On our very delayed flight home last night they showed “The Golden Compass” which I rather enjoyed, but felt I was left hanging at the end. Grrr! I’m not sure if they are making more or not, so I feel the need to read the books the movie was based on. I know of course the big secret at the end because it was a controversy when the movie came out. The other movie they started showing was “P.S. I Love You” which we never finished! Grrr! Talk about really being left hanging. So I have to wait two weeks for that on DVD.

Anyway, today is my one and only rest day. I slept way too late because of travel and can feel this stone moving in me, so I’m parking my butt on the couch for the day and resting up. I plan to catch up on all the TV I missed while gone. Oh and unfortunately aside from those dam photos, I didn’t take too much in Vegas. I took a lot of digital movies so I’ll be using some time to see what I can string together in my editing software.

So first up, I’m back from Vegas. I should be in bed, but not only am I still on Vegas time, I’m stoned. No not that kind of stoned. Yesterday I felt the twinges of it coming on, last night I was woken by it and now it’s here, a kidney stone! Fortunately it’s not one sending me into fits of vomitious excruciating pain, but it’s enough to annoy me and make me uncomfortable.

Anyway, back to the topic at hand, which I’m sure will get picked up by search engines and get me all sorts of nasty comments! Bring it on Anne Coulter fans. I rarely get political on here, but this is something I kept seeing in Vegas that annoyed me, especially since the show COPS is filmed there. That is the topic of guns.

On several taxis going through the city was the advertisement for “The Gun Shop” which featured the photo of a fully automatic weapon and the tag line “Come try out a full-auto!” Every time it went by I thought to myself . . . . unless you are fighting in a war, exactly why do you need to own a full, hell even a semi-automatic weapon?

Gun control . . . . one of those political hot-bed issues. It was recently brought up in the Democratic debate because of new laws being passed in D.C., and they wanted the candidates view on it. It’s an issue that many, especially conservative republicans, get very heated over because it’s the second fricken amendment in the constitution.

Yes the constitution of the United States gives us the right to bear arms and defend ourselves. However there are also clauses in there to amend the constitution if needed, because the original framers were smart and knew times changed. This is something conservatives like to point out when . . . . oh . . . . I don’t know . . . . homosexuals want to get married? But you better not mess with the right to bear arms!

So again I’m back to the original question. Why does anyone not serving in the military need to own any kind of automatic weapon? The topic often reminds me of a few comedic skits. One I saw years ago and can’t remember the original comedian who did it. His point was when the constitution was written the framers had muskets in mind, which he followed with the rather lengthy mimic of pouring gun powder into a gun and loading the ball and firing . . . followed by saying NOT “eh eh eh eh eh” which was his imitation of an Uzi. The second skit came from an old sit-com, I think possibly “Designing Women” in which it was pointed out the irony in the use of an automatic weapon to engage in the “sport” of hunting.

I don’t know, I’m sleep deprived, and that stupid advertisement just bothered me a lot. Label me a gun-hating right stealing liberal if you want, I still am not sure anyone can give me a solid argument as to why they need to own an automatic weapon 🙂 Please note if you’re going to try and give me an answer, don’t make it “crime filled neighborhoods.” Cause frankly if you can afford one of these suckers, you can afford to move out of your bad neighborhood!

Guess what we did today 🙂 I have bunches of stuff to tell, and tomorrow is going to be the relaxing day where we take it easy and stuff, so I’ll try and fill everyone in on what’s been going on.

After today’s little venture I told the BF at some point I really want to take a week to do the Southwest. See the Grand Canyon, Old Faithful, The Anasazi ruins, Mesa Verde and so forth. He agreed it would be fun.

-Dustin

We are here in Vegas and getting ready to go out. Just a post to say we got here safely, in spite of an interesting plane ride. Oh do I have stories!

The following video was made very quickly by me this morning, so there isn’t much fanciness to it. In fact I didn’t even use the video editing software I bought, I did it all with the camera because I don’t have time to be fooling around this morning. We leave for Vegas soon! Anyway, anytime Princess sees me with a suitcase she goes into hysterics as she thinks I’m leaving her. This morning was pretty mild compared to her usual antics.

The past few days I’ve spent madly editing some chapters and I’m finally done. I’ll be sending them to my advisor and committee tomorrow. Because of everything they have going on though, I’m not expecting comments back for at least a few weeks. I’m expecting to have more chapters in to them before I get comments back.

One reason for the mad rush is . . . Vegas! Yes the Vegas trip with Emily is this week and were are leaving very shortly. So the next update will probably be from Sin City, and perhaps I might end up having a video update! Though I’m under strict orders not to film Emily under the influence of having fun. I guess there is no rule she can’t film me though 🙂

Seriously, let’s get serious for a moment shall we? When the hell did everything get so serious and fun go out the window? I’m so sick and tired of the Oscars and their “serious” movies and all the nominations they give these movies no one sees. When did we start kissing Ebert and Roeper’s asses so much? I miss when movies were just fun and fun to watch, when you didn’t have to “think” so much and leave the theater pondering the meaning of life.

The same goes for music. Alot in music nowadays seems to have to have some social or political meaning. As much as I love Alanis (I love you Alanis baby), I also love just being able to have fun to music. I don’t want to think of the damn political situations or the strife of the common man when I listen music, does this look like the 60’s to you?

Sometimes you just need to say “F” everything going on in the world right now. That’s why I say “Thank God For the B52’s!” They have a new album out, in case you didn’t know. Don’t feel bad, I didn’t either. It took super lesbian Ellen DeGeneres to let me in on this when she had them on her show last week. Anyways, they have a new album out called “Funplex” which is their first album in umpteen years, which also brings back the blond girl Cindy Wilson to the group. For those not in the know, she left the group for a brief period to have a kid and a life, and they put out the album “Good Stuff” without her. It’s a pretty frakin awesome album in case you didn’t get it!

Well she’s rejoined the group and now they have their new album “Funplex” out. I command you to go out and buy it now and begin to have fun with music again! What are you still reading this for? BUY their album now!

Okay let me preface this by saying this is a childhood memory. Next to the introduction and the “Queen Bee” episode of Spider-man, this is what I always think of when I think of “The Electric Company.” I only said suffer because if you remember this song from when you were a kid, it get stuck in your head!

Tune in next time when I force you to watch “The Bloodhound Gang” from “321 Contact!”

When ever there’s trouble, we’re there on the double . . . .

-Dustin

P.S. clearly Billy is gay!

Okay so I took the plunge recently . . . . I finally bought the video editing software I would need to do video blogs! It went on sale, at 25$ off the normal price, so I basically couldn’t pass it up. Now that I paid for it, I feel the need to use it. Of course the problem is, I don’t know what to make a video blog of! I hate having to look at myself and even more hear myself talk. I guess I’ll have to get over that though.

Anyway, I wrapped the birthday presents as tomorrow is the big day. I hope she (the BF’s niece) doesn’t notice that one of them is wrapped in Christmas paper! It’s red paper with very subtle snow flakes and other designs on it. Hey, we didn’t really have any birthday appropriate wrapping paper around.

So this weekend is the BF’s niece’s 7ths birthday. She’s having a pony party at the farm and I’ve been asked to basically take digital photos of all the kids on the pony. I think there is going to be like 30 of the little monsters, I mean adorable children there.

Two weeks ago I asked her what she wanted for her birthday. “I don’t know, I can’t think of anything” was her response. She then said “I know a guitar pick! I have a guitar at home but no pick.” I said that was about a 5 cent present, think bigger. I started trying to give ideas, not really knowing what the heck was out there. The Barbie Dream House? No, she has the Barbie Princess Castle thing. My Little Pony? She has some of those. Cabbage Patch Kids? She has three and throws them on the ground and jumps on them (to kill them so she said, because they are pointless). An Easy Bake Oven? Well that got her attention and she wanted to know what that was. I told her this little plastic oven that makes cakes and cookies from the power of a light bulb. “Please get me that!” I explained I wasn’t sure if they made them anymore, so I’d have to look. Well I found out the do, and she still wants one. Everytime I’ve seen her she says “Dustin did you find the Easy Bake Oven?”

So off to Target it was today and not only did they have the Easy Bake Oven, but the fricken Snoopy Sno-Cone machine too! It was ten dollars, what a deal. I couldn’t believe they still made this thing, or why for some reason they re-issued it to put it back out on the market. I didn’t think Snoopy was that popular with the kids anymore. Perhaps it’s clever marketing, the kids who played with it probably have kids of their own and that’s how they are hoping it will get bought. I so wanted to get it. Fortunately someone else is going to get it for her, so I’ll get to play with both toys anyway 🙂

Speaking of toys making a come back, the other day I was stunned when I saw a store in the mall carrying the Evel Knievel motorbike and ramp jump set, complete with Evel figure. I guess it was reissued since he died recently, and again for nostalgic purposes. This too we had as kids. Actually I think it was given to my dad as a gag gift. I know eventually the bike got broken and thrown out, but for some reason we hung onto the Evel figure. Eventually he got tossed but for some dumb reason we still kept his helmet. I think the helmet might still be in a box of old action figures in my mom’s basement.

Now if only someone would put out the old Mego toys. They made the Buck Rogers, CHiPs, and Super Hero figures, including one of my favorite toys on earth, the Lynda Carter Wonder Woman Doll. Below I’ve included a photo of me from my 3rd or 4th birthday, holding my original doll.