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 |   My fourth blog. Amazing yet disconcerting. Don't worry; this'll go away in a year or so. |
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First there was "I'm Studying You"  ...then there was "Who Do I Think I Am??" . Finally, we reached "Who do I still think I am??" .Until now. Welcome to the Buffalo in your soul...       A THREE-TIME CHAMPION OF THE "30-Day Blogging Challenge ON HIATUS" !   |
BLOG CITY PROMPT: "The three woman who live next door to you remind you of the three witches in Macbeth.  Why?"Good morning friends...sorry this is a day late and I hope it still counts for "BLOG CITY presents: The LIST" . Yesterday I couldn't stand sitting upright for more than a few minutes, and every time I coughed my head hurt like an exploding migraine. I do feel somewhat better today though, so let's see how far I can get on these lists...I had to think about this one, because at first I thought "The last time I read or saw this was when that Mel Gibson movie came out...so 1990." And then when I looked it up, it turns out I was thinking about "Hamlet" instead. I guess I tend to get those two mixed up, but it's true...I haven't read any Shakespeare since the early 90's. So then it occurred to me...are these the same witches known for saying "Bubble, bubble, toil and trouble"? 'Cuz that's about all I remember about them, ahem, ladies...other than they fit the true stereotype of creepy, evil Halloween-style witches. Now, me personally, I'm not a very neighborly guy. I won't show up with the welcome wagon bearing a cake if you move in next door to me. I don't bother anyone and I don't wanna be bothered. Knowing more people means knowing more drama, and I've worked hard to separate myself from people who perpetuate blatant negativity. But living next door to someone does occasionally lend itself to a certain bit of insight you only get from being in that position. You can hear from people in your neighborhood that they "live next door to some real witches" and that's one thing; it's altogether different to see a damn cauldron popping up in your neighbors' back yard, and three women wearing funny hats only coming out at night to dance and chant around it. Perspective. My experience with people who practice witchcraft is that they're generally upfront about it- they'll tell you before you really even get a chance to ask. And 97.541% of the time I wouldn't give a damn one way or another what they do in the privacy of their own place. As long as I'm not involved or the cops aren't needed, we're cool. But if things start happening for no apparent reason- my toaster starts poppin' on its own, the shower turns on and off by itself, I start growing sixth fingers and toes- we're gonna have problems...and I'm not gonna beat around the bush. I'll come right out with the blunt accusational remarks before I even have time to properly think about what I'm saying. And hopefully, I'll catch 'em off guard so as to avoid anymore potential chicanery. Of course, after a few minutes, I'll apologize and see if we can figure something out so that we can get along peacefully...after all, it's true that if you can't beat 'em, join 'em at least get on their good side. MUSICAL BREAK!! Sorry, this is all I've got for Shakespeare this morning. THE LISTICLE 9.6  In conjunction with "BLOG CITY presents: The LIST" , I present to you a list of 14 songs about witches or neighbors.1) "Witches' Rave" by Jeff Buckley 2) "Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)" by Arcade Fire 3) "Yes, I'm a Witch" by Yoko Ono 4) "Neighborhood #2 (Laika)" by Arcade Fire 5) "Burn The Witch" by Queens Of The Stone Age 6) "Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)" by Arcade Fire 7) "Witchy Woman" by The Eagles 8) "Neighborhood #4 (7 Kettles)" by Arcade Fire 9) "Season Of The Witch" by Donovan 10) "Neighbors" by The Rolling Stones 11) "Big Black Witchcraft Rock" by The Cramps 12) "My Neighbor" by Gnarls Barkley 13) "Ding Dong! The Witch Is Dead!" by Ella Fitzgerald 14) "Who Are The People In Your Neighborhood?" by Sesame Street Well, I think this is as good as any place to shut this down for the time being...don't wanna overdo it today, plus I wanna get out and grab some snacks before football starts at 1pm. Depending on how I feel after the Bills game, I may have another entry with my 2014 football predictions...we'll see. Peace, smile about it, and GOODNIGHT NOW!! |
| BLOG CITY PROMPT: "Recall an old childhood photo. Narrate the events that led up to that moment that photo was taken." 'Sup y'all? I've got good news and bad news...the good news is the Intro To Programming homework I was stressin' about forgetting last night was something we did in class today instead, and I feel like I actually learned something. The bad news? I'm sick. Temps were in the freakin' 90's today, and I've got a freaking cold. That's not in any syllabus or this month's budget, that much I know. Good thing all I really have to do this weekend is read, because I don't know if I've got the patience for anything else. Speaking of reading, I suppose I better use this weekend to get caught up on my judging for the "30-Day Blogging Challenge ON HIATUS" ...don't wanna fall too far behind in that because I might never catch up.Cripe. I'm so not feelin' this tonight. But here goes...  I'm the taller hombre on the right. I have no clue what's going on in this picture or why. I'm sure my mom gave me the info on it when she first posted it on Facebook, but I've already forgotten. What I can tell you is that the setting is my grandmother's backyard, and my brother Doug is on my right (your left). I have to be somewhere around four or five, because I got glasses when I was six and shortly after I started first grade (so I suppose it's likely I'm a very young six in this picture, but that's neither here nor there). I can also tell you that you that pretty much under no circumstances whatsoever will you see me dressed up like this. Is that a cowboy hat made out of wicker? 1980 must not have been a great year for cowboy looks on the runway. Now for the part where I'm just makin' stuff up. I think this might've been taken on an Easter Sunday. I don't know why I think that; just call it a hunch. You have to go back pretty far into the photo albums to find a picture of my brother and myself dressed up and getting along. So my assumption is that a holiday had to be involved, and we were under the threat of either some made-up creature taking away all our goodies, or our grandma beating us with a thick leather belt. Either theory is in play, and both at the same time is definitely an option as well...because back then it was ok to beat your kids' asses if they were misbehavin'. it built character and taught respect, or somethin'. And those shirts! If those collars were any bigger they'd have to be registered as aircraft. But that was the style back then, I guess...probably the last time I'd be quasi-fashionable until at least 1995. The only thing missing in this picture are the shoes...because back then cameras didn't have viewfinders on them that ensured you could get an entire person's fashion faux pas body in one shot. I assure you I'm wearing some kind of Thom McAn shoes, because that's all I wore unless I was actually in gym class. Not "on the days I had gym, I wore sneakers"...nope. I had to carry a separate bag with gym clothes and sneakers, because I wasn't allowed to wear sneakers to class and my bookbag (which resembled something more like a suitcase made of softer materials) couldn't fit my homework and gym clothes and sneakers. And I wonder why it was so hard for me to make friends when I was a kid.  Look at that...I really didn't have to make anything up after all! Guess we'll just file this entry under "guesswork" instead. MUSICAL BREAK!! When you're a little kid, you don't often have control over the clothes you wear (at least I don't think I did). I probably had more outfits that resembled the "Urban Cowboy" than anything else.THE LISTICLE 9.5 In conjunction with "BLOG CITY presents: The LIST" , I present to you 14 songs about pictures, photographs, or cameras.1) "This Photograph Is Proof (I Know You Know)" by Taking Back Sunday 2) "Photograph" by Def Leppard 3) "Take A Picture" by Filter 4) "Pictures Of You" by The Cure 5) "Pictures Of Lily" by The Who 6) "Picture This" by The Beastie Boys 7) "Camera Thief" by Atmosphere 8) "Who Got The Camera?" by Ice Cube 9) "Killing A Camera" by Braid 10) "Kamera" by Wilco 11) "Picture Postcard" by The Promise Ring 12) "Pictures Of Matchstick Men" by Camper Van Beethoven 13) "Carry This Picture" by Dashboard Confessional 14) "Pigeon Camera" by The Tragically Hip I trust that you all know how to use YouTube if you're interested enough in any of these songs.  Remember what I said about not wearing disco cowboy clothes ever again? Well, maybe if this happened...  {e: Nope, I'm goin' to bed. Peace, set it up so well, and GOODNIGHT NOW!! |
BLOG CITY PROMPT: "Who was your favorite cartoon character?" 'Sup folks? Gonna keep this short tonight because, well, let's just say school escalated quickly. This morning I was celebrating in my head the fact that I'm a chapter ahead in my Business Communications class...and after I came home and finished my Web Design homework and was about to find the football game online, I realized I hadn't looked at my Intro To Programming notes all week (dammit Labor Day, for not allowing us to have classes on Monday!)...totally forgot to read the two chapters, never looked at the course outline online, and I have no clue about the homework that's due tomorrow. Oh, and I have that class first thing in the morning, so it's not like I can get to school early or anything to do the work. And to top it off, the professor's online notes regarding the assignment don't correlate to anything in the book (at least, not in a way I can make sense of). So my theory is this: since all we did during the last class was go over the course outline, and all she assigned that day was to skim over the first two chapters, she'll most likely be teaching us what we'll need to know tomorrow. Then after class, I can run over to the library, do the work, and go home (since that's my only class on Fridays). Sounds like a plan...and because I figured this out at 9pm after spending an hour trying to make sense of what I'd been reading, there's no way I'm staying up now to crank out a full-fledged blog entry. Plus, I just realized yesterday that along with Lyn's a Witchy Woman  I'll be judging this month's "30-Day Blogging Challenge ON HIATUS" , which takes a little pressure off me having to write entries all month. I guess I'll take that as a silver lining. But because I signed up to participate in "BLOG CITY presents: The LIST" , I'll still fulfill my charitable, written end of the obligation.It's no secret that I love cartoons, even as an adult. Sometimes, with all the noise we have to hear as grown-ups, you just need that time where you can sit back and do nothing else but laugh at humor designed to entertain the least-sophisticated five year old trapped in your fully-grown body. Some people eat to relax; others watch porn...in fact, there are plenty of barely legal (or blatantly illegal) ways of freeing one's mind from the confines of another day in the adult-land jail of work and responsibility. I just prefer my occasional habit to be animated. I used to identify with Speedy Gonzales somewhat in my late teens and early adult years...I was always one of the fastest runners I knew, plus I was agile enough that I could cut and switch direction on a dime. I was short but muscular...hard to catch and harder to hit; more likely I was gonna lay the hit on you if I was runnin' a football. But what's funny now is I barely remember any Speedy Gonzales cartoons (although I wouldn't be surprised if there were some blatant anti-Mexican stereotypes in the ones I watched as a kid). I can recall some Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck ones, but Speedy? Nope. That doesn't mean I don't like him though. He's still #1. MUSICAL BREAK!! This may be the first and only time you'll ever see a Pat Boone song in my blog. "You better come home, Speedy Gonzales... away from tannery row. Stop alla your a-drinkin' with that floozie named Flo." Lyrics. THE LISTICLE 9.4 In cooperation with "BLOG CITY presents: The LIST" , I present to you (in no particular order) 14 of my favorite cartoon characters.1) Speedy Gonzales 2) Foghorn Leghorn 3) Peter Griffin from Family Guy 4) Calvin from Calvin And Hobbes 5) Bucky Katt from Get Fuzzy 6) Charlie Brown 7) Fat Albert 8) Chef from South Park 9) Rat from Pearls Before Swine 10) Hong Kong Phooey 11) Bullwinkle The Moose 12) Gadget Girl from The Awesomes 13) Jessica Rabbit from Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (I don't care if she's a cartoon; she's hawwwt) 14) Ariel from The Little Mermaid (I don't care if she's a mermaid; she's also hawwwt) Don't judge me.  Sorry for being so brief, but I probably should glance over my Intro To Programming text once more before I take my sleeping meds and forget everything before tomorrow morning. Peace, if you're gonna keep on messin', and GOODNIGHT NOW!! |
| 30DBC PROMPT: "What are your thoughts on climate change? How concerned about it are you, and do you think its effects will be felt dramatically in your lifetime?" Good afternoon y'all! Some interesting prompts to get to this gorgeous day, so if you don't mind I'm gonna jump right in. You may have heard me mention on occasion that I'm not a big fan of science (the subject)...don't get me wrong though; science in general is pretty awesome in all sorts of recreational ways, but trying to get me to learn it is almost a fruitless experience. Until, perhaps, now. I had my first Environmental Science class last night, and that's what gave me the idea for this prompt. Before I actually answer it though, a little background... My professor is freaking adorable (enough that I might be willing to waive my requirement that women I crush on not be married with kids)...she's probably around my age, incredibly smart and enthusiastic about the topic, has a self-proclaimed "potty mouth", and isn't "model gorgeous", but more like "girl next door" cute. She's the Mary Ann to Gilligan's Island's Ginger. Also working in her favor: although it's a three hour tour class, she said she'd rarely keep us for the whole three hours ("I have a life too!"), and she said we don't need the textbook...which means $130 back on my book deferral (more good news about that later). And there's only seven students in the class! I can get down with that! So one of the things we talked about was climate change. Global warming. I'll admit I've got a slightly more than passing interest in this topic, but I'll never claim to be fully educated about it. It's really not discussed at length in the mainstream media when compared to other newsworthy options such as drug using/abusing athletes, unnecessary wars, and nude celebrity photos. But I learned a lot more last night about climate change, and in all reality if you were to have a kid tomorrow, the resources we take for granted today will most likely be gone by the time they're old enough to be grandparents (if not sooner). You might've heard of Neil deGrasse Tyson...he's like the rock star of the scientific set. He's got a great quote: "The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it.” And while science is always evolving, it's very fact-based...meaning it's taught because it happened, it's provable, and there's reasons for everything. You can argue something 'til you're blue in the face, but then science comes along, bitchslaps you with the truth, drops the mic and walks off stage like a boss.  So how does this relate to climate change? There are people out there- let's call them "scientists"- who've done nothing but study all the factors involved with global warming and its effects on the environment. They come up with proven theories, warnings, and research papers devoted to this topic. Needless to say, they're not only smarter than us, but also the pundits on talk shows, journalists, and most politicians. Yet what's been done to enact the changes we as a society need to make to ensure that there will be a future beyond the next few generations? Very little. And you don't have to look much farther than the government to understand why (and by government I don't mean Obama or the White House...I mean every single person who has a say in how this country is run). Look at the Senate and the House Of Representatives. What are their backgrounds? They're mostly lawyers and bankers...sure, they may be skilled in those particular fields, but where are the scientists? The true deep thinkers? I don't go to McDonald's and ask them for advice on how to fix a car; how do these people in public office seem to think they know better about the problems facing our planet as a whole, on a scientific level? Bigger than pollution or recycling or chemical dumping; the biggest concern are these pricks leaders all the sudden claiming to be experts or worse, ignoring the conversation completely. All the land and water that is on this planet...that's all we've got. We can't just go to some interplanetary Home Depot and buy another addition to Earth and fill it with fresh water. That's not how it works. These aren't renewable resources...like the creator of the universe said, "That's all you get; there is no more." We fuck this up, and that's it...may as well hope for that zombie apocalypse some of you cats believe will actually happen because you're watching too much TV and not giving a damn about anything else. Like I said, I don't claim to know a whole lot about this; I'm still learning and gathering info, and I'll know more as the semester progresses. But if you think this isn't a problem, or it's "some lefty political agenda", you're sorely mistaken. This affects everyone and everything...once we start overheating a couple of species off the food chain, or killing off more fields in the name of discount shopping centers, it's "Good game Earth...we tried but we weren't as prepared as science." I don't even have kids, so my stake in the future of this planet is minimal compared to a lot of you...but if I can be concerned, so can you. And the more people start to become aware of this (the sooner the better), maybe then we can see some real changes. If the government subsidized solar electricity the way it did things that directly and indirectly influence other more negative and potentially harmful programs, we could see the difference in our lifetime. It's not crazy; it's science. Believe in what you want, but there's no mistaking the truth. BCF PROMPT: "A unicorn, dragon, and pegasus walked into an Inn/Bar/Pub.... What happened?" Geez, are we back out in the wilds of Maine on the August "30-Day Blogging Challenge ON HIATUS" camping trip? Did we load up on the tainted cowboy coffee and stumble half-coherently back over to the pub? Am I gonna have to keep Charlie ~  from getting his ass kicked by angry gnomes? As much as it wouldn't be that surprising of a setting, I think I have a better idea...A unicorn, a dragon, and a pegasus walked into "Invalid Item" . The bartender, Andre The Blog Monkey, took one look at them and said, "Hey! We don't serve your type in here!" Undeterred, the dragon said in his most sly voice, "We're with the band." Taking the dragon's cue, the unicorn and pegasus nodded in agreement. Andre was skeptical. "Well, ok...but I don't like the looksa youse guys. Whattaya havin'?" The dragon ordered himself a pint of Labatt Blue, while the unicorn and pegasus had vodka cranberries. "'At'll be $12.50" said the flummoxed barkeep. The three mythical creatures looked at each other confused. "I didn't bring any money," said the unicorn, "because I don't have any pockets." The other two were all like, "Yeah, why should we carry money? We're otherworldly genetic mutations that get by on our awesomeness." Andre had heard enough. "That's it! You freaks get outta here!" He squawked a monkey whistle and two burly bouncers came out from the back room to provide a quick (and hopefully painless) exit. "Hey! Watch the horn!" brayed the unicorn. The pegasus was also non-plussed; "Easy! I just had these wings dry-cleaned!" But the dragon wasn't havin' any of this. "Hold up one dad-gum second!", he shouted, loud enough to give the bouncers some pause. "We're good creatures of folklore! We deserve a little bit better treatment than this!" He looked around the bar, and spotted some of the friendly 30DBC bloggers. "Lyn's a Witchy Woman ," he said, "remember that time your granddaughter said she wanted a unicorn, and your whole family told her she could want anything, but to be happy with what she got? This unicorn here ensured she'd be happy with just a Barbie car. And Noyoki , you know how your son likes to explore and jump around as if he thinks he really can fly? My pal the pegasus gave him the confidence to think he can do anything his little heart desires. But how does society thank us? By portraying us as dumb animals in third-rate Disney movie knock-offs. We're the stuff your children's dreams consist of! And all we want is a little gratitude. That's all. Nothing more, nothing less...well, ok, that, and a few drinks. It's been a long day trying to make all the kids in the world content."Slightly moved, Andre pushed the drinks forward and said, "Ya know what? Youse guys ain't so bad after all. This round's on me." The trio responded by raising their glasses in an appreciative toast to the primate, who interrupted them. "But wait...so dragon, what kind of dreams do you fulfill?" he asked. "You feed us drinks, or I'll burn this god-forsaken place down with one misplaced hiccup. Got it, monkey?" The moral to this story is: Don't piss off the dragon. MUSICAL BREAK!! "The Beast And Dragon, Adored"...sometimes you've got to thank the forces that grant you things that wouldn't exist without them, even if you're unsure of how or why. THE DAILY BOX SCORE:  "Even though we all love our houses, is there a house on a TV Show or a movie you would like to live in?"Yo, here we go with another form of celebrity idolatry...only this time it's in the form of even faker fakeness their fictional digs. And who said I love my house? Don't be puttin' words in my mouth! But since I'm a good sport, I'll show my age a little (gawd, how I hate saying that...and even worse, admitting that it's true ) and let you in on a tiny secret.Anyone remember the 80's TV sitcom Silver Spoons ? Starring Ricky Schroder and for a little while, Jason Bateman? I don't much remember it, but all I know is that it was about some rich kid living in a swanky mansion with all the coolest shit any kid his (or my) age could possibly hope for in a dream house. The best thing was the train that ran throughout the house that you could ride on from room to room...that's the only thing that could beat a stacked house with a damn foosball table and a stand-up video arcade game in the living room. If you ask me, that show is almost 90.573% responsible for every single ManCave in America...they're our own little economically dumbed-down versions of Silver Spoons.That's the house I wanted. Complete with the stoplight next to the front door. This is the opening montage , which shows pretty much all I can recall from the show. Note the train near the end...the dad is sitting on it, I believe. How do we not have this in most homes in 2014?? That's almost worse than not having The Jetsons' flying cars.THE LISTICLE 9.3 In cooperation with "BLOG CITY presents: The LIST" , here is a list of 14 songs that could possibly describe/define parts of the ultimate ManCave.1) "We Like Sportz" by The Lonely Island 2) "Yard Of Blonde Girls" by Jeff Buckley 3) "Life's Been Good" by Joe Walsh 4) "The Boomin' System" by LL Cool J 5) "Symbolistic White Walls" by Matthew Good Band 6) "Incense And Peppermints" by Strawberry Alarm Clock 7) "We've Got Everything" by Modest Mouse 8) "Alcohol" by Barenaked Ladies 9) "Good Song" by Blur 10) "Remote Control" by The Beastie Boys 11) "Leave The Bourbon On The Shelf" by The Killers 12) "Hockey Hair" by Atmosphere 13) "There She Goes, My Beautiful World" by Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds 14) "Love's Gonna Get'cha (Material Love)" by Boogie Down Productions I trust that you all know how to use YouTube and can figure out how to hear all of these songs on your own.  The NFL season officially begins for real tomorrow! Woo hoo! I've set the date...Saturday will be the day for my fearless football predictions for your 2014-15 season. Can't wait!  Data is hilarious and can be interpreted as such sometimes. I like pie, and sometimes I like more pie.  To all of my Canadian friends (even you, Brother Nature  , even though you likely won't see this), yeah, this list is pretty legit. But I've never had poutine and as much as I love cheese, I can't fathom ever putting a cheese curd in my mouth again (but I love having fries with gravy). 24 Signs You Grew Up On The Canadian Border.  Ok, so it's not a smartphone, but I finally got my tablet! I am now the proud owner of a 7" Samsung Galaxy 4, so that's two books I don't have to lug around. Coulda had the 10", but it woulda put me $7 over on my book deferral (dammit, why did I buy that 16gb flash drive?). It's all good though. Gonna spend the rest of the night playin' with it. And I'd like to congratulate via "July 2014 Official Blog Challenge Winners" Prosperous Snow celebrating  , Charlie ~ and Noyoki on placing in the July edition of the "30-Day Blogging Challenge ON HIATUS" ! Excellent job! I love it when people make it all the way through the month, and it's great to see their talents rewarded at the end. Like I said yesterday, Neva and I have been doing this challenge for a long time (in WDC years); it's great to see someone like Charlie, who's only been at this for less than a year, and a relative newcomer like Dana, get much-deserved recognition. I'm very happy for them...and for everyone else who made it through the last official round, congrats to you guys too! It takes a lot of determination and willpower to get through a contest like this (I know...there've been times I've had to withdraw because life) but don't worry. The interaction you get from reading others and having them read you, plus the back-and-forth of commenting, not only allows you the experience of getting to know one another better, but it helps you become a better writer. I've seen it happen! It's a great tool to refine your work. All you have to do is look at your first couple of blog entries, and then read your last couple after finishing a 30DBC...it's ridiculous how much better you are after one. And even for someone like me, who's always looking for ways to build on my successes and achievements, reading my fellow challengers and adapting is a tremendous resource. And to paraphrase the philosopher Slug, we don't always get along or see eye-to-eye but we're all singin' the same song , so party for your fight to write, and write on.Now if y'all will excuse me, I've got a tablet that needs a textbook downloaded to it. Peace, it don't come cheap, and GOODNIGHT NOW!! |
| 30DBC PROMPT: "This place is _____; it needs a little _____." What's up everyone? I've got like a four hour break between classes, and I somehow managed to find myself ahead on my Business Communications homework, so why not kill the rest of the time here? Still no word from my man 30DBC Creator/Founder regarding this month's "30-Day Blogging Challenge ON HIATUS" ...luckily since Lyn's a Witchy Woman and I were in charge of August's unofficial activity, I do actually have some control over the forum, so I might update it to at least make it current in the next day or so.Know what sucks though? I don't have access to the Prompt War Chest, which means I'll be making prompts up on the go. And if you know anything about me, you know coming up with prompts isn't my strongest suit, but who knows...maybe if this turns into an extended gig for me this month I might get a little better at it (*said while crossing my fingers with the hope that Earl rejoins us soon). Anyway, so today's prompt...I could go with an email I received shortly after I posted the prompt last night: "This place is boring; it needs a little Fivesixer." A short conversation that quickly devolved into a smaller version of me...being a 2.5-sixer. Oh, the things that are said when Charlie ~ is involved. But since I'm at school, I'll use that as my inspiration (if you can call it that)...this place is like a shopping mall with books; it needs a little less posturing. That's not to say I don't like it here, because I do. But it's a community college, and to an extent it fits the stereotypes of one...like it's an extension of high school for all the kids who couldn't get into "real" colleges (whatever that means). I can't say I've really ever walked the halls of a true university enough to have a lasting impression, but the feel of the main building on this campus is that of a slightly more complex high school. For example, the cafeteria and student lounge/activity area seems like it takes up a third of the first floor, which looks like an awful lot. I imagine that if everyone in the building (including faculty) at any given time wanted to sit down and eat all together, there would still be plenty of seats left over. And then there's the kids. I have to keep reminding myself that the majority of the student population is half my age, a point that finally sunk in during a group exercise in Business Communications this morning when we had to introduce ourselves and say a little about our background. "I last went to school 20 years ago..." Yeah, that was rough. But then I look around, and there are definitely some cliques (as I'm sure there are pretty much everywhere else in the world). I know we're still in the early stages of the semester, and eventually a handful of kids will have dropped out and moved on, but there are some people who you see and think, "They're here because they think they're supposed to be here, not because they want to be here." I wonder what percentage of the campus population just visits the building to hang out; do they really attend classes or is it just a show? I'm sure it's a small number, but there's a number no doubt...and I'm sure there are some who see me and are thinking the same thing. All of this leads me to question whether or not I should be adjusting my expectations of this place and the people who come here. Should I even have expectations? Maybe it's too early to know for sure...maybe I should worry more about myself first and try to reach a level of total comfortableness before I consider anyone else's place here. That sounds like a better personal policy for the time being. See? Sometimes I just need to talk things out and see them in front of me. Look at me, all learnin' and stuff! BCF PROMPT: "David Gerrold says, 'Half of being smart is knowing what you are dumb at.' Do you agree or disagree?" First of all, I'm too lazy to use Google even with a computer right in front of me...so who is David Gerrold anyway? Whoever he is, I wholeheartedly agree with his statement. It's akin to knowing your weaknesses or limitations, and adapting them to suit whatever situation you're in. Say you're building a team to...I don't know...play football. You want to place players in positions that accentuate their strengths. If I don't have a very strong arm, I'm not gonna play quarterback; if you're bigger and not as fast, you'll probably play on the line as a blocker because you're not suitable to run up and down the field as a receiver. This model can be adapted to any situation where there's a few people working together toward a common goal...on a class project, or staffing a grocery store, or building a house. Understanding what you don't know is nearly as important a skill as having any actual skills. You know better what to prepare for and heighten your awareness to compensate. In the long run, it may help you to become more well-rounded, and eventually you could find yourself knowing more than you thought you did. That is, if you're so inclined. And in the immortal words of my man G.I. Joe, "Knowing is half the battle." MUSICAL BREAK!! I actually came across this band via a free download offered by NoiseTrade , a cool little site that offers tons of free audio and book downloads...and I like free. I've managed to discover a few pretty solid bands, and Wild Child is one of my favorites...some of their songs almost have a Modest Mouse-like quality to them (think the slower, more acoustic and laid back MM songs). THE DAILY BOX SCORE:  "Think back on the month of August 2014. Find a moment, one moment, that stands out in your memory - be it good, bad, or a little bit of both. Share it with us. (Inspired by prompt suggestions from Elle - on hiatus  - Thanks!)"I feel like for the longest time now when someone asks me about August of the year of our lord 2014, I'm gonna be compelled to answer with something about the 30DBC Summer Camp that Lyn's a Witchy Woman and I ran. It turned out to be a lot more fun than I imagined, but I typically start out with low expectations anyway...I was just hoping at least a few people would've joined in and made it worthwhile; wow was it so much more!Yeah, it wasn't your normal camping trip, but I think the turning point of the whole experience was the sharkhorse sighting.  I think we were still reeling collectively from some of the weirdness we'd encountered: seeing our names on gravestones, evil fallen sky gods, strange little men, a UFO. We were starting to question the kind of trip we were actually taking...and then the sharkhorse happened. From that point on I think we all kinda threw up our hands and surrendered to that fact that anything could and would happen, and we were powerless to it yet empowered to go along with it as creatively as possible. It was a great group of imaginative minds, and that, to me, was where we started solidifying our bonds. Those we didn't know we got to know, and those we knew we got to know better. I've said it before but it bears repeating...the best unofficial 30DBC activity I've ever been a part of. THE LISTICLE 9.2 In cooperation with "BLOG CITY presents: The LIST" , I present to you this list of songs (loosely) about August and camping.1) "Cold Wind In August" by Van Morrison 2) "August" by Rilo Kiley 3) "First Day In August" by Carole King 4) "Campfire Kansas" by The Get Up Kids 5) "Take The Skinheads Bowling" by Camper Van Beethoven 6) "Are You Ready For The Country?" by Neil Young 7) "August" by Umphrey's McGee 8) "Jesus In A Camper Van" by Robbie Williams 9) "An August Theme" by ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead 10) "Fat Camp" by Therapy? 11) "Bivouac" by Jawbreaker 12) "Nature Boy" by Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds 13) "August 28th 3:30am" by Automatic Loveletter 14) "Chillout Tent" by The Hold Steady I trust that you all know how to use YouTube and can figure out how to hear all of these songs on your own.  Have you guys seen/heard this yet? The Unofficial WDC Podcast ...I plan on checking it out when I get home; it sounds like a pretty sweet thing.Well, I think I better wrap this up, post it all over the usual places, and make any edits if necessary before class in a half hour. The search for Earl continues! I'll catch you guys later on after my night class. Peace, let my heart settle, and GOODNIGHT NOW!! |
| 30DBC PROMPT: Open prompt. Good afternoon friends, lovers and otherwise! Happy unofficial end of summer Labor Day, and welcome to the start of another official round of the "30-Day Blogging Challenge ON HIATUS" ! I reached out via Facebook to my man 30DBC Creator/Founder earlier to see if we were gonna get a prompt for today, but I haven't heard back yet. I know Earl's been busy lately, so don't hold it against him. I don't feel bad being the one to declare today being an "open prompt", because it's been noted before that if there is no timely prompt then the day remains open, and because I know we've got a few challengers this month ahead of WDC time this can be problematic...I'd hate to see anyone get screwed because of timeliness and whatnot.I don't often throw myself behind many causes here on WDC, for a variety of reasons that aren't necessary for me to get into further right now, but the 30DBC is one activity that is close to my heart and one I'll always stand behind, even if I can't be involved periodically the way I'd like to be. It's the longest-running blogging group here on WDC, and I'm proud to be a part of it as a two-time winner (by the way Earl, we're still waitin' on the July winners  ). I think of the current participants, Prosperous Snow celebrating and I have been around the longest...we've weathered many changes in leadership and some sticky situations regarding some unscrupulous questionable practices, but I'm thrilled by all of the additions to our blog fam and I'm looking forward to seeing how much greater this activity can be in the coming months.And that's why I have no qualms about proclaiming myself the ombudsman of this fine gathering of individuals. By definition, an ombudsman is "an official appointed to investigate individuals' complaints against maladministration, especially that of public authorities", or in simpler terms as it relates to what we do here in the 30DBC, a mediator when situations like today's no-prompt occurrence happens. Am I egotistical for promoting myself to a position that never existed? Yes. But is it necessary in certain circumstances? Also yes. My objective here is to take a fair approach to things that may arise in the course of a given month, and act as a go-between to settle questions, disputes, and other issues that may arise from time to time. All in all, this is a really great group and it's unlikely that I'll ever need to be called upon for any reason...but in the event something does occur that warrants my attention, I'll be there to ease and settle any concerns. My email door is open, and my Facebook and Twitter links are on the left-hand side of this blog, included with all of the other blog links. Feel free to use them at any time, and I'll respond as soon as I can. I believe if anyone has the credentials for an undertaking such as this, it'd be me...if you feel otherwise, please don't hesitate to tell me what you think. I'm very open-minded and easy to get along with, and this group is very important to me...I want nothing but the best for it. With that said, good luck to all of the September challengers...let's get them words! One last thing I'd like to mention...I can't thank enough the participants in August's 30DBC Summer Camp. All you guys...30DBC Creator/Founder , Charlie ~ , 💙 Carly  , Finn O'Flaherty , amy-Has a great future ahead  , ElaineElaine , Prosperous Snow celebrating , Noyoki , ANN Counselor, Lesbian & Happy , (I hope I didn't leave anyone out; I'm doing this off the top of my head)...thank you all for the best unofficial month I've ever had the pleasure of being a part of. And to Lyn's a Witchy Woman , you've been the biggest help, supporter, and best co-camp counselor! None of August would've happened without you guys, especially Lyn. I don't know where our paths will lead us in the coming months, but here's to hoping we'll all remain in the memories we created. Great job everyone...you've exceeded my wildest dreams for this, and I hope you all enjoyed the experience while becoming better writers and friends through it.Oh...and there's a little somethin' comin' down the road for all you guys as well... .BCF PROMPT: "Labor Day - Let the following quote inspire you to write something labor (any type of labor you want) or Labor Day. 'All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.' ~ Martin Luther King Jr." I'd like to expand on this quote by adding another from the late Hunter S. Thompson: “Anything worth doing, is worth doing right.” You can't beat the good doctor there. And furthermore, do it right the first time, because it saves you the indignity of having to fix your mistakes. I realize that's not always the foolproof measure of going about your business...life is full of the pockmarks and scars from having learned the hard way, and sometimes that's the only way some of us will learn. But to be able to string a few good decisions together, coupled with hard work and a little dash of luck, life turns out to be pretty OK. We're human and we're not born with CEO genes or the god-given ability to score touchdowns or write instant best-sellers...a lot of times there's a struggle involved to see the plateau we envision. Everything requires work...and practice...and work...and failure...and work...and practice...and lather, rinse, and repeat. There's no guaranteed, surefire method outside of grinding until you're able to break through. Small victories are great, but don't be totally satisfied with them if they're not your overall goal. Find your place, exploit it for all the ways it can help you, and build. Don't ever stop building...your blueprints are always changing and are seldom finalized. That's enough motivational speaking outta me. All I'll say after that is you gotta start small, and recognize everyone that's helped you every step of the way. Never forget where you came from or how that shaped you into the person you are right now...and that includes the haters. There's motivation everywhere you turn, whether it's someone urging you on or someone else who doesn't believe in you. But no matter what, you are your biggest advocate. Don't wait for someone else to tell you what. Be what you think you can be, believe in it, and eventually so will everyone else. That's my word. MUSICAL BREAK!! Because Labor Day, workers of all kinds. THE DAILY BOX SCORE:  "'A life - It’s the stuff that happens while you wait for moments that never come.' Comment, expound, elaborate, reiterate or contemplate."Another excellent Mitchopolis prompt...dude's got a knack for 'em. I'll eschew the John Lennon "Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans" lyric and instead actually focus on the premise of this particular prompt.We tend to anticipate. Building up hope upon hope and imagining sequences, played out through motion pictures in the daydreams regarding our most valiant quests. Hope hope hope. We think if we hope long and hard enough, it'l come true...sometimes to the extent that we believe it to be true before the execution or the let-down. I know this, and I'm sure you know it too from experience. The truth is anticipation and good intentions are often misplaced. Reality is often overlooked. Fucking reality...the same thing that wakes you up dead and cold in the morning when you don't wanna get up for work or school. The same thing that punks you into believing people at face value because they appealed to your needs. The same thing that tells you that you really can't when you swore you most definitely could with no restraint. Fucking reality. It's a bitch. But it's all in what you make of it. Are you gonna let it get you down, or are you mentally strong enough to persevere? I can't answer that...that's all within you. I've had countless "great ideas" that were fruitless, and I've been praised for changing minds and outcomes. Not every at-bat will be a home run, and in keeping with baseball terminology, even the best hitters fail 70% of the time. Find your niche; find your way. Gotta deal with life as it comes at you, and you're not always gonna like it. You'll only be judged on how you respond. THE LISTICLE 9.1 In cooperation with "BLOG CITY presents: The LIST" , I present to you this list of song lyrics and quotes about life and living.1) "Life...is waiting for you." Our Lady Peace 2) "Living Is the best revenge." Eddie Vedder 3) "Life ain't nothin' but bitches and money." NWA 4) "I'm not living...I'm just killing time." Radiohead 5) "It's your life...don't be stupid though 'cuz if you waste it..." Too $hort 6) "'You're still alive' she said...do I deserve to be?" Pearl Jam 7) "My life has been extraordinary; blessed and cursed and won." Smashing Pumpkins 8) "I keep on going, guess I'll never know why...Life's been good to me so far." Joe Walsh 9) "My bad sight made me trip on my ass, right into that patch of grass like that's life" Atmosphere 10) "That's life and I can't deny it; many times I thought of cuttin' out but my heart won't buy it." Frank Sinatra 11) "I've found a way... Am I living in a cardboard box?" Living In A Box 12) "Just to get by, try to stay high, it's a good life, end of discussion." The Get Up Kids 13) "For a good life, we just might have to weaken and find somewhere to go (go where we are needed)." The Tragically Hip 14) "Living is easy with eyes closed." The Beatles I trust that you all know how to use Google and can figure out how to hear all of these songs on your own.  I spent pretty much all weekend reading textbooks. I know, lame, right?! I think I've found a pill-less cure for my insomnia...studying. I was knocked out for three hours the other day reading four pages of my Business Communications book, and yesterday it didn't take that much more to send me into nap world while reading my web design book. Tomorrow's gonna be my first hellish test...two classes at the main campus and then my science class at the local extension. And I fucking hate science. Damn near three hours of it? OMFG please don't make me need to know why the environment (green grass hippie love) is so important to my loner computer nerd degree.No fancy links or anything to share today...just hoping I can get enough of a nap in before "Note: As one of our 14th Birthday activities, [Link To...". I'm all for "Yay WDC Birthday!" stuff, because it reminds me that I've been here nearly as long as the site itself. But more importantly...you! Celebrate you, on the daily! Peace, time to rise has been engaged, and GOODNIGHT NOW!! |
30DBC PROMPT: "Wow! In the discussions today our beloved Neva Prosperous Snow celebrating suggested an ad campaign to save the camp in her entry. I thought it was wicked awesome so here we are with the challenge. Well, each of you are very talented writers. Norb and I believe you could write an ad campaign convincing people that this camp is a great place to visit. Show us what you got. Maybe we can convince Nell and Merle with our help this place would be worth giving it another try." Hey campers! Remember what I said the other day about it being weird writing to your own prompt? I think the only thing weirder than that sometimes is writing to a prompt you've been mentioned in . I didn't really think about it last night when I first saw it, and it didn't click with me the two other times I looked at it earlier today...but the minute I glanced it over after pasting it into my text entry box, I was like "WHAAAAAT?!" (with my basso-toned voice going up at least an octave for good measure). But that's ok...I've already had to do an exercise like this once this week, in my very first (Business Communications) class yesterday. We had to write a persuasive letter to our professor under the guise that there was only one empty seat left in her class, and 13 of us trying to be the one she lets in. I looked like an idiot because I was the first one done, with three solid paragraphs, but I couldn't get it to print to the classroom printer. Meanwhile, the rest of these hacks were struggling with a couple sentences here and a couple sentences there...but whatever. That's not the point.I think we're gonna have to be creative in launching an advertising campaign for the campground, for sure. I wouldn't be against a camping version of this borderline-obnoxious Six Flags commercial . We'd have to (unfortunately? fortunately?) play up the strengths of the area and its, ummmm, unique features...and we'd have to somehow convince the sharkhorses not to get all batshit crazy with the influx of visitors. Of course, because we don't really have a budget, we're gonna have to staff and film this thing ourselves. Who's got the sweet camera? Or at least a decent smartphone that takes quality video? I'm nominating 30DBC Creator/Founder to play some kind of role similar to the dancing old guy...he's probably in the best shape between myself, him and Charlie ~ . Unless ANN Counselor, Lesbian & Happy wants to assume the part of an eager dancing host.I don't really know what the rest of us would do though...but we'd have to include cutaway shots featuring:  Charlie ~ and myself playing Beer Toss with the big hole in the tree...one of the many activities at Camp Bloggawhynotta. Noyoki and amy-Has a great future ahead posing next to a jovial sharkhorse that's been sated with gummy bears and tummy rubs...because there are plenty of native animals playing in their natural habitat. 💙 Carly and Prosperous Snow celebrating conversing over cups of hot cocoa next to a roaring campfire while fighting off the urge to put marshmallows in the gaping mouth of ElaineElaine , who's already fallen asleep at the hint of sundown...to flaunt the communal spirit of togetherness. And it wouldn't be a trip to camp without a ride on Finn O'Flaherty 's spaceship...because there's a bunch of attractions for the whole family to enjoy!And then, underneath a shot of Nell, Merle, Lyn's a Witchy Woman and myself waving, would be the address, phone number, and website info while our new theme music plays us to the fade-out.BCF PROMPT: "There is an error message on your laptop/computer that will not close after you visited a secret government website. What does it say? I am sure you can write an amusing story with this." Yup...another instance of The Man tryin' to hold us down; that's what it is. Although I've never personally been on The Darknet before, I've read a little about it and I've probably been to some other places of ill repute on the legit information superhighway (Do people still refer to the internet as that?  ), and I haven't been busted for anything outlandish or illegal or immoral, so maybe I'm not trying hard enough . I also haven't gotten any viruses, pop-ups or confounding error messages; then again, I don't subscribe to mail order pharmacies or bride listings either, and as far as I know nobody's got a hit out on me. At least I keep telling myself that.But say one day, while running the numbers for Camp Bloggawhynotta's budget, I got sucked down a rabbit hole of videos by obscure 80's bands on YouTube (let's face it...I have a terrible attention span and serious procrastination issues, so it could happen). And suppose I played the following chain of songs: Go West, "King Of Wishful Thinking" The Romantics, "Talking In Your Sleep" Animotion, "Obsession" Wang Chung, "Dance Hall Days" Kajagoogoo, "Too Shy" But before I decided to go back to doing actual work, I'd shut down and go grab a sandwich...only, those five songs happened to unlock a secret government operative from the 80's, G.R.A.W.K., otherwise known as The Government of Russian/American Woryld Kontrol. Turns out there was some shady back-room dealings between President Reagan and Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev toward the end of the Cold War that no one knew about, and since the internet wasn't really a thing back then, all the information was encrypted seven times over and passed through a generation only to languish in the supposed dead space of long-forgotten bands that barely amounted to much in their brief stay atop the pop culture radar. But I had to be slackin' and stumble across this...turns out they were gonna end the threat of nuclear war all together via a dance-off. The winner of Dance Fever with Denny Terrio was going to face off against the winner of Nikolai Jaksitov's Nyet YOU Shut Up Vund Dants, and the losing country would have to turn over the keys to all the nukes and satellites and whatever else would've blown up the planet real nice back in '85. But the whole thing was cancelled at the last minute when something called The Cola Wars broke out, forcing a much more public form of peace between Mother Russia and The United States.Anyway, so I somehow unlocked the G.R.A.W.K. master mainframe, and now I can't get out of it. Every time I click on the little red X on the bottom left corner (it's a Soviet design thing, apparently), it just brings up the same message in another stacked and tiered dialogue box..."I must break you" followed by what I can only imagine are instructions in Russian for performing cranial-rectal immersion techniques.I didn't know what to do, and as per typical me when I get into situations like this, I prefer not to tell anyone else until it's absolutely too late because I don't want to look like an incompetent troublemaker. I hopped on Lyn's workstation while she was out giving potential camping families the guided tour of the facilities, opened up iTunes, and used our corporate credit card to download the band America's entire catalog. I saved it to a flash drive and jammed it into the USB port of my system...thankfully late 70's/early 80's soft rock made by dudes who were probably smoother with the ladies than your dad was turned out to be just the thing to break free from the G.R.A.W.K. database of lame, anticlimactic peace-mongering the world was no doubt ill-prepared for. MUSICAL BREAK!! Because if this never happened, what kind of world would we be living in today? THE DAILY BOX SCORE: "An admired mentor asks for help covering up a scandal. Did she say scandal? What is it?"I'm gonna come off sounding like a jerk for saying this and I really don't mean to, but here goes: I don't think I have anyone I'd consider to be a "mentor", and if I did I don't think she'd be a woman. Wait, that last part sounds funny (and not in a "ha ha" kind of way)...would it be "I don't think he'd be a woman"? Whatever. No mentor, so I guess the sex isn't important. I mean gender. Yeah, that.So I guess then I'll just answer this in vague terms...if someone I really respected wanted me to cover up some kind of scandal, I'd have to ask myself a few things. 1) How serious is it?; 2) Am I risking jail time?; 3) How bad am I gonna get dragged through the mud if this cover-up blows up on us?; and 4) What's in it for me? If the answer to #4 is "lots of money and total immunity", hell yeah! Count me in, my man! But what are we covering up? Lyn heard about my little adventure with G.R.A.W.K. because I was a moron and left Reese's peanut butter cup smudges on her mouse when I was using her computer to download the band America's catalog. And since I'm not yet qualified to be the director of IT at Camp Bloggawhynotta, we've got to somehow keep this on the down-low so as not to panic Merle and Nell. But how? I know...I'll conveniently spill my Mountain Dew on the router! Sure, we'll be without internet for however long it takes to drive over to town and pick up a new one, and while that's happening I'll pretend I'm looking into the "problem" from all angles, but what I'll really be doing is erasing the browsing history from all the computers and performing the tasks necessary so nobody's the wiser about G.R.A.W.K. except me and you. Sounds like a plan. The moral to this blog entry, folks: Always find a way to throw someone else's money at a bad situation.  💙 Carly , maybe you can shed some light on this: What is Tim Hortons trying to accomplish with this doughnut?? Yes, I get it...the Buffalo Bills have looked damn near awful all preseason, but thanks to Deadspin we have a comprehensive guide to how bad this Bills season is going to be . Save yourself the factual evidence and skip right down to the section titled "Hear it from Bills fans!" for the real value in entertainment this piece has to offer. A few weeks ago, I believe Charlie had posted within an entry something about people hurrying to get on buses or elevators before everyone else had finished getting off...I think I may have actually experienced something today that by and large has completely trumped his scenario.But first, the setup: At school, the layout of the main building is kinda weird. The main staircases are on one side of the building, and the elevators are on the other side of the building (that side has stairs too, but they're the fire escape stairs and are kinda out of the way, as opposed to the big gaudy staircases on the other side). The elevators are ridiculously small...maybe they fit four average-sized people comfortably. I try to take the elevator as much as possible because I still can't do stairs well, and if I have a class on the second floor that's on the same side as the elevators, it makes sense (and I also hate having to waste steps). So I went over to the elevator today, and an older woman with a walker pressed the button and got in. She was talking to another woman...who proceeded to lean against the frame of the elevator to keep the door from closing, and continued their conversation. Mind you, these hallways are plenty big enough and lined with all sorts of chairs and couches, just for these kinds of occasions. So who does that? Who stands in the frame of an elevator to have a conversation? And of course, I'm a pussy and don't say anything...I just cough, clear my throat, shift my weight from one leg to the other a few times, roll my eyes, sigh, and get huffy, all in the name of avoiding confrontation with strange old ladies. And I know the ill leaner saw me...I made the mistake of making eye contact with her, and she still didn't move. I hope she felt like an a-hole when I stomped and stormed through the fire exit door, but it's usually the people who should most feel like an a-hole who never do. And yeah, I should've said something, but I don't know these people or their purpose on campus; for all I know one of them could've been a professor I haven't met yet, and that's a Hell I don't need to be making for myself the first week of classes.  Man, so many big names already signed up for September's official round of the "30-Day Blogging Challenge ON HIATUS" ...and I don't think I'm gonna be able to do it. I've got night classes Mondays and Tuesdays at the Cortland Extension of TC3 in addition to other classes on the main campus, so I don't know when I'd have time to bust out an entry...I suppose I could use my day off on Wednesdays to catch up, but I'd still be sacrificing points to lateness and in what's shaping up to be a strong group of September challengers, I don't like the idea of handing away the opportunity to compete in what should be a tight race from the 1st to the 30th. But I'll consider judging a week again...maybe.Well, I think that about covers everything. It better...I don't even wanna see what this word count looks like tonight. All I know is the text entry box slider is a hell of a lot smaller than it usually is by the time I get to this point in the entry. Damn. Oh well...hey, it's the weekend! Be safe and try to relax a little, if you're not already. Peace, workin' overtime, and GOODNIGHT NOW!! |
30DBC PROMPT: "Does anyone remember this movie: "Indian Summer" ? Our prompt is similar to this movie; Nell has come to see us in the morning after the shindig we had (that was wicked awesome  ; thank you bunches!). The owner invites all the kids back as adults to reminisce and spend time together like we have. Nell said, 'I have bad news...when you leave, the camp will be closing for good. My husband and I are just too old to run a camp like this. You all saw what happens here in Maine around Moosehead Lake. Merle and I have talked it over and we would like to offer it to each of you. I'll give you time to think it over.' We all sit quietly, and then the conversation gets going.....What? How? You tell me."Hey campers! Sure is nice to have Lyn's a Witchy Woman back! That way I don't feel like I'm answering my own questions and can come up with entries for someone else's prompts again...writing to my own prompts sometimes feels like taking a test and having an answer key in front of you, but you're not always sure if the answer key matches up directly with the test you're taking, if that makes any sense...it does to me though, and that's what matters. Anyway, it's been a long day, so I'm gonna get right into this and hope I'm done in a half-hour so I can catch the kickoff of the last Bills preseason game...but that's not likely.To answer the first question...no. I have not heard of that movie nor do I remember any part of it ever being in pop culture's collective conscience, even though it was released the same year I graduated high school and some of the stars sound familiar. I wish I had seen it though, because then I'd have a better frame of reference regarding the prompt at hand. At a somber breakfast after we got the news that Camp Bloggawhynotta was closing after our run as "Campers Of The Decade", ANN Counselor, Lesbian & Happy suggested we break into groups back in our "boys" and "girls" tents to confront the topic first and then reconvene within an hour to discuss among everyone what our course of action should be.Charlie ~ and I each cracked a leftover beer from Lyn's party (sometimes, life-altering decisions first thing in the morning are best made when your mind is a little lubricated), looked at each other, and said, "This is fucked up. Like, we've been through some crazy shit this month, but this...this is just sad." (And yes, we said that at the same time, further blurring the lines that say we may or may not, along with Mitchopolis , be the same person.) 30DBC Creator/Founder just sat kinda slack-jawed; I couldn't tell if he was legitimately sad that maybe a month such as this August might never exist again as we currently know it, or that two other dudes were poundin' beers at 8:30am without much thought as to the outcome of their present situation or the big picture.Over in the girls' tent, the gears were turnin' and priorities were being set. Finn O'Flaherty was on her high-tech gizmodo texting with her home planet, looking for advice. Prosperous Snow celebrating , ANN Counselor, Lesbian & Happy , and ElaineElaine were exchanging passionate whispers as a form of quietly animated discussion. Noyoki , 💙 Carly , and amy-Has a great future ahead were each daring themselves to go up to Lyn's a Witchy Woman in the same manner a bunch of schoolchildren want someone else to go up to the teacher with a ridiculous demand or to tattle on someone else for doing something foolish. "You tell her!" said Dana to Amy; Amy looked at Carly and said, "No way! What about you, Carly?" Finally, after a gentle shove by Dana, Carly acquiesced and stood up on the bench. She cleared her throat and everyone looked up. "Lyn," she began, "maybe you and Fivesixer  ought to consider taking over the camp next summer. I mean, we were talking about it, and because of the way you guys worked together this year, we'd definitely come back again if you two were to remain our counselors." There was a slight murmur, and then, slowly, the approving nods of heads began spreading around the tent.Ann spoke up next. "You both have done a fine job! Neva, Elaine and I were just remarking that you've managed to keep us all alive and entertained regardless of the situations we've been in...I'd be proud to come through here every summer just to spend the time with you guys." Finally, Finn piped up with her findings from the conversation with Captain Zorg. "Ladies, I've just secured some additional funding to run summer programs next year from my home planet ummm, a, uhhh, "corporate sponsor", if you will. All we have to do is print their emblem on the t-shirts we give out to the campers next year! Isn't that exciting?" The girls all looked at each other and giddily yelped out various forms of "Hooray!" Meanwhile, Earl came trudging out of La Casa De Hombres looking defeated. "Norb and Charlie are a mess...they're a tad bit overserved and now they're just reminiscing over what they consider to be "the good ol' days"...which was last week . "Well," Lyn said, "march back in there and tell them boys the good news...we're gonna save this campground and do it again next summer, with the help of some out-of-this-world friends!"Charlie and I had long forgotten about our troubles by that point anyway, and had progressed over to the tree with the big hole in it. We invented some kind of game that involved the attempted tossing of crushed beer cans through said hole, but don't quote me on the exact rules. Charlie won, but I think he cheated because he has fancy hair and I'm clearly too old for anything more physical than the ol' twelve-ounce curls. BCF PROMPT: "I know that keeping a promise is important to all of us, but have you ever given your word to someone but then didn't follow through? Why?" Oh, sure. It happens; it's a part of life, letting people down and getting let down. That's not to say I'm proud of it or encourage it (I don't), because sometimes it's inevitable. Life has a way of disrupting even the best-laid plans, said someone more famous than myself at one time or another. Circumstances and mistakes often happen; they're no less a constant in this world than good fortune and smooth sailing. Karma balances things out most of the time, so expect that the lucky run that you might be on will eventually come to a crashing halt...I find it's best when you're prepared for the worst to occur because that way you're less disappointed. As for me, personally, I hate having to go back on my word. There are lots of ways things can go haywire, but to be the dreaded reason is the worst...not only does it tend to ruin whatever's going on in the present, but down the road the person you screwed over will probably be less-inclined to put their faith in you. And that can turn into a helpless feeling, especially if you know you could've helped someone out for sure and they suffered at another party's hands just because you dropped the ball once before. You kinda lose the "I told you so!" privilege the first time you dick over a friend. But I understand that sometimes things don't always work out the way we play them out favorably in our heads initially, including promises. Parents, teachers, lovers...everyone's guilty at some point. That's life. I know it doesn't take the sting away, and it doesn't mean it's OK because it's not...sometimes it pays to be slightly more realistic and a little less optimistic when dealing with things other people promise you. One of the first things I learned when I worked for a local company that was doing very well for itself in business: never promise more than you can deliver. To me, that means you remain reliable, and perhaps you even surprise people by exceeding expectations. Win-win, y'all. MUSICAL BREAK!! You'll understand this soon enough... THE DAILY BOX SCORE:  "Things you have done that you thought you never do."This one's easy...ever since my last day of freshman year classes back in May of '95, I never really thought I'd be going back to school. I just figured I'd be working full-time, and I'd keep working, and maybe get married and produce a kid or two, and then maybe I'd go back to school. But even as little as two or three years ago, the "going back to school" part never seemed certain; in fact, it felt more like a lost cause. But like I mentioned up above, sometimes life happens in ways we don't expect. And while my road hasn't been ideal, today I had my first classes as a college student in almost 20 years. I know I've talked about it here and there the last couple of weeks, and how it hadn't really hit me...well, today I didn't have a choice; I had to square right up to it. There's no longer a point in wondering if it's the right move or if I'm ready for something like this at 39, when most of my classmates are half my age. If I was ever gonna go back and still have it be beneficial to my future, the time was now. I'm fortunate to have this opportunity, and I'm determined not to waste it. Also, I gotta admit...I chuckled to myself this morning within ten minutes of my first class (Business Communications) starting, as I thought of my blog fam when the professor told us she was gonna teach us how to write. I didn't wanna be all like "But I have this blog...", because she wants us to write proper and professionally, as if we're doing corporate stuff...so yeah, I'll be making an adjustment there as well as in some other places along the way I'm sure. But yeah, as much as I wanted this day to come, for a long time I resigned myself to knowing it wasn't gonna. And yet, here it is. It's pretty cool so far. We'll see how it goes from here on out.  Also in "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" , I realize I'm already late to the party but that's ok because I'm not looking for sponsors or donations or anything like that...there's this thing goin' on called "BLOG CITY presents: The LIST" , which is a neat little fundraising item that ties in with WDC's 14th birthday in September. Now, I prefer to do all my charitable good deeds in private and without the public shaming encouragement that sometimes goes along with well-intentioned campaigns, but I also like random lists and occasionally participating in off-the-cuff sort of ways, so I guess for the next week and a half or so I might drop a listicle of 14 items on you for no apparent reason other than my previously-stated love of listing stuff. I shall do one now for you, if you don't mind (and if you do, go take out your frustration on your own blog ).14 Things I Noticed On My First Day Back In School 1) Girls have gotten younger as I've aged. 2) People are loud, especially when they're not encouraged not to be. 3) The "Leisure Reading" section of TC3's library (known as "Fiction" in every other library) is downright pathetic (although their "Poetry" section has more Richard Brautigan titles than Cortland's library, and the librarian was more than pleased and excited to hear someone mention his name and take me to his books). 4) Did Nike re-release every freaking pair of Air Jordans made in the 1990's this year? Damn near looks like it. 5) Even though today was my first day of classes, I've been going to the school all week to familiarize myself with the area and for orientation. And each day, I've brought a lunch...but I still grabbed cracker packets by the handful each day, and none of the cafeteria cashiers has said anything yet. 6) Five books (four used, one new) = $627. $627!! And I think I still have two more to get for classes that don't start until later in the semester. Thank you, financial aid and book deferrals. 7) I hate standing on public buses. 8) I hate sitting next to strangers on public buses even more. 9) Thanks to the ridiculously overpriced used book market, and the fact that only one of my textbooks is available in a digital format (which I think is slightly odd, because my major is Computer Information Systems and that one digital book is for a business course), I don't have enough financial aid this semester for the Samsung Galaxy 4 tablet the bookstore sells. That little piece of info alone makes carrying my laptop and assorted books feel a little heavier. 10) Speaking of my laptop, I couldn't get on the school's Wi-Fi the other day because my anti-virus definitions were out-of-date (basically, I let the Norton software pre-loaded on my laptop lapse after the introductory period). I was told I wouldn't be able to connect until I had downloaded a new anti-virus program...and the school has a diagnostic test it runs before allowing you on their internet. But all I did was remove Norton, and boom- I'm on the network. Thanks, Windows Defender! 11) When I'm riding the bus or eating lunch, I read like a champ. Took me all of three days to blow through Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse-Five. 12) There's tons of desks and tables all over the place if you wanna set up shop with your laptop...but I've found one- one!- with an easily-accessible outlet in case you have to actually plug it in to charge the battery. 13) Due to an odd landscaping arrangement I presume, the second floor of the main building connects through a hallway to the first floor of the two-floor athletic complex...yet there is only a minimally-detectable slope in the hallway when looking at it from outside either building. Bizarre. 14) I might like this whole experience.  You guys...did you see this month's "Invalid Item" ? Big ups to Wordsmitty ✍️  for again putting out another fine piece of electronic mail highlighting some of the best blogs, entries, and bits of info from around WDC's vast blogging community. And don't be shy...stop over to the "Blogging Bliss Newsletter Forum" and tell the crew what you think of the newsletter. I'm sure they'd love to hear what you have to say.Welp, so much for that whole "I'll just take a half-hour and get this over with" thing...more like 2.5 hours later . The Bills game is probably near halftime by now...hopefully it's not too ugly (although most of the people playing from this point on probably won't be on the roster by the end of the weekend, but that's life in the NFL). Peace, start taking notes, and GOODNIGHT NOW!! |
| 30DBC PROMPT: "Yesterday, I asked if anyone noticed anything different about camp. We heard about lights, saucers, flashlights in the lake, beards, crazy drunk teens, even a large furry (possibly) Sasquatch, and someone keeps drinking my coffee before I do. What no one noticed is the big hole that is in the tree right next to our tents. Where did that come from? Clearly, there is something hanging from the hole, but what is it?" Hi campers! Been a minute, hasn't it? But it's not like I haven't been peepin' on the exploits around Camp Bloggawhynotta this past week...I've just been keeping a safe distance from some of the chicanery, lest that noise follows me back home, ya heard? But for real, I just needed a couple days' break to take care of a few silly life things (like finally becoming a full-fledged Cortland resident, as authorized by the notary public) while getting over the "Barrel of Monkeys" (which obviously took a lot more out of me than I thought and was even harder getting over...it's like that teenage love affair where all you do is spend nights on the phone with each other, and suddenly she's not there to talk to anymore, and those couple hours between dinner and bedtime now feel like centuries of nothing, and...ok, I'll shut up now). But this is my last full week before school starts (although there's some orientation stuff goin' on Monday and Tuesday that I should probably check out), and I wanted to make sure I was in a good spot mentally before I took anything else on. So far, so good.So camp's been pretty crazy, huh? I'll admit, I haven't read everything, so forgive me if at times I'm speaking like I'm out of the loop (because I probably am). What's this I hear about everyone sporting special Fivesixer  beards? I'm flattered you guys...although the thought of Noyoki or ElaineElaine looking more masculine than Charlie ~ kinda freaks me out a little.And how on Earth did we miss that damn hole in the tree? The one with the thing hangin' in it that looks like the back of a cartoon baby's screaming throat? You know, the one with all the frickin' bees comin' out of it like they're livin' in some kind of honey brothel? I'll tell you what...I'll punch a bee in the face. Straight up. Ain't nobody got time for bees, bee stings, Wu-Tang Killabees, or Ramona And Beezus...it's Friday, and we've gotta gather up some wood for tomorrow's campfire. So Charlie ~ , 💙 Carly and I grabbed an ax and a hatchet and proceeded off into the woods along with a little sled to carry some of the bigger pieces back. We came to a clearing right before the lake- now mind you, we're in broad daylight- and the wind suddenly picked up as the sky began to turn an ominous shade of grey. The three of us stopped and looked at each other, as if to say "WTF?!" without actually saying it...and then we saw it, dancing merrily on the other side of the lake. It's...it's...SHARKHORSENADO! I was like, "Yo, I have a beard; I ain't ready to die! Let's GTFOH before that thing gets crazy and we end up on another sequel!" Carly agreed, and Charlie lit up a smoke before he realized it was time to get outta dodge and get back to camp. Lyn's a Witchy Woman was more than a little miffed that we were back so soon and without wood. Her, Prosperous Snow celebrating and ANN Counselor, Lesbian & Happy were rewashing the breakfast dishes because the guys hadn't done a good enough job of getting the crumbs and frosting from the Little Debbie snack cakes off the plates earlier, so Lyn's tone was fairly understandable...as was the incredulousness in her voice when Charlie stammered "Sh-Shh-Sharkhorsenado!"Finn O'Flaherty overheard us, came out of her tent, and wondered, "What's the commotion?" We described to her what we saw, and ElaineElaine perked up with interest (or maybe it was the shroom-laced coffee). She proceeded to tell us a story about a mythical campground she'd heard of as a young girl...there was a playful beast that got along with all the forest creatures. It would protect them, and in return they would feed and groom this gentle giant, for it had no arms. It was the Sharkhorse, and he was considered the mayor of the forest population...until the day the humans took over and built cabins and latrines around the clearings and streams."Rumor has it," Elaine continued, "that when too many people book reservations for camping trips, the Sharkhorses get angry...and when they get angry-" Elaine walked over to the gigantic hole in the tree- "things like this happen." Sure enough, the hole was roughly the size of an ill-tempered horse's hoof, and Sharkhorses were known to be powerful enough to inflict Bruce Lee-like damage (such as kicking a hole in a thick tree). "What are we gonna do?" asked a nervous amy-Has a great future ahead . "Good question, Amy," I said. "We have to find a way to let the Sharkhorse know we're its friend, not its enemy." Lyn was skeptical. "How do you plan on retraining nature's natural selection, Norb?" "I don't know, Lyn," I smirked, "but someone's gotta do it before the next Sharkhorsenado strikes and we end up as fish food!" Everyone let a nervous giggle slip.Well folks, we've got some time...anyone have any suggestions? Let's get this fire built, and see if we can charm an angry colony of Sharkhorses. SATURDAY'S CAMPFIRE PROMPT: There has been a Sharkhorse sighting! They're angry with all of the humans on the campgrounds. We've got to use our campfire time to come up with a plan to either catch them all or befriend them before they destroy us...but how will we do that? Perhaps there's a method to all the madness we've experienced so far... BCF PROMPT: "You wake up and everyone in your family is gone. There's a Post-It note on the kitchen counter. What does it say?" Has this ever happened to you? You wake up and you have the whole house to yourself, but you know people should be home and they're not (and they haven't told you of any impending plans the night before)? Not like "oh, everyone else is at work or school"- no. Just confusion. Where is everybody? I'm fairly positive it's happened to me before, and there wasn't a note or anything. It was also likely to have happened in the pre-cell phone era, providing the answer of "Have a panic attack" to the question "What did we do before cell phones when we couldn't find people?" But let's play make-believe and pretend it happened to me in some alternate reality. I'm sure it'd look something like this: "Dear Kal-El, Your mom and I want you to know we love you very much, but the time has come to tell you we're not your real parents. You just kinda showed up here one day, and you were so dad-gum cute that we couldn't just send you off to the authorities, so we raised you as if you were one of our own. Truth be told though, you're a pain in the ass with your strength and vision, and we're beginning to fear for our lives...therefore, we're leaving the farm to you in hopes that you'll do the right thing by us and for yourself (and stay away from that Lex guy- he looks like bad news). There is $1000 in the cookie jar, and we'll be in touch once we're settled in Metropolis to discuss your future. Love, Mom and Dad P.S. Here's a roll of quarters too, in case you need to go in to town to make any phone calls." MUSICAL BREAK!! I can't be the only one who thinks the Sharknado movies would be better off if Godzilla were fighting them, am I? THE DAILY BOX SCORE:  "Your younger self is about to be offered your first job. What would you tell yourself knowing what you know now? "This is pretty straight-forward: it's ok to have fun once in awhile as long as you're doing a good job and your work is getting done, and there are a multitude of ways that fun things can happen if you're resourceful enough. I think the majority of us go into our first jobs a little too uptight; afraid to make a mistake or piss someone off, kinda worried that the boss is gonna fire you for something stupid you had no idea about. And while it's true that maybe certain employees who've been around a little longer can undoubtedly get away with more, that doesn't mean your first job has to require that you act as a member of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir either. It's all about using good judgement and common sense...and it helps to have slightly warped senses of humor and of where you're at as well. Nothing kills your desire to work more than a job you're afraid to screw up at coupled with the tedious, monotonous tasks you're almost begged to screw up from time to time because 1) most first jobs suck; 2) most kids working their first jobs are expected to suck; and 3) screwing up, when done properly, can be super-funny (to almost everyone except the person who has to bear the brunt of your screw-up. Take the most popular first job for most teenagers (Non-Paperboy Division): fast food. For the kid who takes it seriously, it's a foot in the door and a reference; it looks good on a college application. For the customer, you're the pimply-faced moron who couldn't understand "No mayo!!" And for your boss, it's another day on the calendar of sadness and missed opportunities. In other words, the place is a teeming comedy goldmine with jokes and one-liners under every balled-up straw wrapper, wad of gum stuck to the table, and tossed-aside, ripped-off corners of ketchup packets. You're a fool if you don't see the mega-dumb mega-corporate mega-chain restaurant for all that it really is: the very first place you'll learn how to subtly stick it to The Man while coming off as someone who knows what the hell he or she is doing. I shoulda definitely been a motivational speaker or something. Or a valedictorian. Me + cap and gown + "Damn The Man!" = a better life for everyone involved.  I know I probably said last week I wasn't gonna say anything more about depression, but then I came across this blog post about depression and creativity , and it's a must-read in my opinion for anyone who is in any kind of creative field (be it as a job or a hobby or both). It's humorous and well-written (albeit NSFW at times) but definitely worth it just for explaining how the creative process works for people with depression, and why sometimes the funniest people are also the most tormented inside. So, have you guys seen this "Invalid Item" ? Like, I was challenged in it by my boy CJ Reddick , and the challenge was to "challenge other non-Blogging Circle Of Friends members". To, ummm, what, exactly? I don't get it. I'm just gonna find ten random WDC members and email them with "I challenge you!" and see what happens when I don't respond to their replies of "What? Challenge me to what?" Then I'll go back to CR and be like "Haha! I win! Challenge complete!" and go along my oblivious way. It's still not as awesome as these 22 people who should not have taken the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge , but I'll be happy and that's all that matters. Well, I missed you guys sorta, and I'm glad to be back for the next brief little while before I totally break down and realize I'll be in college all over again in less than a week. Peace, with a purposeful grimace, and GOODNIGHT NOW!! |
| 30DBC PROMPT: "Hi campers! Bring out the bugles! Toes down, chins up; it's time for Reveille! Sing us your favorite song this morning and tell us why you like it." 'Sup y'all? Couldn't just leave well enough along, could I? Like many of my fellow challengers in "Barrel of Monkeys" I'm sure, I'm already missing it (but thanks to lizco252 I've got the sweet BOMB for participating  ) and can't wait 'til we do it again.So today in the "30-Day Blogging Challenge ON HIATUS" , I've asked you all to share with us one of your favorite songs, which isn't as easy as it sounds (and of all people, I should know). My favorite song today might be different from yesterday's or tomorrow's, depending on the mood or whatever's happened to get a verse or hook stuck in my head...some days you wake up and for no apparent reason you just have a random song stuck in your craw that, no matter how hard you try, won't go anywhere.I don't even want to know how much music I've looked at and heard over the last two weeks ( ok, I kinda do)...the WDC Soundtrackers shared something like over 1,000 songs! Sure, we're not keeping YouTube open for business or anything, but that's more than respectable in my opinion. Regardless of the outcome, I wanna thank the members of The Howlers: Lyn's a Witchy Woman  , Elle - on hiatus , ~ Aqua ~ , Shana-Batgirl-Allen ~WeGotThis , and pinkbarbie...y'all did a great job and really pushed our squad to step our game up. I also wanna thank my teammates on The Orangutans, lizco252, Charlie ~ , very thankful , and Future Mrs. B  ...we may have experienced a night that will truly bond us all forever in the Z to A challenge, and I couldn't have asked for a better bunch to be associated with (and it's worth mentioning that as soon as BoM was gonna become a thing, Charlie came out and asked me to be on his team...how could I say no? I was honored, and the kid knows his music  ).Anyway, BoM was absolutely a great time Beth, and I'm so happy to have been a part of it. You guys, check out our playlist here ...I think it's more updated and complete than the link I used in yesterday's entry. And Beth, you're some kind of hero for not only putting up with all of us for two weeks and reading our entries, but for also cataloging and keeping score and dropping serious tuneage throughout the Bonus Tracks sessions! I don't even know how to properly express my gratitude.  So back to the 30DBC...I think my choice will make clear what we should strive for going forward... MUSICAL BREAK!! Like I said, I've dealt with a lot of music the last couple of weeks, and I almost feel bad that I didn't get a chance to share more Hawksley Workman with you cats...I don't even share him that much in normal blog entries, for some reason. But make no mistake...if there were one man I was forced to live the rest of my life with on an island, it'd be him. He is the only person I'd ever consider dubbing "The Sexiest Man Ever", and if you've seen him live (as I have, three times...including once from the VIP section when he played in front of the Hard Rock in Niagara Falls) you'll know what I'm talking about. But personal opinion aside, I'm of the belief that we'll always need a song, no matter what the reason. There's no excuse...music unites us in a language that's universal. It ties together generations and cultures; it is what makes the blood run through our veins enough to get us to dance, laugh and cry. May we want more from life in superficial ways, but we will always need a song. THE DAILY BOX SCORE:  Here's a little article on how Radiohead should've revolutionized the music business when they had a "name your price" digital giveaway of their In Rainbows album...Making Money By Giving It For Free . And just to bring you back down to my level, so as you don't think I'm some kind of responsible adult, don't ask me to babysit your kids...unless you want this to happen .Ok y'all...I'm off to see what all the fuss in my inbox is all about. Hope you guys had a stellar weekend...what am I gonna do now with no more BoM? Peace, carry it away, and GOODNIGHT NOW!! |
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