Living in the Fridge [Weird Al]

we wish you a merry kitchenmas.....

so this year, instead of the usual $25 limit we place on gifts for each other , we decided to go all out and get new appliances. our dishwasher was shooting craps - the rack was rusty and ruining our silverware, it didn't really seem to clean so well anyway, and it was plain old boring white. Our range was un-level (not to be fixed, no matter how much i tried) and didn't hold heat so well. Also didnt have self clean - who has a range w/o self clean in this day and age?! The fridge was fine, but if you replace the other two, might as well do them all. We got some mid-range whirlpool units, in stainless steel. Fridge has water and ice (and ice bin in the door- strange, i know) It also has fancy blue LED lights, and warning tones, and some sort of ESP or sixth sense that will detect hot food and ramp up the cooling for a while. The dishwasher needs some sort of drying agent, which we didnt realize when we bought it, but what are you going to do about that? Range has self clean, and some sort of semi-convection whatnot, and is a newer flat surface technology than the last one we had, which is good. Also it is a cat magnet, for some reason.

Apparently the new thing is SS with grey/silver sides ("monochromatic" for those in the know.....) Since the range and dishwasher had bits of black (lots of it in the case of the range) we wanted the fridge with the black sides - which is a special order, apparently. rather than wait on all three, we had the range and dishwasher delivered together, and the fridge schedule for later. The range and dishwasher came on the 10th, the fridge came this past weekend. The range was "installed" when it was delivered - the dishwasher just lived in the corner of the kitchen in the box (which the cat loved) till this weekend. I wanted to get the new fridge in and the old one out before i started to monkey around under the sink. Everyone is in and working now, but it was a bit of an adventure.

Here are some things I've learned regarding new appliances:

-measure your old appliances, then measure the hole they were in, then measure any and every opening or hole or hallway you plan to bring those appliances through. I double and triple checked the openings in the kitchen cabinetry, and then we almost didn't get the fridge up the stairs or past the half wall.
-if you think you can "just take the door off the hinges or pop out the sliding door" to make delivery easier, double check that you can actually do that. i though i would just work that sliding door out and make it easy on the delivery guys - no such luck - could not get it out of the track. didn't realize that till they brought the stove onto the deck. oops!

-delivery guys hate, HATE, split level houses.
-delivery guys are crazy. they'll try anything, like wiggling a fridge through an opening with 1/8 inch clearance on either side.
-delivery guys are not necessarily the best people to "install" anything. plugging in a stove and sliding it in the hole? no problem. attaching the water line to the fridge - apparently rocket science.

-energy star appliances, while efficient, run more and longer than old appliances. our dishwasher cycle will range anywhere from 1.5 to 8 hours, says the manual. i guess they've gone to higher water pressure and lower hp motors. same with the fridge - "don't be concerned if your refrigerator cycles on more frequently than your old one" thanks, instruction book. i actually would have been concerned, but now i wont be.
-
no matter what your confidence level, it might just be a good idea to have the store install the dishwasher. new dishwashers have a tall tub, which means the motor and other workings sit closer to the floor. also, they maximize the amount of space they fit into - and every fraction of an inch helps. and good luck keeping that insulation tight to the unit. i think we've got plenty of it bunched up near the opening, and none in the back of the unit. the house wasnt very cooperative, either - here are some things to think about: did the old homeowners install new flooring at some point, but stop short of the dishwasher hole - that's gonna cause a problem. did your house settled a bit, and now your opening isn't 100% square and true? that's gonna cause a problem too. our house had both of these conditions, and about 1 hour into installation, i was ready to just tear out the whole kitchen and start over.

-it is my recommendation that every one of you make it a habit to open and close your shut-off valves (all of them) at least once a year. i think maybe even twice a year. Every time you adjust your clocks for daylight saving time, give the ol' valves a workout. the one for the dishwasher didn't quite close all the way, and neither did the hot water shut-off on the water heater - ever tried to install equipment while your pipes were leaking? that made the electrical hookup really interesting.

-if you get a new fridge, take all the stuff out of the old one, put it in a cooler till the new one comes to temp, or throw it away. whatever you do, let the delivery guys get the old one out of the house. or get yourself an actual furniture dolly. mine doesn't have the small wheels or the fancy glides, or straps. so we dollied the fridge to the landing, couldn't get the dolly out from under it (thanks, giant wheels), so we took it back up, then me, Karen's dad and the neighbor just tipped the fridge back and carried it out of the house like a dead body.

but they're all in, they all work, and they look great, so it was all worth it, i guess. though now i believe what they say about stainless steel and fingerprints.

hope everyone has a good holiday. stay safe, and warm, and don't kill your families.

Mother [Danzig]

forgive me if i've been remiss in my duties as a blogger. i'm spending my time doing things around the house and spending time with friends and family. i say those like they're more than what they actually are - but still, it's some sort of reason for being absent. i feel like i dont have cool things to blog, now that i'm back at home living the normal life with my wife and cat. i'm sure i could think of things if i tried - and maybe i will.

for now, i want you to have this song. while my relationship with my mom (both parents, actually) is a bit strained, it doesnt mean i'm blind to the emotions or connections that should be there. somewhere deep down they probably are there, really, but it just takes some digging to get there. regardless of my own situation, this song speaks to that relationship between a mother a son, and it chokes me up every time. it makes me think of Love You Forever by Robert Munsch, which i also cannot get through without tearing up.


Aloe Blacc - Mamma Hold My Hand

Beg for It [Chris Brown]

You may remember from this post that i love me some remixes. Also, i love covers (but have posted far to many to link to). This musical gem is both a remix and a cover, and i am currently in love with it. I liked it enough as it was, but when finding out it was a cover with remixed tendencies i was super excited.

The cover/remix is by a Norwegian hip-hop group. The original is Franki Valli and the 4 Seasons (from 1967). I'm pretty sure video 2 is actually from a recent show - I can't seem to find an upload of the actual original recording.

Hope you like it.

Run Like Hell [Pink Floyd]

i don't do marathons, or 1/2 marathons, or 5k runs, but i would totally do this one. It's a 5k run that happens in Baltimore, with obstacles, mud pits, and zombies. Contestants strap on a flag football belt and run, willy-nilly for the finish. If you make it to the end with one of your flags still attached, you "live".

check it out:


Run For Your Lives 2011 from Alexander Turoff on Vimeo.

Don't [Jewel]

this has got to be the worst song of all time. this is a band (?) made up of a husband and wife duo, and their friend, who is probably thinking he wishes he would have never told them he could play drums. enjoy!

Jungle Boogie [Kool & the Gang]

It's a sad hold over, but it's what i've got for now. have this video, from the guys who brought you smooth criminal. they've just released a CD, this is the next single - as if string remakes of popular songs actually make the singles charts.....

I Want You Back [Jackson 5]

There's a series of CDs out there called Verve Remixed which are chock full of goodness. It's a lovely mix of classic songs from Verve Records, remixed by many of today's best (and totally unknown) DJs. There's also the occasional DJ that we might have heard of in there, too. This collection has led to a rash of imitators - i'm looking mainly at the Pink Martini crowd - bu there are others as well. I honestly don't care about who started it, or who does it better - i like it all. So when i found out there was a group doing other remixes, i had to check it out. There's Motown Remixed, and there's also a series called Remixed and Reimagined. In Dallas, one of the teachers had the Motown Remixed CDs, and I borrowed them and fell in love. Here I present to you one of my favorite tracks off the first CD.

Race Car Ya-Yas [Cake]

remember when i got a job and moved back from dallas? well, right after coming home with a trailer full of stuff, i also bought a new car. not, new new, but new-to-me. It's a very low mileage 2008 mazda 3 hatchback - much to the chagrin of our neighbor, who is all in your face about american cars - but i've loved every mazda i've ever owned, from the first family car, to Danger Bob, to Rio, and now this currently unnamed dream sitting in the garage. KTO has also loved her mazdas - all in all, they've given us long and trouble free service, so we're a mazda family, i guess.

Anyway, contrary to the above testimonial for mazda, i did plenty of research on cars. i am still doing some post-purchase, cause it's a fun hobby? i don't know why, but it's interesting, the similarities/difference between the car lines. I'm really starting to notice the cockpit layout of other cars. I'm not saying mazda is the winner, but i recently rode in a mini cooper, and they are definitely not the winner.

i'm also noticing more of my car (the new one) on the road. they always caught my eye, but now that i have one, they seem to be everywhere. there are 3 that even share most of my commute to work. i don't come home at the same time every day, but most days there are 2 other ones that are going in that direction at the same time as me. i think it's common to notice other people in your car, but i'm really aware of it now, because the car is new to me and because it's a more stylish car than Rio was. plus i like seeing what types of other people have purchased the car - it seems to be a pretty big demographic.

what i've also noticed is that regardless of their age, race or sex, i tend to mentally race them as we are driving. whether they know it or not, whenever two or more are gathered, it's on. (attention KTO, I don't actually race them) generally in my mental races i win - largely because the race is one-sided, but also because i do have a bit of a lead foot. and, this car is nearly twice as powerful as the last one, so it's got the ability to actually race, if the need arose. m my last car i could probably have taken on a vespa scooter, and that's about it. if the AC was on, forget it. The downside to all that new power is that it means more gas. I net the same overall mileage on one tank of gas, but this tank also holds about 3 more gallons - so my actual MPG is around 4 or 5 less.

However, i wouldn't trade it for the world. because now i can win those races.

Coming Home [G. Love and Special Sauce]

I'm late, I'm late, for a very important date!

Well, not really. But I am behind in sharing good news with you. As you may have guessed from my earlier post, I'm no longer working in Dallas. While I was home for the break in between quarters, I had a few interviews. One was a phone interview with RTKL in Baltimore. We talked for about 1.5 hours, and I've heard nothing from them. Another was a Skype interview with Gensler in Washington DC. Let me tell you, skype interviews are awkward. It was better than a phone interview because I could flash my winning smile and also get some body language feedback, but it was just strange. You cant really make eye contact with skype, cause the camera is above the screen, which is what you're looking at. They sent me a follow up email a few weeks later, letting me know they were going to go with a local candidate. Or they just said that to make me feel better? I did have an actual in-person interview as well, with a St.Louis company that does retail work - fast food companies and mall-type chain stores. I got an offer right before I had to go back to Dallas, and after a short bit of decision making, I took the St. Louis job. It's less design work than I'm used to, but it's good exposure into retail work, and it's local.

So that's great - I had a job in St.L. But then I had to quit my job in Dallas, 5 days before the new quarter was supposed to start. That was a bit nerve wracking. I called my boss and she pretty much knew what was going on - I mean, why else would I call during vacation? I offered to come down and help transition (my version of the 2week notice) and after talking about it, she decided it would be easier for the kids if they just started the quarter with the right teacher, so I wasn't required to go back down to teach. I did go down for the first week to make sure the replacement teachers had the right info, etc. Also, to pack up all my stuff and move it home.

When I had my final meeting with my boss she cried, which was a bit uncomfortable. She told me I was good fit with the group and she was sad to see me go. She also told me that she liked my style and my energy, and that she heard nothing but good reviews about me from the students. She said that at some point in life I should go back to teaching. Then she got upset with me for not letting her know I was looking for another job. Apparently in the teaching world, you tell your boss you're shopping around. That goes contrary to anything I've ever heard about job searching, so clearly I didn't tell them anything. We did talk about how it was kinda obvious, since KTO had only been down once to visit, and how we weren't putting the house on the market or anything like that. After that, I drove home, and didn't look back.

I've been home for almost a month, and it is great to finally put an end to the dallas adventure.

August and Everything After [Counting Crows]

08-11ws, a photo by joshuaMLoliver on Flickr.

august's calendar. a bit of a return to nature for this one.


next up, july's big news.

Down and Out [Kid Cudi]

here is a link to a collection of stories/emails from people who have faced long term unemployment. I didn't spend a lot of time telling friends and family how terrible being unemployed was - I always took the good humour, positive outlook approach. I don't know that anyone can fully understand until they've been through it - and that's something i wouldn't wish on my worst enemies. This collection does a good job of highlighting some of the thoughts and feelings that you go through while you're unemployed, and also reveals just how tough the market is for some people.

down but not out

It Is A Crime [Sade]

here's an interesting link to a in interactive website depicting the time that crime happens in various US cities. You can seek out specific crimes, and the page will rearrange according to frequency.

time for crime

Dallas [Steely Dan]

I've been waiting to post this link since I moved down to Dallas, and now I get to. Don't pay attention to all the lyrics, just focus on the chorus, which is my favorite part right now.

I'm sayin' goodbye, bye, bye, Dallas;
I can't stay.
Should have been at the palace
Yesterday
Bye, bye, Dallas; got to go

That's right, the Dallas adventure is over. OVER!

Changes [David Bowie]

So i've been not posting lately, despite my promise to post more. I apologize, but it's for a very good reason. There have been a slew of changes going on, and this weekend I will address them all. for cereal.

The Heat Is On [Glen Frey]

Grilling. It's never really been my thing. Don't get me wrong, i like a good grilled chicken sammich, but in general, take it or leave it. My lovely wife, on the other hand, could exist purely on a diet of grilled chicken drumsticks, i think. When we lived in separate apartments, she had a tiny little weber grill - so small you had to put it on a table or hunch over it to cook anything. and, while charcoal is better (so they say) it was a pain to work with, cause it could take forever to get the thing hot, then good luck trying to cook enough food on that tiny surface area. when we bought the house, we upgraded to a big ol' 4 burner gas grill, with upper rack, additional side warmer, etc. it was a big deal for her to move from charcoal to gas, but we actually grill a lot more with this thing, cause of the ease of use.

Thing is, i don't like to be outside in the summer sun, standing next to a giant flaming heat source. Also, I dont like to have little pieces of burnt on my food, which tends to happen on the grill. Char marks - no thanks. and, as it turns out, yesterday i also singed off most of the hair on my right arm. so grilling for me is a bit of a challenge. i try to be supportive - "sure honey, let's do chicken on the grill" but i'm really thinking "i could just as easily eat cereal tonight".

When we have people over - more in the past, less now that i live 600 miles away - we cook foodstuffs on the grill. it's just the way we do things around here. normally that's brats and dogs and burgers. while i might not care for grilled food, i do like to experiment in the kitchen. at our cook-outs people have been introduced to my creations, in the form of "world famous burgers". i figure a catchy title makes the fact that it could be a disaster go down a little easier. in the past i have made jambalaya burgers, Hawaiian burgers (pineapple inside the burger) and just yesterday we had taco burgers.

so far, i think its a tie - jambalaya burgers were a big hit. hawaiian burgers not so much. yesterday's taco burgers were a mixed bag - most people said they liked them, but some people said it in that 'my mother taught me manners' way, and i had one myself (obviously) and it wasnt what i expected or intended. so i'm calling the score 1 win, 1 loss, and 1 tie.

I've got some other ideas for "world famous burger" recipes, but i'm willing to take suggestions, too. how about it, dear listeners? any crazy burger ideas living in those heads of yours?

also - hope you all had a good 4th of july.

Firework [Katy Perry]

2011-07WS, a photo by joshuaMLoliver on Flickr.

2011-07WS-ALT, a photo by joshuaMLoliver on Flickr.

look, i've been absent for a little while. sorry about that. the quarter ended, there was all sorts of training and prep for the next quarter, etc. i know it's no excuse, but let me make it up to you with a new set of calendars for July? these are widescreen, but if you follow the link you can get to a standard sized one as well.

hope that makes it better - more soon, i promise.

Use the Force [Jamiroquai]

not as cool as the olly moss ones, but here are some other star wars posters by Jan Skácelík that are neat in their own way. also, much cheaper and still available to purchase. click the image to go to the etsy shop.

I Put a Spell on You [Screamin Jay Hawkins]

English as a second language? More like 3rd or 4th. Because this is an art school, these students don’t have to take basic classes like english, math, behaving in public or wiping their own butt. The lack of skill/training in the latter two is evident in the everyday interactions I have with them. They don't think for themselves, which is generally frustrating, but at times it’s downright infuriating. They want everything given to them.

”Are you going to print that for us?”
“Are you going to put it on your t-drive?”
“Will you make copies for us?”
“How do I open that program again?”
“You're faster than we are, can't you just do it for us?”
“How do I XXX in cad again?”
“Can you look at this before class so I can change it before we turn it in for grades?”
“I won’t be in class because I'm getting veneers – I’ll turn my stuff in next week”
“I have to catch a plane for a vacation. Can you give me the test early?”

Every. Single. Day.

The lack of other skills is evident when it comes time to grade. In some classes they have to do a little research and writing. Generally it’s brief – writing design concept statements, basic design/period timelines and assessments, etc. However, at the end of the program they also have to do a portfolio, and in this portfolio they have to write explanations of their projects, as well as an overall design philosophy.

This past week I had to review portfolios as well as grade final projects for the senior class. I also caught up on some grading for furniture class, which included some writings. In addition, soon to be seniors have been submitting their proposals for projects, which we have to review. The argument I get from them is that they're designers, and they don't need to know how to write. Or that writing doesn't matter, the focus is design.

I wish they would submit PDF copies of everything - then I would share with you the horror. I understand that they are students, and we really should be focused on their design education, but I personally believe that being a functioning adult is a good thing. When they get to senior level, their projects and portfolios are being presented to professionals. Because of this added pressure, they freak out so much when you edit their stuff, and I think that's largely our (the schools) fault. We are told to grade for content of writing, not for quality or clarity. This doesn’t help them to learn or improve. They spend 11 quarters turning in drivel, and then at the very last minute we spend 11 weeks trying to explain the importance of professional writing. Good luck there.

I don’t think my frustrated paragraphs can really describe how bad it can get – but here are some examples. All of them are for reals – not made up.

Principals of Design.
Patrician walls.
Pass-though window.
Cabenits.
Light fixteur.
Clear story windows.
Chandeler.
Igress.
Inress.
Manufacture's instruction.

And, finally, my personal favorite:

bookshelve. you know, the singular form of bookshelves.


Next week, I’ll share some of the best "design solutions" that have come across my desk.

Lazy Day [The Moody Blues]

today i'm phoning it in. flew home last night for a quick visit (and also for a late celebration of KTO's birthday which was earlier this week) and the inflight magazine had an article about music. So, here is today's music friday post - 40 new-ish artists, and 40 free song downloads from itunes. Enjoy.

40 free songs from Southwest Airlines

today we have two performances, from some unknown/lesser known singer/songwriters. They're both gaining popularity, but this is a "Before they were Stars" offering.

Marcellus Hall - Laughing With You.



Joy Williams - Say Goodbye (plus bonus song). This is the girl half of The Civil Wars, back when she was a solo artist.



also, V - have you seen this? Jorge and Alexa - Be My Baby

Calendar Girl [Neil Sedaka]

Some time ago I started making desktop calendars. Then I stopped. Apparently I've started again. Here is June, ready to be placed on your computer and stared at for 30 days. enjoy.

Working Class Hero [John Lennon]

Aside from what I've formally trained to do, in my life so far I've done a number of other things for money. Every job helped to shape my attitudes and ethics at work. And reflecting on them all, I realize (more than ever) that I love the career I've chosen - even if I can't do it right now. And I don't see how people back in the day just changed careers so easily - even if I didn't like what I'm supposed to be doing, other professions are so choosy that I can't even get a foot in the door.

But, back to that that non-career job list. Since the age of 15, I have:

bagged groceries
worked at 2 different Dairy Queen restaurants
washed dishes in a local pizza joint
made sandwiches at Mr. Goodcents
shelved books in a library
worked overnight at a textbook warehouse
worked at/co-managed a bowling alley
sold clothes at The Buckle
roofed houses
worked as an outdoor TV cable installer
stocked the backroom shelves at Target
taught interior design to a bunch of spoiled brats

It's not the most exotic list - I'm sure some of you have done crazier things. It's not even a really long list. It's just my list. And like I said, it's shaped the way I act and perform as a working adult. although not every action at every job was the smartest. at those various jobs listed above I have:

stretched the truth to get a job (Mr. Goodcents)
stretched the truth to quit a job (Mr. Goodcents)
been let go for 'insurance purposes' (pizza place)
quit without notice (bowling alley)
quit after arguing with the boss (bowling alley)
been accused of nepotism (the second Dairy Queen)
made out on company time (the second Dairy Queen)
used company resources to job hunt (bowling alley)
nearly severed a tendon with a rusty knife (roofing)
nearly fallen off of a ladder (roofing)
used my place of employment as my own personal playground (bowling alley)
turned down a promotion by quitting (target)
moved 600 miles from home to do a job it turns out I really dislike, but am now stuck in (take a guess on this one...)


next time, let's talk about bagging groceries.

Give a Little [Hanson]

apparently the Hanson boys are back (actually, they have like 8 studio albums) This is the second single from their newest album, and I'm not ashamed to say I am absolutely in love with this song.

Macho Man [The Village People]

to go along with today's raspy voiced singers, we have some bad news about a raspy voiced wrestler and "meat snack" spokesperson. This morning Macho Man Randy Savage died at the age of 58. When I was younger I used to watch a bit of wrestling (what little boy didn't?) and I can still recall a fair number of wrestlers from the 80's and 90's. Even though he was never my favorite, he was pretty memorable in the classic WWF lineup. I had a brief moment of silence for him earlier today when I found out.

If they didn't taste terrible and cause heartburn, I'd snap into a slim jim as a sign of respect. You'll be missed, Macho Man. Oh yeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaah.

The Voice [The Moody Blues]

This week's music friday is all about the voice. While i love the music/lyrics in these selections as well, the common theme is a raspy, gravelly voice.

first up, tricky. i dont love trip-hop, but i love tricky. this song is off one of his best albums, and it just feels like a late night driving in the rain type of song.



next, rob dougan. we've heard him before, in instrumental form. his album is strange but beautiful. it's generally a classical/electronica mash up, and also makes for good driving music.



lastly, tom waits. he's a take it or leave it type guy. i'm still deciding if i'm going to take him or leave him, but i love this song - lyrics and music (horns, of course)

Paper Walls [Marc Cohn]

are you kidding me? this is crazyness. can you imagine the time it took to do this? I kinda want one for my house.

some french lady cuts things out of paper

Say My Name [Destiny's Child]

So the other day I sent an email to my father-in-law, giving him some info on a memory card adapter for his phone. I was unsure how to start the email, so I went to my standard fallback, which is Mr. Last Initial. He responded to my email with his normal brevity, and signed off with his first name. Now, I'm sure at some point in time he told me to call him by his first name. I dont remember it happening, but it must have happened. I know I have done it a few times, but mostly I get by without having to call him anything - it's just "hey" and "howdy" and "sir" the like. Same with the mother-in-law. it's either Mrs. Last Name, or it's "ma'am" It's not that I'm uncomfortable with calling them by their first names. Okay, actually it is. Also, I don't know that I feel right calling them mom and dad. Now I have no problem saying things like "happy mother's day" and "happy father's day" Strange. I talked to KTO about it, and she told me I was being silly - which i already knew.

We talked about how the "Call me XX" conversation would have went, and how we could both hear/imagine him saying it. Then she said that he probably even made a lame joke like "call me X, or call me Dad, just don't call me late to dinner" - and i said that i couldn't imagine him saying that. it's something i use, but i don't picture him using it. so that brought us to the topic of how I'm similar to her dad in some ways. We call this the Fat Father Syndrome - which was taken from this (the source starts at 2.35, but the rest of it is worth watching, too):



Now sometimes they (whoever they are) say that guys marry their mothers and girls marry their fathers. I know without a doubt that KTO is nothing like my mother, except they are both super awesome at making peanut butter sandwiches with a smooth, even peanut butter spread, and the same goes for their cake frosting skills. other than that, nothing. But did KTO marry her father? We both make up answers to things, we both use some of the same not-quite-swears (god bless america being a favorite) we both have randomly and unnecessarily short tempers at times. Maybe she really does have FFS.


--------------
video from S3E3 of the cartoon Home Movies, one of the funniest shows to ever be shown. check it out if you don't know.

Obvious [Blink 182]

Not very original, but this week's Friday Music Post songs are about Friday.

while i don't care for the video/still shot, here is our first song:



and here's our second. Sometimes I wish I had Robert Smith hair:

friday i'm in love

sorry, had to link it, cause it wont let me embed, but this is the official video, so it's the one i want to share.

*edit* if you look at the last few music posts, i'm all over the cure. i like them, but not as much as you would guess by my posting.

Fast Car [Tracy Chapman]

So today, as a special mother's day treat to myself, I went to the theater and saw Fast 5. That's right, I said it. I paid money to see the 5th installment in the Fast and Furious franchise. And I'm not emabarassed to admit it.

As a movie goes, it was okay. not terrible, not great. As a movie about fast and/or furious driving, it was slightly less than great.

If I were to rank the franchise in terms of overall movieness, it would go 1, 4, 2, 5, 3.
If I were to rank them in terms of fast and/or furious driving, it would go 1, 2, 4, 3, 5.

The thing about fast driving movies - the FF franchise, or the Italian Job, or pretty much anything with Jason Statham in it - is that when the movie is over, and for the next 3 or 4 days, I tend to drive faster/more aggressively than normal. This doesn't happen with other types of movies - i don't think I can beat people up after fighting movies, I don't think I can hunt and kill humanoid aliens with infrared vision and creepy faces, I don't think I can pull off bank heists (actually, I do).

The driving thing happens because it's actually something I can do well. I don't really think that I can drive like they (the stuntmen) do, but I can drive confidently, and I know how to handle my little 4 cylinder import. Being that this "driving bug" falls upon me after movies, I sometimes think that I need to get a big old clunker of a car for my next vehicle, just to keep me from zipping around like a jerk. but then I think, where's the fun in that?

And since my little car is almost ready to retire, I've spent some time tonight looking for a new car to race around in.

Roads [Portishead]

Music Friday, 2 days late. I feel like i've been on a bender - I meant to post actual things this week, but my face has been full of sinuses, so i've just been sleeping and working. next week will be better i (dont) promise, but i almost guarantee.

From Yesterday [30 Seconds to Mars]

I wrote this yesterday. forgot to post it. oooops.

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I'm sitting in the airport listening to some corporate d-bags talk about all sorts of stupidity. I don't know where I'm going to end up once I get out of this stupid job, but I feel pretty certain that wherever I go I will probably not end up working with people like this. People like this don't really exist in my world. maybe it's because we're a creative industry, or maybe i've just been lucky. whichever, I'm certainly glad that's the way it is. Also, listening to their conversation makes me realize that I love our friends. I realize these people are coworkers and maybe not friends outside of work, but i have to think even our friends don't have these types of inane conversations with their coworkers. as a collective group, we're too good for that.

Anyway - The trip home was as nice as it could be with a face fill of sinus problems. I flew home Thursday night, did yard work on Friday while KTO was at work, then we celebrated our anniversary (a few days late) with a really good g. love concert. One of his best recently, and maybe his best I've seen (maybe). Also, we had an after show snack at Cicero's, where we encountered Jason and Jackie, some 20 year old newlyweds. They were there because Jason got a new job and his coworkers were throwing a going away party, and one of their little friends was hilariously drunk. That kept us entertained while we waited for food.

Saturday we celebrated homeownership with some friends by eating delicious gyros at The Majestic. And we also won (and immediately spent) a $25 gift card from The Container Store. Sat afternoon my sinuses kicked it into high gear, and by Sunday I felt line my face was 2x as big as it already is. Saturday evening was hanging out and eating sushi - two of my favorite things. Sunday afternoon we went to a bday party for a friends baby boy, and while we were there we got a quick surprise visit with designerjules and her family.

The sinus issues aside, it was a great visit - we have a fantastic relationship, if i do say so myself, and despite everything we've been through, we've entered our 4th year of marriage in good spirits. Things are bound to go our way soon. And, if we can make it through the last 2.5 years with no (or minuscule) issues then we can make it through anything.

Milk It [Nirvana]

My milk expired yesterday. I made a smoothie this morning with it (still smelled okay) this is what i turned around and saw after blending with my magic bullet. as KTO said,
WHAT. THE. HELL.

I Come From The Water [The Toadies]

really. REALLY?

check out this house. is that necessary?

Spirits in the Material World [The Police]

I was doing some file organizing/cleaning on the computer and came across this story. I apparently saved it out of an email I sent someone, and I'm glad that I did. While it has nothing to do with Dallas, I thought I'd share it because it's time to post something, and I've got nothing else right now.

but also, it's a 100% true story, and it still creeps me out.

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The Backstory:
we were house hunting, had already fired one agent because she sucked, and this was one of our first outings with agent #2, who had been recommended by someone KTO worked with.

The Scene:
A vacant house in a slightly older neighborhood [an established suburb] in the city. Approximately 3.00 pm Saturday afternoon. When our agent called the listing agent to arrange an appointment, she was told that we could go anytime, the house was vacant. So we went at the above mentioned time, almost at the tail end of our house hunting for the day.

What we understood about it before we went was that it was a 3 bed, 2 bath ranch house with a basement. 1 car garage. The homes in the neighborhood are pretty much identical, little shoe-box type homes.

What Went Down:
We enter the house after fumbling with the lock box thing—it was cold and somewhat icy, so the lock boxes hadn’t been working very well. It is one of those enter directly into the LR type homes, typical of pretty much everywhere. The current owner had just refinished the wood floors, and I mean just. Maybe 3 or 4 days prior. The house smelled of stain and polyurethane.

Being a vacant house, there was no furniture in the LR, save a small 3’x3’ folding table where agents sign in, and house info is stacked up. There was nothing in the fridge, no beds, no toilet paper, nothing in this house. Since no one was there, it was about 60 degrees inside, pretty typical for other vacancies we had been in.

The LR connected to the kitchen on the left side of the room, and turned into the dining room at the other end (picture an L shape). The garage entered into the dining room on the right wall. The other end of the dining room entered into the kitchen. The bedrooms and bathrooms were down the left hall past the LR and Kitchen.

We walked around the LR, into the dining (5 minute for both rooms) and then the kitchen (another 5, easily), and then we went into each bedroom, having to turn on all lights as we went. We opened every closet, and probably spent at least 10 minutes looking at the bath and bedrooms. There was carpeting in each bedroom, but tile in the bath and wood throughout the rest of the place.

We went back to the kitchen to go downstairs (the stairs were on the same wall as the entrance to the dining room (they were behind the back wall of the dining room) We spent another 5 minutes in the kitchen, talking about how well it would work for us, and comparing it to other kitchens we had seen. Then we turned on the basement light, and we started down the stairs (which had no door to close them off from the kitchen area)

About 1/3 of the way down the stairs is a landing, and the door to the backyard (the lot slopes from the front of the house to the back). we fumble with the lock for a minute or so, trying to get it open. Finally we do, and out to the back we go.

We look around the back yard a bit, but not much b/c it is cold, and the lot is well fenced, so we can tell what the boundaries are. Then back into the house, and KTO and I go down the stairs while the realtor closes and locks the door. At this point we had been in the house for about 1/2 an hour. I was the first into the basement, so I just started to look at the nearest thing, which was the bathroom/laundry room.

The stairs to the basement end about 3’ from the back corner of the house, so to get to the laundry room I had to do a 180 and walk back along the stairs until I would have been under the kitchen. There were walls that pretty much replicated the dining/kitchen/LR walls upstairs (making the same L shape) so after my 180 I was looking at a door to the bath/laundry, and then wall, and then the opening to the long leg of the L.

So I go into this room (turning on the light as I entered) the room was retarded since the toilet and sink were to the immediate right, the waterheater and furnace were dead ahead, and then along the wall past the toilet and sink was a short little wall, then the shower stall, then the washer and dryer. The back of the room was open to what looked to be a storage area (at this point we couldn’t tell)

The realtor was still messing with the back door, so Karen and were discussing the oddness of the utility/laundry/bathroom when all of a sudden we hear laughter, like programmed sitcom style. KTO asked me if someone was in the house, so I said “Hello?” like anyone might do. We got no answer, but the sitcom laughter happened again, so I said “HELLO!?” louder. At this point I heard someone say “Goodbye”, or maybe just “Bye”, I wasn’t sure. (KTO confirmed the response part about 3 hours later, after we were done with houses for the day. We didn’t discuss it prior to that)

I am starting to get a little freaked out at this point, so we go back to the stairs, which was good, b/c the realtor had just come down stairs. She looked at me like I was retarded for saying hello, so Karen was trying to fill her in while I went around the corner of the utility room toward the back of the basement. That is when I saw the girl.

She was in the back room (About 15 feet away from where we were standing) the part that connected to what I thought was storage) She was probably between 16 and 24, pretty mousy looking. Through the doorway into the room we could see a couch that she was sitting on, and a lamp beyond that, and part of a desk or something that a TV was sitting on. We could not see the TV, only the glow from it. She was sitting Indian style on the couch, rocking back and forth a little bit while watching TV.

The realtor came around the corner and made this little gasp noise, and the said in a rather loud voice “hello?” I repeated hello as well, then the realtor said “we’re sorry, they told us it was empty. Did anyone tell you we would be coming?” we got response, so the realtor took a few steps toward the room and said hello again. The realtor and I both looked at each other like the situation was nuts, and then started to walk backwards to the stairs. Then the girl turned her head about 15/20 degrees in our direction (so obviously she could see us out of the corner of her eye)

At this point I was done, but I said hello a few more times, and got no further response. The realtor said that she was uncomfortable, and we all agreed to leave, so we went back upstairs, turning off the lights as we went. We got into the car, and the realtor called the listing agent to let him know what was up. She left a generic message and we all rode in silence to the next house.

When we were almost there, the other agent called back and our agent told him what had happened—she put it best when she said “after several tries we got no response from the girl, and we certainly were not invited into her space” the listing agent told our agent that “occasionally the family that owns the house has another family member that comes to stay at the house” and that “someone should have informed us of that when we made the appointment” and that was all he said on the subject. No further explanation as to why she would visit a vacant house, or why she would not respond or react after hearing AND seeing someone in very close proximity to her.

My gut says she was ‘special’ and maybe not even supposed to be in the house.
KTO's immediate response was “why would they lock her in there?” and the realtor just kept saying “that was really uncomfortable”. We all agreed that the story from the listing agent seems bogus. Obviously we also agreed that we would not be buying that house.

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Shortly after it happened I kinda wanted to go back to see if it would happen again. But I also believe in not pushing my luck. Plus, even being substantiated by the 3 of us, maybe it didn’t really happen, or maybe the girl was not a part of this world anymore. Re-reading the summary right now, I get chills.

KTO said that the whole time, even after we saw her, it seemed like the place was empty, that there was no life there. We all felt that way walking in, and looking around, and walking out. It was so cold, and freshly clean, you almost couldn’t even picture people living there. The whole place was uninviting and sterile, and the fact that we were in there, making noise for over 1/2 an hour before we went downstairs, turning on lights as we went, and still never heard a single thing until we were near the utility room, that is what really does it for me.

The Love Cats [The Cure]

Today is a face/off. (face, off? Face. Off.) of one of my favorite songs. i just cant not be happy when i hear it. for your listening pleasure, first the original, then a cover (which i think works rather well)

your thoughts?





ps - don't be swayed by the tons of awesome kitty photos that come with the original version - it was the best video i could find.

pps - try as you might, or might not, you can't actually sync the two up. the tricky version is about 3/4 the speed. i tried a few times, but it never really stayed lined up. it was a good thought, though.

Fashion [David Bowie]

On Friday I attended Cre8, the new name for the annual fashion show held by the DFW chapter of IIDA. Actually, my boss (the department director) myself and another teacher attended the event, but oddly enough, the other teacher who actually leads the student group (I'm now a co-chair, it seems) couldn't attend for questionable reasons.

So the school has a student chapter of both IIDA and ASID, as well as countless other organizations (RDI, NKBA, etc) it's all rolled into one overall group, but the primary membership is IIDA and ASID students. And when I say that, I mean that of the 6 students that are members, 3 are IIDA and 3 are ASID. Apparently it's really hard to drum up interest, 1.) because these are spoiled brats who don't understand networking at all because they've never had to work for anything on their own, and b.) because this is a commuter school with retarded hours, students don't want to spend their 1 free hour between classes in meetings, or they don't want to drive to a meeting on a day that they don't have class.

So all of our members participated in the Cre8 event, and their outfit was actually pretty good. I don't know who won the event because we actually bailed early - it was still going strong at 9.30 and I think my boss was sticking around cause she thought I wanted to be there still - but what I learned is that it's hard to network for the school when you don't want to be in the area, and even harder when you are embarrassed to be associated with the school (no fault of the fashion show students, just the general student population I've been dealing with)

On Saturday the awesomeness continued, as I was assigned to present during an open house. They hold these things all the time to drum up enrollment, and apparently the faculty rotate through - since I'm new, the decided that I should attend this one. That's all well and good, but they didn't tell me what to do or say, just gave me a slideshow of student work and said "It's easy, you'll do fine." So what I learned is that just like with networking at IIDA events, it's hard to drum up enthusiasm for a school you don't care for. I spoke about the types of things you can do with an Interior Design degree, about the NCIDQ and the professional organizations and such. I tried to answer questions from parents and students as honestly as possible - which is hard when asked "Why would a student come here rather than a 4 year university" and "Why are there no dedicated studios or workspaces - isn't that counterproductive" Well, yes, yes it is, and i see no merits of this school over a 4 year. So I couldn't, in good conscience, tell prospective students to go to this school. I left most of the presentation/salesmanship up the the admissions person who was there with me.

I can pretend to like a lot of things I don't, and I will do a lot for a job, even if I don't like it or want it (I'm looking at you, target) - but apparently I have boundaries, and I found them this weekend. I'm just going to leave the promotion of the school up to someone else, work on being a good teacher for the time being, and do my best to find a new job.

Little Horn [Marilyn Manson]

this week: HORNS! (and saxaphone)

the bjork video is weird, but i do love that horn bit towards the end. for a while there was a video of her performing it live, and she really got into it.

the cure song is one of my absolute favorites of theirs.

gomez is an acquired taste, but i love the way this song builds up to the horn and sax-a-ma-phone part.





*edit* apparently i cant embed the gomez one, so you can click the link instead

gomez, detroit swing 66

Architect [Rise Against]

i have to post a link cause the owner disabled sharing, but check out these cool architect posters. supposedly they're going up for sale, and i'm thinking my bachelor pad down here could use some new art!

six architects

1, 2 , 3, 4 [Feist]

two three four new bands. or new to me, at least.

Without Words [Rooney]

today we're going to go in a different direction, and go with some instrumental pieces. the first is Clint Mansell's Lux Aeterna from Requiem For a Dream. It's pretty intense, but it's also really good. After than we're going to go back 120 years prior to our first selection and go out with a calm piano piece by Erik Satie, Trois Gymnopedies - First Movement. You've probably heard it somewhere, but you should hear it again, right now. I guess depending on your mood it can be sad or uplifting. I'll let you decide which way you want to hear it.

Against the World [A Tribe Called Quest]

the new quarter starts next week, and this week has been spent prepping syllabi and sitting through training and all sorts of other work things. of my 4 classes, the two with the largest work load are also the two with the largest number of students registered. awesome.

as i prep for this new quarter, it only reinforces the notion that i'm not really wild about doing this. my sister called the other day (while i was at work) and since she wouldnt take the hint that i couldnt talk, i was left trying to explain my frustration in grunts and single work answers, so nobody could hear me. my mom called the other day at 11.30pm and wanted talk about how i was doing, how i felt, etc - we dont have that type of relationship, and i have to work in the morning, and i dont even want to discuss this we people i do share with, so leave me alone about it.

i'm not saying that i dont have feelings about it (cause clearly i do) but i try not to dwell as much as i can, because it doesnt make anything easier, and can actually ruin an otherwise decent afternoon, night or evening. and for some reason, any time i give the crap side of this adventure too much thought, i get really tired, and then i take a nap and it throws off my whole schedule. next thing you know, i'm still up at 3am and then i barely make it to school in time for my 1pm class.

this quarter i will have some heavy loads, but i also only have one day with back to back classes, so i wont be super exhausted by the end of the week. which is good, cause i will have a ton of grading to do for those two big classes, and grading is much harder to do when you just want to collapse and die.

this week (but officially today) marks the return of the "no fast food" rule. i also went ahead and threw in no chocolate candy and no ice cream. so for the first few weeks of April I'm gonna be a bear. i want to work in some actual exercise, but 1.)lets get real, and b.) i can only change so much at a time. of course, making all these changes is for the best, but they are more difficult when I'm dealing with no news/bad news situations on potential jobs. we'll just call that my extra challenge.

when we started this adventure we said we'd give it 6 months and then reassess. well, that's about now, and we're going to have to reassess. at first i thought 6 months would be a breeze, and about 2 months in i thought i would never make it, then after christmas (3 months) i thought i could push through, and now here we are. i dont relish the though of any more months - 1, 3 or 6 - but right now i have to steel myself for at least 3 more. when we started this adventure, i never really gave any thought to being here past the 6 month mark, and now that i will be, i realize that i'll be here for our 3 year anniversary. i'll be here for kto's birthday, and i'll be here for my birthday. not to mention mother's day and father's day, and the in-law's anniversary as well. so this quarter may very well break me - all those missed holidays and events, plus the largest senior class enrollment that they've ever had, all for me to deal with. awesome.

i promise to try to update regularly, and with things that are more positive, or at least humorous to read - though i do warn you I'll have some complaints. i'm also going to introduce a new segment where i talk about other jobs i've held, and the funny/horrible things that happened during them. thanks for reading (all 5 of you) and stay tuned, it'll get better.

Living in Your Letters [Dashboard Confessional]

re: this post about words with friends.

it's a strange thing, when you think about it. unlike chess, scrabble doesn't seem like it would itself to correspondence play. i know the board is slightly different, and the tile distribution is slightly off, but basically, we're playing scrabble. It's amazing how much of a hit this game has become, really. I'd wager that of all the people playing the game right now, if you took a poll, at least 60% of them would never agree to play an actual game of scrabble.

As a kid, My mom and dad used to play scrabble a lot, i seem to remember. We even have a copy of the game in german, though i doubt anyone could play it anymore. My grandpa loved crosswords, but i don't know if he ever scrabbled. i imagine a game between he and my mom would have been epic.

honestly, i don't know that i would even really sign up for a game of scrabble, because i never thought i was good at it. after playing WWF, though, i feel like i could be up for a real-time game. not that I'm calling myself a master or anything, but i've laid down a few good plays that I'm proud of. i've also played a few sets and then kicked myself for not seeing a better word or a better placement.

Of the games i'm playing currently (6, if you're counting), even if distance or lifestyle were removed from the equation i think that i would have never thought about playing with at least 3 of my current opponents. In general, my immediate group of friends don't really play a lot of boardgames - or at least not as much as when we were in college. and whenever we do/did play, scrabble was never one that came up as an option. i don't think any word-based games were ever in rotation at our gatherings. but here we are, playing scrabble on our phones.

if you're not on the bandwagon already, you really ought to give it a try. and if you, you know how to find me.

Neighbors [Gnarls Barkley]

it's weird, living in an apartment again. the noise of people living above/below/beside me. the noise of people coming and going at all hours - apartment doors, car doors, drunken stumbling back home. the smells in the hallways - body odor, food, smoking, pot.

it's also odd not really knowing your neighbors. sure, i guess i could introduce myself, but i'm not really here to make friends. i recognize some people because we keep the same hours, but i dont know names. there's the chinese smoking lady, the duck lady, the hard rock smoker, the taxi drivers, and the 80 year old lady with pigtails. about 3 weeks ago i came back to the apartment mid-day, and there was a guy on the balcony of the apartment next door to mine. now, he didnt know i was his neighbor, but after tonight i'm not so sure he was my neigbor. i just took trash to the garbage chute, and passed a guy and girl going into the apartment next door. the same stuff has been on the patio since i moved in, so either:

1.) it's a 2 bedroom apt, which i'm not sure it is.
2.) she lives there and this guy is a new boyfriend.
3.) he lives there and the guy i saw before was his friend.

whatever the case may be, it makes me want to know more about who is next door.

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also, when taking the trash out - there was a vase full of not-yet-dead flowers in the trash, and flower petals all over the place. makes me wonder what happened.

Mountain Music [Alabama]

so these fellas are all over the place right now. they're from north carolina, and they've got a pretty unique sound. they're doing some producing and guest spotting, and they were maybe on the Grammy's this year (i didn't watch)

not sure if i like everything they do, but i like this song, and they play it with some passion.



our second offering today is a little different. i first heard these guys a few years ago on tv - they were on The Next Great American Band or whatever that show was. these guys won, but at the time they were called the Clark Brothers. They were also background members of The Clark Family Experience, who had an album and some hit singles back in 2000. Here is one of their songs under their new name, Sons of Sylvia. i've also included their audition for NGAB, so you can get an idea of their speed and skill (the music starts around 55 seconds in). if you're not fed up with them, check out their version of Gimmie Shelter by The Rolling Stones from the show - it was really good.

More Than Words [Extreme]

Anyone out there with an iphone/pad/pod or an android phone, download Words With Friends (free version or paid version) and play games with me. it's basically scrabble, but it fits in your pocket. unless you have an ipad, then it doesn't.

my id is j.m.l.o. and I'm totally hooked, so help feed that addiction.

What Shall We Do Now [Pink Floyd]

Let's discuss this job a bit, shall we. The quarter is ending (still not used to the quarter system) and I can say that while teaching has gotten easier and more comfortable, being a teacher is getting worse and worse. A large part of it comes from the attitudes of these students, but also the fact that the school is for-profit, which means we end up catering to these students way more 1.) than we should, and b.)in a way that perpetuates their spoiled ideals.

Recently, we got an email stating that we had to call/email/contact any student who missed more than 2 classes and find out what the deal was, get them back into the classroom, etc. We, the teachers, have to get in touch with the students and make them come to school. Because step one of starting an adult life is having people tell you when/where to be. i want to know if i should be going to their apartments and tucking them in at night, buying their groceries and wiping their butts, too.

Also, apparently there is no real enforcement or regularity of the grading process. this is evident in the students who have been in the senior capstone class. if it were up to me, most of them would have been booted from the class after the first 2 weeks - they werent ready for it, and they didnt have the proper work ethic to get through it. of the 14 students that started the class, 7 failed. that's a 50% success rate. also, the highest grade was a C+. how is this even possible? They get weekly, that's right - weekly, updates on their grades. this is because there are items due every week - about 1.5 hours worth of grading per student, just to make sure they stay on top of things, and to reduce the amount of grading at the end. so for this quarter, that's 21 hours of grading each week, on top of the 8 hours of classtime (2 four hour class periods) meaning almost 30 hours of work each week, for this one class. beyond the disappointment in the projects, and the questioning of the curriculum, this math just makes me angry. to think of all the time i gave to this class, and only 50% made it through?! When discussing the failing students, several of the other teachers made comments like "i'm not surprised" and "that's what i expect out of ____________" Well, then how did these students make it past your classes? It is amazing how much they'll overlook or forgive just to get these students on to the next class, only to share their lack of shock at the pass/fail rate.

Some (most) of it has to due with the teachers and the way grades are assessed and assigned. however, i keep coming back to the for-profit side of things, and how much i disagree with the philosophy. Of course, while i'm here i have to pretend to like it, support it and follow along with the rules, however ridiculous they may be. I'm sure other types of schools have their own problems, and i might not like those any better, but i know this current situation isn't a good fit for me. It's a shame, because teaching is not that bad, really. I just think that the venue needs to change for me, and i feel that i would benefit from more experience. more immediately, though, is the fact that the new quarter starts in 2 weeks, and i'm currently schedule to teach 3 regular classes plus the senior capstone - alone this time (with a class load of 19). Keep your fingers crossed that something happens for me soon, or else you might have to visit me in the loonie bin. and that's a whole other sort of blog....

Spill the Wine [Eric Burdon and War]

when i was unemployed, i had a lot of time on my hands. early in the game, this happened, and i think we should relive it, cause it's awesome, and also it gives me another post for this month (for those of you keeping track)

so unemployment frees up a lot of your time. it also frees up a lot of your incoming monies. being aware of this, when a former colleague called me up and asked if i was interested in a "business opportunity", i said yes.

the problem is, i said yes before i knew what the proposal actually was. silly me, i figured it would be something along the lines of my chosen career. it was not. having already said i was interested, i heard him out. our phone conversation was about 2 minutes long, and i left it with an agreement to attend a meeting regarding a "sales position" for a "new" energy/fruit drink. At this point i was extremely skeptical, but since this guy was still in the biz, i thought it best not to burn that bridge just yet - besides, it wasnt like i was strapped for time.

so i go to this meeting, which is in some room at a banquet hall. we walk in, and there are a ton of chairs, and a stage which has a white board on it, as well as a few small tables featuring what look like wine bottles. I ask the guy where the energy drink is, and his response should have sent me packing right away - he tells me "well, it's not really an energy drink, but it's this natural fruit juice that will make you feel better, and give you more energy in the long run . . ." but i didnt leave, which is good for the story. this meeting was actually a very well organized sales pitch for a juice called Monavie. And, more info here. The whole thing was amazing. they way they had these chumps going, i wanted the meeting to go on forever, just to give me more to tell later. . . .

They try very hard to get you amped up. they try very hard to lure you in with promises of money. they try very hard to convince you that it's not a pyramid scheme. the sad thing is, i think they've really duped a lot of people. they kept referring to it as a system. that led me to the tagline:

It's not a scheme, it's a SYSTEM!

in reality, it is a form of a pyramid scheme. they have fancy names for it, like "business system" and Multi-Level Marketing plan, but it's really just a hoax. their whole angle is that you're not selling the juice to people, you're selling them on the system. because of all the super-powers of this juice, it really just sells itself. anyone who gets introduced to this stuff should want to drink it, and share it, with everyone they know. then all those people will drink it and share it, and then the people they've shared it with will drink and share it. . . Sound familiar? yep, it's that classic pyramid scheme logic. So you're not selling this juice, which is good, because it costs at least $40 a bottle (depending on which variety you go for). and one bottle will get one person through one week. So you're dropping $160-$200 a month to drink this stuff. Oh, right. in order to make money with the system, you have to drink it, too. Cause why would you promote something you didnt use, right? The greatest thing is is that it is essentially a wine bottle full of multi-berry concentrate. it tastes like sour sludge, leaves a gritty film in anything your pour it into, and you're only supposed to drink 2oz. in the morning and 2oz. at night. Because it's so good for you, so powerful, that any more would be a waste. Also, the high percentage of prune juice might have something to do with that, too. you can't sell it if you can't stop going to the bathroom long enough to make sales calls.

Like any good pyramid scheme, this one focuses on getting you educated so you can get out there and sell, sell, sell. they have "audios" for you to learn from, as well as "texts" What they really mean is that you'll pay a fee to receive CDs and 80pg books that reinforce the brainwashing. They encourage you to attend "tuesdays" and the monthly "Saturday Seminar" These are meetings where they reinforce the brainwashing. Tuesday is their clever name for the weekly session (it normally happens on tuesday, get it) Tuesdays cost the members $5 a pop. Saturday Seminars cost $30. so you sign up for this BS, and off the bat you're shelling out at least $50 a month to attend meetings. And, you dont get the audios and texts for free. no sir. you're paying $16 or $24 every 2 weeks to get these things mailed to you. the difference in price levels is your level of devotion. they don't label them as such in the meeting, but as the guy said while point to the dry-erase board - you're either dedicated ($16) or you're devoted ($24). I like how they list the price as bi-monthly - like you won't add it up and realize you're dropping another $30 or $50 to reinforce the brainwashing.

so right now, we're looking at $80 or $100 a month from the business end. add to that the $200 or so a month in juice, and you've got a nasty habit going. And i didnt even mention the $100 fee that gains you access to the EBC - the electronic business center. This gets you a website of your very own that you can send people to so they can learn about the juice, and the system. it gets you a subscription to some magazine nobody's heard of, specifically dedicated to "enhancing your navigation through the system" it gets you access to a special blog by the founders of this "system" and it gets you access to a special message board to share success stories with others in the "system"

After the meeting, i was encourage to take home the starter pack of audio and text and give it a thorough review. if i was free, i could attend an "introduction" on wednesday, a house call on thursday, and i "really should get to the seminar on saturday. how many tickets do you want?" I told them i was going out of town, and of course, the place i was going to had a meeting i could join there. If i couldnt do wednesday or thursday, my old co-worker would "be in touch" early the next week to get me going on the next step. At one point, i though they were going to "next step" me right there in the parking lot. These guys were intense.

When i came home and told KTO about it, i invented a good summary phrase. this group has the 3 essential P's that any pyramid scheme needs:

they've got a
Product

they've got
Propaganda

and they've got
Pressure

if you can avoid getting suckered in, i would suggest you go to a first meeting if you ever have the chance - it is one evening you'll never forget.

Head Games [Foreigner]

i was talking to my brother, wishing him a happy birthday - 'cause it's his birthday - and we got on the topic of games (video and otherwise). normally, when we talk, we end up at movies and music and games. this time we were discussing fun time eating games you find online - flash based games and the like. he pointed me to a few, and i remembered this site, where you can spend hours trying to get things right - so i'll link it here for anyone who wants to give it a go:

www.eyemaze.com - grow games

this might be the easiest one to start with - they can get really complicated. the premise is this: click on icons to make things happen. after you click something, anything and everything in the level will "grow" your goal is to "grow" each item to the max level. in this first example, you are sick. you need to get better. do you start with fire? with the medicine? with the lady? you decide. after you chose your first item, things happen. after each subsequent choice, things happen. can you grow everything to the max?

if you look on the left side of the screen, the games go in order. above the mini grow games are the regular one - the shovel one is first, the block guy is second, and so on. i really like grow tower (second from top in the grow list) and galves adventure (the one with the baby in the Jobs category)

have fun, and good luck.

Dont Look [Far East Movement]

so there's this group, which i just found recently (thanks to amazon's $5 music downloads) not entirely sure about their whole album, but i'm pretty sure i like this song.



it makes me think of this song for some reason:



what ties these two together is that i think both bands are better heard than seen. the videos are visually cluttered (and sorta disturbing) Plus the band members look weird. I think MGMT just tries too hard to be different - their music isn't some amazing groundbreaking stuff - but i get the feeling they think it is. I dont know enough about Jukebox the Ghost, but they've toured with Ben Folds and with The Barenaked Ladies, and after listening to the album, i can see why. Listen to "Half Crazy" if you dont believe me.

Make Em Laugh [Donald O'Connor]

my dear wife found this, and it makes me laugh. it also makes me think i need to move to britain. or at least watch the BBC more.

it's a collection of nature videos/clips that have been voiced over by english comedians, resulting in hilarity. sorta like nat geo being given the mst3k treatment by a bunch of brits.

enjoy - if you need me, i'll be here in dallas playing nighttime, daytime.

Around The World [Red Hot Chili Peppers]

So remember how these kids are super spoiled? Saturday I was substituting for one of our teachers (who was actually in St. Louis for a Haunted House Operator's Convention - story for another day) So during this class, I overhear one student talking to another about general things - boys, clothes, etc. Student 1 went on a date with a guy who lives/works in Houston, so he flew her down there to go on this date, cause he couldn't make it up here for the weekend. Student 2 thought this was great news, but student 1 didn't see it going anywhere because his shoes had some sort of detailing that she just didn't like. also, the distance puts a damper on the whole thing.

Student 1 then tells student 2 that she's decided that she knows what she's asking for as a graduation gift (keep in mind she's at least 3 quarters away from graduation) She tells student 2 she's going to ask her grandparents for an "around the world" plane ticket, with at least 8 stops. She's then going to ask her mom and dad for spending money to use at each of these stops. She's thinking about stopping somewhere in south america, australia, japan, india, maybe egypt, paris and london for sure. A few other places if she can think of anything cool to do/visit.

I don't know about you, but i know that 1.) i never would have asked for anything for graduation, and b.) never, for any occasion, would i think it was okay to ask for a gift like this. ever.

i cannot believe how spoiled and clueless these kids are. it amazes me every day that i am here.

The Poster [The Monkees]

semi related to music friday:

silkscreen and screenprinting are awesome. I'd like to collect some more stuff by aspiring artists. this site i found has several posters i really dig. there are two artists/collectives i seem to be drawn to - vahalla studios and bee things.

here is a valhalla studios print for a jack johnson show, and another one for feist (i really like the look of this one) coincidentally, since valhalla studios is from KC, both of these posters were for venues in KC - go figure....





i think that in the interest of authenticity, i will reserve my screen print concert poster purchases for bands i've seen/shows i've been to - but that wont stop my from picking up some of the other posters from this site.

Two entries for this week's Music Friday. Fair warning - one has an obvious bad word, and if you're familiar with Jay-Z's 99 problems you know what it is. The other maybe has a bad word, but it's more subtle.

Hugo is a guy - he's got an album coming out soon. This song is very blues flavored - similar to the black keys. This sound is becoming quite popular.





Holy Hail apparently have some ep's and stuff. maybe a full album. not sure about all their songs, but i like this one. it reminds me of home, by edward sharpe and the magnetic zeros (which my friend V introduced to me, right here....)

i love music - all sorts. sometimes it's the lyrics, sometimes it's the tune. sometimes it's the memories that i associate with a particular song or artist. this week's music friday includes two songs that were picked for their instruments. I particularly love 'plunky' piano riffs, and for some reason i have a soft soft spot for horns.

Today's first song is an obscure Pink Floyd song that is totally not prog rock, has a fun piano bit at the end, and also has the bonus of having a flute in it. The second song is The Flobots - its their first single from a few years ago. While i may not agree with their overt political stance, i cant help but like the catchy lyrical delivery, and the horns seal the deal for me.

Give it to You [G. Love and Special Sauce]

This week's music friday is a progression. first up we have one of my favorite G. Love songs, from his first album. I present it to you in honor of his newest album and the tour that will be stopping in St.L in a few months. The second is a song he wrote with Tristan Prettyman - who is fantastic (also, she's engaged to Jason Mraz) She's commonly referred to as the girl version of Jack Johnson, mostly cause they both play guitar and they both surf. The final song is a cover that Tristan commonly does at shows - and it's a million times better than the original.

Facts are Facts [Stephen Curtis Chapman]

when i drove down here the first time, KTO assembled some fun facts/trivia about dallas to make my ride better - i got a new fact every hour of the 10 hour trip. since i need a post today, you get dallas facts.

--Dallas is the 9th largest city in the US (and 3rd largest in TX)
--Walker, Texas Ranger was filmed in Dallas (duh) as were parts of Prison Break, Robocop, and Karate Kid
--The Trinity River Corridor project, when completed, will be more than 10x as large as NYC's Central Park. (Currently it's a depository for dead bodies)
--Northpark Center was the first air conditioned mall in the US
--The frozen margarita machine was invented in Dallas
--Dallas has the 6th largest gay population in the US
--7-11 started in Dallas, and the HQ is still here
--The Dallas Farmer's Market is the largest working farmer's market in the US
--with the roof enclosed, the new Cowboy's Stadium can house the Statue of Liberty

Taxman [The Beatles]

fun facts 1:

"oh my god, texas has no income tax"

correct - however, they do have something like a 10% sales tax, and parking meters cost $2 and hour, and parking tickets are a minimum $35. so, they get their money, just in other ways.

Poster [Jack Johnson]

i love graphic things - not like graphic depictions of violence, but graphic design stuff - logos, posters, cool textile/wallcoverings, graphic patterns, etc. i also love star wars, so it is no wonder that i think these are awesome:

star wars posters by olly moss

ps: i love olly moss, too. his stuff is the bee's knees.

We Built This City [Starship]

Stop what you are doing and go to this guy's blog:

mike doyle snap

This is the coolest thing i've seen/heard all week. Thank you random ramblings on the internet. not one, but two, awesome, AWESOME abandoned buildings built with Legos. I need to stop playing my PS3 and do something like this instead.

Cover Me [Candlebox]

it's no surprise to anyone that I'm a big fan of cover songs. Even if it's a cover of a favorite artist or song, I'll give it at least one listen. even for artists that you wouldn't normally cover.

i love me some david bowie, but i also love this m.ward cover of let's dance. Happy music friday.

Bone 2 Pick [Angie Stone]

So i have to address this - it's bothered me for like a million years. At one point in Bust a Move, Young MC says:

"Your best friend Harry has a brother Larry
In five days from now he's gonna marry
He's hopin' you can make it there if you can
'Cause in the ceremony you'll be the best man...."

The way i hear it, your best friend's brother is getting married, and wants you to be his best man. Why cant his brother do it? And, if you're the best bet Larry has, his brother Harry must be a real number - i mean, the wedding is 5 days out and you haven't even RSVP'd. Some friend you are.

I guess you could assume that the wedding in question is Harry's and the part about having a brother named Larry was incidental - maybe Young MC just needed something to rhyme better. "Your best friend Harry is getting married in 5 days, and also has a brother named Larry" just doesn't work as well. It still doesn't explain the relationship between the two brothers, or why you're such a crappy friend. Seriously - 5 days and you cant even verify if you're going to be there? whichever brother is getting married needs to be able to make alternative plans, you jerk.

I still think that for whatever reason, your best friends brother picked you - and you're failing miserable.

This Magic Moment [Jay and the Americans]

I wonder about the experience these kids are getting. Sure, they made the choice to go to an art school - but it's a commuter art school - which is even worse. They're already not getting a true college experience, but add the daily drive and the lack of proper facilities and I feel like these kids are getting ripped off. Actually, for what they pay they'd be getting ripped off for a 4 year university, too. If there was a graphic depicting the typical college experience (or a metric like windows 7 has) I think these kids would have almost the worst rating. In my estimation the rating goes something like 4 year university, liberal arts college, religious university, community college, art school, technical school, university of phoenix. 3rd from the bottom is no place I want to be.

The student to student interaction is minimal here - even amongst the majors. There is no quad to hang out on, no team to rally behind, no local dive to eat at. There are no dorms, no bookstores, not even any books, really. What they get is a small, very stinky (it’s a greasy/oily smell) deli. There are some tables, two very gross couches, and a TV that apparently only gets Comedy Central. Generally the classes are offered and arranged so that you have 2 back to back - so there's no downtime in between - you're here and then you go home. But, if there is downtime or beaks during class, the room is full of students watching whatever portion of a Scrubs episode happens to be on.

You can tell it's an art school (a computer based art school) by the kids that attend. They look like art students. They wear those dumb overly large pant leg jeans, some even have straps and buckles on them. They all have t-shirts with anime characters on them and button up shirts with dragons and fire and skulls all over them. They're all awkward and socially timid, even around their own kind. They're not really nerds or geeks (both of which imply smarts) but maybe they’re dorks? They are the kids who were picked on the most in high school - shoved into lockers and such. Heck, being at the nerd end of the spectrum in high school I had my share of being picked on, and even I want to pick on these kids. They're going from a life of torment in high school to a false sense of 'acceptance' in art school to a life of seclusion in their parents’ basements after they graduate.

As you might expect, the fashion and ID students think they are waaaaay better than the dorks. I don't know what's worse - the dorkiness of the dorks or the arrogance the ID and fashion students. And I guess not all the students are as terrible as I’m making them out to be - the photography students are just odd, and the fashion girls are, well, fashion girls. Most of the ID students are normal-ish, though if I have to hear one more "I just love hgtv" story I think I'll stab them with a T-square. The photog, fashion and ID students are their own brand of odd – ID we’ve talked about already, and I don’t have the patience to even start on the fashion students. But, the focus of this post is really the dorks.

Most of them hang out in groups, sitting in the deli playing trading card games - magic and pokemon and who knows what else. There are black market type trades going on - 2 of these for 1 of those and 1 of these. Binders full of cards, passing envious looks and jealousy tinged congratulations on ‘new release day’ when someone gets a rare card. They have strategy and training sessions. There are intense matches (battles? fights?) at the tables, crowds gathered to watch. Post game analysis sessions and alternative play reenactments. And, what I find particularly amusing is that there is a clear rift between groups - despite the fact that they all look the same, act the same, and are all former high school outcasts, the pokemon group clearly has nothing but disdain for the magic group, and vice-versa. I want to take them aside and tell them they need to stick together, that it will only improve their numbers, but I’m half afraid that they would band together and overtake me.

And, I really, really get a kick out of watching them.

Take Your Mama [Scissor Sisters]

music friday on a saturday? i know, lame. But, it's a good one.

these guys (and dolls) remind of disco, george michael, elton john and maybe something else. and you cant help but get into their songs. this one is from their first album, which i still think is their best - but they've had more singles released from albums two and three.

enjoy.

Dentist! [Little Shop of Horrors]

RE: my last post - more stories about crazy josh in the store. this is a direct copy/paste from an email I sent to karen (pre-dallas adventure) about a trip to the dentist, and the grocery store.

------------------------------------
so, the dentist was not awesome. i mean, he's fine and all, but the experience was sub-par. the cavity was a.) not filled well, 2.) not fully removed, and iii.) waaaaay close to the root. so close that while he was digging/drilling out the old filling, we had to stop for another shot. i couldn't even tell him it hurt because it hurt so much, but he stopped cause he saw my eyes tear up. so i got a bonus shot of novocaine, and he said I'd probably be numb in the tongue till 2 or so, and numb in the jaw till dinner, maybe. he cleaned it up, filled it in, and gave me permission to have a milkshake for lunch. I might have soup, cause soup's for lunch, but I might go get a shake, too. depends on if I want to risk wearing it.

shopping was better. the good news is that it's thursday, and we hit $50, so we saved $10 automatically. the bad news is that we started with a $17 list. also, it's thursday, so I had to deal with people. and a surprising number of mustachioed ladies. I looked a mess, being hungry, and mouth/tongue numb, and having crazy disheveled sink rinsed haired. I'm standing in the aisle, weighing the options of different food stuffs with a slight bit of drool coming out of my mouth, frustrated cause I can't eat anything, trying to be good about buying stuff (so that means picking it up, putting it back, picking it up, putting it in the cart, then going halfway back down the aisle to put it back finally) I'm sure the people were just wondering where my caretaker was.

and, I'd like to go on the record again about being uncomfortable picking eggs by myself. I didn't like any of the cartons, but I didn't want to do a create your own sampler, cause there were lots of people around. after about 15 cartons, I just picked the best one. also, grade a large my butt - some of these eggs looked tiny. I think the egg farm needs a new QC staff.

see you when you get home. prepare yourself for possible milkshake dinner!!

-------------------------------

Storytelling [Belle & Sebastian]

Today I learned that Brian Jacques, the author of the Redwall series, passed away the over the weekend. I never did get into Watership Down, but hand me a Redwall book and I was hooked. I've read every book - even though I "outgrew them" a long time ago. I love the accents, the storytelling, the imagery, all of it.

http://citypaper.net/blogs/criticalmass/2011/02/09/in-memoriam-brian-jacques/

Laugh About It [N.E.R.D.]

so karen and I have a pretty unusual policy when it comes to holidays, birthdays and anniversaries. basically, we have a window of time around any date that serves as a buffer - so if you're a little late or early with a gift or celebration, then it's still cool. we believe that gifts should be personal and meaningful (always) and you can't always make that happen by a certain time. especially if life has handed you lemons lately. We spent our first two anniversaries unemployed, and one christmas with 1/2 the household income, and now this little adventure. so our buffer has come in handy lately.

even though we have the buffer, since i'm going home this weekend i thought i might try to be on the ball with valentines day. so while i was in the store (target) doing some general shopping, i stopped to see what valentine's cards they had. as i looked through the selection, picking up any/most cards that said "to my wife..." i grabbed one and it was decidedly different than the rest - it was..... ethnically oriented. apparently they have a whole collection of cards for the african american community, called 'cards in harmony' or something like that. i put the card back, but the though struck me that it might be funny if i got one for karen. so then i started to laugh about the idea, and i couldn't stop giggling. i was laughing so hard that i actually frightened the ladies away who were shopping for cards at the time - which made me laugh harder. people must have though i was nuts. not that first time that's happened in a store (i'll share that later) but it was happy touch to an otherwise so-so day.

Mudfootball (for Moe Lerner) [Jack Johnson]

I don't want this to become a habit, but I have to share another overheard conversation. This time, it was between one of the interior design instructors and one of the fashion instructors. the only background you need is that the id instructor is a 60+ year old fake doctor, and that the fashion instructor likes to let you know how much things cost, and just how 'connected' she is to people/places around Dallas.

f - "did you see the game yesterday?"
id - "not much, but we did watch the halftime show."
f - "wasn't that amazing?"
id - "yeah, i think they did a great job."
f - "I think it might have been the best half time show I've seen in like 10 years."
id - "I just love the black eyed peas"
f - "oh, also one of our daughter's friends was in that group of dancers, so that was cool - we know someone at the superbowl."
--they went on to discuss the game a little bit, and some of the commericals.

----------------------------

It seems to me that all the fashion lady wanted out of the conversation was to bring up the connection to the dancer during the halftime show. why she couldn't just come out with that, I don't know. Secondly, I don't know what game these people watched, but I felt like the halftime show was lame, and it seems that everyone I've talked to agrees - even if they love the the black eyed peas. overall it was pretty lackluster, and sometimes even painful. and lastly, neither one of these two made any mention of what's her face's botched attempt at the national anthem.


I have at tendency to be negative, but add that to the distance and all the other stuff associated with this adventure, and that could be a disaster. so, I'm trying my best to be positive and think positive while I'm down here. Plus, as Karen will tell you, Target Josh was no fun, and Dallas Josh could easily be the same - we already went through a year of that, we don't need any more of it. That being said, I wonder if my co-workers feel the same about me as I do about them, which is generally "wow - I can't believe you're a teacher."