There's this party tomorrow for local Diaryland people. I must be the most anti-social Diarylander here. I don't really bother to read more than three or four other diaries. I actually signed up for a diary ring one time but that didn't last long (I was removed). I didn't like market my diary to other Diaryland people (as at least two people did to me), only to people I already knew online. At its height my readership was probably 50 to 100 people. Now I bet it's down to 3-4.

Anyways, I thought I'd better have a nicer looking first page than the last one.

I saw a Buddhist Temple. I couldn't believe it. I thought she was joshing me. But we went down that road and rising out of the ground was a Buddhist Temple. It was something my brain didn't want to let me believe, seen? It was enormous, painted in hyper paint, with ridiculously intricate windows, dragons, gold stuff inside, etc. It was absurdly immaculate. Their Buddha statue inside is the largest such statue in the Western Hemisphere. The whole trip was surreal. I can't believe that thing is within 20 miles of my home. And there were monks wearing sheets, wearing sheets covering their whole heads, and wearing goggles on top. Scary lookin'.

Red Worm struck a couple of my favorite sites yesterday. Little harm done though.

An interesting topic was raised tonight relating to a fundamental of our economy, I shall have to recover my notes on my reading of Adam Smith's The Wealth of Nations and consider.

The Cincinnati Police Department... oh forget it maybe some other day.

Charley's show last week certainly was interesting. Talkin' motorcycles (Charley rides a '79 Honda CBX, a six cylinder standard which he found in near-mint condition, and wears Vanson leathers), the Tuesday night computer show with Nick Gauge (talkin UT, the backspace key in IE, and Add/Remove Programs), and the reiteration of "Jones Goes to the Movies" on Thursday (thought it had been lost with the move to overnight again, but there it was at midnight and there Michael H. Price was). Plus a ton of other thought-provokers. If you live in the Great Southwest, give Charley a listen, if you want to hear a guy with the ultimate "radio pipes" and encyclopedic knowledge of nearly any topic, thoughtfulness, politeness, conversation over confrontation, if you want to be able to get in to add your voice and ideas, if you actually want to learn something new. Wonderful show, pure bliss.

So this party is called a "keg" party. Hmm. I did drink a little while the NBA playoffs/finals were on out in Plano at Hooters. Other than that I've been totally dry. But: I have very little I have to do on Sunday, I live within a few blocks of the place, it's free, there are some people I know...

It's weird that I haven't been part of the DL community as much as I have other communities. But when you look at some of the teeny-bopper type diaries, can ya blame me all that much? I don't think Crazy Sexy Ashley and I would have much to talk about.

On the other hand, I've struck up a friendship with a woman on the ShadowMarch site who lives in Flower Mound. We've been sending PMs back and forth alot. She's 38 and happily married, which is cool, but we might still get together one of these days to say hello.

And I think now I have the Cav (but that's a GIRL's car!!), I'm going to go crazy in the grocery store, buying all those things I gloss over on my way to the Ramen aisle usually, in fact buying as if I already had that well-paying career-building job in the can.

Hey, our petitions seem to have worked some good.

I sincerely hope people aren't relying on msn.com for their news.

Hey, a protester was shot and killed yesterday in Italy protesting the G8. And you know what? Serves his ass right. This was not peaceful protest. This was a group of militants promising to storm a police barricade and kill, this was a guy flinging objects at police, injuring several of them. Another thing? They sure have an odd legal system in Italy. Another thing? What the fuck are they protesting? I love the fact that virtually every political faction and type in the world is represented there. From anarchists to neoNAZIs and EVERYthing in between. GIVE. ME. A. BREAK. How can they ALL have such venom for George Bush?? What the hell is this? What do they want? Can anyone explain it to me? Please, please email me. What is Tony Blair's role in this whole debacle? Is this ONLY about Kyoto or does it go further than that? Is the proposed Missile Defense plan a catalyst for this? Think envy or jealousy is playing a part? If it's mainly about Kyoto (as far as the more mainstream protesters and the rancor of the EU and UN goes), why are they so insistent the US do what they say? Can't we dissent and choose our own path or must we all be assimilated (for the record, Bush's rejection of Kyoto is one of the GREATEST things he's done so far IMO and I applaud his steadfastness)? Here's what I've been able to dig up:

Hundreds of different protest groups will be attending fringe debates and marches at the G8 Summit in Genoa. Here is an outline of who they are and what they want.

�E Since 1999 protesters have dogged global finance meetings to push their agenda, some turning violent.
�E The Genoa Social Forum is an umbrella organisation representing about 800 different protest groups, urging peaceful action.
�E Their main themes are anti-globalisation, world trade, debt relief, and the environment.
�E They want world leaders to reduce, or remove, huge debts and damaging high levels of interest from some of the world's poorest nations.
�E They are angry that world leaders have so far been ineffective at implementing the Kyoto global climate treaty.
�E Protest marches during the G8 Genoa Summit include a pro-migrant march, a workers�Edemonstration and a mass rally on the final day.
�E Fringe debates will also be held during the talks.
�E Groups attending vary from green groups, academics and church members to trade unions, anarchists and hardline communists.
�E Some of the individual groups attending include the Farmers' Movement, the Russian Trade Union Federation, the Greek Confederation of Labour, the Women World Against War, Violence and Poverty, the World Development Movement, the Greek Left Coalition Party.
�E Others are the World Wildlife Fund, Greenpeace, and Medecins San Frontieres.
�E The Italian group Pute Bianche, or White Overalls has said it plans to take violent action at Genoa.

I'm not real impressed. Is this hatred and envy of the rich on an incredibly macrocosmic scale? Is this the US being damned if it does and damned if it doesn't?

On the upside, my mother should have substantially more income during her retirement than she does now.

And my sister's wedding plans are coming along. It's on May 18th. They're renting something like the Bass Hall!! And then some country club or park or something. This is going to be a gigantic wedding. I don't know, my eyes glazed over listening to my mother explain some of it. She went into Jules Verne-like detail on tons of minutiae. The whole thing to me seems odd. $4000 for a wedding dress you'll wear once? Etcetera Etcetera. But Bob and Kristen are already very well off out in Utah and my father isn't even paying for half of the whole deal. Still, I'd have to work for half a decade saving every penny to afford this thing. I'll never be married, but if I were planning my wedding, it'd not be a six-figure wedding. We'd spend the money on a fun but reasonable wedding and then on things we need or want or investments.

Oh, and Jess, let's race. When (if?) I get my bike (the one with the motor) working. :o) It's a modest, old, small engined bike and your speedo goes to 140. :o) Not you though John. Even on the GS you'll roast me.