Good for my sister and there can be only one

Yesterday, I learned that my sister XXX has officially registered her business with the state of Oregon: XXX.

Good for her, I say. Which is about all I can say.

Why? Simply because I have no idea of the quality of her work, or her expertise in this field.

We do not talk about our businesses with one another. It should be noted that I technically don't have a business because I have never filed official paperwork beyond the simpliest of tax forms. There is also the fact that...well, I am a hack as everyone else in my family will quickly point out.

I was not blessed by any of the muses. And in my family, there can be only one. Literally and metaphorically.

There is only one artist in the family. There is only one writer in the family. There is only one business-person in the family. There is only one scholar in the family. It is an unspoken family rule. Introductions used to go "This is XYZ, and they are the little fill-in-the-bragging-right child in the family."

No one ever brags about me. I fill in the vital black sheep, oh where did we go wrong slot. I am a pirate and a criminal, an addict and a fool, or whatever other evil is needed to make someone else in the family look better. Or feel guilty. And several of the stories are either not true, or so badly changed from what really happened that truth proves illusionary.

Or at least, that is how it was. And may still be; last fall events make me positive that I am still being used for this despite the fact that I torched the bridges and refused to talk to several family members over a decade ago. Needless to say, last fall events made me add to my list of family members who I will never have a conversation with ever again.

So good for my sister for starting her own business. And if any of my friends see me venturing into PR work or marketing, please remind me to stop. After all, I am not the marker guru in the family.

Edited on 23 June 2010 to protect the interests of the innocent.

Finished my review of the KFC Double Down

Well, I finally finished my review of the KFC Double Down chicken sandwich. I ate the sandwiches on Wednesday (a half of the Grilled, and a half of the Original Recipe---as if that makes it any healthier). Then I started to write the review on Friday (did some research also), but got sidetracked into the role of emotional support man late Friday. Yesterday...well, the post yesterday says how the first half of the day went; I did stabilize in the second half of the day---started researching the work of fiction I want to do this summer. Today has been hit and miss---friends, wife, cats have threatened to stop the progress. But in the end, I won. The review is done. Too bad the sandwich is probably still in my colon.

What a way to start a day

There are certain joys to being a freelance writer, a college student, and being married---all at the same time.

This morning was not one of them. I had planned on writing a product review, a post on my Golden Dawn blog, and then working on one of my research papers after the online class today. Unfortunately, last night's grief followed me into this morning.

I hadn't even brushed my teeth yet, or gone to the bathroom, when I found myself on deck listening to the wife talk about the options that she could do rather than go back to work for the oh so lovely boss that she is currently working for.

For those who do not know this, I am prone to panic attacks. Thanks a lot DNA. I also come from a family where I was expected to sacrifice everything for others. Thanks a lot mom and dad. I was also told repeatly that it did not matter what I had to give up because I would never amount to anything. Thanks a lot...oh, you know who you are.

So now, there is a large part of me that is debating the merits of changing my summer plan, dropping out of college, and going back to work in food service. I could care less last night---in the sense that her switching jobs had nothing to do with my own business. Now I am ready to torch my own business because she dumped more emotional issues and ideas on my plate before I even had my morning soda.

I don't need to tell the writers in the room how that affects the writing, do I?

If you have any ideas about how to deal with days like today, please expound on them in the comment section.

Bite me Citi VISA!

Warning! This post is not me blogging about my father or tax horror day, both of which deserve to be blogged about. No! Citi Card wanted to star in my blog instead today.

Ok, tax horror day---the biggest annoyance today should be the IRS and post office, right? Wrong.

I get home and open my mail to discover a notice that Citi is closing my Visa card. Why? Because they have revised their credit standards and I am too high on my utilization rate (balance vs. available credit).

Wait a second---ain't this the same company that just increased my credit on this exact same card earlier this year? Yes, it is. No, I have not charged anything new in the last two months. Hmmm, slightly schiziod, ain't we Citi Card?

Of course, this is the night that my dearly wife decided that she had to get her homework done (her television shows tomorrow night are more important than my shows tonight). I wanted to scream and shout, and she just wanted me to shut up. (I bet she will be upset when I attempt to do the same to her the next bad day she has.)

And this was the credit card I was planning on using this summer if money got tight. Way to go Citi---just tighten that rope around my neck.

I thought about calling Citi to contest this decision (as if that would do any good), but decided to write a poison ink article instead after seeing the 227,000 plus results that Google spat up. I hope that Citi likes my article about them. Oh yeah, that is right. Citi never plays any attention to those who they consider to be bad credit risks, who they promptly abuse with their credit card policies. Bite me Citi Card.

Poisoning people in the name of Free Speech

Today when trying to catch up on the various blogs I read (it has been a busy week), I ran across something I just did not understand. Over on Seth Godin's blog, he mentions a newspaper story about the posting of letter scores for health inspections. In the entry, he mentions that one restauranteer said that the mandatory posting for health inspections is a violation of free speech of the restaurant owner. Say what?!

Only in New York City, I guess.

I do not see how the government posting your health inspection scores is a violation of free speech. And I am a writer who spent ten years running a restaurant (and ten more just working in them). Free speech has nothing to do with poisoning people.

Saying that posting scores is a violation of free speech is like saying that news media reporting on the Tiger Woods cheating scandal was violating Tiger's rights of free speech. At best, it is slander or libel (I am always confused which one is which).

Does anyone really think that having rats and flys in your restaurant is something that has anything to do with free speech? How about improperly thawed and cooked chicken? Or employees not washing their hands?

This is just a lame threat from someone looking for a rock big enough to allow him to continue endanger the lives and health of other human beings. Forget free speech---just make sure that your food does not make me sick or die; that way, either one of us has anything to worry about.

Sleep v the world

Today, I declared sleep the most important thing in the world. I thought about going to my first class of the day; then decided that it was better to sleep in an extra hour and a half, so that I don't have to take a nap after classes today. Have a big rough draft to kick out tonight for my Revolutionary War class (Second Amendment).

One thing that I have noticed is that in order to write, I need enough sleep. I am not sure if this is true of other writers, but it is true for me. I rack it up to the fact that the "muscle" a writer uses is their brain. If it is not working, then either is the writing. Given the fact that the brain needs sleep to function properly, sometimes sleep is the most important thing in the world for a writer.

Quote of the Day: Renard on Critics

Literature is an occupation in which you have to keep proving your talent to people who have none.

--- Jules Renard