The Zombieslayer

A post by Raemius.

Overpopulation is going to be a serious problem in the future. You will see resource wars, as they’ve already begun. The other thing Raemius brings up is the possibility of cannibalism. Unfortunately, it has happened many times in history during famines.

Anyways, I’d rather you read his piece so I won’t say anything more.

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I always do tags, but usually don’t tag anyone specifically.  This time, Xmichra tagged me.  I actually like this tag.

Somewhere in a faraway bloggiverse on an island with a palm tree swaying in the breeze, a message bottle sits side by side with a Pina Colada and a cute little striped umbrella horizontally tilted in the beachy sand.
Did YOUR bottle make it to land? Have you checked lately?

There are now 285 bottles floating in the bloggy ocean just waiting to be mysteriously delivered to a tropical island near you. It’s time you added yours!

Here are the rules:
You are about to send a virtual Message In a Bottle across the Blog Ocean.
Leave a message in the sand or on the bottle. Write anything you wish. Be a pirate or a poet. Serious or silly. Rant or ruminate.
Anonymous or not.
What message would you like to send out to the universe?

OK, here’s mine:
Do you remember that song in the mid-90s by TLC called “Waterfalls?” It went something like:
“Don’t go chasing waterfalls,
Please stick to the rivers and the lakes that you’re used to.”

I liked the song, but completely disagreed with it. I’ve always believed to leave your element, to chase waterfalls, and try to catch the rainbow. If you don’t, in your old age, you will die with regrets.

I am a hopeless romantic and I have no problem saying it. I believe in chasing your dreams. I think the song I really liked was from the 20s and there were two lines that said “if you don’t have a dream, how are you gonna make your dreams come true?”

Exactly. You got to chase your dreams.

Now, I was making fun of world peace in an earlier post, but that’s not a dream, that’s an absurdity. NOBODY can accomplish that. You might as well try to move Mt. Everest with a shovel. I’m talking about doing what you REALLY want to do in life, not what your parents, your minister, your brother, your sister, your drunk uncle, or your worst enemy wants you to do.

I hear parents all the time tell their children which college they have to go to, which major they have to major in, etc. That’s stupid. You get one shot at being you and you should make the choices, not your parents. Not someone else, period.

If you don’t, you will die with regrets. It’s as simple as that. You are better off giving it an honest shot and failing than wondering what if.

Anyone who wants to take this tag, feel free. Just let me know you took it and I’ll drop by.

I’ve been tagged by the lovely Bridget Jones. That’s great because my brain is shot and I’ve been looking at this blog for days, trying to think of ideas for a post. So, thanks for the tag.

Here goes.

A) The rules of the game get posted at the beginning.
B) Each player answers the questions about himself or herself.
C) At the end of the post, the player then tags five people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

1) Ten years ago I was:
In Grad School, but unlike Laura, I dropped out before completing my Masters. It worked out for the best because I moved up to Seattle and got the job that moved us into the Middle Class.

2) Five things on today’s to do list:
I try to avoid to do lists because I like to be more spontaneous. But I do know what I’m going to do tonight - I’m going to have a drink with Badman after work and I hope Kate & JJ join us.

3) Things I do if I were a billionaire:

After you finish this post, please go back and read Bridget Jones’ post on what she’d do. It’s absolutely wonderful.

1. Of course, I’d get my anti-zombie compound built once and for all. It will be powered by solar and wind energy, partly because I’m an environmentalist, but mostly because I’m economically very conservative (cheap). I don’t like paying high energy bills.

2. Speaking of energy, I’ll work on what I think is the most important issue of our time - Solar Energy. If you get a chance, read that article on solar energy in the Scientific American January 2008. Solar energy can end our dependence on foreign oil once and for all. I’ll run for Congress and put up a lot of the funding for solar research with my own money if I had to.

3. Set up the Zombieslayer College Scholarship Fund. College is how we got into the Middle Class. Sure, you can do it by other means, but it’s how we did it.

4. Really hone in my shooting ability. This may surprise you but I’m not where I want to be. Sure, I can shoot a zombie in the head at 200 meters without a scope, but that’s if it’s stationary and there’s no wind.

5. I’ll leave behind $2 million for myself. With the land paid for, I’ll invest the rest and live off of the investment income.

4) Three bad habits:
Only 3? I quit playing video games because I was wasting too much time. I used to play until 3:30 and sometimes 5:30 in the morning, then realize I had to be at work at 9. Not good.

I’d like to cut down on my swearing. I don’t do it a lot, but still, I’d like to cut it down more.

I drink too much coffee. But I’m not going to do a dang thing about it because I like good coffee.

5) Five places I’ve lived: Only five? Ok, I’ll do only five.

1. Chicago, Illinois

2. St. Louis, Missouri

3. Martinez, California

4. Seattle, Washington

5. Houston, Texas

I’ve lived in a lot more places, but it only asked for five.

6) Five jobs I’ve had in my life:

My very first job was selling newspapers. I kept it for a few months, but learned I could make a lot more money going door to door and asking people if they wanted their curb painted. This is something I did on my own (with friends), not with a company. I’ve worked for a lot of fast food places (thus is why I’m very picky about what fast food places I’d eat at, I’ve worked at most of them). I’ve delivered pizza, waited tables, and…

Oh, only five. Ok, I’ll keep it at only five.

I’m going to tag five people but not yet. I’ll update this post probably this weekend when I find out who’s been updating their blog and who’s been slacking.

Thanks Tweety.  My brain has gone offline, so it’s a good thing to get tagged or else I’ll probably write a stupid post.

1. Wrapping or gift bags? Gift bags.  They’re easier and reusable.

2. Real or artificial tree? Artificial.  It’s easier to deal with and  you can reuse it forever.

3. When do you put up the tree? Mid-December.

4. When do you take the tree down? Jan 2nd.  I’m usually too exhausted on the 1st.

5. Do you like eggnog? Love it! Especially with rum.

6. Favorite gift received as a child? Too many to list.  I loved Christmas, and loved everything I’ve ever gotten.

7. Do you have a nativity scene? No.  I should, but I don’t.

8. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? No complaints.  I even loved getting clothes, especially if they have the Green Bay Packers logo on them.

9. Mail or email Christmas cards? Mail.

10. Favorite Christmas Movie? When the Pacific Northwest Ballet did The Nutcracker.  Does that count as a movie?

11. When do you start shopping for Christmas? The very last second.

12. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? I could write a post on this alone.

13. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Colored.  Clear lights are boring.

14. Favorite Christmas song? Anything in a minor key.  For some reason, I like those ones better.

15. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Stay home this year.  Not sure what we’ll do next year.

16. Can you name all of Santa’s reindeer? Nope, not anymore.  I suffer from C.R.S.

17. Angel on the tree top or a star? Varies.  We have both.  Right now, nothing up there yet.

18. Open the presents Christmas Eve or Christmas Morning? Eve.

19. Most annoying thing about this time of year? Drivers.

20. Do you decorate your tree in any specific theme or color? No.  We got a lot of hand-me-down ornaments we use.

21. What do you leave for Santa? Nothing.  Maybe next year I’ll leave him a girlie magazine.

22. Least favorite holiday song? That Grandma got run over by a reindeer.  I hate that song.

23. Favorite ornament? The green alligator.  When we were kids, we used to play hide the green alligator in the tree.  My parents have it, but it’s still my favorite ornament.

I’m going to break the rules and not tag anyone.  If anyone wants this tag, by all means take it.

I got a 7 things tag. I guess I have to say 7 things about me and flesh it out a little.

1. One of my biggest regrets is I never served. I passed the Navy Officer test with flying colors, but at the time, they didn’t want a guy with a History degree. I thought that was stupid, because I would have been an excellent Officer. Looking back at it, I should have argued with them until they took me. Now I’m too old.

2. I work as a Software Engineer. I dropped out of Grad School, going for a Master’s in Computer Science. I simply ran out of money. Grandpa died and left me $8000, which I used to go to school. It ended up taking longer than I thought it would because I’m so bad at Math.

3. I like my job. I actually enjoy waking up in the morning. Well, it’s not because of my job. It’s because the first thing I see when I wake up is my wife. But I do really like my job. It’s by far the most mellow software engineering job I’ve ever worked at. I know I could make more money elsewhere, but I’d rather spend those extra hours with my family.

4. Since Beach Bum gave his 2 cents on our President, I’ll give mine. I think he’s horrible. He’s run up a huge debt, we owe billions to China, and our borders are like swiss cheese. He doesn’t understand simple economics, and I can’t see how anyone can call themselves a conservative with a straight face and like Bush. He spends and spends and spends and will leave us paying off his debt for decades. Plus, so much of the crap he does is Unconstitutional. This War on Terror is a joke, and it’s not making any friends anywhere. Whether you like it or not, we need friends. It’s realpolitik. I don’t think Bush gets that.

5. Politics frustrates me. I’m aware of what’s going on and probably send over a dozen emails/cards/letters to each of my Reps every year. But I can’t talk about it all the time or else I’ll put my fist through the wall. The thing is, I’m very patriotic and very much for Freedom and maintaining our Bill of Rights and maintaining the Republic. We’re moving away from all that into globalism, an apathetic state which will eventually lead to a police state, and becoming a Third World nation. That’s exactly what I don’t want.

6. We’re doing fine financially. Most of my friends aren’t though, and they have my full condolences. I fully understand the Middle Class Squeeze. The reason we’re doing well is we’re willing to relocate. We simply move to where the jobs are. You can’t expect most people to do that though. I grew up with it, so I’m used to it. Since 2000, we’ve lived in three states, well, four if you count Northern California and Southern California as two different states. A joke between Californians.

7. I’m a hard-core Packer fan. I rarely miss a game. I refuse to work when the Packers are on. If I have to, I’ll lie and say it’s for religious reasons (it’s usually a Sunday anyways). I’m sure God understands.

Ok, I have to tag 7 people now.

Tshsmom - I’ve probably tagged you three or four times already, but you always have something interesting to say.

Tweety - Because I like reading about your family. You’re so brutally honest about life.

Kate - Just because.

Scott Bob - You need a blog update badly.

Neal - Since I steal so much from you, I might as well tag you too.

Yonder in Carp - You know more trivia than I do. And you’re younger than I am. You never cease to amaze me with what you know.

Ben - And last but not least, Ben goes back to the very beginning. He and I have been making fun of political correctness since May ‘05.

SME gave me a Nice Matters Award. I’m one of seven people to SME who makes the blogging world nicer. See, I told you I was nice.

She thought I wouldn’t like this tag, but I actually do. I take pride in being nice. The regular world is stressful. You got bad traffic, high unemployment, noisy neighbors, people at the office who reheat fish in the microwave, loved ones who get seriously ill leaving you seriously worrying, etc. Life isn’t easy, and a little bit of niceness goes a long way.

I still remember nice things that strangers have done. Like when we were teenagers, my friend hydroplaned into a ditch. Two big Latinos got out of their car and helped us get it out of the ditch. We kindly thanked them, and they moved on. That’s really cool.

This morning, I helped a strange white guy who was hopelessly lost. He kept stopping on the road and getting in my way so I stopped and asked if his car was okay. He smiled and said the car’s fine, it’s him that’s lost. I showed him where he needed to go and he smiled and waved and was on his way.

Little things like that make the world a better place. I’m trying, but there are times I’m too busy to notice and help out and I don’t like that feeling. Anyways, enough of my rambling. Here are 7 bloggers who make the blogging world a better place. Some people have only given this award to Ladies, but if that’s a rule, I’m breaking it and giving it to Gentlemen too.
I’ve known Kate for years. She’s a geniune sweetheart and is much deserving of a Nice Matters Award. It was really cool to be able to ask her to be a fellow pretentious film critic. She’s more mainstream as opposed to the weird stuff Badman, SME, or I often watch.

Clothosfate recently joined the pretentious group as well. She’s a really nice Canadian, and one of the only bloggers from May ‘05 who’s still active. Definitely say hello, as she could use a hug.

Bsoholic makes me laugh. He’s a fellow metalhead, likes telling jokes, has a hot fiancee, and his Photoshop skills but my GIMP skills to shame.

Thomcat’s a great guy. I used to love his old blog because he’d give some good lovin’ advice that made Mrs. Z very happy. It’s gone now, however, the 5th Circle of Cubical Hell V2 remains. Check out that blog for a good laugh.

Grannie Annie’s new to this blog, and I’ll add her to my Beautiful People list as soon as I get this post finished. She raises chickens and has a wonderful sense of humor.

Kathleen used to live in San Francisco. We didn’t overlap though, and now she’s a Midwesterner. She has a lot of the same musical tastes as fellow pretentious critic Badman.

And lastly, Scott, you’re a great father. I know it’s not easy being a Dad, because the media is always finding faults in fathers. It’s like everything we do is wrong. Screw the media, a lot of fathers are doing fine, and doubting themselves because of the b.s. they keep hearing from the media. Your sons are going to turn out great. And as much as I hate the Cowboys, I love Emmett Smith. The guy’s got a heart of a lion, and I’ve always respected good warriors, even if they don’t fight on my side.