Flatlined

Ever since my blog has changed addresses, for personal reasons, I have had the fun and enjoying time of watching my number of views just flatline. I am not saying that this is something I truly wanted to watch happen with my blog, but I am interested in the whole experience. What happened to all of the google searches that brought random people here? What happened to my artwork being viewed? Nothing, it just disappeared...

Up Late with an Idea

"She Waits by the Cherry Tree in the Rain"

I never conceived the idea that within one post of talking about my families cherry tree in our backyard that I would actually be talking about a cherry tree again. Except, this time I want to show off a slightly different type of cherry tree, one that I found while browsing the internet and then decided to photoshop until I thought it looked both different and artistically beautiful enough to show off. In total, I must have cropped together seven photographs to make the following, through the obvious ones are fairly easy. And from there, I had to go through constant editing to make sure that things reflected, other parts looked right, and everything blended together. To say I spent some time would be a bit of an understatement.

Anyway, the quote included below my masterpiece after a few hours of being in photoshop is one that I actually came up with. I thought the quote keeps things simple, diverting attention to what I would like everyone to notice while not completely killing the idea behind what I originally had intended by this piece. On instagram, that is what I wrote before submitting this. And now I get to wait and see as a flood of likes come in from all directions, though not that I am complaining...

A Big Day for A Bigger Puppy

Today was a rather big day for our little girl. First, she was in puppy training class where she learned absolutely nothing new that my Mom and I have been working on her on. However, I think my Dad might have learned a thing or two while in class.

Our Puppy and her new Red Snake Toy

Then she got to play with a brand new snake toy that my Mom bought for her while at the store. The reason we got this snake toy for her was because my friend Jodi had showed us a toy that had several squeakers in it and so we thought our dog would enjoy that one as well. At first she was scared to really bite down on her toy, her jaw gently and firmly holding her red snake as she carried it around the house. We had to start rough housing with her just to get her to start biting at the different squeakers. After a while, she was so into attacking the snake that we could almost get her flipping (literally, jumping into the air and flipping) to get at the toy. Still, the squeakers are sort of hard for her to bite down on and she loves that toy. Every now and then we can see her licking it like she cares about the snake, weird.

And then the real fun started as my Father started chopping down the final parts of our cherry tree. I took a video of him taking down that final part in his special outfit that reminds my Mom and me of "Bob the Builder" from one of the kid cartoon networks. 

Chopping down the Cherry Tree

Afterwards, we let the dog outside to inspect that yard work that had been performed. She was not pleased at all with what my Dad had done, and verbally told us that the changes were unasked for and not part of her landscaping idea. So of course I took a video of that as well, our whole family laughing as we watched her inspect and reinspect the now fallen tree. My Dad pointed out during this that it was interesting that if she remodeled the backyard then what happened was fine, but if any of us remodeled her play area we were overstepping our bounds. Later, my Mother and I would discuss how she did seem quite upset when we last moved around stones and cut branches off of some of the other bushes in the yard, simple procedures and what not. Still, she's a funny puppy!

Puppy Reaction to Chopped Down Cherry Tree

The Blue Eyed Wolf

I may not have been actively blogging as I was about a month ago, but that is because I have become a little bit busy with random things in my life. For one, I went to a career fair not to long ago and have been since back to looking for a job. I know, that sounds weird because I technically never stopped looking. All that I mean by that is that I have yet again super-intensified my search for a short period of time to see if results follow.

I also have been on puppy duty quite a lot, which means taking her for walks and playing with her constantly. If she is not being entertained, then she has to be either out in the backyard or in her kennel napping. I do not like either of those options, so I tend to actually be an active baby sitter with my dog. That means a lot of nice, long walks for the untrained puppy and a lot of thrown blue objects. There is something about the color blue that just attracts her.

And beyond that I have been in a constant, dire need for new music and clubbing. I have seriously spent over twenty-four hours searching the internet for new music to listen to. If I find a single song I like, that is nice, but I am searching for the jackpot of songs to listen to. A full album would be nice, that would at least take me some time to learn everything and become bored of, but those are far and rare. So then I take my newfound addictions out with friends and we go clubbing in Denver or Boulder. Good times had by all.

The Wild Winter Wolf

But last and definitely not least, I am back on the photoshop drug, working out some crazy awesome edits for photographs that really bring out the picture into a whole new light of oh my, amazing! Take for instance today's crazy photoshop expertise, in which I took an image of a wolf and worked to really bring out the snowy idea. Before the wolf had brown eyes and a really brown, thick coat. I worked hard to get rid of the brown and then fixed his eyes to match the background. From there it was really just working on the time consuming snow flakes and the "moons" as I call them. Everything was done by hand, I did not use brushes at all this time around. Also, just for reference, there were a tong of other color edits done along the way to really make the scene come together. Finally, slapped some text on the top right corner and called it good.

Anyway, we'll have to see what I come up with later...

Internetworkings

I wish people would stop being so rude on the internet, then maybe I would not have to get out photoshop and start pointing out things in the background. At any rate, I thought of sending him that message, but decided not to since there seems to be more than enough internet trash out there. And yes, I am including him and his responses as part of that internet trash. Still, taking that statement and editing it really made for a small batch of fun for me!

I would like to note that while I saw this first on a friends Facebook status update, the other person I am arguing with I have never met before. All I know is what that man foolishly posts on the internet, which was a lot more than he probably realizes. Anyway, until later!

Orange Tiger Background

I have actually had the following picture sitting in my stack of things to write about for some time now. After talking with a good friend, we realized all of the different large cats that I could still turn into wallpapers based on my cats and colors theme. And I took a bit of a break from making these too, but that is no reason why I should still be sitting with a fully wonderful wallpaper in my hands. Anyway, a while ago I decided to finally push forward and make the tiger orange eyes wallpaper for my iPhone.

Poopy Puppy Provocation

Our poor little puppy-dog has unfortunately a bad case of the runs, where ever thirty minutes she has needed to go outside and try to have a bowel movement of some sort. Unfortunately, for our family that means watching her extra closely since she has still not fully grasped the concept of being house broken. And even if she was trained to not go inside our home, I do not think that this special circumstance would stop her from doing number two inside since this seems to be happening so frequently. But that is not the bad part, for we can all deal with watching her closely and taking her outside when need-be.

That Puppy Loves Me!

What turned out unfortunate was the job that one of us had to fill of listening for her whimpers in the middle of the night telling us she needed to go outside. And worse yet, I ended up being selected (and not self-elected) for the position. So I spent most of the night in a bedroom close-by with my door open and my ears turned on. That also meant I had to sleep lightly and be ready to get-up and be outside in the freezing mountain air early in the morning. I slept in my clothes and I was extremely uncomfortable. I also slept in a light sleep state for most of the night; which although has helped me feel rather rested for today, sleeping like that did not help me feel fully rested. To say the least, I am tired.

I finally got-up and out of bed (without having to get up to her whimpering in the middle of the night, thankfully) and took the pup outside at six in the morning. It was freezing outside and she quickly led the way down the hill to the spot in our backyard where she wanted to do her business. Then she found another spot and did the other type of business. She wanted to start exploring the yard some more, but I was too cold so I brought her back inside. After that, I threw her toy raccoon around for a while and watched her fetch the fuzzy squeaky toy.

For the next hour and a half, I was outside with her every thirty minutes until finally my Father came and took her on a walk. I do not feel bad for him, he went to sleep earlier than I did and got up later than I did and he had a nice, warm sweatshirt on to take her on the walk that pup deserves.

Puppy's First Hike

Yesterday was a special first day for our young puppy, because we took her out on her first ever hike! For the first one my mother decided the best place to go would be back to Mount Falcon Park in Conifer, Colorado. I have to admit that the park trails are fairly flat and to get to the end of the first trail is maybe a ten minute walk (or twenty, hard to tell when one is hiking).

The Puppy sitting on a Rock

My father decided to make the trip a little bit more difficult by forgetting to bring the dog cover for his car's backseat. I ended up carrying the puppy on my lap the whole trip, it was a wreckage waiting to happen. She wanted to look out one window, then look out another window, then look out the front window, then get comfortable, and then repeat; but all of those were unattainable because she could not move from my lap. I struggled with her the entire ride up and I have to say I was not a happy camper.

When we arrived, we got her out of the car, I brushed off the mountain of dog fur that had accumulated from her fighting to stay on my lap the whole way up, and then the four of us started hiking down the trail (literally down, because we were at the top). The puppy was as happy as could be, running this way and that, sniffing at this and that, and trying to run up to every single person that we passed. Yet for the people the hike was slightly less enjoyable. We spent most of our time trying to control her and stopping her from eating things she should not be putting in her mouth. Still, all of us managed to have a great time out on the trail. 

When we got to the castle ruins (the Walker family house ruins, but everyone calls it the castle ruins), I took several pictures of our pup sitting on rocks and in the sunset. She seemed less happy to pose than to walk down the dirt path, but I did not care. I wanted a photograph to commemorate and remember this first of many adventures she is going to take! Afterwards we all started back, and she was just as happy as before. 

Back at the car we put down her water bowel and filled it, she drank up, and then it was another horrific car ride of her on my lap all the way back to the house...

And the Puppy Returns

For the last couple of weeks I have been sitting at home in the quite refuge of my parents home. I would wake-up in the morning, feed the cats and the bird, and then go about my day of doing nothing. What I accomplished in that time is pretty obvious; a whole television show, a bunch of backgrounds for my smartphone, and I started playing a brand new game. In other words, I did absolutely nothing constructive (unless you count the smartphone backgrounds as constructive).

She's Back!

She's Been Back...

---

But that time is over, because today was the hectic and crazy puppy  first full day back in Colorado. The first thing we let her do was go outside and run around like a nut. The first thing she did when we let her outside, she ran around like a nut! Prediction accomplished, which I do mean because we watched her run from one side of the yard to the other, then back again, then roll around in the grass, and so on and so forth as she frolicked freely. Then I started tossing toys for her to fetch and just all around loving my puppy dog. During that time I managed to snap the photo featured to the left, which I just could not help but add in a bit of an edit after hearing some horror stories from my parent's trip to Illinois.

Sure enough, she never tired out all day, which has left be quite exhausted actually from chasing her about. Still, I have been managing to get some free time in my spare time and play my games or do whatever. But I have to say, I really do love having a puppy home again.

Her First Minutes Home

---

I remember this clearly, because my Mom said out loud, "I wonder if she will remember you." I got down and called to the darling and she not only came running, she jumped up and into my arms and tackled me to the ground. No lie, this bigger than I last saw her puppy just tackled me straight to the ground. Then she immediately sat in my lap and continued to give me kisses for a whole five minutes. Again, not lying, my mom was literally astonished to watch as the dog went crazy-happy when she saw me. I was actually trying to push her off of me, she seemed unable to get enough of me. A few minutes later and she was following me everywhere I walked in the yard. It was very cute. So I threw the toys for her.

Since my parents arrived at their home late at night, the sun had already set and we were playing and loving in the lamp-light. I was rather tired myself (and I had not been driving all day), so I told my mom and Dad that I was going to bed with them. So that was it.

Sorry to post this out of chronological order, but it just felt right.

Morning Madness

For the past few days I have been so tired and bored of doing nothing that I started looking to old habits on what I could do for fun. One of the things I used to do regularly was go outside everyday and take longs walks. Seriously, long walks. I used to go for approximately two hours, which somehow amounts to about seven miles at the pace I walk. After those, I would get back and my feet would hurt from the pressure, but I would just go lay down and wait the pain out.

But I want to be a little bit healthier than before, so I decided that instead of just walking I would also start running for short periods of time. In effect, I would not have to take quite as long walks to get the same amount of exercise and I could build up my lungs and muscles again. That was a few days ago.

Today, I went out running and about halfway through my round (which is a randomly set path that keeps me both active and going), I suddenly tripped over a bit of the sidewalk and went down hard. With cat-like reflexes, I caught myself, but at the price of a beaten up hand. I do not think the picture really gives what happened justice, because that happened to both my hands and that was right as I started bleeding, but whatever. You can see I scraped off a bit of the skin on my palms and I now have a large gash, about the size of a dime, on my hand.

So what did I do after this happened? I picked myself back up and continued running on of course. And even with my fall, I still managed to run just under one and a half miles in eleven minutes (that is included the fall). In other words, I do not think I am taking this as a bad omen and I still love that endorphin enriched feeling that comes from exercising. I think I'll keep running, or walking, or whatever.

As an after note, when I got home I immediately cleaned the wound, then started cleaning the house without a bandaid. That includes emptying litter boxes for the cats, cleaning dirty dishes, making coffee (most important chore of all), and some vacuuming. I managed to also break the vacuum by using it so perfectly. Which reminds me, where I vacuumed looks damn amazing now. Anyway, I still have more household work to do now that I've showered. Parents are on their way home tonight!

Play This: Borderlands 2

Borderlands 2 Cover Art

For the past few days I have been in constant need of something new to do. I have been reading, writing blogs, working on artwork, playing video games, watching movies, watching television shows, and going on long walks. Still, boredom seems to take my mind and I was not sure that I could be cured of it. And then Tuesday finally arrived and everything got worse for a few hours before everything got better. Why? Because I decided to order Borderlands 2 from Amazon, which meant I also had to wait for the mail to arrive before I could start playing it. Dragging myself around the house for what seemed like forever, I was beyond bored. I even checked my door every few minutes to see if if the video game had come. I know, it sounds bad to be waiting for something to do when I have a lot of other things I should be doing. But that is not how procrastination works. Finally, the video game came and I started playing Borderlands 2 immediately. After a good, solid amount of time with the game, I think I finally know how I feel about it. Here is my review, with the side-note that I have only played this for less than half a day.

A New, Darker Tumble

I have always thought of myself as two different halves. There is the one side that sees the world for what it is and then a side that likes to look a bit more abstractly on what I think. In other words, in one world I can see my friends, family, and everyone else as they are, but in another world I like to think backwards and turn things around. Maybe up is down and down becomes up, the limits of society suddenly unconstructed and the limitless suddenly pushed back.

So, to bring about a new sense of disorder, I decided to just start a whole new blog to get these thoughts out in the open. This new blog is going to be one-hundred percent darker than this one, and definitely more abstract. I will probably even offend some people along the way, which is why I am not really going to associate this blog with my name. Actually, besides this post here I do not think I am going to mention it anywhere else. And that is what this blog is supposed to be, anonymous and abstract. If you would like to take a look at the blog's design, this will be the only place I post the link.

[http://perplexpolar.tumblr.com]

I decided to use Tumblr as the hosting website because I wanted a few options that are only available on Tumblr. First of all, this is going to be a rather rambling blog where I actually plan on just going on about something I have randomly concluded. Since it is a ramble, I want it to also be able to have infinite scrolling. I like the idea that if someone gets really into reading my stuff they can just scroll down forever. I will also not be posting anything that will stop people from using it as such, meaning there are no links except the one. Second, I want this blog to be filled with posts that come out on a random schedule and not because I made them. I will write my thoughts down, but the postings will be at random times that may not associate with exactly when I wrote them. Tumblr has a wonderful way of doing that, which should make it interesting. And finally, I wanted to post somewhere with fluctuating amounts of persons that can then repost what they find. In other words, I want to spread the wealth, so to speak, that I write and then see if it grows.

This is both an experiment as much as it is a test. We'll have to see if I can keep posting on there up-to-date and daily like I do with this blog. And if I do manage to get an audience, then this might get even more interesting.

When Does It End?

Today I decided to take a dive on the stranger side and I clicked that button at the top of my blog that says simply, "Next Blog»". Maybe curiosity had gotten the better of me, but I just wanted to see what other types of bloggers were out there and what they were writing about. So what did I learn? Pretty much nothing that I did not already know. Most blogs out there are run by women who just want a minute to be heard, a look into their style, and a place to call their own. I am not saying that is a bad thing at all, everyone deserves a little bit of space out there to post what they are thinking.

What was more interesting is how people seem to have vanished from the blogging scene. What was once a very vibrant community seems to have died down to a few blogs per month or even a stop completely to all blogging capabilities. Which got me to thinking, how long do blogs tend to stay alive? For some, it was a small glimpse into a dark, corner section of their lives. For others, it was just something on the side and they lost track. And maybe I was asking this question for the greater interest, when will my blog die off.

I guess it is going to take something as powerful as pinterest, a social media website that basically killed off all the arts and crafts blogs, or tumbler, a quick-post thought and image social media website, to actually move me onto something new. But I do not think that will happen though, because for all the good that are those websites they lack one important part of me. I like to write. I like to express myself with the english language, spraying my words onto paper and letting my thoughts ramble on. So I do not see myself switching any time soon, but I also can see why a lot of these older blogs are sort of just dying off.

Just a thought.

No, I'm Not Bored at All

Not that it really matters, but a few days ago I got a haircut at a place I had never heard of before. Ironically, that place has been in my neighborhood longer than I have been alive. Then again, my parents do not go to mom 'n pop barbershops. Anyway, that's completely off topic except to say that my hair looks bomb now no matter what I do with it. I got the whip.

So, taking my new hair and some headphones, I took the following picture. I am not sure why I did it really, maybe I was just feeling a little bit bored and wanted a new online identity for like the third time this year. At any rate, a little bit of photoshop later and apparently I'm back in 2000 with the whole Matrix crave. Still, it came out pretty great.

Just for reference, my shirt is not black, those sun glasses are not black, and my headphones are also not all shiny black metal. It is truly amazing what I can do with photoshop when I am bored, I wonder what I would do if they paid me to do it...

Yellow Cheetah Background

From a second friend whom is really into cheetahs I was asked to do a fourth background wallpaper image. This one is for the color yellow, which only seemed fitting to the cat's actual colors. I have to say that of all the cat's I have done so far, this one has gone through an epic change and really came out surprisingly awesome and amazing! So without further hold-up, here is what I ended up making today.

An Epic Tale from Late Night Denver

The following is an amazing and almost unbelievable story from last night when my friends Jodi and Laurel decided to go into Denver for a little bit of bar hopping and clubbing. However, before I start I would just like to note that this story is not one that I think should ever be repeated by anyone, because looking back on what we did I realize it may not have been the smartest idea. And only since everything managed to work itself out while we were clubbing would I ever even advise anyone trying to perform the amazing feat that we mastered. In other words, this was an all by-chance happening that worked out for the better.

Green Panther Background

Still going along with my whole colors and cats theme that I have been using to build a whole colorful library of background wallpapers for my phone, today I followed the suggestion of my friend when asked what I should do for the color green. Jodi said I should make a snow leopard with green eyes, to which we both laughed because I just made a snow leopard kitty with blue eyes and so doing it again would be redundant and ridiculous. However, Laurel mentioned that I should use a panther and bring out the feline's eyes with green and a nice green background. 

Red Lion Background

Yesterday after showing off my new snow leopard wallpaper background to some friends, one of my friends showed me that he was using a lion for his background. It was actually a really common background that people use, black and white with the lion looking up. I will not lie, that is a beautiful picture and I probably could have just added some color back to that one. However, being the individual that I am, I went out onto the internet looking for my own lion to edit for my phone background (which I probably will not use for at least seven months). Anyway, as I did before I will give it to the rest of the world if they want to use it for their background.

Making Some Phone Wallpaper

Having the usual amount of spare time that comes with being jobless, I decided to spend today working on some wallpapers I thought I could use for my iPhone's background. Now, this is all from an image that anyone can find online, but I worked to actually make the snow leopard's eyes more blue and more glowing then they normally would be. I also worked to get the black and white coloring just right, for there is actually a flavor of saturation that I wanted to go into the picture. In other words, the black and white area is not a complete wash of all colors. Instead, it takes away most of the color but leaves just enough to make the picture still feel realistic while leaving focus on those eyes.

I've left my phone's home screen showing and how I aligned the picture in the background, to give an idea of what it will look like on your phone if you feel like using the image for your own phone's background.

A Little Bit Frustrating

I find it frustrating to always be on a job hunt, to be looking out for the next career that might just sweep me up and let me have-at an actual life. And to everyone else out there that is currently searching for their own dream careers, they probably feel similar. Searching becomes depressing, distasteful, and in it self takes forever with the way the hiring process is done right now. And all of that, to me and to many others, is frustrating.

But I think what is even more frustrating is looking past what a job or a career has to offer for the individual and onwards towards what the individual has to offer for the career. There is a certain sense of uselessness that comes with being unable to push and market the ideas that one comes up with, because there is no audience. We are all on stage and we are all looking for that next big performance, but the distaste towards being always in the next act and never in the current one hurts to think about.

Hopefully someone out there will realize the talents they have sitting in the back, the ideas that are to be had from the new generation, and onward and upward we can all climb.

Maybe Watch This: Tower Heist

Promotional Poster for Tower Heist

I think we all know what I am about to say here, I was bored and I started browsing through the On Demand offered by Comcast Cable when I ran across a bunch of awesome movies I wanted to watch. So I picked one out and that is that.

Except that is not exactly all of that. I chose Tower Heist not because of the movie, I meant the plot line was pretty obvious. Instead, I decided to watch this movie because of Ben Stiller, who I have loved since I saw Zoolander, and Eddie Murphy, who sometimes manages to be in amazing films such as Bowfinger. That is right, this is a movie I watched because I wanted to see the actors, as rare as that occurrence is. Anyway, here is my review.

Skip This: The Haunting

Movie Poster for The Haunting

A little while ago I was bored and looking for something interesting to watch on demand when I came across a movie who's title was simple the haunting. Sounds plausible enough and simple enough to be good, I thought, so I picked it out and read the small description. Liam Neeson, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Owen Wilson are all in this picture, so I figured how bad could it be with not one, but three large name actors. And the description also left me more interesting, people brought to a house for a psychological study on insomnia later learn that the house is haunted. Again, simplistic enough that it sounded like a decent plot for some good horror thrills. So I loaded it up and watched the whole movie in one run, and here are my thoughts on a movie I suspect no one has heard of before.

DrawSomething Mania

I have had a lot of time to do whatever I wanted recently, which might very well be a symptom of not having a career to kick off just yet. And instead of job hunting, which I do everyday anyway and it seems to just bore me now, I have been playing DrawSomething on my iPhone with my other friends that have it. I love that game as far as		Links to download:
		•iPhone App
		•Android App
time wasting goes, but I seem to have yet again taken it to the next extreme with my current drawings. Below, I am going to include a multitude of the different drawings that I have been working on for the past few days. And just as a side note, they have become more complicated with each passing day. Also, for the first time since I started playing the game I have actually ran out of ink. To run out of ink means to spend so much time on a single drawing that the game will not be able to send the video playback to a friend. I thought it was quite amusing, but the drawings still came out fantastic even with the lack of finishing them. Anyway, take a look, I'll try to include my personal thoughts along the way!

Return to Normal Sleep

I just have to say for all those that do not understand the title of this post, it is a play on words with the idea of return to normalcy. Not that the idea of returning to normalcy really matters much to what I want to talk about today, but I thought it was creative and I did not want that to slip. So anyway, just wanted to get that off my chest.

For the past month or so my sleep schedule has been all off the schedule and it has sort of been driving me mad, sort of been a blessing. I would go to sleep between 4AM and 6AM and then I would not wake-up until noon. It was sort of nice, a way to have the house to myself while also still sharing it with my parents. But the idea of getting up at midday bothered me, half my time in the daylight already gone and half my day with the puppy was also half-passed. So while my parents were actually away, to dodge the criticism that seems to follow my sleep habits, I actually pushed my entire schedule forward by two to four hours a day until I was finally back to sleeping when the sun is down and getting up at the crack of down. I like it.

I like the idea of getting up with the sunrise so much that I am actually going to set my alarm for 6:30AM every morning just to insure I never get ahead of myself again. There is something truly spectacular about watching the sunrise, like a piece in time that only certain folks can afford to see. It is not like the sunset, many more people are acquainted with the way the sun dips behind mountains here, but not many know what it is like to see the sun rise from the plains.

And for those curious as to what it feels like to completely change your sleeping schedule by moving forward one light-zone a day, it is miserable. When you wake-up for the first time in the middle of the night and feel well rested, your body starts to ache for no real reason except that it is mad at you. And it is depressing as well, to think that you will not get to see the sun until the end of several long hours. On top of all that, what can you do? The stores are all closed, the people you know and love are all tuckered into their beds and fast asleep, and you have to find ways to pass the time. Sure, there is the internet, but that only lasts so long before you realize how much you want to be with actual people. I do not recommend having a sleep schedule where you sleep when the sun is up, it casts a hopeless fate on the soul.

Anyway, whole day ahead of me now I suspect, so I'm off to enjoy it!

Listen to This: Gangnam Style

I will not say that this is not weird, but like many things that happen on the internet it has finally attracted me. And once I have determined that I like something, for whatever reason, I will actually send it to all my friends and force them to watch it. So I thought, why not then force it onto my blog? Anyway, the following is a song I had never heard before until YouTube suddenly thrust it upon me as the most popular video out there. When you watch it, you'll see why; and yes you must watch it to really understand. So do not just listen to this song, watch!

Music Video for Gangnam Style by Psy

Let me be the first to say that besides the part where he says gangnam style and eh sexy lady, I have absolutely no idea what he is saying. I do not even know what gangnam style is, but I can guess that it must be the style he just came up with. Still, the weirdness of this video and the awesomeness of the song make me want to write a whole blog about it. So watch and love it!

Maybe Watch This: In Time

Movie Poster for In Time

I seem to be moving forward on the clock as to when I am awake and when I want to go to sleep, which is why I watched this movie at noon instead of my usual time of midnight. As such, I ended my day (or at least what is the end of my day) watching a movie that I had never heard of before but looked interesting based on what was written about it on the on demand menu.

For this movie, I saw the name Justin Timberlake and that alone caught my interest and made me want to see what this was about. I think he is an interesting character, so I thought why not watch a movie with him in it if it sounds interesting enough. Then I read the description that came after his name, a science fiction movie about the near future where we do not have a currency anymore because our new currency is how long we live. Basically it takes the concept that you sell your time for money and just skips that transaction to make it simply you sell your time. Interesting to say the least. So I decided to give it a go and this is what I thought after watching the film.

Play This: Super Hexagon

Let me ask you some questions. Are you into games with good music? Do you like it when they are fast-paced and great at wasting small amounts of time between each play? Are you into challenges? And last, do you mind having your eyes burn out of your sockets as you try to keep up with an object swirling around at the speed of sound? If you answered yes to any of those questions, then I have the game for you.

[http://itunes.apple.com/app/super-hexagon/id549027629?mt=8]

It is called Super Hexagon and after one round of playing you will know why. And as far as music games go, I give it the recommendation because it is both addictive and fast-paced. Somehow this was able to turn thirty seconds of play into half an hour of enjoyment. So click the link and give it at try!

A Long Day

After a sleepless night and a kind wait for my parents to depart, I was finally back to a state I had not been in over three months. I was home alone, cast off to do my own bidding in a place that I could arrange as my own temple. And so my first action of the day was to go out and seek breakfast food from a fast food place. I first thought maybe McDonalds, because I was craving their breakfast burritos, but I soon discovered something rotten about living here in subburbia, they actually close down and do not open at four in the morning. And yes, I checked a multitude of locations before finally letting the white flag rise and moving onward. I went to Einstein's instead and had a lovely bagel sandwich, though it did not replace my original want of a good breakfast burrito. The second action I attempted for the day was to start writing.

For the first time in months I have started writing again, working on a fresh story with some brand new ideas. I cannot say that I have made very much progress so far, but that is from both being captivated by other things, having other tasks at hand, and just not being very satisfied with the way my story was beginning. Already I have re-written the beginning at least five times and after re-reading what I had written a little later I am already thinking of re-writing it again. And that saddens me that I cannot find the right footing for my story, which may or may not be the most important part to where this goes. Still, what I have is better than what I had and what I want is but an arms grasp away I hope. So I will continue writing to see where this goes, and hopefully after I purge this start I will be able to more successfully continue on faster.

But that was not the long part of the day. After both the sleepless night and trying time and time again to write that beginning, I grew tired and decided to fall asleep. I do not think I have had such a deep sleep in months, for there were no worries to be placed upon me and nothing to wake me up. I slept for hours, comfortable and confidently as the deep sleep pulled me in. Stress was a thing of the past and when I awoke I was actually sore from sleeping so well. That is right, I woke-up to find that my body was actually more sore then than it had been before I sought off for my dreamy worlds. So I stretched and began the rest of my day, which at that point was at sundown.

I went to the store, something I have not done in a while, and I bought several items of food that have been missing from my parents household since my Dad resumed cooking again. I do not think he understands that if you cook with fresh vegetables and fruits you end up with a more delicious meal. Anyway, I bought several things that I thought I might need in the coming week and then returned back home. Upon getting there, my stomach growled and I felt the fit of hunger that bestows upon a young person of my age who has not eaten in over eight hours. I set forth cooking a spicy chicken recipe that I had invented rather myself and come to love. It came out perfectly and then I felt tired again. 

But before letting the dreamy worlds get the best of me, I also started my laundry. When I would wake, it would be folding time for lots of clothes. On a side note, that was the first time that I had actually proceeded to do laundry in at least a month. Sure, I changed out my pants when they started to feel dirty and I would grab at a clean shirt after every shower, but that was still the longest time I have ever gone without doing laundry before. And then I feel asleep for the second time in the day. After waking up, I folded the clothes and decided to write a blog to explain everything, which looking back feels rather empty of any actual news. Oh well. I have a feeling I will not be sleeping tonight, maybe I will write another. Better yet, maybe I will start back at working on my novel!

Don't Forget the Others

I will be the first one to admit that I have a set of friends I call-up, talk to, or message on a daily basis, for I think that is something we as humans all naturally have. These are my best friends, my friends that I hang-out with as much as possible, and my speed-dial friends (so to say). And I can also openly say that they are on a whole different list from my other friends. They are not just in my address book on my phone, they have a whole section for quick and easy access. Leaving them on easy access makes sense too, because I talk to them as often as I talk to my family. And maybe every now and then we will quarrel and I will write something about them on here to blow off steam, but these are still my best friends and within an hour I feel fairly close to fine again. That sort of friendship is something special and I know that. To say that this list is exclusive might not be too far from the truth.

But they are not my only friends and actually I have an entire list of great and wonderful people just around the bend, or to the touch of another button so-to-speak, on my phone. This second set of friends, the ones that I could not have lived without for a portion of my life, are slightly different from the first. We click really well and if we were brought together in a room for the first time in a year, then we would have no problem picking up where life left off. These are my great friends, to which I mean they are the people I do not take for granted and I want to keep close to me, but for whatever reason we just are not very good over the long distance.

With all of that said, it will seem weird that now I am going to add that I need to start telling myself to not forget about the others. For instance, out of some part of me I decided that today I would contact my great, amazingly talented and smart friend Mari. I do not think I would have gotten through college without her, she is that sort of loving and caring individual. Well, at first we spoke about job hunting and what not, but then we moved on like time had not passed between us. That is the sign of a great friendship and I admire that we have something like that. So here is more of a personal note than a forewarning to others, I need to not forget about the others.

The Puppy or the Idiot

For over a month now I have been working hard to try and train our new puppy, and for over a month now my progress has been minimal at best. I have never trained a puppy from scratch before, so I really have no basis to compare anything that I do with, but I have this strange feeling that I am being sabotaged the entire way. No, not by my Mom, for she actually supports me when I come to a decision on what we should train her to do. Instead, it is by our household idiot, my Dad.

I am trying to come up with a nice way to put this, but I honestly feel like he is sabotaging all my hard work every time he talks to her and pets her and feeds her. Seriously, it has been about a month and a half and the dog still does not know to come when called, does not know to not go to the bathroom in the house, and does not know some of the simplest commands. And all of this is because my Dad will not get on board and stop pampering her. Fact is he keeps acting like this is a child that he can buy the love out of, giving her treats when she is being bad or playing games we have told him that are off limits. So she does not learn because she is getting a mixed message and all that is really happening is the dog thinks I am a mean person. To say the least, that really pisses me off when I am trying to train this dog to be something amazing and not just another mutt.

It comes down to this, we have told my Dad to get with the program and to stop doing all the dumb things he does that are not helping her learn. For instance, while trying to train her that it was good that she went to the bathroom outside he forgot to bring out some treats. So after the task was done and several minutes later when she was back inside, he gave her a treat and rewarded her. "Are you freaking stupid?" were the first words out of my mouth when I saw him do this. She is a dog, not a human, and she thinks you are rewarding her for no reason because she did not recently do the task that you wanted her to do. Good job, but all you have done is undermined the value of each treat because she thinks they are something she deserves and does not have to earn.

Here is another classical example of him being a total idiot when it comes to training, I told him we need to start crate training her and that means on a daily basis she goes to the bathroom outside, drinks water, and then we throw her in the crate for a few hours. He says back to me when I tell him the plan, "But I don't understand, she is in the crate all night." Okay, yes we put her in the crate at night so she does not go crazy on all the furniture while we are trying to sleep, but then she falls asleep and does not learn that she needs to go to the bathroom outside and that the crate is her home. When you crate train a dog during the day it does something more than when you throw them in the crate at night. The day training teaches them that her home (crate) is a place not to go to the bathroom and the same goes with your home. It also teaches them where going to the bathroom is okay to go while giving you a break from having to watch the puppy every minute of every hour of the day. Again, you freaking idiot, just get with the program and start doing it instead of undermining my authority and making me seem like a mean owner.

The Problem Puppy

And just for reference, our new puppy is half australian shepherd and half border collie mix, both of which are known to be extremely smart, natural herding dogs. They are also both known to test their boundaries time and time again to see what they can get away with, and if you have one idiot out of line that does not keep them in shape, they think that whatever they do is okay. I like to call this effect the velociraptor mentality, which is a reference to Jurassic Park when they discuss how the velociraptors will check the fence for weak spots to escape through. Anyway, in other words, these dogs are really smart, really difficult to train, and impossible to deal with when someone will not follow the set rules.

So now I have an option, I can either train the dog or train my Dad. I do not have time for both, especially since the only other person who seems to want to take time to watch the puppy is my Dad and he is the incompetent fool that is causing more problems than helping mend by watching the puppy. I wish there was a book called common sense, because then I could at least beat my Dad with it to see if the sense goes in. Seriously, this is your pet and not your friend, so stop acting like you are going to hurt her feelings and start acting like you are the master. Maybe then we will get a puppy that comes on command.

Waiting for Morning

I know this is going to sound a little bit special, but I am actually staying up and waiting for the morning so that I can play some new maps in my video game. Though when I write it like that, I kind of sound a little bit retarded since the smarter thing to do would be to wake-up later and play them. But in truth I am also up again because I am having a wonderful time with insomnia and waiting seemed better than not waiting.

So now here I am, bored a little bit and without a movie to watch. I do not know what to do with my time that would be unproductive, which is what I sort of feel like doing more so than what I want to be doing. I guess I will just have to do something productive. Anyway, there's a random post if ever there was one.

Watch This: Think Like a Man

Advertisement Image for Think Like a Man

I know that a lot of men out there try and dodge "chick flicks" whenever they hear about them, but to me it is less about the fact that this is a "chick flick" film and more about that this is a comedy. So when I first heard about it and saw a few clips of it, I knew that I was going to end up watching this movie to see what was going on. So I found a copy of the movie I could rent for a few hours and while the puppy was taking a nap I started watching it. I do not want to say that I was completely impressed, but actually I liked this movie for the feel-good moments that I knew were coming and that I knew would have to happen. Anyway, here is my review for Think Like a Man.

Listen to This: I'll Bite You

Okay, I lied. Instead of going off to write a whole review on a movie I watched like two days ago I decided to write a review about a song that I have fallen in love with. But before I get to that, let me start off by first telling everyone a little bit about Lydia and my relationship with this band. About a year ago a friend over the internet, as in one I had never met in real life, told me that I should try listening to this band because they do a lot of amazing pieces. They are a small-time indie band, a lot of people have never heard of them before, but I am so happy I got pointed towards them. From their first album and second album there are songs that I still listen to all the time because they are so beautifully done; take for instance Smile, You've Won or Hospital which are both classics.

But this review is not about them. Instead, it is about a band that I thought was breaking-up and done making music. See, after writing one more album (their third if I remember correctly) and doing one final tour, they were going to all disband and go their separate ways. However, Paint it Golden is actually the bands fourth album and actually a wonderful return. After a small hiatus, the band came back and produced this piece, which I instantly fell in love with for its softer tunes that still focused highly on well-writen lyrics.

I'll Bite You by Lydia

I think the reason I can easily separate this song from the other ones on the album is that the song starts with a different sound than the one present in the chorus. The first time I listened to it, that tossed me through a loop, but still I kept coming back because there was something about it. The soft, rhythmic start that is suddenly disturbed by the perfectly offset chorus just really brought me back and touched my heart I guess.

But that was the first few times I listened to it, the main attractant that got me to hear the song. Now I have dived much deeper into the surface of this masterpiece, learned the lyrics that grabbed me and really brought me to enjoy what it has to offer. Like I said before, one of the best parts about Lydia is their key focus to the well-written lyrics in any one of their given songs. If I had to say the one that has been keeping me, the golden lyrics to this song, it would definitely be, "I wanna hear it from your pearly teeth." There is just something about the detail in that one line that gets me thinking and has kept me listening to this one over and over again. Anyway, give it a listen!

The Spotted Canvas uses the Lydia promotional media but is not endorsed or certified by themselves. All of the Lydia logos and trademarks displayed on this website are the property of themselves.

Sitting Here with Peaches

I could not sleep tonight, which might be a symptom of having taken a nap earlier in the evening and then waking up. I say earlier, but in truth I really mean at bed time and then waking during the middle of the night. In either case to which you are reading this, considering this, and maybe even pondering this, I am awake. So first matter of business was to satisfy my stomach, which is why I am now sitting here with a bowl of peaches. Thank God for canned foods, otherwise I might actually have to go to the store.

Anyway, not a whole lot to do tonight since I've pretty much watched every movie that I could On Demand. I know that by saying that I am basically saying I watched weeks upon weeks of movies, but if you have not gotten the picture from my other blogs right now then you probably have failed to realize just how much free time I have. And earlier I was watching Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. I must have watched that movie enough times to know all the best lines without ever watching it again, I was mainly using the movie as a tool to try and get to me to go sleep. If this blog is any clue, it did not work very well. So after about an hour of listening to Daniel Radcliffe, to which I despise no matter how cute he was when he was young, I decided it was time to get up and start eating or something. And in accordance with my friend Vicki, that sounds about right since we "ate our way through San Francisco" because we are "foodies." It only makes sense that I should start eating now.

On some other random notes, I finally started writing again. Granted, what I have written in Microsoft Word is not exactly all that much, but it is the start of an idea. I think that was the problem I was having up until tonight, I could not easily formulate or see an idea of what I wanted to write. That was, until I was suddenly struck by one that just kind of captivated me. It is nothing like I have personally ever done before, but it is something I think I can easily write about. Anyway, I have also set-up a brand new goal along with this brand new idea. While my parents are away and I have a house all to myself, I am just going to sit down every day and write until my fingers are bleeding all over the keyboard. The plan, finish an entire novel by the end of the week. That way when they get back I can go back into hibernation or maybe send my novel off to friends and order them to read it and love it. I know my friends, they'll love this idea.

Who knows though. They say the start of a new day is at the end of another, or at least if they have not then I claim all rights to that phrase right now and everyone must quote me. Otherwise, that is a quote form an anonymous source. You get the idea, I'm rambling. I think I might go finish up my other blog right now. Yeah, I have another whole blog in the works, but it is just another movie review...

Skip This: The Pirates! Band of Misfits

Movie Poster for the Pirates!

Another night and another long story about how I have nothing to do is what my review readers have probably come to expect of these introductions, but alas it was not this way last night. Instead, I rather had a lot of stuff that I could be doing and I chose to watch this movie. You see, I could have been playing my video games and ranking up, I could have been reading one of my new books, and I could have been watching a couple of television shows that I have fallen a little bit behind on. Instead I chose to watch this movie, for I knew that it was made by the same stop-motion folks that put together the entire Wallace and Gromit series as well the Chicken Run movie. Now while I found Chicken Run a little bit disappointing, I would still recommend that movie for young folks because of the nicely woven tale and beautiful stop motion. But I do admire and adore the creators for their Wallace and Gromit stop-motion pieces, as those were expertly done and very friendly for all ages. And with such an inspiring and big cast, how could they go wrong I thought. At any rate, here is my review for their most recent movie the Pirates! Band of Misfits.

Writing Exercise: The Sailor and the Meese

The following is a fairy tale that I wrote in approximately thirty minutes through text messages. Now, normally my fairy tales are not very good because they lack any sort of depth and pretty much have no plot behind them. But somehow the following one I wrote came out pretty well. And just for the hell of it, I am also including all of my friend's comments when she gave them and while I was writing this in a second column. I promise to keep them posted approximately when I  received them. Anyway, without further ado, here is the fairy tale I wrote.

Another Abstract: The Same Old Dream

I cannot be exactly sure where in my head I was when I wrote the following piece, but it was yet another late-night writing exercise. It probably was created somewhere in the deeper thoughts of what I am currently thinking about, but still the following is a quick piece I wrote. And after writing it, and maybe because I was just a bit bored, I decided to upload it to my blog. Who knows, maybe someone will read it and think it is brilliant, though abstract and random as it is. So here it is, another abstract I wrote.

The Void of the Same Old Dream
Ever get that feeling like you are just wasting away your time, like your current presence on this planet is about as meaningful as a rock. You get this idea that you are matter, floating through the infinite space and consuming and changing other matter that you bump into, but in the end nothing has really changed. Instead, you have become just a different set of matter that has moved on. In this scenario, time becomes nothing, a separate thought completely since there is no reason to measure it lest you want to know what part of the day you are in. And even that stop mattering, because you stay awake late and night and ponder the many mysteries that man has pondered since the beginning of time.

It is in this state that I am now moving into the third month of my blog's existence and the third month of my unemployment reign. And for what I've got to offer, which is not a whole lot to the world right now since they do not see my piece of mind as more than entertaining (which I should maybe take as a compliment), is just more space for words to fill the void. More space taken up by the thoughts and impressions that I can leave, an implant.

It is that same implant on your bed, the one where you clutch at night as if there is someone there to fill the space that air occupies. It is a strange feeling, to be that amount of nothingness that floats around and exaggerates everything because there is nothing that cannot be exaggerated. And the sense of senselessness becomes the property of the proposition, a dedication to the delegation and a prison of prions. And yet it is still void.

Void. I stare at the paper as blank as the day that it was purchased and I see nothing but the white. There are blue lines running across it, it is notebook paper filled into the spiral notebook I bought from the store. Still, there is nothing on it and it just fills in the space between to slightly thicker cover and the cardboard back. So why does it matter as such, that the paper be empty of a scratch of ink or a dash of the pencil. because of the possibilities that lie beneath every thought that crosses over the page. To press the pen and to give a meaning fills the book, gives it purpose in translating though from one person to the next and from one minute to another. Yet before any of that happens there is an infinity in the void. Because in having an absence of absolution there is actually an infinite amount of possibilities. And that is why I stare at the paper and watch as my mind bubbles up the images off the pages and into my head. Because there is no limit to the thoughts that can fill it until the pen touches.

But it does not matter, because I am not looking at the paper. Instead, I am staring at the void of space next to me in my bed, the thing that could be filled with a person, could be permitted to be something more than just empty space. It is nothing, there is no one there, but it means more than that. Until there is someone lying next to me, filling the void and warming the grasp it is an infinite amount of possibilities. Possibilities and possessions they mean the exact opposite, but only when talking about the bit of air.

And since there is no time, no space, nothing else to stare at because you are matter floating through space, it turns out that there never was a bed there to begin with. Instead, it was just your imagination as you float on to become something more than just the rock. You float on to become more than that, to be a thing that someone else wants to hear about the thoughts and impressions.

Living in the Bubble

You know, it is weird how sometimes comedies and comedians tend to capture the real world with a blown out-of-proportion piece on what the real world is. Take for example the case and lifestyle philosophy presented in the show 30 Rock, where in one episode they start describing certain people as living "in the bubble". For those that have no seen the episode about living "in the bubble" or have never heard the idea, the bubble is a place where beautiful, handsome, and just abnormally over-respected people live their blessed life. They tend to be handed things their entire life, given opportunities that normally would not exist because they live in a superficial world where they already have good looks and so others tend to focus on them more. And the worst part about being in the bubble is that they cannot see that they are in the bubble, but instead wonder why others outside the bubble are treated differently without connecting the two. Like I said, a strange philosophy, but the bubble is actually a real world thing that happens all the time.

Maybe Watch This: Wild Cherry

Movie Poster for Wild Cherry

Tonight began much like any other night, I was bored and browsing through a long list of movies that did not seem very interesting when I came upon one that caught my eye. So I opened it and read the description about what this strangely titled movie I had never heard. Then, when all of the details satisfied my tastes in some manner or another, I decided to start watching it. 

What I learned from the description was this movie is about three female high schoolers that are apparently on some sort of list to have sex and they discover the list. So then these girls decide to seek revenge against the main character's boyfriend, because he should not be doing something so sinister as helping the main character get laid. Oh yeah, and Rob Schneider is in this movie as the dad. But what that description forgot to tell me was that the movie I was about to watch was one of those very awkward ones, a film that puts even the viewers into their own little place as they wonder what they are watching and why they cannot turn away. If that alone does not give any idea to what Wild Cherry is about, here is my full review!

Skip This: Due Date

Movie Poster for Due Date

So it was another night, another movie I was not sure I wanted to watch, and another couple of hours of my life I wish I could get back. I'll have to admit that when I first watched the theatrical trailer for this movie, I was pretty sure I would not like it, because I could already tell that Zach Galigianakis was going to play the exact same character role he did in the Hangover while Robert Downey Jr played the same character role he is known for. Add on top of that some jokes that just are not really that funny nor interesting, and I figured that was the movie. Still, I had nothing to do that night and I needed to pass the time, so I turned on Due Date with no care towards what might actually be seen and now I wish I could get my time back. If you are curious and want to know why I do not recommend this movie, then please continue reading my full review of Due Date.

Watch This: ParaNorman

Movie Poster for ParaNorman

Earlier, I received a call from my friend Jodi and she told me that she was in town nearby. So I of course left my Dad with the puppy, because my Mom was out doing her own thing, and told him that I was going to meet up with my friend! In honesty, it is not every day that a friend comes up from southern Colorado and wants to talk. I take every chance I get. Anyway, we meet up at a sandwich show and spend the next half-hour or so catching up and having a great time with her baby niece (9 months old for those that are curious). Then her sister-in-law comes and picks up her niece and we go about our day continuing to converse and have a great time.

After about an hour of hanging out in a coffee-shop / bookstore, I asked Jodi if she wanted to come home and see the puppy. She could not refuse such an offer (which I knew) and so we went back to my parent's home where we talked some more and played with the puppy. Then we came inside and decided to go and see a movie. Except nothing was really out that caught our eyes, so we decided to do a go to the theater and choose idea. What we ended up watching was ParaNorman, which was a surprising movie to say the least!

Do Not get Caught in the Political Sludge

A few days ago I received a call from one of the polling services that want to know my opinion about the current candidates for president, senate, and whatever else that they can ask me. Normally I try and dodge these calls, telling them I am not interested or I do not have time, but I was caught off guard this time because my parents handed me the phone and said it was for me. That is the last time I take a telephone from my parents without asking who I am talking to.

So this woman gets on and asks me if I want to do a short survey for the Colorado have-nots or what-nots (I honestly have no idea who she worked for, just that they were Colorado based). And right away I ask her if she can just put "I do not care" down the entire list. She tells me that she cannot do that, that I would be swaying the survey if I did do that, and that it she had "only a couple of questions that would only take a couple of minutes of my time." Ten minutes later, and a bunch of bullshit on my part being spewed out because I do not want them to know my opinion, I finally tell her I am done taking this survey. I then hung up, I mean it was not like she had be strapped down to a chair and I needed to finish the survey to escape for the day.

But the reason I bring up this incident in my life is because of the topic of the survey, which was what political crap can be said to try and sway the votes. Literally, after getting through the candidates and asking me if I was likely to vote for them (which I gave them all a solid three out of ten), this woman starts asking me if a statement would change my opinion. I am sorry, I do not wade through the political bullshit that they spew on television anymore and I never believe what I hear until I have looked up the facts for myself. So my question for her is simple, why would I want to give her answers that would support creating more of this political fudge that we all have to hear and has almost no truth concerning what the real issues are?

The Taste of Burnt

Throughout my life there have been times when I have burned my food in a toaster, on the stove, or a multitude of other ways. And although I watch the stuff I am cooking pretty closely to catch it before the food turns into a hard, blackened rock, it still happens. I do not think anyone can claim they have never burned something, so this should be quite understandable. But what I am learning is that while I burn food, I admit it and I still eat what I burned. Over the years of burning food for various reasons, I have actually come to appreciate the taste of burnt food, the taste of failure so to speak. What I am getting at is I have accepted my failure and taken it, even appreciated it. Admittedly, I will burn a bagel every now and then for that different flavor.

Yet in my lifetime, though short as the stay has been as of right now, I have started to realize that not everyone is like me when it comes to their mistakes. They burn the food and then throw it out and try again. I can understand throwing out something that you do not like, but to toss out your failure and not see the errors of your way is maddening. And maybe the whole idea of this comes from a part of me that knows there is no infinite amount of anything, that in truth everything has a quantity value to it. I cannot burn a million bagels and still feed the world, let alone my check book cannot buy a million bagels, so where do others get off thinking that they should be allowed to burn more food because they failed the first time.

I think this perspective of oh I failed I will try again without seeing if there was a mistake the first time is something we have come to just accept in America. "Oh I failed that test, I guess I'll just have to do better next time" or "Oh I burned my Poptart today, guess I'll just put another one in the toaster." It becomes a sort of pattern, an American experience per say, that you can fail in life and you do not need to live through the consequences of your failure. I think we should change that perspective. And the easiest way to go about teaching people that there is this moral dilemma between always thinking there will be more of whatever is to tell them they do not get a second chance. That you need to take your failure and see what went wrong, learn from it, enjoy the failure while it happens, and then become better from it. And instead we toss out this idea that failure is something that happened, but maybe a second time will fix it.

I would like to side note and just say I do not think this will fix all of the problems in the world, let alone all the problems in the United States. But this might be a great first-start proving ground for a lot of Americans to learn that they need to try their hardest the first time and they need to succeed. We live in a culture of people that just pitch things away the first time and do not learn from their mistakes, but we should live in a culture that examines what we have and what we want and then make the most out of what we can.

Maybe then we can all enjoy the taste of burnt. Thank you for my short political side-track today.

Maybe Watch This: The Kids are All Right

Movie Poster for The Kids are All Right

I am not going to lie and say that I love every drama out there, I do not and I do not think that is possible. Instead, I try and find the dramatic movies that make me feel like I have learned something by the end that I would not have known otherwise. And to say I have learned something by the end of the movie is not the same as saying that I felt like I knew exactly what I had learned, but there was some sort of educational evolution that happened in my head, a connecting of understandings that made me feel happy. In the past this has happened with such great films as Almost Famous (which I recently just re-watched) or Forest Gump (which was so good I went and read the book). I call these the good-feeling movies, as that is what they leave you with even if the ending is sad.

So taking a stab into the dark, I decided to watch a movie that was both recommended by a friend as good, a fact I learned after starting the film, and from the advice of an online review website. I think I have a lot more words to say about this movie then just that, as I do think this movie covers a lot of complicated topics and neither my friend nor the review I read really mentioned any of them. Here's my review of The Kids are All Right.

A Piece of Astronaut History Passes Away

Today is a major day in our planet's history, as the first man to walk on the moon has now passed away. At the age of 82, Neil Armstrong passed due to complications during a cardiovascular procedure.  I have used my blog to write a little bit of a commemoration to this American Hero, one that I hope is fitting of his character and life. I've created a small timeline below to commemorate his life and his work, which took a little bit of time to put together but I think gives great perspective. And of course, all of these facts are compliments of a multitude of medias.

First Moon Landing 1969

And of course this blog would not be right without the video taken from the Apollo 11 of the first lunar landing. If you would like to see more pictures of astronaut Neil Armstrong, the best place is to go and look on NASA's image gallery. This image gallery can be found at:

[http://www.nasa.gov/topics/people/galleries/armstrong.html]

No Thank You Comcast

I know that I am posting this article rather early in the morning, I know that this is about to be a rant on how bad Comcast is as a service, and I know I should probably just turn in for the morning and get some sleep. But I can't just let go of the issues I had last night, and instead it has festered in me over the last seven hours or more that I spent working on our new gateway to fix the internet. So let me start from the beginning.

Our internet has always sucked in one way or another. Before our new gateway, we had a wonderful problem where the internet worked great, the phones worked great, but they only worked great as long as one was not working. For instance, I would be on the internet writing a blog when we would get a phone call. Instantly our internet drops and everyone that is on gets kicked off line because some idiot decided that phones should trump the magical power that is the internet. It drove me nuts and I lost a lot of work from the phone-internet phenomena. And not just that, but if two people tried to get onto the internet at the same time, it kicked one of them off and the other one got a full pass. That drove my Dad nuts. So anyway, here is the tale of how I got the internet working again on all our devices in our home.

Asleep in her Toboggan

The following is just a quick thought, or maybe more of a poetic reaction to what is happening around me. So here it is, something I wrote quickly to go along with the cute puppy.

Sitting on the deck with a cup of coffee and a keyboard in front of me, writing about everything that is around me. The pitter patter of the rain is coming down again as summer ends and autumn begins. You can hear it hitting the roof lightly, the sound very relaxing as the smell overtakes. But that does not matter, because our puppy is asleep in her toboggan.