Hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving..!

I have been absent from my blog for a while, but I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving..!  My Thanksgiving was a good one, able to spend the day at my Mom's place, and visiting with my sister and her hubby when they arrived.  I brought over my Sony 40" LCD TV, Blu-ray player, and my collection of Blu-ray movies.  We spent much of the day visiting and watching movies, and of course eating..!  I had 2 plates of food, and several refills of my sister's sweet tea..!  I was the last to leave, but of course, by then I was tired, and ready for some sleep.

It wasn't fancy, but it was with family, and I can honestly say I enjoyed the time spent.  I think that in the end, isn't that all that really matters?  I've had more 'traditional' Thanksgiving holidays in the past that were less enjoyable, so honestly, as long as your enjoying yourself it doesn't matter even if your having cheeseburgers instead of turkey.  (We had ham...  :P )  Anyways, here's to hoping for an enjoyable Christmas holiday next..!

My Veteran Memories

I wish all my fellow Veterans a happy Veteran's Day..!  Our Armed Forces should always be appreciated, because they are the ones who go into harms way for the people of this nation.  It is their presence that keeps potentially hostile nations and peoples at bay.  Whatever you may think about the wars that the politicians send our troops to, we must never forget that the Soldiers, Marines, Seamen, or Airmen are there to protect this country and its people.

I myself served for a while in the U.S. Air Force, and was stationed at Aviano, Italy.  I was there during the Kosovo Air War, and most of the aircraft participating in it were coming out of our base, Aviano Air Base.  I watched the Stealth F-117's taking off quietly, and I saw the protesters sleeping in tents near the front gate of the base, as I passed them on the road while riding my bike.  I saw the protest parade march past the front gate, as protesters shot bottle rockets over the fence.  I recall watching CNN in the break room outside (a small shed like building), and leaning against the doorway, seeing a cargo aircraft coming in for a landing during a live broadcast on the TV.  I looked out towards the runway, and was amazed to be seeing the same exact image on CNN as I was seeing with my own eyes out in the distance.

I was assigned to help off load aircraft coming in for the operation (the Air War), and I helped the marines offload from Cherry Point MCAS, NC.  I got to talk to a lot of the marines, and ask them how the home town was doing (I lived in New Bern, NC which is only a few miles away from Cherry Point).  I was able to watch videos of guided missiles striking their targets, after the aircraft returned from their missions.  You could actually see men through the windows or doorways, running away just moments before the missile struck and the screen went blank.

Right next to my work station, the marines had their Prowlers parked, and they were noisy..!  For a short time the Army had their Blackhawk Helicopters located there, and then they moved to make room for the Prowlers.  I remember watching a U2 Spy plane taking off, and I once saw a huge Russian cargo aircraft parked along the runway.  I remember riding the bus around the entire flight line, just to see the F-117's in their parking areas.  I still remember the view of a flat landscape with vineyards on one side of the base, and off in the distance the massive wall of mountains that make up part of the Alps.  I lived at the foot of that mountain range, and it was quite a view.  Snow covered in the winter, and green on parts during the summer, with a large rocky crag to the east.  I remember seeing para gliders, riding the air during the summer, and wishing I could do it too.

I had quite a few memorable experiences in Aviano, Italy.  I sort of regret not getting out more than I did, but I do at least have some interesting memories of interesting times.  Once more, a Happy Veteran's Day to all my fellow Vets out there, including my Dad and other members of my family, and friends..!

James Cameron's Avatar... the Extended Edition

I suppose it is just smart business.  Release a movie in it's theatrical form on DVD, and then wait about half a year or more and then release an extended edition.  Yes, there is going to be an extended edition DVD of Avatar released this tuesday, or on monday night at midnight.  The movie will have additional footage to lengthen it to 3 hours long, basically a whole extra hour of movie..!  Yes, I bought the movie when it came out, and I got it on blu-ray.  Will I buy it again just to see the extra footage?  I just may, even if not right away.  Yes, I know it's just a scam to get more money out of the fans of the movie.  That's why it works.  We all know it, but we just gotta see all that extra movie footage...

It's kind of like when they did the pilot episode of SG-1 over recently (The Children of the Gods), yes, I have the pilot in it's original format, but they changed it..!  So, I just gotta see what they did different, because I'm a fan...  probably sort of pathetic.  Even when we know we're being scammed, it's too late for the die hard fan.  Like when we know it'll probably be cheaper to wait until the full season of a show comes out as a box set, these days they'll sell it to us bit by but as 'volumes', and many of us will buy it, even though in the long run it is more expensive.  Just so we can get that quick fix...

Back to Avatar, it is the first movie I saw in Digital 3D at the theater.  I was blown away.  It was an amazing experience and it took me days to settle down about it.  I felt that I must have an idea of how many people felt when Star Wars came out for the very first time, totally dazed and blown away by the special effects which were state of the art at the time.  So yeah, I'll probably get the extended edition too, sooner or later.  Oh well.

The Manga I'm reading...

There are currently about four different mangas that I am keeping track of.  They are Naruto, Bleach, History's Strongest Disciple Kenichi, and Sekirei.  I've been following each of them for a while now, with Naruto being the one I've followed the longest.  For those who are unaware of just what a Manga is, it is basically a comic format story from Japan, usually without any ink coloring.  Manga's cover a large variety of topics and audience types.  There are action/adventure, romance, sports, adult, and many various types of mangas.  All of the mangas I mentioned above are action/adventure types, with Kenichi and Sekirei being partly what is known as Ecchi type mangas.  In other words they cater to male readers with some nudity or near nudity (remember these ARE comic book characters...).  However, although they may skirt the edge of sexuality, they don't actually cross it.  Such manga or anime (cartoons) material that does, is known as Hentai and is basically blatant porn in comic or cartoon format.

Naruto is a young ninja (or Shinobi), that has been fighting for acceptance, or even mere acknowledgement from his own hometown.  He was born during a tragic event that left his hometown scarred and with him being secretly at the center of it.  In the beginning, even Naruto didn't know why all the adults and most of the other children shunned him.  Finally it was revealed to him, that he is the host of a powerful and destructive creature called the Nine Tailed Fox.  Eventually, he does find friendship and acceptance, first, from his school teacher Iruka and later from his team mates.  As the years have passed he has gone from a hard working, but often clumsy ninja beginner (called a Genin), to a still hard working, but powerful ninja sage.  Technically, he hasn't actually been promoted to Chunin (a Journeyman level ninja), but in truth he's become so powerful he doesn't really fit the normal standards anyway.  However, despite his strength and growing skill, he STILL isn't a master level ninja (Jonin), and has more to learn even about his own abilities.  He's only recently begun to learn the truth of his own heritage, and currently in the manga, his entire world is about to enter into a Third Ninja War.  It is a fun read (sometimes pretty funny), with a long and interesting story.

Bleach is about a young high school student named Ichigo Kurosaki, and he can see ghosts.  This ability leads him to meet a Soul Reaper (Shinigami, or Death god), named Rukia.  His encounter with her changes his life, and soon he becomes a Substitute Soul Reaper when Rukia loses her own powers to him, in an act to help him save his family.  However, Rukia's act of compassion was forbidden by the laws of Soul Society (sort of like Heaven...), and ultimately this leads Ichigo to find his own Shinigami powers from within (after he lost the power Rukia gave him), and on a quest in the spirit world to rescue Rukia from execution.  While in Soul Society he comes into contact with powerful foes, and he steadily grows stronger.  Just as his quest to save Rukia seems nearly complete, a new danger comes to light that could threaten both Soul Society and the World of the Living (Earth).  Currently in the manga, that storyline seems to have been completed, but there are new events unfolding that may challenge that assumption.

History's Strongest Disciple Kenichi is an often hilarious, but strong action/adventure manga series.  Kenichi begins as a weak cowardly freshman in high school, who wants to be stronger and a better man than the bullies he often faces each day.  On his first day of high school he literally runs right into transfer student Miu Furinji.  She is a beautiful girl who happens to be in his own class, and she makes friends with him immediately.  That evening while walking home from school, Kenichi witnesses a group of thugs harassing an old man, while Miu attempts to make the thugs apologize.  Kenichi attempts to intervene knowing he will be beaten up, but just as that is about to happen Miu displays amazing aerobatic and martial arts skills.  Shortly after, she tells Kenichi of a dojo (martial arts school) where he could go and get strong relatively quickly (assuming he survives the training...).  This turns out to be Miu's own home, with a group of Martial Arts Masters living there, led by her grandfather, referred to as the Elder.  They accept Kenichi as their disciple, and immediately he is placed through hellish training.  The Masters are powerful fighters, but have quirky characters, which often leads to hilarious plots.  Kenichi started out only wanting to learn Karate, but ends up also being trained in Jujitsu, Chinese Kenpo, Muay Thai, and Weapons as well.  He himself never uses weapons but he is trained in how to counter them, and in time begins to learn to combine the various martial arts he is learning into his own unique and effective style.  Currently in the manga he is as strong as he has ever been, but one of his most beloved masters is near death, while fighting for their very lives.

Sekirei is definitely the most 'ecchi' of the mangas I follow.  It follows the story of a young man named Minato Sahashi, trying to get into college, who encounters a beautiful girl that is actually a being called a Sekirei.  There are exactly 108 Sekirei, most of which are cute girls or buxom beauties, with a few males being 'pretty boys'.  All of the Sekirei possess superhuman abilities of various types, and are caught up in a rather cruel game called the Sekirei Plan.  Each Sekirei must find an Ashakabi (or master), and bind themselves with a kiss (the transference of genetic material via the saliva).  Some Ashakabi's are nearly heartless and only use their Sekirei for their own gain, but some of them truly love their Sekirei and want to protect them.  Most Ashakabi only have one Sekirei, but soon Minato finds himself with 6 different Sekirei, with 4 of them being single digit Sekirei (each one has a specific number) which are rumoured to be more powerful than most other Sekirei.  He also has #108 the youngest Sekirei, and his very first Sekirei is #88, named Musubi who has an unusual past for a Sekirei and the potential to be the strongest of all Sekirei.  Musubi was kidnapped as a very young child, and nearly killed, but an older Sekirei, #8 (and also the same type) gave Musubi her own life force.  This has caused unexpected reactions within Musubi, making her even more formidable than she would be alone.  All but one of Minato's Sekirei compete for his affection, with 3 of them claiming the position of 'first wife'.  (He isn't actually married to any of them...).  However, Minato cares for all of them deeply, and strongly tries to avoid any appearance of favoritism.  Currently in the manga, Minato and his Sekirei are trying to help a friend (who is also a Sekirei), by rescuing her Ashakabi.  They succeed in helping her, but perhaps with a tragic end.

These particular mangas all have strong themes about friendship, acceptance, and love.  The stories may vary wildly but all touch on the value of these topics.  Also, in all of these manga, many of the characters (main character included), must overcome self doubts and learn the value of confidence in ones self, and also in ones friends.  Each of these mangas have a large cast of characters, funny moments, and every once in a while, some personal tragedy.  I've enjoyed and continue to enjoy these mangas immensely.  I can definitely recommend these mangas as an enjoyable read, and each of them also happen to have an Anime (animated cartoon series) based on them that are also enjoyable.

Megatons to Megawatts Program...

I was talking to my dad yesterday, and he told me about a project he was involved with.  I think it is interesting and also a positive thing.  It is an agreement between private companies in the U.S. and Russia to convert about 20,000 tons of weapons grade uranium into a Low Enriched Uranium to be used in American Nuclear Power Plants.  According to their webpage, they have converted over 16,000 tons of Uranium so far.  Also, according to their webpage, an average of 1 in 10 American homes have been receiving electricity from power plants using this converted material.

I think this is a great thing.  We are getting rid of dangerous weapons that shouldn't be used at all, and converting them to a peaceful and helpful use.  As I understand it, this program is costing the American people basically nothing, and it is apparently profitable for the private companies both in Russia and the U.S.  Essentially a win/win scenario for all involved.  It would be great if this sort of solution could be used for other areas in which there are ongoing problems.  I can't help but wonder how many other problems in the world might be solved by similar means.  In any case that is a few less nukes to threaten the world, and a few more years of homes and businesses keeping their lights on.

If anyone is interested into looking further into this, check out...  http://www.usec.com

The election aftermath...

An online friend lamented the recent elections results (as he tends towards the liberal side of things), because he felt it would be harmful to causes he cares about.  I replied to him, "don't stress over it", and went on to explain that in American politics it is common for the american public to swing back and forth between the parties because usually they aren't happy with the politicians in office.  It's like that old saying about the weather, if you don't like it, just give it a while, and it'll change again.  The same often rings true of american political currents.  Every few election years the power shifts back and forth between the two parties.

The point is, it is rare for Americans to find a leader that really stands out, among all the talking head politicians who say much, but actually do little.  It is for that reason that I often think the rule about only 2 consecutive terms for presidents should be thrown out.  When we finally do find a leader worth having, 8 years really isn't that long a time, and then we're forced by our system to find someone else, who is probably of a lesser caliber.  I know the job can be stressing, but if they can handle it and do a good job, why put limits on it that only cause the American people to suffer in the long run?  Am I the only one who feels that way?

It's Election day again...

It's not something I'm proud of, but I'm pretty much burnt out on politics right now.  For the past few years I've been ignoring the news and politicians.  I used to watch the news 24/7, and was up on all the national issues.  These days, I'm barely aware of whats going on out there or who the new politicians are.  It's not that I don't care, it's just that I feel our government culture has degenerated into a money bound mess, where the needs of the people take a back seat to the private interests groups paying politicians off.  I can't help but wonder if our 'great experiment' of representative democracy has become a failure..?  We were a Republic, not specifically a Democracy as has often been spouted in recent years.  These days, I'm not sure what we are.  A Monetary Democracy?

It's kind of depressing if one dwells on it, which is why I try not to.  We are in a world of unprecedented technological development, and yet it feels like we should be further along than we are.  Our government just feels like this overshadowing thing always present, but not like something that is really making a difference.  We live in a world of beaucracies that seems so caught up in themselves that they can barely do the jobs they were initially created for.

On the other hand, have people always felt this way?  150 years ago, were people making the same complaints?  The old saying that the grass always looks greener on the other side, comes to mind, and I wonder if we are making to much of nothing.  Yet, if we aren't concerned about the future, how can things change or improve?  I know there are things I'd like to see happen, that aren't happening.  I'd like to see education at all levels freely available to the masses if they want it.  I'd like to see the Space Program take a new leap into the future with a renewed push towards manned space travel to the stars.  I'd like to see the government less intrusive, but available to help if needed.

We spend about $400 Billion a year on the U.S. military and at only about 6% of the national budget, or least that was how it looked last I checked.  So I can't help but wonder, just what our government is doing with the other 94%?  How much of it is lining the pockets of politicians, and fill pork barrel projects that may not really be necessary?  I feel it is wrong that congress can hide those sorts of deals behind other issues being voted on by congress.  When things like that are happening behind the doors of government, it is hard to feel confident that they are doing the right things.

The Bible says the love of money is the root of all evil, and our money infused politics definitely feels wrong.  I have nothing against money, it is only a means, although some see it as an end to itself.  If we could somehow remove money as an equation of our political system, I can't help but think it would be better and more effective.  Somehow, though, that feels like a pipedream here and now.  I sincerely hope I'm wrong.

Writer's block...

I just can't get motivated to talk about anything in particular today, so I'll keep it short.

".............................................................................................................................."

That's all I can think of to say right now...  :P