What propels me forward…..Money in the bank has introduced me to a different poker table; much as I can describe….a more discerning outlook on the affairs of the world.  Here nothing is taken at face value, nothing appears as it seems-plurality still plays a role, and while the filters are higher, the prejudices are lower — it’s the state of [...]

at least according to Baghdad International Airport – My friend and colleague ventures out to the civilian side of Baghdad International today en-route to some greener pastures.  The situation encountered is telling – Starting today, military papers and credentials don’t mean much, if anything out there, what’s mandatory, ‘the exit and entrance visas,’ both costing about 100 [...]

today could have perhaps been the busiest day of my life — i sit on my a$$ in a corner all day doing various things, today was yale game theory lecture 3, 8 ted episodes, other duties assigned and 8 miles on the treadmill – i was busy because i was afraid to think, i [...]

Today we begin the process of taking the tabs of Paranoid Android off the sheet music and into the strings of the guitar.  If cohesion is reached, its certainly a feat that rivals, let say, a hard certification test. As explained in the transcription: OK lets begin with Guitar 1 which is Thom Yorke. This part [...]

From Noam Chomsky on Divergence [The corporate mass-media] serve to divert the unwashed masses and reinforce the basic social values: passivity, submissiveness to authority, the overriding virtue of greed and personal gain, lack of concern for others, fear of real or imagined enemies, etc. The goal is to keep the bewildered herd bewildered. It’s unnecessary [...]

Jonathan Rice has some interesting words about the desert – The transient nature of this environment is unique in both a work and habitation context.  Contractors work 7 days a week 12 hours a day, so the cultivation of personal relationships is challenging.  You’re married to people at work most of your time awake. New [...]

Chalking today up to the memoirs.  A cold, damp, miserable day in Iraq – Geography is a curious thing.  In Josh Ritter’s Live from Vicar Street DVD, he explains the first time he went to Ireland.  He was living in New York, and It was cheaper for him to fly to Ireland rather than back home to [...]

After review, only TWO Beatles songs have the word ‘truth’ in the lyrics; Within You Without You by George Harrison and Honey Don’t by Ringo Starr. A fascinating discovery, I wonder if John and Paul deliberately stayed away from such abstract definitions of truth.  The Beatles are hands down the best at creating imaginative truths [...]

In the morning, my subconscious usually suggests a tune, this morning’s tune, Sugar.  I can suggest that the beauty and simplicity of the song falls in line with the philosophy of Thoreau from an earlier era. I’ve always enjoyed listening to the raw emotion of songs like this, often over and over.  It’s 100 words [...]

Life comes at you quick, there’s plenty of room for excuses (good and bad) for not pushing the envelope From what I’ve seen the person who gets ahead: doesn’t throw people politics in the way, rather level loading the environment by speaking the same thing to all parties involved acknowledging your adversaries often have common [...]