I know I said this wouldn’t turn into a political type blog thing, but it’s an election year, and it seems like this one might be a particularly important one…and I know that they say that every election, but this time it’s true, really.

So the Mormon’s out which, after Tuesday, isn’t that big a surprise. All the way home yesterday (which is about a 75 minute commute) NPR was going on and on about how the conservative base still hasn’t gotten behind McCain and he needs them to win. My question is, does he?

Look, I already said that I think he’d beat Clinton in a general election. Oh, yeah I heard all the disgruntled Romneyites saying they’d vote for Hillary over McCain (and, of course, there was that Ann Coulter thing…) but that was a kneejerk reaction to their guy bowing out. As an aside, I found his “concession” speech rather graceful, except for the middle part where he felt the need to go on about how porn and gays were ruining the fabric of America….Anyway, who honestly believes that any proud, card carrying Republican is going to walk into a voting booth in November and actually pick any candidate with the name “Clinton.”

Look, I know she’s just as conservative as McCain, but it just isn’t going to happen in this world. Plus, McCain has already shown that he’s winning moderates and independents, something Hillary will have a hard time doing.

One thing that strikes me as funny is that, by and large, staunch conservatives feel betrayed by McCain because…as far as I can tell…he has some principles. He committed the cardinal sin of NOT VOTING FOR A TAX CUT WHEN IN TIME OF WAR, like, oh I don’t know, a real conservative (as opposed to a neo-con) would. Then, and this is the really crazy thing, he co-sponsored two bills with actual liberals. Dear god! We don’t want someone in the White House who actually has a history of working across the aisle!

Like I’ve said before, I’m not a McCain guy, but given the choice of him or Hillary…that’s tough.

Now Obama, there’s your (and by that I mean, my) candidate. Already we’re seeing a hint that he might be getting the better of Clinton, at least as far as money raising goes. Of course, Dems go with the whole (and decidedly more democratic) proportional delegate thing, so we’ve still got a ways to go (by the way, where would Romney be if the GOP did the same?). But I think a McCain, Obama election would be better for the country all the way around. You have a long time Washington politician who’s not really “loved” by his party vs. essentially, the most unpolitical presidential candidate you’re likely to get….

I know I haven’t been around that much lately, and as lame of a blogging cliche as that is, it still holds true. I don’t have a lot of time right now, for a large variety of reasons which I’m not going to go into at this point, but I did want to drop a line quickly to prove that I still breathe in and out… at least to the point that I can operate a keyboard here and there. So here’s a succinct rundown of important events in my life and the Gilgrim family:

• Baby Shower was Awesome
• Day Job is changing… oddly in fact, but moving forward in its own weird ways
• Goliath and I have been reunited - at least as far as he is back where he belongs, on my desk
• Moving to Tustin and leaving Fullerton far behind in about 2 weeks
• Sorting through all of the gifts and duplicates for Salem from the shower and preparing for our son’s arrival
• Finally took some ‘tummy’ pics of the lovely APrilhead and our beautiful child-thing growing in her stomach
• Crunching away at the GN project
• Was given the opportunity for a new project (a flash game)
• Completed a 15 pg comic-guide for Grand Chase in less than 4 days
• The beard is on its way back
• Missing some of my friends
• Legal pronouncements regarding my previous life have been finalized - I’m free!
• Rediscovering my love for horror film once more
• My little Vaio monitor at home is about to die suddenly
• The Cemeterians looks like it will be collected in a full-blown trade
• Planning on painting again, it’s been a year since I last did, which is more than overdue now
• Began a strange relationship with crossword puzzles via APrilhead
• Being very excited about becoming a father within the next 7 or 8 weeks
• Starting to draw again, learning to enjoy it again, slowly
• Cranking the Adicts, the Horrorpops and the Misfits in my earphones at work
• Paying bills, starting bank accounts, and trying to become a proper adult (not the same as grownup) for the sake of being a proper father
• Not moving to Seattle just yet
• Loving APrilhead more and more every single day

–Aleister

The HorrorPops - Crawl Straight Home

I have a habit of changing my Desktop Wallpaper fairly regularly, in fact it’s kind of a thing here in the Megalo Fortress to update them about once a week. As such, I figured I would share my current Desktop Wallpaper image… maybe this is something that I will update every week here on Normality if the response is favorable for the idea from you dear Normalinauts ^__^.

(Click the image for the full size)

–Aleister

The Adicts - The Odd Couple

Last week the daughter had hives over 90% of her body, just another in a long line of ailments to have afflicted her since around the middle of October. This week she’s had a persistent fever of around 104 and a bunch of crap in her chest that may or may not be pneumonia.

I came back to work today, having been home with her on Monday and Tuesday. I’ve slept less hours over the past three days than at any time when trying to finish my book last month. So, for all you hoping for chapter one of The Dawn Lights the Way, I’m sorry but you’ll have to wait on that. I won’t even be going to class tonight, or handing in pages for my workshop because I have to do makeup time (all of my daughter’s illnesses over the last five months have completely cleaned out all of my sick/vacation time).

Things seem to be getting back to, dare I say it…I dare…normal for Gilgrim, and hopefully as the weather begins to warm the same can be said for the little infection incubator I lovingly call “bug.”

Anyway, I may get up a new poll later on today…

I was trying to think of something witty or informative to capture your attention, loyal Normalinauts, but alas…I cannot. I attribute my lack of loquacious inspiration to lack of sleep, and too much work.

Here’s a very “humorous” tale of caution for any would be writer’s (or other creatively leaning types) out there…

Feel like nominating someone/piece of work for a Locus Award…well then, be my guest…don’t know what the Locus Awards are, shame shame, know your name!

This, well, just read it. I couldn’t do it justice…

That’s all for now.