Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in Joe's LiveJournal:

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Monday, April 27th, 2009
11:33 am	100% Bah. Do to unforeseen amounts of drama, my journal is going pure private. Not friends only or whatnot, private. People can simply wonder what I'm thinking. Or not. Your choice. Current Mood: blah
Thursday, December 25th, 2008
11:24 am	Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas to all! I hope that everyone has a good time right clicking on their boxes under their trees! I got up at 9 - opened stuff....my wife rocks. Now we're off to visit the family of some friends and to have a fun filled afternoon. I hope that all of you who can read this have a happy and relaxed christmas time.. Joe (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Monday, December 15th, 2008
8:43 am	More Learnings So, interesting factoid about me: if you make a place reek of coffee, Joe is unable to enter. I've got problems with coffee. The one time I came into actual physical contact with it on my skin it caused me to break out in hives and have slight trouble breathing. I tell people: I'm allergic to coffee. If someone has brewed a fresh pot of coffee in a room, the very smell that permeates everything acts almost immediately to stifle me, give me a headache and causes me to want to vomit. When contact or smell makes me sick, it causes me to believe that I'm allergic to it. Its probably gotten worse as I've gotten older. I vaguely remember being able to actually sit in a coffee shop, now walking by one with its doors open makes me slightly queasy. Not too long ago I was in NYC with eldritch48 and insanechristian. They wanted to go into a coffee shop. I opened the door and the smell was so hard on me that I couldn't even enter the building. I waited outside while they and some other people went in for coffee. This morning, as I open my bedroom door, the entire apartment reeks of coffee. I'm upstairs and away from my wife's coffee maker. And its enough to make my stomach go queasy. I was literally dry heaving in the shower, although the water probably also helped to keep the smell away from me. I don't think I like being chased from my home first thing in the morning by the smell of Death Liquid. Managed to avoid the barf. This week has not started on an auspicious note. Current Mood: blah (4 Comments |Comment on this)
Friday, December 12th, 2008
8:57 am	Probably wrong but.... So I know that its probably wrong, but I'm really starting to hope that some of the American disenfranchised start responding with bullets. I kinda hope that those people who plan on killing themselves take out some of the bastards at the top before they go. I'd love to see (conceptually at least) the lower class give back the bitch smacking that they've been taking for years. If it meant several hundred dead millionaires I would support them. Dead politicians? Yup, support that too. I guess it comes down to wanting to see those people, who have bled off the people below them, actually feel what they have done. I guess its probably the reason that I hope that 2012 kills off 99.9% of the human population. We as a species are sick. We as a species are detrimental to pretty much everything we come into contact with. I really can't see a reason why humanity as a species deserves to continue.... *sigh* (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, November 11th, 2008
11:38 pm	A.F.G.E. So. For the last few weeks I have been working towards buying a new house. I've been talking to loan people, I've been researching, I've been studying, I've even gone out with a realtor on several occasions. I make what I would call good money. My wife makes what I would call good money. We have been looking into first time home-buyers deals. After a lot of soul searching I have come to a conclusion: At this time, due in large part to what I want in a house, houses in the area I live are out of my range. The taxes and monthly mortgage fees are simply too much. I can afford a house in the $225,000 range. The houses that are what I am looking for and want are in the $275,000 - $300,000 range. At this time, it is out of my reach. *sigh* I could buy a "starter" house now, but that would basically lock me into a house for 5 years and my ability to save would be greatly stunted. If I don't buy now, then my ability to save is greatly increased and in all likelihood I could afford a home that I want in two years. By my math that puts me into what I want in 2 years or so. And allows for financial safety. It makes sense. But I would be lying if I said it didn't make me feel like a loser to have to say so. My rational mind is telling me what to do, my emotional side is in the midst of tantrum. Oh well. I've learned a lot. When I'm in a slightly better situation then I will have a better idea on how to proceed. Logic. *sigh* Not always what I want, but if I stick to logic I'll probably be better and safer in the long run. No willow reeds here, not that that will make sense to all but .01 % of the readers of this journal. So tomorrow I start calling around and terminating my talks with various parties. More respectful to do it by phone than by email. Even if I think I will feel it as humiliating. *sigh* Another Fucking Growth Experience. Is this being an adult? I miss endless summer days of no responsibilities.........well....thats true....but I also like having a car...and having sex....okay....perhaps being an adult is worth it after all. *laugh* Oh well. So yeah, I'm being logical, I'm sad, I'm going to shop away some of my sadness in the coming weeks... *laugh* AFGE. Current Mood: melancholy (6 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, November 4th, 2008
11:20 pm	Hell Yeah! And the America goes to Obama. Good for it. :) Current Mood: ecstatic (Comment on this)
9:47 am	Did my part So I voted this morning. 1 hr and 20 minute wait. Which equals 4 Mario Kart circuits. Which equals 12 races. I came in 1st place in every circuit. I unlocked two new things. I did my part to help smash imperialism. If you haven't voted and you can, go do your part. (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Thursday, October 30th, 2008
6:17 pm	Question First of all, thank you all for the encouragement you sent my way from my posting about house searching, its been really touching. I plan on responding to everyone's comment, I've just been very very me. Now I have a question. It stems from the idea that Chris and I were looking online at various houses in our area. And we came across one that I really really like the pictures and description of. Today I drove by it on my way home from work (its 5 mins from where I live now) and I liked the feel of the neighborhood and the look of the house from the outside. Heres the negative: its listed above what we're looking to spend. I figure it can't hurt to look at it and to put in a potentially lower offer than is listed. However, its price is such that if 10% were taken off that it would be exactly in the upper price range of what we are looking to spend. So, how much, in today's market, should a lowball offer be? Looking online people suggest to not offer lower than -15% of the asking price. Should I offer -15% and see if they take it? Should I go immediately to my highest price I'm willing to pay, which is -10%? I mean, the worst that happens is that they don't take an offer...in which case we would walk away. And we still have lots of other houses to look at, and it would have to have a home inspection, and and and. By no means am I fixating on this house as the only option. But it does raise the question about how much to low ball an offer. An suggestions from you homeowners out there? What did you do when you bought your house? Thanks for any suggestions! Current Mood: happy (5 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, October 29th, 2008
9:56 pm	Stolen, but true Copy this sentence into your livejournal if you're in a heterosexual marriage, and you don't want it "protected" by the bigots who think that gay marriage hurts it somehow. (Comment on this)
Tuesday, October 28th, 2008
9:08 am	Sweet So I talked to a mortgage guy yesterday. We qualify (pending some actual documents) for a nice pre-approval. A pre-approval that would give us a decent range of options in this area if we can find a house we like. Find a house. We are going to actually and seriously look for a house over the Thanksgiving holiday timeframe. Thats in about a month. We would hope to buy sometime in Jan. Find a house. Holy shit, with the help of an FHA loan, it might actually be possible for us to buy a house. Three years after getting married we are in a position to at very least LOOK at houses with an intent to buy. I remember living in a tiny room in an apartment with Scott and my, now on non-speaking terms, brother-in-law. A tiny room. And stressing about making rent. If we don't find anything we like over Thanksgiving, no biggie. We will still have everything and can continue to look. I just find it exciting that it looks like we can really do this. Sweet. Current Mood: happy (17 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, October 20th, 2008
11:49 am	Survival 101 Okay, I said that I was going to try and do an update on my Survival Weekend excursion, so lets see if I can capture some of the essence of what I did. I’ll cut it for people who aren’t really interested. ( Survival 101 ) Wonderful experience. Totally worth the cost. I would totally recommend it to others. Now I want to try something a little more taxing. Maybe in a year or two I will look into BOSS… Oh, if anyone has a question then please ask and I will try to answer them. Its quite possible I won't know, but if I do then I'm happy to share info. Current Mood: happy (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Sunday, October 19th, 2008
8:23 pm	THAT WAS AMAZING! So I'm back home now. I just had probably one of the best experiences of my life. As those who read this thing know, I just took a 4-day 3-night survival course. Holy shit. I learned so much. I also found out that there are places in America that you're not allowed to go (by law) unless you have survival training certification. I now have that. I qualify as an official survivalist. Hell Yeah! Anyway, too tired to give details tonight, they will come later. Suffice to say, I'm home, I'm safe, I have a LOT more knowledge and had a good time. I now know how to kill a deer with nothing more than some rope. ROPE! Empowering as hell. Totally worth the $550 registration and the other random $500 in expenditures for gear and travel. TOTALLY WORTH IT. Now for food not cooked over coals...... Current Mood: ecstatic (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Monday, October 13th, 2008
10:46 am	T-minus 3 days Okay, So the hiking pack has been purchased. The other required items (other than food) have been purchased. They are have made a small pile in my livingroom. As of Wednesday evening I'm off for Lynchburg VA. Thursday by 10:00 AM I meet the guides and things get started. By no later than 2:00 Sunday afternoon I will be done. I'm excited and nervous. Its funny how I react to things, well....perhaps its only amusing to me. Despite the fact that so far this life I've managed to come out on top of most situations, I have an incredible fear of failure. Part of me wonders if I can actually do this. The answer intellectually is "of course." I mean, its not rocket science. I just always seem to question my ability or capability before I've done something hundreds of times. I have been told by others that much of the time I come across assured of what I'm doing; sure of what I want; sure of myself. It makes me laugh! I mean, I'm so riddled with doubt that much of the time its all I can do to keep putting one foot in front of the other. But I do it. I take each step piece by piece and I handle it. I *know* that I'm capable....for some reason I just doubt it all the time. So why, when I'm sure that ultimately that I can handle something, do I get all unsure and wishy-washy? *laugh* I'm just babbling - but at least I'm in a good mood. :) *sigh* As I read this I'm debating removing everything except the details of the trip. Why? Enh, I'm really not trying to whine or complain. I'm not trying to get sympathy. I'm trying to puzzle out why my head works the way it does. I just don't mind others seeing that. *shrug* Its my LJ, I guess I'll leave it. *laugh* Current Mood: happy (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, October 8th, 2008
4:35 pm	Holy shit Double.Arm.Transplant. http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hd257tzqFDy77juZgmSnkBmqjA1QD93MGG881 Welcome to the future. (1 Comment |Comment on this)
9:04 am	Life Well life continues. Next week I'm going on a survival weekend thingy - 4 days and 3 nights of at least basic roughing it in the woods of more southwestern Virginia. Should be interesting. We're not allowed to bring a tent, gonna have to learn all sorts of basic survival stuff. Should be good. For $550 I'm hoping that its good. After all, only 1535 days left. And I still need to learn to hunt! Oh well, one step at a time. Chris says that after I learn some survival camping stuff, she would like to do some with me. Life continues, work is work, but alternating fun and tough. The Iron Curtain (really its called Iron Port, but still) has come down and cut off some of my ability for goof off sites....which can really suck at lunch time. I found a fun physics game online. Google "Fantastic Contraption." Of if you don't actually want to PLAY it, then check out Youtube for some really cool devices. My D&D game runs this week. Should be good. At a point where the players want to achieve a goal that realistically isn't possible. They've pretty much succeeded at every other goal they've had so they seem a little frustrated with it. I told everyone in the beginning that I have a living world that they interact in, and things have just happened. Haven't decided if I should give into them and let them "solve" the situation, or if I should stick to my guns and let them fail on this one. Situations like this make me wonder about my skill as a DM....I really hate it when my players get overly frustrated.... My Exalted 2.0 game is starting to come along nicely. They just went through their third session and got their Exalt powers and such. Two of my players have only played D&D before, so they're getting used to a d10 system. I was happy when everyone wanted to go over the normal play time last week to "find out what happens next." Saturday I'm starting to join in a D&D 4th ed game. Some of it looks cool, some of it looks really lame. I'll have to see how it goes. As with most games I imagine that the DM will make or break it. Looking to potentially buy a house in the Jan timeframe. Well, really, we're going to start looking over Thanksgiving break, and if we find something we like we're gonna try and buy. We've saved up some money, and hopefully we can find something. If not, no biggie, but its interesting to actually be seriously considering it. *bah*...not much else going on, and my morning mental fog is clearing, so I had best go and actually get some stuff done. Peace. Joe The Bjeorn The Creature He Who Must Not Be Named It A Problem Person (6 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, September 2nd, 2008
1:47 pm	Reality Sucks. For all of you who voted for Bush or who want to vote for McCain, this what you voted for. Are you not proud? America, land of the free. Really? Try taking a picture of a government building. This is now the American Brand. Are you not proud to be an American? Current Mood: dirty (5 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, September 1st, 2008
4:15 pm	Musing So I've been thinking about the whole McCain choosing his vice. She really seems like an odd-ball choice. So I wonder. I wonder if the Republican party is bracing for a loss this election. But, the situation is so messed up that even if Obama wins he's going to have, by all signs, a very difficult presidency. People are already talking about another Hillary run in 2012. What if the idea is to start grooming nationally a female counterpart? Someone the Republicans can run against Hillary. I mean, if McCain wins he's going to win because he's McCain, not because of his running mate. If he wins, great, Republicans can still groom whats-her-name. But if they lose, then they can work on an ace in the whole next election. Probably paranoia. But Republicans have proven to be evil and long planning. Just a thought....oh well, back to watching cartoons. :) Joe The Bjeorn The Creature He Who Must Not Be Named It A Problem Person (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Thursday, July 31st, 2008
8:33 am	So, even though she's apparently seen a whole bunch already: Congratulations to Sonya and Marshall on their wedding anniversary. Sonya, just in case you didn't know it: Marshall really loves you a lot and talks about you constantly. He was very cute making sure that we all knew about your anniversary and working to make sure that we reminded you of how much he cares for you. So, here goes: Sonya, Marshall loves you a lot a lot (bunches and bunches) and I wish you and he a very happy anniversary. Sheesh, I can still remember hearing your marriage plans announced by that lake at, what was it, Kings Mountain (I could be entirely wrong, but at very least thats where in my memory I first heard of the two of you getting married). Joe (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, July 30th, 2008
8:40 am	Three Years Old! Three years ago Christina and I were wed. Three years ago we became man and wife. Now that three years have passed, not only do I look forward to many more years, but I also cherish and love the time we have already spent together. Despite the stress of a wedding, I would do it again in a heartbeat. I love you my Christina, you are my light and my love - you are my sunshine. Current Mood: sleepy (11 Comments |Comment on this)
Thursday, July 10th, 2008
2:45 pm	Blah, bored, but last night was fun So yesterday my dear wife took me on a mysterious trip....well...mysterious in that I wasn't told where we were going - just that I had to take a 1/2 day off at least. We wound up in: Atlantic City, NJ. Hmmm...for someone who doesn't gamble I was at least a little curious as to what we were going to see. Internally I guessed either a concert or perhaps something like a showing of Cirque. We wandered around for an hour or two, and I was able to gather a few insights: 1. Boardwalks in beachtowns are filled with the same junk no matter if you're in North Carolina, South Carolina, Maine or New Jersey...gods, all the trashy junk. 2. Atlantic City seems to run on Old People, Fat People, and Asian People. 3. Casinos are just as noisy and ultimately boring to me as I expected. Anyway, the city atmosphere itself was, in my opinion, kinda lame, pathetic and unhappy. BUT: My darling took me to see Weird Al in concert. Hell yeah. Two hours and twenty minutes of geeky goodness. We were up fairly close to the stage and there were people all around us. I must admit that I was surprised at how many women were in the crowd - and that many of them not only didn't look anything like geeks, but also knew the lyrics to the songs too! Overall a fun trip, even though I didn't care for the city. We drove home after the show and got back home about midnight. I was able to play some Final Fantasy Tactics A2 and then drift off to dreamy dream land - where some very weird dreams occurred. Weird Al in concert was a trip; all the costume changes and the energy he put out. How can a man look hardcore while playing an accordion? And lords do I hope that I age as well as that man has. He isn't a spring chicken (according to my 55-year old jewish boss), and he was moving around more energetically then many twenty-somethings I know. I wonder if he has a Wii fit. Best costume of the night? Hard to say, but his fat suit where he looked like he did in his old video (even though this was live) was certainly impressive. Anyway, bored now, back to work. Joe The Bjeorn The Creature He Who Must Not Be Named It A Problem Person (3 Comments |Comment on this)