Thoughts of Memorial Day Weekend
I hope none of you are expecting a sappy, let's remember all of our troops and what they have sacrificed for our country post because you aren't getting one. Not that I intend to demean what they have done, but it's just not my style.
This weekend I saw a liscence plate that said EDUK8TOR on it, which I thought was cute. But then I realized why South Carolina ranks around 48th in the nation in education... because our teachers can't fucking spell.
It disturbs me when people re-name their home town or college town with something they think makes it sound more catchy or exciting than it is. A popular term of choice involves the re-appropriation of the term "Vegas" as if that immediately makes your town cool. I've heard Lex-Vegas to describe Lexington, VA which, as far as I can tell, only resembles Las Vegas because of the massive cocaine abuse. The phrase as also been appropriated to both Greenville, North AND South Carolina. Raleigh has become "Raleighwood"; Charlotte = Cha-town. I'm all for catch town nicknames, as long as they fit and aren't some lazy attempt to rip off another city. Call Charlotte the QC, since it has been known as the Queen City ever since it was named after one. Call Atlanta "the A," or ATL, because that's what it is. But please, please, stop adding Vegas after your town name. There is only one Las Vegas, only one place where I can lose hundreds of dollars while gambling, walk the streets at 4 am and get propositioned by a prostitute and a coke dealer all within 5 minutes, not that that actually happened, but I can tell you if it did, it would not have happened in Virginia, North Carolina, or South Carolina. Sorry to break the news to you.
People who think that cats are smarter than dogs are just dumb. I am a foster parent to a kitten-like cat for the summer, and while it has changed my perception on cats as pets, I am and still will forever be a dog person. The main behavioral difference in the two pets is in how they treat their owners. Dogs, as descendants of wolves, come to recognize their owner as the 'alpha male' of the household. They recognize they are dependent on you for their survival. Cats on the other hand, view themselves as your equal. This is why when you discipline a dog it's okay to thump it on the nose with a newspaper, because they respond to being "put in their place" so to speak. Cats however, will just resent you for it. But the reality is, they are just as dependent on you to take care of them. I still carry my cat's poop to the trash can so she doesn't get upset; I feed her twice a day and make sure she has fresh water. While I'm sure she thinks she is a predatory jungle cat, I don't think her ability to hunt a catnip mouse makes her ready for the field of battle. See, cats have a reality deficit. Sasha needs to recognize :).
This Memorial Day weekend saw a lot of sports records broken. Barry "I'm on the juice" Bonds hit #715; Sam Cornish Jr. won the 2nd closest Indy 500 of all time; Rafael Nadal set the longest consecutive win streak on clay courts. On a similiar sporting note, I'm sad to see the Gamecocks baseball team not doing so well. After being ranked #1 at one point in the season, we have since fallen to #23 or so and for the first time since I can remember, are not even hosting one of the regionals for the NCAA tournament.
This weekend I saw a liscence plate that said EDUK8TOR on it, which I thought was cute. But then I realized why South Carolina ranks around 48th in the nation in education... because our teachers can't fucking spell.
It disturbs me when people re-name their home town or college town with something they think makes it sound more catchy or exciting than it is. A popular term of choice involves the re-appropriation of the term "Vegas" as if that immediately makes your town cool. I've heard Lex-Vegas to describe Lexington, VA which, as far as I can tell, only resembles Las Vegas because of the massive cocaine abuse. The phrase as also been appropriated to both Greenville, North AND South Carolina. Raleigh has become "Raleighwood"; Charlotte = Cha-town. I'm all for catch town nicknames, as long as they fit and aren't some lazy attempt to rip off another city. Call Charlotte the QC, since it has been known as the Queen City ever since it was named after one. Call Atlanta "the A," or ATL, because that's what it is. But please, please, stop adding Vegas after your town name. There is only one Las Vegas, only one place where I can lose hundreds of dollars while gambling, walk the streets at 4 am and get propositioned by a prostitute and a coke dealer all within 5 minutes, not that that actually happened, but I can tell you if it did, it would not have happened in Virginia, North Carolina, or South Carolina. Sorry to break the news to you.
People who think that cats are smarter than dogs are just dumb. I am a foster parent to a kitten-like cat for the summer, and while it has changed my perception on cats as pets, I am and still will forever be a dog person. The main behavioral difference in the two pets is in how they treat their owners. Dogs, as descendants of wolves, come to recognize their owner as the 'alpha male' of the household. They recognize they are dependent on you for their survival. Cats on the other hand, view themselves as your equal. This is why when you discipline a dog it's okay to thump it on the nose with a newspaper, because they respond to being "put in their place" so to speak. Cats however, will just resent you for it. But the reality is, they are just as dependent on you to take care of them. I still carry my cat's poop to the trash can so she doesn't get upset; I feed her twice a day and make sure she has fresh water. While I'm sure she thinks she is a predatory jungle cat, I don't think her ability to hunt a catnip mouse makes her ready for the field of battle. See, cats have a reality deficit. Sasha needs to recognize :).
This Memorial Day weekend saw a lot of sports records broken. Barry "I'm on the juice" Bonds hit #715; Sam Cornish Jr. won the 2nd closest Indy 500 of all time; Rafael Nadal set the longest consecutive win streak on clay courts. On a similiar sporting note, I'm sad to see the Gamecocks baseball team not doing so well. After being ranked #1 at one point in the season, we have since fallen to #23 or so and for the first time since I can remember, are not even hosting one of the regionals for the NCAA tournament.
posted by Hoss | 10:20 AM
2 Comments:
A quick agreeing synopsis, the naming scheme pisses me off to no end, and my hometown is sadly one of those listed. The best one ever though is Augusta, GA. I was driving through Augusta on the way to anywhere else in the world, and heard a radio station call Augusta "the A-U-G," I lauged until I hit Atlanta. Also, cats suck, the Indy 500 was amazing, and our baseball team is blowing sack.
I know you're NOT talking smack about G-vegas. Sorry but i dont think you can appreciate it unless you live there. That however only applies to gville nc. not sc. as far as i know. For me anyway ha.
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