Halloween came and went, and Raevyn surprised me with a Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney pumpkin, of which I’ll provide photos of shortly, I promise, and some treats and goodies from the Halloween party that she went to. I was a homebody that night, staying at werk late to bond with some of my new colleagues by talking about what else but World of Warcraft; something it seems that you can have in common nearly anywhere you go with someone. I like to think I’m fitting in pretty well at the new office, although I’m just now starting to get invited out to lunch and for a drink or two after hours, which is pretty cool-it’s a nice turning point. Even though I stayed late and didn’t have a chance to dress up really or anything, and by the time I got home there were no trick-or-treaters on the streets (although it wasn’t horribly late, I was curious where they all were!) the pumpkin and a few sweet treats pretty much made the day for me. Still, if I can find some candies on clearance now that the holiday is over, I’ll be happy.
Well, the holiday is over, and it’s November, and it’s remarkable. The weather is starting to get cold, and I’m coming back around this year to the realization that I need a new winter coat-my current coat’s lining is all torn up and the pockets are torn through-it’s an old, hand-me-down London Fog coat that my father gave me, but I think it’s time for a replacement, especially before it gets much colder.
In other news, it’s disturbing that every day I wind up hearing and reading more examples of how our idea of “homeland security” and protecting ourselves tends to do no such thing involving protecting people and instead winds up just shoveling power into the hands of the people who would oh so love to power trip on it. Here’s an example. In all honesty he should have just removed his sunglasses and there would have been no problems at all, but in equal honesty, the only reason he should have had to do that is out of fear from the TSA staffer, and that in itself is unacceptable. What really irritates me is that stories like these seem to be more and more common at airports and transit stations around the country-TSA staffers and other faux-officers making demands outside the bounds of their authority and relying on the power of fear to force people, usually innocent, into doing their bidding. It’s saddening, but well-you all know my political leanings. Speaking of which, I’m definitely looking forward to November 7th.
And speaking of “wars” against “nouns,” my War Against The Checkbook is going relatively well, but new income from a new job is a definite help. In the meantime, I’m keeping my eyes on this list for a few suggestions to help me out. I’m starting to get to the point where my traditional savings methods-mutual funds, my IRA, and my 401(k), aren’t really enough, and I should focus more on paying down my debt and making the most out of my investments. I really wish I had a financial advisor to turn to though, that could offer some real suggestions.
As a parting point though, this evening on the way home, I was listening to All Things Considered on NPR news, and heard this fabulous poem/commentary on virtual privacy in the connected age. Normally I bristle at the notion of privacy being “dead” in today’s constantly connected and constantly online world, namely because it’s followed often with the “why bother trying to revive it” argument. Regardless, Andrei Codrescu speaks a glorious piece, predicting the existance of the blog in not so many words long before it actually existed, and rekindling some of my own personal wonder about the electronic age, speaking nothing of letting privacy die and remarking simply that its dead when we choose to do things like blog and read blogs and comment on blogs, but he hardly ever actually uses the word “blog.” He also reflects interestingly on the past and the desire to “fall into” it, as it were. I can’t do him justice, so go ahead and listen.