On The Simmering Waves (Net Pic Heavy) in Book Six: Trying to Hold On 2019

I start today with feelings of worry, apprehension, and concern.

The temperatures are expected to hit triple digits. Heat Index up to over 110 degrees Fahrenheit. And already the difference in temperature between the hallway and my office is over 15 degrees different. 15 degrees hotter. Going from walking to my office to being in my office felt like the difference between walking through an air conditioned house and stepping outside. Truth told, if I didn’t have depositions this afternoon; I’d have requested permission to work from home after the Noon Hour due to temperature regulation.

But of course, the presence of those depositions also give me pause for concern. It is 10000 percent necessary to do these kinds of things, of course. If people are going to hurt children, there are many in this world who would argue that they shouldn’t be held accountable for those actions. Someone needs to disagree with that assertion and I have chosen to make that my job. This is a part of that process. To quote Hartigan: This is just a price I promised myself I’d pay, now I’m paying it. But I don’t relish the idea of sitting there, quietly, impotently, listening to a little girl describe how a 30 year old man forced her to sleep in his bed so he could rub her “breast area and cup her genitals”. Granted, I’ll admit it could be a lot worse. Unfortunately, I also know that there are enough people out there that agree with the Defendant. This terrible gamesmanship of stating “I didn’t force myself on her, so it isn’t a crime.” Well, what you think is a crime and what is actually a crime may be two different things. And if you think fondling a 12 year old girl shouldn’t be illegal, I have no qualms with disagreeing. But as always the difficult part is in the proving. And to get to that part, we have to go through this. Up to five hours of children, safety workers, and nurses describing in detail what happened, what was investigated, and what was discovered. Again, not something I’m exactly relishing but something that I understand is necessary. I’d already agonized over a plea deal to offer. It was one of the hardest things I’ve had to do in this job. Trying to determine how “low” to go to try to protect these kids from having to re-live their trauma. But any time you have the words “Mandatory Sex Offenders List” there is no plea deal. I could (and may have) offered zero jail time… just probation and counseling to make sure it never happens again… but that Sex Offender Registry requirement will torpedo a plea deal every time. Personally, I’m not sure what to think of that. Many people believe once a sex offender, always a sex offender… thus necessitating the registry. Other people believe that once a sex offender has finished their punishment… they shouldn’t have additional restrictions. To be honest, I don’t know what camp I’m in on that. If we truly believe Once a Sex Offender, Always a Sex Offender; then our laws should be a lot more strict for that kind of offense. On the other hand, if there are no sex offender registries; then there would be dozens (maybe hundreds) of rapists and child molesters on the streets who were convicted of a crime but never sufficiently held accountable. But that is my afternoon. I’ll deal with that after lunch. For now? I should try to focus on something else. No reason to get all dour for the entire day.

So instead… I took the opportunity to pre-order a video game as a slight distraction. I figured September 13 is… a LOT closer than one expects!! I mean… guys… next week is already the last full week of July!! My current “Cases to be Aware Of” list stretches to August 19th. Ultimately, if one desires, one could look at it this way.
There are 56 days until September 13th. I last had sex 112 days ago. United States Thanksgiving is in 133 days. I turned 35 only 77 days ago.

So… there’s your frame of reference.

Not a “Happy Happy” thing but… turns out the studio that burned down in Japan, which was a friend and close partner of Funimation, did a lot of work on K-On. MBFITWW recently purchased the Limited Edition Release and gave us his Standard DVD release. My wife has, of course, been resisting watching even a second of it (despite the fact that it is NOT harem, NOT ecchi, and is in fact- slice of life about high school girls looking to follow their musical ambition). That being said, with or without her, I may watch that this weekend as a weak form of honoring the dead of that tragedy.

Trying, again, to not go down a dark or morose road right now…
I think it is interesting how my Voice Actor Fandom is almost entirely located in California or Texas (not New York or other Countries) but how my CosPlay fandom is friggin’ global. L.A., Boston, Queensland Australia, Quezon City Philippines, Canoas Brazil, Nuremberg Germany.... just something interesting.

I guess since News, Facebook, and everything else just sends me back into “deep thoughts” I’ll distract myself until depositions with an Internet Curator Extravaganza:

Here’s something interesting (but depressing, sorry… just seems to be the way of things in our world)… a Flat Earter spent $20,000 in an attempt to scientifically prove himself right. You see, he wasn’t just a regular Flat Earther. No no no. He was a scientific Flat Earther. He knew that if the earth was round than there would be a 15 degree shift every hour. Every hour the planet spun, the location upon which he stood would be 15 degrees different from his previous hours’ readings. I’m not scientifically inclined; but apparently, this is something legitimate Scientists believe and use as well. SO… if legitimate scientists hold this theory… why is the Flat Earther going to test it? Because, like many Flat Earthers, he believes that ONLY THAT WHICH HE CAN EXPERIENCE HIMSELF is factual. Except… after spending $20,000 and doing experiments over and over and over and over again? He actually proved the legitimate scientists correct. BY HIS OWN PARAMETERS AND HIS OWN EXPERIMENT AND HIS OWN EXPERIENCE he proved scientifically that the earth was round. So, of course, like a logical man of science… he started complaining about how his OWN science was wrong and that the earth “was definitely flat” and that something was wrong with his equipment. #StayScientificJerry

LPT stands for “Life Pro Tips”

I will neither confirm nor deny

Because what Mammal is going to flex over not drinking Milk.... seriously

Opening ANY bag or opening the freezer door

I may or may not have had a similar experience

Let me know if you need help with this one

As MBFITWW and I too often say when trying to speak, listen, or write.... Damn Moon Speak


I laughed way too hard at this one

Familiar!

For those who may not know, there is a whole YouTube video like this worth watching

I can honestly say, this had never occurred to me

Australian readers.... is this true? Seriously? Is this what you call sweatpants?!

Due to friends in Colombia, Brazil, and Mexico… this is far too real for me!

Chive did a written article about Box Office Bombs that should be given a second look.
At number 5 on their list was Big Trouble in Little China and I have to agree. If you haven’t seen it, watch it. But in so doing, remember not to pigeonhole it with a 2019 perspective. This movie was created in 1986. A lot of things you can see in the film and say, “Oh but that is like....” (Mortal Kombat, True Crime, Etc) this is where they got it from!! It is like watching a famously parodied movie AFTER seeing all the parodies.
At number 7, they had Blade Runner. If you haven’t seen Blade Runner? Eeeehhhh… you probably should but see the Director’s Cut. The theatrical release tried too hard to “dumb down” for audiences and the Director’s Version IS better. That being said, this is also a movie that has NOTHING to do with the book on which it is based. So… do both. Watch Blade Runner and read “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep.”
At number 8, they have Children of Men. This is NOT a feel good story. This is easily seen as a “long feeling drab take on Dystopian Futures” BUT… it is still worth seeing. Because I think it shows an important look into the psychology of man as depicted in fiction.
At number 9, they had Fight Club. I appreciate that technically it counts but… seriously? Yes, it did not make it’s theatrical money back… but in the DVD “Watch at Home” market, this thing EXPLODED. And of course it would. It is the nihilistic, anti-corp, bare knuckle action that would appeal to a specific generation… a generation that was largely not old enough to watch it in theaters.
At number 12, they have the movie EVENT HORIZON. This was an abysmal box office disaster. But if you want to be terrorized… watch it. My Wife loves horror and says this movie is scary. I have experienced real life horror and this movie gave me NIGHTMARES. It’s brilliantly terrifying and has an incredible cast!
At number 14, we see Idiocracy. This movie was such a box office bomb as to make it feel like a Student Film! It didn’t even make 15% of it’s budget back. But it is a dystopian comedy that my Wife says “is cruel to watch” because it so clearly predicts/predicted the death of American Intelligence. WATCH IT. Honestly, I find it interesting that my own “The Death of America” combination films are both on this list. I’ve often said “Children of Men plus Idiocracy is how this world ends”. So… yeah. Watch both.

After this, I made the mistake of going back to the news. Have you seen this shit between President AssClown and Nadia Murad? For fuck sake!