We deal with it on a daily basis: people telling us what to do, what we should do, how we should do it, etc. I think most of us are used to it and can take what value we need to out of it.. but imagine if it were taken a step further – or several thousand steps further.

China has banned Buddhist monks in Tibet from reincarnating without government permission. At first glance, it seems ridiculous. The second glance, after reading the underlying motives for this law (it involves the selection of the next Dalai Lama), it's equally, if not more, ridiculous.

And you thought you had it rough.

Last week I posted (it was an odd post, don't go back looking for it) about placing an order at thinkgeek.com for some random t-shirts and a free "STFU Beer Stein." That box came Tuesday afternoon, and Wednesday I wore my brand new "Geology Rocks!" t-shirt.

Wednesday night I was about to put the stein into my dishwasher (which I still haven't run since the "pool party incident") and noticed something…

I'll drink out of it if someone wants to paypal me a $20 donation.

For the second time in two weeks I left my cell phone at home today.

I don't use it very often, and even less when I'm at work, but for some reason I can't cope with not having it in my pocket. I think it makes me feel safer, like if something were to happen or come up, that I would be ready for it. I feel disconnected and isolated without it.

I can't keep track of the time. The clocks at work have been disconnected (yay construction) for, I think, almost 2 wees now. When I'm away from a computer, I normally turn to my phone, which obviously didn't help me much today. I'm also going to blame my lack of a phone for the fact that I thought today was Tuesday up until about 8:45 this morning.

It's been an odd day. I think I'm getting sick (for the first time this calendar year) and the feeling of an empty pocket hasn't helped anything at all. I know, it's really pathetic.

Do you have anything that you'd feel equally disconnected from and lost if you were without it?

I found this article via slashdot today and my mouth kind of opened in awe. NASA is going to put a lightsaber into orbit.

From the article:

Stowed on-board the orbiter, in addition to a new module for the international space station, will be the original prop lightsaber used by actor Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker in the 1977 film "Star Wars". The laser-like Jedi weapon is being flown to the orbiting outpost and back in honor of the 30th anniversary of director George Lucas' franchise.

I mean, at least fly up something useful.. like a droid. R2-D2 is going to be a lot more useful if something goes wrong than a lightsaber. Right?

It almost reminds me of the upcoming Pepsi Purple debacle.

Here's an interesting exercise that I suggest you try. Pick an ordinary object (or have someone pick one for you) and think about what it means to you. You probably won't come up with much at first, just the ordinary uses for whatever the object is, but don't stop there. Keep thinking, and try to think about how you feel about it, try to think outside the box and be as abstract as you can.

Not having any ideas for what to put in this post, I asked a friend for a topic. My assignment: "you shall post about umbrellas."

Here are a few of the things that I relate to umbrellas:

1. Stubbornness – There are very few times in my life when I've actually used an umbrella. I'll walk without an umbrella when it's completely pouring rain, because sometimes I'm just to stubborn to admit that I need to use an umbrella. It's almost like I wear the fact that I'm soaking wet as a badge of honor, some sort of odd pride is obtained by doing this.
2. Protection - This one is a multi-parter. There's the obvious fact that an umbrella acts as protection against rain and sun. Going a bit farther than that, though, is that I'm more than willing to hold an umbrella for someone else, for whatever reason. When that's the case, I'll make sure that they get the complete protection of the umbrella, even if that means exposing myself mostly or completely to the onslaught of rain.
3. Vacation/Relaxation – It took awhile for this one to pop into my mind, but now I can't get the picture of a chair and umbrella on the beach out of my head. Just being able to chill out and relax surrounded by a flawless beach is so appealing right now.
4. Spudart – Matt Maldre donated the following quote for this post: "with large umbrellas, come large responbilities." I'm not exactly sure what a "responbilities" is, but I think it might be something that's used to clean umbrellas.
5. Unexpected weather, and "lost and founds" - today's forecast was clear. A nice day with no rain. I guess the weather didn't listen to the forecast. I was thinking about this post when I saw that it was raining, and decided that I needed to fight my stubbornness. I now have a new umbrella (that I'm "borrowing" from the lost and found) that will live in my car. I used it when I went to lunch, and am a better person for it.

So, there you go. Pick something, anything, and run with it. Post your reactions in the comments here. Need an idea? Shoes. Comment about what your shoes do for you.

1. Learn how to take better pictures at the Nikon Digital Learning Center
2. KH posted a great video explaining social networking – or you could listen to Chris Pirillo ramble on about social networks for 13 minutes
3. I've always dreamt of the day when I could ride in a car covered with shattered glass
4. ABC News doesn't like Dennis Kucinich? (ABC News has updated their page with a new picture since that post)
5. JohnPlace has created a list of 7 points to focus on to reduce the flow of negative energy into your life

Puppy whistling – this is just too cute to not share