Vickie Collins
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© 1995-2008 URNotAlone.com, All Rights Reserved. All items © Copyright by their respective owners, used here with their consent.
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New web page
Diamond January 1st, 2009 11:17 am MSTHello,
You may now visit me at my new web page:
www.dragarama.com
((Plus a big thank-you to Yahoo/Geocities for hosting my page for the last 11 years.))
[Comment on this post]
What I wrote My Congressman regarding the US Economy
Jon October 1st, 2008 2:11 pm MDTI've been so disgusted listening to the Talking Heads spew bullshit on what needs to be done to get the Economy going again that I decided to write My Congressman. I encourage everyone to do the same, whether your view is in line with mine or diametrically opposed to it. Here's what I wrote My Congressman.
I'm writing to ask you 2 things and also to express my opinion.
1. Please Vote NO on any Tax Payer funded Bailout, of any kind, for Banks and Financial Institutions. As a Tax Payer, I do not want to see my Hard Earned Tax Dollars going to help out Companies or Institutions that have made irresponsible decisions. Large Firms should be treated no differently than Small Firms. If they can't stay afloat on their own, they should be allowed to go under.
2. Do NOT use my Hard Earned Tax Dollars to Subsidize the Mortgages of others. If a person was irresponsible enough to take out a Mortgage larger than they could afford then they should be foreclosed on. People must be held responsible for their actions. It would be grossly unfair to use My Hard Earned Tax Dollars to help pay off someone else's Mortgage. I have a hard enough time paying My Mortgage and My Monthly Bills without the Added Burden of Subsidizing someone else. Taxes are not levied by our Government to Redistribute wealth and it Offends me that it's even being considered.
My opinion on what should happen going forward...
1. Banks should require Substantial Down Payments before rewarding a Mortgage.
2. Banks should Verify Employment and Yearly Income before rewarding a Mortgage.
A comment on 1 and 2 above... This is what Banks always did until Our Government, towards the end of the 1990's, started pushing Banks to loosen their requirements so that more people could own homes. Well, guess what, not everyone can afford to own a home. I think that's pretty clear now and should have been obvious from the beginning.
3. Financial Institutions must be held responsible for the types of Financial Instruments they buy and sell. If they bundle up Worthless Sub Prime Mortgages into Financial Instruments and then can't sell them, well, that's life, they should be stuck with them. If it causes their Collapse, so be it.
To sum it up, Corporations AND Individuals must be held accountable for their actions. Using My and other people's Hard Earned Tax Dollars to Redistribute the Wealth to help the Rich OR the Poor, goes against everything this country stands for and the thought of it makes me sick to my stomach.
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Erowid: Documenting the Complex Relationship between Humans and Psychoactives
Jon September 12th, 2008 1:37 pm MDTJust a neat little site that I ran across...
http://www.erowid.org
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Boston Pride Weekend 2008 Pics
Jon June 17th, 2008 2:11 pm MDTI just put up a Gallery of Assorted Pics from Boston Pride 2008. We had a whole bunch of friends up from Miami and we all had a blast, which I'm sure you can see from the Pics. The majority of pics were taken at Our place in the wee hours after Jacques Cabaret closed for the night.
Enjoy
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My Formative Years
Jon May 21st, 2008 9:42 am MDTI've decided to humiliate myself and post a Gallery of Pics of my Formative years, covering from about 1 year old up to about 18 years old. Click Here to have a look.
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Chat Room Changes
Jon April 23rd, 2008 10:25 am MDTYeah, we know, a lot of people are pissed off that we're requiring either a Silver Level Profile (which is Free) or a Subscription to enter Chat now.
We did this because, over and over again, people have asked us to put more stringent requirements in place to keep the Trolls and all around Jerks out of the room. Allowing people to enter Chat without a Completed Profile just let people be too anonymous and too many Jerks were using Chat just to harass and annoy people.
We really see no reason for complaints. You can still use URNA Chat for Free, however, you do have to be willing to complete your Profile and upload a Main Pic that is clear, that shows your face and that goes to your waist. It's a pretty simple requirement and anyone, who wants to, should be able to come up with a picture that meets our requirements.
For those who just aren't willing to show themselves to the world, there still should be no complaints. Since you're not really contributing by populating and completing your Profile, then we're asking you to contribute Monetarily by Purchasing a Subscription. I could understand a complaint if the cost of a Subscription were high, but it's not, it's well under $10 per month (currently $5.95 per month after the 1st month of $7.95). Sorry, but if you can afford a Computer and an Internet Connection, then you should be able to swing that. If you can't, you can always complete your Profile with a Pic that meets our Requirements.
[5 comments]
24 Hour News
Jon April 8th, 2008 7:17 am MDTI hate 24 hour News Channels like FOX and CNN, yet I listen to CNN all day while I work (I work from home). Go figure.
The problem with 24 hour News Channels is that they have to have something to talk about, so, they make news. 2 things I've heard on 24 hour News Channels over the last few days especially pissed me off...
1. We will be covering the Olympic Torch Passing and we will have News Crews there to cover the expected protests.
2. Man is Pregnant.
Number 1 above pissed me off because they're basically telling people... "Hey, if you want to be on TV, get over to the Torch passing event and start protesting and we'll film it all and you'll have your 15 minutes of fame". It creates an event that might otherwise not have happened. It would have been enough to say... We will be covering the Olympic Torch Passing and their will be News Crews there to bring it live to you. There was no need to say the News Crews would be there to "cover the expected protests".
Number 2 above upsets me because they are deliberately giving the impression that a Genetic Man is Pregnant. It's simply not true and the headline is designed to suck you in and listen further. The headline above is in regards to a Pre-Op Female to Male Transexual who is pregnant. She never had SRS and still has her Reproductive Organs. Now, if the headline said Transsexual Man is Pregnant, it would lose much of the audience. They are deliberately misleading people to grow their audience. Never mind the fact that they're turning it into a Freak Show.
Anyway, now that I've gotten that off my chest... hope everyone's having a nice beginning to Spring!
[1 comment]
Free Basic Photo Editing
Jon March 28th, 2008 11:18 am MDTAdobe just started up a Free Service that will allow you to edit photos. It'll allow you to do basic Resizing, Cropping, Rotating and more. So, if you don't have a tool to do this already, have a look at the Adobe Photoshop Express Site.
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Imagine
Jon February 27th, 2008 1:31 pm MSTImagine a world where people were judged by who they are rather than by what they look like.
Imagine a world where there was clothing... not mens clothing and womens clothing... simply clothing.
Imagine a world where people shopped for clothing and picked out what they liked because they liked it rather than because a man wears this and a women wears that.
Imagine a world where makeup was for whoever chose to wear makeup and one's sex played no role in the decision.
Imagine a world where people behaved the way that comes natural to them, rather than because a man behaves like this and a woman behaves like that.
Imagine a world where people paired off based on mental and physical attraction and one's sex only came into play for those who planned on procreating.
Imagine a world where people who paired off in same sex relationships had just as much right to adopt a child as people who paired off in mixed sex relationships.
Imagine a world in which job applicants were chosen based on their abilities and not by their sex or their appearance.
I really believe we'll get there someday. Distinctions are blurring between the sexes, albeit slowly. I think we have hundreds, if not thousands of years to go. I wish I could wake up 10,000 years from now and see if we've made it.
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Lunar Eclipse - February, 2008
Jon February 21st, 2008 10:45 am MSTI took a slew of pics of the Lunar Eclipse last night between 9:45pm and 10:15pm EST. I put together a collage with shots taken over those 30 minutes. It was cooooooold out on the roofdeck when I took them. Considering I took them hand held with virtually no light, they came out pretty damn good, if I don't say so myself. I used a lense with built in Vibration Reduction, a Nikkor AF-S 18-200 3.5-5.6 G ED, on my Nikon D70.
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Some pretty amazing artwork
Jon January 29th, 2008 10:04 am MSTOne of my friends just pointed me to some pretty amazing, thought provoking and creative artwork from an Artist out of Seattle, Chris Jordan. Just thought it would be nice to share it with everyone. This is from his Running the Numbers - An American Self-Portrait.
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Vicky & Jon's Miami Pics
Jon January 14th, 2008 3:43 pm MSTI just posted a Gallery of Pics from our Miami Trip. There aren't many as we didn't carry a camera around all that much, but there are a few of Vicky and I, some at Trixie's Bar and assorted other places.
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Vicky is back home
Jon January 10th, 2008 10:45 am MSTJust to keep everyone updated. Vicky is back home and doing great. She's in good spirits and thanks everyone for their well wishes.[3 comments]
Where are Jon & Vicky?
Jon January 7th, 2008 8:31 pm MSTJust a short note to let everyone know that Vicky had a heart attack on Sunday after we returned home from Miami. We caught it fast and got her to the hospital fast. She's recovering wonderfully and should be home by the end of this week. If you're wondering why Vicky or I aren't answering our eMails, she's recuperating and I've been with her in the hospital.[7 comments]
Puerto Rico Pics
Jon December 11th, 2007 4:50 pm MSTI just uploaded a dozen pics from our Puerto Rico trip in a new gallery entitled 200712 - Puerto Rico - December 2007. There aren't any pics of Vicky and I out and about enjoying the nightlife, we just didn't take any when we were out at night. Most of our time was spent in the Mountains where Vicky is from. The pics are mostly Scenic with a few pics of me that Vicky took.
It was nice to get away from it all for 15 days and to not even touch a computer during the trip. Hope you like the pics.
[4 comments]
Home of the Week
Jon August 4th, 2007 4:04 pm MDTOur place got written up in one of the local papers, The Boston Courant, as the Home of the Week. Hopefully this will generate some traffic and the right person will see it, buy it and we can be on our way to Miami. We'll see...
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Think before posting
Jon May 19th, 2007 1:37 pm MDTSome people just aren't too bright. One that comes to mind is Steffenie who's profile I disabled this morning and who I've banned from URNA. Those of you who saw her ranting when I asked her to please not post in ALL CAPS will know who I'm referring to. As if that wasn't enough she personally attacked me over and over... well, she's gone now and I sent her the following eMail to explain why she's no longer welcome...
"You're not too bright Steffenie. You call the owner (me) of the site you like so much a "BIG OVER THE TOP ASSHOLE" and expect to remain here? Well, this is not a Democracy. Dan and I run this site and we decide what we will put up with. Your comment that I am a "BIG OVER THE TOP ASSHOLE" and you deliberately annoying me has gotten your profile disabled. The only way it will be enabled again is via an apology to me from you AND a promise to stop posting in all Caps. If you don't like it, there are lots of other sites that would hate having you too, why don't you put up a profile on one of those."
Anyway, I guess what I wanted to point out is that Dan and I are people too. We can both take constructive critisism and we can both agree to disagree with other people, but, we will only take so much abuse or personal attacks from someone before we just say good riddance.
[5 comments]
Some thoughts...
Jon May 16th, 2007 7:43 am MDTThere's just not enough time in a day. Between my very busy day job as of late, URNA and getting our place ready to put on the market towards the end of June, I've been swamped. Thankfully, we have a much needed vacation coming up and Vicky and I will be heading to Puerto Rico on May 25th. It will be nice to get away from things and to relax for a week.
Dan will be visiting us in Boston, for Pride, after we get back from Puerto Rico and while he's here we'll be mapping out new features and enhancements that we'll be releasing over the summer and into the fall.
Hopefully, our place...
...will sell relatively fast and you'll find us relocated to Miami by the end of the summer or early fall. We have mixed emotions. We'll both miss Boston and our place right in the heart of the city, but, at the same time, it will be nice to never have to deal with another long, cold winter. Time will tell, we can always take it off the market and wait another year, but, based on the Realtors we've spoken with, our place is unique, the location is prime (did I mention we live stumbling distance from Jacques Cabaret?) and the roof deck and private garage should make it sell fairly quick.
The next thing will be to rent a place in Miami and take our time looking for the right place in the South Beach or North Beach area, maybe even in the Design District of Miami. Can't wait to start poking around to see what's out there.
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Life's been hectic
Jon March 8th, 2007 8:11 pm MSTHaven't posted anything in my Journal in awhile... life's been pretty hectic. Not only has the site been very busy, but, my day job has me swamped and the recent travel I've had to do for it has had a major impact.
Besides, any of you that know me, will understand that I'm really not the type of person to put my thoughts down for the world to see. I have to force myself to write an entry such as this one. Anyway, hopefully things will be back on a more even keel in the coming months and I'll be able to sit back and relax on occasion.
Now, for those of you who've taken some time to read this... a little heads up... we'll be releasing a new feature... very soon... for URNA Plus or Full Access Subscription holders (basically for all the people who aren't limited to 4 entries in their Friends List). You'll be able to manipulate your Friend's List to put your 8 Best Friends at the front of the list and they'll display on your Main Profile Page as your Best Friends. Have a look a My Profile for an example.
Oh, if you're not listed as one of my Best Friends, the people who are, are the people I actually get together with on a regular basis in the Real World, so please, don't be offended, they are basically the people I actually go out with on a regular basis and who I've known, personally, for quite some time.
[2 comments]
The Nut Cup Bra
Jon November 1st, 2006 7:32 pm MSTThis is Hilarious. It's a real product, sold by a friend of a friend and you just have to see the Video demonstrating it's purpose. Just go to NutCupBra.com and click on the Nut Bra Movie link. It had me rotflmao.
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