I grew up in the boonies and some of my earliest memories consist of peeing all over the woods to drive the deer back into the state forest where hunting is illegal and destroying hunting blinds and treestands. Now I leave antagonistic notes too: "Hey, took your treestand as a trophy." or "LOLZ, I polluted your blind." (Advice: BYOTP. Leaves itch.)

We have a huge poaching problem here, particularly assholes hunting from the back of quads and ATVs. I fucking hate hunters, but the poachers are a class of themselves. There isn't a word to describe them, nor any sort of karma good enough for them. Every once in a while, one will get arrested and then I make sure to have assemble a cheering section for their booking. Nothing beats the "Walk of Shame" when 25 people show-up to cheer, taunt and watch your perp-walk. As soon as I get my new camera, I'm going to start taking pictures to hang on a "Wall of Assholes".

There...now you won't be the only one getting juicy flames.

Edit: I need to point out that nobody hunting in one of the wealthiest parts of CT is subsistence hunting. It's mostly trophy killing. Some of these assholes just take the heads and feet, leaving the rest of the deer lying there in the woods to rot and stink.

The Decemberists - The Crane Wife (B) Solid effort, would have scored higher except I realized I don't like their style. I bought it based on a recommendation from a friend.

The Shins - Wincing The Night Away. (A-) Honestly, this one and the next CD...I think I'm the only person who liked it. I loved it.

Wilco - Sky Blue Sky. (A) My best purchase of the year. Maybe not the best album I bought, but utilitarian. I can listen to it anytime, any mood.

Against Me! - New Wave. (C+) The grade may be misleading. It really deserves a A+ for half the CD and a D for the other half. Part of the CD is genius (Thrash Unreal, White People For Peace) and a larger part (Stop!, The Ocean) is pure shit.

Against Me! - Reinventing Axl Rose. (A+) Saying you like RAR is like saying that you like Pearl Jam's Ten or Nirvana's Nevermind. It's their seminal CD. Thus, instead I'm going to say I listen to this CD when I feel like gutpunching Dick Cheney. The sentiment is the same really.

Sunny Day Real Estate - Diary. (B) I refuse to justify this purchase. I wanted it, I bought it. I know it's emo. I don't fucking care.

Jack Johnson - Sleep Through The Static. (B+) I dare you to hate this CD. Also, it seems to be the perfect background music for kinky sex. Who knew? Jack Johnson will get you laid.

I bought more CDs than this...I'm just done with music criticism for the moment.

Look at the fantastic job she did with her own two kids. Hopefully, the baby ends up somewhere better than with those idiots.

Hoping for sanity and adoption to be considered as options.

*That the Democrats eventually will have to fund GWB's great middle-eastern boondoggle. Um...we control Congress...we have the authority to not vote continuing funds, thus we don't have to do anything of the sort. Perhaps we should, perhaps we shouldn't...in any case we have no obligation to do anything...except the macarena. Everybody must do the macarena...or else the terrorists will win.

*That GWB will ever listen to reason. Everybody knows that Jesus told him that reason is the antithesis of faith. Yeah, he then had to look up "antithesis" but he thinks he's got it now. "Antithesis" is like when you think when you don't think you think something or something.

*Dick Cheney actually hears the bullshit coming out of his mouth when he flaps his gums. Actually...he had his eardrums punctured so that he would stop giving himself headaches trying to make heads and tails of the words coming out of George W. Bush's mouth.

*The "decider" is also a "thinker". He has all two brain cells tied up between deciding and remembering what he's decided. He doesn't have the available resources to think too.

I think it's different for different people. Most, in my experience, make the change slowly...I woke up one day and never ate meat again, then cut out eggs 6 months later. I still consume dairy in small quantities...probably always will as I've never found a non-dairy "milk" which doesn't make me gag. I'm mostly organic (in my own cooking, eating out is a different matter) as well...which makes a real difference in how I feel. Sick much less than I used to be.

I found the cheese thing passes with time...I had a cheese issue at first, but over time I noticed that I felt different after eating it. Bloated, clogged, heavy. I still eat cheese but a lot less often that I used to and in smaller quantities.

I don't find I crave meat as much as the crave the things that associate with meat or specific dishes (in which I never really cared about the meat to begin with)...slow-roasted southern BBQ, Buffalo Wings, General Tso's. Some of these things you can find meat-free versions of. I can get General Tso's Bean Curd at most Chinese restaurants, and Buffalo sauce is good on almost anything from fried-tofu and seitan (wheat gluten, a common meat substitute within dishes popular for its' lack of taste, willingness to take on the flavor of whatever it's marinated or cooked in and meatlike texture. I've passed it off as meat successfully on a number of occasions) to celery sticks and carrots. Some...like the BBQ, you live without.

Backslide (into meat)...not really. I tried to go vegan, and slid back into lacto-vegetarian as it wasn't the right choice for me. I'll probably try again someday if I can find a dairy-replacement that I like and can eat/drink regularly.

I don't make a distinction between any source of animal flesh. This strikes non-vegetarians as strange. I've even had close friends assume that I eat seafood (and cook it for me at nice dinners and the such, saying "I made fish because I know you're a vegetarian." You kind of have to suck it up and smile and explain that you don't eat fish either.) I usually offer to bring something to these events with the alterior motive that then I know that there will be at least something I can eat. Eating out, I can usually find something on a menu which is meat-free and if not, I've never found a restaurant that refused to fix me us something quality and meat-free. (They want your business and that means meeting your needs as a customer.)

I have a massive collection of recipes saved at this point, several cookbooks, and am blessed that I can cook well enough to improvise a menu. The internet is your friend.

Some meat substitutes are better than others and you'll find that you have preferences. I've found a few I like better than the "real thing".

As for cost-effectiveness, if you make a lot of your food from scratch...you'll save money, possibly lots of money. If you buy prepared foods, you're going to end up paying more to eat.

as a barista I agree.

It's corporate's fault, they take away good tools (Magistrale espresso machines; true artist's tools which allow you to do anything you desire but are hard to use if you're not meant to barista) and replace them with Verismo 301s (moron-proof piles of crap which limit artistry immensely by automating the process; taking away skill-based variables such as tamping, short-pouring (no more ristretto shots ), and ability to add to the ground mixture (no more cubano shots. )

Why? Because it allows them to train people less and hire morons. I'm sorry, I'm an artist and I get paid like one because I am one. I don't need a machine to do my job for me because I know how to do it. Maybe our new hires do need a "player piano" but that tells me they need to be better-trained or find a different job.

Edited: Just to add to journal.

but DD's coffee still sucks.

If you want great coffee, honestly...go to Starbucks, but go during a slow rush and ask them to french-press something you'll enjoy. (I can't over-reccommend Kenya or Sulawesi or Narino Supremo.) I do it almost-every-day for the customers I like, the ones who actually know coffee, or can appreciate a good cup. I'm happy to because I know they enjoy it. I do it for anybody who asks, provided they don't come in at 7:30am when the line is down the block and ask for it because I can't do it then.

We love to press coffee for the people who know and love coffee because when they find that one perfect blend, one that we may not bulk-brew because it's special and underappreciated, it's magic.

However, 99% of the people who come-in don't know great coffee and don't really want to because great coffee takes time and knowledge (much like great tea does). They want fast decent coffee so I give them fast decent coffee.