ProtusMose.com

Still hate my job.

Also, Ron Paul. Seriously, people. Mom, Dad, Leigh Ann, Justin, random surfer, everyone, check him out. His foreign policy is what we need to keep us safe (and in compliance with the Constitution, I might add). His domestic policy is what we need to keep our personal freedoms. His economic policies will control spending, reduce the deficit, balance the budget, and eliminate the income tax.

Don’t take my word for it, do the research for yourself.

http://www.ronpaullibrary.org/

About the Ron Paul Library

This library is a collection of over 900 articles and speeches written by Congressman Ron Paul. To understand his ideas, just review what he has written over the past 10 years. The library is provided as a resource for those wishing to gain a greater understanding of Ron Paul’s Freedom Principles:

* Rights belong to individuals, not groups.
* Property should be owned by people, not government.
* All voluntary associations should be permissible — economic and social.
* The government’s monetary role is to maintain the integrity of the monetary unit, not participate in fraud.
* Government exists to protect liberty, not to redistribute wealth or to grant special privileges.
* The lives and actions of people are their own responsibility, not the government’s.

Recommended viewing

So, a lot has happened since the last update. Let’s run through them, shall we?

#1.

So long, Bill. It’s been a rough ride, and I wish you the best. (Just not in my state.) Who, then, shall lead my beloved Huskers onto the field of glory? Even though Pelini was only here a year, you got the sense that he “got” the tradition, and how serious we, the fans, take Nebraska football. We have high standards. More importantly, he seemed passionate about the game and about our kids. Callahan seemed like an Offensive coordinator who belonged in a press box; detached from the game and not caring about the outcome. Being the worst team in the league didn’t seem to bother him. This must have trickled down to the guys on the field, because that’s exactly how they played under him. There was no drive, no intensity. They looked like every game was a scrimmage and they didn’t care one way or another. Whether the new coach has been with us in the past, or is a newcomer, they need to have a sense of who we are. We are a national powerhouse at heart. Anything less is unacceptable. Bo gets that I think, and he gets my vote. Turner Gill seems a good choice, but I think I’d like to see him with a little more experience.

#2. I’ve really lost all love for my work. I find no joy in it. Compensation isn’t an issue. I’d love to be paid more (and honestly believe I should); however, that’s not the issue here. I don’t believe in what I do, or the people for whom I do it. I’m stuck in this position through the middle of next year, in all likelihood. I’ll keep trying to get out; but, a series of dampers has been implemented to keep everyone where they are for the short-term future. Can I stay that long without completely burning out? Have I already pushed past that point? I don’t know.

::Segue::

#3. I didn’t get the job I interviewed for two weeks ago. I had a feeling it was coming, particularly since they were supposed to have a decision by last Friday. Still, as much as I loathe my current position, I cannot find cause to curse this development. The Lord gives and the Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord. I put this in His hands before the interview and see no reason to snatch it back just because things didn’t go as I wished them to. If it is not His will for me to move on at this point, I have no recourse but to swallow my pride, and surrender myself to be governed by His will and provision. He has plans for me, yet.

I just wish I knew what they were…

#4. Heroes is awesome.

#5. It’s not June, but call your father and thank him anyway. I spent a few hours this weekend putting up Christmas lights for Kati. She didn’t specifically ask me to, but I know she loves them and it would make her happy. The problem is I’ve got a moderate fear of heights. Not enough to make me wet my pants on a tall building, but enough to make me real nervous at the top of a tall ladder; nervous enough to make a rather painful mistake. But I climbed up that ladder a few dozen times, performing precision roof surgery. Why? Because I love my kid. At one point I looked down to the ground (never a good idea, btw) and decided I should probably call dad and thank him for all of the stupid things he did to make my sister and I happy when we growing up. I’ll have to remember to do that tonight. You should too.

That is all.

I’m still alive. I’ve been busy working on a big update for Monday, that will hopefully deliver. I’ve got some other drafts in their infancy. Who knows which will get posted first.

That’s all.

Stay in suspense.

So I promised a preview in the previous post, yet never did it. It’s just as well, though. The teaser probably won’t entice anyone to listen to the finished product, when published. I thought about putting it with the backing track so at least there would be drums, and you’d get a better idea of how it’s supposed to sound when done. I might as well put it out there naked for the world, though. It’s rough, the timing is off. There’s mistakes and miscues. And, boy, do I need a new effect. Oh well. Such is life. Enjoy.

Oblivion

By the way, the song is actually only 1/3 of the total track time. If you keep listening, you’ll enjoy 3 minutes or so of dead air. :O

*Update* I re-recorded a lot of it last night. Some sounds better. Some of it sounds worse. It’s more complete though. AND, there’s no 3 minutes of silence at the end.

Oblivion Demo II

Feel free to blast me in the comments. Constructive criticism is welcome, also.

That is all.

So, I’m back in “the studio”, as the recording bug has once again bitten me. Things are progressing nicely, other than the fact that I have no mixing ability. I’ve decided on a cover for this edition. I’ll attach a preview to this post sometime this evening. It’s not half bad, if I must say so myself. I just wish I could wrap my head around Nuendo and record it in there. Acid is easier, but nowhere near as robust.

In other news, I have taken the Gut Kick page down. Got tired of making promises I can’t (won’t) keep, and at this point the page stood for embarrassment only and not accountability.

For a tertiary level of news, I e-mailed a copy of my Ihop rant to them directly. Maybe we will see some manner of reconciliation. Maybe not.

Finally, I’ve been reviewing traffic logs for this little site o’ mine. The number one search result that people are finding this site through is “Wendell, I’m not content”. Apparently people are googling Far Side cartoons and getting protusmose.com as a result. I find this hilarious. Maybe I should add some other keywords to get traffic.

::Ahem:: Britney Spears, Metallica, Darfur, Ron Paul, Rudy Giulliani, Hillary Clinton, Obama, Osama, Aunt Jemima.

That outta do it.

Dear Ihop management,

Apologize already. Please. Don’t you remember how it used to be, Ihop? The many evenings we spent together with my family. The joy and laughter shared over funny face pancakes and fruity country griddle cakes? It can be that way again! We can end this silly feud and get back to enjoying each other again. I just need you to suck up your pride a little, Ihop. You hired a crappy manager who let that specific store go to pot. It happens. Maybe you d….

Wait.

Could it be?

Maybe you don’t know about our little tiff. Maybe our local Ihop never reported our displeasure to you and you haven’t had a chance to rain fire upon them and bless us with french toast and bacon. Allow me to fill you in.

We’ve gone to that location for four years. It’s close, the food was always good, as was the service. Then, earlier this year, things changed, for the worse. Waits increased, food quality decreased, as did service. Finally, we had an evening there so bad, we vowed never to return. Here is a (somewhat) condensed version. We show up at 6:00PM or so on a Sunday. There were about six customer cars in the parking lot. The Applebees that shares the parking lot was packed. When we pulled up, an SUV parked at Applebees and six people got out and went in. We went into Ihop. After about 3-4 minutes someone came up to the front and brought us to our table. After five minutes or so, they took our order, then promptly disappeared off the face of the Earth. In the next 45 minutes, we only saw him walk by twice. Mind you, there were only six other tables with customers in the entire restaurant. (we counted) Yet, it took 45 minutes for our food to show up. It arrived without so much as a “sorry for the long wait”.

At this time, I was just short of steaming. We had a three year old with us. A hungry three year old. 45 minutes with a hungry three year old in a booth at Ihop is not an experience anyone should have to go through. Not to mention, my daughter is sitting there hungry. When the food did show up, I said to my wife, “These had better be the best pancakes in the history of pancakery.” Alas, they were not. The hash browns were an odd amalgamation of frozen and charred potatoes. It was just sad. After we finished eating, we were primed to get out of there already. We had planned for a 30-40 minute trip, and thought we would be home by 7:00. Now it’s 7:15 and we’re still stuck in the restaurant. We finally get our check, pay, with no tip, and leave.

The next day, my wife called the restaurant to voice our complaint. To quote her, “When I called IHOP, (1503 Cornhusker Road, BELLEVUE, NE 68123-4419) the day manager asked why I didn’t ask for the manager when we were in the restaurant. I told it was because we had already been there with a 3 year old for over an hour and I felt I could address it the next day. She said she would talk to our server (supposedly he was one of the best there) and call me back the next day. Never happened. I even gave her my cell # so I wouldn’t miss the call.” That was two months ago or longer. We have yet to hear from said manager.

We have not been back since. Instead we have resorted to catering other businesses. Luckily, Cracker Barrel obliges my daughter’s request for a whipped cream smiley face on her pancakes.

Still, sometimes I wonder, what it would be like to sit in those blue booths once again.

::sigh::

This one has been boiling up for a while and must now be unleashed. I’m not talking about immigrants. (That’s a rant for another time). I’m talking about adults who have theoretically graduated from a US high school and, in all likelihood, attended some sort of college. Humor me, if you will, in this series of complaints.

“Do you mind if……”

I understand that answering this question correctly may be difficult for a four year old; however, a 40 year old should be able to navigate this dangerous predicament with relative ease. If I ask, “Do you mind if I get back to you later on this?” and you say “Yeah, sure.”, that means that you do mind and that you do not find this to be an acceptable proposition. It usually goes like this:

Me: “Do you mind if I get back to you later on this?”
Chump: “Yeah, sure.”
Me: “You do?”
Chump: “Huh???”

Sometimes, I’ll mix it up.

Me: “Is it okay if ….”
Chumpcicle: “No, go ahead”
Me: “I hate your face.”