tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-41460517558843903032023-06-20T23:03:15.491-06:00Shooting for SenseJust blogging about life and my attempts to make sense of it all.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146051755884390303.post-58330969776878003082013-02-01T08:40:00.001-07:002013-02-01T08:40:43.777-07:00Feeling a little God smacked today . . .Getting a lot of "God is great" type posts in my Facebook feed today. I get them from time to time and for the most part I don't care. I'm sure my friends put up with my frequent posts about gay-rights and other pet issues of mine, but I have to admit that sometimes I get to feeling a bit fed up with God-talk, especially when I just as often come across "Christians" <a href="http://www.lgbtqnation.com/2013/01/colorado-pastor-civil-unions-will-lead-to-pedophilia-gays-will-burn-christians-at-the-stake/" target="_blank">who think it's OK to spread lies in the name of God.</a> <div>
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It's funny how some people feel the need to praise God for every little thing when it seems clear to me that most of the good things in the world happen as much in spite of God (or a belief in him) as because of some belief in him. While I understand the apologetics that God works <i>through</i> individuals, when I take into account all the evil done <i>through</i> God-motivated people the whole "works of God" concept ends up being a zero-sum to me, if not an actual negative balance. It seems far more likely that people do what they do and some of them feel the need to put the credit and/or blame on God. </div>
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At any rate, when I get to feeling like this, I remember having put my feelings on the matter into a poem a while back. </div>
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<b id="internal-source-marker_0.17107161995954812" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">gods</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I've never known a god to be</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Much interested in equality</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Or children starving in distant lands</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Or mothers beaten by father's hands</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Or general suffering of any sort. </span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">They sit on thrones, hold heavenly court,</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And watch us mortals down on Earth,</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Living and dying and giving birth</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And wondering why the pains and tears</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Cried up to heaven fall on deaf ears.</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">-Karl Jennings, September 2004</span></b></div>
Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146051755884390303.post-83511845577329077552012-07-27T00:58:00.000-06:002012-07-27T01:08:30.593-06:00On Losing the Moral High GroundThese are exciting times for gay rights. We've seemingly turned a corner. For the first time in history recent polls show a slim majority of people in the United States actually support marriage equality for same-sex couples. The President of the United States, as well, has come out in support of marriage equality. Even several religious groups are supporting equality, even embracing and welcoming gays into their ranks, not only as worshipers but also as clergy. <br />
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Perhaps the most important factor in this changing tide is the visibility of the gay community itself. The truth is, as more people realize that they probably already know some gay people -- as friends, neighbors, and even family members come out as LGBT individuals -- more and more people realize that we aren't very different from them. They realize that far from wanting to destroy society, we simply want to be able to participate in it equally. They learn that we are people just like they are and are just as invested in a strong, just, and free society. <br />
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Because of this growing visibility and growing acceptance, the LGBT community is finding growing numbers of allies in positions of influence in politics, the media, churches, and virtually every realm of society. We even have allies among groups traditionally reluctant to support our causes, if not outright hostile to them. The end of Don't Ask/Don't Tell would never have happened as quickly and relatively seamlessly as it has without the support of at least some conservatives. Even the GOP's own advisors have said that the party needs to get on the right side of history or else risk losing significant support, especially among younger generations. Homophobic utterances very often now elicit the same public outcry that anti-semitic or racist remarks do. <br />
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A case in point is the recent outcry over revelations that the Chick-fil-A restaurant chain made donations to several groups that oppose marriage equality. CEO Dan Cathy publicly confirmed that the company operated under "biblical values" (read "anti-gay") and warned of incurring the wrath of God if marriage equality is extended to homosexuals. This has quickly become a national controversy with many celebrities and politicians condemning the anti-gay rhetoric and calling for boycotts of the restaurant. (Unfortunately, a few others, notably<a href="http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-santorum-and-huckabee-urge-chickfila-counterprotest-20120726,0,4159216.story"> Mike Huckabee and Rick Santorum</a>, have come out in support of the fast food chain.) Of course all this boycotting and counter-cotting is well within the rights of those on both sides. I certainly have a right not to spend my money in an establishment where those same dollars are going to be used to curtail my rights. Likewise, those who oppose marriage equality for same-sex couples are certainly within their rights to support establishments that share these views (narrow and bigoted as they may seem to a growing number of us). <br />
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Unfortunately, where there is power there is also the potential to abuse that power. Recently the mayors of Chicago, Boston, and San Francisco have not only expressed their disgust over the anti-same-sex stance of Chick-fil-A CEO Dan Cathy, but have, to varying degrees at least intimated that the restaurant chain would not be welcome in their cities. Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel even went so far as to vow to block the chain's plans to open a restaurant there. To my dismay, many of my friends seem to applaud this behavior. To me, however, this is where we lose the moral high ground.<br />
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There is a marked difference between equal rights violations, and an individual exercising his Constitutional right to freedom of speech. Unless Chick-fil-A is in violation of existing laws, they should be treated with equal fairness in civil matters of permits, licensing, etc. The personal political views of the owner really shouldn't come into play. That's the price we pay in the United States for our freedom of speech. Imagine if the shoe were on the other foot and it were a business owner who was denied necessary permits simply because he was pro-same sex marriage? Or how about a business being denied a liquor license simply because the owner was gay? The truth is, we cannot afford to turn a blind eye when these sort of abuses are seemingly carried out in our favor. In the fight for marriage equality we cry out that we are not seeking <i>special rights</i> but simply <i>equal rights.</i> We can't afford to lose the moral high ground by allowing abuses of power to be done in our name. Thankfully, at least, it appears the mayor of Boston <a href="http://www.volokh.com/2012/07/26/boston-mayor-backs-down-on-statement-that-it-will-be-very-difficult-for-chick-fil-a-to-get-boston-business-license/">has backed down</a> on his threats to block the franchise, and the ACLU of Illinois <a href="http://www.volokh.com/2012/07/26/the-aclu-of-illinois-on-aldermans-and-seemingly-mayors-plan-to-block-chick-fil-a/">has weighed in</a> on the legality of such actions: <br />
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“The government can regulate discrimination in employment or against customers, but what the government cannot do is to punish someone for their words,” said Adam Schwartz, senior attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois. “When an alderman refuses to allow a business to open because its owner has expressed a viewpoint the government disagrees with, the government is practicing viewpoint discrimination.”<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times; font-size: small; line-height: normal;"> </span></div>
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The ACLU “strongly supports” same-sex marriage, Schwartz said, but noted that if a government can exclude a business for being against same-sex marriage, it can also exclude a business for being in support of same-sex marriage.<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times; font-size: small; line-height: normal;"> </span></div>
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“But we also support the First Amendment,” he said. “We don’t think the government should exclude Chick-fil-A because of the anti-LGBT message. We believe this is clear cut.”</div>
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Personally, I would like to see Chick-fil-A take a huge financial loss over this issue, but the way to bring this about is to withhold our patronage, not to condone the abuse of power by elected officials. I say let Chick-fil-A open its locations. If we truly feel that their policies are shameful, then let's not eat there and let's encourage our allies to withhold their money as well. And most certainly let's keep a close eye on how they do their business, and if they are found to be in violation of equal opportunity laws (where they exist, as they do in Chicago, Boston, <i>and</i> San Francisco) then by all means let's sue the hell out of them. But let's not become the thing we hate by supporting abuses of power done in our name. <br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">[Thanks to my friend Dag for helping to clarify this issue for me.]</span>Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146051755884390303.post-85568117418426319932012-04-19T16:31:00.000-06:002012-04-19T16:31:44.812-06:00National Poetry MonthApril is National Poetry Month. Unfortunately, I've had a dearth of poetry thus far. In part, to rectify that, I'm posting this which I wrote to Chris back in 2004.<div><br />
</div><div><div style="background-color: transparent;"><b id="internal-source-marker_0.601943812565878" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Think of the Sun, whose earliest morning rays<br class="kix-line-break" />Burst in your room and spill across your floor.<br class="kix-line-break" />Or think of the sea, whose restless thrashing waves<br class="kix-line-break" />Swell with the tide and crash upon your shore.<br class="kix-line-break" />Imagine the fire with which your day-star burns,<br class="kix-line-break" />Bathing your world with warmth and golden light.<br class="kix-line-break" />Imagine the moon which 'round your world turns,<br class="kix-line-break" />Stirring your seas and lighting up your night.<br class="kix-line-break" />And when you think of these, remember me;<br class="kix-line-break" />My grand ambition cannot be outdone,<br class="kix-line-break" />For I would be the moon which stirs your seas,<br class="kix-line-break" />And I would be your Fiery Star -- your Sun.<br class="kix-line-break" /> If Nature's power inspires a lover's art,<br class="kix-line-break" /> Let these be types and echos of my heart.</span></b></div></div><div style="background-color: transparent;"><b id="internal-source-marker_0.601943812565878" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br />
</span></b></div><div style="background-color: transparent;"><b id="internal-source-marker_0.601943812565878" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For those interested in the details, it's a Shakespearean style sonnet. </span></b></div>Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146051755884390303.post-34118373145539064332011-12-25T13:27:00.000-07:002011-12-25T13:27:53.457-07:00Sincere Holiday Well-WishingApparently, 'tis the season to be offended. I'm told that if I wish someone a "Merry Christmas", I'm being offensive because maybe they don't celebrate Christmas. But the back-lash to this idea has reached the point where people express offense because they <i>aren't</i> wished a Merry Christmas. They are actively offended by wishes of "Season's Greetings" or "Happy Holidays". They bemoan the removal of Christ from Christmas. Twice this holiday season I've received particularly belligerent well wishes of "Merry <i>Christ</i>mas! (Yes, I said "<i>Christ</i>mas" because Jesus is the reason for the season and if you don't like it you can stick it!)" -- well, I'm sure you get the picture. <br />
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Really, I understand the sentiments behind both sides of the issue. People don't like religion crammed down their throats, and people feel defensive of their own beliefs. I do understand the implied connection to the larger issues of separation of church and state, as well. The government is supported by and serves all of us, and shouldn't be seen as promoting any religion. But let's be reasonable. Is hearing "Merry Christmas" or merely being exposed to the celebration really grounds to take offense? Outside of state-sponsored institutions and programs, do we really have a right to be free from exposure to the dominant culture? Do we really have a "right" to not be wished well? Truly, when most people say "Merry Christmas" that's exactly what they are doing. They are not splashing holy water on you or trying to convert you. "Merry Christmas" from the mouths of the vast majority is simply the Thanksgiving-to-New Year equivalent of "Haveaniceday", though I suspect it's usually a bit more sincere. <br />
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On the other hand, no matter how washed in the blood of Jesus you are, if you live in America you live in a largely pluralistic society. Sure, there are far more (nominal) Christians than any other religion (or lack thereof) in the country, but we do live in a world where different points of view abound. If you want to wish the world a Merry Christmas, I say have at it, but why not let other people express their greetings as they see fit for whatever reasons they see fit. If I wish you "Happy Holidays" why not take that with the same grace you'd expect me to take your "Merry Christmas"? Why assume that I'm being held hostage by some sort of "political correctness"? Maybe I'm being sensitive to others' feelings, or maybe I don't believe in Jesus, but I want to participate in the "Season", which after all is as much a hodgepodge of pagan ritual and various pre-Christian winter festival customs as it is anything directly stemming from Christianity. (Even most Christian scholars agree, for instance, that Christ was not born in December.) But I digress. My point is it shouldn't matter one way or the other. Celebrate as you see fit, and if you want to wish others well, do so <i>sincerely,</i> but let others do the same. And if you don't feel like wishing others well, well don't. But why take needless offense at someone else's good intentions? <br />
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There are surely more important battles to be fought over freedom of (and from) religion. The "Merry Christmas" battle is a monumentally stupid one on both sides. It does nothing to pursued or promote a better world but only spreads the "circle the wagons" mentality on either camp. Let there be Peace on Earth, and let's all be free to express that wish however we see fit.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146051755884390303.post-22806316010042451272011-10-28T13:00:00.000-06:002011-10-28T13:00:54.855-06:00Death Becomes Her?I was recently chatting with a friend about life, immortality, and death. We were mostly talking about the increasing human lifespan, at least in most developed countries, and what the future of technology holds for those who are lucky enough to live to take advantage of inevitable breakthroughs in the problems of aging, disease, and death. Although my friend seemed excited by the prospect of eliminating diseases and improving the quality of life of the elderly, she surprised me by adding, "of course, I wouldn't want to live <i>forever</i>." Now this shouldn't have surprised me, I guess. I've heard it many times before, as I've also heard her explanation: "If you lived forever, <i>wouldn't life get terribly boring?"</i> <br />
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OK, so I wasn't exactly <i>surprised</i>, but I was a bit taken aback, as I always am when I hear this thought expressed. My friend isn't a particularly bored person, and she's certainly not boring. She seems to always be interested in something exciting or new (to her, at least) or fun. It's not that she's flighty or superficial. It's just that she's immensely <i>curious.</i> "If you get bored," I told her, "move to the south of France. But <i>death</i>? At least France has email, and the return flights are cheaper." <br />
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On the one hand, I guess I sort of get her point. There is arguably a finite amount of information to be learned in the world, so at some point I guess you will have seen it all. However, it seems like it would take so long to reach that point that this really no longer becomes a reason to accept death, at least not death as we briefly-lived humans know it. It would take so long, in fact, that I'm not even sure I can wrap my head around the length of time it would take. To me, it seems like that alone is good enough reason to want to live "forever" or at the very least make death into a door we only open when we choose to. <br />
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And is there any other reason why we'd choose to open that door, other than boredom? Dread of a few upcoming events might make it seem attractive to die before they come. Eventually, our sun is going to die. Before that happens, she'll balloon up, completely engulfing Mercury and Venus, and if not engulfing Earth, at least making it too hot for life here. Of course, by then we may have moved the species off-planet to what by then might be a few balmy moons of Jupiter or Saturn. Then, of course we'd face the eventual dying of the sun. But maybe by then we'll have world-sized interstellar spaceships, zipping us along to new star systems. Who knows? But isn't finding out sort of the point?<br />
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Some will say that even if we last beyond the death of the sun, eventually we'll find our galaxy standing seemingly alone in a universe expanding so fast we won't even see our nearest galactic neighbor. On the other hand, maybe we'll kill ourselves with climate change, or global war, or maybe get hit by an Earth-shattering asteroid while our backs are turned in political and religious infighting. Even so, wouldn't it be enough just to know how it all ends?<br />
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Another of my friends, Ty, and I talked about this once. He was equally as baffled by the death-welcoming attitude of most people we knew. We agreed that we're going to have to be forcibly evicted from this life, kicking and screaming. I haven't talked to him for far too long, but we have a standing date to do some inter-galactic backpacking a few million years from now if we get this whole death thing licked. All the rest of you adventurous spirits are welcome to join us. I can't begin to tell you what that will be like, except to promise that it won't be boring!<br />
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*****<br />
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P.S. A Christian friend of mine (also of the "won't it get boring" camp), reading a draft of this said that if I don't die, I won't know the joys of the next life. My reply to that is two-fold: First, if there is a "next life" it'll still be there when I'm kicked out of this one, and second, if you can't find enough to hold your interest now, what makes you think you'll fare better in "eternity" somewhere else?Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146051755884390303.post-31846888251699741792011-07-18T23:10:00.000-06:002011-07-18T23:10:57.772-06:00Catching upQuite a lot has happened since I last updated this blog. Primarily, I've come to realize that as much as I love massage, it's not going to be a practical long-term career for me. There are a couple of reasons for this. First of all, I think I came to this profession too late in life. While I believe I have above-average skill in the art of massage, I don't think my body is going to hold up for a decade of this work, full-time, much less through retirement. If I have enough work to not feel anxious about money, then my hands hurt almost constantly. Ironically, massage has given me a lot of time to think about this. While giving a massage, I can often achieve a state of meditation, and this has given me ample opportunity to reflect on my life and my long-term goals. <div><br />
</div><div>I've always been interested in psychology - in what motivates people and in why they believe and act as they do. I've also been reading a lot of science blogs and books, as well as books on philosophy and religion. Of course, I've also been an observer of contemporary "culture wars", especially concerning gay rights. Living in Utah has also brought home the struggles of gay people who live in especially conservative and unsupportive environments. Add to that the fact that I'm increasingly regretting the fact that I never went back to college after completing my associate's degree, and that brings you to my latest adventure. I'll be attending the University of Utah this fall, double-majoring in Psychology and Philosophy. Truthfully, I'm not exactly sure where this is going to take me, but the more I learn about the field, the more I believe I have something to contribute. <br />
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</div><div>I love giving massage. I've connected with a lot of people in a very intimate setting, often helping them to work through recovery from painful accidents and surgeries. This is really the first time I've dedicated myself to a profession where the primary satisfaction I receive is that of improving the lives of my clients in some small way. Most of the jobs I've done in the past have had a large service element, which I have always enjoyed and which is probably why I've felt drawn to massage in the first place. I'll continue giving massage, at least until I graduate. Hopefully I'll be able to maintain enough of a clientele to help pay for school. But even if at some point I don't give another massage, I don't regret the effort I've put into learning the craft, and I'm very grateful to those who have given me their trust as clients and friends. </div></div>Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146051755884390303.post-82660807196488429172010-12-28T14:57:00.001-07:002010-12-30T17:57:34.077-07:00To Those Who Love Too Early and Too Deep<div style="background-color: transparent; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">To those who love too early and too deep,</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Whose love is both impractical and bold,</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Who wage wild dreams and trouble their own sleep</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And find their beds without him all too cold.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I know the passions burning in your heart.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I know the pressure building in your chest.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I know the quick despair each time you part.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I know the joy and pain and all the rest,</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And though I have no words to ease the fears</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">That love won’t last or he won’t love in kind,</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Believe in love despite the pain of tears</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">That threaten every time he comes to mind.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I know that love is all we need to know;</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Despite the risks, I’d ever have it so.</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> [Karl Jennings, Dec 28, 2010]</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br />
</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This poem came to me earlier today almost whole. I know what it's like to love to early and too deep(ly) (Ha! Poetic license trumps grammar). I've jumped in almost blindly to every friendship and romance I've had. This is especially true for those relationships that have meant the most to me. So for what it's worth, I can relate to those of you who fall hard and quick and sometimes find it not returned or ill timed or just too much too quickly for the object of affection. Despite that, though, to me there's a freshness and an honesty in letting people know how you feel. The greatest tragedy would be not to show it and miss a joy that could have been.</span></div>Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146051755884390303.post-85013230459831893892010-12-24T11:35:00.001-07:002010-12-24T11:37:08.145-07:00I've Boldly Broken From the Traveled Road<div style="background-color: transparent; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span id="internal-source-marker_0.014426325215026736" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’ve boldly broken from the traveled road. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The toll, I found, was much to dear to pay.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’ve left the path, ignored the ancient code.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">With one last glance I’ve thrown my maps away.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For where I head no map can be designed.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There are no guarantees of how I’ll fare</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Though you may call me “lost”, I hope to find</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A life and love more beautiful and rare.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But I would travel pathless, not alone.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Will you come with me, Angel, lover, friend?</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And you, my Lover-Saint, can we as one</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In life, in love, seek out a better end?</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Let others walk the wider path and scorn</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> While we find out how better loves are born.</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> [Karl Jennings - 12/24/2010]</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br />
</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I've found the most joy in my life in unconventional places. I don't know what it is about the "beaten path" but it always seems to become an end in itself, even when the more fertile fields of life and love have migrated elsewhere. I've come to the realization that life is too short to waste time following paths that only have the virtue of being well traveled. I don't intend to be a trail blazer, necessarily, though if I find what I'm looking for, I'll try to leave the trail well marked. I hope some of you will come with me, and others will forge new paths of their own. </span></div>Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146051755884390303.post-51907186358539282302010-10-26T22:05:00.002-06:002010-10-26T22:07:54.798-06:00Halloween TreatI love Halloween. I especially like the old-style spookiness that often seems to be forgotten in favor of blood and gore these days. I also really enjoy spooky stories, poems and other writing and like to try my hand at it around this time of year. This year, I came across a challenge to write a short story, (300 words), and it had to involve a pumpkin. Here's my attempt:<br />
<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Jack</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><span id="internal-source-marker_0.925323705887422" style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><span id="internal-source-marker_0.925323705887422" style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Summoned from another year’s rest, I will protect you from darkness and from evil. I’ve done this since ancient times, watching from porch or fence, daring the Evil Ones from making mischief here. Oh, they </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><em style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: italic; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">will</em></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> make mischief. The lucky or persistent ones may even find a home where they can latch-on to strife or anger, hatred, envy, greed or any other misery. Then they will do mischief, and more, but not here. Not on my watch. The oldest ones know better, but the younger, foolish ones I gobble up and swallow back to the dark place where they can think about their foolishness for another year. Better luck next time, heh, heh. </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This is the charge I was born for: to protect you during this brief time when evil pours anew into your realm. But each year I see fewer and fewer of my comrades. Your neighbors have turned the ritual into a game, making mockery of the sacred gourds. They forget the ancient ritual, the sacred symbols for eye and nose and mouth. They carve bats and greetings and even (ugh) </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><em style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: italic; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">kittens</em></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> into the sacred fruit, or worse. The fools will weep.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But tonight I guard</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><em style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: italic; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"> you,</em></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> who remembers the sacred ways. My face is fierce and my flame is strong. I will keep the dark things from your home even as your neighbors are invaded. (Kittens? Really?)</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Now the witching hour approaches. Now the evil presses in from every shadow. Now I burn with righteous fire! But wait! No! My fire is weak. My candle burns low. It gutters and will go out! That Old One! It sees me falter. You will be naked to him and he knows it. Foolish mortal! To leave me so weak at this evil hour! This is not a game! </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: transparent; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><em style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: italic; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">THIS IS NOT A GA--</em></span></span>Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146051755884390303.post-91585661171374100112010-08-16T16:55:00.001-06:002010-08-17T22:24:43.428-06:00Gay Marriage Opposition Shows No SubstanceThe initial trial over Prop 8 is over and I'm sure no one reading this is unaware that Judge Walker ruled the proposition unconstitutional. Of course, proponents of the proposition are appealing the decision, and the question probably won't be settled until it goes to the Supreme Court. However, Judge Walker's opinion (which can be read in its entirety <a href="http://www.sfgate.com/chronicle/acrobat/2010/08/04/Prop-8-Ruling-FINAL.pdf">here</a>) makes it clear that proponents of Prop 8 had no other basis than religious bigotry for barring same-sex couples from the right to marry. <br />
<br />
This is monumental. As is well documented, the campaign for Prop 8, while a California state initiative that would have no standing outside the state of California, was heavily influenced by organizations (mostly religious) who drew enormous resources from out of state. When Prop 8 was challenged in federal court, the state officials named as defendants (including Gov. Schwarzenegger) chose not to defend the proposition, the state Attorney General even conceding the unconstitutionality of the proposition. This left the organization and individuals initially responsible for the proposition to come to its defense. Because this issue has been touted almost as a last stand for "traditional marriage", and has enjoyed the support of such deep pockets and well organized indoctrinators as the Mormon and Catholic Churches, one should expect that this defense represented the best arguments available for preventing gay marriage. Of course, in a court of law in a country where laws are not supposed to be enacted on purely religious bases, the proponents of Prop 8 took pains to avoid explicitly religious arguments supporting their proposition. Unsurprisingly to many, without "god says so", they had nothing to left to offer, and Judge Walker agreed.<br />
<br />
As one would expect in a pluralistic society such as ours, Judge Walker maintains:<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Courier; font-size: 12px;"><b><br />
</b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Courier; font-size: 12px;"><b>"A state’s interest in an enactment must of course be secular in nature. The state does not have an interest in enforcing private moral or religious beliefs without an accompanying secular purpose."</b></span><br />
<br />
Left to show a secular purpose behind their proposition to bar gays from marriage, the proponents of Prop 8 claimed that "the state's interest in marriage is procreative", but when asked to explain how allowing gays to marry would adversely affect this interest, the only response they had was "I don't know". Despite this, they claimed they would show some 23 specific harmful consequences that would result from allowing gays to marry. In the words of Judge Walker:<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Courier; font-size: 12px;"><b>"At trial, however, proponents presented only one witness, David Blankenhorn, to address the government interest in marriage. Blankenhorn’s testimony is addressed at length hereafter; suffice it to say that he provided no credible evidence to support any of the claimed adverse effects proponents promised to demonstrate."</b></span><br />
<div style="font: 12.0px Courier; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><b><br />
</b><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">The opposition purported to provide evidence that children raised in straight households fare better than those raised in same-sex households. They failed to show any credible evidence of this. Not a single legitimate study has shown this to be true, and in fact, the studies cited by the plaintiff's lawyers showed the opposite, that there was no appreciable difference in the adjustment or care of children raised by gays or lesbians, and those raised in more "traditional" families. </span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br />
</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">In the end, the key witness for the proponents of Prop 8 agreed with the plaintiffs:</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br />
</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times;"></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times;"><div style="font: 12.0px Courier; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><b><b>“</b>Blankenhorn noted that marriage would benefit same-sex couples and their children, would reduce discrimination against gays and lesbians and would be 'a victory for the worthy ideas of tolerance and inclusion.'”</b></div></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br />
</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">In spite of that admission, Blankenhorn maintained that gays should be denied the right to marry on the basis of his unsubstantiated opinion that to allow them to marry would "weaken the institution of marriage". Anyone following the debates about gay marriage should be all too familiar with this vapid, yet often repeated platitude, clung to so desperately by the anti-gay-marriage crowd. For years proponents of gay rights have asked "How, exactly?" Now, officially and before a federal judge they reveal their only legitimate answer "I don't know."</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br />
</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Religions enjoy a lot of freedom in the United States. They are free to disseminate all manner of doctrines, theories, creeds, and even diatribes, venom, racism and bigotry, as are the rest of us. What they don't have the freedom to do in the United States is to legislate their private religiously based morality. To enact laws abridging the activity of others in the United States, they have to show that there is a compelling state interest in that abridgment. The proponents of Prop 8, despite the support of highly organized and well financed organizations on a national level, have failed utterly to show any state interest in denying marriage rights to gays. I submit that this is because there is none. If there were, the Prop 8 trial would surely have been the place to show it. </span></span></div>Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146051755884390303.post-18283990337310669812009-11-22T02:31:00.000-07:002009-11-22T02:31:32.372-07:00Thanksgiving ThoughtsI love Thanksgiving. I always have, and I think it's one of the few holidays I enjoy as much or even more than when I was a kid. As I kid, I always loved watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on TV, and of course, I loved all the food and the time off from school. As I'm older now, I haven't watched the parade in years, lately because I don't have live TV anymore. Also, as an adult, I've probably worked on Thanksgiving as often as I've had the day off. As for the food, well, I do like it, but these days it seems like I have to make a conscious effort to just enjoy food and not worry about whether it's keeping me fat or clogging my heart or speeding me towards diabetes. <br />
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So why do I say I love Thanksgiving? I love it because it seems almost immune to all the things that detract from the other holidays. <br />
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First of all, Thanksgiving seems almost immune to commercialism. I say almost because people do spend a lot on food for Thanksgiving, and of course, every grocery store takes advantage of that fact for specials and sales, but for the most part those are low key and more like a bonus for shopping with a given merchant, rather than an enticement to buy things you weren't already shopping for. There <em>are</em> displays of decorations for sale, too, but they are usually relegated to a small shelf in the back of the store, vaguely near the Christmas decorations. I have noticed in the last couple of years that the companies who sell Christmas lights have been marketing lights for other holidays. I just saw a yard with several turkeys built out of strings of autumn-colored lights on plastic frames. I doubt those will catch on, though. Only the most die-hard yard exhibitionist is likely to go for those. The rest of us probably welcome a brief respite between taking down the Halloween decorations and putting up the Christmas ones. Additionally, aside from perhaps a host or hostess gift, there's none of the gift-giving pressure some feel at Christmas time.<br />
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Also, Thanksgiving is non-denominational. In fact, although it's a time many people thank their respective gods for their "blessings", you don't have to be religious at all to express thankfulness, or at least reflect on your good fortune. Also, unlike "Merry Christmas" these days, you can wish a "Happy Thanksgiving" to just about anyone without fear of offense. Gratitude is universal. <br />
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Finally, although most people probably do still spend the holiday with some combination of relatives, Thanksgiving is very accomodating of last minute guests and ad-hoc groups. With the tendency for extended families to become more and more spread out across the country though, it's not always practical to get everyone together for Thanksgiving. I've spent many Thanksgivings overseas, or far from family with little money or vacation time for travel. Perhaps because it's a simpler holiday than say, Christmas, it's easier to celebrate in ad-hoc groups. It's easy for friends who can't (or don't want to) be with relatives to get together and share a meal in celebration. It's usually pretty easy to add a last minute guest or two as well. I've never been to a Thanksgiving dinner that couldn't accomodate a few unexpected plates and still have plenty of left-overs. Also, last minute guests usually don't have to worry about intruding on a family gift exchange. <br />
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Don't get me wrong. I enjoy most holidays, and I'm always up for a chance to celebrate with friends and family. To me, though, the heart the holiday season is spending time with people you love. As much as I enjoy Christmas, it's the simple spirit of Thanksgiving that I grow to appreciate more and more each year. <br />
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Happy Thanksgiving everyone.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146051755884390303.post-15562456988863194532009-10-31T04:53:00.001-06:002009-10-31T04:56:06.312-06:00Sci-Fi I Want to See As Sci-Fact (Part 2)More things often addressed in science fiction that I would like to see as science fact in my lifetime:<br />
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<strong>True Fully Immersive Virtual Reality</strong><br />
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Whether it's a "holodeck" on the Enterprise, or the X-Men's "Danger Room", or even virtual reality piped directly into our brains a la <em>The Matrix</em>, truly immersive virtual reality has long been a sci-fi writers dream. Who wouldn't love an environment where you could create an entire world from scratch, or modify the one you know into a place where you are only limited by your own imagination? I certainly would. <br />
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I imagine the technology that will bring this idea to us first will be some sort of direct brain interface. It seems likely that decoding the way our brains receive information from our senses and learning to simulate those signals will be much easier to acheive than learning how to manipulate actual matter, as would be required to create a "holodeck" or the like, not to mention the enormous amount of power required for matter manipulation. Of course, I don't think I'd be the first to volunteer for the clinical trails of early brain/computer interfacing. First I'd have to see the technology refined and be sure I'm not likely to "download" a virus into my brain or short circuit myself or something perhaps even worse. Given adequate safety assurances, though, I'd love to be able to enter a fantasy world at will, or meet up with internet friends in a virtual space of our own collaborative design. <br />
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Of course, personal amusement is an obvious (and I think, non-trivial) use of such technology. However, I think there could be many more serious uses. Imagine being able to design a building (or vehicle, or what have you) simply by summoning the parts you imagine and commanding them into place. Imagine being able to walk through your design and experience it as if it already existed in the real world before even beginning actual construction? Of course, if the technology were easily available and sustainable, why build in the real world at all, at least for most things. I can envision a world where large numbers of people exist primarily in virtual space, especially if it only differs from the "real" world in ways that are actually an improvement. So many of us spend so much time online now it isn't hard at all to imagine us choosing to spend even more time in a space that could have all the advantages of the world wide web <em>in addition to</em> full sensory experience. <br />
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Granted, we'll want to make sure there's someone or something in real-space keeping the whole system running. <br />
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<strong>Human Longivity</strong><br />
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Imagine living for 1000 years? What about 10,000 years? Scientists are making great strides toward unraveling the mysteries of why our bodies age and fall apart. It seems reasonable to suspect that once we do understand the things that go wrong, we stand a good chance of fixing them. I recently watched a <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks?gclid=CIvLmtaP550CFRQhnAodhFlGPQ">TED Talk</a> by a man named <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aubrey_de_grey">Aubrey De Gray</a>, who believes that the first human to live 1000 years is probably alive already. That may not be all that far-fetched an idea considering how technology seems to be advancing exponentially. Interestingly, De Gray believes that the first human to live 10,000 years is likely only 10 years younger than the first to live 1000. His reasoning is that once life expectancy is raised to 1000 years, barring accident, that is roughly 900 years more time for technical advancements to increase lifespan even further, and each increase is even more chance for further increase. <br />
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Personally, I'm trying to live each day to its fullest. After all, even if expected lifespan is increased to a million years, any one of us could be hit by a bus tomorrow. Nevertheless, I'd love to know there's a chance I could be around long enough to see how mankind develops over the next millennium or two.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146051755884390303.post-58775459595648789202009-10-25T04:14:00.005-06:002009-10-25T06:19:50.549-06:00Sci-Fi I Want to See As Sci-Fact (Part 1)When I was a kid, I used to love sci-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">fi</span>. Movies, books, short stories, it didn't matter. I loved it all. I especially loved stories set in a human future. I loved to dream about what life would be like in 2010 (or even 1999). The kid I was might be a little disappointed how things have turned out. I mean, where's my flying car? Where are the moon bases? How come we still don't have a colony on Mars? Sure, we have cell phones, and the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Internet</span> is probably one of the most quickly pervasive and culture altering developments since the automobile, but they seem a little tame when compared to the futures of <em>Space: 1999</em>, or even <em>2001: A Space <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Odyssey</span>. </em><br /><br />Now that I'm an adult (for the most part), I'm still fascinated by visions of the future, even if I'm a little more critical of the various futuristic visions I come across. Also, my priorities have changed a bit. I'm not all that interested in a flying car, though I would like one that would drive itself, so I could read, nap, surf the net, what have you, during my commute. Nevertheless, there <em>are</em> speculated future developments I <em>yearn</em> for.<br /><br /><strong>First Contact</strong><br /><strong></strong><br />Probably hundreds, if not thousands of stories have been written about mankind's first contact with an extra-terrestrial civilization. One of the most plausible (to me, at least) is <em>Contact, </em>by Carl Sagan. In it, he imagines a first contact coming in the form of a signal received from outer space. Indeed, there are a number of SETI (Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence) projects going on right now. I even participate in one of them, <a href="mailto:SETI@home">SETI@home</a>, a project which uses home computers' downtime to analyze radio waves from space, hoping to find a signal amid all that noise. Of course, I'd love to have the home computer that actually found such a signal, but just having it <em>happen</em> would be exciting enough, regardless of who actually found such a signal. <br /><br />Why does the idea excite me? Haven't I seen <em>Independence Day?</em> Or <em>V,</em> or <em>War of the Worlds?</em> Aren't I afraid of becoming an item on some intergalactic buffet? Quite frankly, no. First of all, the chances that some alien species, evolved on a completely different world, with completely different evironmental factors, would even be able to use us as a food source are likely very small. Second, I think if they've mastered interstellar travel, they've likely solved any problems related to a sustainable food supply. Perhaps I'm overly optimistic, but I think benign curiosity, if not outright benevolence is a more likely motivation for interstellar exploration than conquest.<br /><br /><strong>AI: Artificial Intelligence</strong><br /><strong></strong><br />Almost as exciting as first contact with an ETI, and perhaps more likely to happen first, is the development of a true artificial intelligence. My excitement for this is two-fold. First, it would be wonderful to be able to interact with computers as naturally as we do with people. I'd love to have a personal artificial secretary who would keep all my appointments straight, scan the web for information I need or simply might like to know, and screen my incoming information such as phone calls, emails, texts, tweets, and whatever other manner we devise to keep ourselves connected. But aside from simple convenience, I think the insights into our own intelligence we will surely gain from the development of an AI will be invaluable. Also, I'm a bit of a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singularitarian">singularitarian</a>. I think we should be working to create an AI that will be beneficial to the human race. I believe that we face problems that our own intelligence, unaided, is proving inadequate to solve. Already we have AIs that can devise their own scientific experiments, carry them out, and analyze the results. Can true human-equivalent artificial intelligence be that far behind?Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146051755884390303.post-91574765296806912632009-10-11T01:36:00.003-06:002009-10-11T03:08:53.897-06:00Why I Think What I Think (Part 2)Continuing my list of people who have greatly influenced my worldview:<br /><br /><strong>Robert T. Carroll</strong><br /><br />Robert T. Carroll was a teacher in the philosophy department at Sacramento City College until he retired in 2007. I first came across Bob's writings through his website, <a href="http://www.skepdic.com/"><em>The Skeptic's Dictionary</em></a><em>. </em>This was in the mid 1990's, and his website was much smaller than it is today. The Internet, or at least the WWW part, was still a relatively new phenomenon, and I spent a lot of time surfing the web. It was during a late night surfing session that I stumbled upon The Skeptic's Dictionary, but I don't even remember what the specific topic was that led me there. At any rate, I knew I had stumbled upon a rare gem for that time: a website full of articles on a wide range of subject which were all well written and rational. While I knew what "skeptical" means, this was my first real introduction to skepticism as analytical tool. I enjoyed the first couple of articles I read so much that I started at the beginning and read all of his articles in order. There were probably fewer than a hundred articles when I started, and I've been pretty good at reading new articles as they've been added since.<br /><br />Many of the articles were about what I expected, and poked holes in ideas that I already was skeptical of myself, like <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">BigFoot</span> and the Loch <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Ness</span> Monster. Others were more challenging for me because they dealt with things I either hadn't considered from a skeptical perspective (multi-level marketing, false memory), or I had believed (or hoped) were true at some point in my past, (UFOs, god, etc.). It was through these articles, as well as Bob's writings on philosophy and critical thinking, that I learned to apply the same rigorous tools in evaluating things I perhaps even <em>wanted</em> to believe as I did to things I already thought were suspect.<br /><br />All this came at a time in my life where I had come to reject a lot of things I had been taught growing up and was still searching for the tools to make sense of the world. I sometimes wonder if I would have been receptive to Bob's ideas when I was 15 or even 20. Would I have been able to save myself a lot of stumbling around in the dark had I had access to something like The Skeptic's Dictionary earlier on, or would I have avoided it as something designed to weaken faith. I don't know, but I'm eternally grateful that I came across it when I did.<br /><br /><strong>Carl Sagan</strong><br /><br />I first really discovered the writings of Carl Sagan in my late twenties as I was rediscovering and reinterpreting the world in non-religious terms. I had known of Sagan from his television series <em>Cosmos</em>, but hadn't really read any of his books. It was largely the respect and admiration that Bob Carroll gave him and his writings that sparked my curiosity. The first Sagan book I read was <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0345409469?ie=UTF8&tag=shooforsens-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0345409469"><em>The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark</em></a><em><img style="BORDER-RIGHT: medium none; BORDER-TOP: medium none; MARGIN: 0px; BORDER-LEFT: medium none; BORDER-BOTTOM: medium none" height="1" alt="" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=shooforsens-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0345409469" width="1" border="0" />. </em>This book helped me to examine the things I believe and had believed, and taught me how to ask the right questions when it came to claims of the paranormal.<br /><br />When I find an author I like, I have a tendency to stick with him until I've read as much of his work as I can get my hands on. Sagan was no exception. I read everything I could find, including works he had written with his wife Ann <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Druyan</span>. They opened my mind to a naturalistic universe, one that did not require an intelligent designer, though it did not exclude one. Suddenly the universe became an <em>enormous</em> place, far larger, and far more fascinating than I had ever imagined. As much as the science and logic of his writings, though, I've been greatly influenced by his optimism. Far from being adrift in a universe where nothing matters, I found in his brand of skepticism and even atheism, a real hope that we, as humans, can work things out for ourselves, and that we still might not be alone in the universe. Through Sagan's writing, in part, I found the naive faith and hopes of my youth replaced with awe and new kinds of hope, and a new kind of comfort about the world around me.<br /><br />I was greatly saddened when Sagan died in 1996. It was as if I had just met the man and he had been taken away. I wonder what new insights we might have, had he lived through the last decade.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146051755884390303.post-3443863499116245382009-10-03T03:40:00.004-06:002009-10-03T05:20:08.857-06:00Why I Think What I Think (Pt1)I've been thinking lately about why I think the way I do. I thought it might be interesting, for myself if no one else, to list some of the people who have influenced my world view. This is probably going to be a multi-post topic and I'm not even going to attempt to list influences in order of importance or anything like that.<br /><br /><strong>Joseph Smith</strong><br /><strong></strong><br />Regardless of my beliefs about whether he was inspired by God or not, or even my belief about God himself, I can't deny that a large part of who I am is directly a result of the life and works of Joseph Smith, the founder of the LDS Church.<br /><br />One of the most fundamental ideas that has come to me through Joseph Smith is the idea that large numbers of people, however well educated and however sincere in their beliefs, might be dead wrong. As a child, this was introduced to me through the story of "The First Vision", referring of course to the first vision of Joseph Smith, wherein he claims to have seen God and Jesus Christ in the flesh, and upon asking which of all the churches he should join was told to "join none of them, for they were all wrong." From my current persective, this should have been an obvious possibility to me, given that each religion tends to think all the others have gotten at least some portion of "the truth" wrong. As a child, though, one tends to believe as one is taught.<br /><br />It probably wasn't until I was in my twenties that I gave serious consideration to the idea that maybe Joseph Smith, himself, was wrong, and by extension maybe so were religious people everywhere, insofar as they claimed to <em>know</em> the <em>truth</em> about God, or anything metaphysical. It's a big step in one's philosophical development to accept the idea that maybe everyone is stumbling around in the dark just like everyone else. It's no small thing to consider that most of the people from whom you've received the very foundation of your world view just might be mistaken. It's even harder, once you entertain that possibility, to then reassess all that you think you know and rebuild your philosophy perhaps even from the ground up.<br /><br />Joseph Smith also emphasized an idea that has become fundamental to Mormon philosophy and is simultaneously it's greatest strength and it's greatest weakness: the idea that if you have doubts, you should as questions. I've grown up always believing that "The Truth" is out there, and will become apparent if you look hard enough. As missionaries, we touted the promise in The Book of Mormon, which was really just a specific application of the teaching of James, to ask and we'd receive answers. That's hard to refute at face value, since any "answer" is open to a myriad of interpretations. I've even been told that the seeming lack of an answer might itself be an answer.<br /><br />All too often, though, the answers to the hardest questions in religion seems to be "we don't know". Ironically that's often the answer outside of religion as well. The difference, as I see it, is that within religion we're expected to wait and see what the answer is, almost as if by pushing the issue too hard, the wall might break and the whole of our philosophy come crashing down around us. To be fair, that's not exclusive to religion, but is probably a self defense mechanism of most philosophies once they've been sufficiently defined, and the more they become widely subscribed to. At any rate, and perhaps most ironically, it was the idea of really asking questions of God, and the promise that He would answer, that ultimately led me to reject the fundamental underpinnings of the philosophy that gave me that tool in the first place.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146051755884390303.post-91200059092073273002009-09-27T04:22:00.003-06:002009-09-27T04:55:17.990-06:00SnowbasinToday I had an offsite clinic with school. We were providing free massages to the athletes at the <a href="http://www.xterraplanet.com/utah/index.html">Xterra Triathlon</a> at Snowbasin, near Ogden, Utah. I wasn't particularly looking forward to it today, not because I don't like doing the offsite clinics, I really have enjoyed the ones I've done in the past. It's that I had been up since 2 PM the day before, and had worked the graveyard shift last night. As it turned out, I left home early and got to within 20 minutes of Snowbasin with still over two hours before I had to be there. I pulled into a rest area and took a nap.<br /><br />I'd never been to <a href="http://www.snowbasin.com/">Snowbasin</a> before today. It's amazingly beautiful. We couldn't have asked for a nicer day. The air was cool, but the sun was very warm. Snowbasin itself is situated at the base of one of the tallest nearby peaks, but still well above the rest of the valley, if you can technically call it a valley. The view was more of rolling highland hills covered with trees than a proper intermountain valley like Salt Lake or Utah valleys. At any rate, the mountains and rolling hills below were covered in fall colors, which were at their peak of beauty. I'm used to the brilliant fall displays of the East Coast, but these views were breathtaking. I loved how the fall colors I'm used to seeing were sprinkled among dark green pines and white trunks of the aspen trees.<br /><br />We set up our tables in a shady spot against the main lodge, just as the first runners were coming in. From that point until I took a lunch break, I was giving massage after massage to athletes. These were fairly quick massages, 10 to 15 minutes each, and mostly consisted of compressions along the legs, arms, back, and neck, coupled with some passive range-of-motion and stretching exercises. Everyone seemed really greatful for the massages, and a couple of them even tipped. After lunch (which I took between 3:30 and 4:00) things had started to slow down. We gave massages to the few latecomers, and some of the other volunteer staff, then it was time to go.<br /><br />Surprisingly, I wasn't tired at all during the event, and even got 3/4 of the way home before I felt like I was going to fall asleep. I called my sister, Kate, and she talked me sober until I got home.<br /><br />When I walked in the door, I immediately saw that Ninja had gotten into the stash of toy mice. There was a veritable killing field of them all over the front hall. Apparently the closet door hadn't latched after I got my jacket out this morning. It wouldn't have been terribly bad, except we ration them too him because he has a habit of shredding them and eating the skin off the plaster core (then often dropping the plaster core into his food bowl, lord knows why). It's not really a problem according to our PA vet, but we worry about giving him a second mouse before he's properly passed the current one. So, I gathered up all the mice I saw, save one, threw them in the closet, then crashed into bed. I had been awake for 27 hours at that time. I got almost 5 hours sleep before I had to go back in to work the graveyard at the hotel.<br /><br />Man, I can't wait until I'm licensed. :)Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146051755884390303.post-31023568063639630432009-09-24T21:48:00.003-06:002009-09-24T22:08:30.595-06:00Down to the WireWell, today was the last day of week 7 at school. The term is 10 weeks total, so only 3 more weeks then I graduate. There's a lot to be said for the structure of going to school. Right now, busy as I am, at least my weeks are very planned out and I always know what I have to do. Once I graduate, my schedule is going to be largely up to me. For the most part, that's a good thing, but it's also pretty scary.<br /><br />I'm pretty sure I'll be able to handle being in business for myself again. The issue with the Quiznos wasn't my organizational skills or anything. I just don't think it was the right business model for the time and place. On the other hand, Quiznos was an all consuming venture. I had stuff I <em>had</em> to do every day and every week and every month at very specific times. Procrastination wasn't an issue. With massage therapy, if I really want a day off (or an hour, or a week) I just don't have to schedule appointments. If I get lazy, I can easily fail. The plus side is that this is work I think I will genuinely enjoy. I know the student clinic is just a small taste of what day to day operations will be like, but so far I've loved the work. Even when I feel like I'd like to skip a clinic day, I'm always glad I didn't. I always come out of clinic feeling <em>energized.</em><br /><em></em><br />I think I'm going to be renting a space from one of the instructors at the school. She's offering me a good deal and the location and space aren't bad at all. On the down side, the location isn't my first choice, and I'd be working in a space that isn't my own. She also expects me to use her logo and business name on my cards, but I think that might be negotiable. There are other options out there, but truthfully, none of them poses as little risk for the benefit, nor as low a cost as this opportunity. And the most I'd be committed for is three months at first. Once I get a clientelle built up, I can always move into a space of my own.<br /><br />Decisions, decisions. . .Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146051755884390303.post-4215907368612260972009-09-19T04:13:00.001-06:002009-09-19T04:48:53.797-06:00Utah - Day-tripper's DreamOne thing I want to use my blog for is to keep track of all the day trips I'm able to take living here in Utah. This state is a day-tripper's dream. I live pretty much in the center of the state's largest metropolitan area, and not only can I see mountains in every direction, but within 20 minutes I can be driving or hiking in them. <br /><br />Since moving here, I've been to Diamond Fork Hot Springs, Grandeur Peak, Ensign Peak, up to the radar stations on the mountains above Farmington, to the world's largest open pit copper mine, to Bridal Veil Falls, Donut Falls, and the Great Salt Lake. I've hiked through City Creek Canyon, driven through Immigration, Parley's, Mill Creek, and Big and Little Cottonwood Canyons. I've driven to Park City to the East, and Wendover to the West. I've been North to Logan (home of Cox Honey), and South as far as Spanish Fork Canyon. I've been farther south, but not since moving here last November.<br /><br />And even after all that, I feel like I've only seen a tiny fraction of what there is to see and do all within a couple of hours drive and all basically free, aside from gas money and snacks. Right now I'm by no means in good shape, yet I've been able to do all only occasionally having to push my limits. I really want to get myself into shape so I can tackle some of the more taxing hikes. My first major goal is to get myself fit enough to hike Mt Timpanogos. It's an imposing mountain ridge overlooking Provo/Orem. Even as late as September this year, there is snow visible on the east face, just under the ridge. It's an all-day hike. I've been told you have to leave around 5 AM if you want to get back by dark in the late summer. <br /><br />Yeah, I need to get myself into shape!Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146051755884390303.post-52136657249326068692009-09-19T01:08:00.000-06:002009-09-19T01:57:00.784-06:00First Things FirstHi. <br /><br />My name is Karl Jennings. I'm a gay, former-Mormon, recently returned to Utah after having lived most of my life in the Eastern US. My family moved East from Utah before I was even a year old, so I don't really remember ever having lived here at that time, but I do remember visits to grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins while I was growing up. <br /><br />I've been around a bit since then. I've lived in Utah, North Carolina, Kentucky, Virginia, Brazil, Virginia, Texas, California, Texas, Korea, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and now again in Utah, in that order. I've loved most of the places I've lived and I don't really feel like I have a "home town". I have parents in Virginia and Maryland, and brothers and sisters in North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, California and Utah. "Home" is where I'm living at any given moment.<br /><br />Well, more precisely, "home" is where I live with Chris. He's my partner of six-plus years, and the one person who anchors my life and gives me a sense that in all the world, one place is "home". Right now we're sharing an apartment with two cats, Ninja, and Shade. <br /><br />I've done a variety of things, just as I've lived a variety of places. My earliest memories are living on a farm in North Carolina. At that time, my parents, my older sister, and I were living with my mom's parents in an honest-to-goodness log cabin in the blink-and-you'll-miss-it town of Pilot Mountain. It was a working farm where my grandfather raised pigs and grew corn. I'm sure he did more than that, but that's what I most remember. <br /><br />While I was still very young, my grandfather abandoned us and moved to Florida "with some floozy", as the grownups said among themselves. I never saw him again, though my mother did before he died. After he left us, the farm basically went to seed. My father wasn't a farmer, though I believe he loved the farm. He worked for the Boy Scouts. To him the farm was a great big toy and he ran it like a scout camp. The pigs all got sold (I guess), and a few acres were lent, or leased, to a neighbor farmer. The rest, outside the log cabin and yard, was a mix of fields gone to weed, a nice size wooded area around a very large pond, several outbuildings in various stages of disuse, and whatever particular scouting related project had my father's attention at the time. <br /><br />When I was 9, my father got a job transfer to Danville, Kentucky and we moved away. Five years later, we moved again (with another job transfer) to Norfolk, Virginia. It was from Norfolk that I left to go on a two-year mission to Brazil for the LDS Church (the Mormons). Within a year after returning home from Brazil, I joined the Air Force, which took me through Texas for Basic training, California (Monterrey) for language school, back to Texas (San Angelo) for tech. school, to Korea for two years, and finally to Maryland. It was in Korea, and later in Maryland where I came to grips with my sexuality in a long process that ended with me leaving the military (because my commitment was completed) and also leaving the LDS Church (because I no longer believed). <br /><br />Post Air Force, I ended up living in Baltimore, Maryland with my first partner, Douglas. I was with him for nine years before we ended our relationship by mutual agreement. I worked for a major credit card company during that time, in their call center, at first, and then later as a network analyst. <br /><br />Chris and I met while I was living in Maryland, and we shared an apartment for a few months before finally buying a house in Pennsylvania. I eventually quit my job with the credit card company and Chris and I opened a restaurant in Pennsylvania. We picked probably the worst year in the last decade to open a business, and had to close our doors after only 11 months in operation. Now we live in Utah and are trying to rebuild our finances. I'm in school for massage therapy, which I love, and Chris is working for a healthcare company. Utah seems to agree with us both, and we have made a lot of friends in the ten and a half months we've lived here. It feels as much like home as anywhere, and more like home than most places. <br /><br />So that's me in Cliff's Notes. I plan to write here at least weekly. If you find me and like what you read, feel free to leave a comment, or drop me a line. It's all about making connections and shooting for sense.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04929543046691670617noreply@blogger.com0