30 Days of Truth - Week in Preview

Here's a look ahead at the final days in this project...

Day 26 → Have you ever thought about giving up on life? If so, when and why?

Day 27 → What’s the best thing going for you right now?

Day 28 → What if you were pregnant or got someone pregnant, what would you do?

Day 29 → Something you hope to change about yourself. And why.

Day 30 → A letter to yourself, tell yourself EVERYTHING you love about yourself.

Thanks for reading!

30 Days of Truth - Day 25: The reason you believe you’re still alive today.

Coming to the end of another week of 30 Days of Truth.  In fact, this is the last weekend for it, seeing as how it will be ending next Thursday.  Don't worry, I'm working on something else to start up again shortly. :)

The reason I'm alive today... well seeing as how previous truths have also touched on my faith, I'm going to say God's Plan.  I know that's not exactly the most clear answer... but God's Plan isn't clear to anyone.  Nor is it the answer that I imagine the original author of the 30 Days was thinking.  They were probably looking for something more personal... something that touched specifically me.  But what could be more personal they a relationship with God?

Later on today, I'll be posting the Week in Preview for the final 5 days of this project.  Then we'll be back to just me posting for a little bit.   I'm going to see if I can keep it up without the prompts from the 30 Days project.  Cross your fingers everyone!

30 Days of Truth - Day 24: Make a playlist to someone, and explain why you chose all the songs. - PART 2

So I realized after posting that I didn't really follow instructions well.  I didn't indicate why I choose what I did.  So this post is to correct that. :)

"Both Sides Now" was featured on the Winter Olympics Opening Ceremonies in Vancouver.  Her blues/jazz version far surpasses the original acoustic recording she did decades ago.  Maybe because she's older and the lyrics have a far deeper meaning now.  But whatever the reason, these lyrics and this song really speak to me.

Glee on Fox is one of my guilty pleasures.  I was in a choir (granted not a show choir) back in my youth and loved it.  So listening and watching Glee is like a flashback to my youth.  And the musical selections work really well with the stories they tell.

Dr Horrible's Sing-Along-Blog is sheer genius from Joss Whedon.  I loved the musical episode of Buffy... and this short film released via the internet is along the same vein of brilliance.

Inception and Sherlock Holmes - Movie scores (not the soundtracks) are some of my favorite things to listen to while working.  You're not bothered with lyrics that distract.  Instead you feel the emotion of the film come through on it's score.  And Hans Zimmer is one of my favorite composers.  It's almost like having a personal soundtrack as you work.

Hello Dolly, Music Man, and Broadway My Way - Showtunes... my other passion.  Which I guess is why I like Dr Horrible and Glee too.  I love music that tells a story.  Hello Dolly was my first theater production I ever saw.  It was in 4th grade and I enjoyed every minute of it.

Celtic Woman - Beautiful women with beautiful voices.  No I'm not switching sides... I just love a good acapella arrangement with strong harmonies.  They bring that... and so much more to their albums.

Star Wars and Lord of the Rings - These are not music, but dramas.  Back in the 30s-50s, before TVs, people listened to the radio for news and entertainment.  News is still delivered that way.  But entertainment is nearly gone.  You'll find it on NPR sometimes, but it's kinda rare.  Radio plays are like a theater of the mind.. you can imagine the characters and the scenes... but you get the benefit of sound effects and music... and a full cast doing their roles.   I love listening to them in bed... or when traveling in the car.  It's great entertainment from a bygone era.

30 Days of Truth - Day 24: Make a playlist to someone, and explain why you chose all the songs.

My taste in music can be.... how can I put this... freakishly bizarre?  Nah... that's not a strange enough description.  I'm not really sure who I would make a playlist to either.  So instead, I'm just going to put out a listing and links to some of my current playlist choices of what's in my iPad and what is currently in the truck's CD Changer after the jump...

Sicko

I don't know what I ate... but I've been out of it most the day.  Taking one too many trips down the hall, if you know what I mean.  I stayed home from work cause of it.

But one good think did come of today.  I took another step out of the closet.  I'm now posted back up on a gay dating website... MyPartner.com.   I couldn't really resist the offer.  They are celebrating the striking down of Prop 8 in California by giving away 1 year memberships for just $8... normally over $203.   Add to that an addition 6 months free for saying you'll join for a year and I've now got 18 months of access for just $8.

I plan on being pretty active and looking for Mr. Right... not just Mr. Right Now.   And I'll let you know how it goes on here.  Just look for the MyPartner.com tag. :)

30 Days of Truth - Day 23: Something you wish you had done in your life.

I wish I had made the decision to be more open, sooner.  As most of my friends who knew me prior to my time in World of Warcraft will attest to, I've always been a pretty reserved guy.  I dont' like conflict.  I don't know how to handle certain situations.  I'm a great listener, but I just can't come up with a good thing to say in response to what I just heard... especially if it's very personal, emotionally charged, or very serious.

But after WoW, I did emerge somewhat.  In game, I'm much more open.  Maybe that's the anonymity of the internet and it's safety factor there.  But for whatever reason, I'd been more open in game than in real life... until recently.  And now I'm liking that feeling out of game too.  I just wish I had the courage earlier on in my life.

Cats and Dogs 2: The Revenge of Kitty Galore - A Review

Cats and Dogs
(Widescreen DVD)

Honestly, I had been waiting for this movie to come out since the original Cats and Dogs hit theaters.  I was surprised they decided to do a sequel at all considering the way the critics gave mixed reviews of the first one.  It's box office performance wasn't great, but it did make money domestically before the worldwide receipts were added in... so I guess that's something.

For those not in the know, Cats and Dogs was basically a kids movie... pitting an army of talking dogs against an evil cat named Mr. Tinkles.  Dogs are charged with protecting humanity from the cat menace, and Mr. Tinkles is attempting to take over the world.  The movie was a great spy spoof and even better for adult pet lovers.  The theaters gave out buttons that said either "Cats Rule" or "Dogs Rule" when you bought tickets, depending on your affiliation.

Anyways, C&D2 is a continuation of that... with Lou (the hero from the first movie) now in a supervisory roll at D.O.G. H.Q.  Some of the supporting cast is back, and Mr Tinkles is in a maximum security cat prison, under Alcatraz Island.  The film was basically the same formula as the first, but with Cats and Dogs working together to stop rogue feline, Kitty Galore.  And they also set up for a 3rd movie...  which to be honest, I don't think is going to happen.

The first film was a novelty... seeing dogs fight with cats to protect humans.  The second uses the same formula and doesn't really add much new to it, other than there are some good cats out there too.  So it's not surprising that this film isn't really grossing what the first one did.  The first one had a budget of $60 million.  This one has a budget of $95 million... and I honestly couldn't tell you where the extra $35 million was spent.

If you're an adult, looking for a good movie to see... go to Inception.  If you've already seen Inception, go see Inception again.  THEN you should go see C&D2.

If you have kids, buy C&D1 on DVD...and if they want more after that, then go see C&D2.

30 Days of Truth - Day 22: Something you wish you hadn’t done in your life.

There are several regrets I have about my life.  I wish I hadn't left college to work full time.  I wish I hadn't let my weight go.  I wish I'd been more careful about money before now.  All of these things are valid, albeit small things.  But it's the small things that really affect how your life turns out.

If I hadn't left college to work full time, I wouldn't have met Janell... wouldn't have moved out on my own to Phoenix... and a whole slew of other things.

If I hadn't let my weight go, I might be healthier... maybe not have the stomach issues or the back pain I have still.

If I had been more careful about money, I might not be living with my parents... living a lie.

But all things work out for a reason... and those are in the past.  I regret many things... but those experiences are what makes us who we are today.  And honestly,  though I'm not entirely happy now... I think I'm finally on the right path to happiness.

Movietime

Mother wants to go see a movie.  I'm trying to convince her to see Inception... but it looks like it's going to be Cats & Dogs 2.  We loved the campy original, despite the critics saying it was a lame story idea.  It's a kids movie with talking Cats and Dogs... what did you expect for film quality?  "Gone with the Wind"?  Anyways... should be fun... but I might try to sneak in another viewing of Inception over the weekend sometime.

oh and by the way....

CATS RULE!

Specs

Wondering what my new computer's specs are currently projected to be?  Here's the wishlist at Amazon.com (yes, Amazon carries computer parts.  Weird huh?)   Anyways.... take a gander at the new system... and feel free to contribute thoughts, comments, questions, and of course money. ;)

http://amzn.com/w/33THD56EAVBDP

Slow Death

I think the computer knows it's dying.  It's now taking much longer to recover from the reboots.  It use to be a speedy process of disconnecting and reconnecting to get the system back up and running from a reboot or shutdown.  But now it's taking 3 or 4 retries for it to take hold.

It's very concerning... because if this system goes down, I'm effectively dead in the water in regards to productivity from home.  I have the laptop and the netbook.... but they don't function well.  Or rather are MUCH harder to work with due to the smaller screen real estate.

Please hold it together, Big Desktop.   Just a little while longer... then you can rest, ok?

30 Days of Truth - Day 21: (scenario) Your best friend is in a car accident and you two got into a fight an hour before. What do you do?

No argument could ever possibly supersede the importance of someone's well-being in my book.  I don't get into arguments that often.  I'm more of an easy-going kinda guy.  But when I do feel strongly about something, I will argue the point... and if it can't be resolved, then we agree to disagree.

But if the argument got bad enough that we fought so much that we departed angry,  I still think I'd be rushing to the hospital.  You could call it selfishness, I guess.  Because I wouldn't want the last things I said to someone be words in anger.  I'd want to make sure they were alright... maybe even throw in a joke or two about the situation.  And try to patch things back up.  Best Friend or Ordinary Friend.  I'd like to think I'd behave the same way no matter what the situation is.

30 Days of Truth - Day 20: Your views on drugs and alcohol.

Two-thirds of the way through the project and still blogging!  To be honest, I didn't think I would make it this far.  But the theme concept of this "30 Days" project has managed to keep me motivated.  I might try to find another 30-day project after this one ends. :)

My views on drugs and alcohol... there's a broad topic of discussion.  Let's get the second one out of the way as it's easy and I don't feel it belongs in the same class as drugs.  Alcohol can be beneficial but it can also be damaging.  I personally don't drink, but that doesn't mean that I don't mind when others do.  I guess you could say I'm your perfect designated driver.  The only problem I really have with Alcohol is when people can't drink in moderation... preferring to get completely drunk and lose their basic faculties... like standing.  A buzz is fine... even slightly further... but drinking yourself under the table is not healthy in my opinion.  I've seen far too many of my past friends get into trouble due to drinking... and that's why I choose not to.

Drugs on the other hand could be divided into 2 specific groups... well almost three... Recreational (like cocaine and marijuana) and Medicinal... which could be divided further into over the counter and then prescription.  Recreational use I'm against completely.  I have never and will never willing do that to my body.  I don't understand why people use drugs or need drugs to feel good or happy or whatever. Over the counter and Prescription drugs are great unless abused... but even prescription medications are starting to annoy me now too.  When did it become OK for the list of side effects to be 5 times as long as the list of health issues the drug treats?!  I'm getting sick of seeing the ads on TV for prescription medications for erectile dysfunction, chronic pain, high cholesterol, asthma, and similar ailments that have so many side effects you start to question "Why am I taking this drug in the first place?!"  You start to get drugs to treat the side effects and then drugs to treat THOSE side effects...  when did that become OK?  My Grandma when she past away was so doped up because the doctors kept prescribing more and more drugs to deal with side effects more than the original ailment.

Nervous Twitch

For some reason, I just start to bounce my leg while sitting on my desk on some days.  I don't know why.  I'm not nervous or stressed.... quite the reverse.  It's a Monday, I've answered all the emails and taken care of all the projects on my desk for now.  But I'm bouncing... and I know I'm gonna pay for it later.  My leg will hurt and the muscles will be sore.

I just can't figure out why I do it some days...

Speaking of Religion

For the second time in the last 3 church services I've gone to since deciding to stick with this new philosophy of mine (let's call it Operation: Defying Gravity), I've had to sit through another sermon regarding how I'm going to hell.  This time the text specifically utilized the tale of God and Sodom and Gomorrah.  (Genesis 19)

Yay me...

30 Days of Truth - Day 19: What do you think of religion? Or what do you think of politics?

I think religion is a good thing.  Having faith and a strong moral core makes one a better person, in my book.  What I'm not too keen on is how organized religion today has twisted itself and it's message to suit their own needs... or how they have departed from God just to reach a larger audience.  The so-called mega churches seem to be more about outreach than working within their congregation.  I mean, how can a group of 6000 people hope to have the same fellowship with one another and the Lord as a church with only 500?  Now I am kind of using a very broad brush in painting all mega churches the same.  Some are not... some do still embrace the Word of God but most do not.

I think much of organized religion today has turned into fundraising bake sales to further their own outreach programs.... to gain more members... to gain more donations... to reach further... in a vicious circle.  And now that the economy has foundered, they are outright ASKING for money to keep their outreach and mission work alive.  At some point, you have to cut programs and slash missions in foreign nations... so that those programs and congregations at home are funded properly.

As far as politics go, I use to be fairly in-line with the democratic party.... even though I was brought up in a staunchly conservative household and originally registered as a Republican when I was first allowed to vote.  But after emerging into the person I am today, I started following politics more closely and realized that the Democratic way of thinking was more in line with the direction I thought the country should be going.  I even voted for Obama.

But now... I've begun to re-evaluate that position as well.  I find myself more in an independent mind.  I don't necessarily agree with either agenda as neither has the best way of handling everything.  And I HATE that the sides stick together.  I much prefer the independent... the one who votes based on his own thinking, not what the party says to do.  I agree with the Democrats on many things... gay rights, the environment, and others.  But I also side with the Republicans on a few things too.... Immigration, Government Spending, etc.  So right now both sides are annoying me to no end.