Do Not Go Gently Into That Good Night

This is not cute or funny or endearing. It's just creepy. In order to "boost [her] confidence," a mom has spent nearly $18,000 on plastic surgery in order to...look just like her 20-something daughter. She even dresses like her.

I know that the inability to accept the aging process is as old as humanity itself. The expressions of that fear still amaze me from time to time, however. What is this woman going to think or do when she's older and no amount of plastic surgery can make her look younger? Why is it often harder to love and accept ourselves than it is others?

A Brief Moment of Joy Before the End

If this doesn't choke you up just a little, you may be a Vulcan.

Shep Smith on Torture

I've been wanting to post on the recent torture debate because I am passionate about the subject. Until then, though, enjoy this fine piece of television (from Fox no less).



This is America indeed.

Memorizing Pi

As a geek of many stripes, including math, I have always been fascinated with pi, the irrational number that is the ratio of a circle's diameter to its radius. Some years ago I decided to start memorizing pi. It contains an infinite number of digits so I could never commit its entirety to memory, but I was curious to see how far I could go. I only made it to about 50 before I got distracted and got away from it. I've always wanted to start again, however, and now I have the perfect excuse.

My oldest daughter is turning into quite the little math whiz. She recently took the NWEA test and scored in the 98th percentile in math for her grade. Hearing that brought a tear to my eye. Anyway, she told me today that she would like to start memorizing pi, too. Yeah, another tear there. Okay, seeing my daughters blossom into beautiful, young geeks is a wonderful thing. Sniff. I'm gettin' all choked up here. Okay, pull it together...

So, we are going to memorize five digits a day. In 200 days, that should give us 1000. Why would you do this? you ask. Because it's there. And, maybe it's just me, but I think it's going to be a blast.

John Boehner Demonstrates Why Republicans Are Unpopular

The rank ignorance here is just appalling. Who's saying carbon dioxide is a carcinogen? No one! Well, no one except desperate Republicans still unable to figure out they lost in 2006 and 2008. This is a party that continues to look backward and to cling to the past. Until they come to grips with reality and decide to take an honest look at themselves and where they want to go, they will continue to lose. And deservedly so. It would be better for everyone if we had at least two viable political parties, but the current iteration of the GOP just does not measure up. How long will it take them to regroup?

Dr. Google

In a shocking turn of events, people are harnessing the great power of teh intarwebs for medical diagnoses.

To say he is literally everybody's first-call doctor exaggerates the matter only a little. A 2008 Microsoft study found that one of every 50 total Web queries was health-­related, and one-quarter of the million people in the study had embarked on at least one health-related search over the course of the study.

This reminds me of a coworker at my current job. I walked into the office one day last year. He's staring at the computer and he asks me, "Shane, if I had an aneurysm, would I know it?"

I just busted out laughing, not realizing at first if he was serious. "What?"

"I'm trying to read about aneurysms on the internet to see if that's what I have. So, would I know if I did?"

Still laughing. "Well, yeah, in the sense that you'd be dead."

"Really?"

"Yeah, really. Why?"

"Well, I have this sharp pain in the back of my head and it's hurting pretty bad. I was trying to figure out what it could be."

"Well, Dr. Noble can safely tell you that it's not an aneurysm."

"Oh, okay."

This is a regular occurrence with him, although the oh-my-God-I-think-I-have-an-aneurysm story is the best.

Weekly Music Video

A coworker loaned me this album, Neon Bible, by a group I had not heard of and it has since become one of my favorites. In fact, if it was a physical copy, it would probably be worn out by now. Here's one song, but you really should check out the whole album.

Arcade Fire - "Intervention"

The Captain's Chair

Oh, yes, I want one.

Hovering Over Your Children

This is an impulse I struggle with as I'm sure any parent does. Lenore Skenazy, the woman who became (in)famous for letting her 9-year-old ride the New York City subway on his own, has a book out now about how to step back and give your children freedom without killing yourself with worry. I think most of us do tend to hover over our children too much and this can have a profound impact on them for their entire lives. With my daughters I really try to give them as much freedom as I can within certain boundaries. I am not always perfect about it, of course, but I do make an effort. I want them to learn how to handle things on their own, how to succeed and fail, and how to keep going when they do either. My hope is that this will make them stronger adults, more confident in their own abilities.

Weekly Secret

PostSecret

Get Off My Lawn!

I can't wait until I am a grouchy old man. I want to sit on my front porch, grizzled and world weary, shaking my fist at the whipper snappers that stray across my lawn or drive by too quickly. I could also write bitter screeds against denim like George Will.

Long ago, when James Dean and Marlon Brando wore it, denim was, Akst says, "a symbol of youthful defiance." Today, Silicon Valley billionaires are rebels without causes beyond poses, wearing jeans when introducing new products. Akst's summa contra denim is grand as far as it goes, but it only scratches the surface of this blight on Americans' surfaces. Denim is the infantile uniform of a nation in which entertainment frequently features childlike adults ("Seinfeld," "Two and a Half Men") and cartoons for adults ("King of the Hill"). Seventy-five percent of American "gamers" -- people who play video games -- are older than 18 and nevertheless are allowed to vote. In their undifferentiated dress, children and their childish parents become undifferentiated audiences for juvenilized movies (the six -- so far -- "Batman" adventures and "Indiana Jones and the Credit-Default Swaps," coming soon to a cineplex near you). Denim is the clerical vestment for the priesthood of all believers in democracy's catechism of leveling -- thou shalt not dress better than society's most slovenly. To do so would be to commit the sin of lookism -- of believing that appearance matters. That heresy leads to denying the universal appropriateness of everything, and then to the elitist assertion that there is good and bad taste.

You know, I read something like this, shake my head, read it again, and think, "Really?" All of the things in our country that he could make valid complaints about and he goes off on people who wear jeans (not to mention people who play video games or enjoy action/adventure movies). How does someone like this get a column? How does someone write this and then other people read it, nod sagely, and say, "By gum, that George fella's right! If only people didn't wear jeans, then we wouldn't have hunger, poverty, disease, or death! Let's have a Jeans Party and throw all of the denim we can find into the sea! Death to Denim!"

I can see the angry mobs now, torches and pitchforks in hand, chasing down the rogues who refuse to give up their favorite denim attire. "Give me denim or give me death!" they cry. The mob, George Will, at the head chants "Death!" in unison while Will charges forth and skewers the poor bastard. Then, with a sharp tug, he pulls his pitchfork out of the corpse. Neatly adjusting his bow tie, he smoothes out his smartly pressed pants, and begins scanning his surroundings, looking for his next denim-clad target.

This sort of rant has been going on since the dawn of time. I'm sure that back in the mythical Cave Days, some dumb bastard ranted about "Kids these days and their damn wheels!" or "The sun isn't good enough for you, eh? You have to make your own little fire? Well, when I was a strapping young lad..." Blah. Blah. Blah. For all of you in older generations who just can't stand what the next generations are doing, well, tough. You had your time. The only constant is change whether you like it or not.

And, really, if this is the only thing you can get worked up over, either the world has become a utopia or you just aren't thinking clearly.

Of Insulin Pumps and Protein in My Urine

I had my three-month checkup last week with my doc. He gave me a referral to an endocrinologist so I can explore the option of getting an insulin pump. On one hand, it would be nice in that I would go from poking myself four or five times a day to once every three or four days for insulin. As much as I enjoy being a pincushion, a break would be nice. Pump users also typically have better control of their blood sugar with fewer ups and downs. On the other hand, I'm not sure I want a machine permanently attached to me, reminding me of my condition, especially if it's going to start looking for Sarah Connor.

I also had labs. My A1C was good, although it has creeped up a bit. What was a concern was my urine analysis. Protein showed up in my urine meaning my kidneys are not functioning properly. My doctor has prescribed lisinopril which is supposed to help. That puts me at six drugs I now take on a regular basis. At least this one is a pill, though. I suppose I should be grateful that their are drugs to help me manage all of my health issues, but right now I just feel...tired of it all.

Weekly Music Video

Here is an artist that I got into through my parents. Shockingly, they have good taste on occasion (kidding, Mom). He's got an incredible voice and happens to be one hell of a songwriter, too.

Gene Pitney - "24 Hours from Tulsa" and "Angelica"

Time Travelling Attire

I want this t-shirt.

Weekly Secret

PostSecret

Curing the Desire to Steal

William Saletan writes about a new study indicating that a drug used to treat drug addiction seems to curb the desire to steal.

It sounds like an April Fools' joke. But it isn't. In an interview with Reuters, the study's lead author explains that naltrexone "gets rid of that rush and desire" to steal.

Naltrexone is better known as a drug for alcohol or drug addiction. Many of us, while accepting these addictions as diseases, continue to regard theft as a matter of personal responsibility. Should we rethink that distinction? If the same drug relieves both conditions, should we take kleptomania more seriously as an illness?

Modern medicine continues to find biological evidence behind all sorts of acts, good and bad. It's exciting, but also a little scary. How long is it before we have pills to change any sort of behavior? It sounds great if you have a pill that stops a person from wanting to molest children, but what if you have a pill that say, makes kids not want to take risks? I mean, you don't want your kids climbing tall trees or riding a bike down a steep hill sans helmet, right? Of course it sounds absurd now to talk about extremes, but one of the problems with modern science is that new advances are coming faster than we have time to think them through to see how best to properly assimilate them into our society. Actually, probably an even bigger issue is that so many people seem disinclined to discuss these issues up front and would rather wait until after it presents a concrete issue to step back and say, "You know, we should think about this for a second."

Everyone's Autobiography

Bryan Appleyard writes the autobiography of every human ever in two words: unintended consequences.

Quote of the Day

"[A]s a secular person who thinks there’s a lot of wisdom in traditional Christian ethical thought it always strikes me as very odd that modern-day manifestations of Christian political activism in the United States so often take the form of advocacy for violence, cruelty, and revenge." - Matthew Yglesias

The Wheel of Time...Just...Keeps...Turning

A little over a week ago, in what I was sure was an early April Fools' Day joke, it was announced that the final book in The Wheel of Time saga would be split into three books. The first book of the final three will be released this November.

I know I'm not the only one who finished the last book, Knife of Dreams, and thought, "How the hell can he finish this in one book?" Even though Jordan had said he would not wrap up all plot threads, there was still so much left hanging that only one more book seemed a Herculean task. And, sure enough, we're not getting one more book; we're getting three.

Honestly, I'm not sure how to feel about this. The Wheel of Time series is one of my favorites. I've been reading it since The Great Hunt came out in paperback in...1991. Wow. I've been reading these books for eighteen years. Each time a new one came out, I would reread the entire series. These books have really shaped my conception and love for the fantasy genre.

Still, I'd by lying if I said I wasn't feeling a little burned out on them. The last four books of the series (eleven main books and one prequel) were a bit of a drag. Jordan got caught up in numerous side plots that really felt tangential to the main story and typically not nearly as interesting. I understood where he was going in trying to craft an epic plot in which impending Armageddon triggers all sorts of other events. But, he meandered too much and took too much time with these. If he had been able to tighten up these side stories into a tighter arc, it might not been so bad. As it stands, though, it's hard not to occasionally think, "I really don't care about this" while reading the last couple of books.

That makes the thought of three more books somewhat depressing. I really, really want to see how it all ends. Jordan has said in multiple interviews that he has had the very end in mind since the beginning and I imagine it is going to be awe-inspiring. If Brandon Sanderson, the author tasked with finishing the series since Jordan's passing, can keep these last books tightly paced and moving quickly then I am sure I will enjoy them with the same enthusiasm I had for the first several books in the series. If not, they will end up ranking as a great literary disappointment because the promise shown in the first few books was and is outstanding.

Mom Wants Son's Sperm

That sounds like a story from a soap opera when I write it like that. Reality stranger than fiction and all that...

A mother has had a judge rule that she has the right to her dead son's sperm.

A judge has granted a mother's request to have someone harvest sperm from her dead son's body, so she can have the option of carrying out his wish to have children.
Nikolas Colton Evans, 21, died Sunday at a Brackenridge hospital after being punched and falling outside an Austin bar March 27.
His mother, Marissa Evans, told the Austin American-Statesman newspaper that he wanted to have three sons someday and had even picked out their names: Hunter, Tod and Van.
"I want him to live on. I want to keep a piece of him," she told the newspaper.

That last quote is the key here. This mother is not doing this to fulfill her son's wish. She is doing it for herself. I can't imagine what this woman is going through. Losing a child has got to be about the most horrific thing imaginable especially in some senseless way like this. However, that does not make it right for her to take his sperm to make some babies.

There are many ways to keep her son's memory alive. This is not a good way.