Stuff On Top

Jan 27, 2001 - 7  p.m. 

   So i was up this morning at a relatively early time.  If you call 9 o'clock relatively early.  Which i do on a Saturday that i went to bed at 3.  I moved from my bed to my couch thinking that i could watch a little bit of TV, drift off and get a bit more sleep.  Know what i mean?  As i lay here, i flicked a little from show to show, looking for something to watch.   Oddly enough there wasn't really anything to watch, so i stopped on History Channel, they were talking about the Spanish Inquisition.  That seemed good to me.
   Then something that was said sort of floored me a little. In the 350 years that it existed in Spain the Spanish Inquisition had 3000-5000 victims.  So they say this and think, wow, that's pretty horrible.  And then they proceed to say that in the same length of time the rest of Europe burned over 150 000 as heretic witches at the stake.  All of a sudden, the inquisition, which has a very bad name and mythos doesn't seem nearly as bad as the the rest of the normal people in Europe.  I mean surely the church played a roll in the other burnings but so did the regular mom people.  That's 150 000 women killed for being different.  As horrible as they were at least the inquisition had some sort of persecution rule book that they followed.  Had some goal in the end, a rule fueled by terror.  The witches were burned for being different. There was no one reason other than intolerance. 
   Arghh.  Perfect way to start your day, hating humanity. 

   I wonder if i actually have anything to say besides this.  Hmmm.  Nothing further on the job front, no decisions made.  Although there is some word on what's going on career wise.  I am involved in a project that, while it may not look like it will bring in a huge amount of cash for me, it should very much help me out in my further career. no matter what that is.  And barring that it will be a lot of fun.  Probably.  Right now i am in the midst of something we call bootcamp.  It is relatively interesting i guess but it is also very draining and time consuming.  there are three hour online meetings, often stretching longer that happen in the evenings after work.  And they suck things out of you.  I think that i won't talk too much about this boot camp until after the process is over.  But i will tell you that this project is taking an online form and the entire thing is being documented so if you like you can do and see what is going on at any time (you know at any time after i tell you where it is) you can go and read it.  There will also be a second journal of mine there that just relates to the project and you can go and read it if you like.   You know, after i show it to you.  (I know, i know i keep saying that, but it's only because it gives me something to lord over you, you know)  (Oh wait that's not necessarily better) 
   Also it looks like i have a contract to do some spare work for some actual money as well. I wont' really say too much more until i have signed the contract next week but this is a good thing. Money is tight.  Of course, it is another 15 hours a week i don't have.  Ouch.   Well, it is either sleep or Andrea who bears the brunt of that attack.  I am sorry Andrea, in advance. 

   What else, oh, one of the books that i am reading, There are two errors in the title of this book. I am very happy to have this book once again.  It is probably one of the books that means the most to me.   So of course i managed to lose the first copy.  It was originally given to me by my best friend when he found out that i had a burgeoning love for Philosophy and in fact it may have predated and helped out with the decision to transfer into Philosophy from Engineering.  I remember that i lent the original to someone and then they decided they hated me, something to do with politics and i never got it back.  Since then i have been looking for it off and and on and eventually i found it last November while in Guelph at a great bookstore.  I am quite happy about this and am rereading.  It goes through the great mysteries and questions of Philosophy and tries to make them fun and simple.  Very good primer i like to think.

   Ok, enough of this crap.  I have to go and do some Bootcamp work.  I shall be back soon.