It's only the flu!

One of my readers was complaining that I hadn't updated my journal since July.  Sheesh!  Give me some slack, that was just six days ago.  I've just been leading a very pedestrian life lately anyway.  Living life on the cheap does not make for an exciting live journal.

First step in low-cost living is borrowing lots of library books.  Lots and lots of library books.  My latest is the The Great Influenza: The Epic Story of the Deadliest Plague in History.  I'm not sure why I hadn't heard much about the 1918 flu pandemic what with an estimated 20-100 million dead worldwide.  But this fairly grisly read is doing it's best to wipe away all my blissful ignorance.  Here are a few pandemic factoids just in case you don't want to read the book:

• Over half the people who died from the flu in 1918 were in their 20s and 30s.  Evidence suggests it wasn't the flu virus that killed  but rather it was overkill on the part of their immune system defending the body from the virus (thus those with the strongest immune systems dying in large numbers).
• The 1918 strain of the virus caused many horrific symptoms including bleeding from every orifice possible.  Yeah, that includes eyes and ears along with all the other usual places (throat, nose, vagina, etc).
• Blame Kansas!  Best evidence points to Kansas as the origin of the pandemic.  Then it was carried forth to the rest of the world by US soldiers mobilizing for World War I. 
• Many officials (both civil and military) displayed incredibly shitty leadership qualities in the face of the pandemic. 
• And just in case you weren't aware, there is still no cure for the flu.  And antibiotics are useless, USELESS! against viruses. And the flu virus is way too mutable to ever make a vaccine against all strains.

Reading the book has made me ponder many things.  Will I start getting a flu shot?  Hmm, probably not until I actually catch the flu some year.   Will having organizations such as the World Health Organization (WHO) monitor the coming and going to flu strains prevent another pandemic?  Doubtful.  Has our military made changes so their soldiers wouldn't spread a new infectious disease so quickly?  I honestly don't know.  In other words, I have the rather mundane worry if we've managed to learn anything from the horrendous 1918 flu pandemic.  Or has the horror faded so much from our collective memory that we're doomed to live it all again?  Only in a bigger, splashier 21st century kind of way?  Am I the only one uneasy about relying on our government officials to actually listen to our health officials? 

Finally, I have to say this even though it may sound cold and cruel, sometimes you just have to sit back and marvel at the awesome force of nature.  Nature has proven time and again just how easy it is to kick the collective ass of mankind.

And now for a happier topic...

Recently I've been wondering if Mozart were alive today if he would still give his works the same names. I mean how could titles such as "Piano Sonata No. 4 in E flat major" be anything but boring? Maybe he'd take a hint from bands such as Out Hud who have what I consider to be one of the most amusing song titles of the year in "Dear Mr. Bush, There are over 100 words for shit and only 1 for Music. Fuck You, Out Hud"
Masterful use of titles, no? (Although I'm forced to doubt their claim of there there being only one word for music. I think there have to be more. Um, song? Don't make me get out the thesaurus!)

If you have never heard of Out Hud but love synth-laden, sprawling electronic music run out and get an album. Or just go to their web page and download a song or two. Their latest even has a few songs with lyrics (if you're into that sort of thing).

It's calling to me

I've been lurking around eBay lately bidding on a book for my dad. While I'm there I can't help but search for anime and manga things. I can't think of a single reason why I'd need a Koicha no Osahou or a Wild Adapter pencil board but they are adorable so I WANT them. This is why I try to avoid eBay at all costs. Weak will and a desire for crap I clearly don't need. Sunday can't arrive soon enough...