Good evening loyal consumer, Before I begin, I'd like to thank you for your opinions and advice that you rendered to me regarding my previous entry/ issue. With that in mind, I suppose that it's my duty to inform you that I decided to let this one pass. Yes yes, you can send your grievances to the union after, but before you do I think you should realize that it was for the best and furthermore, my options were wholly limited. Lesser of two evils and all that. She's getting over it and life will go back to being just as normal and mundane as before. Crisis averted and as far as I can tell, a return to reality is over-due. Of course, Caroline was right, any decision you make in life is going to displease or hurt someone you know and that's because everybody wants different things for you... everyone has their own agenda and that's why it's nice to have people you know you can rely on to provide cool and objective coverage of these sorts of events. So thank you all, thank you both. I'm going to need a haircut soon - I dislike haircuts with a passion. I think it's because I get attached to things. We all know people like that, perhaps you're even one of them and that's okay too. I guess that's why we have mothers who can encourage... or in my case nag to get rid of the things that won't benefit us at all [i.e. excess hair] But see, the attachment issue is really a terrible thing sometimes and not just because I end up being labeled as a pack-rat, but because I have to remember what sentiment I attributed to this item, for whom, when, why. Between that and trying to balance names and places, memorizing songs I seldom hear and the bank of useless knowledge, it's a wonder I can function at school and work. The human mind is really an interesting thing and if this is only a fraction of it's capability as the biologist would have us believe, and if in fact psychopaths do use more of their brain than regular, tax-paying decent citizens than I am scared to see what our full potential is. I can only imagine. Progress and mild-tempers? I think not. Chances are that we'd end up decimating ourselves [which, by the way, doesn't literally mean slaughtering, but actually a reduction of a number to ten percent of the original amount - a deduction of ninety percent if you will.] We'd either have to have a lot more children (there goes the entire paycheck on diapers) or just be content with the fact that we wouldn't have enough people to defend ourselves from an alien invasion. When you think about there probably aren't even enough brave souls on the planet to save us right now. in terms of bravery, we were probably better off a few decades ago. I'll explain why in a little bit. And by that I mean right now. So for some reason I keep on picking these weird but slightly enlightening books from Chapters (which is the Canadian giant as far as books go. This one is more of a confirmation of my thoughts and a reassurance that either I'm not the only crazy one on this planet or that there may just be some value in observation. The author is Christopher Moore and t be honest, he's put a lot more lucid thought into this than I would, simply because he's middle aged and an author and I'm none of the above. He's correctly identified a new category and dubs it the 'beta male.' Throughout the book h gives little definitions which explains the main characters behavior and allows the author to demonstrate that he has a pretty good grasp of he evolving male condition. So in my wisdom, I'm going to share, verbatim, a copyrighted piece of literature and if The Captain never returns to SitD, it's because I was sued and/or shut down. "While Alpha Males are often gifted with superior physical attributes - size, strength, speed, good looks - The Beta Male gene has survived by not meeting and over-coming adversity, but by anticipating and avoiding it... but because he can anticipate danger, he far outnumbers his Alpha Male competition... In fact, many Beta Males, contrary to any empirical evidence, actually believe that they are Alpha Males..." (P.31-32) "Beta Males almost always make good fathers. They tend to be steady and responsible, the kind of guys a girl (if she was resolved to do without a seven-figure salary or the thirty-six-inch vertical leap) would want as a father for her children. Of course, she'd rather not have to sleep with him for that to happen, but after you've been kicked to the curb by a few Alpha Males, the idea of waking up in the arms of a guy who will adore you... and will always be there, even past the point where you can stand to have him around, is a comfortable compromise. For the Beta Male, if nothing else, is loyal. He makes a great husband as well as a great friend. He will help you move and bring you soup when you are sick. Always considerate, the Beta Male thanks a woman after sex and is often quick with an apology as well. He makes a great housesitter, especially if you aren't especially attached to your house pets. A beta male is trustworthy: your girlfriend is generally safe in the hands with a Beta Male friend..." (P.35-36) Now there is why the bravery level has declined and why, amongst other things, military recruitment is down all over the board. Sensitive is fashionable and 'cultured' has been brought down to the masses. We're all victims when you think about it. Many Betas do think that they're Alphas but when the going gets tough, when you think you can rely on them - *wham* they turn out to be sensitive and the opposite of what you need. Personally, I blame Liberalism - but that’s just me. The point I'm trying to make here is that right now, in terms of percentage, there are more Beta Males than there were 50 years ago. Of course there are problems associated with an world monopolized by Alphas, but realistically, if the majority of North American men start to loose their backbones, start going soft and such, what would we do if aliens were to invade? And more likely, how the hell could we defend [please note the omission of the word "attack"] ourselves from other countries? Maybe we could use all of those Starbucks cups to build a fort? Or make a few ships? That'll show 'em! The USS Inspiration or HMCS Wise-Words: Making a stand one Pomegranate Frappicino at a time. I mean, it's nice that there are a lot of guys out there who are willing to move their lady-friends out of their houses without expecting anything in return - in fact I did that twice last month - but there a line has to be drawn somewhere. We are definitely at, if not past our quota and with Metrosexualism making it's debut on the scene, we're so screwed if something drastic doesn't happen soon. And since we're talking about fatherhood, or rather, since fatherhood was brought up I might as well confess something. While away for a day about three - four hours away from the city, while staring out onto the lake I started thinking about the future, about wanting to give my kids the same experience.. or at least hoping that I could. I know that it's crazy-talk and maybe it was the combination of fatigue and dehydration, but I started to think about a miniature-captain and a mini-Mrs.-captain running around by the dock, splashing in the water. No idea who my other half would be... no clue whatsoever, but we're working on it. Maybe it's a sign of aging? But shouldn't this be happening in my mid/late-twenties? I can barely afford to pay insurance and rent right now if I tried to move out on my own, and yet here I am thinking about purchasing / renting a cottage for my children? Anyway, after that I started thinking about living arrangement - various places I could call home and provide for my kids... my non-existent kids. Well, there goes that bloody over-active imagination again and once again I seem to have put the carriage before the horse.. it's just that I worry. I've been worrying about that lately as well - marriage, co-ordination, honeymoon. I'm not too sure where I'm going with this one, but if I keep this up I'll have everything laid out before I even get into another relationship... have I mentioned that it's been over 18 months since my last relationship? Oddly enough, in that time span I've managed to help about two dozen relations, attended five funerals, decided who to have as my best man, been on four real dates, and managed to soil my first year of university. I'm just not sure if thinking this far into the future is a healthy thing for me to be doing at this point in life. I'm pretty sure it's not normal for it to be on the mind this much. I need a hobby. I decided that next year I'm going to take up fencing. As for this year, I'm going to work on the violin - worked it into my class schedule to get a few credits. But what I really need right now is a midnight snack and a nightcap. Thank the maker for PB'n'J and Vodka. I'll leave you with a quote from Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young: "And if you can't be with the one that you love Honey love the one you're with Don't be angry, Don't be sad, Don't sit crying over the good times you had." Cheers, - Captain B. Rearranging