillbilly neighbor. This thing's a web classic.

Black Watch Sporran - A guy discusses the vintage Black Watch sporran he purchased. If you're into kilting, or history, or both, you'll love this, especially the pictures.

Moon Base Clavius - The editors of this site have done a fantastic job of analyzing and debunking conspiracy theories that try to claim that America's heroic astronauts didn't land on the Moon. Some of the material is dry, but a lot of it is actually pretty interesting.

So, those are the big eight, and hopefully there's a little something for everyone in there. In other news, I ordered a few things online last night.

Stainless Steel Celtic Cross Necklace

Utilikilts Long Sleeve T-shirt

Utilikilts Knee High Celtic Weave Socks (two pair, tan and black)

So, that's my story. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a number of things to get done, and I have to keep moving since I didn't swim yesterday and need to make it up today. Have a fantastic Tuesday, folks.

Fly Report: 07th July 2009

Good morning. Women are sort of like apple pie: the ones that are mass-produced and mass-marketed are good, but there's nothing quite like homemade.

It's 15° Centigrade and rainy in Kirkwall. In Cody, the forecast calls for a high of 82° Fahrenheit with sunshine.

A barrel of oil is trading at $64.10. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is at 8324.87. The exchange rate is $1.62 for £1, or £0.62 for $1.

Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day is beautiful. The picture at the Orkneyjar Photoblog is not new.

Today's scripture reading is Psalm 78. The Fly is currently reading Goldfinger by Ian Fleming.

Consecutive days without CCG: 257

If the sky can crack, there must be some way back.

The Morning After

Today is the morning after my favorite weekend of the year: the one that includes my favorite holiday (Independence Day) and my birthday (the day after Independence Day - I hope that sleight of hand didn't take anyone by surprise). At any rate, I don't have much to report. Thus, here's one of the best celebratory Independence Day videos (cheesy though it may be).



I'm going to try to hit the ground running, to include swimming and mailing a bunch of stuff after work, followed by a grocery run. Check in tomorrow for more from yours truly.

Fly Report: 06th July 2009

Good morning. Twenty-seven, here I come!

It's 16° Centigrade and cloudy in Kirkwall. In Cody, the forecast calls for a high of 86° Fahrenheit with partial clouds.

A barrel of oil is trading at $64.85. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is at 8280.74. The exchange rate is $1.63 for £1, or £0.61 for $1.

Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day is cool. The picture at the Orkneyjar Photoblog is not new.

Today's scripture reading is Psalm 77. The Fly is currently reading Goldfinger by Ian Fleming.

Consecutive days without CCG: 256

You've been running away from what you don't understand.