Obama’s change

One thing I know about Obama is that throughout the next four years, we will have no lack of rousing speeches in times of difficulty. His inaugural address was inspiring. The kind of speech that if all its declarations were carried out perfectly, would heal the nation in next to no time. It certainly drew a crowd and numberless raving Obama fans. I did not vote for Obama, but I really hope he does what he says he will do. His record does not assure me that he will succeed as president, but then again records only go so far. He may surprise me and I am hoping he does.

Something that I have struggled to understand though, is the fierce loyalty that many people have for this man.  None of them knows how his presidency will unfold, yet they act as if The Savior Himself has just assumed the country’s highest office.  I suppose such loyalty is admirable, but he hasn’t done anything yet.  He has given hope for sure, but as the next four years unfold, I will need more than that to shower him with the praise that so many others do.

I understand that everybody shows excitement or anticipation in different ways.  Personally, I will offer my loyalty to the new president and then observe and process what I see before I offer praise.  I never have been the type to fall over myself trying to catch a glimpse of some public figure.  Instead I try to ask what it is that inspires such wild reactions in their followers, and if it is admirable, then maybe I can model myself after it.  But that “something” has to be admirable. 

In Obama’s case, he has some big promises to keep; a big mess to fix.  He’s not a rock star because he has promised to enact change – he will be deemed worthy of my admiration when he shows me he will uphold the constitution at all costs, strengthen moral values as much as he is able, and keep the promises he has made to reform broken Washington.  Even then I won’t be tripping over my feet to see him as tears fall from my eyes, but I will respect him.

The bottom line for me is that he is our president and he has my support.  But great presidents have proven themselves by actions in tough times.  Promises are ok, but we demand more now that Obama has assumed the office.  As far as I’m concerned, the honeymoon is over and it’s time to bring that change.

Tags: Barack Obama, President of the United States, Obama change, American president Obama

On Desktops and Vista

A few months have passed since I was forced to get a new computer because of the laptop death.  I wondered then if it was the right decision to ditch the name brands and build my own system a la PC Laptops – without the ridiculous mark-up of course.  I also made the decision at that time to upgrade to Vista, a logical conclusion since it comes with most new systems anyway.

The last few months have been filled with price remorse-free bliss and a good share of satisfaction with the new operating system.  I bought all my parts at Newegg.com, a website whose experience is second to none.  I was able to do all my research for every single part on that site as a result of the huge number of experienced builders who contribute their recommendations and warnings to the comment section of each product.  Newegg had all my stuff here and in fine condition within a few days.

Vista, so far, has not disappointed me at all.  I have come across a few obstacles that took a little searching on the internet for answers, but I have always found what I needed.  I am used to the interface, and it’s much better than XP, in my opinion.  Maybe someday I’ll run across some big bad problem like Apple warns of, but that day has not come yet.  I’m a happy user.

So my conclusion is that building a desktop didn’t take a ton of research and time, so I’m glad I did it and came out with a high quality machine at a mid-quality price.  It truly is not that complicated if you put in a little research beforehand.  You’ll have the advantage of knowing exactly what is inside your case and being able to better troubleshoot any problems.  It’s also just nice to know things like this work.  Maybe that’s just a thing of mine, I don’t know.  Also, I don’t believe Vista is the monster it has been made out to be.  I think it just has a bad rap.

So you can count me as a satisfied Newegg customer and Vista user.  Next come the complexities of the laptop, but that may take a while longer.

Tags: Windows Vista, Newegg.com, PC Laptops, Computers

Bonsai, not banzai, Daniel-son

I never thought a miniature tree could be so interesting, but mine and April’s ficus bonsai tree has become just that. I bought it for her for Valentine’s Day just about a half year ago, and the change in just that short time has been captivating to watch. They told me it would grow well in good conditions and with good amounts of humidity, but I didn’t expect it to grow like it has. And no, that picture above is not our tree, but give me 150 years and maybe we’ll be there.

I bought it at Cactus and Tropicals, where there is a nice little variety of bonsai trees from the old and very pricey to the very young and inexpensive.  I decided to buy one about seven years old and grown in Florida so that I would get some nice aerial roots and a decent trunk size.  It also had the best root curvature of the bunch – something I thought would be important in the long run.

I can’t quite pinpoint what is so fun about caring for this mini tree.  Maybe it’s that large trees in nature are so overpowering and awe-inspiring that we can’t become involved with them on a personal level.  Yes, that sounds incredibly tree hugger-like, but I think it’s true even if you don’t verbalize it that way.  With the bonsai tree you are involved in the growth process, and if you are into wiring and shaping, you can create shapes that maybe only exist in your mind, if not in nature.  Then again, part of bonsai is mimicking natural tree forms, so I don’t think I would ever get too odd in wiring.

We’ve started with a ficus retusa, as they are very forgiving and fast growing.  We also just acquired my mom’s natal plum that was suffering from lack of sun at her house.  We’re going to try to revive it.  Someday I hope to move up the difficulty scale and buy a juniper or something cool like that.  Then maybe I’ll don my gi and do birdie kicks on a wooden stump at the beach while a wooden recorder is played in the distance.

Tags: bonsai, trees, hobbies, Cactus and Tropicals, ficus bonsai