Friday, June 23, 2006

Moving Tip #23


Moving Tip #23
Originally uploaded by Grutko.
I will not have immediate Internet access at the new place, so forgive me if the blog collects a little dust during the transition.

Thursday, June 22, 2006

Diggin' For Gold

Went to my last class at theDojo today. And my instructor surprised me with a gold belt at the end of class.

I wasn't sure if they would grant me my gold belt since it was not promotions week -- first week of the month. I had the necessary number of marks(8) on my belt, so I told the instructor about my upcoming departure, and asked him if it would be possible to get my gold belt before promotions week. He wasn't sure, but he would find out before my last class.

At the end of my last class, the instructor asked us to line up, which is the normal routine. Then he said that he had an announcement. Up until this point I thought I was not going to get the new belt, since I would have seen it and the certificate lying on the podium. He announced to everyone that today was my last class at theDojo, and I was moving to another state. And since I was an excellent student, I was allowed to have my gold belt. He wanted to surprise me, and hid the belt and certificate in is gym bag until the end of class. It worked -- I was surprised!

I am going to really miss that place. I met a lot of great people during my six month stint there.

Still need to find a new place near where I'm moving.

Wednesday, June 21, 2006

Finger? What About My Asshole?


Finger? What About My Asshole?
Originally uploaded by Grutko.

Friday, June 16, 2006

"The Devil Was A Mutha Fuckin Liar!"

I'd go to church every Sunday to listen to this fella preach.

Quote of the Day!

"A lot of Christians wear crosses around their necks. You think when Jesus comes back, he ever wants to see a fucking cross? Kind of like going up to Jackie Onassis with a rifle pendant on, you know." -Bill Hicks

Thursday, June 15, 2006

Those Kooky Kath-o-licks

U.S. bishops approve new Mass translation
(via Yahoo News)

"The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops voted at its biannual meeting for a new translation after a brief but vigorous debate over several small changes in wording. The 173-29 vote on the Order of the Mass was aimed at satisfying Vatican
calls for a translation that's closer to the Latin version."

...

"Minor changes to the wording of many portions of the Mass will be obvious to Catholics. The repeated exchanges "The Lord be with you" / "And also with you" between a priest and his congregation, for example, become "The Lord be with you" / "And with your spirit" in the updated version."
Read More...


Stephen Hawking says pope told him not to study beginning of universe
(via Slashdot / nwfdailynews.com)

"Famous astrophysicist Stephen Hawking said Thursday that the late Pope John Paul II once told scientists they should not study the beginning of the universe because it was the work of God."

...

"Hawking, who didn't say when the meeting was held, quoted the pope as saying, "It's OK to study the universe and where it began. But we should not enquire into the beginning itelf because that was the moment of creation and the work of God."
Read More...

Black Magic


Black Magic
Originally uploaded by Grutko.

Wednesday, June 14, 2006

Packing Up The Wagon

I found out a last Friday that theWife and I will be moving away from Chicago in TWO(!) weeks. We were entertaining the thought of moving in a few months, but not in two short weeks. In a matter of two days, theWife was notified of an open position for employment and accepted a the offer, I have a job, and we have a place to drop anchor (bought for us to rent by her new employer). Read more about this here.

The Trek to Chicago

A group of friends and band mates, my wife, and myself moved to Chicago from a small town in Indiana nearly 5 years ago. The driving force to migrate was so our band could to be part of a large music scene and hopefully one day become rock stars. That intention slowly fell apart for myself over the course of our first year living here. theWife and I fell in love with Chicago and continued living in the city.

Xeper

My time spent in Chicago has been life changing, but not always in a positive light, at least not at the time. During the first half of my time spent here my life seemed to be destroyed, or re-evaluated, depending on how you look at it. My mother died a couple of weeks after moving; the band fell apart within the first year which resulted in the temporary loss of friendships to the people whom I held close to my heart; my father ruined what little of a relationship we had by choosing to be more concerned with the demands of a con woman, than the well-being of his sons (long story); my wife and a parasitic lowlife masquerading himself as a friend were having an affair behind my back, thus pushing my wife and I to the threshold of divorce; and I spent many days on the roof of my workplace looking down on Michigan avenue, dismayed at the direction my life was going -- contemplating suicide.

I had walked through the Void and survived.

The second half of my time here appears to been a period of reflection and rebuilding myself. As much as it hurt going through that dark period, it appears to me that it had to happen. I have gone through various forms of transformation, all for a more positive experience. I AM becoming centered now. I have less weight to carry. Furthermore, I would not be who I AM had it not and had I not been moved to Chicago allowing it to manifest.

Giving Thanks

Living in Chicago has given me the opportunity to experience life in a much different way than I would have still living in my small hometown. Living here opened my mind to new experiences and tore down many illusions. One of the first things that I noticed living in Chicago is the diversity of cultures that all intermingle with each other within the city. While waiting to cross a busy street in downtown Chicago, a person standing next to me asked what I loved most about Chicago, and without hesitation I responded to his question with, "The diversity of people." He earnestly agreed and said that homogeneity is not a good thing. I couldn't agree more.

As much as I love Chicago it will be nice to be near the open country. Over the last year I have been wanting to learn the art of gardening, learn and practice methods of being more self-sustaining, and continue to experience consciousness in a less urban environment. Our new homestead will lend itself to those goals. theWife and I are ready to have kids, too, so I'm excited about entering that phase of our life. Neither one of us wanted to have children in Chicago. The cost of living is far too high for us, especially if only one of us is going to be working.

Friday, June 09, 2006

PROJECT BLUE BEAM

WTF!?

" The infamous NASA Blue Beam Project has four different steps in order to implement the new age religion with the antichrist at its head. We must remember that the new age religion is the very foundation for the new world government, without which religion the dictatorship of the new world order is completely impossible. I'll repeat that: Without a universal belief in the new age religion, the success of the new world order will be impossible! That is why the Blue Beam Project is so important to them, but has been so well hidden until now."

...

"
The calculated resistance to the universal religion and the new

messiah and the ensuing holy wars will result in the loss of human life on a scale never imagine before in all of human history. The Blue Beam Project will pretend to be the universal fulfillment of the prophecies of old, as major an event as that which occurred 2,000 years ago. In principle, it will make use of the skies as a movie screen (on the sodium layer at about 60 miles) as space-based laser-generating satellites project simultaneous images to the four corners of the planet in every language and dialect according to the region. It deals with the religious aspect of the new world order and is deception and seduction on a massive scale. Computers will coordinate the satellites and software already in place will run the sky show." [Full Article]

Here is a synopsis of Project Blue Beam.


Record Meteorite Hit Norway

(via aftenposten.no)

"This is simply exceptional. I cannot imagine that we have had such a powerful meteorite impact in Norway in modern times. If the meteorite was as large as it seems to have been, we can compare it to the Hiroshima bomb. Of course the meteorite is not radioactive, but in explosive force we may be able to compare it to the (atomic) bomb," Røed Ødegaard said.
[...]

Waveforms To Tickle Your Cochlea

Added a Jukebox section to the sidebar for your listening pleasure.

Monday, June 05, 2006

70LBS Later


I have lost nearly 70 pounds and maintaining the loss. It took me a year to lose 60 pounds of it.

The Short Story:

I was vacationing in New Mexico (December '04), when I decided that it was time to reinvigorate my whole self, my physical body being the most noticeable. I had lost a few pounds about 2 years previous after getting a gym membership with some friends, but gained it back soon thereafter as my gym attendence came to a halt. I was soon back to wearing a size 40 pants. I felt discouraged.

Up until I started this challenge my eating habits were terrible. I basically ate a diet of meat, cheese, and bread and rarely consumed any fruits or vegetables. Processed foods developed by teams of scientists kept me barely alive. I drank lots of soda and avoided water at all costs. Now adays I've been eating whole foods, a mostly organic, vegetarian based diet (avoiding milk & eggs) for about 9 months. Now I can't get enough of the fruits and veggies! I stopped drinking soda and now drink primarily water.

All through my life I've been a little chubby and expected to be "well-padded" for the rest of it. My mother was overweight and I assumed that I would probably follow in her footsteps. The fattest period of my life was around my wedding which was captured by the "before" photograph above. That's my mother standing with me in the photograph. After her death of a heart attack (46 yrs old), I became very concerned with my health, as did my wife (after picture).

When I look at old pictures of myself it's hard to believe that it is me that I'm looking at. I did not expect my change in appearence to be so drastic. It's fun to run into friends and family who haven't seen me since losing the weight because they initially do not have any clue who I am. The first thing people usually ask is how I managed to lose the weight. Many expecting my answer to be the use of medication, some crazy dieting trend, or even an eating disorder.

Here's a brief description of my weekly schedule: 6 to 7 meals a day, perform strength training & cardio exercise 3 days, attend martial arts classes 3-4 days, a little yoga here and there, and daily meditation. No magic pills; just hard work and discipline.

This challenge has been a long and difficult process; however, it has been worth every bit of effort I have invested. It has changed my life.

Thursday, June 01, 2006

Just A Game Of Make-believe

"I also know that the nature of physical reality is not determined by popular vote. Many people sharing the same delusion does not make the delusion true, whether we're talking about interspecies communication, modern science, Christianity, or capitalism. Think about how many people voted for Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, or Augusto Pinochet, for that matter. Look how many people--including some presumably intelligent ones--spend their lives producing nuclear weapons. Look how many people think money is wealth, and believe land can be bought and sold. It doesn't matter if it isn't true. Remember, this is a game of make-believe. It's a pretty good game, very well constructed; in fact it's so good we've forgotten that it is just a game."

Derrik Jensen - A Language Older Than Words