All my efforts to hide from drama have failed this week. Although I think, for the time being at least, things are resolved, it was unpleasant and not the way I like to spend my time.

The good news is that the someone (I’ll bust them out enough to say they’re a very high profile SLebrity, part of the problem, frankly) who needed to hear some straight talking from a few folks DID listen, whether or not it will change things remains to be seen. I feel better for having done the hard thing and said my piece, clearly and directly. And for warning said person that should they start in again, they will not be dealt with gently.

I think it’s a common thing we tolerate much more abuse of ourselves than we will of others, I know that’s one of my “flavors” of less thank helpful (to me) behavior. So I reached my limit and that was that.

I’ve often said it, I’ll say it again. I can be the best friend you’ll ever have, but you really, really don’t want to make me mad. It takes an awful lot to do it, and trust me, if you do, you’ll know it.

References provided on request

My cousin sent me this video of Valentina Hasan covering Badfinger’s “Can’t Live” and it’s had me and a number of my friends in hysterics so I’m gonna share it further. Somehow we missed this clip when it first made the rounds on YouTube.

Ken Lee - (Badfinger’s “Can’t Live”) - translated into … I dunno what but it’s funny

Yes folks keep calling it a Mariah Carey song, she SANG it but she didn’t write it and is far from the first person to cover it.

A lot of nothing, frankly to those well acquainted with what goes on in Second Life and other Virtual Worlds, however it is interesting to see and hear what the members of The House have gotten out of their direct exposure to SL and other Virtual Worlds. One mentions the source of the word “avatar” in an ominous manner as if the idiology of the term might foster terrorists. pfft.


From Wikipedia: “In Hindu philosophy, an avatar (also spelled as avatara) (Sanskrit: अवतार, avatāra), most commonly refers to the incarnation (bodily manifestation) of a divine being (deva), or the Supreme Being (God) onto planet Earth.”


Link to a page where one may download The House Committee on Energy and Commerce video recording of a Hearing on Online Virtual Worlds: Applications and Avatars in a User-Generated Medium

Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet
Tuesday, April 1, 2008, 9:30 a.m.
2123 Rayburn House Office Building

For immediate release:
Contact Chris Churchill
773-290-0081
For hi-res images
prbarile@sbcglobal.net

Churchill dishes up Poop du Jour
Popular purveyor of poop pipes up
Multi-media exploration of language and culture to open

Chicago: In the world of childish arguments, no insult is worse than being called poop. Most arguments, even among the most intelligent and well meaning people, will deteriorate into simple name calling eventually.
The exploration of this phenomenon – and other poop-related questions will get the standard Co-Governors of Space scrutinizing treatment when “You Are Poop” opens at 10 p.m., Friday April 4 at the Gorilla Tango Theater 1919 North Milwaukee, Chicago.
In “You Are Poop”, two nameless characters (played by Matt Riggs and Kristen Hower), struggle to determine which of them is poop and what exactly to do about it when they find out.
Their quest is influenced by a suspiciously poopish commodore (Chris Hauser), his sycophantic trophy girlfriend (Amy Sumpter), a ubiquitous UPS man with too many jobs and a critic who wishes the whole thing was different.
Churchill (most recently remembered for the critically acclaimed “Chair”) and his Co-Governors of Space have created another evening of theater that will never get reviewed by a Hedy Weiss or be optioned by Broadway in Chicago.
“I tried to use this play as a thought experiment, to see where it would go. It didn’t go very far. Just as I thought,” Churchill said. “No solid answers were found but some fun alternatives to being exploited are mined for comic effect. Maybe the unwashed masses will shower up, put on a nice shirt and come see this show and decide to do something. Unwashed masses: Embrace your filth! Work together! Love each other!”
Julie Espada directs with original music by Churchill.
“You Are Poop” opens at 10 p.m., Friday April 4 at the Gorilla Tango Theater 1919 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago.
“You Are Poop” runs at 10 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays at 10:00 p.m. through May 10.
Ticket price is $15.00.
For more information or tickets, call 773-598-4549 or log on at www.gorillatango.com.

Paul Barile
Writer
4261 W. Addison
Chicago, IL 60641
http://stagewhisper.wordpress.com

Holy Schnikes! SLRFL (Second Life Relay For Life) is at L$4,292,497 as I write this! That would cost one about 16 grand USD to purchase that many Linden, to give you non-SL folks an idea of what kinda cash we’re talking about here.


Fund raising started at 2 pm Pacific on Saturday March 15th, and it’s about 8:30 pm Pacific on Wednesday the 19th! Our goal for the entire campaign is to raise $ 150,000 (US dollars), 20% of which will go to international “sister” Cancer Societies, 80% will stay in the USA for research, as well as to help those surviving and fighting cancer.


RadioRadio is one of the 81 teams (at last count) formed in SL to raise funds. We’re running about 18th or so as far as total funds collected but as I pointed out earlier, things are just getting going!


Frankly I’d love folks to donate to the RadioRadio team of course, but really, ANY donations going to the American Cancer Society is the point. Who doesn’t want to see all cancer eliminated, relegated to the history books?


More to come!

I can’t even tell you about what they’re using to do that nor the source or I’ll start laughing again, you’ll have to clicky and read yourself.

Ok, I admit it. I’ve gotten sucked into FaceBook. I’ve gotten sucked into FaceBook games like Pirates, and Owned! and Human Pets. It’s true. So last night I tried StumbleUpon.

I’m a gonner.

It’s like when the we was new and everything was fun and interesting.

And so I “stumbledupon” a flash scripted game that’s easy and addictive called Virus2.

Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Simple instructions, grow your colored virus so that it fills the cells before you run out of attempts. It’s color matching and strategy.

It plays as fast as you want it to be.

It is addictive.

You are very welcome.

Went to a new Dr. today, an osteo. sports medicine kinda dude that does bleeding edge knee surgeries and replacements and all that stuff.  They asked me a lotta knee history and health history questions, took some X-ray snaps of my knees and then we had a nice sit down chat.

It turns out that I’m arthritic.  Didn’t expect that.  The good news is my knees aren’t ground into little bitty shards of bone and stuff.  That’s not the difficulty.  It’s just that the cartilage is worn, unevenly, but in the expected way and I’m nearly out of cushioning on one side of each knee joint.  So they hurt, so they feel wrong, so what do we do?

Well, surgery is an option, but a last ditch, we’ve tried everything else choice.  That was my thought and his as well.  Considering he’s a surgeon, ya gotta love that he’s not pushing to slice and dice.  Nor was he keen on putting me in a brace.  First thing was he figured I’d have a cosmetic objection to it.  Hell I didn’t care about wearing braces, either time, except that they cut up my mouth and hurt like hell when being adjusted but damn I love the results!   After I made that clear, which he loved, then he pointed out that they tend to abrade the skin, and would give me sores, esp. since I’m still dealing w/some leg swelling issues.  So that part I can see.  I asked about a soft brace.  “They make nice knee warmers.”   Yes, that’s what he said. LOL

Ok, so medicines?  They kill the pain, don’t work forever and don’t fix the issue.  So where we’re gonna start, once we get insurance clearance, is an injection, once a week for 3 weeks running, of something called Euflexxa.  From the brochure it sounds like liquid cartilage and a nice grease, lube and oil job in one.   Again, a very reasonable option.

My dad found this guy on the web, he’s from the same hospital as did my surgery and yet again, great personable staff, attentive, incisive, intelligent folks in the office, top to bottom.  One of the nurses even subs in with my gastric surgeon, she was very happy to hear that he’d done my surgery (I hear nothing but knowing nods and high praise at the mention of his name).  I’m really happy that my knee isn’t bone meal and that there are non-invasive options to explore.  I kinda wish a soft brace would do something for me too, but we see how this stuff goes.

Otherwise I’m doing well, trying new foods and so far the only thing that gives me issue, other than stuff that’s too sweet is STILL carrots.  I can deal with that, been doing so all my life.  Went to the grocery store today, got a mess of stuff, but I need to go back.  I’ve been not cooking so long I need basics and seasonings and stuff still.  Bought all I thought I could carry in one trip from the car (just barely) and tomorrow I’ll go get the other 1/2 of what I need.

When most of what you consume is fluidy and soft, your groceries get very heavy very fast I must say.  Got some salmon, had the butcher cut it to size and individually wrap them for me so they’ll be fool proof.  Also I’ll give ‘nanners (bananas) a shot too.  I think I might end up blending them with some of the “canned” (it’s not in a can but same concept, just fresher) fruit and yogurt.

OH !!  We stopped for lunch before the appointment, so I had my first onion, pickle, hamburger and cheese today without incident.  Yes it was McD’s.  No bun, no ketchup (don’t usually put that on any how and it’s prolly too sweet for me), and I cut it up on a plate with fork and knife to be sure no eating errors.  All went down and stayed down just fine.  It was yummy too.  Weird ordering just the sandwich, no fries and no beloved Diet Coke.  Took me twice as long as Pops to eat just my burger as it did for him w/fries and soda.  This stuff still cracks me up, but it is good.  I feel pretty confident that my tummy will twinge if I shouldn’t eat something even before I get it in my mouth and so far, that’s been the rule.

If anyone had told me this would be this easy or smooth before surgery, frankly I’d not have believed them.  I suspect my case may be very, very atypical.  Nothing I read about Gastric Bypass showed the patients dealing with stuff this easily.  My only issue is the occasional chewing (or lack of sufficient)  error.  That and my knees, which hopefully will begin to be resolved and I can get my meteoric weight loss rolling along again.  I’m still losing but much much much slower I think than to be expected with proper exercise.  Soon.

All in all, it’s very good news and a yet continued bright outlook.  Yea the proverbial shoe may drop, but until then I”ll enjoy it as it is.

I was poking about and decided to look at Alphaville’s site, launched just this February 23rd, 2008 and boy howdy am I glad I did! Moonbase Alpha is the name, and the look is elegant well-done Flash. Be sure to click on the Klangwelt section, and play a tune or two, the fidelity is astounding, clear, full and rich. This is probably one of the best band sites I’ve seen in a long time.

Tonight while hanging in Tut while DJ Vertigo Paris spun her weekly Friday night aural web on RadioRadio she got the strangest news, apparently she’s dead, RL!!! Check the post and comments here.


And apparently, the Blog is now gone, as of 9:36 pm 3/2/2008 Central Time. So does this mean Verti’s really gone or been put back on the corporeal plane to serve her full time? hehehe

The U.S. gov’t is “on to you” and they’re gonna hunt you down and weed you out like a professional, ninja-looting plat farmer on a 3 day Red Bull bender!! Don’t believe me? Clicky this link to read the Wired article.

Thanks to my EQ II guildie, Gkar, for pointing me to the article! Now if they could do something effective about griefers in SL, that might be worthy but I’d suspect this will go awry.

I was catching up on my I Can Has Cheeseburger addiction and hit a few prize ones … here they are in no particular order:

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Oh and in other news, saw the cardiologist yesterday and he reduced one of my blood pressure meds as I’m doing better! Yippee!