Arnin'....

Today was just a day spent inside. Just a lazy Sunday of watching the Seahawks lose (sucks) & doin' laundry. I wasn't blue or bored or staying out of the rain; I just think it's important to have some good time with yourself... and I had a ton of laundry to do. :)

In truth I had ALL the laundry to do. I've collected enough clothes over the years that I can actually go 2 weeks without doing laundry, though I don't normally do that. I usually do the wash on Sundays or Saturdays.

That's a habit that's so ingrained that I've not had much success breaking it. You see, for a long time I didn't have a washer/dryer in the house. So it was wait the entire week & take the clothes, (usually) Sunday morning, to the laundry-mat and do laundry. I did this so long that even when I actually owned a washer/dryer (as now) I still wait until the weekend to do laundry. If I ever get in the habit, I could knock out a load or two during the week & have the whole weekend free for once. Maybe some day. :)

One aspect of the laundry that I do most times is ironing; in the south it's pronounced "arnin'." Most folks are surprised when I tell them I iron my clothes; actually I really only iron my button-down shirts (no need to iron my jeans or dockers). I was taught to iron by my Mom, but I really learned ironing while in the military.

It is kind of a chore, but to me there's a zen-like quality do it. You can do it with little or no thought, and it has a repetitive motion that kind of eases tension. I also find vacuuming to have the same quality, back & forth, no real effort or thought needed. These two activities are so zen-like for me that I can actually sort out a lot of things that tend to be jumbled. Matter-of-fact, I've gotten some of my best ideas for the programs I write while vacuuming (none while ironing... yet).

The nicest two things I get out of ironing is a) the satisfaction when it's over. It always feels like I've done something. & b) the nice creases on the sleeves of my shirts. I don't like them starched or anything like that, but I do like to have creases. It must come from the military days.

Well, time to put the board away. :)

Star Trek's World Is Not So Cool...

I'll start by saying I'm a big Star Trek fan. With the exception of the Deep Space 9 series & the Enterprise series, I've watched them all & enjoyed them all. I also like the films that have come out so far. However, there's one aspect of the society depicted in Star Trek that bugs me to no end. The snobbery of music genres.

If you've watched any of the Star Trek fair, and paid attention, you might have noticed something missing in their version of the future. Rock/Pop music. With the exception of the First Contact film, the only music that anyone seems to listen for pleasure is either classical or jazz. Now I'm not knocking either. I really enjoy a lot of classical music, and I've found some jazz I like as well (who can't like Miles Davis), but what about other forms? I know I'm focusing on Rock & Pop, but there also isn't any Country/Bluegrass (which doesn't bother me so much) and no folk music (not that I've heard anyway).

Considering that as of now, Rock music's been around for 50+ years, it just makes sense that it would still be around in some form in the future, especially amoung young people. I also can't beleive that Klingons would not be listening to some Thrash Metal & Punk (Metallica, Slayer, Sex Pistols, Clash, The Stooges, etc.). Those guys would go nuts over it, & the mosh pit would become the new social center of the Klingon Empire. I see the Romulans as more fans of Industrial/Techno (Nine Inch Nails, Venus Hum, Kraftwerk); and I think the Vulcans would be prone to Progressive Rock (Pink Floyd, ELP, Genesis (with Peter Gabriel), Yes).

As I mentioned before, Rock was heard in the "First Contact" film. So you might say, "See, it's still around." But that's not correct; if you remember in that film, none of the Enterprise's crew acted like they'd ever heard it before. Also, Deanna Troi kept calling it "RockaRoll." So that proves that rock music is not around at all in the world of Star Fleet.

I also have earlier proof. Go back to the original series (with Kirk & Spock et al). There was an episode in which the Enterprise encountered a group of space-age "hippies" who were trying to get to a planet they called Eden. They said it was a paradise. Even those young counter-culturists played music that was more on a line with jazz or standards that any real pop music. It was nothing close to the Grateful Dead.

So in conclusion, the future represented in Star Trek seems great (no pollution, no poverty), but if they aren't going to have good music, then I'd just as soon continue with the chaos we enjoy today. I'll still watch the shows & films though. :) Live long & prosper! \\//