Exiled to a better understanding?
First and foremost, go vote.
Secondly, MTV has a show called Exiled. It follows up on the monstrously and often cartoonish spoiled rich kids of MTV's show, My Super Sweet 16.
These kids are typical silver spoon fed, Gucci adorned anti-Christs who roam the local malls and luxury department stores spending money that isn't theirs and inflating their self-importance.
The plot is to take these children of affluence and shove them somewhere completely different, third world country style. Of course their parents call them into a "family meeting" to tell them that they are too spoiled and wouldn't know an honest days work if it were ostentatious and flailing about in front of them sparkling, bright and shiny, with million dollar Jacob the Jeweler accessories and punching them with a Louis Vuitton boxing glove. (and I am positive I've made at least 10 grammatical errors in that last sentence)
(I find this a bit asinine, to be honest. Whose fault is it that these kids are lazy and insufferable? It's the parents. Anyway...)
So, because of their spoiled behavior these brats --by way of Rodeo Drive, get sent to Peru, Antarctica, India, South America, the desert of Morocco and a few other places I can't remember for a week to show them what life is like for others their age without all the glitz and butlers.
It all plays out the same. They show up as divas, insult the culture, whine, cry and throw temper tantrums, only to come around in the end, make friends and weep when they have to leave.
Ugh. Talk about missing the point.
I think it should be mandatory for everyone to have to submerse themselves in a culture that is unlike their own for at least a month. It's an exercise in getting over yourself. Eat as they do, live and work as they do, and gain experience and appreciation for other's lives that while basically function the same, (we all work to eat and need sleep and recreation) go about it in various directions with sometimes opposite ideals.
Find respect for others and respect for life no matter how it is lived, through doing something that matters.
People get so absorbed by what their life is that they forget that there are more important things. I firmly stand by my statement that all you ever need to see in someone is how they react when they are inconvenienced. You want to get to the heart of a person and figure out how their world view and maturity measure up? See them when they are terribly inconvenienced. People forget what their fronts are and they show true colors. Losing your "it's all about me" mentality and experiencing first hand what a real hard life is, would be most beneficial to the majority.
That is where I believe peace starts. Understanding and comprehension. Oh, and Prozac. If I could only give the world a giant Prozac...
Tuesday
Saturday
October 18th, 2008
Survival of the Domesticated.
I'm quite disappointed in my dog right now.
First off, it's way too early for me to be up right now, even though I am. I took him out back for him to have his morning constitutional and it immediately turned into an massive stare down with a squirrel.
Both of them frozen, with eyes locked, I was hoping for some backyard action, National Geographic style. I was planning my narration hoping to play a tired, slow moving, and slightly hung over David Attenborough.
He is a dog. Dogs chase things, dogs bite things, dogs bark at things. I was fully expecting him to take off after the Squirrel, pouncing and barking proving his lack of testicles make him no less of a man. And I would have been proud. Tiny and fluffy, no matter. My dog would still be a bad ass. King of his fenced in backyard. Top of the small animal food chain. He would be known to the tinier and fluffier indigenous animals as the Urban Destroyer of Juniata.
Awaiting a throw down of tiny fluffy animals, my hopes were squished when Squirt looked away and started licking his butt.
It was a travesty.
The squirrel stood up on it's hind legs and squealed --seemingly mocking him for his lack of prowess.
Squirrel: That's what I thought. Go ahead, lick your butt. You ain't nothing. That's right. YOU. AIN'T. NOTHING.
I can't help but feel responsible. I did raise him after all. Turns out it was to be a needy, co-dependent.....WUSS.
Now, as I watch him taking his tiny blue whale squeaky toy and tossing it into the air and pouncing on it, rolling over on is back with it in his mouth, I realize if it were 250 million years ago and Squirt was living as he is, he would have never lived. He'd have been eaten by mother right away.
If he had managed to escape, he wouldn't have had a cool death battling a Tyrannosaur or being stalked by a Velociraptor, he probably wouldn't have noticed where he was going, stopped to lick his butt and fallen in a hole.
I'm getting a Rottweiler.
I'm quite disappointed in my dog right now.
First off, it's way too early for me to be up right now, even though I am. I took him out back for him to have his morning constitutional and it immediately turned into an massive stare down with a squirrel.
Both of them frozen, with eyes locked, I was hoping for some backyard action, National Geographic style. I was planning my narration hoping to play a tired, slow moving, and slightly hung over David Attenborough.
He is a dog. Dogs chase things, dogs bite things, dogs bark at things. I was fully expecting him to take off after the Squirrel, pouncing and barking proving his lack of testicles make him no less of a man. And I would have been proud. Tiny and fluffy, no matter. My dog would still be a bad ass. King of his fenced in backyard. Top of the small animal food chain. He would be known to the tinier and fluffier indigenous animals as the Urban Destroyer of Juniata.
Awaiting a throw down of tiny fluffy animals, my hopes were squished when Squirt looked away and started licking his butt.
It was a travesty.
The squirrel stood up on it's hind legs and squealed --seemingly mocking him for his lack of prowess.
Squirrel: That's what I thought. Go ahead, lick your butt. You ain't nothing. That's right. YOU. AIN'T. NOTHING.
I can't help but feel responsible. I did raise him after all. Turns out it was to be a needy, co-dependent.....WUSS.
Now, as I watch him taking his tiny blue whale squeaky toy and tossing it into the air and pouncing on it, rolling over on is back with it in his mouth, I realize if it were 250 million years ago and Squirt was living as he is, he would have never lived. He'd have been eaten by mother right away.
If he had managed to escape, he wouldn't have had a cool death battling a Tyrannosaur or being stalked by a Velociraptor, he probably wouldn't have noticed where he was going, stopped to lick his butt and fallen in a hole.
I'm getting a Rottweiler.
Sunday
October 5th, 2008
I scream, you scream, we all scream for.... LOGOS
I feel so incredibly lucky to live in a city with so much musical talent. Not everyone can say that on any given weekend they can pay 5 dollars or so and sit and watch live music that is on par with most of the fantastic bands around.
I take it for granted, honestly.
Once again I've been blown away by undeniable talent. LOGOS are 3 deliciously lovely young men, who rock so hard and so well, you would never guess two of the members just graduated high school. Their drummer, a mere 24. Their sound is amazingly mature and refined for a trio so young.
Their music is best described as rich and melodic. They show rock no quarter. Their songs throwback to the days when you laid on giant pillows in the corner on the floor of your bedroom ears beneath giant headphones the size of your head and got lost in the sound of bands like Boston, Rush, and Rolling Stones.
Speaking of Rush, LOGOS do an amazing rendition of Working Man. And, being able to play Rush and do Alex Lifeson/Neil Peart a great deal of justice does nothing but speak to the talent these guys have. Let's not forget belting out the distinct and pitch perfect lyrical styling of Geddy Lee. THAT IS NOT EASY. Watching them, you'd never guess exactly how hard it really is.
These guys will be big. It won't take very long. And I will be sad because that means they will be selling out stadiums and arenas, not my local concert venue. But, that's the price you pay for good music. You enjoy it, watch them refine their sound, then turn and cheer them on when they have to move to the coast to make it big.
That's what these guys are. Big.
So in the meantime, you'll see my friends and I at our local concert venue, nodding our heads and singing along, because that is what we do.
We are adoring of live music. We are in love with great rock.
LOGOS is a must see band. Don't forget your ear plugs.
Speaking of Working Man, I happen to have video of them doing this aforementioned song at Jefferson Barracks for the KSHE Klassics show. They opened for April Wine and Blue Oyster Cult. At 18, could you have said that?
Enjoy.
LOGOS Myspace
I feel so incredibly lucky to live in a city with so much musical talent. Not everyone can say that on any given weekend they can pay 5 dollars or so and sit and watch live music that is on par with most of the fantastic bands around.
I take it for granted, honestly.
Once again I've been blown away by undeniable talent. LOGOS are 3 deliciously lovely young men, who rock so hard and so well, you would never guess two of the members just graduated high school. Their drummer, a mere 24. Their sound is amazingly mature and refined for a trio so young.
Their music is best described as rich and melodic. They show rock no quarter. Their songs throwback to the days when you laid on giant pillows in the corner on the floor of your bedroom ears beneath giant headphones the size of your head and got lost in the sound of bands like Boston, Rush, and Rolling Stones.
Speaking of Rush, LOGOS do an amazing rendition of Working Man. And, being able to play Rush and do Alex Lifeson/Neil Peart a great deal of justice does nothing but speak to the talent these guys have. Let's not forget belting out the distinct and pitch perfect lyrical styling of Geddy Lee. THAT IS NOT EASY. Watching them, you'd never guess exactly how hard it really is.
These guys will be big. It won't take very long. And I will be sad because that means they will be selling out stadiums and arenas, not my local concert venue. But, that's the price you pay for good music. You enjoy it, watch them refine their sound, then turn and cheer them on when they have to move to the coast to make it big.
That's what these guys are. Big.
So in the meantime, you'll see my friends and I at our local concert venue, nodding our heads and singing along, because that is what we do.
We are adoring of live music. We are in love with great rock.
LOGOS is a must see band. Don't forget your ear plugs.
Speaking of Working Man, I happen to have video of them doing this aforementioned song at Jefferson Barracks for the KSHE Klassics show. They opened for April Wine and Blue Oyster Cult. At 18, could you have said that?
Enjoy.
LOGOS Myspace
Monday
September 22nd, 2008
Thursday
September 19th, 2008
Oh, Halloween. I do love you so.
It's the one time of year that being told you bear "The Mark of the Beast" is actually a compliment.
As a wee lass, it was all about the candy. Snickers, Twix and Skittles, oh my! Getting dressed up and going out to ask for loads of candy wasn't just fun, it was an EVENT.
You get home, arms tired and eager. Plastic hollowed pumpkins, paper and plastic bags alike all turned upside down to spill the bounty yet to be sifted and separated. Four piles to be exact. Chocolate, non-chocolate good stuff, gum and those Saf-T suckers and ghost erasers.
Why would you hand out ghost erasers? You can't eat those.
Then, it was time to chow down. It's possibly the only time of year that you sit surrounded by piles of candy, wrappers flying as you binge until you vomit, and your parents do not interfere. Besides Easter.. Halloween is Easter infused with the Devil. So much more fun.
Oh the glory of it all.
My parents turn their garage into a mini haunted house and carve elaborate Jack-O-Lanterns. My dad is the Halloween master. He's been scaring the crap out of little kids since... well, I was a kid.
As a teen, it was all about the Haunted Houses and the house parties. You can drive ...and sneaking beer and other various sorts of bottom shelf, cheap drunk, murderous hangover liquor was the deal (these were the days that the only Congress you cared about came in a handle for 4.99). You called your friends to see if you were invited to the same parties and to see if that Junior boy you "love" is going to be there. Then you pick the safest costume possible so you don't look like an idiot. You stand around, awkwardly, fumbling with your costume and watch everyone else get so hammered they chuck all over the back porch. Good times. Good times.
By far, as an adult, it is about the costume and going to parties. At least for me, some people strictly use it as an excuse to get completely smashed. Coupled or not, having a great costume is important. Hey, plan early, you can get your costume on the cheap, before the mark ups come during the month of October. Candy isn't really a premium anymore and the thought of buying Congress or Burnett's bring back awful college memories buried deep after that 7th walk of shame. The days of drinking Nat Light are over --no one drinks Nat Light over 24 anyway, do they?
I enjoy Halloween so much more now as an adult. I'm sure it helps having a close circle of friends who also enjoy dressing up elaborately and drinking until the smile never fades. I know it's over a month away yet, but Halloween has been on my mind since the end of August. I'm a planner. I love to do. --shut up. You know what I meant.
It's the one time of year that being told you bear "The Mark of the Beast" is actually a compliment.
As a wee lass, it was all about the candy. Snickers, Twix and Skittles, oh my! Getting dressed up and going out to ask for loads of candy wasn't just fun, it was an EVENT.
You get home, arms tired and eager. Plastic hollowed pumpkins, paper and plastic bags alike all turned upside down to spill the bounty yet to be sifted and separated. Four piles to be exact. Chocolate, non-chocolate good stuff, gum and those Saf-T suckers and ghost erasers.
Why would you hand out ghost erasers? You can't eat those.
Then, it was time to chow down. It's possibly the only time of year that you sit surrounded by piles of candy, wrappers flying as you binge until you vomit, and your parents do not interfere. Besides Easter.. Halloween is Easter infused with the Devil. So much more fun.
Oh the glory of it all.
My parents turn their garage into a mini haunted house and carve elaborate Jack-O-Lanterns. My dad is the Halloween master. He's been scaring the crap out of little kids since... well, I was a kid.
As a teen, it was all about the Haunted Houses and the house parties. You can drive ...and sneaking beer and other various sorts of bottom shelf, cheap drunk, murderous hangover liquor was the deal (these were the days that the only Congress you cared about came in a handle for 4.99). You called your friends to see if you were invited to the same parties and to see if that Junior boy you "love" is going to be there. Then you pick the safest costume possible so you don't look like an idiot. You stand around, awkwardly, fumbling with your costume and watch everyone else get so hammered they chuck all over the back porch. Good times. Good times.
By far, as an adult, it is about the costume and going to parties. At least for me, some people strictly use it as an excuse to get completely smashed. Coupled or not, having a great costume is important. Hey, plan early, you can get your costume on the cheap, before the mark ups come during the month of October. Candy isn't really a premium anymore and the thought of buying Congress or Burnett's bring back awful college memories buried deep after that 7th walk of shame. The days of drinking Nat Light are over --no one drinks Nat Light over 24 anyway, do they?
I enjoy Halloween so much more now as an adult. I'm sure it helps having a close circle of friends who also enjoy dressing up elaborately and drinking until the smile never fades. I know it's over a month away yet, but Halloween has been on my mind since the end of August. I'm a planner. I love to do. --shut up. You know what I meant.
Monday
September 15th, 2008
R.I.P
Richard Wright, you were an integral part of one of my favorite bands of all time, Pink Floyd.
You will be missed.
"Us and Them" is an incredible tune. Dark Side of the Moon and Momentary Lapse of Reason are both bloody brilliant albums.
I will pay my respects when I see El Monstero here in the upcoming months.
Richard Wright, you were an integral part of one of my favorite bands of all time, Pink Floyd.
You will be missed.
"Us and Them" is an incredible tune. Dark Side of the Moon and Momentary Lapse of Reason are both bloody brilliant albums.
I will pay my respects when I see El Monstero here in the upcoming months.
Sunday
September 14th, 2008
Sometimes YouTube takes forever to upload videos. All the interwebs seem to malfunctioning today... *cough* Ike *cough*.
But, no matter. I've got two videos to share. They are from last night's Journey/Heart/Cheap Trick concert.
One video is Heart's epic power ballad, Alone. They did it semi-acoustic, and the thing about this video, is you can hear thousands of people singing the words. There is a point where Anne is supposed to go into the Chorus, but doesn't and all you can hear is the fans singing.
These are not top quality videos of any kind, and actually.... they sort of look like a cracked out dog prancing upright on it's hind legs for treats took these videos. We were really close to St. Charles --don't think it couldn't happen.
The videos don't come close to capturing the moments when everyone in crowd was singing the same song at the same time, but it was really awesome. At times we could only hear the crowd, you couldn't even hear Journey's new lead singer.
But, no matter. I've got two videos to share. They are from last night's Journey/Heart/Cheap Trick concert.
One video is Heart's epic power ballad, Alone. They did it semi-acoustic, and the thing about this video, is you can hear thousands of people singing the words. There is a point where Anne is supposed to go into the Chorus, but doesn't and all you can hear is the fans singing.
These are not top quality videos of any kind, and actually.... they sort of look like a cracked out dog prancing upright on it's hind legs for treats took these videos. We were really close to St. Charles --don't think it couldn't happen.
The videos don't come close to capturing the moments when everyone in crowd was singing the same song at the same time, but it was really awesome. At times we could only hear the crowd, you couldn't even hear Journey's new lead singer.
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