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 |    My primary Writing.com blog. |
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Logocentric (adj). Regarding words and language as a fundamental expression of an external reality (especially applied as a negative term to traditional Western thought by postmodernist critics). Sometimes I just write whatever I feel like. Other times I respond to prompts, many taken from the following places:  "The Soundtrackers Group"  "Invalid Item" "Blogging Circle of Friends " "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" "JAFBG" "Take up Your Cross" Thanks for stopping by!  |
| I love pretty much all dogs, but my personal favorite breeds are: 1. Mutt 2. Australian Shepherd 3. American Pit Bull Terrier 4. Rottweiler 5. Labrador Retriever 6. Siberian Husky 7. Boxer 8. Corgi 9. Brussels Griffon 10. French Bulldog or Pug or Pomeranian I love mixed breed dogs; they always have such interesting features, especially when the parents are recognizable dog breeds. Plus I'm not a big fan of spending the money for purebred dogs when there are so many others in need of adoption. Oddly enough, neither of the breeds I've owned over the years made the list... I had both Dalmatians and a Vizsla when I was growing up, but I'm partial to breeds with more of a personality and distinct features. Plus, the Brussels Griffon basically looks like an Ewok, so that's a plus.  The toy dogs slipped into the list at #10 because they're my wife's favorite and I've accepted the fact that if/when we ever get a dog of our own, it'll probably be from an entry way down on my list.  |
| As a complement to yesterday's list of places I've been, this is a list of the places that I still really want to go. 1. Japan (Tokyo and Kyoto) 2. Italy (Rome and Venice) 3. Boston, Massachusetts, USA 4. Chicago, Illinois, USA 5. Washington, DC, USA 6. Australia (Sydney and Melbourne) 7. Thailand (Bangkok & Ko Samui) 8. Cape Town, South Africa 9. Anchorage, Alaska, USA 10. Amsterdam, Netherlands Being totally honest, Washington, DC was at the top of my list until, oh, January 20 or so. I've always wanted to see the nation's capitol,but it's a little less appealing with all the stuff that's going on in politics these days. I'm kind of embarrassed that I've never made it to some major U.S. cities yet, and there rest on this list are places around the world that have always fascinated me and I can't wait to visit. |
| When I was growing up, my family was more of a "go to the same places over and over" kind of family, rather than a "new adventures all the time" kind of family. I'm decidedly more of a "new adventures all the time" kind of person (or at least as often as I can afford it!) so this list is a combination of sentimental places I've been to several times, as well as more exotic locales I've visited now that my wife and I have both realized we love traveling. 1. Pacific Northwest (Seattle and Portland, in particular), USA 2. New York, New York, USA 3. Maui, Hawaii, USA 4. Paris, France 5. London, United Kingdom, USA 6. Flathead Lake, Montana, USA 7. Madrid, Spain 8. Bay Area, California, USA 9. Sao Paulo, Brazil 10. San Diego, California, USA If there's one thing I miss as a Southern California resident, it's seasons. That's probably why I'm so partial to places like the Pacific Northwest and New York and other areas where you can see vibrant fall colors and wear a heavy jacket and actually use my car's windshield wipers. That said, I'm certainly not going to complain about more tropical/beach locales when I want to relax and get away from the world. |
| The following is a list of the teams and individual athletes that I consider myself enough of a fan of to follow semi-regularly. I'm not really much of a sports guy in general, so I don't have anyone I religiously follow, and the people and teams listed below are mostly hometown favorites or people who are so exceptionally good that I find myself fascinated by their accomplishments. This is active teams and athletes only; no one who has retired from their game of choice. 1. Roger Federer (tennis) 2. Team USA (Olympic Games) 3. San Francisco Giants (baseball) 4. San Francisco 49ers (football) 5. Sacramento Kings (basketball) 6. Rafael Nadal (tennis) 7. Mike Trout (baseball) 8. Clayton Kershaw (baseball) 9. Serena Williams (tennis) 10. Cristiano Ronaldo (soccer) I know there's some overlap with #2 and other people on the list, but it's probably not difficult to tell from my responses where I grew up (Northern California), which sports I really like (tennis, baseball, the Olympics), and which ones I really don't like (basketball, football, and pretty much everything else. ).I begrudgingly added Serena and Cristiano to the (bottom) of the list because they are undeniably talented and fun to watch, even if I think their egos are out of control and they're pretty obnoxious. Roger Federer, on the other hand, is the one athlete I will keep tabs on throughout the year, from the big Grand Slam tournaments down to the little qualifier events. Tennis is one of my all-time favorite sports and the man is a genius at the game. He makes some of the most difficult shots in the world look easy. Here's a highlight reel if you're interested: And more than any other athletic event, I think I most look forward to the Olympics every two years. I'm partial to the Summer Games as they have more events that I get excited about watching, but I'll gladly watch the Winter Games too. The United States is fortunate to have very talented athletes in a wide variety of disciplines, so whether it's gymnastics or swimming or alpine skiing or speed skating, there's almost always someone to root for as they compete against the world's best. |
I currently work in the entertainment industry, and making movies and television is pretty much my dream job. Over the years, though, I've often wondered what it would be like to have a different career. This is a list of jobs that I'd be most interested in doing if I couldn't work on movies and television. I'm not counting "full time author" because, duh, that one's kind of a no-brainer.  1. Venture capitalist / entrepreneur 2. Chief of Staff for someone in government 3. Teacher (high school history, probably) 4. Managing Director of a nonprofit or charity 5. Trial attorney (prosecutor or civil rights advocate) 6. Chef 7. General Contractor 8. Investigative journalist 9. Police officer or Firefighter 10. Architect This is one of those topics where I actually learned a little something about myself in the process! Considering that fully half of my choices are in the public sector and another two are ones that I would most likely veer toward the public good (my interests in investigative journalism and venture capitalism would both be firmly grounded in opportunities to make the world a better place), I've apparently developed a desire to work for causes greater than the success of a single company or project. Still two more are ones related to some kind of demonstrable skill that would come in handy in every day life. How awesome would it be to be able to cook gourmet meals anytime you wanted? Hell, I'd settle for even knowing what to do with half the spices in my spice rack... And I think it would be supremely satisfying to be able to work outside and build things with your hands as a contractor. Assembling houses from the ground up?  Being able to remodel your own kitchen? Carrying around a tool belt and actually knowing how to use all of the implements in it? The only job on this list that's even remotely like my own is an architect, and that's mostly because I think it would cool to design the buildings that people live, work, and entertain themselves in. Plus the best architectural accomplishments are a feat of creativity as much as engineering, which really appeals to me. That combination of art and practicality is also what draws me to the entertainment industry. I wonder if this list is a bit of a reaction to the fact that I've had an office job for nearly fifteen years and, although I love what I do, it's been fifteen years of working in office buildings under bad fluorescent lighting, in many cases for the primary purpose of chasing profits for the higher ups. Maybe this is my subconscious telling me that I need to aim a little higher.  |
This year, I've decided to get in fighting shape for NaNoWriMo by blogging daily. It's been a long time since I've posted anything here and, with Dee  's kind permission, I'm borrowing the idea of posting a daily Top 10 list on whatever topic I feel like creating a list for.Here are the guidelines I've given myself:  The order will be approximate, but not iron-clad. It will be subjective depending on the day and my mood. Some days I might think Ghostbusters is the greatest movie ever and other times it might be a Se7en kind of day. If you quiz me tomorrow or next week, my Top 10 for any given list might change! Conversation is encouraged, argument is not. I welcome comments about items you would put on the list, or how you feel about the items I've put on my list, or even what you think of my picks as a whole... but I'm not interested in squabbling over how I could possibly think that a dalmatian is a superior dog breed to a dachshund, or why on Earth I would ever leave kiwi off the list of my favorite fruits. At the end of the day, these are just my opinions and it's meant to be entertaining. The only actual requirement for myself is that I put thought into and post the list itself. Some days I might expound on my choices, but some days I might just post the list. It'll depend on how busy the day is and how interesting I found the list topic once I really started thinking about it. Lists will be in no particular order. One day it might be my favorite world leaders, the next it might be my favorite board games or desserts. I won't be grouping things together into themed series or anything like that, so don't be surprised if my favorite fruits show up on Day 10 but vegetables don't get their due until Day 30 (if ever). I have no particular end date in mind. I'd like to keep this up at least until NaNoWriMo starts, but if I'm enjoying it and keep coming up with interesting list ideas, I'll keep it rolling as long as I can. Interaction is encouraged! Please feel free to comment on my lists or even participate yourself! It's a great way to get to know one another a little better.Okay, that's it. Nothing too formal or fancy... just a bit of fun to get me inspired to start thinking critically and writing again. |
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