Life on the Spiral

NIN "Sin" (Uncensored )

2011-02-14T12:24:00.003-06:00

Nine Inch Nails: Sin (Uncensored) (NSFW) (1990) from Nine Inch Nails on Vimeo.

Down In It NIN

2011-02-14T12:23:00.002-06:00

Nine Inch Nails: Down In It (Remastered) from Nine Inch Nails on Vimeo.

Head Like a Hole remastered for 2011

2011-02-14T12:13:00.001-06:00

Nine Inch Nails: Head Like a Hole (Remastered) from Nine Inch Nails on Vimeo.

Tesla coil Mario theme

2007-11-05T01:04:00.000-06:00

New production from Trent Reznor and a great new artist

2007-11-01T00:39:00.000-05:00

The Military Industrial complex as warned by President Eisenhower

2007-10-08T10:54:00.000-05:00

Life on the Spiral

2007-09-24T23:16:00.000-05:00

At Ocktoberfest.

2007-09-22T08:03:00.000-05:00

So I managed to start a conversation with some girl at Oktoberfest, she was wearing a Flying Saucer Bar shirt. Anyway we got to talking about God, I don't remember how we got to it, but I'm sure I freaked her out or at least made her question how could I go to Catholic school all my life and come to believe that God looks at humans kind of like pets. She was not amused. I didn't intend to annoy her (though I seem to to do so, I'm just a bit too adventurous in my topics I guess), I just wanted to have a quasi philosophical conversation, but apparently that was too much for her. She commented that I was very pessimistic (before she knew that I was raised Catholic, and before I knew she was Catholic) I responded that, humans are just animals with a bit of intellect and ingenuity. We really are ridiculous in many of our daily pursuits if you step back and think about us as a species, I mean look at the majority of our behaviors, absolutely ridiculous, it makes me think about that South Park episode where the boys learn that Earth is the object of amusement for the entire galaxy of alien worlds. We must look ridiculous to any more evolved lifeforms.

We are not special...

2007-09-16T22:25:00.000-05:00

What is more disturbing to you? The idea that human thought is primitive or that our thought processes could be seen as primitive to an older extraterrestrial species? I had a sobering thought the other night sitting around with my friends drinking beer and watching tv. We're all just evolved apes sitting around in clothes watching, interacting, laughing, and crying with other apes. Have you ever thought about the simpleness of speech? Its the same basic idea as blowing over the opening of a bottle, vibration of atoms in the air. The screen you're reading this stupid note on is just a conglomeration of mixtures of tiny dots of Red, Green, and Blue. Why do we exist? What possible purpose can we as organisms be fulfilling? I believe in God, a higher being with some omnipotent purpose, but I wonder if he cant seem to think of us the way we think of our pets. We must look ridiculous! Some fool animals acting all superior to other animals just because we alter our environment and try to act like we don't have instincts and base pleasures. Its so stupid that people try to fight what they are. I'm not saying that we shouldn't try to control ourselves. Animals don't have sex all the time, they have to survive and interact with their environment, but we shouldn't fight our biology with ridiculous social morays. I believe in the human race, I think that we can make a future for ourselves in the universe, but as a species we need to decide what is more important? The economy or the future of our planet and the species that share it with us. People need motivations to live and care about stuff. Communism doesn't work. There are a few inventions and global behavior changes that need to occur for this species to coalesce and move beyond our social and biological fragility. We need a clean self sustaining power source, free or at lease cheap power will clean up the environment and allow food production to be improved. cheap power will allow for easier manufacturing and recycling and improved and eased transportation. Global transportation is the only way to open the minds of everyone on the planet, for them to see how other people live. The more we appreciate how other people live and the things they bring to our lives the less we fear them. There is nothing worse than not knowing anything about someone else, our minds create truths for us to preserve our lives, an evolutionary leftover that seems to do us more harm than good in most cases. We are not special as a species no matter how we look at it. It is up to us as individuals and as a species to make ourselves special and worthy of existence in the universe. I hope that my generation and the next can move farther than the previous generation in uniting the planet, not so much politically but more as friends. That we can let go of our fear of the unknown and realize that our day to day social problems are stupid and not worthy of our time or at least not the amount of attention that we give to them. I think a big step forward would be to stop the cookie cutter ideal of education for children and encourage their creativity instead of squashing it with medication and overbearing rules.

Henry Rollins rant.

2007-08-03T12:18:00.000-05:00

The Biggest lie...

2007-06-18T10:51:00.000-05:00

The Biggest Lie In History - These bloopers are hilarious

Bush gets his watch stolen in Albania

2007-06-12T13:08:00.000-05:00

This is a great ad

2007-06-10T22:30:00.001-05:00

awesome Tank Man documentary

2007-06-09T13:27:00.000-05:00

amazing safari video

2007-06-09T11:52:00.000-05:00

Awesome tsunami video

2007-05-25T17:10:00.000-05:00

Scientology hurts the world.

2007-05-15T20:27:00.000-05:00

For the special girl in your life.

2007-05-09T22:16:00.001-05:00

Anchorman as 300

2007-05-09T18:51:00.001-05:00

Meeting God

2007-05-08T02:00:00.001-05:00

Amazing feat

2007-05-07T23:15:00.001-05:00

Martial art movements

2007-05-07T23:14:00.000-05:00

A humorous skit on a very real problem in America

2007-04-17T11:32:00.000-05:00

Snl_dontbuystuff
Uploaded by shosterman

Crazy Asians...

2007-04-15T15:44:00.001-05:00

My favorite is the old man at the start, he just doesnt give a damn...

Dr. Phil soundboard prank call to scientology office

2007-04-15T15:34:00.000-05:00

Scientology is a dangerous cult that breaks up families and ruins peoples lives by force feeding them lies and BS. It is a pyramid scheme masquerading as a nouveaux religion.

I thought this was well done.

2007-04-09T01:26:00.001-05:00

O'Reilly being an idiot

2007-04-06T14:12:00.000-05:00

A great example of a talking head who uses an event for the wrong purpose.

awesome !!1

2007-04-05T03:41:00.000-05:00

Simpsons Evolution intro

2007-04-04T11:01:00.001-05:00

"My Humps" by Alanis

2007-04-03T00:25:00.000-05:00

Incredibly dumb creationists

2007-03-27T20:41:00.000-05:00

This is the dumbest argument by creationists, what is amazing that anyone would take this as a useful point. Honestly, using opened cans of peanut butter as evidence, PLEASE! These people just need to say what theyre concerned about, namely that they see America having a moral quandary. These creationists live in a fairy tale world where history and evidence means little or nothing. I consider myself a follower of Intelligent design, but that means that I believe in the big bang and evolution. One can have faith while accepting physics, chemistry, biology, evolution, and mathematics. These creationists need to understand that even the ancients knew not to take the holy texts as absolute truth, only the most deluded or dumb took it for the absolute truth. The religions of the middle east were developed by people living largely nomadically, in patriarchal societies, were involved in frequent warfare. The texts of the middle east should be appreciated for the lessons and advice given, but we cannot allow ourselves to take them for the true history, especially when we have science to tell us how things work.

The End of College

2007-03-05T16:04:00.000-06:00

So Im a senior on the edge of graduation. Im ready to move on to graduate school. Ive had my fun but I want to get my financial independence and do my own thing totally. Ive got lots of things to start saving for, house, cars, tuition for my own kids. My college years have left me very different than I was when I started as a freshman. I am much more technically adept, Im not afraid to repair appliances or furniture myself, and Ive stopped worrying about a lot of things that made me depressed on occasion. Ive learned a lot about my own body, what supplements will improve my skin, my moods, and overall health. Im a better cook through much trial and error. I think I understand women just a little better, but Im still lost. I have to say that Im a bit more pessimistic about the world than I used to be, probably because I know more about human history now. I know that the next three years in law school will fly by and Ill be an attorney before I know it, but I look forward to the life experiences that will come, I just hope that I know what to do somewhat when these things happen.

Linux video

2007-02-23T23:08:00.000-06:00

If you are wondering about the current state of possibilities with Linux here is a cool video of video capabilities.

Drug Advertising & death in the US

2007-02-23T19:31:00.001-06:00

Prescription drug deaths skyrocket 68 percent over five years as Americans swallow more pills

Geek humor

2007-02-14T11:07:00.000-06:00

Awesome GUI

2007-02-08T00:58:00.002-06:00

http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid271543545/bctid422563006

The Boston Guerilla Advertisers for ATHF

2007-02-07T00:01:00.001-06:00

Angry Vista Customer

2007-02-03T23:43:00.000-06:00

This is what happens when someone has been pushed over the edge by a company...

Net Neutrality

2006-12-18T17:31:00.000-06:00

"man constructs according to an archetype"

2006-12-12T01:34:00.000-06:00

When Mireca Eliade said, “Man constructs according to an archetype” he was commenting on the underlying themes that all of our stories share. There are certain ideas and images that pervade the human consciousness and that manifest themselves when we tell stories. These archetypes are easily recognizable and depending on how they are used can instill fear, love, anger, or allegiance to a character or a real live leader.
I believe that archetypes are very much alive in our world today and that we cannot escape them. From history I see that every leader who has been able to grasp the power of the archetypal figures and ideas has been able to rally his respective people and do great or terrible things, but most importantly, that leader is remembered and becomes part of the collection of archetypes themselves. Man does not just construct his reality through archetypes, we live archetypes whether we know it or not. We create groups for ourselves with certain characteristics that we must meet in order to belong to said group. The characteristics make each individual adhere or identify to much older archetypes which evolve with men, but we can always find our way back to the original.
The Original figure of each archetype is immortalized and to varying degrees others come along and copy the actions of the original and make new the original, the power of that individual is strengthened even more by the underlying history of the archetype they fit into. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein has several strong references to much older archetypes and it also creates a new category based on older ideas. The scientist Viktor Frankenstein fits into archetype of Prometheus, Viktor attempts to harness a power reserved for God and only regrets his actions when his fruits of labor destroys his life from the outside in. Viktor also becomes the original mad scientist who acts without considering the possible consequences or the morality of the action. In Michael Crichton’s Jurassic Park, geneticists recreate dinosaurs from DNA sealed in frozen mosquitos, one character remarks that the scientists were so preoccupied with the idea of whether they could they didn’t stop to think whether they should. Ultimately humans have to deal with the most powerful archetype of God, we fear the power but we yearn for the power to create and to yield that power to control what is uncontrollable. We construct according to an archetype because we long to be gods ourselves, when we create a powerful idea we share some small part of that dream of being a god.

Existence and Power

2006-12-12T01:32:00.000-06:00

How scary can it be to really realize that you exist? For so many of us we take it for granted and accept the distractions of modern life without really thinking about the mystery of our own individual existence, and what it means to ignore our senses and turn inward to ask, do I really exist, and furthermore for what purpose and why continue if I actually do exist? There is something to the question in that in asking whether I exist I do not cease to exist at least as far as I know.

A bit off subject but relevant is the question of why others feel power over others by controlling them in some fashion? Control through means of brainwashing, distraction, lies, leverage, training, etc... What need does control over others satisfy if satisfying at all? What effect would ensue if people who long for power stopped and thought about their need for power and control of others?
It is important that I make a difference between leaders and manipulators. There are leaders who lead because they care about the progress of their people/followers, then there are those who manipulate their followers to do their bidding and accumulate property or services.

What would happen to the world if tomorrow all of civilization had access to unlimited energy and food (through replication) eliminating the need to farm or ranch? Energy independence would bring down the number of jobs that employ energy workers in oil/gas/electricy. Farmers and ranchers would be nearly extinct except for people who wanted to grow gardens or live like their ancestors. It would remove a whole section of the worlds economy and perhaps stabilize some conflict areas.
With so many people in need of a job to serve as their purpose in life, we would need a new industry, something easily learned. Of course there will be people opposed to the change, even if it is for the greater good of mankind and the planet.

A headline in the Guardian

2006-11-07T20:10:00.000-06:00

"Lawyers poised as US vote hit by technical glitches"
This disgusts me. I have no problem with ethical lawyers or trying to iron out voting issues, but throwing a rabid pack of party biased lawyers at each other trying to claim vote fraud on the other side is not going to solve anything and is an absolute waste of time and money from both parties and the population of the United States. These damn voting machines seem to be causing nothing but problems and the alleged tampering with computer code is unacceptable. Hijacking voting machines is absolutely unacceptable and the penalties are not harsh enough. It is a threat against our republic and threatens this nation ruled by the people. When a political party sees voter fraud as a means of holding onto power instead of working to satisfy the voters and keep their confidence we have lost our democracy and we have lost our way. When this vote is over congress needs to harshen the penalties on vote fraud and have the same company that writes software for the Space Shuttle and life support systems in hospitals write the damn voting machine software. No glitches! Double check votes so that people can fix mistakes before submitting their ballot. We need to remind more of our politicians and bureaucrats that they serve us and not we them. There is little room for big egos in politics. I hope that more voters come to realize the difference between true leaders and egotistical opportunists.

The future of 3D video

2006-11-02T21:23:00.000-06:00

A thought from the Movie Donnie Darko...

2006-09-10T15:15:00.000-05:00

So I got to thinking about the thing Roberta Sparrow tells Donnie "Everything on this earth dies alone." I wonder if I will feel alone when I come to the end of my life. I dont believe that I will, I believe that I will feel connected to the universe at the time I leave my body many years from now. The beauty and the complexity of the universe tells me that the Universe was no mistake. Perhaps we were created in order to give God an idea of what it is like to be an imperfect being, I wonder that since God is and ever shall be that the one thing he doesnt understand is what it is like to be mortal. It seems stupid even still cause I would imagine that He would know the feeling through Jesus or any other being He inhabited on earth. The one thing that I truly dont understand about all life is why we were created. I feel that it is a gift, but why create life in the first place? Was God lonely? Did the Angels not serve as good as men and women might? I know that this is an answer that I am not meant to know until I have passed on. And I may not care about the answer once I do, I may find solace in the life that I lived, the people I met, the children I will raise, the love that I will share. The next time you want to appreciate your life, just drive out to the country and sit out under a clear sky and look into the sky and try to imagine all the 782 billion light years it takes to get from one edge of the universe to the other. Think about all those stars and galaxies, the eternal race with time that all matter and light will encounter as it moves through the Universe serving its mysterious purpose to exist. I find peace when I think about all that, when I see pictures of stars and other galaxies, when I feel the suns rays on my skin in the late afternoon or the wind touching my skin. My oh my the repercussions of butterfly wings...

This is just too cool not to post...

2006-09-07T22:25:00.000-05:00

Heres a little something that might blow your mind...

2006-09-07T21:51:00.000-05:00

Frank Zappa on Crossfire

2006-08-31T13:06:00.000-05:00

Best view of middle east problems Ive found

2006-07-31T10:01:00.000-05:00

Zurich

2006-07-20T13:03:00.000-05:00

So Im in Zurich Switzerland on business, actually meeting future business partners. The weather has been beautiful, and the food is as good as I remember. I went hiking with a business partner outside of Zug, I missed the mountain air and the views so much. I have another 7 days before I go back to the states, and I still have to find a few things for family and friends. Gotta bring back some Swiss wine since you cant find it stateside, one of those little "CH" stickers for my car, and a few other little things.

Mens Shaving

2006-06-21T01:43:00.000-05:00

As Ive gotten older Ive learned a few things about shaving. Just because its new and flashy doesnt mean its gonna give you a great shave. Now that Im getting into my mid 20s my beard has gotten thicker and more difficult to deal with, which means that gilette Mach 3 just doesnt cut it. I tried switching to Schick quatro and those worked ok, a little bit better than gilette anyway, but the cartridges are just too expensive for the job they fail to do and how few shaves you get out of them. I decided several months ago to go old school, so I went to Crabtree and Evelyn and got myself the good badger hair brush and shaving soap and noticed an immediate improvement in closeness of the shave and much fewer bumps and little to no irritation. But the blade cartridges still werent lasting long enough and I still had a shadow around my chin. I remembered that I had my grandfathers old safety razor buried in my bathroom drawer and decided to give it a try. To my surprise its the closest shave Ive had since I started shaving in high school. Its taking a bit getting used to, but the results are great. I no longer have a shadow on my chin and can run my hand up my face with little resistance. It just goes to show me that sometimes the old way is still the best, so Ill definitely think a bit more before I jump for the new and improved over the tried and true. Using the old style blades is definitely much cheaper and theyll last even longer if you keep them dipped in 3% peroxide between uses and help to keep the face clear of bumps. So if you find an old razor and feel that youre not getting your moneys worth out of your Gilette or Schick, try the old razor and youll be surprised.

wow

2006-06-13T00:12:00.000-05:00

So I just took the June LSAT. Glad its over, all that prep with Kaplan was killing me, but they did get me better prepared than I would have been if I had gone in cold. Now I can really enjoy my summer. Im on vacation in Nantucket with my family. Meanwhile other things are looking up, OSX and Linux are getting some well deserved attention and I keep learning more and more about my Apple, UNIX and linux. The internet just keeps evolving at such a wonderful rate and I am so thankful to be alive and have access to such a wonderful tool. My mind just soaks up all this free information and I get so interested in all the science and sociological changes that are happening because of the internet. I just wish more people would try to not be so afraid of technology, I have met so many people who are more than capable of learning about their computers, electronics, and would benefit from wading just a little further into the net. Im literally swimming in it these days. Hope everyone is having a great summer. Peace.

Nudity...

2006-05-05T03:34:00.000-05:00

Why are we so concious about being naked? We are born naked, so why do we comport ourselves in clothing? For one part it is to conceal our sexual organs, which is understandable as its not exactly prefereable to have genitals near food. What my concern is our society's foolish problems with sexuality. Sex is natural, we believe it was created by God and that He said it was good. So why do we constantly infer sex or portray it in clever ways or use it to sell materiel goods? Sex is not something that has to be hidden, what is neccessary is that people understand its use and do not abuse it. We should not fear explaining it nor seeing it portrayed in movies and tv. Sex at its core is about procreation, what man in our "concious" state have made it simply about dominance and made it ugly. Dominance is a dangerous concept for man, it begets violence and warps our institutions and creates enmity. How much more peaceful could the world be if people were not so bent on dominating others? Sex should not be abused, like anything it can be addictive simply for the pleasure it brings, but pleasure is a basic experience and repeating an action simply for pleasure makes us more like the lower animals.
"Consider your origin; ye were not made to live as brutes, but to pursue virtue and knowledge."- Dante; Hell
I agree wholeheartedly with that statement. Acting like animals pushes us farther from God, or at least a higher purpose, cause without purpose we might as well just all destroy ourselves. Everything in moderation is the way to live life. Do not allow any material thing to rule your life, whether it be sex, cigarettes, heroin, marajuana, gambling, etc... Accept that in life there will inevitably be suffering and that nothing you do will ever fully remove loss in your life, but appreciate life for the gift that it is. Dont feel compelled to buy into the rat race to give your life meaning chasing after the possibility of fulfillment on earth. Be naked once in a while its a freeing experience, do not think of it as shameful or degrading, just natural and beautiful. But exercise good judgement in all you do and do not force your beliefs on anyone just because you believe your beliefs are the answer.

A hopeless romantic

2006-04-22T23:16:00.000-05:00

What does it mean to be a romantic? What is it like to be one? Is it healthy or wise to be in love with love?
I think that being a romantic consists of appreciating each day, stopping to smell the roses so to say. Its about finding the beauty in life, appreciating how mysterious the universe is from the creation of a star and its solar system down to watching a leaf float on the air as it falls from its branch.
What would you do for love?
People do lots of crazy things for love. The two extremes seem to be self destruction and the other (which I prefer) is self realization.
Self Realization you ask...
What I mean by that is the possibility of finding your purpose in life, raison d'etre. I think that too many people feel that their job is supposed to be their calling in life. I propose a different idea of a life calling. I realized that what I want is a family of my own. I want to be a husband and a father. (Not immediately mind you) In due time of course. But I realized that there are few things more beautiful than life, than being responsible for another person. It seems that most people today being responsible for another being is horribly terrifying to them. I guess I just want to be apart of something more than just myself. Not because I feel alone in the universe. I just think that loving someone else more than yourself is the only real way to be happy.

wierd dream and doubts

2006-04-18T15:04:00.000-05:00

I feel strange today. I got 7 hours of sleep, but it was my dream this morning that has put in a bit of a funk. It was a sequal to a dream I had several weeks ago in which I dreamt that I got a girl pregnant and we decided to have it and raise it ourselves. And this morning it got really depressing cause her family moved her away from me cause they didnt think I was capable of being a good father or they were still mad at me for getting their daughter pregnant. Im not sure what a dream like that is supposed to mean to a 22 year old guy. Maybe I have some feeling in the back of my mind that Im frustrated about not being in full control of my own life, and trying to deal with the new kinds of responsibilities that are being placed on me and what Im taking on for myself. Maybe I need to take some days for myself after I finish this semester and ponder my life and get things in perspective. I thought I had a pretty good handle on my life, but it seems that wasnt the case. Growing up is a bitch. Can you remember what it was like to be seven and to be oblivious to the problems in the world?

hmmmm

2006-04-17T21:51:00.000-05:00

So Im down to the last 9 days of school this semester. Im so tired, so drained. This semester has been a mix of fun and pain. Summer cant get here soon enough for me. I have lots to do and many places to go this summer, I just want to be able to enjoy myself and deal with as few problems as possible. I think that I need my personal space again and a good bit of Tender, Loving, care. It'll be good to spend time with my friends again. At least its warm again, if it was cold I would really be miserable. I need some time to unwind and enoy the silence and a quiet mind and a good nights sleep. I hope everyone else is having a decent enough time these days. I think I need to stop reading the world news, it depresses me too much lately.

Do you ever wonder...

2006-03-07T13:17:00.000-06:00

Do you ever wonder what your life would be like if you didnt have your parents and friends guiding you to certain professions? Today I started thinking about my aspirations in a different way than I usually do. Foremost I want to be a husband and father, that role is what I know Im meant for. As a profession my parents have tried to carefully guide me into being a tax attorney which doesnt bother me, interesting clientelle, good money. But I feel like Im lacking in adventure in my life. The idea of being a helicopter pilot in the armed forces blowing things up, playing with big machinery seems like a fun time mixed with a good discipline and skill set. I would also like to be a cross country truck driver, I love to drive, the idea of seeing all those miles of America gives me chills of excitement. Big highways, beautiful scenery, small two lane roads through the desert or forests appeal to me on a very spiritual level. I know that as a tax attorney I will be able to provide much more for my family and friends and being a father is sure to be all the adventure I will need, but my young heart yearns for a little excitement (that doesnt involve getting hit by cars or falling off cliffs). I guess Im frustrated because I dont feel like my old self, Im dealing with some new emotions that Ive never felt before and I actually thought that whole emotional crap was over when puberty ended. Maybe Im thinking too much about this. Maybe Im just upset about a test I thought I did well on and want to escape from that shock. I guess its kind of hard on me to not have a private space for myself right now, my roommate is always around and his tv habits clash with my study time and space. I think I can fix that easily enough, I just wish I had dealt with it earlier this semester. Also Im managing to get myself into an exercise regime, actually noticed more stamina yesterday while swimming, but having trouble with my lower back while rollerblading in the park, guess its just been too long since I used those muscles and asking too much of them on short notice.

The nice stuff

2006-03-05T23:10:00.000-06:00

Its amazing how much better some things can be when you spend just a little more $. How much better wine or liquor can be when drank from fine crystal, or how much closer your shave can be with good soap. It takes experience and research to develop good buying habits. Sometimes its fine to buy cheap, I personally love the $1 marble cover notebooks without the metal spirals, theyre small and durable, perfect for college classes etc. Other things like my computer or music player, nothing but the best will suffice or I felt like Ive cheated myself. I love my Macintosh Powerbook and iPod, well made with excellent software, and very dependable. The most important thing to remember is that no matter how much you accumulate, its never enough and that to be truly happy we should seek solace in our God/higher power, our families and friends, cause thats all were left with when tragedy strikes. Enjoy life, but dont give up ever, tomarrow is another day. Your fate will reveal itself to you in due time, its left up to us to choose how we live our short lives on this planet.

THE WORST MOVIE EVER MADE!

2006-03-03T23:31:00.000-06:00

So I just wasted an hour and a half of my life to see "Ultraviolet". I have never in my whole life seen a movie that made me so mad about wasting money and time. They didnt even try to make it a good movie. Every scene was made with computer generated backgrounds, the fight scenes tried to copy great scenes from other movies, but fell horribly short. It was always overkill and blurred the action or focused on a small area that it killed the moment. I have seen better B movies on showtime or starz that held my attention better. I waited patiently for the whole movie despite my better judgement in the hope that it would improve or I would be proven wrong. DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME EVER IN YOUR LIFE TO SEE THIS MOVIE. Warn your friends, warn your family, warn your dog, do not see this movie, do not buy or rent the dvd!

Post Mardi Gras

2006-03-01T17:50:00.000-06:00

So it started off good, had lots of fun from Thursday to Saturday, but then on Sunday just as I had spent an hour looking for a parking place and gotten out of my jeep, a woman caught the edge of my back door and ripped it forward. So being unable to leave my jeep with the door open I had to drive home to my apartment and find a place to fix my door and make a claim with my insurance. Monday I spent dropping off my car and then came home and cooked dinner. Tuesday morning I got to the parade and found a decent parking spot for my rent car and got to the parade and proceeded to get lit up. It was a fun day, but that night amazingly couldnt find anyone to go to the quarter with me. Now I have a day off before classes start again. I guess Ill celebrate my birthday with some friends on friday night, not like thursdays are a great night anyway.

back in school

2006-01-21T23:25:00.000-06:00

Well Im back in New Orleans, how I missed her so. School is moving right along into week 3. All my classes require massive amounts of reading, and Spanish Literature is stretching my spanish abilities. At least Im learning what each teacher is asking for now on quizzes and daily. To all who read my rants Im sorry I have not updated in a while, I will try to post more this year. I would also ask that you readers leave me posts so I know at least someone is reading them or that someone has interest in my thoughts in even the slightest degree.
Well I hope everyone had a wonderful New Years and best of luck and health in 2006. I spent my break in Manzanillo, Mexico with some good friends from boarding school and got to meet my new God daughter.
Anyway to all a good evening.

History in the making

2005-11-16T22:41:00.000-06:00

Blogging is evolving into a world changing action.
http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=174300636

Even House Speaker Dennis Hastert has a blog
http://www.speaker.gov/journal/index.shtml

The Sony reversal is monumental if you think about it. Previously consumers had to go through several intermediaries or use the court system. The idea that thousands of bloggers could scare Sony into ordering a recall on a DRM CD blows my mind. It speaks strongly on the new found powers of consumers and the importance of freedom of speech and the internet.

Pissed off

2005-11-11T19:54:00.000-06:00

Am I the only person in the US who is generally pissed off how the world is described? Seems like everyone is perfectly fine with being told the whole world is going to hell. I just dont buy it, sure its not perfect, there are politicians and corporations without ethics, people do drugs, people drive drunk, people get cancer, families break up, women have abortions. But what kind of message are we sending to those that are younger than us? Give up now cause were giving you a FUBARed world.
Despite all the shortcomings of my life, Im genuinely pretty happy most of the time. There's no point in being a pessimist cause life is short, and all to often humans either dont cherish life till its at its end or at all. I thank God for my stupid little life, no matter how insignificant it is in the galaxy. As higher beings were are given amazing things to ponder on whether we know it or not. Free Will. Why did God invent it, seems like he just created it and decided to let man figure it out. The meaning of life? I know my purpose, I dont claim to know anyone else's other than my family members. And no Im not going to tell you cause so far the people I've told tell me Im weird and crazy, and granted I am very weird and eccentric, I still know something they dont.
What about Love? Is there anything greater in life, yes it causes pain and heartache, but think about it, does anything else create true happiness despite that it hurts when we lose what we love. Would we really appreciate anything if we always had it? I dont think humans do, we dont appreciate our gifts, we dont tell our loved ones how much we love them near enough. How many people realize their purpose in life? All too often I think its right in front of us. But I think the origin of a lot of unhappiness is that people dont act on their purpose because they are afraid of the unknown. I say bring it on, take a few chances in life you may surprise yourself. I'm not talking about driving drunk or doing drugs. But what about that trip to Tahiti? That offhand date invite to the pretty girl in class?
Now to drama. I hate drama! All too often I see people creating drama for themselves by making stupid decisions and giving into temptation. Dont cheat on your spouse, dont cheat on your girl or boyfriend. Dont start a fight if someone steps on your foot. Treat others the way you would like to be treated, and dont worry those that always seem to get away with everything will get theirs, its what lady fate lives for. She loves to teach people humility.
Power. What is it that human history teaches us? Those in power always fall from it, either through death, vote, war, or a revolution. Those that live by the sword die by it. In a world of extremes, doesnt it make sense to be a moderate? Honestly being modest never hurt anyone, moderation never killed anyone. Im not advocating being a boring person, just dont be in a rush to grow up, die, live, learn, etc... Life comes at you faster than most people can handle it.
Dont talk trash, because the more you do it the more probable it is that that person will find out about it, and then "you will be in a world of s__t."
Sometimes its frustrating being a history major because those who study it are doomed to see it repeated over and over.

Post Secret

2005-11-06T15:39:00.000-06:00

http://postsecret.blogspot.com/

If you are looking for something amusing or thought provoking, check out Postsecret Blog.

Life in the capitol

2005-10-21T23:23:00.000-05:00

So there was a bomb scare on capitol hill today. It was pretty weird to be so close to something like that. But I was never concerned for myself and overall it was a very slow and quiet day, I was almost falling asleep while waiting for the phone to ring, and dealing with back pain from leaning over file cabinets to file mail. But I still really like my internship and I look forward to it all week.

Creationism & America in the world

2005-10-14T03:07:00.000-05:00

With all the hulabalu going on in this nation about creationism being taught in school theres a simple solution. Sunday school people! Indoctrinate your kids in sunday school like how your parents and grandparents were taught. That way teachers can spend more time on more important things like math and science to keep this country ahead of the chinese nad europeans.
I think it is a bit of a stretch to take for total truth a creation story written by a few lonely men in small communities living alone in the desert. So much of the bible was written that way, small groups of men trying to make sense of their existence and make the most of their days. Today is not the past and we should look to the bible as a moral highground, not as the absolute truth. Those stories are meant to be guidelines, and they are good guidelines to live by. But like everything in life take them with a grain of salt. The human race would not be as advanced as is now if we had followed absolutely everything in the bible.
And also as children of God we need to stop killing each other in his name. Jesus and Buddha preached peace and forgiveness, but we as a society practice grudges, horrible war.

"Consider your origin; ye were not made to live as brutes, but to pursue virtue and knowledge."- Dante; Hell

The other day Pat Robertson, a supposed disciple of Jesus was advocating the assassination of the President of Venezuela. What kind of Christian does that? We need to look at the positive things he has done for his people, improving their lives and education for the children of the country. The media has lots of poisoned stories planted by oil companies to discredit his advances in venezuelan society. US citizens need to be more vocal to US companies and let them know that we wont accept their unethical practices in other countries which reflect badly on the rest of the country. Their actions paint all Americans as heartless, uncaring, and unethical people. If we want to improve our relations with the third world we need to make sure our large corporations act with responsibility and ethics in poor countries and not take advantage of those people.

News choppers

2005-10-06T19:31:00.000-05:00

Today on the news their helicopter was hoving over a landfill where a body was found. The picture was live and it went on for about 30 mins or longer, not really sure as I stopped paying attention. I began to think about how much they spend on fuel just to cover an unchanging scene. Seems like they could have recorded about 10 mins worth then moved on instead of having a live image of a dump site and a few guys lingering around a blue tarp. come on US news conglomerates! How about using some footage of international news that doesnt always involve an explosion or looting, molotov cocktails, or some boring summit. There is plenty of footage and stories around the world.

cut the mullet

2005-10-06T18:37:00.000-05:00

So I was watching COPS on court tv on mute this evening after simpsons and amusingly enough 2 kids get busted shoplifting and trying to run, when the cops get the kids up against a fence I notice that both kids and both cops have mullets. 4 guys with mullets, I was wondering if there was a WWE convention in that town. Honestly how can anyone anywhere find a mullet attractive to look at?

October 3, 2005

2005-10-03T16:56:00.000-05:00

I had some time before a speaker at a media research center downtown on 15th street so I walked over to the national plaza and sat in the shade of the Washington Monument, It never seems as big as when your standing right next to it and you see how big the stones are and how tall it is.

I was walking down a closed off street to traffic and all of a sudden I was behind the White House. It was a bit of a surprise for me as I wasn't expecting it and I dont remember all those buildings around it, I never remembered the National Treasury being so close to the White House but apparently its been there for quite a while. (Thank You Alexander Hamilton)

the irony

2005-10-03T16:54:00.000-05:00

I thought this was ironic. In that they used wood to help a young tree grow up straight.

death

2005-09-18T19:23:00.000-05:00

Ever notice how cemetarys are made out to be so scary in movies and cartoons? How society is so afraid of the dead coming back to life when so much of christianity is based on some guy who brought another guy back to life and then later himself? Crazy double standards...

hmmmfff

2005-09-14T17:43:00.000-05:00

Im too conservative for college...Is it just that Im realistic, not idealistic as everyone else my age? Have I seen enough of the world to see how things are? Have I given up on paradise on earth? Is there something wrong with me or with everyone else? I seem content to work with the system Ive been given, to make my niche in the world and to work behind the scenes, make alliances and friends to change the world subtly.

Anyway, I didnt get an email so I was able to walk around the Capitol mall, I went into the Aerospace museum, revisited some exhibits havent seen since I was 12.

America Today

2005-09-09T19:52:00.000-05:00

Why is it almost everytime we turn on the news in this country we are bombarded with so much bad news? It seems like no one has anything to contribute but sarcasm and criticism. The few positive stories are typically dumb, cute crap, is that supposed to make me feel better? Maybe its part of the tragedy of human nature that we are grossly interested in death and suffering. It seems to me that giving of oneself is almost dead in this country. We are a nation with something like 60-70% church attendence, not to mention the jews in temples, the peace loving muslims in mosques, or the buddhists, who are probably the most peaceful people on the planet. The vast majority of people living today need to find out the beautiful feeling of loving someone else more than themselves. Stop trying to convert everyone to your views on life. To your politics, etc... Just accept them, appreciate them for the things you do like. Waste less, tell people the truth always, but always be fair

Washington DC

2005-08-24T17:56:00.000-05:00

Well Im in DC now until December 17. I went and explored the main campus and picked up my AU ID. Not as many pretty girls up here, but it doesnt really matter, I doubt Ill have much time to flirt. My apartment and roommate look like theyll work out. The only 2 other things I have to worry about are my classes and my internship. I have to figure out the Metro very quickly.

back to school

2005-08-18T17:11:00.000-05:00

Well the end of August is finally coming and Im having tons of fun, but its coming to an end. I just wish I could have another month of summer. Ive had lots of surprises this summer, and met lots of interesting people, driven all over Texas and through New Mexico and Colorado. Helped 4 friends and one brother move. Ive read plenty, learned tons of computer stuff. I feel really good about life, I know where I want to get to and what I want in life. I have lots of great music to listen to and absorb.
Washington DC should bring its own surprises and lessons. Im not excited about living there, and I hold no expectations. I know my time up there will fly by and itll be Christmas in no time and then ill be in Mexico if everything goes to plan. Im sure Ill have a lot of free time for reading and learning new skills as I wont have a tv in DC, but ill be fine with my powerbook and an internet connection. I do love the internet, I can find just about anything I want to learn about or listen to or watch anything.

software

2005-08-10T18:26:00.000-05:00

Ive been surprised recently with the amazing products that Google and Yahoo! have been giving away for free. Google's desktop search and Picasa, their photo management software are very formidable pieces of software for windows. Yahoo!s recent purchase and release of Konfabulator (www.konfabulator.com) has brought widgets (mini desktop applications) to windows.
Its nice to see computer owners gaining more control over their machines. The era of 'netizen' is dawning with so many people writing their own blogs. I recently started my own as you can see. Its a great way to learn about your friends and family. How they think, what concerns them, it will ultimately give us a better understanding of ourselves and each other. Maybe the internet will finally do what religion has been trying to do for eons. Bring people together and build a community of respect for each others beliefs and thoughts and promote understanding and tolerance.

discovering music you already own

2005-08-10T18:18:00.000-05:00

Its lots of fun to go back through old CD cases and listen to CDs youve owned for a while and find that you have lots of great music that you didnt appreciate when you first got the cd. My problem was that I would just listen to the big singles and add those to iTunes.
Its amazing what music does for so many of us. It gives a release of pressure, helps us think about things in a different light or an altogether new subject. What bothers me sometimes is how some artists will use their popularity to brainwash so many people to bring them to their side, and those people dont even really think about how they feel about the topic, sometimes it isnt the artists fault and who can blame them for trying to bring attention to something, I just dont have much respect for people who cant think for themselves or develop their own opinions.

priorities

2005-08-09T18:05:00.000-05:00

Why is it that for so much energy we expound upon trying to not feel alone we end up feeling further apart from another or even the things we think we need or want. We seem to search for another being or things to fill a void in our lives to complete us. Some people seem to find their soulmate, being so young I wonder if I should actively search for my soulmate or let fate carry me through life. Fate is a funny thing, to an extent we can make our own but so much is just meant to happen to us because of Karma or something else To me it seems that we should surrender ourselves to God everyday. Humility should be a part of our lives everyday.

The Future

2005-08-09T00:53:00.000-05:00

All too often I find myself thinking about my future. Wondering about getting into Law School, making a living, whether I know my future wife or if Im still waiting to meet her, what our children will look like and what that adventure will bring to my life. I keep having to plan every 5-6 months of my life to make sure I have planty of "doors" open to me in the future. Im almost confused as to whats really important to me right now. I love to party, but I know that I have to keep my eye on my goals and keep my head straight to get the things I want. The end of school will not come soon enough, but that will bring its own new set of problems. The one thing I really want in life is a family of my own, to watch my children grow up and provide them with even more than my parents gave me. Im sure God will lead me through this adventure called life and Ill end up with more good memories than bad ones, and Ill have plenty of "good pictures in my head to take with me" (to make an allusiion to 'Meet Joe Black').

My senior pic from 2002

2005-08-08T02:47:00.000-05:00

growing up

2005-08-08T01:03:00.000-05:00

time has sped up so much since senior year of high school. Its amazing how fast years go by now. So many great things happening to me and my friends as we grow into men, go through college and relationships with women. Im glad Im not afraid of growing old like so many people seem to be. Another day another year is just another experience to be had in this life. The trick is that for as much as we try to control our lives, its important to let go of a lot of control to really live and have great memories.

human relationships

2005-08-08T01:02:00.000-05:00

It is interesting to look at human relationships as we grow older. The problems we create for ourselves, seeming to make things become more complicated by not making the right decisions. We lie to ourselves, our family and friends to try and get things we want but usually just end up hurting ourselves or loved ones or both. Also we as a society spend so much time lusting after the things we dont have, men thousands of years ago learned that lust can be a very dangerous thing and can destroy or help us waste our short lives leaving us with a life of unfufillment. We look for other people to try and fill voids in our lives and souls, when what will make us feel better is to put everything we are into another person who will do the reciprocal. All too often we let our animal instincts rule us and they get us into positions we dont want to be in. My philosophy is to not take anything too seriously, not to let any woman I get involved with carry any false hopes about me. I like to keep things simple by telling the truth and to always mean what I say. I know how it feels to have my heart broken and I wish it on no one else. Love life and cherish every moment.