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Monday, May 31
The Memory Remains:
There was really too much inspiration in my life for the memorial day blog I had intended to do today. I remember being a wee nipper and getting dragged by my mother and grandmother to the graveyards in Cedarville MI where my grandfather and uncles are buried each and every memorial day that we were up there. As a child I never really understood it. I didn't know why it was important that my uncle Wayne was a world war II pilot. I didn't have any clue that what we were really doing was honoring those that came before us. I really thought it was more for my grandmother. These were her people. I would wander off, as any under 10 year old kid would. Chasing the grasshoppers in my new shoes and good pants. I could never catch them, just as I didn't comprehend the real meaning, or reason we were there.
I remember my first open casket service. I remember my mother was worried. My grandmother took me to see a great uncles service. It was the first person I knew who had died. I rememeber not being all that disturbed by the corpse. It didn't look real. It wasn't the man I had known. I had to resist the urge to touch it. It looked like it would feel plastic.
Many people today are taking this long weekend to start thier summer. Many pools are opening. Many barbeques are being planned.
I'm thinking of you, grandma. I get it now.
I miss you.
posted by: Skeeve @ 10:32 PM
Saturday, May 29
Home Movies
I'm a big fan of the act of getting friends together and having fun with a video camera. I'm a bigger fan of those who do it and add special effects, get dressed up and even act well. These movies used to collect dust on friend's shelves. But with highbandwidth and a little server space, sharing these gems with millions is possible.
Here's a few sites I've been impressed with.
For a good time, click...
Sevenohfive films. These guys have a great sense of humor, and a thirst for ninjas, 70s cops, and comic books.
Red Vs. Blue. Who would have thought that using Halo to make films could be so cool (and funny!).
Star Trek: New Voyages. I would hardly call these home movies. The amount of detail and thought that has gone into these films are amazing. I'm not even a big fan of Star Trek, but this is a must click. (Thanks to Muddseye for the link)
Braxtanfilm. Big on horror. My personal favorite is Freddy vs Ghostbusters.
Robotbastard. A film by Rob Schrab. This guy made "Heat Vision and Jack", which starred Ben Stiller, Jack Black and the voice of Owen Wilson as a talking motorcycle. Check out an unoffical fan site of HVaJ here. I really recommend searching the p2p networks for HEAT VISION AND JACK. It's damn funny.
Troops. Ok, so you've prolly heard of this by now, but this is the classic "TROOPS" film by someone who worked in the film industry. Mix "Star Wars" with "Cops" and you've got "Troops". There's been tons of Star wars fan films. Alot can be found here. If you can ever find "George Lucas in Love" somewhere on the net, you ought to download that one. It's available at Amazon too. Great college film. Anyway. Enough about starwars.
Batman: Dead End. Another great short fan film made by someone in the industry.
posted by: Zung @ 3:34 PM
Wednesday, May 26
Spring has sprung!
Cue the thundercrashes.
 Along with the nice weather, as usual, come the spring rainstorms, and while I enjoy the flashing of the lightning, illuminating in stark white light my world otherwise dark, and the roll of thunder that, when I was little, was always the sound of my great-grandfather bowling in heaven, I also find myself quite glad that we don't live in a climate that tends toward monsoon weather of several weeks of solid, pouring rain.
 Then again, we're living somewhere where to be liberal is to be a devil of some sort; this confuses me. I thought that to be liberal was to be the healthy opposite of conservative, and that it is rather extremists and radicals who should be somewhat lionized. But what do I know about common sense.
 Well, I do know that those little jelly bracelets that I loved to wear, and occasionally still do, have nothing to do with secret codes about sexual favors. At least, not for middle school children.
Bring on the rains.
posted by: Bliss @ 10:22 AM
Tuesday, May 25
Missed Mondays
It's no secret, Monday is not my favorite of all the days of the week. And in my current job I never know where I'm going to be. In this case, Monday found me onsite at one of our illustrous state offices teaching the administrative staff the differences between word and word perfect. Today is more of the same. I grow weary of hearing them complain. (They're stateworkers. I think it's thier job.)
Things are otherwise going well here at the camp. We're getting ready for the wedding, and things are moving along well. The new house is shaping up, despite the fact that I still haven't found my remote controls.
Ok, I'm off. Hope you have a great week!
posted by: Skeeve @ 8:48 AM
Thursday, May 20
Of Cabbages and Kings
I recently managed to get myself promoted at work, from a lead cashier position to a manager role. I have been congratulated and had my chops busted, often by the same people. Tonight will mark my first evening of being manager solo; hopefully I will not forget anything, like locking the doors when we close (I am so glad no customers showed up at twenty after eleven last night.).
As I've been training, I've been taking stock not only of the store, but also the people who work there with me. I've now been there just over a year, and in that time have managed to get myself promoted twice. I look forward, once I've gotten the ins and outs of this position under my belt, to aspiring to an even loftier position upon the corporate ladder, and I've had several coworkers remark to me that they could see me pulling such a thing off. Not everyone seems to have this drive, though.
Several people's lack of promotional seeking I can understand, as they are working part-time there for fun, to supplement income from another fulltime job, or while they are going through school. That accounts for the majority of the part-time staff. There are a couple folks who have started at the store within the last year, and gotten themselves promoted to a lead/full-time position, and are (for the moment) staying there. The people I find most curious, though, are the ones who have been there longer than me, and seem to have little to no ambition; they are content or stuck in their position, and for whatever reasons are trying to rise to anything more. For some people this is understandable; personal life constraints or personality conflicts keep them for attempting anything more than what they have already got.
That kind of attitude would never sit with me. Rarely have I had a job wherein, soon after I start, I'm looking toward the next step or two up from the entry level; as a YMCA maintenance worker I sought certification and became a lifeguard, as a lab consultant I stuck it out until my senior year to become the lead consultant, and now in my first year of real retail I've moved from part-time bookseller to head cashier, to department manager. And while this position is new, and there's a lot for me to learn, I'm confident that it all will become natural, and even easy, eventually, just as the head cashier position had. When that time comes, I'm going to move onward and upward, seeking out assistant manager positions, perhaps even my own store, and eventually a district or even region.
Maybe spring brings out the career girl in me, rather than the need to clean house, but I fully believe that I can rise as high as I want to in this company; as Stuart Smalley would say, "I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and doggone it - people like me!" I will change, I will grow, I will improve myself and my station. I will never fully understand those who don't.
posted by: Bliss @ 10:57 AM
Saturday, May 15
Knee jerk reactions...
Lately we've been innundated with the monkey see monkey do mentality.
It's nothing new.
When I first started playing D&D people said that the game would lead to insanity, and violence. The whole action film genre is supposed to make us pick up a knife and kill people, and music is supposed to make us kill our selves. (As well as encourages dancing, which leads to sex)
It seems as if people never want to take responcibility for thier own actions, especially if that action has negative conotations. It's easier to blame the TV, the media, an actor for bending and warping impressionable young minds.
And now, a group of kids out of NY is doing it about the newest of the war crimes, smoking.
Reality Check of NewYork is trying to convince the media, and everyone else that any time cigarettes are shown on film there is an evil empire of "Big Tobacco" behind it. Showing Meg Ryan smoking on film is going to make kids want to go out and buy a pack of smokes to be "cool". www.rensco.com has more information on the Troy and Renselear branches of Reality Check
Don't get me wrong... I'm not a smoker. I have, in absolute moderation, had a puff on someone elses cigarette, or my own. My parents were smokers while I was growing up. I have no love for it. Being near it for a time will cause me to have headaches. But I completely disagree with the TV ads and billboards and flyers and letters (Reality check has been sending letters to the production companies and movie stars to get them to comply with having "Non-Smoking" films, can you imagine?. YOU CAN'T GET SECOND HAND SMOKE FROM A FILM!)
I can't STAND this American obsession with "Save the children". One of the big pushes of the Anti-Smoking in movies campaign is to remove smoking from G, PG and PG-13 films. Reality Check isn't the only group focused on this goal either. A quick Google search brings up Tobacco Free, SmokeFreeMovies amoung others...
Part of this new reaction is because researchers from Dartmouth College in VT have published findings that they believe show that adolecents who see excessive smoking in movies are more likely to smoke than those who don't. I more or less agree with the comments in this artical.
It all comes down to this, in my opinion... People are going to do what they are inclined to do. If they have an interest in smoking, they will. If they have an interest in Drugs, then they will... Don't blame something else for your own lack of will power when faced with a descision, and for gods sake don't whine after you've made a descision that has hurt you and you were well aware of it's potential. Don't rely on others to protect you from yourself, and your own desires. And as far as children go, PARENTS are the only filter worth anything. That doesn't mean that it will stop someone, but hopefully they will be better prepared for the challenges and issues that they will face.
posted by: Skeeve @ 10:11 AM
Wednesday, May 12
Where does the time go?
 This morning, while pondering what to type, I came across the picture to your left while searching for volatile political stories to rant about. It's from a BBC article about pet empathy. But why do they have a picture of a cat reading a book? I was intrigued to say the least. So I took out my trusty firefox browser, and set out for google's image search. The BBC site has a habit of recycling images for their stories, especially in the tech section. Maybe I could find the original article. Is it about an amazing cat who reads T.S. Elliot? Or is it about a cat who doesn't read, but merely uses the book to press flowers and butterflies? The picture must have been used once before!
 There must be a career in stock photography. The BBC tech section is all the proof I need. It must be a generally easy job as well. Take out the digital camera, snap some pictures of your keyboard from several different angles, and run them through some Photoshop filters. I'd like to imagine that your editor sends you to far off places like Paris and Sydney, to photograph their keyboards. But I think my imagination might be better spent on daydreams of winning the lottery and wiping my ass with Ben Franklin.
 My apologies, I'm getting off topic. What was it again? Oh, right. Cats reading books. My google search came up with quite a few interesting photos. But no other BBC articles. I kept going anyway, for more cute pictures like the one to the left. But after a few pages, the cuteness wore off, and my interest began to wane.
 Until I came across this. The hell with my original topic. I think I found a sign of revelations. Cats and mice, living together. Mass Hysteria! "Auan, a seven-year-old female cat, licks the face of Jeena, a three-year-old male mouse, at a farmer's house in the central province of Phichit, 450 km (281 miles) north of Bangkok, August 7, 2002. The animals' owners say Auan found Jeena three years ago and has been his playmate and protector, including warding off dogs, since then."
The original can be found here. The user comments are amusing. For those of you who often wonder how I waste my precious free time, please feel free to reference this post in the future.
posted by: Zung @ 11:02 AM
Monday, May 10
Nevermind the bollocks...
Or the boxes...
Still in the wonderful land of unpacking. I'm to the point where I doubt my life won't always be filled with them. I'm becoming suspicious of the boxes. I think they ate the cat.
I know for a fact that they ate my remotes. I distinctly remember putting the remotes into a box and thinking "Ok, they'll be safe here". Safe from me, I think.
The magic 8-ball tells me to concentrate and ask again when I considered asking it if I'd ever find my way out of the unpacking zone.
The magic 8-ball is my friend.
In other words kids, Don't try this at home...
posted by: Skeeve @ 8:18 PM
Saturday, May 8
Two hours of my life I'm never getting back...
Is it Saturday morning already? I think it's because I willed my Friday to pass as quickly as possible. Last night I attended one of my biggest pet peeves. Bad Theatre. But who am I to brag? Everyone hates poor stagecraft. Except for actors. If it weren't for bad theatre, what would most actors do with their time? It's also a good night on the town for said actor's immediate and sometimes extended family. What better excuse to take grandma out and not have to talk to her for a good two hours?
So what was this horror show I attended last night? Well, for the sake of not offending anyone reading this who may be directly or indirectly involved with the production, I'll refrain from mentioning the name "A fine and private place" or the fact that it was in West Sand Lake, NY.
Ooops.
All unfairness aside, I should say that the actors did a fine job with the material they had to work with. I do believe the fault lies squarely with the playwright. To summerize, it takes place in a cemetary. Theres an old man who lives in the cemetary who can see and talk to dead people. His only friend is a raven, played by a person, and he's visited by an old jewish widow. Theres two ghosts in the play as well. They all just go on and on about what it means to be alive, and love and just a bunch of stuff that makes you want to go outside and beat a dog for a better time. The raven is about the only entertaining thing in the play. He was pretty god damn funny, but not enough to save the play. Oh, and did I mention it was a musical? The singing was good, but again, the material was awful. It was very much in the style of Sondhiem, except not as entertaining.
We knew quite a few people involved with the show, and they're all very wonderful. For all of them, I'm sure this will just be a small blip on their community theatre radar. Maybe next time they'll choose something with a heartbeat (pun intended).
According to the paybill, they're putting on a musical version of "The Hobbit" in September. Auditions are for grades 7-12, so it'll be performed by kids. Thats my only exception to my "bad theatre" pet peeve. Kids theatre will always be bad but they've got a good excuse, and sometimes, they surprise you.
posted by: Zung @ 8:45 AM
Wednesday, May 5
You could be swinging on a star!
Coming upon one of the last days of my vacation, I find there there is something to be said for self-enforced domesticity. There is a zenlike calm infused into one's life with the pressurelessness of feeding the pets, washing some dishes, doing a little laundry in ones own appliances, and setting a daily schedule uniquely one's own. I deem vacations, however short they may be, to be worthy things.
They are in fact quite choice; if you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up.
posted by: Bliss @ 3:44 PM
Monday, May 3
A thought on back to work...
It's never long enough... It's small vacations like the one I just ended that whet your appetite for more days off. But, I'm going to have to hold on until fall now... (Specifically around our wedding) until my next big day off.
Cripes, I'm soooo tired.
Good and bad things recently. The good is really great... The bad... Well, it sucks.
I think my life would be perfect, if I could get a new job, paying close to what I get now. I know many people hate thier jobs, but this is rediculous. I mean, if it weren't for Bliss, I think I might have given it up. But I'm locked right now. Locked in for our future.
Of course, the lottery would be good too. I mean, all you need is a dollar and a slight gambling addiction.
So, I'm sort of back, but it's going to be awhile till I'm in full swing around here again. It's been so busy and frantic, that I've had no time to really get my hands dirty... Yahknow?
Ok, so I'm off to try and finish the server by tomorrow morning. Wish me luck.
posted by: Skeeve @ 11:09 PM
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