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Monday, February 01, 2010

Ten Best Albums 2001

Diane Cluck - Macy's Day Bird
Death Cab for Cutie - The Photo Album
Ben Folds - Rockin' The Suburbs
Jeff Mangum - Live At Jittery Joe's
Beulah The Coast Is never Clear
The Frames - For The Birds
Microphones - Glow, Pt 2
I Am The World Trade Center - Out of the Loop
Ted Leo/Pharmacist - The Tyranny of Distance
White Strips - White Blood Cell

Honorably Mention
Josh Ritter - Golden age of Radio
M. Ward - End of Amnesia


EP
Apples in Stereo - Let's Go
Belle & Sebastian - Sing Jonathan David
Stillwater

Labels: 2001, album, Best of, best of 2001, list, music, tag overload

- Rich, 1:50 PM

Sunday, January 31, 2010

Ten Best Albums 2000

This list is in no order.

Belle & Sebastian - Fold Your Hands Child, You Walk Like A Peasant
Diane Cluck - Diane Cluck
Mates of States - My Solo Project
Harvey Danger - King James Version
Mirah - You Think It's Like This But You Really Like It
Neko Case - Furnace Room Lullaby
The New Pornographers - Mass Romantic
Wolf Colonel - The Castle
Death Cab For Cutie - We Have the Facts and We're Voting Yes
The Mountain Goats - The Coroner's Gambit

Honorable Mention
The Strokes - Is This It?
Billy Bragg & Wilco - Mermaid Avenue Volume 2
Johnny Cash - American III - Solitary Man
Songs: Ohia - The Lioness
Josh Ritter - Josh Ritter
Radiohead - Kid A
Richard Ashcroft - Alone WIth Everybody
Robin Hitchcock - Robyn Sings
Songs: Ohia - Protection Spells
Wesley Wills - Rush Hour
Be Good Tanyas - Blue Horse
Eminem - The Marshall Mathers LP


EP
Belle & Sebastian - Legal Man
They Might Be Giants - Working Undercover for the Man

Labels: 2000s, album, Best of, Best of 2000, best of 2000s, list, music

- Rich, 3:40 PM

Best Albums of the Decade

This is the plan. I am going to post my list of the ten best from year year of the decade. I am going to start with 2000 as the first year. I know there are technical reasons that decade starts in 2001, but I think decades also have social starts also. I am picking February 19, 2000 as the start of the decade. It is the day that George W. Bush beat John McCain in the South Carolina Republican Presidential Primary. I think that date opens the door for everything else that happens in the 2000s. That is besides the point.

After I make the top ten list every year, I am going to make my overall list for the 100 best albums of the decade. Yes, there are some albums that might be honorable mention one year, but beat out an album from another year. Let me know what you think.

Labels: 2000s, album, Best of, best of 2000s, list, music

- Rich, 1:41 PM

Monday, January 04, 2010

Best Photos of 2009

According to Flickr, this is my most interesting photo of 2009



It is not hard to see why they say that.

The most interesting non-comic con photo is this one



Also easy to see, but I do not think this is because of my photographic skill

This photo might be because of my photographic skill.



I think this is my best photo of the year.



This is the photo I have on my iPod touch.

Labels: best of 2009, flickr, flickrpost, list, photo, photography, self

- Rich, 6:16 PM

Sunday, January 03, 2010

2010 Creative Project List

1. Photo a day Project: I know that I have tired this before, but I am trying it again. Hopefully I will get through it this year. I want to really do a good job. Last year I stopped in February. Yes, the wedding planning did me in. This year I hope to get it done.

2. Add people to all my Flickr Photos: A while ago Flickr added a people feature, so you can add other Flickr users to your photos. I wanted to make sure I did this for all my photos. I added the tag needsflickrpeople too all the photos I posted before this feature was added. At this moment I have 9,245 photos with this tag. I want to make that number zero by the end of the year. I know that is a lot of photos to review in the next year, but I think I can do it.

3. Get a total of 3,542,374 flickr views: To get this many views I need to average 2000 views a day for the whole year. There was a good four month period that I got over 2000 views every day. I know I have little control over this. I need to go to Comic Con to get this done. More costume photos might also be a good idea. I know that more promotion using Facebook and Flickr is important. We will see if I can do this.

4. Best songs of 2009 mix: I have been making these mixes for years this is not the year to stop. I hope to have this done by the end of the month.

5. Best albums of the 2000s list: I have been working lists for each year. I also want to make an overall list. I want to have this done by the end of the month, but the end of February seems real realistic.

6. New Movie Review Blog with Kate: I set up the blog, Movie Reviews with My Spouse. We watch a lot of movies together. This will mostly be movies from Netflix. I think this will be fun. If you have a suggestion for a better name, let me know.

Labels: flickr, flickrpost, list, self

- Rich, 1:28 PM

Saturday, January 02, 2010

Happy New Years, 2010 the year that will be

I feel like my life is pointing the right direction. I did a lot of work in 2009 on myself. I put into action a lot of plans that I have been working on. I think it is time to set some goals around this.

Resolutions:

Ride my bike more: I want to ride my bike at least 100 days this year. I was thinking at least 2 forty weeks this year. I will have to pick up the other 20 somewhere. I want to ride enough that I fell comfortable riding to other cities in Santa Clara County, that is without having to ride the Light Rail.

Exercise more: I want to accomplish 300 hours of moderate exercise. That is 6 hours a week for 50 weeks. I will give myself some time off for vacation. Even if it is just an hour of walking 6 days a week. I have started doing this, and it really helps.

Build my savings: I have a number in mind, but I am not going to share it with you.

Do more creative projects: I have a number of projects in mind that you will read about in another post. I want to accomplish more than half of them.

Read 12 books this year: I really do not read enough. I want to read more. 12 books is a modest number, it is a great increase over my last couple of years.

Make 100 Sad Salvation posts: I really do not want Sad Salvation to fade away. That is just too easy to do. It is simple to let Twitter and Facebook take over. I want my blog to last another year. Maybe it needs a redesign.

**** ** ******: ** **** ** ** **** * ***** * ****. (This has been redacted. Tell me if you have any guesses what it is)

Make more than $15 from Google AdSense: Yeah, I made a big $15 dollars from google this year. It was all in October on the Costume Checklist blog. I might need to start some more blogs to get it done, but I think it is doable. If you want to help me go click on some of the ads over there... If you want to find great places to find costumes.

Labels: 2010, list, new years, New Years Resolution, self, tag overload

- Rich, 4:11 PM

Thursday, December 31, 2009

Travel 2009

Places I have spent the night

Warminster, PA
San Jose, CA
Sacramento, CA
Ashland, OR
Forest Grove, OR
Crescent City, CA
Salinas, CA
Solana Beach, CA

States

PA
CA
OR

Airports

PHL
LAS
SJC

Labels: flickrpost, list, tag overload, travel

- Rich, 1:17 PM

Monday, December 28, 2009

10 Most Important Music technologies of this decade

How did you get your music this decade? How did you discover music this decade? How did you consume music this decade? My guess is that these questions are different this decade that they were last decade. This decade really changed the way people thought about much. The music industry was not ready for the chances. Here is the list of the most important technologies in my mind. Let me know if I am missing any. The Tech does not need to be new, just to have an impact.

Peer to Peer Networks (Napster, Bittorrent)
MP3s
MP3 Players (iPod)
DRM
iTunes
iTunes Music Store
Myspace
YouTube
Blogs
PodCasts
Pandora

Labels: list, music, tag overload, technology

- Rich, 3:49 PM

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

the twelfth of the big 10

The question is, should the Big Ten add another team. I think the Big Ten has to add another team. I think if they want to be a top football conference in the BCS. Right now the Big Ten is in the second tear of the football conference. I think they need a twelfth to keep up with the SEC and Big 12.

Yes I am a Big Ten fan. I have been a Big Ten fan since Penn State Joined the Big Ten. I was a Penn State fan because my mom went to Penn State. So that frames everything I want to say about a twelfth school joining the Big Ten. I think that Penn State lacks a natural rival in the Big Ten. I thinking Penn State having a natural rival would be great for the Big Ten.

Of course everyone thinks Noter Dame, but it will not happen. Noter Dame does not realize it will never be a power again without a conference. They will not join a conference until they realize that.

Here are my top five schools to join.

5. Syracuse

This is an easy choice. Yes moving from the Big East to the Big 10 would be an upgrade. It would also make it easier on their basketball team.

4. Rutgers

Also the easy choice. It moves the big 10 into the New York City Media market.

3. Pitt

This is the once everyone thinks is Oblivious. I think it would be good for the Big 10, but might hurt Penn State.

2. West Virgina

This would hurt the Big East as a football conference and help the Big Ten. It could make the Mountaineers a national power.

1. Maryland

I think this would help the Big Ten the most. It would give it a bigger spotlight in the south and move Maryland back into better football competition.

Labels: college, college basketball, college football, list, tag overload

- Rich, 8:35 PM

Friday, December 11, 2009

Best of the decade

Here is the e-music best of the decade list. I know this list is to sell albums. That means anything not on eMusic will not be on the list. I am not sure how The Decemberists - Castaways and Cutouts did not make this list, It is one of my top of the decade.

My top selections from this list

96. For The Birds by The Frames
76. The Execution of All Things by Rilo Kiley
59. For Emma, Forever Ago by Bon Iver
47. Vampire Weekend by Vampire Weekend
41. Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer? by of Montreal
38. The Glow Part 2 by The Microphones
30. Actor by St. Vincent
27. I Am A Bird Now by Antony and the Johnsons
23. The Moon & Antarctica by Modest Mouse
19. Destroyer's Rubies by Destroyer
1. Is This It by The Strokes

Labels: Best of, best of 2000s, best of decade, eMusic, list, music, tag overload

- Rich, 2:38 PM

Tuesday, October 06, 2009

Phillies Playoff blog Rundown

The 700 Level

The 700 level is a great site for everything Philadelphia sports. They are funny and they love Philadelphia. They even have a Flickr Group.

Macho Row

What says Phillies more then a blog named after the core of the 93 Phillies. They do very good summaries of the games and good info before the game.

The Fightins

The Fightins is a blog that really feels like a Philadelphia sports fan. These are the kind of folks I used to hand out with in the Greater Northeast and play fantasy football in their basement.

Philly Sports Cast

I really love the Philly Sports Cast podcast. These guys are real fans. I feel like I know them without knowing them.

Phillies Nations

Good info and good writing about the Phillies

Labels: blog, list, philadelphia, Phillies, rundown

- Rich, 12:45 PM

Friday, June 26, 2009

Two Coolest things about Michael Jackson

2. Captain EO Movie/Attraction

Let me get this straight, Michael Jackson made a movie produced by George Lucas, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, that is only going to be showing at Disney Ammusiment Parks. I know that it is easy to mock this movie, but how many people would turn down the chance to work on this project. I remember seeing it at Epcot when I was 16 years old and it was better than I thought it would be.

1. The Michael Jackson Moonwalker Arcade Game

If you only played the home version of thing game you will think I am crazy. That is because the home version is as bad as Shaq-Fu. The arcade version on the other hand was great. This was a surprisingly good beat-um up game. You could also make the bad guys dance with your super move. What more could I ask for? This was not a game that I could find everywhere, so it was a little more special.

Labels: list, Michael Jackson, Obituary

- Rich, 4:08 PM

Friday, March 20, 2009

Wedding Notes: March 20

Hung out while Kate got her nails down
Checked Kate into the hotel
Got some advice from the impending father-in-law
Had the rehearsal for the wedding
I got to the rehearsal site and half hour early and relaxed alone. It helped a lot with the stress.
Kate was late to the Rehearsal. I made jokes about her heading to Mexico
Had the Rehearsal dinner at the Tied House
At the Rehearsal dinner the distortion of time field started. It went very quickly.
Watched Battlestar Galactica Series Final.
Slept in my broken bed alone

Labels: Battlestar Galatica, list, notes, tag overload, wedding

- Rich, 9:09 PM

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Wedding Notes: March 19

First day off work for my wedding.
The Greens got to town
Had Lunch at Peggy Sue's with all the family in town
Went to the Winchester Mystery house
Did Chores with the Greens
Had dinner the family at Vito's New York Trattoria
went to be early

Labels: list, notes, wedding

- Rich, 11:05 PM

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Wedding Notes: March 18

Worked from Home
Kate and I had Lunch with one of the Brides Maids
Mom and My sister Kathy made it to town
Met Mom and Kathy at the Hotel
Had dinner at Henry's High Life with Kathy and Kate.
College roommate came over the the Apartment to hang with Kate and I.
Jimmy told a story of something I did in college. I did not remember it, but it sounded like me.

Labels: list, notes, tag overload, wedding

- Rich, 11:03 PM

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Wedding Notes: March 17

College roommate got to town.
Went to Dennys with him after 10 PM and talked. It reminded me a little of college
Topics covered

comics

publishing

kids books

television

being married

the Watchmen
Gave him an idea of a kids TV show I doubt he will ever pitch

Labels: Jimmy Gownley, list, notes, tag overload, wedding

- Rich, 11:59 PM

Friday, February 13, 2009

Past State of My Heart Address

This is for all the people that want to see the year by year breakdown of my romantic life. I know how fun that can be. I think there is something that might be learned

Past State of My Heart Address

2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008

Labels: 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, flickrpost, link, list, State of my Heart Address

- Rich, 12:00 PM

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

bad Geek Movies

I ran across this list of Geek movies that should be great buy are not. There is even a poll for what the readers think. Of the top of my head I can say:

1. Both Fantastic Four Movies
2. Speed Racer
3. American Godzilla
4. Lost in Space
5. Planet of the Ape (remake)

These are all movies that could have been good, but where not. I just wonder how you can get Dr. Doom wrong twice.

Labels: bad, list, movie, tag overload, wired

- Rich, 5:36 PM

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Movie Summer

Rotten Tomatos has a nice list of the best and worst movies of this summer. They also review the movies by how much money they made and how well the studios did.

My Top movies of this summer
1. The Dark Knight
2. Iron Man
3. Wall-e

My Worst Movie of the summer
Hancock

I will admit that I might being unfair to Hancock. I was smart enough to stay away from the theaters for the really bad movies

Labels: 2008, list, movie, rotten tomatos

- Rich, 11:02 AM

Monday, August 25, 2008

Five reasons that Sports Casters should calm down when it comes to Michael Phelps.

I know Michael Phelps is great and he has the most gold metals ever, both in a single games and overall. I will agree that he had accomplished a task that might never been seen again. I know that nothing can take away from how great of a swimmer.

I ask sportscasters and sportswriters one favor, please stop calling him the greatest Olympian ever. It is hard to compare Olympians over the last 120 years. Many of those athletes did not have the same chances.

1. The professional era of the Olympics is only 20 years old - In the amateur era of the Olympics it would be hard to see any American win ten metals. Paavo Nurmi could have won more, but they pulled his amateur status. What could have Babe Didrikson or Jesse Owens with more than one Olympics to compete in.

2. Swimming gives lots of chances to win metals - A boxer can only win one metal, but has a lot of fights in a single elimination tournament. Team sports only offer the chance for one metal. No matter how good at wrestling you are, you can still only win one metal.

3. More events than ever before - The Olympics have been adding sports every year since it started. Great Olympians of the past might have won more metals if they had more events.

4. Qualification rules have changed - The rules have changed over the years. To say someone is the greatest of all time is saying that everyone is playing under the same rules. This is the reason that baseball is easy to compare over the years. Babe Didrikson qualified for five Olympic events but was only allowed to compete in 3. Phelps did not have this limit.

5. Metal count is a poor measure of greatness - When it comes to the Olympics there are no stats. It is the best in the moment. Metal count is just a number on paper. It goes against why people love the Olympics.

I am not saying that Michael Phelps is not great, just be careful when calling him the greatest of all time. This is a bold claim with no good way to judge.

Labels: Babe Didrikson, list, Michael Phelps, olympics, Paavo Nurmi

- Rich, 3:22 PM

Sunday, August 24, 2008

10 Favorite American Gold Medalist before my time

10. Tom Burke - At the first modern Olympics in 1894 he won the 100 meter and the 400 meter. No one else ever repeated that. I know that only 14 countries took part in the first modern Olympics. It is still cool to be first.

9. Mark Spitz - Seven golds one olympic, nine golds two olympics. This is just cool.

8. Dick Fosbury - Dick Fosbury changed the high jump forever. There are few other athletes who changed their sport all on their own. This is the biggest change to Track and Field in the Olympic era.

7. Bob Beamon - Talk about a historic records. Bob Beamon's long jump world record stood for 23 years. This just blows my mind. This is great.

6. Tommie Smith - There is a lot of ways to see Tommie Smith. Countries are often blamed for bringing politics into the Olympics. It took courage for Tommie Smith to make a statement on the gold metal stand

5. Cassius Clay - The Olympics is a great coming out party for boxers. This might have been the greatest case of that. Cassius Clay had a great public debut at the Olympics. It lead to a great career as Mohammed Ali.

4. Wilma Rudolph - She went from having polio as a child and needing leg braces to walk to winning three gold metals. That is just amazing to me. To me this will always be an amazing feat.

3. Babe Didrikson - The world had no idea what to do with Babe Didrikson. She could have won five metals at her Olympics if she was allowed to compete in that many events. She won two golds and a silver. The silver was just because of the rules being enforced only at the end of the match. She was the first female super-star athlete.

2. Jesse Owens - This is the point where world politics and sports collide. Jesse Ownes was not only a great athlete but he was a great athlete when every eye in the world was on him. He was a great athlete when the 100 meter dash was about more that just a race. It is hard to win when Sports carry deeper meanings. Remember that this was long before Jackie Robinson broke into the big leagues.

1. Jim Thrope - Jim Thrope won the pentathlon and the first decathlon in 1912 Stockholm Olympics. He was the greatest Athlete in the world. After the Olympics he played Football, Baseball, and Basketball. All this and he was striped of his metals after a bogus rules change. It was just a crime.

Labels: gold metal winner, list, olympics, tag overload

- Rich, 10:04 PM

Saturday, August 23, 2008

10 Favorite American Olympic Teams

To match my list of my favorite Gold metal Winners is my list of my list of my favorite Gold Metal teams.

10. 1984 Men's Gymnastics - These guys were instant stars after winning the team metal. It might be because my sisters, but I wanted every minute of Men's Gymnastics. This team made Gymnastics look cool.

9. 1996 Women's Basketball - This Olympic win launched two different Pro leagues. These women where winners. they wanted to prove they were just as good as the Dream teams.

8. 2008 Women's Coxed eights Rowing - I watched this team win the gold. They lead the whole race. Even when other teams made runs at time, they kept their cool. They really wanted to win and they took it.

7. 1992 Men's 4x100 track relay - Michael Marsh, Dennis Mitchell, Leroy Burrell, Carl Lewis, at world record time. This is my favorite track relay race. This team came in over the hill. They still brought it home.

6. 1996 Softball - Softball finally get to the Olympics. The story of people like Dorothy Richardson who took time off from Med School to play in the Olympics. I love that once they got their, they cashed in on it. They did not let the chance get by them.

5. 2008 Men's 4x100 Freestyle Relay - This was a great race for the gold. The US won by catching the French team in the last leg. They won by .08 of a second. That is amazing. I did not think they could do it, but they did.

4. 2004 & 2008 Misty May-Treanor-Kerri Walsh Beach Volleyball - I could not stop watching this team. It is not only because they wear really skimpy outfits. They played great together. When things went against them they picked each other up. When the got ahead of other teams, they closed the door. Not only did they win every match, but also every game in 2008. They are the best Beach Volleyball team of all time.

3. 1996 Woman's Gymnastics - They were the Magnificent Seven, the best team America ever sent, and they were the home team. There is something to be said about winning when you are meant to win. It was not an easy win. They came, competed hard, and brought the gold home.

2. 1988 Men's Volleyball - Because of the 1984 team and the 1988 team Volleyball was the coolest sport when I was growing up. In 1988 not only did they win the gold, no one boycotted the games. They played the best in the gold and still won. I think this might be the coolest Olympic team ever.

1. 1980 Hockey - This is the greatest real life Rocky story. This team was a bunch of American College kids. They were playing a hockey team that was good enough to beat the NHL all-stars. It was amazing that this team won. I was 8 years when this happened. I did not realized how big that moment in was off the ice and in the cold war. It was still a great moment in sports even without the politics.

Labels: gold metal winner, list, olympics

- Rich, 8:45 AM

Friday, August 22, 2008

10 Favorite American Gold Medalist of my life

Photo by Jarod_Uses_Film


I have been watching a lot of Olympics lately. Of course I have been watching a lot because in a couple weeks the whole thing is over. At that point I will have to wait for more year to watch it again. This has made me think of my favorite Gold Metal Winners.

Honorable Mention

Andre Ward
Mariel Zagunis
Cael Sanderson
Summer Sanders
Janet Evans
Bruce Baumgartner
Dave Schultz

Top 10

10. Dan O'Brian - Dan O'Brian is the kind of story that I love. Lots of people would have been crushed by what happened in 1992. It was his own fault he did not make the Olympics. He was able to keep himself on track to win the Decathlon in 1996. That is one of the things that make the Olympics great.

9. Karch Kiraly - One of the best players ever Volleyball. He is the King both indoor and on the beach. He won three gold metals in all. He has a cool name, gold metals, and he is a great TV announcer. I think every jock in my high school wanted to be Karch Kiraly.

8. Michael Phelps - Right now I feel like I have Michael Phelps overload. In a few years I will remember seeing every one of his races this year. I will remember seeing the Olympics he made his own. He won every way he could.

7. Mary Lou Retton - Every American gymnastics gold metal since 1984 should give an assist to Mary Lou Retton. She is the face that launched a thousand careers. Everyone loved Mary Lou Retton and every little girl wanted to be her. She is an icon.

6. Kerri Strug - I know the story is cheezy. She had a broken foot and made the vault that won the gold metal. She stuck the landing with a broken foot. This is just amazing to me. I was at a bar when this happened and strangers where hugging each other after this.

5. Carl Lewis - Four Olympics, Nine Gold Metals, Jesse Owens' feat of winning four gold medals at a single Olympic Game, what more do you want? At Atlanta everyone talked about him, wondering if he could win another gold at the Long Jump and he did. On the track, he was electric. That is all you need to say.

4. Joan Benoit - There is something special about winning the first Marathon. She did it at her home country by more than a minute. That is winning when it counts.


3. Bruce Jenner - The Decathlon is the greatest athletic event in the world. The Decathlon Champion is the greatest Athlete in the world. I remember running around my living room yelling, "I Am Bruce Jenner!" As a 4 year old he looked bigger than life.

2. Eric Heiden - I remember rushing to the TV to watch his races. He really caught my imagination as an 8 year old. The feat just seemed amazing to me. He had 5 individual metals. We talked about it forever when I was growing up.

1. Kurt Angle - I have only seen one Gold Metal one live. I will say that watching Kurt Angle win his gold metal live is the best sporting event I have ever seen live. It is the only time that I ever felt my cheering was having a direct impact on the outcome. It is the best ever.

Labels: athlete, kurt Angle, list, olympics, sports, tag overload

- Rich, 12:32 AM

Friday, August 15, 2008

Twitter like people are listening

I saw this blog post about Twitter Etiquette linked on Laughing Squid. I think this is pretty good. My three keys to twitter are simple.

1. Remember that people use twitter on different platforms. Some people use it on their phone, some people use it via the web, and some use it IM. Not everyone will be able to follow your links. If every post you make has a URL, you are cutting yourself off from some the the readers.

2. Slow down! If you are sending more that 5 twitter 10 minutes, 10 twitters in an hour, or 20 twitters in a day, you need to find other ways to communicate. Twitter is great for occasional messages. I do not need blow by blow accounts of most things. Remember that.

3. Mix it up! If you are always twittering about the same thing or in the same style it is going to get boring. If you are always talking about tweeting about your blog entries it will be a snooze. I do not only want to know about how campcamp was. If every entry is about some party I am not invited to, it is not so cool.

Just remember, people are really paying attention to your twitter. Just act like they are

Labels: list, microblog, Twitter

- Rich, 6:22 PM

Monday, August 04, 2008

Ten Album for Amilia T-shirts

Jimmy Gownley did a parody of Meet the Beatles as a tshirt using the characters of Amelia Rules. Talking to him he said that he was thinking about doing a new t-shirt for every show he does. I took it upon myself to make a list of album covers I would like to see as Amelia Rules T-shirts. I hope everyone likes the list



1. Replacements - Let It Be
2. Go-Gos - Vacation
3. Clash - London Calling
4. Elvis Presley - Elvis Presley
5. Led Zepplin - Led Zepplin 4
6. Bruce Springsteen - Born To Run
7. Rolling Stones - Flowers
8. The Doors - Morrison Hotel
9. Crosby, Stills & Nash - Crosby, Stills & Nash
10. Duran Duran - Rio (Perfect for Rhonda)

From other art forms

New Teen Titans #1
Breakfast Club Movie Poster
Walk The Line Movie Poster (perfect for Tanner)


Album Covers that should not be done, but I want to see:

1. Michael Jackson - Thriller
2. MC Hammer - Hammer Time
3. Bob Dylan - The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan
4. Nirvana - Nevermind
5. The Police - Synchronicity
6. Guns n' Roses - Appetite For Destruction'
7. Bruce Springsteen - Greetings From Asbury Park
8. Moby - 18 (This might work for Earthdog)
9. Crowded House - Crowded House
10. Prince - Purple Rain
11. Public Enemy - It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back

Labels: Amelia Rules, flickrpost, Jimmy Gownley, list, music

- Rich, 4:17 PM

Thursday, July 24, 2008

AFI

The New AFI List is 10 top 10. The idea is that they look at different genre of movies. The 10 categories are Animation, Romantic comedy, Westerns, Sports, Mystery, Fantasy, Science fiction, Gangster, Courtroom dramas, Epics. When I first look at this list of genres it is a mess. There are some top level genres here like Westerns, and Science Fiction, and some sub genres like Courtroom drams and romantic comedy. I think it would have been better if every list was a sub genre.

The list are pretty good, but there are some problems here.

When I look at the Animated List I see too much Disney. This list could have had Akira, Iron Giant or the Simpsons Movie on it.

Jerry Maguire does not belong on the Sports list of The Natural is missing.

Labels: AFI, list, movie, tag overload

- Rich, 3:25 PM

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Sports Heartbreaks

I hear about a Sports Illustrated Article about the 100 seasons without a title in Philadelphia. I know this heart break well. I was born just before the golden age of Philadelphia Sports. From 1974 to 1983 Philadelphia was a great sports town. They won 4 titles and made bunch of trips to the finals. when I was young I thought it would always be that way. Little did I know that those four titles were more than half the pro sports titles the city had in 100 years of pro sports. Now with another 25 years passing we have not added any titles. I only count the four major sports leagues. Those Indoor lacrosse, arena football, and Minor league hockey titles don't mean anything to me.

The rest of the four sport cities have one a title since we have. You can checkout The other four sport cities

The story has a list of Philadelphia Sports events that have happened in those 100 seasons.


61. This is the worst free agent signing in the history of sports.
26. Wondered what the NFL was thinking by letting this game be played.
24. Knew 2005 would not be the Eagles year
9. Knew that they were not going to win with Barkley and hoped he would get a title with the Suns
8. Gave up on the Eagles Season
6. Drank silly with my friends Eric and Darcey
5. My heart sank as I knew the Sixers were not going to win.
4. I saw for 15 minutes in a room with 30 eagles fans and no one made a sound. At that end of those 15 minutes I had to keep a man from beating up a person who made fun of us for sitting in the dark.
2. I Cried in my car as I watched in through a bay window and listened on the radio
1. I broke a deck furniture with a friend

With all these heart breaks, you might wonder why I stay loyal to my teams. You might ask why I would keep watching if they are going to break my heart. There are a lot of reasons. One of the reasons is because the good moments are so go, it makes easy to put up with the bad moments.

One of the moments that gives me home is the Willie Burton 53 point game for the Sixers. There is a great write up about the game on the Don't Ever Give Up Basketball blog, You need so scroll down to the bottom. This guy who could kindly be described as a journeyman did something that is reserved for NBA royalty. A guy who is a footnote in NBA history holds the single game scoring record for the Spectrum, a record he took from Michael Jordan. That is one of those moments that keeps me believing.

Labels: 76ers, championship, Eagles, fan, list, philadelphia, Phillies, pro sports, sports, tag overload, Willie Burton

- Rich, 3:57 PM

Saturday, May 31, 2008

Lost and Found

For the third season in a row, Lost had a great season ending. How do I define great? Not only did it answer my number one question, it also makes me want to seen the next season right now. I will be looking forward to the start of season five. I am amazed how they have been able to take the idea of people being stuck on an island and make it so interesting.

My guess is that next season the present will be about Jack and the Oceaninc 6 and the flash backs will be to what happened on the island after the Oceaninc 6 left.

My top 10 Lost questions

1. What happened on the island after the Oceaninc 6 left?
2. Where is Clare?
3. How did Locke die?
4. What is the Temple?
5. How will the Oceaninc 6 make it back to the island?
6. Where is the Island now?
7. What is Charles Widmore connection to the DHARMA Initiative
8. Who found the island in the first place?
9. Why does Richard not age?
10. Why is the wheel to move the Island in a frozen room?
11. What is the story about the Four Toed Statue?

Labels: ABC, list, Lost, question, tag overload, television

- Rich, 5:51 PM

Saturday, April 12, 2008

Greatest Sketces Ever

Greatest Skits Ever

Nerve and Saturday Night Live did a list of the 50 Greatest Comedy Sketches.

The list is pretty good. I used to be a huge fan of Sketch comedy. From time to time Sketch Comedy seems dead. It seems like very thing has been done. Every once in a while someone comes back and does something new and shakes everything up again.

Below are some of my favorites that did not make the list. I know that I am leaving a lot out. These are the ones what have really stuck in my memory.


Monty Python - The Semaphore Version of Wuthering Heights



Chappell Show - Wu Tang Financial



Monty Python Philosophy Football



Saturday Night Live - It

Robot Chicken - Your Brain on Drugs

Saturday Night Live - Adobe

Kids In The Hall - Doors Fan

Saturday Night Live - Video Game Addiction/Columbia House

Robot chicken - Villain Carpool

Saturday Night Live - William Shatner: Get A Life

Almost Live - Who Killed JFK Today?

The State - Muppet Meat

Labels: comedy, Kids in The Hall, list, Saturday Night Live, sketch comedy, tag overload

- Rich, 3:01 PM

Thursday, March 20, 2008

Travelogue - Portland Wrapup

To say the least, my trip to Portland was great. Kate really loved Portland also. We only went to a fraction of the places that I usually like to go and she still loved it. We talked about the chances that we would move to Portland some day. I told her that there were only a handful of places that I really wanted to live. Portland was near the top of that list.

It was a great trip for a lot of reasons. Kate and I travel well together. I am someone who like to keep plans open when I travel. I see that this did not bother Kate. We spent a lot of time visiting with Don and Jenna. Kate did not mind that we spent a lot of time with someone she had never met before. He instantly clicked with Don and Jenna and we all had a good time. That is also important to me.

Things I meant to show Kate but did not have the time:
Powells City of Books
The Rose Garden
Tom McCall Waterfront Park
Pioneer Courthouse Square
SW Park blocks
Bagdad theater

I have the feeling that Kate and I will make our way back to Portland. It would be cool if I could live there again. Even if we just go visit there it will be cool. I have visited Portland on every even year since I left. I do not see that trend ending because of Kate.

Labels: kate, list, Portland, tag overload, travel, travelogue, vacation

- Rich, 10:39 AM

Friday, March 14, 2008

Travelogue - Travel Conversation

This roadtrip is the first for Kate and I to take together. During the drive I felt like I was in less of a hurry that past trips. I guess that has to do with Kate being with me. The long roadtrip gave us a lot of time to talk. To be honest, I was not bored at all talking with her. I think this is a good sign.

Travel, driving, San Jose, marriage, wedding, kids, houses, tattoos, college, the Decemberists, religion, Philadelphia, mix tapes, snacks, Delaware, "I've Been Everywhere," engagement rings, beer, animal crackers, depression, Michael Stipe, wedding rings, Death Cab for Cutie, Portland, family, sour patch kids, photography, AIDS, Mt. Shasta, mobile homes, rain, place, Iraq war, food, Volcanoes, music, R.E.M., Ashland OR, parents, family vacations, Mt St. Helen, the election, Twitter, Wilco, Circus Peanuts, RVs, Shakespeare festival, homelessness, Comic Con, politics, Son Volt,

Labels: conversation, list, travel, travel notes

- Rich, 1:22 PM

Monday, March 10, 2008

5 things about D&D

I have read a lot about the Death of Gary Gygax and what people loved about D&D. I found something interesting on 1up, 5 things to learn from D&D. Since 1up is a video game site, most of these lessons are about video games and game theory. Here are 5 more things that D&D taught me.

1. Things worth doing are worth investing time into. Any good D&D campaign is an investment in time. The shortest good rol2 playing game I ever played was 8 weeks long. You need to be willing to put in time to really get the story out of it. We live in a time where it cost a lot to invest time in something. Many people are afraid to invest time in something. Playing a role playing game is living in the moment to me. Investing time to live in the moment can be a great lesson.

2. The more creative you are the more fun you will have. The best times I have had playing role playing games is when we unlocked our mind. Let the game come to you and be creative. The DM and the players should describe what they are doing. They should put themselves in the world that they are playing in.

3. Know when to follow the rules and when to break them. Often the hard thing with D&D is knowing when the rules are a good frame work and when they are getting in the way. Let the rule guide you through the world, but do not let them be the only reason you are playing. Role Playing games are not really about dice. They are about being opening up to a world you cannot live in. If it is just about rolling dice you might as well play craps.

4. Spend time with people. The best thing about role playing games to me is that gave me time to spend with friends. We are doing something together, but it mostly was about enjoying each other. It was about telling stories, telling jokes, making people laugh, and having fun.

5. Play should be a learning experence. When I was young I heard "Play is the job of childhood." I insistently understood this. I can see how what we learn should inform who we become. I can see how we should play things that teach us things. Role Playing games taught me things about communication, teamwork, working with others, and setting goals. It taught me how to deal with random events and how to make things go my way. These are all important things to learn.

One last thing I learned was to not be too cool to play.

Labels: DD, Gary Gygax, list, play

- Rich, 4:36 PM

Thursday, March 06, 2008

11 best albums of 2007

Note: I have been holding onto this list for too long. I am really late publishing this. Even the Village Voice has already published the Pazz & Jop results. This means I am really late. I know the I have to public this tonight. Even if I do not write about every album, I am still going to public this entry tonight.

Top Albums of 2007

I know this list goes up to 11. That is because it is one higher than ten and sometimes you need to rock that much harder.


The Avett Brothers - Emotionalism

I will admit that part of 2007 was really rough for me. Around my May and June were pretty rough for me. Some times just when you need it you find an album to help you through those times. The Avett Brothers Emotionalism was that album for me at that time. The album is incredibility personal and emotional.

The Avett Brothers straddles the country side of Alt. Country, but that is nothing to be afraid of. Any fan of well written songs will enjoy this album. The Weight of Lies and

All My Mistakes has become one of Kate and I songs. It is shows the optimism that comes out even in the darkest moments. The song makes me smile and tear up at the same time.

the Shins - Wincing the Night Away

If there ever is an album to sing to your thinking about a past love, this is it. While this is not as good as the last Shins album, they still give me the feeling that they are getting better.

Dr. Dog - We All Belong

It is great to hear a band mature right in front of your ears. I listen to Dr. Dog because Peter Conrad cannot shut up about them. Last year he kept on talking about their EP Takers and Leavers EP. If it were not for him, I would not given them a chance. This album is much better than last years EP. This album creates an interesting sound environment. Dr. Dog's has a strong 70's influence without getting lost in the past. Their songs have strong arrangement and simple vocals in just the right combonation. Check out the songs Worst Trip, Old News, Keep a friend, and Ain't It Strange to see what I mean.

Apples in Stereo - New Magnetic Wonder

From the first note of this album I was gripped hard and not let go. This album is full of pop structures and joyful guitar licks. The opening track, Can You Feel It? is the kind of song that makes me want to put down the windows and drive very quickly. It also gives me one of my favorite lyrics of the year, "Turn Up Your Stereo, Drown out the bullshit on the FM Radio." I know that some people this this record is excessive because its 24 tracks, and some of them are just interludes and connectors. I think that songs like Same Old Drag, Joanie Don't U Worry, Sundial, and Energy totally make it work it.

Of Montreal - Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?

This album is just full of earwigs. I most have listed to this album ten times the week I got it. Suffer For Fashion, The Past Is A Grotesque Animal, and She's A Rejecter all made me not want to put my head phones down. Heimdalsgate Like A Promethean Curse is the kind of song that makes me want to sing at the top of my lung.

Of Montreal is past the point of being "just one of those other Elephant 6 bands" to being a great band on their own right. they are so good I just want to hear more and more of what they are doing. I doubt they will ever gt the credit they deserve.

The Frames - The Cost

I want to say that The Frames are the most underrated band in the world right now. This was before the song from Once won the Oscar. This means that they might get more attention now. You should still check out The Cost.


They Might Be Giants - The Else

It has been years since I have really liked a They Might Be Giants album. I gave up on them awhile ago thinking my tastes and their tastes no longer matched. I guess that was not true. I do not want to say that these songs sound like their debut album or Lincoln, but you can hear the musical history. I'm Impressed, Take Out the Trash, Climbing the Walls, The Shadow Government, Countrecoup, and Feign Amnesia, are all first class songs. The Mesopotamians is a strange combination of musician frustration and history lesson. Yes, They Might Be Giants is a little smarter than their fans and they are willing to let us know.

Laura Veirs - Saltbreakers
Lavender Diamond - Imagine Our Love
Modest Mouse - We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank
St. Vincent - Marry Me

Honorable Mention:
Page France - ....And the Family Telephone
The Fratellis - Costello Music
Jarvis Cocker - Jarvis


Special Mention
Tim Kite - Over the Counter Culture

This album was not enjoyable, but it was the most challenging. Challenging in the way art that asks the listener to look at them selves should be.

Labels: 2007, best of 2007, list, music, tag overload

- Rich, 1:22 PM

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Past State Of My Heart Addresses

I started writing the State of My Heart Addresses back when I was in college. That goes back over 10 years now. The only old State of My Heart Address on line are the ones since I started to keep a blog. Here is your chance to see my old collected State of my Heart Addresses. This is a good reason for me to keep this blog going. Tomorrow you will see my State of my Heart Address for 2008.


2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007

Labels: 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, flickrpost, link, list, State of my Heart Address

- Rich, 6:53 PM

Sunday, January 27, 2008

Good Reason To use eMusic

Here is a good reason to use eMusic, 12 of Rolling Stone's top 50 albums of 2007 are on eMusic. I know that means that you need to go else where to get the other 38, but the price you will get those 12 albums on eMusic will not be beat.

Labels: 2007, best of 2007, eMusic, list, Rolling Stone

- Rich, 4:31 PM

Monday, January 07, 2008

2008 Travel Goals

I want to focus on traveling on inside of California. There are lots of places in the state that I have not gone yet. I need to start knocking some of these places off this list. I made a list of 20 places that I have not gone before. I hope to go to 10 of these this year. I know lots of these are baseball themed, but I am a baseball fan.

Getty Museum
Santa Clara University Baseball Game
Joe DiMaggio's Grave
Joe DiMaggio's Boat
Lake Tahoe
Disneyland
Sacramento AAA Baseball Game
Modesto Nuts Game
San Francisco Zoo
Yosemite
Golden Gate Fields
Chabot Space & Science Center
Humboldt State University Natural History Museum
USS Hornet Museum
U.S. Naval Museum of Armament & Technology Naval Air Weapons Station, China Lake
Dodger Stadium
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
san francisco academy of sciences
lenny dykstra's car wash
Castle Rock State Park

Labels: 2008, flickrpost, goal, list, Resolution, tag overload, travel

- Rich, 6:37 AM

Sunday, January 06, 2008

Everything I listened to in 2007

I am getting ready to post my top ten of 2007 list and my best of 2007 CD mix. When I see these lists from other people, I wonder what they had listened to during the year. This is the list of everything released in 2007 that I listened to in 2007. I hope it helps when you see the other posts.

Artist - Album
Yeasayer - All Hour Cymbals
Ryan Adams - Easy Tiger
The Avett Brothers - Emotionalism
The Earlies - The Enemy Chorus
Hal Hartley - FAY GRIM Original Soundtrack
Beirut - The Flying Club Cup
Josh Ritter - The Historical Conquests Of Josh Ritter
The White Stripes - Icky Thump
Stars - In Our Bedroom After the War
St. Vincent - Marry Me
A.R.E. Weapons - Modern Mayhem
The Go! Team - Proof of Youth
Blonde Redhead - 23
Pela - Anytown Graffiti
My Morning Jacket - At Dawn & Tennesse Fire Demos Package
Band Of Horses - Cease To Begin
The New Pornographers - Challengers
They Might Be Giants - The Else
Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
Lavender Diamond - Imagine Our Love
Akron/Family - Love Is Simple
Bruce Springsteen - Magic
Paul McCartney - Memory Almost Full
Electrelane - No Shouts, No Calls
Tim Fite - Over The Counter Culture
Panda Bear - Person Pitch
Architecture In Helsinki - Places Like This
Mirah and Spectratone International - Share This Place: Stories and Observations
Iron & Wine - The Shepherd's Dog
Rilo Kiley - Under The Blacklight
Luddite Machine - We Build The Destroyer
CocoRosie - The Adventures of Ghosthorse and Stillborn
Andrew Bird - Armchair Apocrypha
Calvin Johnson - Calvin Johnson and the Sons of the Soil
The Frames - The Cost
Deerhoof - Friend Opportunity
The Good, The Bad & The Queen - The Good, The Bad & The Queen
Of Montreal - Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?
Neil Young - Live At Massey Hall 1971
Ted Leo / Pharmacists - Living With The Living
Arcade Fire - Neon Bible
Apples In Stereo - New Magnetic Wonder
Laura Veirs - Saltbreakers
Son Volt - The Search (Deluxe Version)
Dr. Dog - We All Belong
Modest Mouse - We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank
Bloc Party - A Weekend in the City
The Shins - Wincing The Night Away
Kaiser Chiefs - Yours Truly, Angry Mob
Explosions In The Sky - All Of A Sudden I Miss Everyone
Page France - ...and the Family Telephone
Dinosaur Jr. - Beyond
The Fratellis - Costello Music
Christian Kiefer - Dogs & Donkeys
Richard Swift - Dressed Up For The Letdown
The Sea And Cake - Everybody
The Twilight Sad - Fourteen Autumns, Fifteen Winters
The Polyphonic Spree - The Fragile Army
The Clientele - God Save the Clientele
The Broken West - I Can't Go On I'll Go On
Art Brut - It's A Bit Complicated
Jarvis Cocker - Jarvis
Wilco - Sky Blue Sky
The Comas - Spells
The State Champs - The State Champs
The Rakes - Ten New Messages
Crowded House - Time On Earth
The Ponys - Turn The Lights Out

EPs

Gomez - Live at Austin City Limits Music Festival 2006: Gomez
M. Ward - To Go Home EP
Joanna Newsom - Joanna Newsom and the Ys Street Band EP
The Decemberists - Live from SoHo (iTunes Exclusive) - EP
Oh No! Oh My! - Between The Devil And The Sea

Labels: 2007, album, best of 2007, list, music, tag overload

- Rich, 9:06 AM

Sunday, December 23, 2007

End of year lists

I am happy that my company did not come up in the PC World list of the 15 biggest disappointments of Tech. To be honest, some of the things on this list are pretty odd. I am not sure how many people are really disappointed at Unbox. I am not sure anyone is expecting anything out of Unbox. This is an interesting article, but I think it is missing the point a little. Nothing blew off my socks in the world of tech. That is the big disappointment. I do not see anything in 2008 that will be life changing either.

We are also not on the list of the Popular Mechanics 10 worst gadgets of 2007.

Labels: 2007, list, PC World, technology, Unbox

- Rich, 5:17 PM

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

If I started comics right now

Wonder Con 2007: TV Batman
Originally uploaded by earthdog.

I have been thinking about what I would do If I started a super hero comics right now.

-No costumed characters without powers
-No long standing secret identities
-Lots of villain vs. villain feuds. Heroes would spend a lot of time breaking up these feuds
-Lots of hero vs. hero feuds. These would be less public but source of a lot of rumors
-Heroes would be part of celebrity culture
-Lots of hero and villain sexual and romantic relationship.
-Lots of Post traumatic stress disorder
-Lots of Hero identities being passed from one hero to another
-Super Hero groups would be like rock bands
-Super heroes would get caught in politics
-Paparazzi would follow superheroes
-Some Superheroes would get old and their powers would fade, while others would not
-Some Heroes would have a negative public persona. This would be the Barry Bonds effect.

Right now DC comics and Marvel comics are consistent with their past. They have created the world like it has always been for them. I think if you started a new superhero comic you could make some real changes. I am not sure anyone would ever get this chance.

Labels: comic, comic book, list, rules, super hero

- Rich, 9:21 PM

Monday, December 10, 2007

Where to go in 2008

Above the city
Originally uploaded by earthdog.

The New York Times travel section did a story about the 53 places to visit in 2008. I would like to be able to visit all of them. Right now San Francisco and San Diego are the only two places on the list that I will likely travel to next year. In San Diego I doubt I will get a chance to stay in the new Hard Rock Hotel. If you want to hire me for some kind of job that will send me to all these places, I will be happy to go.

There is a good chance I will go to Portland sometime next year. My guess is that I will do a lot less travel next year. I doubt I will get to as many places as I did this year.

Labels: flickrpost, list, New York Times, Portland, San Diego, San Francisco, travel

- Rich, 8:48 PM

Saturday, December 08, 2007

Nano Tips

Before November
Originally uploaded by earthdog.

Doing Nano

For the fifth year in a row I have done National Novel Writing Month. That is the challenge where people write a 50,000 word novel in the month of November. For all five years I have completed the challenge. That means that in all five years I have written 50,000 words. If I had to testify in court, I would not say that every year my 50,000 words would add up to a novel. Only one year has the story come to a nice neat conclusion in close to 50,000. Most years the novel is no where near being complete. It is usually a mess of text that would take major work before it could be as a novel.

Every year I track to see how long it takes me to write. I track to see how many hours the novel takes me and how many words per hour I write. This year it took me 57.75 hours to write a total of 50200 words. That means I averaged over 850 words an hour. Some of those hours were total clunkers that I wrote a total of 77 hours. I also know that I rounded down some of the time. For Argument sake, lets say it took me 60 hours to write 50000 words or 830 words an hour.

When I go to a write in I try to write 1000 words an hour. I can do this with minimal distraction. Back in college I was told that 1000 words an hour is what the average person can compose and write. That is a good 50 minute hour of writing. I have noticed that I can usually keep this pace up for about 4 hours at most. More things creep in that really pull me away from writing. Simple things like eating and using the bathroom can really put me away from working on my novel.

I think that if it takes someone more than 80 hours to write the novel they will never do it. That means you need to write for 3.2 hours a day. I will admit that I have never written from 30 days in month. I have never written for more than 25 days in a month. Between work and having to interact with other human beings, writing 25 days in a month is really hard. At writing 15 days, that is writing 3.2 hours a day. That is where it starts to get hard. If you set the goal of 2000 words a day, that give you five days free during the month.

I have always found write-ins key to getting nano done. It is hard to explain why this is. Most people see writing as a solitary experience that you have to do for yourself. Somehow write-ins change that expense. I find that there is something special about writing around other people. It inspires me to get past blocks. If I need help with something other people are right around me. It gets me past all the the distractions of life.

In some ways write-ins help me compete with people. I am not really interested things like word wars and the kind of on line things people have come up with. Being around people who are either in front or behind me helps me. I want to catch the people in front of me and I look down my nose at people who are behind me.

One of the keys it to use your time well. It can take me 10-20 minutes to get to a write in. I have been asked in the past if it would be better for me to stay home and have that extra 20-40 minutes of round trip minutes to write. For me I have to say no. There are ways t use that time well. If I am leaving from work to go to a write in, that time is useful for me to switch from a work context to a writing context. If I bring all the ideas from work to writing I will be distracted.

If I do not have to come down from work, I can use this time to think about my novel. The key to writing quickly is to have already thought about where you want to go. Have some ideas in your mind. be ready to hit the keys once you are in front of your computer. I do not totally know what is going to happen until I sit down to write, but it is good to think about what might happen.

*Be careful of days where you get nothing done. If you are writing very slowly, it might server you better to close up for the day and put things aside.

*Keep your per hour average writing high. It does not work to write a lot of hours and get little done. If you are not getting things done, stop, and plan for the next time you can write.

*Set up what you are going to write before getting to write ins. If I have a little time watching TV before or after a write in, I plan for the next write in. I jut down some notes setting up what I will write next.

*Have more than one plot line going at the same time. This structure makes it easier to get the writing done. I find when I hit a block with one plot line, I can switch to the other plotline. I will admit that sometimes I have to write something to make the story work, but I am not interested in writing it. This is when having another storyline comes in helpful.

*Don't be afraid where the story might take you. I know that everyone might think they know where they want the story to go, but it is good to go with it sometimes.

Labels: 2007, flickrpost, list, nanowrimo, tip, writing

- Rich, 8:17 PM

Friday, August 17, 2007

Favorite Comic Book...

Comic Con 2007: Batman 66
Originally uploaded by earthdog.

Going to comic con made me get off my ass an finish this blog entry There is a lot of love about comics, even if I feel disconnected to comics currently.

Favorite Comic Book...

Heroes
Capitan America
Colossus
Blue Beetle
Hawkeye
Starbrand
Doctor Pym

Villains
Sebastian Shaw (The Black King)
Jack O' Lantern
Tarantula
Two-Face
Starro
Kang the Conqueror
Surgeon General

Teams
Justice Machine
Avengers
West Coast Avangers
Suicide Squad
Doom Patrol
DP7

Comics No One Remembers
Go Man
elementals
Brat Pack
DP 7
Justice Machine
Next Men

Favorite Spiderman Plotlines
Who is the hobgoblin
Black Spiderman Costume
Death of Aunt May
Spiderman is really the clone
Spiderman and Black Cat dating

Guilty Pleasures
Speedball
Warlock
Boom Boom
Booster Gold
Dazzler (Disco Era)


Graphic Novels
Watchmen
The Dark Knight Returns
Powers Vol 8 Ledgens
Astro City: Tarnished Angel
It's a Good Life, If You Don't Weaken By Seth
Amelia Rules!: Superheroes

Ten other things I love about comics
Man of Steel by John Byrne
Neal Adam's Batman and Green Lantern
Peter David's The Hulk
Marv Wolfman and George Pérez's New Teen Titans
Post-Crisis Flash Wally West
Frank Miller's Give Me Liberty
Chris Claremont's 15 years of Uncanny X-Men
John Byrne's first 28 issues of Alpha Flight
First 100 issues of Fantastic Four
The Tick Comic
Superdickery

Labels: batman, comic, comic book, favorites, list, tag overload

- Rich, 9:12 PM

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Comic Con Photo Check list

Costume photo checklist for Comic Con 2007.

1. Mary Marvel
2. One of the Cast of Heroes
3. a Leia I have not taken a photo of yet
4. a padme I have not taken a photo of yet
5. a Transformer
6. New crossover costume


The Godfather of cross over characters

7. Character from Kevin Smith movie
8. Battlestar Galactica Dress Uniform
9. Dr. Who
10. Black Batman (To along with Black Superman)

Labels: comic con, flickr, flickrpost, list, photo

- Rich, 5:43 PM

Friday, June 08, 2007

Money Advice

I was reading Money Advice for Grads and I could hear the first thing come out of a lot of my friends mouth. How will I have a social life if I do these things? I think there are a lot of things you can do to save money here.

- Use websites like Upcoming to find free events. -- Some are free to attend and some have open bars. A little reading can go a long way.

- Socialize with people from work -- I hear lots of people say that do not want to be friends with people they work with. This is an immature way to look work interactions. When you are looking for a future job, people like you is important.

- Don't buy all the gear the moment you start a new hobby -- In a lot of social circles hobbies are viral. I knows lots of people with scuba gear the never really used.

- Never shop when you are depressed -- I cannot tell you how many people I know who use retail therapy and ended up putting thousands of dollars on their credit cards.

- Make your own lunch -- You work 260 days a year. You can see how to do that math on that.

- Pre-plan going out to lunch with colleges -- It is important to go out to lunch with the people you work with. It builds strong bonds and he helps you understand the rest of the business. Pre-planning where you are going can help control costs.

- Don't become a snob. Drink the coffee they have in the office if it is free, learn how to drink cheap beer, and never turn down a free sandwich.

- Don't smoke or quit smoking -- Taxes and addiction are not a good combination.

- Have your friends over to your place -- I know that being young people want to go out. If you are going to a bar to just hang with your friends, think about having them over you place. The beer is much cheaper at home.

Labels: advice, list, lunch, Money, New York Times, tag overload, work

- Rich, 4:33 PM

Saturday, May 26, 2007

Too Much Time

Maker Faire:
Originally uploaded by earthdog.

I love this. I am not sure how some comes up with the idea to crochet an Atari 2600, two joy sticks, and a TV with Pitfall on the screen. I would have never come up with this idea. I know it was a great marketing idea. It got a lot of people to come up to this table and see what else was there.

I do think this is pretty cool. Pit Fall was one of my favorite games of all time. Seeing this made me come up with my list of my favorite Atari 2600 games:

Top Atari 2600 games of all time

1. Pit Fall
2. Enduro
3. River Raid
4. Combat
5. Breakout
6. Atlantis
7. Circus Atari
8. Barnstomering
9. Yars' Revenge
10. Space Invaders

Take a look at this post, this is what nostalgia looks like for people born in the late 60's and early 70's

Labels: Atari, Atari 2600, flickrpost, list, Maker Faire, Maker Faire 2007, tag overload, video game

- Rich, 3:08 PM

Sunday, May 20, 2007

essential music

Maker Faire 2007: robot drummer
Originally uploaded by earthdog.

I have been going to music stories like Best Buy and Virgin music and seeing displays of the 200 essential albums that every music fan must have. I know they are doing it as just a way to sell catalog music. Seeing this displays have made me think about the idea of an essential 200. I wondered what would be on my list and what would be on my friends lists.

To be honest, I know that I could not get many of my friends to sit down and make a list of 200 albums they think everyone should have. What I would like to do is have a number of my friends make a list of their essential 20 albums. If I can get 10 people to play along, I could have a whole list. If you want to play along send me your list. Let see what us normal people think are essential albums

Labels: album, Best Buy, essential, flickrpost, list, music

- Rich, 5:38 PM

Monday, March 12, 2007

Jobs and Gender

I have not thought about gender and work in a while. In the Merc news today there is a story about how jobs are divided by gender. This is pretty interesting. I wonder if this has anything to do with women settling for less in salary negations. I wonder if this might pull a whole profession down.

I also wonder if it is something else all together different. This stat really stood out to me.

About 42 percent of the nation's working women are employed in just 20 occupations out of 450 on the government's standardized roster of jobs, including preschool and kindergarten teachers (98 percent female), secretaries and administrative assistants (97 percent female), receptionists (93 percent female), registered nurses (91 percent female) and maids and house cleaners (88 percent female).

It makes me wonder about the labor supply and demand in these fields. I wonder if this is more than just labor the difference. Is there a difference in the competitive nature of these fields? Is like fields for a men more dangerous or dirty. I think looking at the top five might give us some insights.

5 most female jobs

1. Dental hygienists
2. Preschool and kindergarten teachers
3. Secretaries and administrative assistants
4. Dental assistants
5. Speech-language pathologists

5 most male jobs

1. Logging workers
2. Automotive body and related repairers
3. Cement masons, concrete finishers, terrazzo workers
4. Bus and truck mechanics, diesel engine specialists
5. Electrical power-line installers and repairers

To be honest I do not hear feminists yelling for more women to be in these fields. I think you need to see longer lists to see what is happening. I am not sure that these things are going to change any time soon. I am not saying that sexism is not at work here, but there are forces more powerful than just regular men being sexists here. Unless those forces are understood nothing with change.

Labels: gender, job, list, mercnews, pay, work

- Rich, 4:35 PM

Saturday, February 03, 2007

Super Teams

It seems like this is the year to rank Super Bowl teams. The NFL and NFL films has been doing in NFL Network with the America's Game Series. I would like to that website, but it is one of the worst websites I have ever seen. The page never stopped loading and it froze up my browser. I am surprised that the NFL does not know how to write a web page. I cannot find the results anywhere else on the web.

ESPN.com has also ranked all the teams to be in the Super Bowl from 80 to 1. I do not agree with their list all that much. ESPN looks at the whole season the team had. I think they are putting too much weight on the whole career the players had. I would not put the 1989 49ers as the greatest Super Bowl team of all time.

1. 1985 Bears
2. 1984 49ers
3. 1966 Packers
4. 1978 Steelers
5. 1968 Jets

I put the 85 Bears at the top of the list because no and I mean no one was going to beat them. You could have lined up anyone against them in the Super Bowl and they were going to win.

I like the 84 49ers because it is harder define greatness. I think this is the point where the 94ers went from a team to the team of the 80s.

The 66 Packers make my list because they were first. This might not have been the best Packers team of that 60's, but they had no road map. If they did not win this game they would not have been the team of the 60s. That is a big weight.

I put the 78 Steelers on this list because it is the first Super Bowl I remember watching. This team is mythic in my mind. There is no other way to put it

The 68 Jets is on this list because they were the underdog and still won. If they would have lost that game it would have been not shame. There is something to be said for winning when everyone else is betting against you.

Labels: 49ers, Bears, Best of All Time, football, Jets, list, NFL, Packers, Steelers, Super Bowl

- Rich, 12:58 PM

Friday, October 13, 2006

Know when to go

Some times someone needs to tell you the Signs it is time to quit your job. This list makes sense to me. I think the most important items are No. 2: The environment is toxic and No. 10: You feel stifled. I find that these are two things that will cause to hate a job.

Five more signs that are missing from this list:

1 - No path for advancement - The keys to a career is job trajectory. What you are doing this year will lead you to what you are doing next year. You can stay at a job that has no path for advancement for a while, but you will need to advance sometime. In a job where you cannot advance, there is a clock on how long you can stay there.

2 - No personal growth in the job - You have to be learning things at your job. If you are not it can get boring fast. It is way to easy to become a clock puncher if you are not growing in your job.

3 - Unrealistic requirements - Everyone has a line. For some people it is 30 hours a week and others it is 60 hours a week. Whatever your line is, there are other people who are jobs that will always ask for more. If the job is crossing the line for you, it is time to leave. If you are doing the work of two or three people a company will not correct that if the job is getting done. I understand time to market and budget constraints, but the nature of work is to keep on pressing until people break. Sometimes the only way to correct this is to find a new job.

4 - No sense of accomplishment in your work - At the end of the day or at the end of a project everyone wants to feel like they are doing something worth doing. We do not want to feel like we are getting paid to be Sisyphus. Your performance will suffer if you do not believe in what you are doing.

5 - Personal agendas get in the way of business agendas - I hear about this all the time. I know companies where the VPs rate their importance by how many people are in their org or how big their budget is. That can cause a lot of bad work to be done to protect empires. That is a company you want to leave.


This list is odd because it combines signs that a work place is not right for the individual with signs that the workplace is dysfunctional. Often when a workplace is not right for worker they should look to fix the situation right away. Few good things come from a workplace where you do not fit in.

Dysfunctional work places are kind of funny. Sometimes people can thrive in a dysfunctional work place. You can get a head if you understand the dysfunction. You can get opportunities you might not get other places, but you are taking a risk. At any moment the dysfunction can turn on you. A worker always needs an escape plan from a dysfunctional work place.

Labels: advice, job, list

- Rich, 12:02 PM

Wednesday, October 04, 2006

Five Years Of Sad Salvation

As of today I have been writing and publishing Sad Salvation for five years. I am not sure if publishing is the right word for it, but I do not have a better word for it. It is hard for me to get my mind around the idea that I have been doing this for five years. It has become such a big part of my life while I have lived in San Jose. It is hard to remember living in San Jose and not writing Sad Salvation.

The funny thing is that much of my social scene is connected to Sad Salvation in one way or another. I have a whole collection of friends I have meet because of blogs and the internet. I think that is why Sad Salvation has lasted this long. I keep on doing it because it is easy for me to see the rewards.

A few things you may or may not know connected to Sad Salvation

- Invisible City had the first blog I ever read.
- Sad Salvation started as a result of the 9/11 attacks
- The End Of Summer Party was a blog my friends started to keep in touch with each other. It is long past gone.
- The Zines I helped publish were, Senseless Banter, Read Our Minds, and Baggage. I was also published in a few other zines.
- Super Karate Monkey Fist, Is my backup blog that I keep doing different things with.
- Jeremy designed my current Sad Salvation look.
- Vox, and LiveJournal are my other blog

If you want to know what is different now than five years ago you can read the archive. I know it has changed over that time. I should go back and read those entries to see who I have been over the last five years. It is not always easy to keep track of while you are living your life.

Here is a reprint of my first Sad Salvation entry. I hope you enjoy it.

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

Welcome to Sad Salvation

I looked at my life a few years ago and thought about something. I was sitting at a coffee house thinking about starting a new zine. I was trying to rack my brain trying to figure out what I could personally publish that would be interesting for people to read. I was thinking of the zines that I had read recently. There was nothing that I was reading at the time that really excited me. Most of it was pretty meaning less.

I had read a decent number of zines. I have even published about a half dozen issues. I looked at what other people were writing. I found something incredibly personal in zines. They were a place where people could try to construct some kind of story about their lives. The zines I was reading at the time where unlike any of the other stories I was finding in the rest of the world.

Being 23 years old there was something really empowering about zines. I was right out of college and I seemed to be going nowhere in the world. All of my friends were facing the same situations. We were working at bookstores and restaurants. We were clerks and temps. We spent our time watching clocks and find ways to slack off. Zines seemed to be the best way to work out our artistic frustrations. Using the office copy machine to cut the cost of a zine was a natural thing to do.

I was sitting at this coffee shop and I was not 23 years any more. I was 27 years old and my friends were starting to find their way into careers. They were becoming teachers, designers, and engineers. It was my day off from a dot.com start up. The way my life was happening was slowly sinking in for me.

For most of my life, my friends have been the artist type. Growing up we would tell stories, dream up comic books, and talk about the kinds of movies we wanted to make. We were all writers at heart. As I went through my life, these were always the kinds of people that I became friends with. We were people who dreamt about making our impression on the world. We thought about big ideas and big ways to express them. The problem was that we were becoming regular people.

There is a whole generation of people that are just like me. People that in their heart see themselves as writers and artists, but their job does not reflect that. We are sitting around playing in bands for recreation. We write zines and web sites as an artist outlet. We keep on thinking that someday we will be able to break out and become a true artist.

In this light, writing a zine is Sad Salvation. It is not only our artistic salvation, but it is also salvation because it is what we value most in this world. I am not speaking about everyone. I am just talking about a type of person I seem to be close with. We are not starting families, we are not growing roots in a community, we are not working toward building specific lives for ourselves. I wonder if we will ever find that Salvation we are looking for.

(I have the feeling this needs a re-write)....

Labels: blog, End of Summer Party, list, sadsalvation, San Jose, tag overload

- Rich, 8:20 PM

Tuesday, October 03, 2006

10 Myths about school shooters

I know why school shootings get so much attention. It is because school is supposed to be a safe place. It is almost like going onto an airplane. The student and the parents put their faith in the school to take custody of the student. We are willing to give up some of our control for the good of our student and all students at the school. We have faith that the system will work and school will benefit the students and society.

School is something that almost every American has in common. We all have some sort of experience at school. I might have hated school at times. There were years were I was tormented by other students. I tried to avoid them in the halls as much as I could, but I never thought my tormentor would kill me. I never thought I would kill them either.

I saw an article, 10 Myths about school shooters. Two of the myths really caught my eye.

Myth No. 1. He didn't fit the profile.

In fact, there is no profile. There is no accurate or useful profile of students who engaged in targeted school violence, the researchers found.

The stereotypes of teens in Goth makeup or other types of dress are not useful in preventing attacks. Just as in other areas of security -- workplace violence, airplane hijacking, even presidential assassination -- too many innocent students will fit any profile you can come up with, and too many attackers will not.

The demographic, personality, school history, and social characteristics of the attackers varied substantially, the report said. Attackers were of all races and family situations, with academic achievement ranging from failing to excellent.


Myth No. 10. School violence is rampant.

It may seem so, with media attention focused on a spate of school shootings. In fact, school shootings are extremely rare. Even including the more common violence that is gang-related or dispute-related, only 12 to 20 homicides a year occur in the 100,000 schools in the U.S. In general, school assaults and other violence have dropped by nearly half in the past decade.

Labels: list, news, school, school shooting

- Rich, 2:18 PM

Tuesday, September 12, 2006

Marriage Rules

I came upon this 12 Rules for Marriage. Not be married I cannot say if these rules are any good or not. They seem to make sense to me. When I see marriages that work the couple is almost always working as a team. The marriages that do not work when the people are usually pulling in different directions. This is all easier said than done. All I know is that I really do not need to worry about these things any time soon.

Labels: list, marriage, rules

- Rich, 6:12 PM

Saturday, August 26, 2006

Top 5 Football Movies of All Time

In no order

Brian's Song
The Longest Yard
Remember the Titans
Wildcats
Invincible

Extra bonus - Best Football in a non-sports Movie
M*A*S*H
Forrest Gump
Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Angus

Labels: football, list, movie, tag overload, top 5

- Rich, 4:26 PM

Sunday, August 13, 2006

The List

Top 10 Musical Acts who I would pay to see live
After seeing Death Cab for Cutie live I figure that it is time to update my list of
Bands that I would pay to see who I have not seen yet list. Bands are getting added to this list faster than they are being dropped. That means either I am not true to my word or bands are not touring enough.


Belle & Sebastian
Postal Service
Mountain Goats
Art Brut
Ben Folds
New Pornographers
Cat Power
Modest Mouse
The Shins
Calvin Johnson
Joanna Newsom
M. Ward
Devendra Banhardt

Musical acts I would pay to see again:

The Decemberists
Diane Cluck
Mike Doughty
CocoRosie
Wilco

Dream Reunions:

Replacements
Pavement
Neutral Milk Hotel
The Smiths

Labels: Concert, list, music, tag overload

- Rich, 4:18 PM

Saturday, June 03, 2006

Right Here, Kind of

On the news I saw a story about the National Review writing the list of the 50 best consertative rock songs. I read the list and I am not sure what they were going for. Some songs should be on this list like Taxman and Sweet Home Alabama. I am just not too sure about Sympathy for the Devil or Gloria. I think they are reaching some of the time.

Lets look at a song like I Fought The Law. The average conservative I know is pretty much the law and order time. They are not fighting the law most of the time.

The list is pretty cute, but I think there are better songs that could have made it. Then again I am long looking toward rock stars for the most balanced political thought.

Labels: Beatles, list, National Review, politics, rock, Rolling Stones, song

- Rich, 6:48 PM

Saturday, January 14, 2006

The Camera Dilemma

In my own rear view mirror
Originally uploaded by earthdog.

My beloved camera has gone missing. I am quite heart broken over this. I no longer have my Olympus Stylus 400. I loved that camera. It is the fifth digital camera that I owned. It was the best one by far. If took okay pictures, but it fitted my needs perfectly. I am very sad about it going AWOL.

Now I need to figure out what I am going to do. I love taking pictures. I cannot just stop because my camera is gone. I think that photography is a good thing in my life. It is a hobby that gets me to pay attention to the world around me. I do not want to just give that up. I need to go through the pros and cons of each action from here.

Use my back up cameras until I save enough money for a digital SLR

Pro
-I already have two back up cameras
-fastest way to get a digital SLR
-no money out of pocket already

Con
-neither of my backup cameras are compact (Olympus D-550 & Olympus C-740). I will miss a lot of shots because I will have the cameras on me less
-the Olympus D-550 needs new batteries every other day (not kidding)
-still need to get a compact camera sometime

Buy a cheap point and shoot

Pro
-less money out of pocket
-faster way to a digital SLR
-can find something small enough to take everywhere

Con
-will not have all the features I am looking for. I want a compact camera that takes good low light photos.
-will not have the same picture quality I had before
-step backwards from my last camera

Buy the best compact camera I can find

Pro
-get all the features I want
-will be a step forward from my Olympus Stylus 400

Con
-longest route to a digital SLR
-paying the most out of pocket
-might not need to spend all this money

Are there any options, pros or cons that I am missing?

Labels: camera, flickrpost, list, Olympus, pro-con

- Rich, 7:12 PM

Tuesday, January 10, 2006

100 Favorite Things Photo Project

January 7: San Jose Night
Originally uploaded by earthdog.

A long time ago Jeremy came up with the idea of the 100 favorite things list. He encouraged everyone he knew to make a list. The first year he even put out a zine with counting up all the entries. It was cool to see what different people put on their lists.


One of the ideas was to make a new list from time to time. Here are my 100 Favorite things lists from 2002 and 2005. It is cool to see how things change over time. I am not always going to think the same are important. New things happen and my life changes. I see the list as a snap shot. These are my 100 favorite things the moment I publish the list.

This year Cathy has decided to put a new twist on the 100 Favorite things list. She is starting a photo project with 100 favorite things list. She is asking people to make new lists this year and photograph all 100 items. She wants to see how people capture the things on their list.

I think this is a great idea. I know that this is a result everyone using flickr. It is the perfect place to organize a project like this kind of project. The people taking part in this would have been shot photos and posting them to flickr anyway. Someone might as well give us a goal.

If any of my friends are interested in this project let me know. I well tell Cathy and she will invite you. Now I have to get cracking and make a new 100 Favorite Things List.

Labels: 100 favorite things, Cathy Heard, flickr, flickrpost, list, project

- Rich, 7:45 AM

Monday, June 23, 2003

Weddings

I see lots of lists on the web. One of the worst I have read lately is 10 Worst Reasons to Marry a woman. There is nothing interesting or insightful in this list. You can get these ten reasons from a drunk guy at the local dive. This is just poor content.

Labels: dating, list, marriage, wedding

- Rich, 11:57 PM

Monday, July 29, 2002

Monday Top Five

As people know I am San Diego on vacation right now. Sorry this is a little late. It lead to my top five for this week.

Top Five Vacation Towns

1. Ocean City, MD
2. Portland, OR
3. Ocean City, NJ
4. San Diego, MD
5. Dewey Beach, DE

Post your link or your answers in the comment box.

Labels: city, list, meme, top 5, vacation

- Rich, 10:41 AM

Monday, July 22, 2002

Monday Top Five

Top Five Movies that remind you of summers past:

Back To The Future
Batman
Gremlins 2
Blazing Saddles
The Love Bug

Link to your Monday Top Five or post them in the comment box.

Labels: list, meme, movie, tag overload

- Rich, 12:01 AM

Monday, July 15, 2002

Monday Top Five

I am stealing one page from High Fidelity and one from Friday Five

Top Five Songs to start a Monday morning with:

1) Sonic Youth - Teenage Riot
2) Clash - London Calling
3) Call - Let The Day Begin
4) Pete Townshend - Crashing By Design
5) Katrina & The Waves - Walking On Sunshine

You can either post you Top Five in my comment area or link to your weblog.

Labels: high fidelity, list, meme, music, tag overload, top 5

- Rich, 12:48 AM

Monday, July 08, 2002

Thinking about dating

I have only received one piece of advice about dating so far. At least one person has put in it in a comment box. Other people have offered me advice.

With this advice I have been thinking about my personal does and don't as I prepare to go out for drinks this Friday.

1. Keep a good level of eye contact.
I think this is a side-effect of my days as a phone monkey, but I have a hard time keeping eye contact with people as they talk. If I am really listening to someone, I will usually stare off into space. I try to visualize everything they are talking about. It helps me pay more attention. The problem is that people think I am not paying attention at all.

2. Try not to prove anything
Too often in conversations I get caught up trying to prove how funny, witty, or smart I am. I think it really hurts me on dates. The woman probably has a good idea of how smart I am. I do not have to prove it to her. When I try to prove anything I think I will lose my rapport with her. I end up talking my way out of things.

3. Try to keep my conversation focused on her
I do not know that much about this woman. I should learn things about her. It is also important for me to not just talk about what I think and feel. When I am nervous, I have a tendency to just talk. I think that I need to make an effort to do both of these things.

4. Relax and Don't Let It Bring You Down
I forget this simple rule when it comes to a lot of things. It is an important rule to remember when dealing with other people.

Tell me if you have any other advice.

Labels: advice, dating, eye contact, list

- Rich, 1:55 PM

Wednesday, June 26, 2002

All of the Airports I have used

SJC - San Jose (21)
PHL - Philadelphia (19)
LAS - Las Vegas (5)
SFO - San Francisco (5)
STL - St. Louis (4)
PDX - Portland (4)
ORD Chicago-O'hare (4)
SAN - San Diego (4)
ABQ - Albuquerque (4)
PHX - Phoenix (3)
ATL - Atlanta (2)
SEA - Seattle(2)
BUR - Burbank (2)
OAK - Oakland (2)
IND - Indianapolis (2)
MSP - Minneapolis/St Paul, MN (1)
DAY - Datyon (1)
PIT - Pittsburgh (1)
TUS - Tucson (1)
CVG - Cincinnati (1)
DEN - Denver (1)
SLC - Salt Lake City (1)
LAX - Los Angeles(1)
IAH - Houston (1)

Labels: airport, Astro City, list, tag overload, travel, travel notes

- Rich, 11:17 PM

Friday, June 07, 2002

Birthday Booty

This is the total booty from both my party a few weeks ago and my trip home. It is more stuff then I was expecting.

Carry-on Bag (red)
Phillies Game with my sisters
Pictures of my Nephews and Nieces in a frame
A Primate's Memoir
Ran
Jedi Starfigher for my PS2
Requiem for a Dream
A Big Bag of Movie Candy
Dispatches from the Tenth Circle
Future World on VHS
1972 coffee mug
Assorted Gift Certificates
'The Worst Thing I've Ever Done'
Seductive Poison

Labels: birthday, gift, list, self, tag overload

- Rich, 10:34 PM

Thursday, June 06, 2002

CD Shopping

I am always bitching about how there are no good record stores in San Jose. I thought I should buy some CDs while I was in Philadelphia. I bought more CDs on this trip, then I did in the past six months (excluding my trip to Portland). I only seem to buy CDs when I am out of town.

Pete Townshend - White City A Novel
Belle and Sebastian - Fold Your Hands Child, You Walk Like a Peasant
Counting Crows - Children In Bloom (Bootleg)
Kevn Kinney - Broken Hearts and Auto Parts
Jay Farrar - Sebastopol
White Strips - Red Blood Cells
Microphones - It Was Hot We Stayed In The Water
Toad The Wet Sprocket - Fear

Labels: cd, list, music, philadelphia, tag overload, travel

- Rich, 11:22 PM

Sunday, May 19, 2002

Episode 2

I saw Star Wars Episode 2 last night. I have been thinking about it most of the day. I just wanted to jot down some quick thoughts.

This movie would have been better if George Lucas had been directing movies over the last 20 years.

All of the weakness in the movie could have been overcome with better directing.

The movie is worth seeing, but everyone will think they know how it could be better.

A longer review is in the making.

Labels: episode 2, George Lucas, list, review, Star Wars

- Rich, 12:17 AM

Thursday, May 09, 2002

Big in Portugal Part 2

Here Are The Facts You Requested are listed on the The Canonical List of Weird Band Names. (Link not gone) I wonder where the line for actual bands are. Dod I Frysbox would count?

Labels: band, band names, broken link, Dod I Frysbox, Here Are The Facts You Requested, list

- Rich, 5:01 PM

Monday, April 29, 2002

Time away

I felt like I was writing really poorly. Everything I was doing just seemed like crap. I decided that I did not want to write crap anymore. I had to pull away for a little while.

The problem is I have a hard time getting back to it. I feel no drive to write. I have things to say, but I blank when ever I sit at my computer. I end up playing a game or surfing the web. It is a really bad idea.

Here are the things you need to know.

I am back from my trip to New Mexico

I am no longer planning on driving cross country

I am going back to Philadelphia for my birthday

I have been hitting up everyone I know to set me up on a date

I am no longer backdating anything.

Any Questions????

Labels: list, plans, self, tag overload, travel

- Rich, 12:08 AM

Friday, April 05, 2002

Big List of the CDs, DVDs, and Books I bought in Portland

Uncle Tupelo - 89/93: An Anthology
Robyn Hitchcock & The Egyptians - Queen Elvis
Halo Benders - Don't Tell Me Now
Microphones - Don't Wake Me Up
Richard and Linda Thompson - Shoot Out Lights
Richard Ashcroft - Alone with Everybody
Robyn Hitchcock - Moss Elixir

Douglas Coupland - Miss Wyoming
Anne Lamott - Bird By Bird
Michael Chabon - A Model World
Karen Armstrong - Islam: A Short History
The Qur'an - Translated by Muhammad Zafrulla Khan

The Usual Suspects: Special Edition
Rollerball

I hit about six record stores while I was in portland. Besides Djangos, I also went to Jackpot Records, Music Millennium, Everyday Music, Ground Kontrol, and Reverb.

Now I have to find time to read all these things.

Labels: bookstore, list, music, Portland, tag overload, travel

- Rich, 11:22 PM

Vacation tidbits

It did not rain at all while I was in Portland

I had 106 AA batteries with me in Portland

I used 10 AA batteries

I looked up 8 people I used to know in Portland

I could only find two of them

I went to a book store everyday I was in Portland

I drank more beer in Portland then the whole rest of 2002

I spent too much money in Portland

I feel that it will be a while before I go back to Portland again

Labels: list, Portland, tag overload, travel, travel notes, travelogue

- Rich, 12:24 PM

Monday, April 01, 2002

Travel notes 4/01/02

Politics of the Ballot
Every time I come to Portland people try to get me to sign ballot measure petitions. Ballot initiatives are really a west coast thing. It makes people think they are close to democracy. There are lots of issues with petition drives. One of the big issues is that people are paid to gather signatures. They are usually paid per signature.

I told the one guy that I do not like ballot measures. I think it gives the lawmakers an excuse to be lazy. Instead of lawmakers taking on tough issues and making good laws. They let the tough ideas go to the ballot. We get poorly written, ambiguous, easy to overturn laws. I think that the ballot measures should be more restrictive. It sounds so un-democratic when I say this, but it is a better from of government.

Jugglers in the streets

I told a Juggler that I think all people who learn how to juggle do it because they are starved to attention. He agreed with a little bit and then proceeded to tell me that it was not true. He tried to compare Juggling to playing a musical instrument. He told me that Boffo the Clown is the greatest juggle in the world but he only juggled in private. He was a street performer, so I gave him a dollar for giving him a hard time.

We talked for a while. He tried to teach me how to juggle. I warned him that I have hands of stone. I only played sports where I was not allowed to touch the ball. I quickly showed him that I did not have the skills it takes to juggle. We had a good laugh. It has been a while since I have just started a conversation with someone on the street like that. I should try it more often.

Watching the public

Later that day I was sitting in Pioneer Courthouse Square. I was wondering if I would see the juggler again. I know that he was just traveling though Portland. I did not see him. It was interesting to see the people sitting there. I always seem women here that I want to try to talk to, but I can never do it. I can never get up the nerve to do this. I wonder how I would feel if someone at random approached me. I would be a little scared and un-nerved.

Drinks with Doug

I had drinks with Doug today. Doug was one the the best guys I met when I was living in Portland. We met at a book signing at Powells. Doug and I used to talk for hours about all kinds of things. We like each other because we both have a view about the world. Doug talked about school, baseball, teaching and Portland. He wants to be a playwright. It is one of those career choices I do not understand. I am so far away from that world. My guess is that he really loves it.

If I lived in Portland I would see Doug all the time. I know I could get him away from the house to have drinks from time to time. I miss having someone like Doug in my life. I never worked with him. He was someone I could talk to things about. He was not involved with the things I wanted to get away from. I have met few people that have as sharp of a mind as Doug. I think that we will have these check in sessions ever couple of years.

Random Roads

They call Pioneer Courthouse Square ‘Portland’s Living Room’. What does that mean?

Had lunch at the Bagdad today

Bagdad is a pivotal place in my history of Portland

I am thinking about ending my vacation early

Powells on Hawthorne is one of the places I miss most about Portland.

Had drinks at the Ram's Head.

Labels: Ballot, Doug Taylor, Juggeling, list, Portland, travel, travel notes, travelogue

- Rich, 11:13 PM

Sunday, March 31, 2002

Travel Notes 3/31/02

Alone on the road
I have spent most of this trip alone. I knew that before I came up here. What am I trying to figure out with all this time alone? It is alone and away from my regular life. Today it was hard to be alone. I wanted to be closer to people. It is Easter, and everyone I saw where in groups. Not being close to people is really getting me down. I have to think about that.

Lost on the Street or Religion

When I left the restaurant I was having dinner at tonight I was panhandled by a girl. I am not sure if she was 16 or 24, but she looked in rough shape. She was eating a handful of gummy worms. She asked me if I had any change. I usually do not give money to panhandlers, but today is Easter. I gave her about seventy-five cents in change and left it at that.

I know what she meant her that she did not have any Easter candy or Easter dinner. I thought about the idea that Easter is really for religion. Easter is about faith. I wanted to tell her to look into religion. If she is living on the streets she is looking for something. I wanted to tell her to look for that something in religion. It does not work for everyone, but it might work for her. It might be better then living on the street.

I did not say anything to her. The whole time I walked away, I wanted to turn around and say something. I am not a super religious person. I just cannot think living on the streets is better then finding faith. I still wish I told her this.

I went back later to see if she was there, but she was not. I wonder if I would have said anything to her if she were there. I will never know now.

Alone thoughts
I am a little depressed today. I am depressed because I am alone. I know I took this vacation to be alone, but it is pointing something out to me.

Random Roads

I am spending too much money on this vacation.

Breakfast at Jo Rousserie & Bar

Lunch at Burgerville

Dinner at the Downtown Greek Deli & Cusina

The restaurant has an octopus on the facade.

I had a great sandwich there.

I had two bottles of beer today.

The city was really dead tonight

There was not much to do today

I spent a lot of time driving around the outskirts of the city

The beds at the Benson are really good

Labels: alone, easter, list, Portland, self, tag overload, travel, travel notes, travelogue, vacation

- Rich, 11:04 PM

Saturday, March 30, 2002

Travel Notes 3/30/02

I went to sleep early last night. I was tired because I did not get much sleep for the three nights before that. I was almost falling asleep during the movie and during dinner. I did not have any plans. I knew that if I just kept drinking, I might get in a bad position. While this is a drinking vacation, I want to avoid being in a bad way about it.

Figuring out Portland

I have been having a great time in Portland. Everything seems great as I go around this town. I am asking myself why don't I live here right now. The problem is that I know I had problems with this town when I was here. I was happy to leave Portland. I am trying to remember why that was. If I do not remember why, I could get myself into trouble. If I do not see the down sides of Portland, I will pine for it. I will try to line up my return and that will be trouble.

I know that one of my problems is that I had problems finding a job I wanted. I temped two places. I know that I could have put in more time, but there are a lot better jobs in San Jose. There has to be something said for that.

I know it was something else also. I know that there are other things that where were wrong when I left. I have to figure those things out on this trip. Right now I cannot remember what those things were. I need to know what will give me problems if I come back here.

Random Roads

MP3 Player/laptop combination is great for vacation.

I drank 6 pints of beer today.

I am seeing a lot of building around town built in 1912. That must have been a big year in Portland.

I did not see a movie today.

I keep on thinking someone is going to mug me today.

Personal Pub Crawl, Draft at Shooter McQuades, Two Drafts at Kelly's Olympian, Two Drafts at Ringlers

I stole the 'history' card from Kelly's Olympian and turned into a letter for Jeremy

if I lived in Portland, I would try to drink in every bar in the city

Trying to remember the bad things about Portland

Shopped a lot today, Portland Saturday Market, Odd-Ball Shoes, Powells, Everyday Music, and Ground Kontrol.

Got Gifts for Mom, Kathy, and Alice at the Portland Saturday Market.

My ethics are untested

Portland seems larger then San Jose, but fewer people live in Portland

At Powells I talked chess and Deep Blue with a bunch of guys.

At Powells I bought coffee for a woman who did not have any money.

Rode the Max today. I love mass light rail.

Time Flies by when you are on vacation.

Labels: list, Portland, tag overload, travel, travel notes, vacation

- Rich, 11:17 PM

Thursday, March 21, 2002

Portland To Do List

This time next week I will be driving 101 North through the land of the redwood giants to the Oregon Coast. There are still things I need to do before I am ready for the trip. I hope I am not forgetting anything.

To Do List...
Get oil Change
Do Laundry
Make 1 Mix CD
Select CDs For Car
Install Dial-Up service on laptop
put coat into car
pack cloths
Clean Car (back seat)

Done...
Reserve Hotel Room
Contact Doug & Amber
Request time off

Labels: list, Portland, tag overload, todo, travel, vacation

- Rich, 12:19 PM

Monday, February 04, 2002

Real Band Names

As a comment to my post about fake band names, my friend Eric sent me a list of real band names. Some of these sound more fake then my list. Does anyone else remember when the Ultimate Band List was just something like this?

Labels: fake, fake band name, list

- Rich, 11:45 PM

Monday, December 31, 2001

New Years Resolutions - # 2

I resolve to finish 100 pages of a novel by the end of the year.

For a while now I have been saying that I would start writing a novel when I turn 30. I turn 30 this year. That means I have to start cracking. Making it a new year's resolution puts a little more pressure on me to do it. I know what I want to write a novel about. Now I just have to write it.

Labels: 2002, list, new years, New Years Resolution, novel, writing

- Rich, 10:53 AM

Sunday, December 30, 2001

More Quick Summaries

I found a site that posted these five questions about 2001. I decided that I should answer them.

1. What was your biggest accomplishment this year? Keeping my job through two rounds of layoffs.

2. What was your biggest disappointment? I did not do enough to challenge myself. I did not find things to write about until late into the year.

3. Will you be making any New Year's resolutions? Yes! I will be writing about them hear over the next couple of days.

4. Where do you wish you were celebrating? It has been such a long time since I have had a good New Years Eve, I can not think of anyplace good to Celebrate.

5. What do you plan to do for New Year's Eve? Me, A 12 Pack of Rolling Rock, and a stack of DVDs.

Labels: 2001, list, meme, new years, question

- Rich, 10:46 PM

Saturday, December 29, 2001

More Music

Jeremy saw the entry where I say he is one of my musical influences and my album of the year entry. He sent me his top ten list for 2001.

From his web log he links to the best of the 2001 lists at Othermusic.com. I am happy to say Ben Folds - Rockin' The Suburbs is not on any of their lists.

Labels: 2001, Best of, best of 2001, Jerery P Bushnell, list, music, other music

- Rich, 10:43 AM

Wednesday, December 26, 2001

Musical Influences

When I got back home I found out the Hatboro Music Shop was closing down. The Hatboro Music Shop was one of the big places for me to buy music when I was growing up. Jeremy and I decided to visit the store for what will be the last time. This is a store that Jeremy and I would walk to when we has nothing else to do in the summer.

When we where in store I told Joe, the guy who had run the store for the last 55 years, that the Hatboro Music Shop was one of the greatest musical influences in my life. When people talk about musical influences they only talk about bands. There are a lot more things that shaped me as a music lover then just bands. Bands and records might be the lowest on this list. I bought a hundred records at a record store, that store is a bigger influence then one of those hundred records. It got me think about what things shaped me as a music listener.

Here is an off the top of my head list of my greatest musical influences. They are in no particular order.

Hatboro Music Shop
Repo Records
WMMR
WIXQ
My Family
Jeremy Bushnell
My Duel Tape Boom Box/High school tape swapping
Car Radios
Replacements - Don't Tell A Soul
personal headphones (ie the walkman)

PS. In case you were wondering, Everclear - World Of Noise was the CD I bought on my last visit to the Hatboro Music Shop.

Labels: Hatboro, Hatboro Music Shop, Jerery P Bushnell, list, music, tag overload

- Rich, 11:22 PM

Being Back Home (I mean San Jose)

Before I left for vacation I felt that I was only going to be home for a couple of days. I felt like I was not going to get time to do much. I knew that I would not get the chance to hang out with all my friends. I felt bad for not being able to take more days off. I am hoarding vacation to use it next year. I could have taken more days, but I want to save all that time for a big trip.

Now that I am back in San Jose, it feels like it was a long vacation. I look back on my flight to Philadelphia and it seems like more then a weeks time has past. Between seeing my family and hanging out with friends, it seems like a lot more then one week has past. I think that I got a lot of what I wanted out of this vacation. A big chunk of that was catching up with people. I wanted to make sure I renewed friendships with people I do not see all the time.

Being Home

Before I left I wrote about how I felt that this trip would either cure my homesickness or make me what to go back even more. I can say today that my trip has cured my homesickness. I feel that I am good for some time longer in San Jose. Like my last trip back to Philadelphia, I realized that I am not ready to move back yet. I do not think I am done in San Jose either. I feel that I have to spend more time in San Jose before I decide to move on.

There is a list of things that I learned.

1. Home is always a more complicated idea then expected. Before going back to Philadelphia I was not thinking about all the complicated issues that I faced there. It is like those issues are out of sight, out of mind. There are issues with family and friends that I do not face being on the other side of the country. If I moved back there I would have to deal with these issues more often.

2. I think I could live in Philadelphia in the future. I drove around the city with an eye on what I like in Cities. I think that I could live in a city like that. There are currently a lot of nice areas in the city. There are lots of parts of the city where I can live a very urban life. I can see why Cathy likes living there. Philadelphia has a lot of different identities for the people there. I think it has more personalty then San Jose.

3. There are still things I need to learn about myself. I moved out west for a lot of different reasons. One of them was to learn more about myself. I think there are still some things that I need to learn about myself. I think that I want to learn these things before I move. I think I have to understand more about how I feel about relationships, work, and living before I move back to Philadelphia. If I do not learn these things I could make mistakes.

4. Don't let turning 30 freak me out. I am turning 30 next year. I think it has been freaking me out a little. I think that I have been putting pressure on myself because of turning 30. I was upset that my life is undefined in places. I think that worrying about it is not making my life any better defined. I have to let these things develop at there own speed. I should not worry about the time that is taken. It is only time.

I apologize if some of these things are vague. There are things that happened that I cannot really write about in such an open place. These things are effecting my outlook. I am not sure I can give more detail without airing dirty laundry.

I will be writing more about this trip. There are a lot of specific things that I can write about. I just do not have the time to write about them right now. I know the next couple of days will be spend writing about things that happened when I was visiting home. I hope I do not forget about any before I get the chance to write about them.

Labels: age, list, philadelphia, San Jose, self, vacation

- Rich, 10:04 PM

Thursday, November 22, 2001

Thankful

My friend Jeremy asked a group of us to come up with a list of a hundred things that we are thankful for. Going back to high school Jeremy started lists of 100 Favorite Things. It is something that we have been doing ever since.

Jeremy asked us to make a list of the 100 Things we are most thankful for. I see my Favorite things and my Thankful things to be two different lists. Jeremy does not see it that way. I do not want to be trivial about thinks that I am thankful for. I think there is a problem with people who thank God for ever little thing. I am seeing that the same way. The 100 Favorite Things list will have to come later.

Here is the list of things I am thankful for:

Family, My Job, Friends, worldwide communication, place to live, my mind, my health, sense of humor, the time I am living in, people that care about me, my comptuer, the people I work with, chances I have, my view of the world, my sense of the world, laughter, my car, Enjoying the company I work for, living in America, my background, the Bill of Rights, Coast to Coast air travel, My Parents, Being Missed by my friends, my life to this point,

Labels: 100 favorite things, Jerery P Bushnell, list, meme, tag overload, thankful, Thanksgiving

- Rich, 12:09 AM

Monday, November 19, 2001

Watching Boxing

On Saturday night I watched the fight between Lennox Lewis and Hasim Rahman. There were two things that I realized watching this fight.

1. I know very little about boxing.

I consider myself to have a good level of knowledge about popular sports. I know a lot about sports like baseball and football. I can talk about techniques involved in Hockey and Basketball. I understand the strategy and nuance in auto racing and tennis. I understand the finer points about most popular sports played in America. With all that boxing is a total mystery to me.

Not many of my sports fans friends are boxing fans. The people who I talk sports with do not like boxing. There is this huge divide there. I am old enough to remember Mohammed Ali's last fights. He was not a great fighter when I saw him, but people still talked about him like he was the greatest of all time. As a boy I knew there was some magic there.

In High School it was the Heyday of Mike Tyson. He was the baddest man on the planet. He was a heavy weight champ that would just destroy people. People would talk about his fights, but they would not talk about boxing. He was the only person people were really interesting in. People loved to see Tyson fight, buy that was about all.

I watched these guys fight and I realize that I have a hard time telling who is winning. I could not tell if the fighters had a plan. I could not see the things that I usually like about sports. I could not see the athletes working a plan. They either look like they are tired or they are lazy. I do not see the science part of the Sweet Science.

2. $49.95 is a lot of money to pay to watch something on TV.

I watched the fight in a neighbors apartment. I did not pay to see the fight. We watched a couple of the fights before the main event. We did not pay much attention to the female boxers. You can call me sexist, but I do not enjoy watching female box. This is an idea for another time. The under card fights were okay, but they were nothing to get excited about. They are not as good fights as I have seen in the past.

We watched the fight. It ended in the 4th Round. The fight was not dramatic. They were no real mystery to it. From the time the fight started it seemed that Lewis was in control. Neither fighter was really making a show of it. I would have love to see Lewis beat Rahman into the mat. It would have been great to see Rahman frustrate Lewis. Neither of those thing happened. No matter how you cut it, it was not worth that much money.

I know why fights are $50 a pop. I know that most people have fight parties. They expect people to split the cost between them. Even with these facts it is a lot of money to watch something on television. Think about all the other ways you can spend $50 on entertainment, 3 CDs, 2 DVDs, Diner and a Movie for two (no popcorn), a month of digital cable. One fight does not seem worth the price. I think that boxing might find this out a little too late.

Labels: boxing, cost, Hasim Rahman, knowledge, Lennox Lewis, list, Mike Tyson, Mohammed Ali, Money, sports, television

- Rich, 11:09 PM

Tuesday, October 30, 2001

I Still Have A Job

My company had layoffs today. There are so many things in my head right now, I think it would take all night to get them out. My head is think with emotion, reaction, detail, and evaluation. I might even get a full week of web logs out of the layoff. I know that I was not ready for this to happen. I just thought my company would keep on going. I should try to be smarter next time.

At the start of the day I knew what was going on. I knew that people were being laid off. The hard part was that I did not know who was going to be laid off. The morning went very slowly. I had to wait for my boss to tell me what was going on. My boss had told me that he was being laid off. I had to still wait to find out what my fate would be.

There have been two rounds of layoffs at my job. Both times my boss has been let go. I guess being my boss is a bad position to have. Both times I have had some problems with my boss. It is at the moments when layoffs are happening when you find out what kind of person your boss is. I will say that both of my former bosses are good men. Sometime it takes some distance to see this.

I just sat at my desk and waited to see what would happen. I felt like jumping up and down, but I just had to sit there. I was afraid that if I walked over to someone else's desk, I would miss the call from my boss. That would mean I would fall to the bottom of the list. I would have to wait to find out my fate.

I had already run over all my options in my head. I was trying to figure out what I was going to do if I got the ax. In my head I had four options. Three of the options are practical. One of the options makes me laugh like a madman when I think of it. Each of these options have their pluses and minuses. I was trying to see all my angles without knowing what was going to happen to me.

Option 1: Stay in San Jose and look for a job.

Positives: I do not have to move. That saves me time and money. The pay is still good here. I have some people here to network with. There are people in Silicon Valley that know that I am a good worker.

Negatives: It is expensive to live here. I would not have a long time before my money ran out. There are a lot of people out of work in the valley right now. Not many companies are hiring. I know people that looked for a long time before they found anything

Option 2: Move to a city where one of my friend is currently living and crash with them.

Positives: It would give me a chance to move to a new city and learn it. I could be closer to one of my old friends. I would be able to brake away from San Jose.

Negatives: I would have to count on the generosity of my friends to accomplish this. I might wear that out quickly. I do not have a good idea of what the job situations are like in these cities.

Option 3: Move back in with my parents.

Positives: I would have a good support network if I moved back to Philadelphia. There are a lot of people in Philadelphia that I know. I would be close to my family again. I could reconnect with some of my old friends. One of those friends might help me find a job.

Negatives: There would be some level of defeat here. I would not be returning to Philadelphia on my own terms. It would be my unemployment that would force me to go back there.

Option 4: Move back to Portland

Positives and Negatives: This is the one that makes me laugh like a madman. On one hand moving to San Jose would have been just an interruption. I would go back to the status I had before I moved down here. On the other hand I miss Portland and I still think it is a cool place to live.

My boss called me into his cubical. He said to me, "don't worry, you are not affected." I still sat and talked to him for about 20 minutes. We talked about my job and how he thought I did a good job. He told me that he was happy that he worked with me and my group. He said that it is a small valley and he would be back on his feet in no time. I should keep in touch with him. I am not worried about my boss finding another job.

It was another hour before John, a guy in my department found out that he was laid off. John had been working in the customer support group for a long time. He was the guy who trained me when I was first hired. I know that John was pissed about getting fired. After he found out, I could see the hurt in his eyes. He started to pack up his stuff.

The first round of layoffs where back in April. There were six guys and a manager in my department then. The April layoff cut my group down to three people. We also started to report to the director of customer support. In this layoff we have been cut to two people. Now we are going to report to a new director of customer support.

I have survived two rounds of layoffs. I am still going to be at work tomorrow. There is a part of me that is proud. I am a person that has been picked to stay around twice. I must be doing something right. I consider myself to be a hard worker. I take pride in my work and I want people to see me as the best at what I do.

It is hard to say these things after a layoff. It it hard to take pride in your accomplishments when other people have been let go. I did the "Rocky Dance" at one point in the afternoon. I felt like I was a survivor. I felt like I was going to hold my job together. This is a good feeling, but I feel wrong for having it.

One thing I can say is that I was not prepared to be laid off. I thought my company would go at least until after Christmas before laying people off. I thought that I would have a lot more time before I would have to face this. This makes me think. I do not think that another round is coming anytime soon. I still should start getting ready now. I should align my life so I can react better to being laid off.

For right now I have to see what direction my company moves. I have to see what the plans for the future are. I know that I have some part in those plans. I am also going to relax. Today was stressful enough for a week. I need to just get down to business. I need to get out of my head a little bit and stop thinking so much.

Labels: layoffs, list, philadelphia, Portland, self, work

- Rich, 9:42 PM

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