27 Apr 18, 2009
The 27 Club is a group of musicians who died when they were 27, including Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, and Kurt Cobain.  Not included in the list but still dead at 27 include actor Jonathan Brandis, the elephant man Joseph Merrick, and NFL player/soldier Pat Tillman. #lifestyle
Beard commitment Dec 12, 2008
I have a newfound respect for people with beards.  I haven't shaved for the past few weeks, and my slightly orange-ish facial hair is longer than it's ever been.  And it's torture.  It feels like I'm wearing a wool scarf on my face.  A wool scarf that keeps moving around, creating new spots of discomfort and itchiness.  And then there's the scraggly-ness.  You've never lived until you've felt a hair from your face poke itself into your nostril or your mouth.  And of course eating is always an adventure.  Maybe other people don't have these problems.  And for that, they're blessed.  But putting up with this for months and months until you finally have a full beard (and presumably forget it's even there) is such a commitment, I respect the men who do it.  I'm shaving tonight. #lifestyle
My big fat gay wedding (1) Oct 13, 2008
I went to my first gay wedding this weekend.  Actually, it was a lesbian wedding.  What an experience.  Setting aside the moral issue for a moment (because I haven't completely made up my mind [not if I'm gay or not, but whether I think it's ok or not or whatever]), I learned several things and had several questions answered. 
  1. Who wears the dress?  The answer is they both do.  Well, sort of.  One girl had on more of a dress, the other had on more of a pant suit (but not a Hillary Clinton pant suit), but it was flowy and dress-like.  Both outfits were the same color, off-white.
  2. Is it legal?  In New Jersey, as of right now, yes.
  3. Which one is the wife?  They both are.  The ceremony said, "I, [girl1], take you, [girl2], to be my wife," and then, "I, [girl2], take you, [girl1], to be my wife."
  4. How did the bridal party work?  This part was weird.  Each bride had a matron of honor.  But then one bride had a best man, but this best man was a girl, and a lesbian at that.  I'm not sure why she couldn't have just been another maid/matron of honor.
  5. Was it in a church?  Yes, an Episcopal Church, which has loose beliefs about homosexuality.
  6. What about the reception?  The reception was probably the most normal, or at least familiar, part.  Each bride danced with her father.  There was food and drink in abundance.  However, there was no bouquet toss or garter ceremony, which was fine by me.
  7. Were there any other lesbians?  Good God yes.  I've never seen so many lesbians in all my life.  The happy couple met via a female rugby team, all of which is at the very least bisexual (ok, not all of them).
#lifestyle
On kids (2) Sep 30, 2008
I heard two interesting things about kids recently: 
  1. I learned that the sense of taste is a newborn's strongest sense.  That's why they put everything in their mouth and lick things off the floor.  It's how they figure out information about texture, temperature, and anything else you can learn from licking things.
  2. On expecting the birth of a third child, a bystander quipped, "It's like going from man-to-man to a zone defense."  Well played.
#lifestyle
To marry a smoker Sep 19, 2008
I can't imagine how a non-smoker could marry a smoker.  Such is the case with a couple I know.  The guy smokes; the girl doesn't.  Doesn't he taste like an ashtray?  Doesn't everything you own smell like smoke?  Don't you feel weird that you have a very high chance of outliving him and of witnessing his brutal death from lung cancer?  It's one thing if you're old and you got married before anybody knew anything bad about smoking.  And it's another thing if you both smoke.  But it's entirely different to be a young couple, full of knowledge of the effects of smoking (both the cancer-y effects and the it-smells-gross effects), and be entirely ok with marriage, or even just a relationship.  It boggles the mind. #lifestyle
Sleeping clothes Aug 20, 2008
I find it odd that people have specific clothes set aside for use only while sleeping.  They serve no other purpose and can't be used at any other time.  Most times, these clothes are normal clothes that have been retired from everyday use, but are still comfortable enough to be useful.  But I also know people who actually go out and spend money on sleeping clothes, which to me seems comparable to pouring coffee directly into the toilet instead of letting it pass through your body first. #lifestyle
Big people and clearance racks Aug 13, 2008
One thing I've noticed while supporting my clearance rack habit is that it's rare to find normal-sized clothes there (i.e. medium).  All I find are XL and XXL, which sort of makes sense since there are statistically less large people than non-large people.  My advice to large people would be to check the clearance rack.  That's where your stuff is.  And I mean no offense to either large people or people who buy things off clearance racks. #lifestyle
Selfish wedding Aug 7, 2008
Tomorrow (i.e. Friday), I'm going to a wedding.  It's a morning wedding, a.k.a. an all-day wedding.  So yes, it's an all-day wedding on a Friday.  This is possibly the most selfish wedding ever.  "We're gonna need you to go ahead and take a day off work so you can watch us get married, stuff cake in each other's facial orifices, and drink lots of liquor.  Yeah, thanks."  It's one thing if you have a destination wedding and you expect people to decline the invitation because they don't want to spend hundreds of dollars on a faux vacation that's centered around people other than themselves.  But it's another thing to have a local wedding and expect everyone to use up some of their precious vacation time.  Yes, I could've declined, but that would've looked selfish.  Ironic. #lifestyle
True colors Jul 10, 2008
It's always weird to see your co-workers at non-work functions, especially when they dress differently for different occasions.  While at work, most people dress conservatively and try to look somewhat nice.  They wear clean pants.  Their shirts have collars.  But as soon as they leave that work environment, everything changes.  I worked with a guy whose non-work attire consisted of dainty white shoes, dark jean shorts with an elastic band, and a tucked-in t-shirt.  I couldn't take him seriously after that.  Just this morning I was in a class with a guy who normally wears khakis and a polo, but since it's an especially casual day at work today, he wore what must be his usual:  Boots, 90s jeans, and a t-shirt tucked in such that his cell-phone stood out like a pistol. #lifestyle
Negative sideburns Jun 17, 2008
I don't trust people who shave their sideburns so high that they actually become negative in length.  They make me uncomfortable for no particular reason.  I'm not saying everyone should have long bushy sideburns, but at least make their length zero instead of negative. #lifestyle