From Odakota_Furry:

If you have 00-10 ... write [I'm a goody-goody]
If you have 11-20 ... write [I'm still a goody-goody]
If you have 21-30 ... write [I'm average]
If you have 31-40 ... write [I'm a bad kid]
If you have 41-50 ... write [I'm a very bad influence]
If you have 51-60 ... write [I'm a horrible person]
If you have 61-70 ... write [I should be in jail]
If you have 71-80 ... write [I should be dead]
If you have 81-90 ... write [I got a ticket to Hell]

HAVE YOU...

[X] smoked
[X] consumed alcohol
[ ] slept in the same bed with someone of the opposite sex
[X] slept in the same bed with someone of the same sex
[X] kissed someone of the same sex
[X] had sex
[X] had someone in your room other than family
[X] watched porn
[ ] bought porn
[_] tried drugs

TOTAL SO FAR: 7

[X] taken painkillers
[ ] taken someone else's prescription medicine
[X] lied to your parents
[X] lied to a friend
[ ] snuck out of the house
[X] done something illegal
[X] felt hurt
[X] hurt someone
[X] wished someone to die
[X] seen someone die

TOTAL SO FAR: 15

[X] missed curfew
[X] stayed out all night
[ ] eaten a carton of ice cream by yourself
[X] been to a therapist
[X] received a ticket (expired insurance)
[ ] been to rehab
[ ] dyed your hair
[X] been in an accident
[X] been to a club
[X] been to a bar

TOTAL SO FAR: 22

[X] been to a wild party
[_] been to a Mardi Gras parade (twice)
[ ] drank more than three alcoholic beverages in a night
[_] had a spring break in Florida
[X] sniffed anything
[_] wore black nail polish
[_] wore arm bands
[ ] wore t-shirts with band names
[X] listened to rap
[_] owned a 50 Cent CD

TOTAL SO FAR: 25

[_] dressed gothic
[X] dressed girly
[_] dressed punk
[ ] dressed grunge
[X] stole something
[_] been too drunk to remember anything
[_] blacked out
[_] fainted
[_] had a crush on a neighbour

TOTAL SO FAR: 27

[X] had a crush on a friend
[X] been to a concert
[X] dry-humped someone; been dry humped
[_] been called a slut
[_] called someone a slut
[ ] installed speakers in a car
[X] broken a mirror
[ ] showered at someone of the opposites sex's house
[_] brushed your teeth with someone else's toothbrush

TOTAL SO FAR: 31

[_] considered Ludacris your favorite rapper
[X] seen an R-rated movie
[X] cruised the mall
[X] skipped school [assuming university level counts too]
[X] had surgery
[X] had an injury
[_] gone to court
[_] walked out of a restaurant without paying/tipping
[X] caught something on fire
[ ] lied about your age

TOTAL SO FAR: 37

[X] owned/rented an apartment/house
[_] broke the law in the police's presence
[_] made out with someone who had a GF/BF
[ ] got in trouble with the police
[X] talked to a stranger
[X] hugged a stranger
[_] kissed a stranger
[X] rode in the car with a stranger
[_] been harassed (physically and emotionally)
[X] been verbally harassed

TOTAL SO FAR: 42

[X] met face-to-face with someone you met online
[X] stayed online for 5+ hours straight
[_] talked on the phone for more than 4 hours straight
[X] watched TV for 5 hours straight
[ ] been to a fair
[_] been called a bad influence
[X] drank and drove
[ ] prank-called someone
[_] laid on a couch with someone of the opposite sex
[X] cheated on a test

GRAND TOTAL: 47

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011.....79472K20111005

(Reuters) Apple Inc co-founder and former CEO Steve Jobs, counted among the greatest American CEOs of his generation, died on Wednesday at the age of 56, after a years-long and highly public battle with cancer and other health issues.
Jobs' death was announced by Apple in a statement late on Wednesday.

The Silicon Valley icon who gave the world the iPod and the iPhone resigned as CEO of the world's largest technology corporation in August, handing the reins to current chief executive Tim Cook.

Jobs, who fought a rare form of pancreatic cancer, was deemed the heart and soul of a company that rivals Exxon Mobil as the most valuable in America.

China's been known for counterfeiting products, but now it seems as though that isn't good enough anymore. So... the next step is counterfeiting entire stores, as in the Apple Store. One of the giveaways: the store has the words "Apple Store" next to the Apple logo. Interestingly enough, even the fake stores' employees think they work for the genuine company.

http://www.freep.com/article/201107.....e-stores-fakes

This is just... nuts. And FWIW, I like answer #5. XD

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfRsCju63v4

I heard a variation of this at midweek service at church Wednesday night and thought I'd pass it along.

There's a story told about a very devout Christian man whose house is caught in a raging flood. The flooding is so bad that the man has to climb on the roof of his house to escape the floodwaters. As the water level gets halfway up the side of the house, a guy comes by in a boat. "Jump in!" he says. "I'll take you to safety!"

"No," replies the Christian. "God will save me!"

A few hours later, the water has reached the roof and the waves are at the man's legs. Another guy comes by in a boat and makes the same offer. "Jump in! I'll take you to safety!"

"No," says the Christian. "God will save me!"

A few hours later, the water is now up to our guy's chest and continuing to rise. This time a helicopter arrives and lowers a basket. "Jump in!" says the pilot through a bullhorn. "I'll take you to safety!"

"No," says the Christian. "God will save me!"

Finally the guy drowns and goes to Heaven. When he sees God, he asks, "Did I not have enough faith, Lord? Why did You not save me?"

God replies, "What more did you want? I sent you two boats and a helicopter!"

This one just leaves me.... speechless.

http://thenewsjunkie.com/2010/03/me.....while-shaving/

After much thought and consideration, given the current economy and my fiscal situation, I have decided not to go to Further Confusion 2012.

I'd been really hoping to go, but it's just too expensive to plan any kind of travel.

Maybe 2013.

Sorry guys.

Less than 24 hours to go and there still hasn't been any improvement on the budget talks for the rest of FY 2011. As such, everyone's preparing for a partial government shutdown effective Friday at midnight (6pm Hawaii time).

I posted an entry on LJ saying that should this happen, I'll be doing most, if not all, of my socializing online for the duration of the shutdown. If I do go out, it'll be for essentials, like food, groceries, etc., and maybe to help out with church. But otherwise I'll be home, for the most part.

It's also looking like FC 2012 is very unlikely for me at this point but I'm not making a final decision until later in the year.

...and depending on which news article you read, like this one, the U.S. Congress is either one step closer to an agreement for federal funding through the rest of FY 2011, or one step closer to an impasse and a partial government shutdown after next Friday. Complicating matters is the Tea Party pressuring Republicans to not compromise, even if the government has to shut down.

And according to this article, the majority of voters prefer a government shutdown over additional spending, even if they believe a shutdown would hurt the economy.

I suspect that if you were to poll people, they would say that government workers are significantly overpaid, so they can certainly more than afford to take pay cuts to balance the budget. And maybe some 20 years ago I might have agreed.

Guess what... it's a different story when you're on the other side.

When I left active duty back in 2007, I took a GS-11 position that opened up at my last active duty station because first and foremost, it would keep me in Hawaii, and second, I'd have job security in an uncertain work environment, especially with the economy tanking, companies laying off people, etc. I even kicked around working for Hawaii state government, but after state workers were getting furloughed, I figured I'd made a better decision to stay with the feds.

Fast forward to 2011 and the threat of my employer running out of money to pay me.

Not a good feeling, especially when your employer is Uncle Sam.

The biggest thing I hate about this ongoing budget issue is the uncertainty about what will happen after next week. I've already had to cut back wherever I can, but my cuts are amounting to what Congress is doing in terms of trimming our national debt... just nibbling at the edges, but unable -- or in Congress' case, unwilling -- to go after the bigger-ticket items. (If I did the same with my own budget, I'd end up paying a lot more in the short term than I can currently afford, so that's a non-starter.)

Let's hope this whole thing gets resolved soon. I REALLY hate being in limbo.

The latest scuttlebutt to come from Google News indicates that there's a fairly good chance of a federal shutdown after next Friday.

What this means to yours truly, as a government employee:
- If there's a shutdown, I'll be furloughed for the duration of the shutdown.
- If there's a shutdown, I probably will not be able to attend Further Confusion 2012. I won't make the final decision until later on in the year, and I won't make it lightly, but either way I'll post something on here (and LJ, if the latter is up).
- One thing I've already started doing, in anticipation of the shutdown, is to curb going out with friends. Not something I recommend doing, but I simply cannot afford to go out other than for essential trips, like food and stuff.
- A side effect of this is that I'll probably be spending more time online as far as socializing goes.

Regardless of who you credit (or blame) for the current impasse (according to the poll in one article I read, Americans blame Democrats and Republicans equally, and it's a tossup as to who will come out on top if there is a government shutdown).

Deja vu? Didn't we just do this last year?

[pre]WEHW40 PHEB 110731
TSUHWX

HIZ001>003-005>009-012>014-016>021-023>026-110931-
/O.CAN.PHEB.TS.A.0001.000000T0000Z-000000T0000Z/
/O.NEW.PHEB.TS.W.0001.110311T0731Z-000000T0000Z/

BULLETIN
TSUNAMI MESSAGE NUMBER 3
NWS PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER EWA BEACH HI
931 PM HST THU MAR 10 2011

TO - CIVIL DEFENSE IN THE STATE OF HAWAII

SUBJECT - TSUNAMI WARNING

A TSUNAMI WARNING IS ISSUED FOR THE STATE OF HAWAII EFFECTIVE AT
0931 PM HST.

AN EARTHQUAKE HAS OCCURRED WITH THESE PRELIMINARY PARAMETERS

ORIGIN TIME - 0746 PM HST 10 MAR 2011
COORDINATES - 38.2 NORTH 142.5 EAST
LOCATION - NEAR EAST COAST OF HONSHU JAPAN
MAGNITUDE - 8.8 MOMENT

MEASUREMENTS OR REPORTS OF TSUNAMI WAVE ACTIVITY

GAUGE LOCATION LAT LON TIME AMPL PER

---

---

---

---

---

---

DART 21413 30.5N 152.1E 0659Z 0.76M / 2.5FT 32MIN
HANASAKI HOKKAIDO J 43.3N 145.6E 0657Z 2.79M / 9.2FT 76MIN
DART 21401 42.6N 152.6E 0643Z 0.67M / 2.2FT 40MIN
DART 21418 38.7N 148.7E 0619Z 1.08M / 3.5FT 06MIN

LAT - LATITUDE (N-NORTH, S-SOUTH)
LON - LONGITUDE (E-EAST, W-WEST)
TIME - TIME OF THE MEASUREMENT (Z IS UTC IS GREENWICH TIME)
AMPL - TSUNAMI AMPLITUDE MEASURED RELATIVE TO NORMAL SEA LEVEL.
IT IS ...NOT... CREST-TO-TROUGH WAVE HEIGHT.
VALUES ARE GIVEN IN BOTH METERS(M) AND FEET(FT).
PER - PERIOD OF TIME IN MINUTES(MIN) FROM ONE WAVE TO THE NEXT.

NOTE - DART MEASUREMENTS ARE FROM THE DEEP OCEAN AND THEY
ARE GENERALLY MUCH SMALLER THAN WOULD BE COASTAL
MEASUREMENTS AT SIMILAR LOCATIONS.

EVALUATION

A TSUNAMI HAS BEEN GENERATED THAT COULD CAUSE DAMAGE ALONG
COASTLINES OF ALL ISLANDS IN THE STATE OF HAWAII. URGENT ACTION
SHOULD BE TAKEN TO PROTECT LIVES AND PROPERTY.

A TSUNAMI IS A SERIES OF LONG OCEAN WAVES. EACH INDIVIDUAL WAVE
CREST CAN LAST 5 TO 15 MINUTES OR MORE AND EXTENSIVELY FLOOD
COASTAL AREAS. THE DANGER CAN CONTINUE FOR MANY HOURS AFTER THE
INITIAL WAVE AS SUBSEQUENT WAVES ARRIVE. TSUNAMI WAVE HEIGHTS
CANNOT BE PREDICTED AND THE FIRST WAVE MAY NOT BE THE LARGEST.
TSUNAMI WAVES EFFICIENTLY WRAP AROUND ISLANDS. ALL SHORES ARE AT
RISK NO MATTER WHICH DIRECTION THEY FACE. THE TROUGH OF A TSUNAMI
WAVE MAY TEMPORARILY EXPOSE THE SEAFLOOR BUT THE AREA WILL
QUICKLY FLOOD AGAIN. EXTREMELY STRONG AND UNUSUAL NEARSHORE
CURRENTS CAN ACCOMPANY A TSUNAMI. DEBRIS PICKED UP AND CARRIED
BY A TSUNAMI AMPLIFIES ITS DESTRUCTIVE POWER. SIMULTANEOUS HIGH
TIDES OR HIGH SURF CAN SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASE THE TSUNAMI HAZARD.

THE ESTIMATED ARRIVAL TIME IN HAWAII OF THE FIRST TSUNAMI WAVE IS

0259 AM HST FRI 11 MAR 2011

MESSAGES WILL BE ISSUED HOURLY OR SOONER AS CONDITIONS WARRANT.[/b][/pre]

It looks like Congress may approve a temporary measure to keep the U.S. government running for at least the next couple of weeks:

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-government-shutdown-20110302,0,447349.story

However, that only means that I will probably have a job until mid-March or so. After that it's anyone's guess.

As a result, I've decided to curb going out (movies, etc.) until further notice. I'll be fine in the short term, but there's no telling how long a government shutdown, if it happens, will last.

In case you haven't been keeping track of the news:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dy.....022206829.html

And lest you think "oh, this could never happen," guess what... it DID. Back in '95-'96.

What this means to yours truly:

- I could be furloughed as early as next Friday if Congress doesn't approve some kind of spending bill, which at this point looks rather unlikely.

- That in turn would result in me cutting back on my personal finances, including but not limited to going out/seeing movies and/or travelling, though the only time I travel for leisure nowadays is FC.

- Beyond that, I don't know how much I'll have to cut back; it'll depend on how long the furloughs, if they occur, last.

Stay tuned to this blog or my LJ for updates.

I was at the Sprint store in Pearl Kai this afternoon when I saw someone wearing a gray fox tail. He was wearing a blue and white checkered shirt, baseball cap, shorts and shoes, and was around 6' or so tall. He also had a tattoo on his right leg but I couldn't tell what it was of.

The fox tail was the only indicator that this person might be a fur, but I couldn't exactly approach him because I was kinda incognito... I was wearing a solid t-shirt and jeans, nothing that would give me away as a fur... and no matter how many ways I thought of breaking the ice they all seemed awkward, especially if the person turned out NOT to be a fur:

"Hi, I noticed you were wearing a fox tail... are you a fur, by any chance?"

(call up a furry site like FA on one of the web-able phones and walk away)

(start meowing for no apparent reason, which would probably get me a LOT of strange looks)

"Hi, nice tail... where'd you get it?"

I thought about taking a pic of the person and posting it here to see if anyone could identify him, but I figured that would have looked funny too.

I think the person may be a military fur if anything, but local furs tend to be low-key to begin with. Plus, like I said I don't even know if the person I saw is even a fur, though it's kinda hard to argue against with the tail and all.

But.... if this sounds like someone you know, lemme know... I'm definitely up for meeting new furs!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=endM_UXfk-4

This was part of the set that I DJ'd at the Dead Dog at FC 2011.

A while back I read an article (http://www.suite101.com/content/does-your-cat-love-you-a47934) that listed behaviors that your cat may exhibit if he/she loves you. And interestingly enough, I've seen nearly all of them in Lani, if not more.

- Greeting me at the door: Check. Lani's an indoor cat, so she doesn't have a whole lot of places to go, but if I'm gone for more than a few minutes, she's usually meowing on the other side of the door when I come home. In fact, I have to be careful opening the door so I don't hit her.

- Following me from room to room: Check. Especially true when I use the litterbox. She'll run in and get a quick snack from her feeder, or drink some water, or use the litterbox herself, then run out. A few minutes later, she's back in, then back out.

- Adjusting to my schedule: Think so, but not sure. I do know that Lani seems to know when to let me sleep in, and usually doesn't bother me unless she hears me doing something in the room (most notably on the computer).

- Purrs, rubbing, other telltale signs. Check on the purring. Double check on the rubbing. Lani is also very talkative, which leads me to believe that she may be part-Siamese. Her meows are the high-pitched kittenish ones, so they are very pleading and rather difficult to ignore. Lani likes a lot of attention, which I don't mind giving her provided I'm not busy with something else, like websurfing, email, etc.

Yep, I'll be at FC in January. Dates I'll be in town are the 12th through 19th inclusive.

Shameless plug: I'll be DJing the Friday night dance in the Imperial Ballroom from roughly 9pm to 10pm. It also looks like I may lead off the Dead Dog on Monday evening from roughly 7-8pm. Check out the full schedule and descriptions of the dances here: http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/1967744/

For those on SL, I also plan to DJ the Wolf Valley room party Saturday night.

This con may, unfortunately, be the last furry con I attend due to finances (2012 is iffy but I should know more by midyear 2011).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RsqAMKnS0xk

(one of Dennis Hopper's last movies)

From phoenixaudobon:

1. () Have you ever howled at the moon?
2. () Have you ever barked at someone? (No, but I've been frequently tempted to meow for no apparent reason in a crowded elevator... does that count?)
3. () Have you ever found yourself drawing or scribbling furry art when you're supposed to be doing something else?
4. () Have you ever worn an animal costume or tail as a child and pretended to be an animal?
5. () Have you ever eaten out of a dog bowl?
6. (x) Have you been to at least one furry con? (Several ConFurences, ConiFur once, Anthrocon twice, Howloween once, and Further Confusion numerous times.)
7. () Do you like to look at furry porn all the time?
8. (x) Do you RP or play second life as a furry character?
9. (x) Do you own a fursuit or at least a tail? (I have a tail but haven't really worn it.)
10. (x) Do you know what all these words mean or have used them at least once? (At least the ones in this quiz...)
11. () Do you have at least 5 videos of you acting or doing something furry on youtube?
12. (x) Has your anthropersona/character been drawn in a furry porn type manner? (Fanart yes, but not by MY request. :P)
13. (x) Are you well known in the furry fandom? (My fursona is since I RP a 'toon character, but I'm not that well known.)
14. (x) Do you dream furry while you sleep?I sometimes dream I'm with other furs at a con, does that count?
15. () Would you transform into your character/fursona if you were given the chance to live like that for the rest of your life?
16. () Have you ever worn a collar?
17. () Do you own more than 20 art badges of your fursonas or characters?
18. () Have you been to more than 20 furry cons in your lifetime? (Not quite there yet, need to hit 5 more cons to hit 20 if I've been counting correctly.)
19. () Do you think that deep down you have the spirit of an animal within you?
20. (x) Do you enjoy hanging out with other furries? (Depends on the fur, some are fun to hang out with, others just drain my energy like there's no tomorrow.)
21. () Do you think we should have a furry run for president of the USA?
22. (x) If you ever became rich would you own a room in your house that was just to display your fursuits or furry art? (Art & plushies.)
23. (x) Is your best friend furry?
24. (x) Do your furry friends call you by your furry name in public? (Moreso at cons but among other furs I'll answer to my RL name, "Razor" or "Jake".)
25. (x) Have you been in the furry fandom for at least 5 years? (I joined in '94 or so, so I've been part of the fandom for quite some time...)

1 to 5 = Furry wannabe.
6 to 10 = Furry newbie.
11 to 15 = Furry.
16 to 20 = Hardened Furry.
21 to 25 = Hardcore Furry.

Sounds about right...

Saw this on a webcomic and thought it was cool enough to post, so here it is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNzisBCp4Ho

We've all seen plenty of movies, read plenty of books, looked at plenty of comics, and heard plenty of stories.

For this meme, just to satisfy the curiosity of others about what really gets that emotional rise out of you, pop up which scene(s) from books you've read or movies you've seen.

And then tag 5 people to respond with their own. Make sure you shoot them a page shout or a Note!

1. The ending of "Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry" (yellow Dodge Charger with the three main characters crashes into a train and explodes in flames, the end credits roll immediately afterward)
2. M*A*S*H - "Goodbye, Farewell & Amen" -- several scenes here:
2a. Charles' reaction after he sees the Chinese musicians he trained injured, with him unable to save the one survivor who made it back to the 4077th
2b. The scene in the operating room when the radio reports the cease-fire going into effect ending the Korean War
2c. The "GOODBYE" note that BJ leaves for Hawkeye
3. M*A*S*H - "Abyssinia, Henry" -- Henry Blake's farewell and Radar's reporting that Blake's plane was shot down, with no survivors
4. The opening scene of "Oliver & Company," with no dialogue, just sound effects and the opening song
5. The opening scene of "The Lion King," same thing (no dialogue, just the song)

And one more I just thought of...

6. The ending song to "Portal" (the cake is a lie!)

Like kingodin, I tag whoever wants to reply that hasn't already done so.

I gotta give Admiral Willard a LOT of credit for the way he responded (professionally, cordially, seriously, without laughing).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsFsn8ekyhw

Oh, and FWIW, this was actually posted yesterday (April 1, if you're taking notes).

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=4346245&id=7645145806&ref=nf

Okay, I personally believe that our economy is now firmly in the toilet. Feel free to disagree, but it's very unlikely that you'll change my mind, at least.

http://www.starbulletin.com/news/br...../88787927.html