rant – Page 2 of 5 – Rasmenian detritus

When it Comes to Marriage, Love Beats Tradition

April 17, 2014June 27, 2015 by Rasmenia Comment Closed

I've been getting invited to more weddings lately. About a year ago, France legalized same-sex marriage. They didn't stop there - gay and lesbian couples now have the right to adopt children, too. That's something I'm profoundly grateful for.Oh, not because I'm gay or want to adopt a child, but because I'm not an asshole.Also, because I like to see my friends happy and endowed with equal rights. I like to see human beings treated as such and to see children who need homes and love being taken in by people who want to give them those things.While I think it's naive to believe that 'All You Need is Love,' I do still like to see love win.'Traditional marriage' isn't real. It's not a thing. It's a phrase that usually represents outdated thinking and the meaning of it gets skewed in whatever way the speaker decides to twist it.Whenever someone tries to throw an argument at me about how traditional...

Expatriate, Not Ex-Patriot

July 11, 2013November 23, 2020 by Rasmenia Comment Closed

When my dog was a tiny puppy, she was cute, but hyperactive. She barked a lot and played with her poop. She peed every time she met someone new. She was loveable, but a handful. An adorable, stinky handful. She wasn't stupid, she just needed some teaching and new experiences.We worked on teaching her new words and how to do things. We took her to new places where she could sniff unfamiliar butts and discover the wonderment of poop that wasn't her own.The more she learns, the more she ventures out of her own yard, the happier she is. She's also calmer and smarter for it.Humans will never be able to live and love as well as dogs, but in one regard, we're not so different: the more we learn and venture out of our own yard, the better we will be.Traveling is good for you. It doesn't matter if it's a trip to another region in your own country,...

The Airplane Personality Test

March 14, 2013 by Rasmenia Comment Closed

I hate flying. When I was a kid, I traveled by plane often, as many children of divorced parents do. Back then, it was a fun & exciting adventure. Because I was a wee one traveling alone, I received special attention. The flight attendant would bring me a little plastic pin with wings on it. "A gift from the captain," they'd say.I'd read my books & listen to my Walkman. The person sitting next to me was always nice. Or, at least quiet & polite.Over time, things changed. I got bigger. My legs grew longer. My patience, shorter.I take more international flights now. The airlines have changed, too. Now there's a lot more seats crammed into a single airplane in order to squeeze more money out of every flight.Flying anywhere -- even a 2 or 3-hour flight -- has become a fucking ordeal that one must survive, rather than a fun & exciting adventure. It's no longer the happy beginning...

Not Wishing You a Merry Christmas

December 13, 2012November 30, 2020 by Rasmenia Comment Closed

I am not going to wish you a Merry Christmas. I am not going to wish you Happy Holidays, a Happy New Year, or even Happy Ass Slap from an Expensive Hooker. No matter what we say anymore, someone's out there to complain. So, I won't offer you Xmas cheer, a Happy Hanukkah, Joyeux Noël, Feliz Navidad or a Happy Solstice.I wish you more than this. So much more.When someone says to you: Merry Christmas. Happy Holidays. Have a nice Tuesday or a bitchin' Saturnalia, I wish you the clear-sightedness to see when another human is saying something just to be kind, affable & cheerful. I wish you enough common decency to choke down your pettiness, smile & respond in your own kind, affable & cheerful way. I hope you'll be reasonable enough to comprehend how one person phrases something shouldn't diminish your joy; that most battles never need to be fought & that being offended is a meaningless thing.I...

When Forgiveness is Worse Than a Flaming Bag of Poo

October 4, 2012 by Rasmenia Comment Closed

"Religion is like a pair of shoes: find one that fits for you, but don't try to make me wear your shoes.” - George Carlin.“Anybody who wants religion is welcome to it, as far as I'm concerned--I support your right to enjoy it. However, I would appreciate it if you exhibited more respect for the rights of those people who do not wish to share your dogma, rapture, or necrodestination.” - Frank Zappa“One's own religion is after all a matter between oneself and one's Maker and no one else's.” - Kahlil Gibran *** This is something I don't enjoy writing about. It leaves a bad taste in my mouth; leaves me feeling dirty, like I need a Silkwood shower & a couple of shots of Jameson to burn it all away. In fact, while I was planning on sitting down today to write a blog post, I had a completely different & unrelated topic in mind. Something a bit lighter. Something less...

How To Use Social Networking to Poison Your Friendships

July 30, 2012November 24, 2020 by Rasmenia Comment Closed

In July of 2005, I went to see Batman Begins at the Holiday Twin drive-in in Fort Collins, CO with a friend of mine. We'd been bouncing around in anticipation for several months waiting for this movie to come out. Leaning forward in the front seat of my Oldsmobile, we shoveled snacks into our faces & geeked out. She was one of my geek girl friends. Getting excited for superhero/fantasy/action movies, standing in line to see them, then jabbering excitedly about them afterward was something that connected us.We weren't on Myspace. We didn't have Facebook. We talked in person, over plates of food & big glasses filled with adult beverages. We chatted at the office where we both worked. It didn't matter much that she was a Conservative, Christian gun owner from Texas, or that I was basically the exact opposite of all those things.Sure, we gave each other shit about it. We made a lot of jokes. We also...