George Carlin is Dead

Passed away? Expired like a magazine?

No, George Carlin is dead. And, as he might have said himself, there's no shame in that. There's sadness in it, but no shame. No reason to tip-toe around it with gentle euphemisms.

Death happens to us all. Most of us will die without ever having made much of an impact on the world around us, but - like him or hate him - George Carlin did make an impression.

While George Carlin was alive, he had the courage to talk about life the way it really is, in language people really use. He was insightful enough to see the absurdity (and harm) behind many of society's politically correct "niceties" and brave enough to point out naked Emperors wherever he saw them.

This frank approach brought George Carlin as much criticism as it did acclaim. Although, I've often thought that people who called him crass weren't really listening.

I like George Carlin for saying what he thought. Even when his routines occasionally tread close to the line of my comfort zone - or maybe because they tread that line.

I like George Carlin for being a great Mr. Conductor.

And I like George Carlin because there was always something about him, something kindred, almost an underlying sadness (cynicism?), that made me want to listen closer.

In his own words, "Scratch any cynic, and underneath you'll find a disappointed idealist."

Commentary Hurts

I like reading the news through the Internet. It's nice to have many articles on the same topic at my fingertips and it can be fascinating to compare the different slants used by various reporters.

But there is a downside.

Many online news articles give readers the option of posting comments. This seems like a good idea, in theory. A chance to get a response from the people. Until you read the seemingly inevitable hate.

Is it the anonymity of the Internet that makes people feel they have the right to spew venom? Would the same people say these things in a face to face discussion?

Unfortunately, I fear many of them would.

Civil rights are a tricky thing. Believing that everyone has the right to their own opinion and the freedom to express that opinion means letting people say whatever they want, no matter how offensive. Or does it?

What about respecting other people's right to their own opinion? Or, to go further, to their own beliefs and lifestyle choices?

What happens when one group's beliefs include the importance of "spreading the word" or "educating others"? What if one group's beliefs include the importance of persecuting other groups of people?

Is that an inherent facet of religion? To persecute anyone who doesn't share the same beliefs? To spread hateful comments over news articles that report on a different way of life?

Which takes precedence? Freedom of speech or freedom of religion?

New Shawl

I never take pictures of my finished crochet projects. I don't know why, I just never think of it. I give most of them away (baby blankets, afghans, scarves, etc.) so I really should start taking some pictures before they go out the door.

This is a shawl I recently finished. The pattern is from the book, Vogue Knitting on the Go: Crochet Shawls - with some minor modifications, because I can never seem to follow a pattern exactly and I pretty much never use the suggested yarn.

This pattern called for a super-fine yarn, but I couldn't find any except in pastel baby colors (fingering weight). The body is supposed to be variegated - which would be beautiful - but I couldn't find any in the right weight (except for some very odd colors). Instead, I used two strands of cotton crochet thread (burgundy and antique white) together. It worked well and the shawl has a nice weight and drape.

I modified the border just a little (left out some of the open box rows). I already know what changes I'm going to implement if I make this shawl again - which I might because it's pretty and the pattern (boxes worked on a diagonal) is very similar to my favorite baby blanket pattern so I can practically crochet it in my sleep.

The pictures don't really do it justice. I snapped them quickly with a tripod and remote (which you can see in my hand) before going to a concert. But you can get the general idea. Click on the picture to see it larger and for links to some other views.

UPS Can Time Travel

This is odd... I ordered a DVD and it's scheduled to be delivered today. It's a documentary that I'm looking forward to watching this weekend.

The UPS tracking page has the status as "Delivered" to the "Front Door", but there is no package here. Nothing at the front door, nothing in the garage, nothing hiding in the bushes or under the doormat (as some wily delivery men have done in the past).

So, I went back to look at the tracking info more closely. It also says the package was shipped on 6/3/2008 and delivered on 12/18/2006.

Hmmm.... perhaps this is a new service from UPS. Better than Next Day or Same Day Delivery, it's Prior Day Delivery! Or Prior Year(s) Delivery. Interesting.

If I could order a DVD and have it delivered 18 months ahead of when I ordered it, would I have already watched it by now? What if I didn't like it and returned it? Would it have been returned to Amazon before I even ordered it? Hmmm.... could that have saved me the whole hassle of ordering it in the first place?

As I'm typing this, UPS just pulled up and delivered the package! Which is great, because I don't think the world is ready for Prior Day delivery.