"The More Things You Do, the More You Can Do." - Lucille Ball

Good news! I found a series of YouTube videos that hit the 9-11 conspiracy stuff head-on in a way that is logical and straight-forward! I'm cured! Most of my big concerns about things have been systematically shown to be misconstrued and/or misunderstood. The conspiracy house of cards is tumbling, tumbling in my mind. I feel like a big weight is lifting. And I feel like a complete moron at the same time, for letting my mind be dragged down the rabbit hole like that... what happened that day is such a complex set of events - and really, each of us brings our own set of filters to our understanding of it.

It makes me wonder what else I believe in that is likewise off kilter. Kind of sobering. Never thought of myself as a nut-case before, really... it seemed to me I had a series of honest questions that I couldn't find acceptable answers for. Well, the answers are out there, if you know where to look. I found them! Sorry to anyone that arched an eyebrow over my wrestling with this issue...

Then again, for all you know, maybe the government is threatening me and my family if I don't publicly denounce the conspiracy! MUAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

I shall now defuse and deflect the conversation with a funny White Ninja comic...

Oh, come on... that's funny...

Thanks to everyone that left feedback on that scene sample I posted in the previous blog post. I think I'll tinker with the idea a bit more... I can always eliminate it in rewrites if I can't make it work. It seems like a gimmick rife with potential, but maybe I'm off base. We'll see...

I've started watching the self-defense DVD set I got a year or two ago with Wifey. Needless to say, the whole topic makes her very nervous - learning about the tool of violence, and when/how to use it. She has mixed feelings. She's so wracked with fear to begin with - she always dreads the idea of someone attacking her. So she knows this info will be useful. At the same time, she never wants to be put in a position where she'd have to jab her thumb in some guy's eye and make it pop out, lol. Well, neither do I - I could go my whole life without poppin some guy's eye out, or crushing his windpipe or destroying his knee/ankle... but if it's a life/death split-second decision, I'd rather have the knowledge and have the time afterwards to deal with the pros and cons than to be dead. It really is useful info to have, and they go on at length about having this skillset in no way means you'll ever have a chance to use it - and you certainly won't go out looking for it.

They compare it to knowing how to swim. You don't all the time go over in your head what happens if you suddenly need to swim... it's just something you know how to do, and if you ever find yourself dumped into water, you instinctively swim. It's a tool, filed away in case you need it. Otherwise, you'll likely drown. Likewise, being able to instinctively recognize an asocial situation, and immediately have the skills to interrupt and flip the situation around on your attacker, in the space of a couple seconds... it's a tool, filed away in case you ever need it.

Anyway, I'm glad we're finally watching it together. I remember how weird I felt after watching the series the first time. I went from always doubting whether I'd ever be able to handle myself in a dangerous situation (and the fear that accompanies that doubt) to knowing that if the moment arrived, I'd know at least a half-dozen quick, destructive actions I could take to neutralize the situation. The fear evaporated. I'm hoping the same happens for Wifey.

Had lunch with my mom today. There's a very real possibility that the rug shop will soon be sold. I think I'll wait until we're further along in the process to go into detail about it here, but let's just say it's an exciting time. I'm most pleased about the idea of my mom being able to transition into the type of work schedule and stress level that she's always striven for, instead of having to work like a dog nonstop like she has for years now. I really hope this works out.

Let me toss out a quick financial question to see if there's a consensus out there. If you had a largish lump of money and you could either stick it somewhere to earn a couple percentage points of interest, or pay off a debt that is likewise accumulating interest, which would you do? The large sum safely stuck somewhere slowly growing - while simultaneously making monthly payments on your debt... or paying off the debt, eliminating the future interest that debt would incur as you paid it off, while simultaneously eliminating any nest-egg. Future interest + accessible cash vs no debt + no accruing interest you would owe as it's being paid off over the next few years.

Does that make sense? I keep leaning one way then the other. What would you do?

If you want to read something great, here is an excerpt from an upcoming novel by author Brent Weeks... the book is called The Black Prism. The link takes you to a page where you can read the first three chapters. Even if you just read the first chapter, I think you'll enjoy it. The author had an acclaimed trilogy (The Night Angel Trilogy) that I've pondered picking up over the past year or so... it has been bumped up on my purchase list.

I'm about a third of the way through the Warriors collection. I'm tempted to do mini-reviews of the short stories that I've read thus far. [EDIT: No need to do the mini-reviews... someone beat me to it!] They are all so unique. At first, I thought they were all fantasy stories by fantasy authors, but they're not. They're all different genres and different style authors - the only thing that ties the stories together is the general concept of "the warrior". It's really a unique, interesting read. It's been a long time since I've read short stories. I've been doing novels and series for so long now, it's odd to finish a whole tale in one sitting, night after night.

I think I'm going to go get some work done. More stuff to chat about, but I think I've dumped enough on you for now. Hope your Sunday is a good one.

Dave