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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"  "Blog Harbor" "Blogging Circle of Friends " "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" "JAFBG" "Take up Your Cross Blog Forum" Thanks for stopping by! 
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 Prompt for Day 2605: Library. "A library is thought in cold storage." — Herbert Samuel. Do you go to a public library? Are libraries still important in our lives? With easy access to the instant gratification that comes from ordering an ebook, or even hard copies that can be bought at a local bookstore or delivered in the mail within 24-48 hours, libraries have fallen out of favor with a lot of people. So many of us have been conditioned to order things on Amazon, it's almost second-nature to think about a book you've been wanting to read, add it to the cart, and have it delivered to your doorstep just a few hours later. In some ways, this is better for a reader like me, who often wants to read something very specific. It can be frustrating to go to the library, realize the exact book you want isn't in stock, and then have to figure out if you can request it from another branch. I've never been the kind of person who can be like, "Oh, I want to read a Michael Connelly book but I don't care if I read #10 or #20 in the series." I've always been the kind of person who goes, "The last book I read in the series was #7, so if I'm going to read another one, it's going to be #8." That said, I also have a lot of reading interests, so I'm never at a loss for what to read. Where I do excel at using libraries is having a list of things I want to read, and then going through their online catalogue to see what's in stock and put it on hold before I head to the library to pick it up. I'll often cycle through the book series I'm reading to see what's available. "I'm on Stormlight Archive #2, Harry Bosch #8, Orphan X #9, Gray Man #7, etc. ... let's see which one of those I can pick up now..." I also happen to have library cards at multiple local libraries, so I can also forum shop a bit if I'm looking for something really specific. I will almost always check to see if I can find something at the library before I spend money to purchase a copy, especially now that many libraries will also loan ebooks and audiobooks. I do think that libraries are one of the most important aspects of society, and I wish they were better utilized. It's kind of wild to think about, that you can literally go to a place (probably relatively close to your home) and borrow books for free, or even in some cases avail yourself of many of its other free services like renting a quiet study room, using a computer with internet access, participating in community events, etc. Ever since we adopted our kids, we've been trying to instill an appreciation for them by going every couple of weeks and checking out books, then returning them and getting more, etc. And for a family that reads so much, it's super cost-effective to borrow books and return them rather than to keep buying new books (which in my case often only get read once)! Lately, I've been really discouraged at the political fights that have been waged at libraries (mostly in terms of what books should or should not be allowed to be stocked). I'm really hoping that common sense prevails at some point and people realize that, unless we're taking about examples of some very fringe books in a specialized library setting (like the one at an elementary school), libraries should be places where you can discover new things. I saw a quote online the other day and I'm not sure who it's attributed to, but it said something along the lines of, "We should spend less time trying to control what information people have access to, and more time being the kind of people who others can process with when they come across information that's challenging, confusing, or unsettling." We shouldn't be defunding libraries and making it harder for people to find information at all; we should be investing in making libraries safer spaces to encounter new things and make new discoveries as we seek to better understand ourselves and the world around us. |
 Prompt #47: Do you think you have a good imagination? Why or why not? I think the answer to this question, at least for me, depends on what you define as imagination. One of the common dictionary definitions of imagination is "the ability of the mind to be creative or resourceful," and I actually think those are two completely different skillsets. In a lot of ways, I suppose imagination then is a lot like intelligence, where you can have different types of intelligence and some people are gifted in some ways but not others. For example, someone might have exceptional logical-mathematical intelligence, but have very low interpersonal intelligence or bodily-kinesthetic intelligence. I'm not sure that anyone's actually broken down the concept of "imagination" into different types the same way intelligence has been studied and diversified over the years, but I think the methodology still applies. On the one hand, I don't think I'm particularly good at coming up with original concepts. Whether it comes to writing, or ideating in everyday life, I tend to be a very linear thinker and don't spend a lot of time wondering about different ways to do things. When it comes to tasks, after some trial and error, once I find a process for something that works for me, I tend to stick with it. And similarly with writing, I don't think I'm often the type of author who comes up with completely off-the-wall concepts that make people say, "Wow, I don't think that's ever been done before!" I don't think I'll ever be the kind of person who invents something (even though one of my earliest memories is wanting to be an inventor), because I just don't tend to think outside the box in that way. So in terms of imagination being raw creativity and ingenuity, I wouldn't say that I have a particularly good imagination. On the other hand, I do think I'm quite good at putting unexpected twists on things, or combining things in creative ways. As a writer, I'm really good with taking a prompt for a writing contest and spinning it on its head. I'm good at mashing up multiple genres and using the conventions of each. In my everyday life, I'm good at synthesizing information, organizing data, and making sense of a lot of different factors and then finding an efficient way to make use of them. My imagination kicks in when I'm thinking of different possibilities and configurations, rather than staring at a blank canvas. So I suppose like there are different types of intelligence, there are different types of imagination. And I'm more imaginative in the "resourceful" kind of way than I am imaginative in the "creative" kind of way. It's why I've always done better with adaptations and and prompts and rewrites as a writer, rather than staring at the blank page and coming up with something wholly original to write. Which is why these "Blog Harbor" prompts and so many other activities that offer inspiration for what to write are so great for me personally, and why screenwriting is so appealing to me. |
Prompt for Day 2604: Road Trips. “As we crossed the Colorado-Utah border I saw God in the sky in the form of huge gold sunburning clouds above the desert that seemed to point a finger at me and say, 'Pass here and go on, you're on the road to heaven.'" — Jack Kerouac, On the Road. What do you think of road trips? Do you have any memories you'd like to share with us? I spent a lot of time on road trips as a kid. My parents were fishing and camping enthusiasts, and I was active in Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts until I turned 18, so it was a common occurrence in our household that we would pack up on a Friday afternoon and head off to some river, lake, etc. or another for a weekend of "roughing it." My parents were also quite frugal, so family vacations were matters of driving a car rather than getting on a plane whenever practicable. Full disclosure, practicable by their definition meant anywhere within driving range of 1-2 days which meant pretty much anywhere in the Western United States was fair game for a road trip.  My favorite road trips as a kid were when my family would drive from Sacramento up to Montana to visit my grandparents for the summer. That was a two-day journey (one to get from Sacramento to the Nevada-Idaho border, then a second day to get from the Nevada-Idaho border to my grandparents' lake house in Western Montana), and even though it was a very long trip those were some of my favorite memories as a kid. The excitement of getting to the lake house for a summer of swimming and playing games and horseback riding and river rafting and eating raspberries, combined with the things my parents did to make the road trip fun: buying us those huge books of crossword puzzles and word searches from the grocery store, along with a handful of books to keep us busy in between rounds of the license plate game, or "I Spy," interrupted only when we had to stop for gas and would load up on junk food at the mini-mart while we were at it. Those moments (combined with a brutal commute driving through the vast majority of Los Angeles each day for the better part of twenty years) are probably why I find being in the car comforting. Or, if not comforting, at least less stressful than most people seem to. I almost never mind driving somewhere within 2-3 hours (day trip to San Diego or Santa Barbara? Sure, why not!), and I still have a dream of one day driving across the country and stopping at all of the places between this country's West Coast and East Coast. That said, road trips are not without their troubles, and I have plenty of those stories as well... of being stranded by the side of the road waiting for a tow truck, and having to make the rounds with him as he picked up a bunch of other cars as well. Or just barely making it to a tire shop after realizing that there's a slow-leaking puncture in your tire about a hundred miles into a four hundred mile road trip. But at the risk of going full "dad mode" at this point in my life... those are also the experiences that have built character and given me stories to tell. |
| WDC 48-Hour Challenge: Media Prompt | Prompt ▼ I still remember when this song first came out in 2007. At the time, Colbie Callait was a 22-year-old singer-songwriter releasing her first studio album — Coco — and I was a slightly-older twenty-something in the midst of planning his wedding. I distinctly remember listening to this song repeatedly during those months because it was soothing and relaxing at a time when I was stressing out over the wedding details a lot. (My wife and I basically planned our entire wedding ourselves thanks in no small part to limited family involvement and a wedding planner who was less helpful than we would have hoped!) Similar to my recent experience with Avril Lavigne, Colbie Callait has released a number of albums in recent years that I apparently didn't realize she had released, so I have a bit of catching up to do, but I remember that each of her early albums had a number of songs that I really liked. Coco had this one and "Realize," Breakthrough had "Fallin' For You" and "I Never Told You," All Of You had "Brighter Than The Sun" and "What If," and Gypsy Heat had "Try" and "Break Free." Not to mention the non-album single "Hold On" which is probably one of my favorite songs of hers. There's something about her musical style that I really like, especially in her more carefree songs. There's an easygoing style to it, and a lot of her songs are definitely relaxing listens; the kind of thing you could have playing from a bluetooth speaker out on the beach, or during a summer backyard barbecue. I will admit that for the longest time I was convinced that she was Canadian for some reason (maybe the French-sounding last name? ) and I was surprised to find that she was born in Malibu, California and raised in nearby Newbury Park as I was doing some research for this blog entry. I also didn't realize that she spent 2018-2020 as part of a country quartet called Gone West (which, sadly, is not the same group as Go West, an 80s duo whose hits included iconic "King of Wishful Thinking"), which is something I'm definitely going to look into more as I put together my Spotify playlist for future listening. She's got a great voice that I imagine would go pretty well with an easier-listening country music style.Callait's most recent album is 2023's Along The Way, which also marks her return her career as a solo artist. If anything, this month's Media Prompt definitely reminded me that I need to listen to that and see what else I've missed while she's been under the radar for the past few years. She also apparently did a cover of the Goo Goo Dolls' "Iris" sometime in 2022 which is a great song. Honestly, the Goo Goo Dolls are a band I need to give another listen to again sometime soon as well. They had quite a few songs featured in regular rotation during my high school and college years as well. |
| To qualify for my Watch List every month, the following has to be something that I've watched that's new to me. It doesn't necessarily have to be a current show, but it can't be reruns or rewatches of something I've already seen. So if I'm including it in this list, it means this month is the first time I've watched it. I'll put "DNF" (Did Not Finish) next to anything that I stopped watching and have no immediate plans to finish. Movies  The Accountant 2 Ballerina Elio F1: The Movie How to Train Your Dragon (2025) Ice Age: Collision Course Love HurtsI saw more movies in the theater this month than I have in ages (four!), and it was fun to get back to the idea of prioritizing viewing a movie in a quiet theater where the movie itself is your only focus, rather than watching it home where you might have a bunch of other distractions keeping you from focusing on the story and the characters. And with the sole exception of Ice Age: Collision Course (which is one that my kids picked to watch one day), I thought all of the movies I saw this month were decent in their own way. The movie that I was most excited about was F1: The Movie since I've been following Formula 1 racing a lot lately. While the movie wasn't by any means perfect, it was really engaging and I liked it a lot. I can't remember the last time I was a movie that was over two hours that I didn't think could stand to be edited down a bit, but this one flew by. The racing action was really great, and it was a fun watch. I definitely want to go back to see it again in a 4DX theater (where the seats rumble and move)! Television Goliath (Season 1) Goliath (Season 2) Top Chef (Season 22)Goliath was an interesting show. The first season was an excellent legal drama, and then the second season was almost nothing like the first, as the show turned into more of a crime investigation/thriller with very few legal aspects to it. I heard that the showrunner changed after the first season so maybe the new one just didn't want to make a legal show, and instead make a crime show where the lead character just happened to be a lawyer? I've heard mixed things about the third and fourth seasons, so we'll probably watch them at some point, but we're not rushing to do so. The only other thing I watched this month was Season 22 of Top Chef which was a good if unremarkable season of the show. Maybe it's just starting to feel a little old, but I wasn't really wowed by anything. I was rooting for the person who won, so I was happy in that respect, but I'm not sure how memorable it'll be in the long term. TOP PICK: F1: The Movie |
| To qualify for my Watch List every month, the following has to be something that I've watched that's new to me. It doesn't necessarily have to be a current show, but it can't be reruns or rewatches of something I've already seen. So if I'm including it in this list, it means this month is the first time I've watched it. I'll put "DNF" (Did Not Finish) next to anything that I stopped watching and have no immediate plans to finish. Movies Aftermath Exterratorial Gladiator II Havoc — DNF Lilo & Stitch (2025) The Magician's Elephant Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning Sniper: The Last StandOf all the movies I watched this month, I probably liked Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning the most. It wasn't my favorite movie in the entire franchise, but I do really like these films and it was engaging, if a little long. For an "end of series" entry, I think the stunts and other action were a little lackluster, but I did find the story engaging. This was also a month where I saw two of my friends' movies, which debuted on Netflix. They were both kind of generic action movies, but I'm super excited for both of them; it's really cool to be able to turn on Netflix, see a movie a friend of yours wrote, and watch their names go by in the credits. If you like direct-to-video style action movies, you could do a lot worse than Aftermath and Sniper: The Last Stand. Television Abbott Elementary (Season 4) Andor (Season 2) Hacks (Season 4) Killer Heat (Season 2) — DNF The Rookie (Season 7) Shifting Gears (Season 1) — DNF Sirens Will Trent (Season 3) Your Friends & Neighbors (Season 1)I'm honestly surprised at how much television I watched this month. From really good new shows like Sirens and Your Friends & Neighbors to the return of older favorites like Hacks, it was a really good month for television. Pretty much the only things I didn't like were Will Trent (which my wife likes having on in the background), and Shifting Gears which is Tim Allen's new show where he basically just plays Tim Allen again, this time with a slightly different "manly" job and family situation, which he uses as a foil to criticize modernity and lament the loss of the good old days when the world was simpler and more conservative.  The standout show this month was clearly the second season of Andor. I thought the first season was really good, and this one exceeded my already lofty expectations of what a sophomore effort would look like. Knowing that they were heading into a specific result (i.e., Cassian Andor's journey leading up to the events of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story), they broke the show up into four, three-episode blocks, each tackling one year in the life of all the revolutionaries, building the nascent Rebellion into a movement that could realistically defy the Empire. It was a really well done political drama/thriller that raised a lot of questions of morality, intrigue, commitment to a cause, etc. If you like political shows, even if Star Wars isn't your favorite, it's really great. And it perfectly leads into Rogue One, which in turn leads perfectly into A New Hope. TOP PICK: Andor (Season 2) |
 PROMPT: "Note: 48-HOUR CHALLENGE : Media Prompt Deadl..." This is one of those songs that just seems to perpetually come around every few years. It was originally released in Fall 2013 as a promotional single for Magic!, which was then re-released by a major label (Sony) in Winter 2014. Over the course of 2014, the band performed it all over the place, including on both morning and late night talk shows, and the song ended up being one of the Top 10 bestselling songs of the year. It's also been covered a remixed a number of times, including by some very popular artists like Zedd and Selena Gomez. I think the last time that I listened to this song regularly was during the pandemic. While everyone was sheltering in place for COVID-19, my wife and I were stuck at home with two young children, and we spent a lot of time listening to music and watching videos. Music videos were particularly popular in our house, and there were quite a few that played on repeat because the kids liked the song and the video captured their attention. This was one of them, and I think we watched it so much that the YouTube algorithm still populates it in my personal feed of music videos whenever I put on a playlist. As with so many of the songs that I listened to during that time, there's a part of me that feels nostalgic whenever the song comes on. After all, I've heard it enough to practically memorize the lyrics and the melody is instantly recognizable. On the other hand, it's a reminder of what was a very difficult, borderline traumatizing time in all of our lives, so the memories that come flooding back with songs like this are often quite vivid. None of that changes the fact that it's a catchy, feel-good kinda song though.  |
Prompt #43: Have you ever wanted to be the boss at a place you've worked? What aspects of being a boss are appealing? Do you think you'd actually be good at it? I actually think I'd be really good at being a boss. I know a lot of people think that they'd be a good boss, but that often comes from a place of wanting the perks of being a boss without an understanding or appreciation of what's actually involved in the job. I've actually been a boss before on a small scale, so I have a bit of an understanding of what's involved. I'm not sure I'd want to be the boss at the place I currently work (leading a massive, publicly-traded company seems like a huge headache ), I'd definitely want to be the boss at some of the smaller places I've worked, where obligations to shareholders or public relations is less of a concern.There are three aspects of being a boss that I think I do well. First, I think I'm good at synthesizing information and making informed choices. I'll never be the guy who's a brilliant lawyer, or a finance whiz, or has all of the HR policies memorized... but I do know a little bit about all of those areas, and quite a few others. And I'm confident in my ability to see the bigger picture, so I actually think I would be really good heading up a company where I'm faced with a challenge, given input from Finance, Legal, HR, Operations, etc. and then making the best decision about how to proceed. Second, I'm a pretty good-natured person who's not afraid of making tough decisions. While I definitely want everyone to like me and while I'm generally well-liked, I also know that not every decision a boss makes is popular, but I think I'm an affable enough personality that I can make difficult decisions while still maintaining support from the company as a whole. I've never had to put that to the test on a large scale (i.e., beyond a few employees here and there), but I have a feeling I'd be able to, for example, find a way to be encouraging and shore up morale even in the face of difficult decisions like layoffs or other austerity measure. Third, kind of going along with the second one, I've been in the position of the rank-and-file worker for over twenty years now. I've worked at both good and bad companies, and have had both great and terrible bosses myself. I think, if nothing else, I would be able to approach my leadership responsibilities with the perspective of the people who work for me in mind most of the time. One of the biggest issues I see with leadership in a corporate setting these days is a real disconnection from those outside the ranks of leadership, and it would be important to me to maintain a sense of grounded perspective as I made decisions that affect the entire company. Overall, I think I would be a good boss. At least in terms of managing people and internal decision making. That said, there's a lot of other things that go into being a good leader, including things like vision, execution, crisis management, market positioning, etc. and I suppose I won't really know how I'd do with those things until I get to that bridge and have to cross it. |
Prompt #44: What would you spend your money on if you won the lottery? After all the usuals (paying off your house, clearing your debts, buying your parents a new car, etc.), what would you spend the rest of your fortune on? If I won the lottery, after all the usuals, I would probably invest most of my winnings in a business or other investment opportunity of some kind. My heart would want to start a film and television production company so that I could write, produce, and direct projects, but I know what a risk investing in entertainment products can be. So my head would want me to start some kind of real estate business, or maybe invest in a company that's trying to bring a product to market. Were I to start a production company, I think I would start with something akin to what Jason Blum did for Blumhouse, where there was a very specific, low-budget business plan, in order to maximize the chance of having a return on investment, and to be able to produce a number of different projects, rather than just one or two big ones where all of your success is riding on whether it works out or not. I'd also consider maybe starting an animation production house, because then you can truly make any kind of project you want, and aren't reliant on a lot of very specific production costs even if you want to do something in the fantasy, science fiction, or period spaces that would normally cost a lot more if you shoot a live action version. Were I to start a business, the most likely place to start would probably be running my own family office, where I can choose where the investments and opportunities go. But I think it would be really interesting to find someone with a vision for a product or service that I really believe in, partner up with them, and see that business through its launch and (hopeful) growth. I could see myself investing in a company developing some kind of medical device or research, a nonprofit of some kind with a mission I believed in, or something along those lines. A large portion of any lottery fortune would also go to charity, and after years of attending and trying to build up small churches, I think it would be an incredible blessing to be able to help finance a small church plant and ensure they have the finances to continue building for years to come. In Orange County, real estate is at a premium and rents are through the roof; a lot of church plants that have gotten off the ground have done so by having a generous benefactor basically provide them with a building (either to own or to lease at a steep discount), which is what allows them to gain their footing. It would be great to have the funds to be able to purchase a few buildings and then transfer them to churches in the community, free and clear. No matter what way it plays out, though, I definitely see any big lottery winnings I may happen upon as more of an opportunity to invest in and give to others, rather than an opportunity to live large. I don't need to live in a fifteen thousand square foot mansion, or to drive a Lamborghini Revuelto around town, or to have libraries and other buildings around town with my family's name on them. I'd rather invest that money in something that could do some good for others, whether it be direct charity or building a company that would employ people and take good care of them. |
Prompt #2: The World Economic Forum has found the average adult will outlive their savings by approximately a decade. What are your best tips for wise spending and saving? When it comes to finances, I really only have two pieces of advice for good practices: 1. Save before you spend. 2. Don't spend more than you make. For that first one, take a lesson from religious folks who tithe... whatever it is you can afford to put away for a rainy day, do that before you spend money on anything else. In a lot of Christian circles, it's called "first fruits," something you set aside from the first and best of whatever you make. In the agrarian days, that used to be a reference to an actual portion of your crops or whatever it was that you made your livelihood doing. These days, it's usually the money you bring in for doing whatever it is you do for work. The best thing you can do is set a realistic amount of money that you can dedicate to saving every time something goes into your account. For most people, ten percent is a good target. So if you take home $50,000 a year, aim to put $5,000 in savings every year. If your biweekly take-home pay is $1,120, aim to put $112 into savings as soon as that paycheck hits your account. Saving money is a gradual thing, and if you can develop a regular habit of doing it, those little sacrifices now will pay big dividends later. Which brings us to the second point... Don't spend more than you make. That sounds trite, but it's amazing how many people don't follow that advice. Who regularly live beyond their means by charging things to a credit card, or taking out loans, or borrowing against their assets. And while some of that is inevitable because even the most thrifty of us are unlikely to have cash-on-hand to buy a house, or a new car, or to deal with an unexpected expense like a medical emergency or a business opportunity, a lot of people will extend themselves on credit to maintain a lifestyle beyond their means. One of the things that my parents always stressed to me was the importance of having zero debt as often in your life as possible. Interest on debt can be a killer, where you end up spending many times the principal on servicing the interest on the debt. Aim to pay of your credit cards in full every month. Have a goal of not taking on debt until you have to, and when you do, to paying more than the minimum and paying it off as quickly as possible. That's it... those are my two pieces of financial advice for anyone looking to make it to retirement with some money in the bank. Oh, that and putting money in a retirement account. Compound interest is magic, and you're unlikely to regret any money you're able to squirrel away in a 401K, IRA, Roth IRA, or other retirement vehicle where you're getting a decent return and the dividends keep getting reinvested and build upon themselves over time. |
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