Rocked! In The CIty Of Evil

I recently purchased this grand album and am thrilled that I did. I first heard these guys at Ozzfest a few months ago, and have been plotting my acquisition since then. The first song, The Beast & The Harlot is a terrific opening for a hard-rock project. It deals with Revelation 18...read the account, then listen to the song. The Fear & Loathing In Las Vegas tribute, Bat Country, comes across fourth and is equally as forceful and riveting. I'm late to the party in this genre, though I did get into some of the popular bands when I was growing up. I'm finding this work in particular to be entertaining, aggressive and a good way to "out" some frustration. Better them screaming than me, I guess...

Finally, A Soft Drink That Won't Kill Me...

My drink of choice of late...unless and until I get proof that it's bad for me as well.

V For Vendetta

I picked up the film V For Vendetta this week, and I feel I must do my part to spread the word...this is an awesome film. Click here for the IMDb page. Finally, a movie with outstanding dialogue, plenty of action and very interesting story line! To whet the appetite, here are some cool quotes from the flick:

*After V rescues Evey, she makes the required inquiry into the identification of her hero...
Evey: Who are you?
V: Who? Who is but the form following the function of "what", and what I am is a man in a mask.
Evey: Well I can see that.
V: Of course you can. I'm not questioning your powers of observation, I'm merely remarking upon the paradox of asking a masked man who he is.
Evey: Oh...right.
V: But on this most auspicious of nights, permit me then, in lieu of the more commonplace soubriquet, to suggest the character of this dramatis persona.

*Then, as V furthers his introduction to Evey)...
"Voilà! In view, a humble vaudevillian veteran, cast vicariously as both victim and villain by the vicissitudes of fate. This visage, no mere veneer of vanity, is a vestige of the vox populi, now vacant, vanished. However, this valorous visitation of a bygone vexation stands vivified, and has vowed to vanquish these venal and virulent vermin vanguarding vice and vouchsafing the violently vicious and voracious violation of volition. The only verdict is vengeance; a vendetta held as a votive, not in vain, for the value and veracity of such shall one day vindicate the vigilant and the virtuous. Verily, this vichyssoise of verbiage veers most verbose vis-a-vis an introduction, so let me simply add that it's my very good honor to meet you and you may call me V."

*After Creedy threatens V...
Beneath this mask there is more than flesh. Beneath this mask there is an idea, Mr. Creedy, and ideas are bulletproof.

*Of course, the brilliant poetic piece of the film...
Remember, RememberThe fifth of November,
The gunpowder treason and plot.
I know of no reason
Why the gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.

*From the explosive final confrontation with the evil Creedy...
Creedy: Defiant until the end, huh? You won't cry like him, will you? You're not afraid of death. You're like me.
V: The only thing you and I have in common, Mr. Creedy, is that we are both about to die.
Creedy: How do you imagine that'll happen?
V: With my hands around your neck.
Creedy: Bollocks. We've swept this whole place. You've got nothing. Nothing but your bloody knives and your fancy karate gimmicks. We have guns.
V: No. What you have are bullets and the hope that when your guns are empty I'm no longer standing, because if I am, you'll all be dead before you've reloaded.
Creedy: That's impossible. Kill him!
(At this point Creedy's men open up a barrage of bullets upon V, who though hit many times remains standing, then offers...)
V: My turn.

Awesome to say the least...I will watch again and spread the revolution!

Items Of Recent Interest

A couple of weekends ago I went to OzzFest with my brother Cory. Ozzy wasn't at the Indianapolis show, but the headliner was System Of A Down, which I've referenced before in a previous post. I've liked SOAD for a while now, but after hearing them in concert and seeing firsthand how awesome they are, my fascination has reached a new level. Other bands of interest I heard were Disturbed and Avenged Sevenfold who were also quite fascinating, to say the least. I'll be back, though next time I'll be sure not to go looking like a surfer...I didn't quite fit in with all of the black, and am quite thankful I made it out of there alive...

I've also made it a point to let myself get rawked by Junk a couple times in the last month. If you're hankering for a place to cool off, wind down, get crazy or let your hair down, find a venue where they're jammin' and have at it...

I picked up the new album by The Fray titled "How To Save A Life"...it's a good mellow listen, the great-for-background-music-while-you're-working-type, in my opinion...

I've been reading the Rule #1 book by Phil Town. If I get rich, I'll jazz up my blog and hopefully have the spare time to post more frequently than once a month! Then again, that may not be what the world needs right now...

Football season is upon us, and I was pumped to watch a bit of the Hall Of Fame game this past weekend, even if it was just the Eagles and Raiders. My unapologetic predictions are as follows: in the N.F.L., the Colts will FINALLY do it this year and win the Super Bowl; in N.C.A.A. Div. 1, Notre Dame will recapture some of their glory from ages past, making an all-Indiana set of champs for the year. Seriously, it will happen, just mark it down and congratulate me next February...

I now have cable internet and the ability to use my wi-fi functions of my laptop at the house now. Newsworthy? No, not really. I'm just wondering how in the world I have lived without it for so long...adios.

My First Meme!

Uh, actually, I had never heard of such a critter until Jabel sent me an email stating I'd been tagged on a meme. My initial reaction was a wotdahail?!?!, but then I consulted the trusty wikipedia and discovered the meaning of a meme. Read it here. Now, the moment that seals my fate as a meme-r...

1. One book that changed your life: Micheal J. Gelb, How to Think like Leonardo da Vinci.

2. One book that you’ve read more than once: Dr. Seuss, One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish.

3. One book you’d want on a desert island: Charles Darwin, The Origin of Species.

4. One book that made you laugh: Miguel de Cervantes, Don Quixote of the Mancha.

5. One book that made you cry: Stephen E. Ambrose, Undaunted Courage.

6. One book that you wish had been written: Raising Two Boys and Convincing Them That They Are The Most Important People On The Planet To You, Now & Forever

7. One book that you wish had never been written: Haven't found one yet.

8. One book you’re currently reading: The Harvard Classics, Volume 34-Descartes, Voltaire, Rousseau & Hobbes.

9. One book you’ve been meaning to read: Phil Town, Rule #1: The Simple Strategy for Successful Investing in Only 15 Minutes A Week!

10. Now tag five people:
-Becca
-Jeff
-John
-Amy
-Mary

Cincinnati Reds

I've been a fan of the Reds for a few years now, since the trade that brought my favorite major leage player over from Seattle, Ken Griffey, Jr. The last few years have ranged from dismal to disappointing to downright "I'm not even gonna' watch...", but this season is different. As of today they are just 2 games back of the Cardinals for the top spot in the N.L. Central, and things are exciting again.

The above picture was taken a couple of years ago when I last visited Great American Ball Park with my boys, Boston (now 9) and Britain (now 7). They are actually why I'm posting about the Reds today, as we are planning a return trip in the coming weeks. Each of my boys has followed in my footsteps and like both the Reds and Griffey! Of course, their fascination with my favorite player probably has more to do with the video games they play than it does me, but hey, the end result is the same. I'm looking forward to a day with the guys again, sittin' out at the ol' (new, actually) ballpark, checking out the game, splurging on $6 hot dogs and $5 drinks, and soaking up the rays all in the fabulous venue which is Great American. If you get a chance to go, I highly recommend it. Oh, yeah...there should be some pretty good baseball to watch, too!

The Praiseworthy New York Times

I know it's quite pleasing to root for the underdog, at times even heaping praise upon those short on talent and ability but tall on heart and effort. It almost seems the American way to do things, perhaps stemming from the fact that a couple and a quarter plus centuries ago we as a nation were one of the said "underdogs", and challenged the bigs to create a life-system all our own. That being said, I must concede that in the world of newspapers, my praise is going to a big and mighty...The New York Times. In my previous employ I spent a lot of time travelling, and therefore was able to sample a rather large variety of daily papers, both in large metropolitan areas and small, rural locales as well. I now read the NYT about 5 times a week (according to one study [pdf], I'm either a Heavy Reader or a Skimmer), and am always impressed with the amount of readable material and the skill of the writers. I know this is no surprise, seeing that the Times is "one of the most-read newspapers in the world", and as such they have both the means and the business responsibility to have the best writers. I also know that I'm not the first and won't be the last to state this most obvious fact, but I just want to throw in my two-cents worth and say that when it comes to daily papers, the underdog may not be the most worthy of your time.

The Elderly Files...Revisited

Well, it has been a bit since I’ve blogged, but there are a number of reasons for that. My work schedule has been hectic and quite busy, but I’ll not be a bore and share too much information on that. I did have somewhat of a bit of inspiration today, so I thought I’d jot down some things. I’m working now at my Home Instead and spending the day with Prof. G. (name left out, obviously, for confidentiality reasons). He is an Alzheimer’s patient that I’ve had the privilege of working with for about six months now, and is quite a remarkable individual, hence my aforementioned “inspiration”. I’m not sure why exactly I’ve not thought to keep up a report on the interesting and otherwise events while I’m here, but while walking with Prof. G. today it hit me-I need to be recording these things. So today I’ll begin, and occasionally kick back to some memories of the past six months.

As I referenced, Prof. G. has Alzheimer’s. The disease is always fatal, and although it seems a bit morbid to mention it now, that fact actually is the best catalyst to encourage me to be the best I can be every time I’m with him…because I want to ensure this last stage of his life is both enjoyable and tolerable. Prof. G. is very mobile and has hardly any trouble getting around, and at 77 that is quite an extraordinary feat! His memory, though, is not quite so robust. The day I first met him we went for groceries and he asked me no fewer than 6 times while we were there if I’d ever been to that store before, and then told me how remarkable a place it was. His memory (lack of) trend of late has been repeated trips to the mailbox, on which trips he invariably checks the neighbor’s mail as well, much to their dismay. I’ve had to make a concentrated effort each time to tell him that the neighbor’s called and told me to tell him that he didn’t need to get their mail today, as they would be getting it themselves. I must use such non-threatening language in order to ensure a pacific rest of the day, for if I fail here his mood becomes full of anger and agitation. On some days this exchange happens better than 25 times, and I must admit that at times it does get a bit frustrating (which, I’m certain, is a very typical human emotion in such situations!). I’ve been blessed with an apparent grand amount of patience, though, and for this I am very thankful. It’s just not worth it on any level to lose my cool, and I think this frequent exercise with Prof. G. will make a better man out of me.

Prof. G. is a remarkable musician, and spent his working years as a musicologist, most recently at Indiana University here in Bloomington. I am treated daily with his playing works by Chopin, Brahms, and his favorite, Debussy, among others. I am a self-proclaimed lover of music, enjoying a wide variety of genres. My favorite in the classical style music has for a number of years been George Friedrich Handel, and specifically his Water Music has been my most listened to piece. Prof. G. evidently has done a lot of teaching on Handel, for I’ve found 20+ books in his library and a number of CD’s by and about the famed composer.

Hey, I did it! I actually jotted down a thought in my blog…imagine that! Well, anyway, I’ll try to do better (of course, I’m talking to myself by way of the printed page, and not trying to make promises to anyone but me, so perhaps the “doing better” is the wrong choice of words). Perhaps I’ll be privileged to both jot down some fascinating memories of my client/friend Prof. G. and maybe remind myself and others of lessons learned along this much illuminated pathway of friendship with an Alzheimer’s patient.

On The Mend

Well, it's been a bit since I last blogged so I thought I'd jot down a line or two to catch myself up on where I am in life at this point. My most recent post was an advertisement for my rocket, and I must say it's with mixed emotions that I report its' sale. It was purchased by one of the players on one of my favorite sports teams (I'll leave his name and team out for privacy reasons), but that was only a small consolation! I enjoyed meeting the guy, but it must feel the same as when a dad meets his girls date for the first time. The only difference is I knew this guy was gonna ride off into the sunset with her and that I'd never see her again. It still feels a bit awkward...

Anyway, loads of stuff has happened since then. Most noteworthy was my trip to Las Vegas with my gal-pal, Amy. Perhaps I'll share more later, but I just want to mention now that I think I could live at New York, New York Hotel & Casino. The coaster, the food, the atmosphere...it's all good!

I'm currently reading The Millionaire Next Door and am enthralled...these guys are gonna help me on my way to wealth, I just know it. I'm also digging into a book my mom picked up for me called When Bad Christians Happen To Good People.... It's certainly a worthwhile read for the currently churched as well as those of us who've experienced, shall we say, a bit of a bad taste with church-life. Wrapping up my worth-mentioning reads of the moment would be The Body You Want In The Time You Have..., which leaves no room for further excuses for not working out. You name the number of times a week you wanna work out (quite simply, just pick a number between 1 and 7...it's not that hard). Then decide how long you want each workout to last (from 15 minutes up to an hour). Finally choose the type of workout your looking for (i.e., weight loss, definition, mass or a combination of the three) and voila', your personal plan is ready made. Now go find your abs!

Life is great...