This page at Feral Living comes in 34th in a google search for german phrases wwii. There are some useful German expressions there, go look if you don’t believe me. In honor of today being the anniversary of the German surrender, let me add one more: Ich ergebe mich. Which means I surrender and is not to be confused with ich uebergebe mich, which means I am vomiting.

Gamma vomits daisies at Raising Hell.

While I completely agree with Francis that the problem with the world today is that not enough people are nice enough, I would replace the word nice with kind. Niceness is, I think, a mask and a shield, allowing one to close one’s heart but avoid conflict, while kindness requires you to open your heart and be genuinely involved, and for this reason does not shield you or rule out conflict. This is my take on the two words, how I have experienced them, your mileage may vary. But I think being nice results in an accumulation of frustration and anger from not living one’s authentic self and from taking shit, while kindness, although more difficult and more work, does not require one to take shit. I would rather be kind than nice, and that’s what I aspire to. Unfortunately, I’m also afraid that this whole “no more Mr. Niceguy” thing could lead a lot of people to miss that point. It’s not okay to be a jerk.

Congratulations are in order. Michele’s fine website, www.asmallvictory.net – chock-burstin’ with attitude and fine writing – is msn.com link of the day today.

And she achieved it all before turning 40!

Fuck me, but I could use a goddamn smoke about now.

I got a 41 out of 48 on the Mr. Niceguy? self-assessment test, which doesn’t surprise me. While this whole No More Mr. Niceguy thing sounds on the surface suspiciously like the next bullshit pop-psychology book-marketing movement, I will be using the word “fuck” more in future, just in case. Because despite my suspicion of the generalizations of any self-help concept, some of this stuff does ring a bell.

What do you think?

What are your best/worst childhood birthday party memories?