Wrybread's Cavalcade of Whimsy

....than anyone needed to know, but here's a Quiz yoinked from i_chaos_bringer:

Your result for The Kinkyness Test...

Pretty kinky!

Grats! You're 51% kinky!

Take The Kinkyness Test at HelloQuizzy

Current Location: Wrybread HQ
Current Mood: horny
Current Music: Red Hot Chili Peppers-My Friends

...to the preview screening of Star Wars: Clone Wars tomorrow (Saturday) morning at 10am at Silvercity Metrotown. Yes, I know it's short notice considering that we'll need to get there by 9am, i_chaos_bringer just dumped an extra ticket in my lap tonight. Oh well, I'd hate to see it go to waste and this should be a good occasion (hey, it's a Star Wars Opening if nothing else, should be a lot of cool fans around), so let me know if any of you want the ticket ASAP.

Current Location: Wrybread HQ
Current Mood: energetic
Current Music: The Imperial March

I was expecting a better result on this quiz, none of the questions were all that hard and there weren't any I thought I'd missed. Maybe I overthought some of the obvious "True/False" questions, like the one about the Earth's core being really hot.

Your result for The Public Understanding of Scientific Terms and Concepts Test...

77% Understanding!

Take The Public Understanding of Scientific Terms and Concepts Test at HelloQuizzy

Current Location: Wrybread HQ
Current Mood: drained
Current Music: Screamin' Jay Hawkins-Frenzy

Thanks to i_chaos_bringer for this one, time for me to be opinionated.

The Controversial Quiz

1 - Do you have the guts to answer these Q's and repost as The Controversial Survey?

Yes.

2 - Would you do meth if it was legalized?

No, I don't like to mess myself up on anything besides booze from time to time, weed once in a blue moon, and 'shrooms one time at Wreck Beach after a Final Exam a few years ago.

3 - Abortion: for or against?

For. Unless they're truly ready for it financially and emotionally after having given it a great deal of thought, people should hold off on having children. Frankly, I think if anything more people should choose abortion or at the very least adoption.

4 - A 2 month old child and a 65 year old man who has the cure for cancer but hasn't had a chance to announce it yet, one of them has to die...who should survive?

The 65-year old man. A shame about the baby, but the cure for cancer would save thousands of people of all ages. Utilitarianism-the idea that what is right is doing the thing that will do the greatest good for the greatest number of people-works 99% of the time.

5 - Would our country fall with a woman president?

Well, yes. If my country-Canada-had a woman president, it would mean we'd finally been invaded and annexed by the Americans. As for a woman Prime Minister/Leader, though, Canada briefly had one (and we technically do have a female Head of State as well of course) and things puttered along as well or ill as ever. I can't stand some feminist types who insist that the world would be perfect if women ran the world-since the type of person who makes it big in politics seems to be the same type regardless of gender, and no one's perfect-but it's equally silly to suggest that women can't lead.

6 - Do you believe in the death penalty?

No, too Old Testament for my liking.

7 - Do you wish marijuana would be legalized already?

I'm apathetic, I suppose if it was more readily available I'd smoke it more, but whether or not that would be a good thing is open to debate.

8 - Are you for or against premarital sex?

For!

9 - Do you believe in God?

No. Nor do I really care to find out whether or not He/She/It exists, and it wouldn't change my view of the universe and/or any of my actions in life if I knew for sure.

10 - Do you think same sex marriage should be legalized?

Yes. See #9. Honestly, there's no good argument against it, especially considering how messed up many (most?) hetero marriages are. I do feel, however, that no religious leader should be forced to perform a same sex marriage against his/her will.

11 - Do you think its wrong that so many Hispanics are moving to the USA?

Considering the way the American economy's going, I question whether or not it's a good idea! Although I've noticed more Mexicans around Vancouver lately, doing Construction work and the like...perhaps they're the next wave of immigration up here?

12 - A 13 year old girl has a baby...should she keep it?

Honestly, considering most 13-year old girls I've known, no. One of the "A" words is the best option.

13 - I guess the questioner has a thing about the number 13...

14 - Should the war in Iraq be called off?

Yes, I don't pretend to be the one who should be calling the shots on that extremely complicated and volatile situation, but if I was, I'd say get the US out of there, send in a multinational UN peacekeeping force to rebuild as best they can.

15 - Assisted suicide is illegal...do you agree?

I think that 9 times out of 10 life is worth living despite the pain, it beats the alternative, but in those situations like a debilitating terminal illness (ALS, say, or worse still something mental like Alzheimer's or Dementia) or a coma from which the patient has no chance of emerging, I think that it should at least be decriminalized so that no one's punished by the law for taking what they think is the best course of action.

16 - Do you believe in spanking your children?

I don´t actually plan on having children, but in general, no, I don't believe in corporal punishment. There are better ways of making it clear to a child that they've done something they shouldn't have without harming them.

17 - Would you burn an American flag for a million dollars?

Yes. I'd burn a Canadian flag too. Hell, I'd burn a-well, you probably don't want to know how far I'd for a million dollars, that's a hell of a lot of money. As long as my health/dignity wasn't overly compromised...

18 - A mother is declared innocent after murdering her 5 children in a temporary insanity case...what do you think?

Having 5 kids is insane to begin with. More generally, I think it would be better if instead of "Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity", people were declared "Guilty but Insane." It would take away the sense of being absolved for the actions they committed while still acknowledging that they weren't in their right minds at the time of their offence.

19 - It's between you and a person who is being kept alive by life support machines..one has to die who?

The other guy. What, I like being alive. I'm sure I'll feel different as I get older though.

20 - Are you afraid others will judge you from reading some of your answers?

No. Everyone who reads this LJ's my friend, and since I don't judge my friends for their actions and beliefs, I don't expect them to judge mine. And if they're not my friend, then what do I care what they think of me?

Current Location: Wrybread HQ
Current Mood: okay
Current Music: The Real McKenzies-McPherson's Rant

And by "New" I mean "One Which I've Been Doing For Several Months But Haven't Blogged Abuot Because I've Neglected My LJ." Anyways, for the past few months I've been studying Western Martial Arts, ie Fencing With the Rapier & Longsword, Grappling/Wrestling, and Quarterstaff (cool weapons, but really bloody heavy) at Academie Duello: http://www.academieduello.com/

I'd been putting off trying a Martial Art for years, and I'm sorry that I waited for so long at this point! Then a while ago my gaming buddy TR, who's been training at the Academie for years, just randomly asked a bunch of us one night if any of us were interested in giving it a try, and I was the only one crazy/curious enough to say "why not?" It's been a really good experience thus far. Painful at times-our warm-up's pretty hardcore (Burpies, anyone? Don't ask.), swords are heavy and getting poked with one in the ribs while sparring isn't fun, plus there's a lot of crazy body movement/stretching involved-but fun in a "I've worked myself hard" sort of way. On a day-to-day basis, it's making me a lot more aware of and in tune with my body-especially my footwork, as well as improving my strength, flexibility, and fitness. It's improved my general confidence too, I think more than anything because I've stuck with something that doesn't come naturally to me.

Mostly, though, swords are just cool. It doesn't matter how much of a Nerdlinger you are in your everyday life, swing a sword around for a bit and you'll feel badass. Had a good Longsword cutting class today from which I'm aching (think I might have rolled an ankle), but it's great to feel my cuts getting more fluid and better-formed. Good times, good times.

Current Location: Wrybread HQ
Current Mood: sore
Current Music: Smash Mouth-All Star

i_chaos_bringer just bailed on me to go to a sneak preview of Ruins tonight at the Scotiabank/Paramount Theatre. Before going home for some much-needed rest, however, he passed his ticket along to me, so if anyone wants a free pass to see this interesting-looking movie (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0963794/ for info), e-mail me (newton.brendan@gmail.com) ASAP!!! I don't mind going solo to movies and the like-in fact I love it-but it would be cool to have some company, especially given that it's a *free* preview. The price is right!

Current Location: Wrybread HQ
Current Mood: quixotic
Current Music: Hard-Loving Loser-Richard and Mimi Farina

...That I thought I'd quickly put out to my LJ list.  When a job application asks for your "Desired Salary", what's the best answer to give?  I'm always a little caught out by that question, I usually say something along the lines of "something above minimum wage, whatever's standard for the position in question, with my ongoing salary being judged on the basis of my ongoing performance", but I was wondering if anyone had suggestions.  Of course I'm always tempted to give a smartass answer along the lines of 5.5 Million/Year.  Ah well, the job/life search goes on...   

Current Location: Wrybread HQ
Current Mood: relaxed
Current Music: WrestleCrap Radio Podcast

I recently picked up a writing gig reviewing the new Bionic Woman and (starting this Wednesday) Pushing Daisies over at 411mania.com; the first review can be found here:  http://www.411mania.com/movies/dvd_reviews/60592/411-Retro-TV-Review:--Bionic-Woman.htm Figured it was safe to link to since most of you already know my real name.  Don't know if anyone else watched/is watching Bionic Woman, but I would love to hear feedback from y'all regarding it or any other aspect of my reviews; I may be occasionally doing DVD/Audio CD/Video Game reviews for the site as well.  It's not paid work, granted, but it's writing experience, the possibility of freebies, and having at least one somewhat creative/interesting gig would make any ho-hum paid job that much more palatable. 

Current Location: Wrybread HQ
Current Mood: indescribable
Current Music: Johnny Cash & June Carter Cash-Jackson

About what I have and haven't done, yoinked from

tijnat

Current Location: Wrybread HQ
Current Mood: thoughtful
Current Music: Great Big Sea-The Mermaid

...For anyone planning on getting their Canadian Passport in the near future; apply for it online. With all kinds of horror stories circulating about people waiting months and having huge mix-ups and waiting all day to get their application processed, I applied using the online form and was out of the Passport Office within half an hour. That was two weeks ago. My passport came in the mail today. And I don't even have a certain travel date, which makes me feel a bit sorry for these poor people who wait months for their passports which they need to be home for Christmas or whatever. Considering what a long slog the application process was meant to be, mine went incredibly smoothly, and it all seems to be thanks to getting my app into the system as early in the process as possible via the online application. I strongly recommend it. Not quite sure when and where I'll be jetting off somewhere, although it looks like there's another Serenity Con in London in April, I always wanted to go to one of those...

Current Location: Wrybread HQ
Current Mood: thankful
Current Music: The Brobdingagian Bards-Jedi Drinking Song

Managed to beat the heat and went swimming today, hoping to finally get the exercise back into my life as a routine. Had a good long walk home too, so currently floating on endorphins and sunshine, much as the rest of Vancouver seems to be.

In process of applying for a couple of interesting-looking jobs, also looking at going back to school for more...schooling, looking at the Writing & Publishing programs at SFU and Langara. They both look interesting, both look like they encompass a lot of content that would be useful for me to learn. Stay tuned for infrequent updates.

One last thing: I'm not devoting a whole post to it at this point, but looks like no final episodes of Drive as advertised this Friday. Probably not even available online. One last time: Fuck Fox. I wonder if SwearingattheFoxNetwork.com is taken as a URL?

Current Location: Wrybread HQ
Current Mood: hot
Current Music: Great Big Sea-Boston and St. John's

That Jayne icon of mine can only mean one thing; this will be a work-related LiveJournal post. Or rather, a lack-of-work-so-applying-for-job post. Applying for a job this week, kids. As it's been damned near a year since I last seriously went through this process, I was wondering if anyone had some thoughts/tips/comments/suggestions, really anything from who might be hiring in case the one I'm applying for this week doesn't work out, to job search tips (like, is the ideal resume one or two pages?) to thoughts on what you could see me doing and/or what my strengths are, since most of you know me pretty well. I really look forward to seeing what you have to say, so comment away. Oh, and I could use resume/cover letter proofreaders too if anyone has a moment.

Current Location: Wrybread HQ
Current Mood: okay
Current Music: Let Go-Garden State Soundtrack

I gave my two week's notice at work today. I'd been pretty hush-hush about my intention to do so with both work people and friends, but I've been planning to do this for a while. I've been at my current call centre job for over a year now, which I felt was long enough for what was meant to be a temp job that I never really thrived at and was always something of an awkward fit. The money was decent, and I've definitely gained some great experience and knowledge of a lot of finance-related areas I knew next to nothing about (not least of all how hard life is for a lot of people), but as my manager said when I told him, the job's not for everybody, and it's really become the centrepiece of a fine deep rut that I've driven my life into. Quitting isn't going to solve all of my problems overnight, lord knows, but it seems like a step in the right direction. At this point, I have a good bit of money saved up, I don't yet have a mortgage/wife/kids/minivan, and I'm feeling a bit more confident about what I can do with my life than I was a year or so ago. It feels like once I was done with high school, I just went on to college/university because I was "smart" and that was what smart people did, and then for the past couple of years I've just flaked around and underachieved. Hopefully no more of that; maybe it's lack of sleep at the moment, but it just feels like there are a lot of options that I could pursue and do well at. Feels almost like I just graduated...

Anyways, that's the big news. Resuming normal broadcast now.

Current Location: Wrybread HQ
Current Mood: groggy