like_mike

Weight consciousness

2006-12-25T03:42:16Z

It sucks.

I found last summer that I could loose a little weight. I wasn't trying to loose weight, just trying to become active. I lost a good amount. I lost a good amount of my unwanted fat as well. I would say that in the last year I have cut out about 1/2 of the distance between my weight as of a year ago and the maximum of the healthy weight on those charts the doctors have. Not that I ever gave much creedence to those charts before. (Working at my office has given me a new perspective on health. It seems like 1/2 of the people I work with have diabetes or high blood pressure or high cholosterol. Most of them are 10-15 years older than me. Most of them because of their health have very restrictive diets or perhaps seem to work out out of serious health concerns. It scares the shit out of me. Not to mention that my father has serious heart problems).

Here is the thing, though. I think that I haven't lost much since at least September. I didn't really try in October or November. I have been stuck where I am for the last month of going to the gym, trying to restrict my diet, etc.... I look back and see the weight loss of last summer and see it as easy. I figure I can loose just as much weight and that would be ideal. However, now I feel stuck. I'm not sure how to get down further. I'm 1/2 way to my goal, but I can't move past that 1/2 marker.

Right now I am walking 2 miles a day w/ my mother. Then I do another 3 or so of walking and jogging intermixed on a treadmill at night. I'm not even expecting this to loose much weight because of holiday eating--which I'm trying to restrict greatly. I'm not even sure what I expect to loose in a month. I would like to see some progress.

Food

2006-12-11T01:45:29Z

I think I have officially lost it.

Not only have I started working out, I am changing my diet. I went food shopping with the guy I work out w/ and his wife. He was trying to show me how to decide what to buy, what he recomends eating, etc.... So to summarize, last week, and probably most weeks for a long time, my grocieries looked like this: frozen fries, frozen chicken strips, ice tea, some random fruits, maybe a meat in the bag thing, and cereal bars. Last week: cereal, milk, english muffins, lentil soup, many vegetables, protien bars, protien drinks, fish, various meats, etc..... Total bill: $80.

I don't know. Eating three meals and three "snacks" in a day seems a bit much. I don't know if I can keep this up. I hope that the food lasts more than a week. $80 is more than I can afford.

Equity in a friendship

2006-12-09T04:54:27Z

Have you ever had a friend that you never knew exactly why they wanted to be your friend, or perhaps why they were quite so helpful?

I have a friend, call him workout friend. He is a private attorney. He used to work at the Public Defender Office. He is friends with many other attorneys there. That is how I met him. He gave me a few tips. Every now and again I would ask him for professional ideas. He does well in some areas I do not, so he had some good ideas.

Recently I was talking to him. I explained some things about the termination of my recent relationship, among other things. He was actually very helpful. He suggested joining a gym. Actually, he suggested joingin his gym. We have since started a joint workout program. I think the plan is 4 nights per week, with a focus on lifting weights. Actually we lift weights. Afterwords I do my own cardio. He is also trying to help me get into a slightly larger social circle and involve me in his plans with several others. On Wednesday, the day that Rachel left for her mothers (and when she returns, it will be to pick up her things) he went out with me that evening. (actually, I asked him to, I really did not want to be alone).

I just feel like he is doing all theses things for me. I really don't seem to be doing much for him. I'm not even sure what I can do for him. I don't see how I fit in. He is much more successful than me, he has a wife and his parents and brother live near by. I have another friend, call him tennis friend, and there are things that I feel I do for him. In fact, if he is having problems he can generally rely on me to help. However, workout friend doesn't really seem to need anything. What can I add? I somehow want to reciprocate, but I am not sure how.

Maybe part of this is that I feel insecure. I feel quite lonely. It is not that I am isolated. I have a couple of friends I see sometimes after work--namely workout friend and tennis friend. I am begining to worry about things. What am I going to do now. I feel like I need this friend. I don't want to overpower him with this need. I want him to continue with this friendship. I'm just not sure what to do. Maybe I worry that I'm not all that blessed w/ social skills. I wish I knew what to do to feel less needy.

I am also thinking about moving to a new city. If I do that, I'm not sure I can even figure out how to find many friends. It occurs to me that living with Rachel, I really didn't have that many friendships. Yes, I have a lot of friends I see at work. However, very few of them I actually see after work. That may be a larger pattern I have had since high school.

First a not guilty and now this

2006-09-22T14:21:02Z

The guy that I worked for at the Innocence Project, who has been in Angola since 1969 for Aggravated Rape, in my belief wrongfully, will (probably) be released on Monday. I can't believe this.

I hope all of my good luck isn't running out. Everything good is happening fast. Next week I have an interview.

Not Guilty

2006-09-21T22:11:18Z

OK, so I don't update my lj almost ever. However, I want to tell everyone I know how happy I am that I got my vary first ever not guilty today!!!!

Instead of an update

2006-05-02T01:53:33Z

Did you like "V for Vendetta", but wonder how exactly it would play in the world of Sesame Street? Then watch "C for Cookie".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9rzMaAucI4&eurl=

Shreveport is boaring

2006-04-16T17:05:43Z

Did I ever say Shreveport is boring?? Yes, yes, I probably did. I will say it again. Shreveport is boring.

Shreveport is so boring I decided that the only way to relieve the boredom was to go try a new Asian restaurant. Why is that significant? I don't really like Asian food. Perhaps the reason is that it doesn't involve the obligatory corn or potatoes that are involved in all highly evolved cuisine. And they have all these strange non-bbq or honey mustard sauces. How could one possibly eat that???

Well, as I said, I was board. I also have a small program (see previous entries) to try to expand my diet. So I went. I had a Szeschuan (sp??) Chicken dish. I thought it was good. Well, I have been fascinated recently with hot, so the dish maintained my fascination.

After dinner, we stayed at the boardwalk. We went to see Scary Movie 4 (Did I mention that Shreveport is boring? This is the most interesting movie playing in all of Shreveport.). It was all right.

In other news, a trial week starts next Monday. I have two clients that are wanting to go to trial and are on the front page. Maybe we will go. More details if and when it happens.

We have no intention of perminantly maintaining a base in Iraq?

2006-04-05T03:17:18Z

Is it just me, or is it true that whenever Bush & Co. want to tell the most unbelievable lie, they ask Condaleza (sp?) Rice to do it??? Can anybody possibly ever believe that we do not intend to indefinately maintain at least one millitary base there? We leave a base everywhere we go. It is just how it is done. I can't comprehend the possibility we would do otherwise.

Is it me, or does she live in another universe?

Movie

2006-04-05T02:34:02Z

Went to see "V for Vendeta". It was quite good. The theme of the movie resonates with me. It is the struggle of the oppressed against a tyrannical government. I understand the comic book version was better and more explicitly anarchist. I will have to give it a read.

However, the part about being beyond the fear of death disturbed me a bit. Perhaps it is because of a recent funeral.

You know, I always want to write about something deep or important. I never seem to.

The fruits of my Innocence Project labors

2006-03-31T03:25:35Z

I just received good news. A man whose case I worked on while at the Innocence Project has had a DNA test. It turns out that his DNA was not found on the samples that remain. Does this mean he will be exhonerated? I am not so sure. However, it is an important step.

In October of 1969 a number of black males between the ages of 15 and 23 were accused of raping a 15 year old white girl (and beating up her boyfriend) while in the "white park" for the Sugar Cane Festival in New Iberia. Leroy White was one of the men accused in this case. According to reports, the Iberia Parish Jail was not safe enough to keep the men in, and it has been said that the town had nearly lynched them. The following spring, five of the men were convicted. Two had gone to trial. One received a death sentence (which was later changed to a life sentence as a result of a Supreme Court case against the application of the death penalty for rape). Another received a life sentence. Three others plead guilty in exchange for a life sentence, mostly because they were affraid of execution. Leroy White was one of these. Except for pleaing guilty in order to save himself from a possible death sentence, Mr. White has always maintained his innocence. One additional suspect whom the DA had chosen to treat as a juvenile, most likely in exchange for his testimony, was sent to juvenile home for about a year and released (even though he was a juvenile, he was of such an age that the DA could have elected to try him as an adult and request that he be executed--at the time the age was 13).

In Louisiana, a natural life sentence generally is a natural life sentence. Leroy White is still in jail. It took a lot of work to get that test done, and I hope the case progressses. However, for the day, I will celebrate the fact that Leroy White was excluded by the DNA tests.

Writing

2006-03-11T21:28:22Z

I am thinking of submitting an article to a new magazine (actually, not even published yet) about individualist anarchism (of both "capitalistic" and "socialistic" types, if those words have any meaning). The magazine will be called The Industrial Radical. It will be edited by Roderic Long of www.praxeology.net.

The only thing is, I'm not sure I write that well. Or that I have anything orriginal to say. I have started and stopped a number of times.

Walking

2006-03-11T21:23:51Z

I am tremedously out of shape.

Its not that I am overweight (well, maybe medically), it is just that I am out of shape. So, as mentioned previously, I have decided to start wallking. I walk 2.5 miles a day, about 4 or 5 days a week, in about 40-45 minutes. I thought it would be a good motivation, as mentioned before, to listen to Nathaniel Brandon's Basic Principles of Objectivism.

The only thing is, I get tired quickly. Before, say, 1/2 mile I am wanting to stop. Not only do I not have the energy, my lower legs start to hurt. I start slowly, but once I start speeding up, my legs begin to hurt immediately. I eventually try to walk as fast as possible without jogging. But I'm not sure I can do this for the larger part of the course. By the end, my left foot begins to get a small bit numb. But that goes away almost as soon as I sit down.

In other news, the lectures are begining to get boaring with the discussion of "The Concept of God".

In Justice

2006-03-04T04:31:33Z

Watching the show "In Justice" makes me want to do innocence work (appeals and post conviction relief as opposed to pre-trial/trial work) again.

That was the day. Spending time in Angola instead of CCC. Clients all didn't seem to get a fair trial. And I thought they were all innocent. Plus, I wasn't in court (and neither were the actual lawyers) anywhere near as much.

Maybe I should go back to that

Brandon's "Three Pillars of Altruism"

2006-02-28T04:27:16Z

According to Nathaniel Brandon's "Basic Principles of Objectivism" there are three basic principles which werve as the pillars of Altruism (Altruism, meant in the Objectivist sense):

1. Existence is evil
2. Man is evil
3. Happiness is evil

I thought that this was a pretty stunning revelation. Not stunning in the sense that it is new to people who have read Ayn Rand, but stunning in its arrangement and presentation. I don't remember seeing it quite so bluntly. Furthermore, I think that this provides a pretty accurate description. Take Christianity. The first principle is demonstrated by the idea of the world as a "vale of tears" where we are all condemned to suffer until we get to the wonder that is heaven, which is, by the way, in many ways opposite to earth. The second principle just is orriginal sin. Finally, the third principle is found in the idea that there is merit in suffering, and the more you suffer, the more your heavenly reward.

When listening to the lecture, especially in any discussion of #1, I had to think of Buddhism. Buddhism wasn't mentioned explicitly, probably because the lectures were taped in 1958, well before Buddhism took off in the USA. What may be the Buddhist varriant of #1 happenes to be what is called the First Noble Truth and is often sumarized as "Life is Suffering". A more detailed statement of the "First Noble Truth" is as follows:

This is the Noble Truth about suffering. Birth is suffering. Ageing is suffering. Sickness is suffering. Death is Suffering. Sorrow, pain, grief, and despair are suffering. Association with what is unpleasant and separation from what is pleasant is suffering. Not getting what one wants is suffering. In short, the whole process of attachment is suffering.

As someone who sees benefit in both Objectivism and Buddhism, this clash seems somewhat difficult. To be clear, The First Noble Truth is not that existence is evil or that Life is suffering. A more accurate translation would be that suffering is a necessary part of life. An even more accurate explanation would be that life necessarily gives us problems that cause people to suffer, but we don't have to suffer, if only we train ourselves in meditation.

However, this still leaves us with the problem. Objectivism is posative. It aims at achieving happiness. It focuses on the posative. Buddhism instead places a primary on suffering and how to alieviate it. It takes a darker view of what the world or existence is. Perhaps I am not a Buddhist, or negative enough to be such. Or maybe I just wish I weren't that nevative. In any case, I am left with the problem, and no answers. Maybe this is why the life of a full time Buddhist contemplative doesn't even appeal to me.

Buddhism still seems valuable. Perhaps life strategies to reduce suffering can be used to enhance success, achievement, and happines in a very worldly way. I know that there is some acknowledgement and resistance to this in Buddhist circles. Perhaps this is why Therevada is frowned upon by Mahayana.

General Update Kind Of Stuff

2006-02-28T02:34:52Z

I forgot to mention my second Feb. trial. My client was charged with 2 crimes: unauthorized entry of an inhabited dwelling & possession of crack cocaine. It began on Thursday moarning when my client was bitching about me. When the court denied his motion to appoint a new attorney, he went off on me more. False things, mind you, but quite a show. That afternoon (somewhere inbetween selecting a jury), I made some arguments about the entry charge and what wittnesses should be able to testify (people who weren't there shouldn't be able to testify about whether or not my client was let in). It didn't look like anyone was listening to me--or perhaps they thought my strategy was wrong and that I could successfully fight things differently. I went home that night expecting to complete the trial the next day. As it turns out, the next moarning they announced that they thought my arguments were right (or at least my concerns were legitimate) and dropped the entry charge. Then they dropped the drug charge. All before we picked a jury.

Can't say I wasn't dissapointed that we didn't complete (or even start) the trial. But it was a win.

As to other news, I have started motivating myself to exercise by purchasing Nathaniel Brandon's "Foundamental Principles of Objectivism". The talks seem pretty good. However, I would say that he starts off really good in the begining of each CD and sort of fizzels. Also, I was for some reason expecting a Q & A bit at the end of each lecture where Brandon and perhaps Barbara Brandon and Ayn Rand fielded some questions. These don't have any. :(

When did I become grouchy??

2006-01-16T02:44:19Z

They are filming Factory Girl downtown, particularly around the courthouse. It is supposed to be about one of Andy Warhol's wives or girlfriends. I find the idea that downtown Shreveport might look like 1950s New York amusing (which is how old I am guessing the cars that they are using are). So why is my main reaction "This is so annoying. They stop me while they are filming and I can't walk down the street for a whole five minutes". I never knew I was such a grouch.

Jury Trial 2

2006-01-12T02:21:29Z

I just completed my second jury trial.

My client was found guilty of a lesser charge. The orriginal charge was aggravated second degree battery and the jury found him guilty of aggravated battery, thus cutting down his exposure from up to 15 years to up to 10 years. I consider it a modest success.

Apparantly I get really really nervous at jury trial. The court clerk said I was shaking all day. I don't remember it that way, but he is probably right. Maybe it won't be so bad next time, but I doubt it. It is kind of difficult, working against a prosecutor that probably tried over 100 trials when he worked for probably no more than a few years in New Orleans.

Not as irrelevant as you may think

2006-01-01T19:43:48Z

(oops, this was orriginally posted in the wrong place. Also, I would appologize if this is hard to follow, as it is essentially thoughts from a previous conversation with a particular person)

A few days ago my sister dismissingly told me I was politically irrelevant. This statement was based on the issues I have with voting (which are probably expressed somewhere in this journal around election day 2004). To be fair, I was giving the most provacative and perhaps intentionally annoying arguments I could think of (the whole you must vote thing sort of set me off). I didn't at the time formulate much of a response, however, after some thinking I have.

The larger idea that she expressed was that "unless you can come up with an alternative system (to voting), your position is irrelevant". And I supposed I could have discussed various free-market anarchist (or even syndicalist) ideas. The value of political electioneering is way overestimated. There are so many issues that are more fundamental--and have much more importance to altering the course of a city, state, or nation-- than electioneering. How people think, how people live their lives, what they value, and how they relate to the world is much more important than how they vote. At best, the results of an election are the effect of all of these things.

To take elections so seriously is a mistake. The election of bad politicians is not so much a cause of negative cultural trends as an effect. Later on that night, the discussion between my sister, one of my cousins, and I veered back to politics. More specifically, the conversation moved to Detroit mayorial election between Killpatrick and challanger (I don't remember his name). In any case, the opinion of the others (I don't really know enough about Detroit politics) was that Killpatrick was an awefull, corrupt, slimy guy and that it would have been great if the challanger had the electoral ability and technology to win. But if most people in the city supported Killpatrick, all the electoral technology and political operating won't matter. It is more important to ask why a corrupt awefull politician is supported by the majority of the city. Why did they do this? What were they thinking? If Detroit as a city could deal with the more fundamental cultural issues, then both candidates would be much better and the results of the election wouldn't be so important. If you don't deal with the actual reasons that people like corrupt politicians, then corrupt politicians such as Killpatrick (and much more important, in my mind, Coleman Young)will always have an advantage.

A new year? Maybe I will update again.

2006-01-01T18:49:36Z

It is time I update.

I haven't updated in a long long long long while. In fact, I have been deficient on much communication, but that is a different matter. I have basically come to the conclusion that there are three main reasons why I haven't posted.

1) I am obsessed with my job (really, it is mostly all I ever think of) but don't think this is a proper place to discuss such things.
2) The other main item of thought in my life is Rachel and my relationship, and I don't think that this is a proper place to write about that either
3) I assume that most people who read my livejournal don't want to read my political thoughts. (In fact, I had started a journal at blogger for that reason. Unfortuntately, I was too lazy to really keep that up anyway, which leads to 4).
4)I'm lazy or unmotivated

There you have it, in a nutshell. I thought I would write that. Maybe I will write more. Who knows!

Anyway, Happy New Year!

Get Together before I go away

2005-01-20T16:30:53Z

To all my friends (in Louisiana),

As you know I will be moving to Shreveport very shortly. I am planning a get together so that I can see you all before I go. Please do come. It will be next Tuesday (the 25) at Chile's on Vets around 7PM. A good time will be had by all!

Please let me know if you can make it so I can estimate in order to make reservations.

JOB $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

2005-01-08T23:49:45Z

I am employed as an attorney!

Good: it is the type of work I have been hoping for
Bad: it is in Shreveport

That is right. I will be working at the Caddo Parish Public Defenders. I guess that means I won't be seeing most of my local friends much. :(

Before I leave I will have to have some sort of dinner event. Time and place tba.

Shreveport #2

2005-01-04T23:33:07Z

I am begining to feel like the world is pushing me to Shreveport. It really is.

I have an interview on Thursday Moarning there. Its with the public defenders.

Wish me luck.

And the phone is a ringing

2004-12-17T19:51:16Z

Since I last talked to most of you, I have been falling into interviews:

1. Vioxx cases--I interviewed with a big vioxx guy who wants some contract attorneys
2. Project for Older Prisoners--This is very part time but it was a good interview and an interesting perhaps exciting job is better than no job
3. Small Laplace firm--interview to be scheduled
4. Shreveport indigent defenders--interview to be scheduled

Thank god things seem to be moving

Ramparts stree, a street where all the boys and the good folks meet

2004-12-14T18:24:01Z

Or what is Jackie Clarkson up to now?

I went down to Donna's last night to hear "Bob French & Friends". It really is a great show and I encourage everyone to go on a Monday night. It is $10, but you get to hear great music, a free Bob French CD, and on the house red beans, rice, and BBQ chicken that can't be beat (served about 11:30). Although, I would say that they tend to play the same songs--not because they don't know any others (many great New Orleans musicians stop in and play) but because they tend to like these songs. The house favorites tend to be "St James Infirmary" and "You got the right key but the wrong key hole" (always with the inuendo played up). Two notable people showed up. The first was Henry Butler, a great piano player,and the second was John Boutte.

John Boutte, it appears, has his own gig down the road--but it has been closed down. Why has it been closed down? It seems to have some connection to Jackie Clarkson complaining about the loud music on Ramparts Street. Ramparts street? There is music on Ramparts street, but usually you can't hear much outside the restaurants. On the other hand, the stuff they play on Burbon Street is usually not as good and they blare it much louder. Did Jackie Clarkson really have this guy's gig (and possibly others closed down)? How? WHat is her vision of the quarter? She really seems to want to squelch the good things--Jackson Square, good music, etc... but at the same time the frat boy drunken tourist sexcapade stuff on Burbon is OK. Not that I want people to target either, it just seems like the lady is taking the good flavor out of the town, but letting the real bad crap that New Orleanians tend not to want to be associated with slide.

On the other hand, I didn't really like the Boutte character. He played up jiving about politics and had to be drug into stoping the jive and singing by Bob French. Some of his quips were funny (he saw a Touzan commercial that featured his opponent tap dancing around issues with a tap visual, and concluded that if Melanson could tap dance that well he was worth voting for), but others seemed like moronic radicalism ("Jeasus was a Palestinian" is what he said when he put on one of those Arafat style head garb thingies).

The strangest spam I ever recieved

2004-12-14T18:03:11Z

Today in my alternate email account, (the one that I use when people don't really know me, and I don't know how they would react to the email address "menright77..."--menright being from m enright) I found a very strange spam.

For all intensive purposes the guy wanted to send me sandals FOB from China. What the heck? I'm getting spam from a wholesaler of sandals in China? WTF?