Back to the lighter side: CB2, just what are you trying to say?

 

I wonder if "NO" is out of stock.

Monday Morning Quarterbacking: AZ Shootings

I don't know why I feel the need to put this here. This is not meant to be that sort of blog. But I want to at least try to eloquently express my view of the AZ shooting because I'm tired of the words "witchhunt" and allusions to (still! how can people PAID for their opinions STILL be using such violent imagery?) political fire.

I don't think any reasonable person is making the claim that Palin or Glen Beck or Obama or Joe Biden or any outspoken individual is directly to blame.

However, in light of what happened, the tastelessness of such a website, and of a lot of the violent rhetoric coming from both sides, is shown in sharp relief.

I don't understand the aversion to connecting this to a political motive born of a troubled mind and spurred by misinterpretation of off the cuff remarks and deliberate vocabulary. This was a politician who held some unpopular opinions in her state and who had been the target of violence and vandalism before.

Further, truthfully, no one knows the motives here but the troubled young man with the gun and perhaps law enforcement. So why, at this point, is one side any more right than the other? It's just something to think about and consider. Humans debate. Humans speculate. It doesn't have to be sides. And, as someone who has not, even in jest advocated violence toward those with a different interpretation of the matter, I am troubled by the divisive, and, frankly, still-violent imagery being used.

"It may be free speech, but it is not without consequences." -Clarence Dupnik, Pima County Sheriff's Department

I am not advocating censorship so do not even think of taking that argument with me. If you know me AT ALL, you know how repugnant the idea is to me. However, people need to start some self-regulation. To THINK before they speak. To those of you in power, people LISTEN to you, okay? They listen to your voice and they read your words ... and they take them and they DO things with them. You may be frustrated by roadblocks, but it's time to stop thinking in terms of enemies and crosshairs and accusations of treason just because someone wants something different than you do. THINK.

Portals to the unknown

Like I said in my post below, I'm getting better at seeing things and thinking "If I want that exact item, but in white," and then realizing I CAN HAVE IT! So when I saw this mirror on Target's website, I thought it'd be awesome in my bathroom, but in white.

Then I looked closer. And realized that's not a mirror at all. It's a portal to the other side.

Seriously. That goblet does not exist on this earthly plane. Where is it? What is it trying to tell us?

Shelving Books

I have a lot of books. A LOT. Right now they're lined against the wall in paper grocery bags, taunting me. I know they used to take up at least five shelves of a roughly 5' tall bookcase. But, as that bookshelf itself was the ex's (he was accommodating enough to keep all of his books in the closet), I now need a new bookshelf.

Most of my furniture is Ikea and it's all black-brown wood. A ha, thought I! A Billy bookcase in black-brown is just the thing I need to complement my decor AND store my books! And a bargain at $50! But look closer at the picture.

Does it ... really only come with 2 shelves? REALLY? Who the heck wants a bookcase with two shelves!?

Not to worry! says Ikea. You can buy more shelves! As many shelves as you need! You can CRAM that sucker with shelves!

Well, I'd really just like five shelves. You know, like a normal bookcase. I'd even settle for four, if I had to, going by the height of it. And you know what? At $15 a pop, three more shelves are going to cost me nearly as much as getting a whole bookcase. WTF. Granted, it's a $50 bookcase, and getting it for $95 total isn't THAT much in the grand scheme of things but c'mon. AND you have to take the chance the shelves are in stock, adding another layer of annoyance to the sometimes less-than-ideal Ikea experience. I'm STILL waiting for my additional Benno shelves to come in.

Why you gotta nickel and dime me, Ikea? It's like telling me you have a stove for $50, but it only comes with one burner and I'm welcome to buy the other three for an additional $20 each! No one wants a one-burner stove and no one wants a ridiculous-looking two-shelf bookcase. Be reasonable here and sell the damn thing with enough shelves to make it usable and price it accordingly. Then, if I really want to store 2"-tall books, the onus is on me to buy some more, which I would happily do.