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<channel>
	<title>Dan Allen &#187; people</title>
	<atom:link href="http://taoofdan.com/category/people/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
	<link>http://taoofdan.com</link>
	<description>NYC-based producer and storyteller</description>
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		<title>If this is in your MySpace profile, we aren&#8217;t meant to be (Part 2)</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2012/05/if-this-is-in-your-myspace-profile-we-arent-meant-to-be-part-2/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2012/05/if-this-is-in-your-myspace-profile-we-arent-meant-to-be-part-2/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 14 May 2012 02:57:38 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[people]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://taoofdan.com/?p=385</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8220;I love, love, love Swedish Fish. I donâ€™t like coffee or mushrooms. I once broke my collarbone in a Jeep that rolled. I might try a cigarette if I knew how to smoke. My mom is brilliant and can so out-cook your mom. I have never met my father, but I did see a photograph [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>&#8220;I love, love, love Swedish Fish. I donâ€™t like coffee or mushrooms. I once broke my collarbone in a Jeep that rolled. I might try a cigarette if I knew how to smoke. My mom is brilliant and can so out-cook your mom. I have never met my father, but I did see a photograph of his twin brother. I iron at least 5 days a week. Iâ€™m serious about it, too &#8211; distilled water only and heavy on the starch. I miss Eddie. Iâ€™ve an affection for hats and jammies. Scarves are real nice. Iâ€™m a private person. And am quite shyâ€¦ until I warm up to you naturally over time or drink enough. Iâ€™ll have whatâ€™s recommended. I hate scary movies, but love to watch them. I buy myself fresh flowers. I went to the theater alone once and Iâ€™d do it again. Poetry and abstract art mostly frustrates me. I like to draw drawings.â€</p>
<p><strong>SUBTEXT:</strong><br />
<br />
<small>I love, love, love Swedish Fish.</small><br />
<br />
<em>I love alliterating the same word.</em></p>
<p><small>I donâ€™t like coffee or mushrooms.</small><br />
<em>I don&#8217;t like adult food.</em></p>
<p><small>I once broke my collarbone in a Jeep that rolled.</small><br />
<em>Never get in a vehicle that has taken ecstasy.</em></p>
<p><small>I might try a cigarette if I knew how to smoke.</small><br />
<em>Iâ€™m easily manipulated.</em></p>
<p><small>My mom is brilliant and can so out-cook your mom. I have never met my father, but I did see a photograph of his twin brother.</small><br />
<em>My Dad found someone who could outcook my Mom.</em></p>
<p><small>I iron at least 5 days a week. Iâ€™m serious about it, too &#8211; distilled water only and heavy on the starch.</small><br />
<em>I live in the year 1872.</em></p>
<p><small>I miss Eddie.</small><br />
<em>Eddie knew how to fucking iron.</em></p>
<p><small>Iâ€™ve an affection for hats and jammies. Scarves are real nice.</small><br />
<em>I have a bad habit of proclaiming my love for inanimate items.</em></p>
<p><small>Iâ€™m a private person. And am quite shyâ€¦ until I warm up to you naturally over time or drink enough.</small><br />
<em>Donâ€™t think about getting to â€œfirst baseâ€ if Iâ€™m sober, but if you get me wasted Iâ€™ll blow you in the â€œlocker roomâ€.</em></p>
<p><small>Iâ€™ll have whatâ€™s recommended.</small><br />
<em>Most guys recommend roofies.</em></p>
<p><small>I hate scary movies, but love to watch them.</small><br />
<em>I donâ€™t like abusive guys, unless they tell me that they love me.</em></p>
<p><small>I buy myself fresh flowers. I went to the theater alone once and Iâ€™d do it again.</small><br />
<em>(See the â€œscary movieâ€ comments)</em></p>
<p><small>Poetry and abstract art mostly frustrates me. I like to draw drawings.</small><br />
<em>I love to art art and write writings.</em></p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://taoofdan.com/2012/05/if-this-is-in-your-myspace-profile-we-arent-meant-to-be-part-2/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>CFS is a Sham!</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2012/04/cfs-is-a-sham/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2012/04/cfs-is-a-sham/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 01 Apr 2012 23:12:14 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[people]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://taoofdan.com/?p=472</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I feel doctors should rename CFS chronic fatigue syndrome n. (Abbr. CFS) A syndrome characterized by debilitating fatigue and a combination of flulike symptoms such as sore throat, swollen lymph glands, low-grade fever, headaches, and muscle pain or weakness. Also called chronic fatigue immune dysfunction syndrome. They should call it CCFS or Convenient Chronic Fatigue [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>I feel doctors should rename <a href="http://www.answers.com/chronic%20fatigue%20syndrome"><strong>CFS</strong></a> </p>
<blockquote><p><strong>chronic fatigue syndrome</strong><br />
<br />
n. (Abbr. CFS)<br />
<br />
A syndrome characterized by debilitating fatigue and a combination of flulike symptoms such as sore throat, swollen lymph glands, low-grade fever, headaches, and muscle pain or weakness. Also called chronic fatigue immune dysfunction syndrome.</p></blockquote>
<p>They should call it CCFS or Convenient Chronic Fatigue Syndrome because they only get tired when its convenient for them&#8230;<small>like a job</small>. Or perhaps they should just call it LAZY which doesn&#8217;t stand for any thing they&#8217;re just lazy.</p>
]]></content:encoded>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>SAD People are pathetic!</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2012/03/sad-people-are-pathetic/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2012/03/sad-people-are-pathetic/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 25 Mar 2012 23:06:38 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[people]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://taoofdan.com/?p=473</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I&#8217;m so glad it&#8217;s hot again. Not because I especially like sweating, I like when it gets warmer because people who claim to be &#8220;suffering&#8221; from SAD aren&#8217;t whining as much. seasonal affective disorder n. (Abbr. SAD) A form of depression occurring at certain seasons of the year, especially when the individual has less exposure [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>I&#8217;m so glad it&#8217;s hot again. Not because I especially like sweating, I like when it gets warmer because people who claim to be &#8220;suffering&#8221; from <a href="http://www.answers.com/seasonal%20affective%20disorder"><strong>SAD</strong></a> aren&#8217;t whining as much.</p>
<blockquote><p><strong>seasonal affective disorder</strong><br />
n. (Abbr. SAD)<br />
A form of depression occurring at certain seasons of the year, especially when the individual has less exposure to sunlight.</p></blockquote>
<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s <em>sooo</em> cold and I&#8217;m <em>sooo</em> sad&#8230;blah, blah, blah (<small>boo hoo</small>)&#8221;</p>
<p>If they&#8217;re so sad because they need sunshine, why don&#8217;t they move down south or buy a fucking heat lamp. Of course they&#8217;re sad, their doctor tells them, &#8220;You have SAD.&#8221; They tell all their friends, &#8220;I have SAD.&#8221; They&#8217;re going to be fucking sad. The logical solution to the problem is to rename the &#8220;disorder&#8221; HAPPY which would be the acronym for Hypochondriacs are Perpetually Pathetic, Yes?</p>
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		<slash:comments>8</slash:comments>
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		<title>I Hate New Year&#8217;s Day</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2012/03/i-hate-new-years-day/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2012/03/i-hate-new-years-day/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 11 Mar 2012 21:34:06 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[people]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[science]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://taoofdan.com/?p=498</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[We are the only animals on the planet that celebrate it. It&#8217;s just an arbitrary point in space that we&#8217;ve invented. All we do is get drunk every time we go around the Sun. Weeee! (one year lapses) Yaaaay!! (365.25 days later) Happy New Year!!! We are eternally trapped in this boring cycle. Fuck that. [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>We are the only animals on the planet that celebrate it. It&#8217;s just an arbitrary point in space that we&#8217;ve invented. All we do is get drunk every time we go around the Sun.<br />
Weeee! (one year lapses) <br />
Yaaaay!! (365.25 days later) <br />
Happy New Year!!!<br />
<br />
We are eternally trapped in this boring cycle. Fuck that. I know that not everyone hates New Year&#8217;s like I do, and I can only encourage them to do one thing: Leave Earth and move to Mercury because they have a New Year&#8217;s party every 88 days. </p>
<p><em>Ain&#8217;t no party like a Mercury party because a Mercury party don&#8217;t stop.</em></p>
<p> A lot of sex happens on Mercury. They should rename the planet Herpes, the Greek god of STDs.</p>
<p>The only planet that should be able to celebrate New Year&#8217;s is Pluto (especially now that its been downgraded to an ice chunk. How humiliating?). The reason I say the citizens of Pluto deserve a party is because they have a New Year&#8217;s every 250 years. When it does happen they don&#8217;t even know what to do. They have to read it in their Plutonian bibles. </p>
<p><em>Ezhekial 3:17<br />
<br />
And the Lord mixed margaritas.</em></p>
<p>Imagine the mayhem that would ensue as the ball dropped. Plutonians would come out of their houses and stick syringes of heroin in their eyes and have sex with parakeets screaming, &#8220;Happy New Year!&#8221; Now thats a DVD I would buy. It would make the backstage of Motely Crew concert look like the Lilith Fair.</p>
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		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
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		<title>MySpace is video crack for egotist with low self esteem.</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2012/01/myspace-is-video-crack-for-egotist-with-low-self-esteem/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2012/01/myspace-is-video-crack-for-egotist-with-low-self-esteem/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 29 Jan 2012 16:51:38 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[favorites]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[people]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[technology]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://taoofdan.com/?p=284</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[A few things I&#8217;ve absorbed from MySpace: The number of &#8220;Friends&#8221; in a MySpace profile is a direct correlation to the number of hours logged on to the internet and inversely related to that person&#8217;s actual social skill. The beacon enlightens me how unproductive we humans have become. When my beacon is on, I feel [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>A few things I&#8217;ve absorbed from <a href="http://myspace.com/taoofdan">MySpace</a>: </p>
<p>The number of &#8220;Friends&#8221; in a <a href="http://myspace.com/taoofdan">MySpace</a> profile is a direct correlation to the number of hours logged on to the internet and inversely related to that person&#8217;s actual social skill.</p>
<p>The <img src="http://i.myspace.com/site/images/onlinenow.gif" /> beacon enlightens me how unproductive we humans have become.</p>
<p>When my beacon is on, I feel like Frodo Baggins when he slips on his ring and he becomes visible to the <a title="NazgÃ»l" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazg%C3%BBl">NazgÃ»l</a> , Wraiths of the Shadow World.</p>
<p><a href="http://myspace.com/taoofdan">MySpace</a> creator Tom must get laid every day.</p>
<p>The saddest <a href="http://myspace.com/taoofdan">MySpace</a> moment is having an actual physical friend not accept you as a <a href="http://myspace.com/taoofdan">MySpace</a> friend and you receive the message, &#8220;You already have a pending friend request for this person.&#8221; </p>
<p>To add insult to injury, you see that the motherfucker is <img src="http://i.myspace.com/site/images/onlinenow.gif" />and logs in and out everyday.</p>
<p><a href="http://friendster.com/">Friendster</a> is the equivalent of a pager. </p>
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		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
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		<title>Overheard Through My Window in Queens</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2012/01/overheard-through-my-window-in-queens/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2012/01/overheard-through-my-window-in-queens/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 15 Jan 2012 14:33:21 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[overheard nyc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[people]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[family]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://taoofdan.com/?p=78</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I couldn&#8217;t sleep last night because of the pain, and was elated to finally fall into slumber at the crack of dawn. Only to be awoken by annoying song birds, a woodpecker drilling another useless hole, a squirrel trying scrape his way through my thru-the-wall air conditioning unit, and little fucking boy hitting a concrete [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>I couldn&#8217;t sleep last night because of the pain, and was elated to finally fall into slumber at the crack of dawn. Only to be awoken by annoying song birds, a woodpecker drilling another useless hole, a squirrel trying scrape his way through my thru-the-wall air conditioning unit, and little fucking boy hitting a concrete wall with a sledge hammer.</p>
<div style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold; font-family:courier new;">Queens Father</div>
<div style="text-align: center;  font-family:courier new;">That&#8217;s it, Jimmy! Keep hitting it!</div>
<p></p>
<div style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold; font-family:courier new;">Queens Kid</div>
<div style="text-align: center; font-family:courier new;">I&#8217;m gettin&#8217; tired, Dad.</div>
<p></p>
<div style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold; font-family:courier new;">Queens Father</div>
<div style="text-align: center; font-family:courier new;">Quit yer whinen&#8217; and keep swingin&#8217;</div>
<p></p>
<div style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold; font-family:courier new;">Queens Mother</div>
<div style="text-align: center;  font-family:courier new;">Come on, Frankie. Give him a break!</div>
<p></p>
<div style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;  font-family:courier new;">Queens Father</div>
<div style="text-align: center; font-family:courier new;">Hey, Womens-Lib you want to come out here?</div>
<p>
Please free me from my prison.</p>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>I&#8217;m Afraid of Public Transportation</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2011/10/im-afraid-of-public-transportation/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2011/10/im-afraid-of-public-transportation/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 16 Oct 2011 02:26:52 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[people]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://taoofdan.com/?p=483</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I was in Miami once and I saw a billboard that claimed, &#8220;Everytime you see a bus, you have walked by someone with AIDS.&#8221; I will never become a bus driver.]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>I was in Miami once and I saw a billboard that claimed, &#8220;Everytime you see a bus, you have walked by someone with AIDS.&#8221;</p>
<p>I will never become a bus driver.</p>
]]></content:encoded>
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		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
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		<title>I Miss My Alma Mater: Robert E. Lee High School</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2011/08/i-miss-my-alma-mater-robert-e-lee-high-school/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2011/08/i-miss-my-alma-mater-robert-e-lee-high-school/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 06 Aug 2011 19:34:32 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[people]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[school]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://taoofdan.com/?p=364</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I graduated from Lee High School in San Antonio, TX. Lee High School Alma Mater We all hail&#8224; to thee and thy name forever, Robert E. Lee High; Your Red and Gray will always wave As will your banner fly; Our hearts and loyalty remain forever In your hallowed halls; Your majesty will show the [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>I graduated from <a href="http://www.neisd.net/lee/">Lee High School</a> in San Antonio, TX. </p>
<blockquote><p><strong>Lee High School Alma Mater</strong><br />
<br />
We all hail&dagger; to thee and thy name forever,<br />
<br />
Robert E. Lee High;<br />
<br />
Your Red and Gray will always wave<br />
<br />
As will your banner fly;<br />
<br />
Our hearts and loyalty remain forever<br />
<br />
In your hallowed halls;<br />
<br />
Your majesty will show the way.<br />
<br />
There are no other peers<br />
<br />
Your fame and glory will not die.<br />
<br />
Robert E. Lee throughout the years!</p></blockquote>
<p>One hundred and twenty six years after the end of the Civil War. During my sophomore year our mascot was downgraded from â€˜Rebelâ€™ to â€˜Volunteerâ€™.  However, the Confederate flag was still our official symbol. Painted and printed on every wall, poster, pom-pom, and on the faces of enthusiastic attendees of pep-rallies. We had three different dance teams: Rebel Rousers, Dixie Drillers, and Confederates. I even had a flag sewn on the front of my SpeedosÂ® blasted across my crotch for the swim team and another flag on my <a href="http://taoofdan.com/?p=446"><strong>skin cap</strong></a>.</p>
<p>My senior year, a small faction of black football players refused to don their jerseys emblazoned with the â€œBars and Stripesâ€ on their chest. Other students rallied behind them. Our demographics were divided into four major ethnicities: 60% Hispanic, 29% White, 8% Black, 2% Asian, and Ninook Sealslayer the Eskimo (<em>or Inuit for the PC-people</em>).</p>
<p>The football players who came forward stated that opposing players from the west side all black high schools were hitting them harder and threatening their lives. They were even getting tackled when they were on defense without possession of the ball. Concerned for their safety, they refused to play again until the flag was removed from their uniform.</p>
<p>The Daughters of the Confederacy pleaded to the school board that the flag represented the tradition of the South and paid homage to a great man who attended West Point.</p>
<p>The KKK came and set up camp in the parking lot. Things got heated when they vandalized the church next door. They spray painted a cryptic message, â€˜Nigers Go Homeâ€™. The church left it up to show their ignorance for the English language.</p>
<p>The students against the flag used the analogy comparing the Confederate flag to the Nazi flag. </p>
<p>They invented this scenario: </p>
<blockquote><p>Imagine the school was named <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erwin_Rommel">Erwin Rommel High School</a> in honor of the distinguished German Field Marshal. The mascot was the Desert Fox and the school flag was the very recognizable, satanic red, black and white Nazi flag. Now imagine, you are young 15 year old Jewish boy named Ned Finklestein forced to play defensive end with a swastika on your chest. What do you think would happen to Ned?</p></blockquote>
<p>
First of all, fuck the Confederacy, fuck the KKK, and fuck Bobby Lee!</p>
<p>I canâ€™t connect with this analogy. Jews arenâ€™t renowned as football players. Football owners but not football players. Nedâ€™s father would had made a few phone calls to the superintendent and the board of trustees and gotten the name changed. Done and done.</p>
<blockquote><p>Perhaps, if they had invented <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antonio_L%C3%B3pez_de_Santa_Anna">Antonio LÃ³pez de Santa Anna High School</a> and had me imagine how it would feel to be a 15 year old redneck named Tex Alamo with a Mexican flag on your jersey and you had to play against David Crockett High School.</p></blockquote>
<p>
Now thatâ€™s something I could imagine. </p>
<p>Jeez, thatâ€™s horrible.</p>
<p>If you don&#8217;t believe me?</p>
<p>Read a forum I created on MySpace with Robert E. Lee alumni about the &#8220;KKK Incident&#8221;</p>
<p>Click <b><a href="http://forum.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=messageboard.viewThread&#038;entryID=55277&#038;type=schools&#038;schoolID=93518&#038;viewType=1&#038;schoolLevel=3&#038;Mytoken=6AF28730-86F3-4B14-BB24891673750E922309605968">here</a></b></p>
<p>&dagger; I always felt comfortable &#8220;hailing&#8221; to a Confederate flag<br />
<a href="http://taoofdan.com/2006/02/28/i-miss-my-alma-mater-robert-e-lee-high-school/n1410200904_101460_135/" rel="attachment wp-att-942"><img src="http://taoofdan.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/n1410200904_101460_135.jpg" alt="" title="Lee High School" width="486" height="344" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-942" /></a></p>
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		<slash:comments>6</slash:comments>
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		<title>Why am I white?</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2011/07/why-am-i-white/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2011/07/why-am-i-white/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 09 Jul 2011 15:30:39 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[people]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://taoofdan.com/?p=482</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I was at my Jamaican friend&#8217;s house and his five year old daughter Cheyenne asked me bluntly, &#8220;Why are you so white?&#8221; At first it seemed like an easy question but I quickly realized that I didn&#8217;t have an answer and said, &#8220;I don&#8217;t know.&#8221; To which she replied, &#8220;Do you lotion?&#8221; I then said, [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>I was at my Jamaican friend&#8217;s house and his five year old daughter Cheyenne asked me bluntly, &#8220;Why are you so white?&#8221;</p>
<p>At first it seemed like an easy question but I quickly realized that I didn&#8217;t have an answer and said, &#8220;I don&#8217;t know.&#8221;</p>
<p>To which she replied, &#8220;Do you lotion?&#8221;</p>
<p>I then said, &#8220;No.&#8221;</p>
<p>She rolled her eyes knowingly and said, &#8220;You should. Mommy puts lotion on me when my elbows get white.&#8221;</p>
<p>I nodded and said, &#8220;Thanks. Looks like I got a big job ahead of me.&#8221;</p>
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		<title>Pigeon Funeral Service</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2011/07/pigeon-funeral-service/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2011/07/pigeon-funeral-service/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 02 Jul 2011 14:55:35 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[people]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sexuality]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://taoofdan.com/?p=28</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Some people claim that animals do not have feelings or emotions. With that said, I was surprised to see a group of pigeons mourning the death of an avian comrade. I&#8217;m normally apathetic to the plight of the bird nicknamed, &#8220;Rat With Wings&#8221;. Although, this very somber scene tugged on my heart strings and I [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><div style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 10px; MARGIN-LEFT: 10px"><a title="photo sharing" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/43593522@N00/935817/"><img style="BORDER-RIGHT: #000000 2px solid; BORDER-TOP: #000000 2px solid; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; BORDER-BOTTOM: #000000 2px solid" alt="" src="http://www.flickr.com/photos/935817_43d034123a_m.jpg" /></a> <span style="MARGIN-TOP: 0px;font-size:0;" ></span></div>
<p>Some people claim that animals do not have feelings or emotions. With that said, I was surprised to see a group of pigeons mourning the death of an avian comrade. I&#8217;m normally apathetic to the plight of the bird nicknamed, &#8220;Rat With Wings&#8221;. Although, this very somber scene tugged on my heart strings and I got a little emotional. It was obvious that one pigeon (<em>probably his wife or God forbid his mother</em>) at this impromptu &#8220;funeral&#8221; was deeply affected. She seemed to be grieving and giving the eulogy. I didn&#8217;t want to intrude and disturb their holy moment. However, I wanted to get closer and pay my respects. Unfortunately, I realized that they weren&#8217;t &#8220;mourning&#8221;. They were eating him. A unexpected Thanksgiving celebration. Those dirty, little, heartless bastards. If you ever encounter anyone who lacks emotion, labeling them cold-hearted would not be sufficient. Be more specific.<br />
&#8220;You sir, have the ruthless heart of a pigeon!&#8221;<br clear="all"/></p>
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		<title>Political Single Narrow-Mindedness</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2011/05/political-single-narrow-mindedness/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2011/05/political-single-narrow-mindedness/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 21 May 2011 12:35:41 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[people]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sci-fi]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[drugs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[school]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[technology]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://taoofdan.com/?p=76</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I donâ€™t understand how people can narrow down all the important variables in a candidate into one particular issue. The single-narrow mindedness is maddening. There are a plethora of reasons to despise a politician. i.eâ€¦perpetuating the oppression of Cubans through our ridiculous embargo, non-involvement in Sudan, not being proactive in dispensing generic drugs to fight [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>I donâ€™t understand how people can narrow down all the important variables in a candidate into one particular issue. The single-narrow mindedness is maddening. There are a plethora of reasons to despise a politician. i.eâ€¦perpetuating the oppression of Cubans through our ridiculous embargo, non-involvement in Sudan, not being proactive in dispensing generic drugs to fight HIV in South Africa, not focusing on alternative energy sources like geothermal, tidal, or biomass fuel technologyâ€¦and a hundred thousand other problems that need to be addressed. </p>
<p>Most jackasses can determine whom they will vote for simply by labeling the individual, â€œPro-Lifeâ€ or â€œPro-Choiceâ€. Iâ€™m not dismissing abortion as an insignificant matter. Personally, Iâ€™m not a big fan of it. However, that only pertains to the one Iâ€™m involved with and myself. I couldnâ€™t care less what other individuals do. Does that make me an apathetic dick? Who knows? </p>
<p>Pro-Lifers say that every life is precious, and that you could be killing the next Mozart, Einstein, or Mother Teresa.</p>
<p>I see it differently. </p>
<p>Imagine if Mr. and Mrs. Hutt &dagger; had decided Planned Parenthood would have been a better choice instead giving life to their child. If they would have done that, the citizens of the desert planet of <a href="http://www.starwars.com/databank/location/tatooine/">Tatooine</a> wouldnâ€™t have had to live their entire lives in fear because of one bloated, slug lord named Jabba. Obviously, he terrorized others because he was projecting his own insecurities caused by feelings of abandonment from his shitty parents. In addition, his self-esteem was non-existent due to his ongoing battle with his weight problem. Four bags of frogs and a couple of Jawas for lunch canâ€™t be healthy. Jabba the Huttâ€™s life is precious?! He should have been aborted.</p>
<div style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 10px; MARGIN-LEFT: 10px"><a title="photo sharing" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/772868_0dd338e256_m.jpg"><img style="BORDER-RIGHT: #000000 2px solid; BORDER-TOP: #000000 2px solid; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; BORDER-BOTTOM: #000000 2px solid" alt="" src="http://www.flickr.com/photos/772868_0dd338e256_m.jpg" /></a></div>
<p>Granted, the original scene at Mos Eisley Cantina, where Han Solo blasted the bounty hunter, Greedo &Dagger;, who was trying to collect&spades; for the Abortion-Survivor, wouldnâ€™t have taken place. Consequently, Luke and Obi-Wan wouldnâ€™t have escaped on the Millennium Falcon which would have triggered a Butterfly Effect and the Death Star could still be fully operational to this day. However, that conflicts with my original hypothesis of killing Jabba at birth. Perhaps, Darth Vader should have been aborted. Unfortunately, Mr. Vader was formerly known as Anakin Skywalker. Which would have deleted Luke from the equation and he wouldn&#8217;t been able to fire his Proton Torpedoes down the exhaust shafts of the aforementioned <a href="http://www.coxar.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/">Weapon of Mass Destruction</a>. Quite the conundrum. In conclusion, I donâ€™t know what the fuck Iâ€™m talking about.</p>
<div style="font-size:65%;">&dagger;  Mr. and Mrs. Zorba Desilijic Ture from the planet Nal Hutt</div>
<div style="font-size:65%;">&Dagger; Greedo looks like an enlarged, sinister, mutated<br />
<a href="http://www.voteprime.com/pics/snorks.gif">SnorkÂ®</a>  riddled with acne</div>
<div style="font-size:65%;">&spades; Han owed Jabba 50,000 credits because he dropped a load while on a Kessel spice run</div>
<div style ="font-size:65%;">&Dagger;&Dagger;  I never got laid in high school </div>
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		<title>&#8216;Pretend to be an Illegal Alien&#8217; Weekend Getaway</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2011/05/pretend-to-be-an-illegal-alien-weekend-getaway/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2011/05/pretend-to-be-an-illegal-alien-weekend-getaway/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 07 May 2011 10:59:17 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[international]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[people]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[politics]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://taoofdan.com/2008/02/14/pretend-to-be-an-illegal-alien-weekend-getaway/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I&#8217;m subscribed to Kayak.com for travel deals. Normally, I get emails that tell me when flights to Orlando dip down below $150 or if there are any spectacular packages to London but today I got this treat: &#8220;Night Border Crossing Experience&#8221;. Your &#8216;coyote&#8217; guide, Pancho, pulls off his black ski mask while actors gather around [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>I&#8217;m subscribed to <a href="http://kayak.com">Kayak.com</a> for travel deals. Normally, I get emails that tell me when flights to Orlando dip down below $150 or if there are any spectacular packages to London but today I got this treat: &#8220;Night Border Crossing Experience&#8221;.</p>
<p><img src='http://taoofdan.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/runfortheborder.png' alt='runfortheborder.png' /></p>
<blockquote><p>Your &#8216;coyote&#8217; guide, Pancho, pulls off his black ski mask while actors gather around to scare you senseless along the way&#8230;make your way through barbed-wire fences. Survivors are blindfolded&#8230;</p></blockquote>
<p>Wow. What a steal. Only eighteen dollars.</p>
<p>Read more about it <a href="http://travel.nytimes.com/2007/02/04/travel/04HeadsUp.html?8dpc">here</a> or if you dying to find out what it feels like. Here&#8217;s <a href="http://www.parqueecoalberto.com.mx/">where</a> you can make it happen.</p>
<p>Now I want to go to the &#8216;<a href="http://taoofdan.com/2007/03/20/rape-is-bad/">Two Nights in Ole Nanking</a>&#8216;, &#8216;<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vesuvius">Flight From Mount Vesuvius Adventure</a>&#8216;, or &#8216;<a href="http://taoofdan.com/2007/04/06/your-skeletons-dont-even-compare-to-this-companys-closet/">Dachau Day Trip</a>&#8216;.</p>
<p>I probably won&#8217;t be able to do the &#8220;Dachau Day Trip&#8221; since the dollar is so <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/bondsNews/idUSL07890620071107">weak</a> to the euro. Hopefully, the $600 rebate in June will <a href="http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=9116">fix</a> everything.</p>
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		<title>Disoriented Tourist</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2011/01/disoriented-tourist/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2011/01/disoriented-tourist/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 22 Jan 2011 02:47:04 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[overheard nyc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[people]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://taoofdan.com/?p=47</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Whenever, I surface from the subways, and confidently head in one direction on an avenue. Inevitably, someone walking beside will notice my keen navigational skill and will ask me, â€œAre we going up or down?â€ I have two responses: 1. â€œActually we are going horizontal. Our vertical displacement is zero. What are you stupid?â€ Then [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>Whenever, I surface from the subways, and confidently head in one direction on an avenue. Inevitably, someone walking beside will notice my keen navigational skill and will ask me, â€œAre we going up or down?â€ </p>
<p>I have two responses:</p>
<p>1. â€œActually we are going horizontal. Our vertical displacement is zero. What are you stupid?â€  Then I glare at the person angrily, shake my head, and storm off.</p>
<p>2. &#8220;I donâ€™t knowâ€”Iâ€™m agnostic, I guess it depends how youâ€™ve lived your life and what you believe in.&#8221; Then I slowly look up and stare at the sky until it gets awkward. Unless sheâ€™s really hot, then I cut the corny shenanigans.</p>
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		<title>Another MySpace Profile</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2010/08/another-myspace-profile/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2010/08/another-myspace-profile/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 19 Aug 2010 07:54:22 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[people]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://taoofdan.com/?p=460</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8220;I have a golden retriever named Angel who, to me, really is made of gold. Angel and I live together like sisters in an amparment that only I pay for. I am a model who doesn&#8217;t believe that beauty can be seen by one&#8217;s eyes. I think it is possible that even a blind person [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>&#8220;I have a golden retriever named Angel who, to me, really is made of gold. Angel and I live together like sisters in an amparment that only I pay for. I am a model who doesn&#8217;t believe that beauty can be seen by one&#8217;s eyes. I think it is possible that even a blind person can say someone is beautifl and not be copying another. I am currently dating another model, Tony. We have a relationship I am so joyous to be part of. He is making plans to move in. we have alot in common. We both believe in inner beauty more than outter and have dogs. That&#8217;s how we met. I was taking Angel for a walk in the park and his male golden retriever ran up to Angel. It was love at first sniff to them&#8230;And love at first sight for us.&#8221;</p>
<p><strong>Really digest every line. I&#8217;ll dissect it tomorrow. Enjoy!</strong></p>
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		<title>My great-grandfather invented the paper clip.</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2010/07/my-great-grandfather-invented-the-paper-clip/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2010/07/my-great-grandfather-invented-the-paper-clip/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 22 Jul 2010 18:58:37 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[people]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://taoofdan.com/?p=271</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Big fucking deal, my great-great-great-Uncle Angelo invented rice. Do you know how much residuals he gets just from Chinatown? He makes Bill Gates look like white trash. Beat that bitch!]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>Big fucking deal, my great-great-great-Uncle Angelo invented rice.</p>
<p>Do you know how much residuals he gets just from Chinatown?</p>
<p>He makes Bill Gates look like white trash.</p>
<p>Beat that bitch!</p>
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		<title>I Miss the 80&#8242;s</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2010/07/i-miss-the-80s-2/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2010/07/i-miss-the-80s-2/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 15 Jul 2010 16:11:38 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[people]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://taoofdan.com/?p=355</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I was watching an old episode of Miami Vice and I realized the biggest thing that I miss from the 80&#8242;s are hookers. Damn that Giuliani!]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>I was watching an old episode of <em>Miami Vice</em> and I realized the biggest thing that I miss from the 80&#8242;s are hookers.</p>
<p>Damn that Giuliani!</p>
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		<title>I Feel For Future Digital Anthropologist Deciphering MySpace Comments</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2010/07/we-are-so-lucky-to-have-myspace/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2010/07/we-are-so-lucky-to-have-myspace/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 07 Jul 2010 12:15:28 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[people]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://taoofdan.com/2007/05/03/we-are-so-lucky-to-have-myspace/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I&#8217;m guessing THE PRINCE&#8217;s &#8220;hit me back&#8221; is implying: Since he feels it&#8217;s perfectly normal to hit a women if she gets out of line then she should feel free to &#8220;hit him back&#8221; if he does the same. He&#8217;s no hypocrite (respect). Now the Sultan comment was much harder to unravel. At first glance [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p><img src='http://taoofdan.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/05/myspace.jpg' alt='myspace.jpg' /></p>
<p>I&#8217;m guessing THE PRINCE&#8217;s &#8220;hit me back&#8221; is implying: Since <em>he</em> feels it&#8217;s perfectly normal to hit a women if she gets out of line then <em>she</em> should feel free to &#8220;hit him back&#8221; if he does the same. He&#8217;s no hypocrite (respect).</p>
<p>Now the Sultan comment was much harder to unravel. At first glance I assumed that &#8220;LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL&#8221; was an exaggerated form of &#8220;Laugh Out Loud&#8221; because I know <a href="http://www.netlingo.com/lookup.cfm?term=LOOL">LOOL</a> is &#8220;Laughing Outrageously Out Loud&#8221;.  But then I realized that the Sultan wanted to emphasize the letter &#8220;O&#8221; because it actually represents the word &#8220;oligophrenia&#8221; which means &#8220;feeble-mindedness&#8221;. And ironically pluralizing the word &#8220;day&#8221; as &#8220;day&#8217;s&#8221;&#8230;a stroke of genius. </p>
<p>TouchÃ©, Sultan, touchÃ© or shall we say douchÃ©, douchÃ©?</p>
<p>I Googled the word &#8220;LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL&#8221; and got this feeble-minded racist forum:</p>
<p><img src='http://taoofdan.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/05/serb.jpg' alt='serb.jpg' /></p>
<p>Here&#8217;s the <a href="http://www.topix.com/forum/world/TVDS4NBVQRUCEME7U">link</a></p>
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		<title>Earthlings (specifically Americans) Are Spoiled</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2010/06/earthlings-specifically-americans-are-spoiled/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2010/06/earthlings-specifically-americans-are-spoiled/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 16 Jun 2010 04:03:05 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[favorites]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[people]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://taoofdan.com/?p=487</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Raised as fat, capitalistic pigs with intrinsic senses of entitlement, we forget that our problems are insignificant when compared to other citizens of this planet. I was at LaGuardia Airport last week during the blackout and overheard a hysterical woman speaking to a reporter amongst crying babies and other stranded passengers tearfully cry out, â€œItâ€™s [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>Raised as fat, capitalistic pigs with intrinsic senses of entitlement, we forget that our problems are insignificant when compared to other citizens of this planet. </p>
<p>I was at LaGuardia Airport last week during the blackout and overheard a hysterical woman speaking to a reporter amongst crying babies and other stranded passengers tearfully cry out, â€œItâ€™s like a Third World nation!â€</p>
<p>Really?</p>
<p>A Third World nation.</p>
<p>Like Darfur? That kind of Third World nation?</p>
<p>Hmmmâ€¦funny I didnâ€™t realize that LaGuardia was that bad off. I was under the impression that once the power came back on, everyone would be able to fly down to see Mickey Mouse in an air conditioned airplane. That doesnâ€™t sound so horrible.</p>
<p>Recently, I was walking home late at night and heard a couple fighting. The man was enraged and was screaming, â€œI canâ€™t believe you slept with him!â€</p>
<p>In their world, her act of infidelity created a nuclear holocaust. I wanted to empathize with the husband but in relation to the grand scale of the universeâ€”Who cares if she slept with another man? So her molecules interacted with another set of molecules instead of his molecules. So what. </p>
<p>I looked up at the sky and looked at the stars. Since I live in Queens, I couldnâ€™t see that many because of the city lights. I reached into my head and remembered how many stars I use to see at night when I grew up in Texas. It seemed like a million holes of light seeping through but in reality a human can only view about 6,000 stars with the naked eye under perfect conditions. </p>
<p>We are but a speck of dust in the outer fringes of the Milky Way Galaxy that is but a grain of sand in the observable Universe.</p>
<p>Sagan claimed that there are billions of billions of stars in our Universe. Each star possibly sustaining several planets, one of which that may contain life. Our world has six billion human beings. So feasibly, each star could create six billion intelligent creatures.</p>
<p>With that said, will the Universe suffer if one individual cheats on another individual? I imagined another couple on the opposite end of the Universe.</p>
<p>(Sirens are screaming at ear-piercing level. People are stampeding by with no sense of direction. A digital marquee sign showing the temperature at 145 degrees.)</p>
<p>MAN:<br />
I canâ€™t believe you slept with him?</p>
<p>WOMAN:<br />
Are you kidding me?</p>
<p>MAN:<br />
What you mean?</p>
<p>WOMAN:<br />
The Sun is about to explode and you are going to bring that up AGAIN??</p>
<p>MAN:<br />
Yeah, Iâ€™m going to bring it up.I don&#8217;t give a damn if the Sun is going to blow up.</p>
<p>WOMAN:<br />
You are pathetic! It was two years ago. When are you going to stop punishing me? We are going to die! He&#8217;s going to die!</p>
<p>MAN:<br />
Was he bigger than me?</p>
<p>WOMAN:<br />
Youâ€™re an idiot! We are going to die! Heâ€™s going to die! Who cares if he was bigger!</p>
<p>MAN:<br />
HA! So he was bigger, I knew you it! You are such a slu&#8230;<br />
(Sun explodes.)</p>
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		<title>Ben &amp; Jerryâ€™sâ„¢ Chunky MonkeyÂ©: Good or Evil?</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2010/06/ben-jerry%e2%80%99s%e2%84%a2-chunky-monkey%c2%a9-good-or-evil/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2010/06/ben-jerry%e2%80%99s%e2%84%a2-chunky-monkey%c2%a9-good-or-evil/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 02 Jun 2010 23:28:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[business]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[people]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[Two of my many Orthorexic dietary restrictions are: limit my dairy and saturated fat intake. Unfortunately, my unnatural, affinity for Ben &#038; Jerryâ€™sâ„¢ Chunky MonkeyÂ© ice cream makes those rules obsolete as the enforcement of the law forbidding jaywalking. How do I justify my addiction? The Ben &#38; Jerryâ€™sâ„¢ corporation is an environmentally conscience company [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>Two of my many <a href="http://taoofdan.blogspot.com/2004/06/orthorexia-nervosa.html"><em>Orthorexic</em></a> dietary restrictions are:<br />
limit my dairy and saturated fat intake.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, my unnatural, affinity for Ben &#038; Jerryâ€™sâ„¢ Chunky Monkey<span style="font-size:78%;">Â©</span> ice cream makes those rules obsolete as the enforcement of the law forbidding jaywalking.</p>
<p><img src="http://www.benjerry.com/assets/images/our_products/packaging/7684010035.gif" /></p>
<p>How do I justify my addiction?</p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.benjerry.com/our_company/our_mission/index.cfm">Ben &amp; Jerryâ€™sâ„¢</a> corporation is an environmentally conscience company concerned about minimizing any negative impact on our future society and environment: employee healthcare, urban youth development, its stance on BGH hormones in cows, and recyclable paper products.</p>
<p>They make me feel like Iâ€™m saving the planetâ€”one pint at a time.</p>
<p>What are the ingredients in my beloved Chunky Monkey<span style="font-size:78%;">Â©</span>?</p>
<p>Pure and simple:<br />
<span style="font-size:78%;">Cream, Skim Milk, Liquid Sugar, Water, Sugar, Walnuts, Bananas, Egg Yolks, Coconut Oil, Cocoa, Concentrated Lemon Juice, Guar Gum, Natural Flavors, Milkfat, Soya Lecithin, Carrageenan</span></p>
<p>The cream and milk are fortified with vitamin D from a loving cow, the spring water is purified, the sugar is from raw sugar canes, the bananas are organic and crammed with potassium, protein-packed walnuts, and the the endorphin-inducing calcium chunks of all-natural milk chocolate are blended together into a frosty, mouth-savoring, bowl of nutritious delight.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, this â€œgreenâ€, organic, eco-friendly exterior is hiding a â€œblackâ€, crude, glutton-making interior.</p>
<p>Each pint contains <a href="http://www.benjerry.com/our_products/flavor_details.cfm?product_id=27#">1,200</a> calories and 40 grams of saturated fat, the equivalent of 32 slices of bacon.</p>
<p>If you ate one pint a day for a year, you would consume 500,393 calories or 3,336 hot dogs.</p>
<p>Theoretically, there are four servings in one pint. Yeah, fucking right! It is aptly named, Chunky Monkey<span style="font-size:78%;">Â©</span>. Iâ€™ve got a sweet monkey on my back that I canâ€™t shake.</p>
<p>At least, heroine is illegal. I can buy my drug at a Texaco and eat it while Iâ€™m driving.</p>
<p>And letâ€™s not forget to mention the ozone-depleting methane produced by the thousands of cows needed, which leads to global warming.</p>
<p>Letâ€™s hope that Mad Cow Disease doesnâ€™t ever attack Ben &#038; Jerryâ€™sâ„¢ supply. Chubby insurgents will invade Canadaâ€™s dairy farms for uncontaminated milk. Deplete their stocks and ravenously scour the Earth for untainted cows. The bovine elixir will become the catalyst for World War III.</p>
<p>Ben &amp; Jerryâ€™sâ„¢ can take their â€œ<em>Save the Planet</em>â€ motto and shove it up their drug-dealing, capitalistic asses.</p>
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		<title>What is the Name of Your Country?</title>
		<link>http://taoofdan.com/2010/05/what-is-the-name-of-your-country/</link>
		<comments>http://taoofdan.com/2010/05/what-is-the-name-of-your-country/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 10 May 2010 14:50:23 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Dan Allen</dc:creator>
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		<description><![CDATA[If you flew to Tokyo, and were to ask any Japanese citizen walking on the street, â€œWhat country do you live in?â€ That person would say without hesitation, â€œNippon.â€ This would be very awkward, since you would then have to politely correct them and inform them that they live in Japan not in the Make-Believe [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>If you flew to Tokyo, and were to ask any Japanese citizen walking on the street, â€œWhat country do you live in?â€</p>
<p>That person would say without hesitation, â€œ<em>Nippon</em>.â€</p>
<p>This would be very awkward, since you would then have to politely correct them and inform them that they live in Japan not in the Make-Believe Land of â€œ<em>Nippon</em>â€.</p>
<p>Who is right?</p>
<p>We have Westernized the name of every country we have encountered.</p>
<p><em>Hindustan</em> ceases to exist and is called India.<br />
<em>Deutchland</em> is forgotten and is now dubbed Germany.<br />
<em>Italia </em>turns to Italy, Spain replaces <em>Espa&ntilde;a</em>,â€¦etc</p>
<p>
Criticizing Americanâ€™s globalization and smothering domination has become far too easy. It isnâ€™t edgy anymore. Its the norm. Though in this particular case, we are not alone.</p>
<p>Spanish people call Germany,<em> Alemania</em>. The French say <em>lâ€™Allemagne</em> and Italians insist its<em> la Germania</em>.</p>
<p>Fortunately, it is limited to the name of the countries and does not extend to the individual names of the citizens.</p>
<div align="center"  style="font-family:courier new; font-style:bold;"><strong>BOSS</strong></div>
<div align="center" style="font-family:courier new;">Gary! Jesse! Bring that crate over here.</div>
<p></p>
<div align="center"  style="font-family:courier new; font-style:bold;"><strong>GARCON</strong></div>
<div align="center"  style="font-family:courier new;">Pardon je, Monsier. Mon nom est Garcon. Ce nâ€™est pas Gary.</div>
<p></p>
<div align="center"  style="font-family:courier new; font-style:bold;"><strong>JESUS</strong></div>
<div align="center"  style="font-family:courier new;">Si, se&ntilde;or. Mi nombre es Jesus. No es Jesse.</div>
<p></p>
<div align="center"  style="font-family:courier new; font-style:bold;"><strong>BOSS</strong></div>
<div align="center"  style="font-family:courier new;">Listen hereâ€¦we donâ€™t understand your bullshit languages and donâ€™t want to hear that kind of jibber-jabber around here. In fact, we donâ€™t really care what you two think. You call yourself whatever you wantâ€¦to yourselves. But if you donâ€™t like it, you can go back to you own damn country. This ainâ€™t Uzbekistan.</div>
<p>
In conclusion, humans are fundamentally resistant to adopting and adapting to different cultures. However, we are all carbon-based life forms composed of the same basic molecular structure. The actual quantified DNA difference between any organisms is so infinitesimally small. We should thank God, Allah, David Koresh, or whom ever you choose to believe in for giving us the proper genetic coding to be <em>homo sapiens</em>. We are few <a href="http://taoofdan.blogspot.com/2004/10/deadly-danger-of-acid-use.html">deoxyribonucleic acid </a>strands away from being a lemur or a sweet potato.</p>
<p>Furthermore, we can&#8217;t even agree on one word to describe the asymetrical ellipsoid in which we live on.</p>
<p><em>Earth</em> (English)<br />
<em>Mundo</em> (Spanish)<br />
<em>Duniya</em> (Hindi)<br />
<em>Erde</em> (German)<br />
<em>Terra</em> (Italian)</p>
<p>
We need to get our heads out of our asses and come up with an international word for our planet or we will become the laughing stock of the United Milky Way Planets Federation. </p>
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