Dub's Piquant 12-Seasoning Dry Rub

My own special blend; especially good on BBQ ribs.

Ingredients:
Brown sugar - 1/2 cup
White sugar - 1 Tbsp
Paprika - 1/4 cup
Coriander - 1/8 cup
Cumin - 2 Tbsps
Dry mustard - 1 Tbsp
Chili powder - 1 Tbsp
Garlic powder - 1 Tbsp
Basil - 1 Tbsp
McCormick's Worcestershire pepper - 1 Tbsp
Salt - 1 Tbsp
Cayenne pepper - 1/2 Tbsp

Apply liberally, and hand-rub into meat of choice.

Guaranteed the best dry-rub you've ever savored...


Dub'

Things that piss me off - Pt. XXIII

• That the couch she'd scream at my son for daring to soil with a spot, now sits exposed in the tall grass of her front yard; after (of course) subsequently spray-painting it black (yes, spray-painted).

• Corporate suits who are just "too important" to understand the time and effort it takes to get things done beneath their hierarchal level; and who want to "shake the tree" when they don't get instant results.

• Individuals who, despite many advance warnings, feign "surprise" when they themselves not only had a direct hand in the outcome; but incredibly even did their part to encourage it.

• When ultra-conservative family members are castigated by fellow RW'ers who would rather pigeon-hole them, rather than allow them to speak their mind about that which is blatantly absurd.

• Misdirected grief.

• Modern pop-culture vampire enthusiasts who take my online comments way too seriously (and of course, delete them), when I suggest that worthwhile vampire entertainment died with Christopher Lee's final film appearance as Dracula in the 70's (and even that was bad). Jesus, lighten up a bit.  Bad television has been around for a long time.

• Monday mornings.

• People who turn their back on a loved one, digging holes for themselves in the process; and then incredibly whine when their former loved one isn't "there for them" when the bottom falls out.

• The corporate time police.

• Those who absolutely must have THE last word, every fucking time.  OTOH, though an annoyance to me, at times I find myself quite humored by it.

• Those who convey their "disappointment" in the actions of others, when they themselves appear to have been setting a similar table.

Your station for all misanthropy, all the time.


Dub'

What is love? What is forgiveness? Who are we, really?

I thought I knew what love was, once.  But when the clock struck midnight, and the masks were lowered, the only thing left realized was that I hadn’t loved myself.  I lived according to expectations.  All that I was, all that I had become, was the sum of many parts.  I lived according to the image many others had built up in me over the years.  I’ve spent precisely a year now attempting to correct this path; not so much out of necessity (though indeed, it is), but more out of consequence.  I’ve become much more tempered, much less compassionate.  I’m definitely edgy; though not necessarily in a bad way.   No more Pearl Harbors.  No more Alamos.  I’m an emotional Minuteman now, if you will.  It’s taken me a year to get to this point, through a mass of emotional scarring the kind of which I would never care to experience again. 

There are some of you who have read my blog who might perhaps think I’m an asshole.  Hey, I may now be an asshole, but I’ll never be a fuckin’ asshole.  There’s quite the difference.  But… am I merely fooling myself?  Is this hardened exterior merely another façade?  Or is this just some sort of futile barrier which entombs a still fragile heart?  I once loved with everything I felt I had, never questioning the future; placing my heart squarely within the hands of another.  Sometimes you love others; then there are times when you are in love with another.  In this day in age, it would seem that a man endures at least 2 great loves in his life.  He could be with hundreds of women throughout his life; but still only 2 great loves come out of it.  Maybe even three, if you live long enough.  Despite the ultimate misfortune of it all, I’m still lucky to say that I’ve endured one great love so far.  But love itself seemed not to endure.  But what is love?  What is forgiveness?  We’re raised and taught by our families to love and forgive; but apparently somewhere along the line we’re expected to no longer honor this core principle which had been instilled so deeply within us.  There are times as children, when we would implore our parents to forgive our misdeeds.  And with a firm hand, they would; but love always prevailed.  Where then does love stop?  Why does it no longer seemingly apply? 

I have been asked for forgiveness.  Well, more than that, really.  Consider the parable of the Prodigal Son.  But does forgiveness involve acceptance with open arms?  I don’t even want to think about love, for I now fear it.  I used to know who everyone thought I was; now I’m uncertain as to whom I think I am.   What does love mean?  What does it mean to forgive?  Who have you all built me up to be?  What does everybody want from me?

Dub'