S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y NIGHT!

Yea, I missed posting last night...you wanna make something of it??

Didn't think so. :D

So, I'm sitting here just getting ready for bed. Well, ready for bed, but sitting at the computer, listening to some K-Pop, and thinking about stuff, like I do.

Today was a nice mellow day. Got up late-ish, went to run a couple errands with the Nora, had some dim sum, came home and did laundry. Oh and watched two movies: the Devil's Backbone and the 5000 Fingers of Dr. T.

Both amazing! Both of us really enjoyed them.

I like Devil's Backbone a lot more than I did Cronos, but not as much as I liked Pan's Labyrinth...just realizing in general how much I enjoy Del Toro's directing.

5000 Finger is a gem. Serious. Dr. Seuss written and designed, and really entertaining. I loved it.

Anyhoo...i'ma get some sleep...getting back to weekly gaming tomorrow. :)

I leave you with this video of a current favorite K-Pop song. Enjoy!

I just wanted to say...

...that your pleasures should never be guilty ones.

Own your taste and revel in it. No one should ever be embarrassed or ashamed of things they like. Especially when it comes to music, art, literature, or any other form of entertainment. I mean unless it's illegal or morally questionable, 'cause, well, it's illegal or morally questionable...

One should never have to explain their tastes. There is something out there for everyone, and not everyone has to like what everyone else likes, you know?

I have on a few occasions found myself justifying my tastes, in music and movies in particular, and I'm here to tell you, I don't like it.

Here are a few examples:

Abba. I like their music. I find that it is actually much more complex than people tend to think. There is some fine songwriting happening there, and well, it's really catchy.

Star Wars, episodes 1-3. As a geek, it is almost anathema to like these. Why do I enjoy these three movies? Well, for the same reason I like most movies..they entertain me. Are they perfect? Not so much. But what they do have is the stuff that, as a young geekling I craved..action. Specifically, light saber duels...like I wish there had been in the first 3 films.

Disco. 'Cause, really, what's not to like? :)

Anyhoo, that's all i wanted to say tonight. Sleep tight everyone!

Tid Bits

I was amused to find out that George Carlin wrote in one of his books that women are crazy and men are stupid, which is the basic tenet of my personal philosophy, which I call The Great Cosmic Joke©. I knew I should have been wearing a tin foil hat all these years.

The Name of my blog is a quote from The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension, tag line is from Billy Bragg's song Milkman of Human Kindness, and the name Pere Macaco is Portugese for father Monkey, in case you were wondering.

I do not consider myself a musician. I do sing, as well as play guitar. I also play a little bass, mandolin, violin, and field drum. All self taught. And you can REALLY tell when I play.

My favorite animal is the monkey. Well, primates in general, really. I was also born in the Year of the Monkey. And am a Libra.

As you may have noticed, I really couldn't think of anything to write about...and that's ok, cause this kind of post will make up for the ones where I tend to go on. :)

Ignorance is bliss and stupid is as stupid does....

When did it become OK to be for peace and unity and understanding, yet be intolerant of opinions not aligned to your own? I see this often on my FB page. Almost with alarming frequency. I am often puzzled by this, as several of the perpetrators are genuinely nice, intelligent people. To me, acceptance and tolerance are universal. We don't get to be selectively kind. I feel that people, in general, have forgotten this. One cannot simply walk into Mor...er, cannot simply choose to only be kind or gracious or even moderately polite to those with whom they agree. Intelligent discourse doesn't mean calling people stupid or ignorant for their beliefs.

It would be naive of me to believe that ignorance doesn't exist. I know it's out there, but why be so arrogant as to believe that another person's ignorance is incurable or evil. News flash - ignorance is simply the state of being uninformed. It is neither good nor bad. So why do so many people feel it is evil?

I am ignorant of a great many things and admit so freely.

Why not, instead of being so irrationally hateful towards ignorance, try to teach the ignorant? Try to lead them out of ignorance.

This is not to say try to sway their opinion, but actually TEACH them something. Especially when it comes to something they or you believe in. Hip them to the knowledge you have. SHARE that knowledge. Let them come to an informed decision on the subject, regardless of whether you agree with it or not.

I also find that I'm not a fan of the word stupid being flung around so liberally. Is everyone suddenly Wile E. Coyote, super genius? (Probably not the best example, come to think of it.) Again, I see it online often...and it saddens me. So someone is not as well read or well spoken or well educated as you, does that give you the right to belittle them so? Honestly, why does it bother people so much?

Personally, I find this to be a grievous failing in our culture. Both of these words have become so pejorative...so hurtful.

I don't know, maybe I'm just over-sensitive, but I think it's wrong to look down on anyone.

At the end of the day, though, I am not going to change anyone's thinking on this. People will go on and do what they will. By the same token, I don't have to like it or participate.

Please don't misunderstand, I am not innocent. I've railed against people's 'ignorance' and 'stupidity' on occasion...but as I grow older I find that I tire of the lack of simple human kindness this espouses, and am trying to change my ways...

Basically, to paraphrase Kate Bush, I try to be kind to people's mistakes...

Oh K-pop, why do you have such a hold on me!

I was thinking about this the other day.

What is it about K-Pop that I like so much?

Let me start by saying that I love music in general, in all its forms. this is not to say that there aren't styles that I don't really listen too, but I can generally find some merit in pretty much every form of music.

Growing up, I was exposed to all sorts of music. From Guatemalan marimba music to rock & roll. Along the way I learned to like folk music, traditional forms from around the world, classical, musical theater, and, of course, pop music.

For the sake of this entry, let's narrow the definition of pop music to be that which is popular at the time, you know, top 40 kind of stuff. there was a time I would have considered these likings to be 'guilty pleasures.' I think over the last few years I have finally grown out of that notion.

Why should one excuse their preferences as guilty pleasures? why should one feel that they cannot revel in these things?

With that in minds I say, without guilt, I love Abba. I love the Osmonds. I love disco, boy & girl bands, the Spice girls and their 21st C. counterparts Girls Aloud. And of course, Korean Pop Music.

It started when I saw the group The Wonder girls on an episode of "So You Think You Can Dance." I looked them up on line and found some stuff. Then a year or so later my daughter, Nora, started showing some stuff she was listening to on You Tube.

That was when it all began. :)

I started looking around on line and kept coming across groups I really enjoyed. I won't be disingenuous and say that the fact that it's a bunch of super cute Asian girls sing jaunty tunes had nothing to do with the appeal, because it did. Heck, even the indie/not-pop stuff I listen to has had its share of groups I began listening to because the lead singer or members of the band were kind of foxy, but I usually will lose interest if the music isn't appealing.

I found, through my online wanderings that a great deal of these groups/artists are genuinely talented. As Nora & I did more exploring, we found the variety within the Korean music industry was pretty wide. They cover everything from bubblegum pop to rap to R&B...it made for some great musical discoveries. :)

There you have it. The why. K-pop has become a bit of a thing for me, and I'm glad for it. It has actually become a nice little happy place. It genuinely has the ability to cheer me up. My brother pointed out that I tend to really dive into things when I discover or re-discover them. He likened my love of K-Pop to my introduction to English folk music at Faire and later, by my friend Joe.

Now I still listen to everything I've always listened to up til now, but I do spend a bit of time everyday listening to K-Pop too. :)

First Day....

Today is the first day of 2012.

I wish I could say I was excited. I wish I could say I was giddy with anticipation of a new year filled with possibility.

All I feel is dread.

I simply haven't had much to look forward to in the new year for some time now. 2011 wasn't a fantastic year, but neither were 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, or 2006.

A friend posted on his FB feed how he thought people should "stop your bitching, get off your ass and do something productive with your meaningless life." I find his attitude about this amusing. And mildly insulting. He seems to be working off the assumption that hoping for things to get better means that you aren't working to make things better. I work my ass off...and still hope to be able to make things better. And it really hasn't happened. Hope is what keep me going. Hope that eventually, everything I do is going to pay off. But everyone is entitled to their opinion, I certainly don't begrudge that ever.

I do hope. I hope that the work I do, the things I strive for will eventually pay off. I hope that all this will get me to the point of not having to worry.

I hope to be able to no longer carry this sadness that seems to have crept into my life. It's not normal for me, but I'm getting older, and more tired.

I know it is going to get better, because, really, how could it possibly get worse! :D

Sitting here staring at the screen...

And completely at a blank for anything to write...so random it is!

...though I am enjoying DaDaDa by Trio.

...am a little disturbed by the FB ad that tells me I should "Make babies my business."

...really wishes he understood Korean.

...have a stress test tomorrow at the Doctor's...I get to walk on a treadmill for a while to have my ticker checked.

...went to HTB with the Nora, my brother and nieces for breakfast. I loves me some buffets!

that's all for now.