B. Hudson

First if you’re new here.. I’m a Guy.  Male.  I’m Married, with 3 kids.

I just got finished reading on Digg.com about the recession hurting women in the jobplace more than men.  And then read all the comments about it. Here is a summary of the comments

1. (standard egomaniac saying women should get in the kitchen.. blah blah)
2. (standard woman response that all men are pigs, and its SO UNFAIR wah wah.. and we have to have babies TOO!!)
3. enlightened folks with actual points..

Group 1.. Really… grow up.  I understand that is what you want, a woman to just hump and send to the kitchen for a sandwich, but those women charge by the hour and are illegal almost everywhere.  So I hope you really make bank to afford such a thing.

Group 2.. SHUT UP.  Your voice is even less of value than group1!!.  At least it should be expected that guys want women to stay home and all that.  I mean why not?  It worked for our parents and their parents… You ladies want a job fine.. go get it I don’t care.

Group 3..  You people should be given riches and be taken care of.  I get SO SICK of the same tired arguments.. here are some possibles from the enlightened group (most go in opposite directions but are still worth noting)

• recession hurts everyone.. not just women
• I’d like to see the day when a divorce will allow a man to stay home with his kids and get paid by the woman. (alimony)
• Women deal with… (glass ceiling reference), some have climbed up but this is at their middle age where they have half the experience of the others.  Making them more of a target for job reductions.  (hey its valid.. and feminist)
• (long rant tuned WAY down).. wage hikes decreased when women joined the workforce as there was basically a double in workers.. Then jobs became more scarce.. it is cyclical and will evolve back to men working and women staying at home as they couldn’t afford daycare services for their kids on the small money they could make in the few leftover jobs.  (its a conspiracy theory of sorts.. but I liked it)
• Some angrier posts regarding how women have it so much easier than men.. here’s a quote

• There are SOOO many programs available to women to enable success it’s almost ridiculous. There are special education programs, entire sectors of the government to over watch and make sure women get a fair shake, womens advocacy groups with a hair trigger to scream foul and garner public sympathy if there is even a HINT of inequality. If a woman is dismissed from a job, she can claim she was released due to her being female, and then all of a sudden she’s not fire/laid off.

  There is a reason why there is the impression that men work harder ( notice I said impression; there are many women who indeed work their asses off ). They have to to overcome the system. If a man lacks skills, there is no/few programs to aid him in getting those skills. If a man gets fired or laid off, there’s no recourse except to find another job. If a man faces any type of harassment on the job, he’s told to suck it up ( sexual or otherwise).

• –He’s valid all day long, militant in his point but its his point..

I could literally go on for days here..  Now here’s my viewon

Equal work for Equal Pay.

– I really don’t see that big a difference here.  .70 for every 1.0 a man makes?  Seriously?  I have worked in the IT field for a while now and before that was nearly a manager in customer service environments and I have NEVER made as much as my wife (until recently).  Ok so thats just me right?  But still.. does this degrade into socio-economic groups?  no.  So the 10 richest CEO’s dollars are being compared to the 10 poorest drive through clerks at McDonalds?  yup.  I don’t know how to tell you this, but bite me ladies. Its darn close, and there’s no statistical way to break this down into those groups and factor out things like “friends of the family”, or just flat out Bill Gates!  Sure oprah has a little money.  Bill could buy and sell her 3x’s a day and still make more on his investments to continue on forever.  People like that cause a statistical skew.  Do men make more?  I don’t know.  I haven’t asked every single guy at every single workplace and every woman that works with him to compare.  Can someone?  no.  In reality most companies require paycheck information to remain private/confidential.  So just blabbing your $$ around could get you fired and then you go from some $$ to no $$.  The closest to accurate figures are from the IRS.  Yeah.. you heard me.. The IRS.  Look its a government agency, and allowed at LEAST a 20% complete and total off the mark bias.  Just because its a government agency.. I mean seriously.  I doubt many people report their income (it is possible, although illegal) or if they work work for cash and not a paycheck, which flies under the IRS radar.    I just have sincere doubts that this is even close to an accurate figure given the information I just stated.

A Woman’s Place

—-Well.  Now I show my true colors.. I DO think a woman’s place is to raise the kids.  I do.  Sue me.  I think the burden and obvious inadequacies of the education system in our country make it obvious that kids need to be learning more at home.  Is this a dismissal of your economic capabilities?  Don’t be retarded.  FAMILY is the most important thing you have.   Friends, they can turn on you… Jobs, well we see them leaving all the time.  Family is all that you truly have.  Its not DEMEANING for you to change diapers and clean the house.. You don’t DO THAT for your HUSBAND… You DO THAT to contribute to your FAMILY.  In old times he busted his hump all day, and came home to dinner.. why?  Because he was a barbarian and would beat you if you didn’t?  Well maybe, but maybe thats how you say “thanks for contributing your part to the family, here is mine..”.  Are people going to take you for granted?? yes.. They do now and they always will (both men and women, jobs and friends, and even your family).. That doesn’t mean your contribution is any less important.  Family is a partnership between husband and wife.  It’s saying ” I’d rather be doing something else, but because I L-O-V-E you I do this to contribute to this entity we created.. a household.. a home.. a family.

I’d go as far as to say men are ill equipped to stay at home and be dads.  Why?  First you don’t stay home with adolescents or adults.. you do so with small children.. and small children need emotional support that, frankly, most men lack the tools to provide.  Would I PERSONALLY stay home?? yes.  I feel as if I “missed something” when I work and am away from my family.

Concluding:  A woman’s place.. well I still say its better at home to help turn that pile of bricks/wood into a home..  but if that doesn’t work for you financially let her work!  Jobs will become more scarce, and if that drives women back to the home I think we’ll see a massive DUMP of crime rates as they drop through the floors..  Massive increases in literacy, and core concepts to children.

I have no issues with women working, I have issue with them saying they have it so hard, when I feel that minorities and women have a huge leg up on me.. A white guy.  Unfortunately I’m not in any seat of power like I hear  all white guys are.. If I was.. I’d probably not care.. but seriously people not all white guys own/run everything..

Sweet Lord is it summertime?

Jeesh what a nightmare!! Its so hot its…. well its hot.

Well here’s the updates and criticals for all interested.

1. Oldest 2 are mostly staying with their dad (we get every weekend or so)

1. this is after their trip to florida for 2 weeks
2. Oldest boy did manage to pass 4th grade (shock)

1. I’m not addicted to wii
2. I’m not addicted to wii
3. (no matter how many times i say/write it, I still don’t believe it)

Thanksgiving is OFF for going to Dad’s… Evil-Wicked stepmother(she’s not evil/wicked.. but  I call her that since she is my stepmother… and she should technically be evil/wicked.. she just isn’t) is apparently crazy busy (she always is) during this time and so they thought they’d shoot for Christmas instead..

I just don’t think I could make my mother spend her Christmas alone.  And I think maybe deep down, she’d feel betrayed.. or I’d feel as if I betrayed her.  So I am not going.  I think 2 of the 3 brothers are going to be there, so its not booked up for another “gathering of the 4″.. So at least I’m not the “party pooper”.  May look into going there week after Christmas though.. who knows.

Sorry for waiting forever to post again.. I’ll be more active soon!

I love my kids.  Technically I only have one kid, but I claim the other two even if they will always be “step” kids.  I love them.

If you know me or have read from me before you know the wild/crazy times that my house seems to continually spin in.  Life has not really changed over the last several months since I blogged about my kids.

My Oldest (daughter) is 11 (12 in December).  She is in 5th grade, and has tested to be in the 70th percentile of 5th graders in the state of Indiana.  She’s a bonehead.  I don’t TRULY know how to address her most of the time.  Her report card:  all D’s except for a C+.  I hear you in the back.. “wait.. what about this 70th percentile crap, brent!”  I don’t know.  I just don’t.  The girl is bright beyond bright, but its far more fun to goof around with friends than to actually do WORK.  Although, to her credit she DOES work, but she blazes through it at lightspeed and typically does relatively poor.  I don’t expect straight A’s on my kids.  I think that’s unfair.  I like have expectations that go under what I’m really capable of, its like a cushion but its one I extend to my kids as well.  What I do expect is mostly B’s.. Some A’s and if you had a rough time in a subject a C is okay.  Sound terrible?  Doesn’t to me..  My daughter shows me her report card of all D’s and 1 C+, and says.. “I got a C in Math!  Why are you upset?”  I blacked out after that and woke to find out I had been red faced wild eyed angry.. here on known as “crazed maniac mode, or CMM”.  So that was over.  Girl is done with her grade review.. now for my boy

Preface on the boy.  He reads at a 6-7th grade level.  He tests into the 85+percentile in Indiana schools.  He.. Has decided he’s boycotting 4th grade.  Not in like a socio-political outcry..  He just doesn’t “feel” like doing work.  What does he do in class?  Color.. and when the crayons/pencils are taken away for this..he makes paper airplanes or stares at the corner.  Needless to say he’s sporting mostly failing grades.  Unlike the girl, he shows NO caring that he’s failing.  None.  Its like he is testing whether or not he will actually have to do it over.  I know what your saying “Brent, get on that boy.. get him!  No 9 year old should be allowed to run rampant in such a way”.  If I could find you, I’d punch you.  I have done everything conceivable on the legal side to get him to do his work.  Nothing.. Grounded?  He’s like permanently grounded.  He doesn’t go anywhere, or do anything.  And he seems genuinely shocked he’s in trouble over this.  He does all the little things teenagers do to get into trouble with their attitude and he does all the things 4 year olds do to get into trouble.  So this guy like, BREEDS trouble for himself.  Spank?  done it. Yell?  done it.  Positive Reinforcement?  done it.  Mix all of the above?  done it.  I sincerely think the boy is brilliant.  Not smart, brilliant.  Like Good Will Hunting brilliant.  I don’t understand him not wanting to get the good things in life by acting accordingly.  He acknowledges that he messed up on whatever our talk is about that day (grades/attitude..) and apologizes, but is he really sorry?  I just don’t know anymore.  I love this boy so much.  For so long I thought it was cause his “real” dad wasn’t having anything to do with him or his sister.  This isn’t the case anymore.  He’s still not as active as I think he should be, but its become a weekly thing almost for them to see him.  So thats probably not it, although you can’t really track that and as kids they don’t know where their feelings lay for things like that.

Then my 4 year old.  This poor guy gets the short end of the stick.  I have to spend so much time kicking the other two around (figuratively) that I haven’t got him reading or writing anything yet.  I feel like I’ve screwed him over big time.  I’m really soft with him now, its like I don’t want to punish him at all.  I want to soak up every second I can with him.  I feel like I’ve cheated him, and he has no other dad.  Nobody takes him every week and ports him into a more fun existence.  He’s stuck with me. I want him to be as good/better than the other guys, of course.. I just don’t know what to do.  I could SWEAR I was doing right with the other 2 all this time.  Now I just don’t know.  I feel like, like maybe I messed them up.

My dad told me, “..there’s no instruction manual for parenting.  You’ll mess up.  You will.  The key is to do the best you can.”  My biggest concern here lately is.. What if my best isn’t good enough?

Well the much heralded “gathering of the 4″ was just as completely awesome as I thought it would be.  Here is a short brother update:

• Drew

• still skinny as a rail
• still sick (ongoing condition)

• still weird (like me)
• now with super long girly hair!!

• still with his woman (she’s good for him)
• Lives with said woman (as he requires a chaperon)
• Holds down a decent job still
• Making better grades than me in school (cause he pays the teachers off, I’m sure of it)

• Now with a wife!

• she’s cool but afraid of cats (I don’t know why, don’t ask but its a serious fear not like.. “ooo I don’t like kitty” its more like “OH SWEET MOTHER OF GOD IS THAT A CAT” followed by crying and maybe her bowel release due to shock of kitty)
• They are in one of the carolinas (honestly I forgot North or South)

• Probably pissing off loads of people by making perfect grades on ridiculous hard  tests

That is the rundown pretty much that covers all the brothers except me, more on me to come as I’ve had excitement of late..

Writers are on strike.. The world seems all tore up and both sides are really just as guilty.

Writers want more money (notice, not SOME money.. not a FAIR amount.. but MORE) for the crap movies and TV that they are churning out.  They feel entitled as they WROTE the thing, and if hey its a hit.. maybe they should get more money out of it.  Oh and maybe its online, so they should get some money out of that (in fact they get SOME now, just not much).

Companies, of course want the total opposite.  Writers get less, actors get less, company gets more.  Which is basically why business models are failing left and right in our society.  No one wants to change how things are done.

Anyway, to the 3rd party outside of the whole “we write, and we want money”, and “screw you writers, you get plenty!”.. I can tell you this.  Movies make a bucketload of money, I think writers/actors should receive probably 40% total.  Split that in half for the individual shares, put about 20-30% with the company propper.  Then put 10% on support staff (*see below), and 20% in critical areas (*see below).

**Almost all shows/movies have an area that gets a lot of work.. Scifi goes nuts on all of them (costume/makeup/set design/etc..) and other genre’s typically hit one specifically.  I honestly think directing is the most bogus position on a movie at this point.. I’ve seen movies (renditions) by 2 different directors and typically the difference isn’t the “style” of the movie so much as it is the different actors chosen to do it.. (casting probably).

*In summary if you use a lot of makeup give those guys a bigger cut, if you use CGI, give my peeps (the geeks) a bigger chunk

Well I am more than halfway through 55 as of last night.  I am pushing more and more desperately towards outlands.  Towards the piles of gold, and adventure I might have being in an area designed for my betters (I just kinda assume outlands has an expected character to be about 60, and I’ll go as soon as I can get my gnomish behind through the portal).

My gear is crap

So I am thinking I need to be “sup’d up” a bit before I go messin around with the bigger dogs in outlands.  My plan is, since I now have MOST of the mats for a robe (Robe of Winters Night) that I might finish my q’s in felwood and collect the last 4 felcloths I need to get the complete mats list for the robe.  At this point I should have a good robe/bracer/belt/gloves.  I am desperately wanting a good off hand to run into outlands with.  I purchased a dagger with great stats PLUS a damage increase for spells, so I figure if I can get an orb of whos-a-ma-whats-it that does the same, I’ll be doing great.

I found a blood elf in ungoro last night fighting above his level.. (preface:  I hate blood elves, I don’t know why, but I am a believer in wiping them out totally).  So I waited as he agro’d 3 flying dino’s and I cursed them with recklessness.. (LOL!!) and watched as he used everything he had to stay in it.  I sat down and jeered him.  (I know, I know.. mean).  He never died, but he came really close.  He spit on me a few times which I laughed off since I can take the devilsaur now solo.  Bout the only thing in Ungoro I can’t handle is the fire elemental (56 elite) in the cave in the center.  He has some SICK resist abilities.  I mean my shadowbolt hits (at level) around 600.. and he was taking hits for about 300.. so about half of my damage was negated.

I hate ungoro crater.. I hate morrowgrain, and the stupid soil that grows it.  BUT, as a skinner, this place is a gold mine.  I can see me in a few levels coming back to ungoro agro’ing the whole ape area into one spot and doing hellfire to clear the mobs (a few life siphons should keep it from being painful for me).  And then loot/skin like a madman.

I have heard, the money is in the AH.. buy low, sell high.  So far I just attack the AH with 12 stacks of leather and then reap in all the money I get in the end.  I miss out from the lack of engineering though I think.  I would REALLY like to have some grenades, and some of the other cool stuff.. (gnomish death ray!!).  But thats just life for right now, when I get a good enough pile of money, I’ll drop skinning and power through engineering to get all that I want.. Then pick skinning back up when I want the money again (its so easy to power through skinning if you have AoE stuff’s).  I am just 55, but haven’t seen any other AoE as powerful as hellfire.  Mage’s can run around, sure.. but I just don’t see the numbers there in big groups as with hellfire.  If I were to go nuts and get some fire gear, and equip a firestone to do it.. I am just saying.. it does relentless damage to people now, and I’m only buffed for shadow damage.  I’m thinking.. with a few healers.. i could solo zul farrak using fire dmg gear and hellfire.  Especially the temple “event” when you get mobbed by 900 people.. LOL.

I find myself wanting to be a leatherworker though.. and a tailor.   I think there isn’t enough spellthread, or that knothide/cobrahide armor stuff..  If its outthere people are keeping it QUIET!!  I saw runic spellthread (what I wanted more than anything for 49 PvP) in the AH last night.. guess how much??  250g (bid) 390 (buyout).  Imagine that?  I don’t know about spellthread but leather is the easiest thing on earth to come by.  I will probably level a tailor/skinner next.  I want a tailor/skinner cause.. well cause ppl drop cloth for tailoring, animals drop leather for skinners.  Then I’ll have most of the gathering prof’s down and can start MAKING stuff.  Mining/skinning (lock), skinning/tailoring(?).. Smithing/engineering(pally), tailoring/enchanting(mage)..

So now I wonder what toon should become what I want and be a tailor/skinner?  I am thinking maybe warrior, but that is a scary thought for me.  I LOVE watching a warrior run into an instance and be crazy and attack everything in the room, then balance aggro so we (clothies) don’t get killed.  It seems fun, but I doubt it is.  Maybe a hunter!!?!?!?  I miss my hunter so so so much.  He’s just for PvP now and I’ve invested a lot of gold in that endeavor too..  Willing to do more too, just need some items to show up in AH and its a done deal.

ah well.. back to grinding with the lock!

A fellow blogger posed the question what WoW skill would you want in real life.

My problem inherent in this question is most of the abilities in WoW, are real life abilities.  And most of the ones that aren’t (summon demon?) are still fatal.

So what would I do if I could do it?

Passively, I’d say teleport.  I mean how better to sleep in and get to work on time?  poof, there..  no more concerns with traffic etc.. Just poof, there.

A very close 2nd in passive ability would be “summon flying mount”… hehe.. I mean that says it all.  You take the train, I’ll be flyin over downtown in minutes.

Now seed of corruption would be a nice ability too, especially if I can’t teleport or fly on a mount.  Traffic is apparently a big problem for me after seeing my choices.

Now the atheists among the world should immediately choose soulstone.  I mean, if you believed this life was IT.  Being able to call a do-over is an awesome ability.  Then again a priests heal ability would be nice too.  On top of that.. Track runners will want earthbind totem..  It can go on forever.  Really though what crazed wack job would want to throw a fireball?  obviously it’d kill someone right?  now the instant fire attack that doesn’t do all that much damage would be cool.. especially at parties.. just POP quiick burn on someone.. hehe..

Her take on this would be able to do “vanish”.  Which sounds good and all, but I think teleport is by far the best.  maybe conjure food/water?  could end world hunger in a couple hours..

The really mean guy in me wants to say summon infernal is the uber ability.. cause I mean really.. Giant Fire/rock monster?  there’s nothing going to beat that.. but maybe thats going the wrong way..

How bout just wanting… Alchemy skills?  potion for strength/agility/speed/invisibility.. then think about this.. turning stuff to gold? eh?  are you hearing me now?  I think you do.. thats the way to go for sure..

I am a christian.  (notice the full stop)  I am not a “good christian”, although I aspire to be someday.  I hear christians and christianity taking a pretty good beating these days over the remarks of individuals.

Firstly, no group ever speaks for me.  I feel qualified to speak for myself on all aspects of.. me-ness.  Some people that are pretty high up on the christian-public-figure pyramid have made some harsh remarks, and had them recycled to be some of the worst crap anyone has ever said.  People tend to group other people together, its human nature.  If you got robbed by a short guy, you may just not like short people.. or have trust issues with them.  Does that mean that shorty mcgee is a bad guy too?  Nope.  Just like you shouldn’t lump all christians together when someone says something you find “offensive”.  I say TONS of offensive stuff all the time.  I don’t TRY to, but I feel no deep concern to cradle other peoples feelings.  I am as polite as I can possible be, most of the time.  If you are in my inner circle of friends, you guys are exempt from this because I feel NO need whatsoever to color my commentary in such a way as to not be offensive to someone outside our group.  There are misconceptions about what christianity means and what it would really say about things like gay marriage and stem cel research..  Being one person, I can’t say what Susie biblethumper thinks about it.  I can break it down for you like I see it, and being a christian, hope this is the way it is to God.

Gay marriage.  Go get it.  This is a LEGAL aspect, socially it is pretty much accepted anyway so what would a christian fight?  I PERSONALLY don’t think, hm.. maybe those two guys should get hitched..  Maybe I think its gross, cause I do.  I know of at least 1 gay guy who thinks kissing a woman is gross.  His perogative.. not mine, der..  Thats a personal preference (being gay) and not something I get involved in.  Will I laugh at you?  Yes.  I laugh at all things I find funny and absurd, like women who leave the house with thongs showing.  They chose it, and they have to live with it, but if I see it.. I am crackin up.  (which is another discussion on the odd name “homophobic” which will be another post)

I don’t endorse it, nor do I approve of gay marriage.. but I’m not the government and its not my place to condemn it.  I am allowed to think what I want and so are you.

Voting.. It seems that just because christians vote, they are almost feared.  I don’t find anything the hardcore-lobbyist christians say offensive.  If you do.. Sorry.  That’s all you’re getting from me.  I don’t begrudge your right to not like them, but don’t say “christians suck” or “christians should be on a rocket to the sun” or crazy stuff like that.  That is akin to racism to me.  (yes I realize christians aren’t a race, but the broad stroke and hate that goes with racism does apply, even if we are not a race unto ourselves)

Personally, I don’t vote.  I did when it was Bush V Kerry and voted for the winner.  Mostly because I thought “lesser of two evils”.  After Kerry’s bonehead statement about stupid people going to Iraq, I think the world would come pretty close to agreeing with me.  Why don’t I vote?  Because I have not seen/met/heard a candidate ever endorse my ideals.  I feel my ideas are best (thats why they’re MINE, der), and want to vote for someone that has them.  Since no such person exists at the moment, or even a reasonable facsimile, I choose not to vote.  Some christians do, and they do it LOUDLY.  I don’t kick dirt in peoples face for what they do.  I may not like it, but its what you do, not me..  I find it interesting that Christians in specific get picked on about this.. When they are merely doing what everyone else is.  Pushing for what their “group” wants, and screw everyone else.  Thats what the “pro choice” movement is about.  I want an abortion, and I should be able to have one.  Does anyone see that?  The people that kick the christians around are either on the other side of the coin, or not caring about that issue.  You should as a voter/citizen not have any more problems with Christian Coalition as you have with any other lobbying group.  They are all self-serving and pushing for only what THEY want.  Some want good stuff, some don’t.  Don’t get me started on everyone in government being invested in oil and gas prices keep going up.. When no real work has been done in alternatives yet.. (This issue of mine should have been over by the time I was 15, by the way..)

But I digress…

That’s the sound of my blog crashing.  I’m back now, but luckily I lost EVERY FRIGGIN POST I had.. Oh well.

So, I’m back.. be careful