Random Ramblings

Guilty/Forgiven wrote:

kerrick wrote:

Hahaha alright then.    Sorry it's not the greatest picture but should give you an idea.  The top two rows are my music CDs (with room for expansion haha), then movies, and then the bottom two are books.  The things on top are masks I made out of wire in college.

So Kerrick, as someone who loves to snoop thru other people's music collections, this picture was not very satisfying as all I could make out was the book "What To Expect When You're Expecting"

Great photo.

But I don't see any vinyl on that shelving unit.

Staybrite wrote:

I might be turning into an old curmudgeon, but I'm done with the fireworks.  The people in our town (especially our neighborhood) spend thousands upon thousands of dollars on fireworks.  They basically start at around noon on July 3rd and continue until nearly midnight on July 5th (even though they are legally limited to between noon & midnight on the 4th).  It literally sounds like a war zone from the time it gets dark until about 1 am (seriously I have been on military live fire exercises that were quieter).  A few guys must have small cannons, because you always get a dozen or so massive booms that will actually rattle the windows in your house.
There are a few towns in the surrounding area that have outlawed nearly all fireworks.  Every July 4th I give serious thought to moving to one of those.

...and GET OFF MY LAWN!!!


Nah, seriously, I'm with you.  Someone on my FB feed the other day (I wanna say Shawn Browning, but I can't find it) made a great point about fireworks.  How are they supposed to be special if every yahoo with transportation and money can go buy them and shoot them off any time they want?

messiaen77 wrote:

Staybrite wrote:

I might be turning into an old curmudgeon, but I'm done with the fireworks.  The people in our town (especially our neighborhood) spend thousands upon thousands of dollars on fireworks.  They basically start at around noon on July 3rd and continue until nearly midnight on July 5th (even though they are legally limited to between noon & midnight on the 4th).  It literally sounds like a war zone from the time it gets dark until about 1 am (seriously I have been on military live fire exercises that were quieter).  A few guys must have small cannons, because you always get a dozen or so massive booms that will actually rattle the windows in your house.
There are a few towns in the surrounding area that have outlawed nearly all fireworks.  Every July 4th I give serious thought to moving to one of those.

...and GET OFF MY LAWN!!!


Nah, seriously, I'm with you.  Someone on my FB feed the other day (I wanna say Shawn Browning, but I can't find it) made a great point about fireworks.  How are they supposed to be special if every yahoo with transportation and money can go buy them and shoot them off any time they want?

I'm not even suggesting that we get rid of them at all.   Just maybe have designated places where you can light them off.  They can be a serious fire hazard and every year in our town there is either a fire, or someone taken to the hospital (often more than one).  Seems like too many for a town of only about 8,000 people.

Hee hee 

Maybe it is because I am home alone so much.  I don't really know.  HHoweve, today is one of those days where I am dreadfully aware that I have hundreds of acquaintances but no friends outside of this digital world.  I don't know people who have similar interests as me.  I don't hang out at bars, don't enjoy sports, or work on cars.  I am extremely lonely most of the time and just pray that God would put one or two guys that I could hang out with some, encourage one another, pray for one another, etc.  If they liked my kind of music, that would be a plus but not a deal breaker.  I just hate going through life with no friends that I can count on.  Yes, I have my wife, but I want more than this.  I don't wish to be a socialite, but it would be nice to have someone just to pal around with.

All jokes aside, do they give classes on making friends?  I have never truly been good at it.

Outside of the internet I have exactly one friend.  If I'm lucky I get to see him once or twice a year for a few hours.  If it weren't for my wife I would be one sad, lonely pathetic man.

alldatndensum wrote:

Maybe it is because I am home alone so much.  I don't really know.  HHoweve, today is one of those days where I am dreadfully aware that I have hundreds of acquaintances but no friends outside of this digital world.  I don't know people who have similar interests as me.  I don't hang out at bars, don't enjoy sports, or work on cars.  I am extremely lonely most of the time and just pray that God would put one or two guys that I could hang out with some, encourage one another, pray for one another, etc.  If they liked my kind of music, that would be a plus but not a deal breaker.  I just hate going through life with no friends that I can count on.  Yes, I have my wife, but I want more than this.  I don't wish to be a socialite, but it would be nice to have someone just to pal around with.

All jokes aside, do they give classes on making friends?  I have never truly been good at it.

I think one of the main things for me was moving to a bigger city. I went to Bible school there, which got me connected to the local Christian community. (It helped that an extrovert found and adopted me. ) I've also been to two vastly different universities within the same town, so I have connections there too. With all that, I've been able to make a few good friends.

Part of it was also learning to be a friend and learning how to care about someone, and not just think of other people as ears for me, as I had felt through my teenage years. However, you're almost certainly a lot further ahead in that than I am.

Hopefully, whatever next step you take in finding a church will allow you to make some friends and live some discipleship together.

alldatndensum wrote:

I love a good fireworks display.  I hate fireworks being shot off by kids in the neighborhood 30 mins. after they are supposed to stop.  Of course, our local "Barney Fife" police force isn't going to do anything except run radar to raise more funds for the city and thus justify their slightly above minimum wage jobs.

Barney Fife??? Had to look that one up.

The time for fireworks here is Guy Fawkes Night on November 5th. We go to a community picnic, listen to live bands, light a MASSIVE bonfire (as in 20 feet high), and have a huge fireworks display. Very awesome. BUT, the downside is, of course, the ongoing fireworks at all hours over the next week.

It's a kooky thing to celebrate. It celebrates the failure of Guy Fawkes (member of the Gun Powder Plot) to blow up the House of Lords in England back in the 1600s. Guy Fawkes was just the guy guarding the explosives, but he's the straw man in the story. It's supposedly a day of thanks (for the 'good' guys  defeating the 'bad' guys ), but for most people it's just an excuse to blow things up.

The best way to meet people you can share your life with is to go out and do the things you love. Think of all the things you love to do or have always wanted to do, then research where those things take place near you. You shouldn't be lonely, Chris. No one should.

Another thing to consider is your large pool of acquaintances. Sometimes an acquaintance is just a friend in waiting. Among the people you know, is there someone you'd like to know better? Sometimes it just takes asking the question. My best friend in the world was a work acquaintance. We knew each other, but didn't really ever talk beyond the requirements of work. We worked on different projects, but we were both junior employees so there was at least one thing in common that we knew of. Anyway, one day, she asked me out for coffee. I was very surprised by the invitation because I really didn't know her, but I am always thankful for her being brave enough to ask me to coffee. It would never have crossed my mind to ask her...and yet, we are so similar and so complimentary to one another. No, she doesn't like the music I like. No she is not even Christian. BUT, she is a good person, she is conscientious, she is curious, she loves to learn, she loves to travel, she is clever, she values family....and I love her for it.

Had an Advent in July service yesterday.  It was rather interesting to sing Advent songs in the summer.

Guilty/Forgiven wrote:

kerrick wrote:

Hahaha alright then.    Sorry it's not the greatest picture but should give you an idea.  The top two rows are my music CDs (with room for expansion haha), then movies, and then the bottom two are books.  The things on top are masks I made out of wire in college.

So Kerrick, as someone who loves to snoop thru other people's music collections, this picture was not very satisfying as all I could make out was the book "What To Expect When You're Expecting"

Hahahaha well I think I'd have to spam this thread with multiple pictures which isn't too interesting.  My collection is posted on The Metal Archives which has pretty much everything (since 95% of my music is metal) except a few like Wovenhand, 16 Horsepower, etc.  I hope that's sufficient Jim. 

Through The Dark Radio wrote:

But I don't see any vinyl on that shelving unit.

I know...  I'm yet to delve into the vinyl realm (aka money-pit).  I'm no audiophile so CDs are adequate for me - and cheaper!

Quote :

Hahahaha well I think I'd have to spam this thread with multiple pictures which isn't too interesting.  My collection is posted on The Metal Archives which has pretty much everything (since 95% of my music is metal) except a few like Wovenhand, 16 Horsepower, etc.  I hope that's sufficient Jim

 

I need to post my CD mess sometime. Yes it's a mess big time. Unorganized. My records are organized much better. 

As for friends, I have one childhood friend u keep in touch with. We grew up in Tennessee but he also now lives in Florida but he lives 5 hours away so I rarely see him. We text almost every day. The other people I grew up with really don't stay in touch. I have good friends at work but we don't hang out at all. Most of the time is spent with my wife and daughters but they have no interest in my music. I want a good pair of headphones so I can sit and listen to records (which I plan on buying from Amazon when my dang shop kick points get to a million). But I enjoy the company of my wife and daughters I just don't have a lot of guy friends either. And I am ok with that. But it would be cool if all of us loved closer together.

My favorite headphones cost me $15.  They are Skull Candy headphones that still have the cord as both my FiiO player and phone have jacks for that.  I got them from Bargain Hunt (Essex).  The box was taped back together and had a sticker on it showing it was a Target return item at one time.  I wiped them down real good with a Clorox wipe and have been using them for about two years.

I've two little men that keep me busy last week.
It's cool to have them around, but I remember what Jim has told before.
That two little men are asking lots of time.

I try not to talk much here about my two little men because not all of you like to hear what I do when my grandsons are with me on Monday and Tuesday.

Yesterday and today I've had wonderful days.
Those little men bring so much joy in my life.

It's great that you're enjoying your grandkids!

Grandkids are awesome!

Oy... yesterday was a 20 hour day for work!  I had to travel to CA for work.  Yay for 12 hours of overtime though!  I left at 3:00am and got back at midnight.

kerrick wrote:

Oy... yesterday was a 20 hour day for work!  I had to travel to CA for work.  Yay for 12 hours of overtime though!  I left at 3:00am and got back at midnight.

Overtime??? What's that?  Didn't they tell you in engineering school that all of your overtime is free?

Hahaha well I'm still an hourly contractor for this job so I'll appreciate it while it lasts!

I was made to feel extremely uncomfortable today at Walmart.  I had a few things to pick up.  When I was done, I headed to one of the automatic checkouts with the longer belt simply because they were empty.  Well, that, and they are taller so people like myself can use them easily.

Anyway, the lady who was over all the automatics who should have been at her little desk thingie watching everything from there came over to my unit.  I had everything from my buggy (cart for you Yankees) on the belt to start scanning.  As soon as I lifted my first item, she crossed her arms and stared at me the whole time I was ringing myself up.  I only had like 6 items and nothing high priced.  I felt like she was expecting me to either steal from the store or for me to blow up the whole system by trying to use a computerized checkout.  If I was gonna steal anything, why bother going through a checkout in the first place!  If I didn't feel comfortable with the machine, wouldn't I have ASKED for her help?

Either way, it made me feel uncomfortable.  I remember the lady's face.  If this happens again, I will speak to a manager about it.  You can watch someone without having to hover over them.

alldatndensum wrote:

I was made to feel extremely uncomfortable today at Walmart.  I had a few things to pick up.  When I was done, I headed to one of the automatic checkouts with the longer belt simply because they were empty.  Well, that, and they are taller so people like myself can use them easily.

Anyway, the lady who was over all the automatics who should have been at her little desk thingie watching everything from there came over to my unit.  I had everything from my buggy (cart for you Yankees) on the belt to start scanning.  As soon as I lifted my first item, she crossed her arms and stared at me the whole time I was ringing myself up.  I only had like 6 items and nothing high priced.  I felt like she was expecting me to either steal from the store or for me to blow up the whole system by trying to use a computerized checkout.  If I was gonna steal anything, why bother going through a checkout in the first place!  If I didn't feel comfortable with the machine, wouldn't I have ASKED for her help?

Either way, it made me feel uncomfortable.  I remember the lady's face.  If this happens again, I will speak to a manager about it.  You can watch someone without having to hover over them.

Our Walmarts have Paul Blart at the door. When we buy groceries it is over $300 a week. We have a cart loaded down. When we buy 12 packs of Coke Zero he stops us "because they aren't in a bag". I always say "they don't fit in a bag". He wants to see our receipt. I'll look over at my wife and say "We have 300 bucks worth of groceries and he thinks we are going to steal $10 worth of Cokes????". It's annoying.

I avoid the self checkout most of the time I hate them. They always flash and require someone to come over. As for blowing up the whole machine I would love to see it happen! I hate 'em!

I love the self-checkouts.  I wouldn't if I had a big bunch of groceries.  But, if you have 10 items or less, they are great in my opinion.

Before the self checkers, Walmart here would have like 6-8 registers open.  People talk about how these new machines will cost us jobs.  Well, in Lebanon, TN, you will notice that a third of the registers are now self check machines.  They still have 6-8 regular registers open, though.  So, it looks to me that these have helped create jobs because now you usually have TWO people manning each self-check area PLUS the regular checkers, too.

Maybe she realized you were Big Chris and was expecting you to offer her your autograph.