Posts From The Shower

The naming of a child

2011-03-01T23:48:00.013-07:00

Newsflash to nobody, but naming a child feels really important. It feels like you have his fate in your hands and whatever name you come up with with launch him to success or doom him to failure. I suspect this isn't actually true at all. The book "Freakonomics," suggests it's complete balderdash and theorizes instead that certain names are chosen by portions of society with less money while those with more money choose different names, making us all feel as though names make all the difference when it actually is probably what kind of situation we come from; Education, nutrition, parental involvement and finances matter more.

Anyway, this doesn't feel true at all when it comes time to name a child. At that moment, the fights he will get in, the dates he will or will not go on, the teasing he will or will not endure, the scholarships he will earn and his position on the athletic field all rest in the power of his parents to give him a "good" name.

Almost nine years ago we named a child Dresden. My gentle mother-in-law said out loud that she hated the name and thought we must be kidding. My own mother wasn't too pleased either but both love the boy and the name. He is great in social situations, is happy at school and is well liked by adults. With most of his first decade logged, the name has been a success; Likewise his brother Logan.

An unexpected new baby has come into our family and unlike the day Shannon suggested Dresden, no mutually agreed on moniker landed on us. We searched with no success for a geographical name that also had some tie to a fictional heroic character. For those not familiar, Dresden DeVon has the initials DD, which is short for comic-book hero Daredevil. Logan is named as much after mutant Wolverine as he is the city where Shannon went to college and where we courted.

Each of our children have four names, always including "DeVon" as a family name (Dee - Vaughn) after my father and after me.

But no third choice was ever conjured out of any baby book or atlas or heroic fiction. All those sources yielded plenty of options but none were satisfactory to both of us.

Boston
Zealand
Winston
Athens
Roman
Zurich
Urban
Lander

Those names made Shannon's list and I especially liked Zurich and Winston but the latter was neither a city nor a heroic figure unless Winston Churchill was counted but he wasn't fictional. ("Never, never, never, never give up.")

One day, speaking to a much respected acquaintance, he mentioned that his friend had just named his baby "Strider," and it struck me like a thunderbolt that the name was perfect for my future child. Later that day at home I excitedly told Shannon and she was completely unimpressed. Apparently she has "Lord of the Rings" fatigue but I didn't associate the name with the book or the films, but just as a great name.

Dresden and Logan however were very impressed and next to "Frodo Baggins" they thought it was the greatest name ever. And they used it pretty much from then on when talking to Shannon's tummy or talking down her throat to the baby. I thought maybe she would be won over.

A month or so later, I saw some other friends having a disagreement over a baby name and one half of the couple insisted that the name was decided and the other partner had no choice and that felt so wrong to me; I immediately ended the "Strider" campaign and told my already born children to do the same. The problem is, they already thought of the baby as "Strider" and didn't stop calling him that. The used the name as a name, as a given, as a title, as an already determined fact. Even at the hospital last week I wasn't pushing for the name and after his birth I wasn't using it but the two older boys were, just calling him by the name they knew him as. And, it turns out, they were extremely fond of him immediately.

They were as excited and loving and sweet and doting to the little pink and purple screamer as anybody could hope boys to be. And they used the name around grandparents and visitors and friends and aunts and cousins.

Strider Strider Strider Strider Strider Strider.

Still I told Shannon that we could name him anything she liked but she confessed that when he was born and was put on her chest seconds later, she thought indeed, she could name this nine pound eight ounce contender "Strider."

It was already who he was.

Logan would tell me when we were away from the hospital, "I miss Strider," and Dresden would coo at him, "Hi Strider," or "It will be okay Strider," when the baby was upset. His identity was settled before he was ever born and not by his parents.

Still I was ready to go with "Winston Strider" and gave her that option but she thought it sounded better the other way.

And so it is, we have "Strider Winston DeVon Curtis".

There is another factor about the name that I love. Spencer W. Kimball had a lot of influence on me as a youth with his exhortations to get things done, work harder and be better. One way he phrased this advice was to "lengthen our stride" and to me, that has always been excellent advice. This name of Strider is actually an action word or describes an action person. It means to stride or walk or in the broader sense, to put forth more effort. So, along with the LOTR link to the noble, selfless king, it also is somebody who (at least in my mind) follows the advice to lengthen our stride. I like that — a lot.

For now, I am quite content to let Shannon instruct him how to eat better but the time will come for teaching and the pointing out of ideals and examples. A humble but able fictional king and President Kimball work pretty well.

Two remarkable conversations

2010-05-12T23:08:00.004-06:00

This poor neglected blog is collecting dust and anybody who checks it regularly, which seems unlikely, gets a sincere apology from me. There is some level of expectation of somewhat regular updates and in this bargain I have failed. I am typing words to the wind I suspect so it probably doesn't matter.

I have roused myself to write about two remarkable conversations.

Service to TheOneRing.net has opened a lot of conversational doors to me and in the last few weeks it has done so again. My first conversation was with a plucky, talented, fun woman named Kim Graham who comes from the western region of the U.S.

She invented a rather cool pair of leg extensions, the coolness of which is difficult to easily explain. They are reverse leg stilts that mimic the walking patterns of dogs or goats or mythical creatures like lizards or gorgons or satyrs. She made them on her own for her costuming enthusiast friends around Seattle.

She is also a remarkable sculptor and that talent and her strong portfolio landed her a job sculpting for "The Hobbit" films in New Zealand. By coincidence she developed these stilts that could be worn easily by virtually anybody. Previously such items for Hollywood stunt work had to be personalized to each person at great expense.

She made them usable and available to everybody, giving low-budget films and serious costumers a way to do the previously inconceivable. Her enthusiasm and spirit nearly sold a pair to me although I have no use for them. However, it even made me want to consider costuming because they really are just that cool. Weta sells them on its website and you can watch a video about them while you visit the site that sells them.

But what makes Kim so cool isn't making these extensions and it isn't that she is working on "The Hobbit," (okay well, it is actually but there is more) but that she has this incredible "can do" attitude and a self-belief and willingness to work that empowers her to follow her own dreams. It is admirable and inspiring. I will write about her for TheOneRing but it isn't likely I will be that transparent about my own personal feelings from our interview.

The photo of her is with a Norwegian troll created in her living room very much in the spirit of J.R.R. Tolkien's Ent. Most people will think this is pretty cool but she thinks it and then builds it with the help of friends. Anyway, she is a remarkable woman and while we talked for 30 minutes about her work and her Weta Legs and her good fortune to be in New Zealand, I was elevated.

My second conversation was with a man I had met one time previously on a press junket for King Kong in New York City. He was a joy to listen to at a small press gathering of a dozen reporters and when he learned I was from KongIsKing.net he expressed a desire to speak further but we couldn't put our busy schedules together in that short weekend.

He also did the DVD work for the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy extended editions which are really the gold standard for such things in Hollywood and for far more than those who are devotees of those movies. He has his own production studio and specializes in the business of telling the stories of movies.

Our entire conversation was not an interview for print or new media but for him sharing with and educating me so that at some future date I might be more intelligent should such an interview ever take place. It was shocking, delightful and informative. It also left me dumbfounded at times and shocked in both good and bad ways. I feel fortunate to have such opportunities and hope for many more.

Worst company in the galaxy?

2010-04-16T13:16:00.002-06:00

There is currently a bracket (and I seem to love brackets) to determine the worst company in America. It isn't clear if this means the United State of America or North America or North and South America so I am just extending (in my own mind) the award to cover the worst company in the Milky Way Galaxy.

I don't know how much the candy bar paid scientists to name the galaxy after their product, and there may be worse companies on some planet in orbit around the 100 - 400 billion stars in our home in space but until they object, I am going with the bigger title.

Ticketmaster is one of the Elite 8 that are left but Apple and PayPal are surprising finalists as well. The airlines all went down but their luggage policies make it hard to choose between paying to bring my own deodorant on a trip or paying some company $15 in fees to give me a ticket to see a band. Both seem greedy and evil.

Anyway, don't miss your chance to see and vote in the Elite 8. You can see the whole bracket here.

I think eventually, Ticketmaster gets my vote for adding absolutely no value with its rip-off scheme.

Duke rhymes with Puke

2010-04-05T23:14:00.001-06:00

Congrats to Mike Black for not doing anything at all and winning a bunch of money because Duke won the NCAA championship. Mike, for some reason, always seems to win money when I am around.

2010-03-30T02:28:00.003-06:00

The NCAA tournament is one of the nation's great, perhaps greatest sports events. The Superbowl draws more attention in a shorter time but "March Madness" takes place over three weeks is all around the country and draws a lot of office pool betting.

I think the whole thing is great fun and I was fortunate enough to attend games in Salt Lake City this year between teams playing to go to the Final Four. Watching Butler win on Saturday was grand sport indeed. Press access is overlooked by those who do it for a job but since I am mostly in an office, it was a welcome respite.

Anyway, here is how the no-picks pool has gone:

Jody - ~~Kansas,~~ ~~BYU~~, ~~Sam Houston State,~~ ~~Northern Iowa~~

Larry - ~~Pitt,~~ ~~Marquette,~~ ~~Siena,~~ ~~Georgia Tech~~

Amy - ~~Purdue,~~ ~~Oklahoma State,~~ ~~Morgan State,~~ ~~Florida~~

Jared - ~~Baylor,~~ ~~Xavier,~~ ~~Vermont,~~ ~~Old Dominion~~

Layton - ~~Maryland,~~ ~~Tennessee,~~ ~~Murray State,~~ ~~San Diego State~~

Mike - Duke, Michigan State, ~~Houston,~~ ~~Saint Mary's~~

Randy - ~~New Mexico~~, ~~Clemson,~~ ~~UC Santa Barbara,~~ ~~Louisville~~

Dan - ~~Vanderbilt,~~ ~~UNLV,~~ ~~Oakland,~~ ~~UTEP~~

Mark - ~~Villanova,~~ ~~Notre Dame,~~ ~~Lehigh,~~ ~~Minnesota~~

Sarah - West Virginia, ~~Texas,~~ ~~Ohio,~~ ~~Missouri~~

Cottle - ~~Georgetown,~~ ~~Richmond,~~ ~~Robert Morris,~~ ~~Utah State~~

Dirk - ~~Kentucky,~~ ~~Temple,~~ ~~Arkansas-PB,~~ ~~Washington~~

HiHo - ~~Ohio State,~~ ~~Gonzaga,~~ ~~East Tennessee,~~ ~~New Mexico State~~

Heidi B. - ~~Kansas State,~~ Butler, ~~Wofford,~~ ~~Cornell~~

Kent - ~~Syracuse,~~ ~~California,~~ ~~North Texas,~~ ~~Wake Forrest~~

Emmie - ~~Wisconsin,~~ ~~Texas A&M,~~ ~~Montana,~~ ~~Florida State~~

Elite Eight and half of Final Four

2010-03-26T14:49:00.005-06:00

Jody - ~~Kansas,~~ ~~BYU~~, ~~Sam Houston State,~~ ~~Northern Iowa~~

Larry - ~~Pitt,~~ ~~Marquette,~~ ~~Siena,~~ ~~Georgia Tech~~

Amy - ~~Purdue,~~ ~~Oklahoma State,~~ ~~Morgan State,~~ ~~Florida~~

Jared - Baylor, ~~Xavier,~~ ~~Vermont,~~ ~~Old Dominion~~

Layton - ~~Maryland,~~ Tennessee, ~~Murray State,~~ ~~San Diego State~~

Mike - Duke, Michigan State, ~~Houston,~~ ~~Saint Mary's~~

Randy - ~~New Mexico~~, ~~Clemson,~~ ~~UC Santa Barbara,~~ ~~Louisville~~

Dan - ~~Vanderbilt,~~ ~~UNLV,~~ ~~Oakland,~~ ~~UTEP~~

Mark - ~~Villanova,~~ ~~Notre Dame,~~ ~~Lehigh,~~ ~~Minnesota~~

Sarah - West Virginia, ~~Texas,~~ ~~Ohio,~~ ~~Missouri~~

Cottle - ~~Georgetown,~~ ~~Richmond,~~ ~~Robert Morris,~~ ~~Utah State~~

Dirk - ~~Kentucky,~~ ~~Temple,~~ ~~Arkansas-PB,~~ ~~Washington~~

HiHo - ~~Ohio State,~~ ~~Gonzaga,~~ ~~East Tennessee,~~ ~~New Mexico State~~

Heidi B. - ~~Kansas State,~~ Butler, ~~Wofford,~~ ~~Cornell~~

Kent - ~~Syracuse,~~ ~~California,~~ ~~North Texas,~~ ~~Wake Forrest~~

Emmie - ~~Wisconsin,~~ ~~Texas A&M,~~ ~~Montana,~~ ~~Florida State~~

How do I teach my children? (NCAA folks scroll down)

2010-03-23T21:45:00.007-06:00

Like most parents, I try really hard to teach my children how to be confident enough and smart enough and wise enough to grow up and be great and happy people. That, in a sentence, is what I am trying to do.

Logan, in kindergarten is an affectionate, fun and confident kid. And . . . violent?

Dresden came home from school this week and told me how horrible his substitute teacher was. I tried to be empathetic but all I could gather was that she got mad at him and some others for no reason. Maybe there was a reason or maybe she had plenty of reason but I decided since I didn't know, I would just listen and hope that later he would know that I do listen to him and what he says is important.

Later in the car he told his mother the same story. Little brother Logan also had a substitute teacher and he loves to jump into conversations if he feels that he has something similar to share and often if he doesn't.

Logan: I had a substitute teach too and she had a giant butt!
(Secretly I found this funny but I can't laugh at such comments because then I am enforcing inappropriate things on many levels and this theme goes on.)

Mom: Logan I hope you didn't say that in front of her.

Logan: I didn't

At this point Shannon and I realize that isn't enough of an explanation why such remarks, ney, such observations just aren't okay.

Mom: Logan that could realllllly hurt her feelings. You don't like it when people tease you. How does it make you feel when people tease you?

Logan: I feel good after I punch them in the face

And despite how inappropriate that was, I am still laughing.

Photo of the week (or whenever), NCAA below

2010-03-22T22:23:00.005-06:00

I took this photo (which you can click for a much bigger version in much better detail) while in Romania visiting my friend James C., who was there for around two months working. The chance to go somewhere I had not been and wasn't likely to go to again, was too good to pass up so I braved long, long, long flights to Bucharest.

James was busy working during the day so that left me free to roam Bucharest by myself. I obviously don't speak Romanian but I couldn't sit around so I went to museums and walked through the historic city. It was beautiful with some architecture that reminded me of Paris and then it was gray from its years of communism and there were always fantastic Eastern Orthadox churches to be found.

This photo was on a door on a street in an older but residential part of town. I like it and it evokes for me the sense of decaying beauty I saw. I would like to return and the tiny, tiny part of my brain that sees business opportunities, thinks this place is ripe.

2010-03-20T18:47:00.008-06:00

The fight to make it to the Sweet 16 is on, and it is looking bloody for the favorites. I will make the latest casualties in blue to honor Kansas.

Jody - ~~Kansas,~~ ~~BYU~~, ~~Sam Houston State,~~ Northern Iowa

Larry - ~~Pitt,~~ ~~Marquette,~~ ~~Siena,~~ ~~Georgia Tech~~

Amy - Purdue, ~~Oklahoma State,~~ ~~Morgan State,~~ ~~Florida~~

Jared - Baylor, Xavier, ~~Vermont,~~ ~~Old Dominion~~

Layton - ~~Maryland,~~ Tennessee, ~~Murray State,~~ ~~San Diego State~~

Mike - Duke, Michigan State, ~~Houston,~~ Saint Mary's

Randy - ~~New Mexico~~, ~~Clemson,~~ ~~UC Santa Barbara,~~ ~~Louisville~~

Dan - ~~Vanderbilt,~~ ~~UNLV,~~ ~~Oakland,~~ ~~UTEP~~

Mark - ~~Villanova,~~ ~~Notre Dame,~~ ~~Lehigh,~~ ~~Minnesota~~

Sarah - West Virginia, ~~Texas,~~ ~~Ohio,~~ ~~Missouri~~

Cottle - ~~Georgetown,~~ ~~Richmond,~~ ~~Robert Morris,~~ ~~Utah State~~ (Cottle gets this team in this pool every time they make the field).

Dirk - Kentucky, ~~Temple,~~ ~~Arkansas-PB,~~ Washington

HiHo - Ohio State, ~~Gonzaga,~~ ~~East Tennessee,~~ ~~New Mexico State~~

Heidi B. - Kansas State, Butler, ~~Wofford,~~ Cornell

Kent - Syracuse, ~~California,~~ ~~North Texas,~~ ~~Wake Forrest~~

Emmie - ~~Wisconsin,~~ ~~Texas A&M,~~ ~~Montana,~~ ~~Florida State~~

After the NCAA first round

2010-03-20T12:46:00.005-06:00

After one round of NCAA games, things are a little crazy. Power conferences aren't so great and "weak" conferences like the Pac-10 are undefeated. St. Mary's is legit as are other low seeds that are gooooood teams.

A couple of our participating players were pulverized in a single round, which I don't recall happening before. Anyway, here we are:

Jody - Kansas, BYU, ~~Sam Houston State,~~ Northern Iowa

Larry - Pitt, ~~Marquette,~~ ~~Siena,~~ Georgia Tech

Amy - Purdue, ~~Oklahoma State,~~ ~~Morgan State,~~ ~~Florida~~

Jared - Baylor, Xavier, ~~Vermont,~~ Old Dominion

Layton - Maryland, Tennessee, Murray State, ~~San Diego State~~

Mike - Duke, Michigan State, ~~Houston,~~ Saint Mary's

Randy - New Mexico, ~~Clemson,~~ ~~UC Santa Barbara,~~ ~~Louisville~~

Dan - ~~Vanderbilt,~~ ~~UNLV,~~ ~~Oakland,~~ ~~UTEP~~

Mark - Villanova, ~~Notre Dame,~~ ~~Lehigh,~~ ~~Minnesota~~

Sarah - West Virginia, ~~Texas,~~ Ohio, Missouri

Cottle - ~~Georgetown,~~ ~~Richmond,~~ ~~Robert Morris,~~ ~~Utah State~~ (Cottle gets this team in this pool every time they make the field).

Dirk - Kentucky, ~~Temple,~~ ~~Arkansas-PB,~~ Washington

HiHo - Ohio State, Gonzaga, ~~East Tennessee,~~ ~~New Mexico State~~

Heidi B. - Kansas State, Butler, ~~Wofford,~~ Cornell

Kent - Syracuse, California, ~~North Texas,~~ Wake Forrest

Emmie - Wisconsin, Texas A&M, ~~Montana,~~ ~~Florida State~~

Random.org & NCAA No-Picks Tournament draw on my blog (sorry regulars)

2010-03-17T22:30:00.009-06:00

For several years, I forget how many, I have either participated or have run a low-cost, no-pick NCAA tournament bracket including this year.

Sixteen people sign up and each player gets four teams randomly selected from the NCAA pool of 64 teams with a chance to win money. It makes things fun because after the draw you suddenly have four new teams to root for. To make things fair, each player gets a 1-4 seed, and one team each from the 5-8, 9-12 and 13-16 seeds.

The longest surviving seed in the three lower groups wins its owner a small amount of money and the overall tournament winner gets all the remaining cash. It adds some tension to games with teams that usually nobody would care about.

This year rather than doing the old school drawing with paper out of a hat, I went to Random.org to generate the field instead of paper. This is a very cool true random number generator (not the artificial random algorithms) built and operated by Mads Haahr of the School of Computer Science and Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin in Ireland. This sounds very impressive. Best of all and most importantly, it means Dungeons & Dragons needs no dice.

Anyway, here is the 2010 draw, forever preserved in the Webiverse in the order participants signed up. I will update whenever possible rather than flood mailboxes with e-mail.

Jody - Kansas, BYU, Sam Houston State, Northern Iowa

Larry - Pitt, Marquette, Sienna, Georgia Tech

Amy - Purdue, Oklahoma State, Morgan State, Florida

Jared - Baylor, Xavier, Vermont, Old Dominion

Layton - Maryland, Tennessee, Murray State, Sand Diego State

Mike - Duke, Michigan State, Houston, Saint Mary's

Randy - New Mexico, Clemson, UC Santa Barbara, Louisville

Dan - Vanderbilt, UNLV, Oakland, UTEP

Mark - Villanova, Notre Dame, Lehigh, Minnesota

Sarah - West Virginia, Texas, Ohio, Missouri

Cottle - Georgetown, Richmond, Robert Morris, Utah State (Cottle gets this team in this pool every time they make the field).

Dirk - Kentucky, Temple, Arkansas-PB, Washington

HiHo - Ohio State, Gonzaga, East Tennessee, New Mexico State

Heidi B. - Kansas State, Butler, Wofford, Cornell

Kent - Syracuse, California, North Texas, Wake Forrest

Emmie - Wisconsin, Texas A&M, Montana, Florida State

Celebration time!

2010-03-02T15:50:00.005-07:00

I am so pleased to read today that HBO has given the green light to George R. R. Martin's series "A Game Of Thrones". Season 1 will have 10 episodes. Time to subscribe to HBO!

Hip hip HORRAY!

This barely has a place on my blog but it is a book I am passionate about and has the potential to be excellent drama.

If you care, you can read some more here.

Too good not to post

2010-03-02T00:52:00.002-07:00

I read tonight that "Avatar" is one of the two favorites to win "Best Picture" at the Academy Awards. With 10 nominations I find predictions a little sketchy but there is a lot to be learned from other award shows.

I liked "Avatar" a lot. But it isn't the best film of 2009 by any stretch.

I found this little gem that is too good not to post:

CFV 426 - Avatar/Pocahontas Mashup FINAL VERSION from Randy Szuch on Vimeo.

Think you are a Tough Guy?

2010-02-02T08:50:00.003-07:00

I saw this today, linked from a site I frequent. There are a lot of videos from several different years, including one set to "Eye Of The Tiger," but this one really gives the best over view. It also really makes me want to try this:

Anybody with me?

Another stint at Sundance

2010-02-02T06:19:00.002-07:00

I covered, sort of, another Sundance Film Festival for the Deseret News. I made several blog entries that I thought were worthwhile but I only turned in one full story which wasn't about a movie at all but about a musician. On the plus side, when I saw her in Park City and when I saw her previously in New York, I left convinced both times that she is a future star. I do mean that.

I had terrible luck with Sundance this year, including transportation. One day my passenger side window refused to go down and my driver side window refused to go up. Driving to Park City in the snow pretty much makes this a car I just couldn't use anymore. Better, the catalytic converter on my other car (the one that didn't give out on the way to Mexico last summer) bit the dust.

When our refrigerator went out we remodeled our kitchen and when my 1996 Honda with 160,000 miles was just one repair beyond acceptable, we bought a new car. Pimped out Accord. Nice car.

Anyway the point was, I saw fewer films and wrote fewer stories than ever before and it makes me a bit sad. I did manage to see some films though.

Wow, "District 9" just got a "Best Picture" nomination from the Academy Awards. It was one of my best pictures to be sure.

I can't quite choke down Hollywood

2010-01-18T00:33:00.008-07:00

A reporter I know was on a chartered flight with the Utah Jazz one year near Christmas when the NBA players took up a collection to give the airplane staff a Christmas tip for all their efforts to serve the team. A worthy cause for sure.

But the reporter wasn't just asked to donate, he was asked to donate a specific sum of money by an all-time great NBA player that isn't known for being subtle. The amount was uncomfortably large for the reporter who made at the most $80,000 (but likely less) a year. Meanwhile the poorest rookie on the plane made at least ten times that amount and received a daily per-diem that covered the asked-for tip three times while the reporter's daily travel expenses would barely cover the demanded donation. Other veteran players made more than 100 times the reporter's annual salary but were clueless of the inequality. The reporter, who counted to some degree on the goodwill of players for interviews, paid up.

The Golden Globes celebrated television and film Sunday night and I watched a portion of the program. I am a bit of a story-telling junkie and film especially interests me so I like to see what wins.

Ricky Gervais hosted and was funny because he didn't take Hollywood's stars or the awards too seriously, realizing the ceremony is rich, famous people getting together to congratulate each other. Still film and television is sometimes more than entertainment and stretches into art that can move the soul and enlighten the mind. Ideally, award shows publicize such films to the masses.

The stars gathered Sunday wore ribbons as a symbol of those in devastated Haiti and during the broadcast they took opportunities to remind viewers to donate at NBC.com at a special Golden Globes link to get relief money to the needy.

I can't argue with the sentiment. Apparently George Clooney, according to a few who spoke on television, didn't even want to be at the Globes and will soon be organizing a phone bank and a telethon to raise money. Again, nice sentiment. But I would like to know the combined income of all the producers, writers, directors and actors in the Golden Globe audience and I would like to know how much money they have donated to the cause. I want to know if say, 10 percent of the money made by 'Avatar' has been sent to Haiti. I would sleep better knowing one percent of its $1 billion at the box office is on its way, sent by the studios, actors and talent assembled to take kudos on television.

How about the giant sponsoring companies of the telecast pitch in a percentage of what they paid in advertising last night trying to get people to buy mascara? Maybe NBC could send five percent of its money made on the telecast to Haitians. I don't fault Clooney for setting up phone banks. I congratulate him for it but I would like to know that he, like viewers were urged to do, dug deep and gave what he could.

Maybe instead of spending money on limos last night all the stars could have taken taxies or carpooled and sent the difference to Haitians and made a dramatic statement by doing so. Such actions would carry a lot more weight than looking in the camera and telling me to look into my heart. Or, they could show up in jeans and send the red-carpet dress money they didn't spend to Haiti or donate the rental expenses of costume jewelry. If they did that and then asked me to dig deep and give what I could I would feel a lot better about it. (Yes, I realize this would hurt dress designers, jewelry folks and limo companies and I don't want an economic boycott, it is just that these things seem especially overboard.)

My favorite idea is that movie studios all get together with the support of stars and television networks (often owned by the same conglomerates) and pick a day as "Haiti movie day" when they promote and then donate all the proceeds of one day's box office to Haiti. I bet the public would support this in a big way, knowing the $10 movie ticket would help victims of the earthquake.

To be clear, we should all donate time and money and the Hollywood stars are doing the right thing by promoting help but I would feel a lot better knowing they are donating a proportional amount - or perhaps a greater proportion - than the average middle-class donor.

And, so as not to be thought of as a hypocrite, I have given time this week to helping stock and supply food for the hungry and I will be making Haiti donations as well but none of that had anything to do with prompting of stars. Incidentally, I hope I am dead wrong and would love to learn that all those big-income stars with big-expense lifestyles have already done the right thing.

Here are some stories about what citizens of Utah (none of them rich or famous) are doing for Haitians:
Out of Haiti comes relief and sorrow
Utahns assemble kits for Haitians
Salt Lake couple working to help Haitian orphans
Family's prayers answered by loved ones — safe and sound
LDS medical team arrives in Haiti
Dispersing LDS aid challenging

Fictional Frontiers

2010-01-10T04:32:00.007-07:00

From time-to-time I am invited on a radio program that airs live in Philly called "Fictional Frontiers." The host is Sohaib, who uses the program to have a serious discussion about popular culture.

Often the discussions are live, which was difficult for me when they were Sunday mornings but recently they moved to Monday afternoons in the City of Brotherly Love, which is great for my schedule. Once I called him from Mexico on a family vacation which was pretty fun actually.

Monday the 11th of January he will air a recorded segment we did almost a month ago where we look back on the impact of Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings," movies had on the world of movies and fantasy. I can't lie, I find the whole radio-guest concept pretty fun. I can't say why exactly but I guess I like to air my views in the same way I like to blog or write for TheOneRing.net.

Since I edit and do other things for a living, having a writing outlet really helps tremendously for the comfort of my soul. I am not sure the radio doesn't do the same thing. I am told once a month, usually on the phone, that I have a great radio voice and should "do" radio for a living. It sounds fun actually but I am confident that in reality such a career might actually pay worse than journalism and would definitely be far less glamorous than it seems at first blush.

Anyway, being slightly self promotional, if you care to listen live Monday you can do so here or here. After about a week or so you can pick up the program on a podcast here where a lot of great past shows are archived, some with me, many more without. It airs live from 5 - 6 p.m. EST.

A nomination for TheOneRing.net

2010-01-08T05:20:00.006-07:00

I spend a fair amount of energy and time building and supporting TheOneRing.net. Long story short: I had some passion, accidentally crossed paths with others who were passionate about shared interests and made some dear friends who had started TORn, a site I used and admired.

For a few years now I have presented for the site at conventions, written, photographed and helped with events around the country including San Diego, Atlanta, Orlando and New York. I have had some spectacular, memorable times. I serve as senior staff and consider it an honor to work on something great for the J.R.R. Tolkien community with people I respect.

The site has been nominated by Total Film Magazine, which I have read here and there over the years, as "Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy Blog". It is a magazine and a Website I happen to think is respectable and cool, so the nomination and possible award means something.

Voting for the winner however, will pretty much pit the audience of the other nominations against the fanbase of the franchises they service. It will end up being Harry Potter fans vs. Twilight fans vs. Tolkien fans and clearly (at least to me) one group is less prone to enthusiastic voting and swamping the poll. It is challenging to match the enthusiasm of a largely teen audience who perhaps isn't widely read and may lack some perspective of where their favorite books fit (if at all) in the literature landscape. I don't mean that as an insult either. I love passionate fans.

I shouldn't care who wins, especially since the voting is done by fans and to outsiders all the sites probably look the same.

But I do care.

Can't help it.

I don't have proof but I actually don't think some of the other Websites would exist, or at least not as they do, if not for TORn. "Our" site (I have no actual ownership) owes a debt to TheForce.net. TORn came along in 1999 and helped put fans websites on the map. Anyway, I am really pulling for TORn despite knowing better.

In related news, a segment I recorded for radio show Fictional Frontiers will air soon and then be available as podcast. Details are on the site but this was in behalf of TheOneRing and I quite enjoyed the chat.

15 years ago, 10 years from now

2010-01-05T03:04:00.006-07:00

In this photo, from the left is John, Russ (not a subject of this blog post), Rick and me. Like my bandanna?

Christmas brought one of my long-time friends back to Utah and although he was busy with family, he made a request of me and two other friends that we clear an afternoon and a night and participate with him in a ritual almost forgotten 15 years before.

All of us were unmarried back then and all of us were friends collectively and in every combination of pairs or triplicates that you can concoct. Brad (the returning friend - not pictured above) had a video class in those days in college and we made some movies to fulfill his assignments and had fun in the meantime.

Making use of some of that equipment we interviewed and video taped each other back then about our lives and our futures and hopes and dreams. We gathered again, 15 years later (instead of the intended 10) to have another taping session. Brad, John, Rick and I scheduled time away from the family and met together to do just that. Ideally we might have reviewed the old tape but one interview was lost and we watched a couple of the old college movie assignments (and wow did I have long hair) and proceeded with our updated interviews.

We are in interesting mix: A self-employed business owner (Rick), a world-traveling, high-level project manager (Brad) for an electronics retailer that all readers would know, a mechanical engineer (John) and this humble blogger. All of us married, none ever divorced (but with at least two close calls) and all with at least one offspring, all home owners and doing about what almost-40 people scattered around the middle-class demographic charts do. After a really pleasing dinner at Stoneground, we retired to tape ourselves for our personal history.

I learned a lot listening and talking and I can't begin to hope to put it all in one post. It was easy for the four of us to talk about deep and personal things, explore corners of our lives that few ever get a glimpse into and to put our thoughts about our pasts and futures down. I learned that we still trust each other and that our friendship never misses a beat despite the space of months or years between visits. There were no uncomfortable moments or uncertainty; we were as we always have been. When we do get together in larger groups with friends and family in tow, we still relate but not at the same level. Different social dynamics appropriately color how we interact.

The interviews have played across my mind a lot since they happened and I found the whole experience revelatory and inspiring, especially the subject of the future. We all agreed to meet in 2019 to take stock of our lives again. It makes me want to be better and to do more. Not to impress my friends but to make good use of my life. I think I may use the method with my children to record their lives and personalities and their visions of the future. I will refer to this event often for the next few months but I believe the experience was subtly and importantly life-changing.

Who is that fat guy sitting with my family?

2009-12-28T02:10:00.006-07:00

Years ago, I was in shape. I was pretty constantly active. I played basketball a lot and softball and when I had a chance, volleyball and football and anything team oriented with a ball. Oh and I ran a marathon once to see if I could. Go ahead and click on the photo (it gets much bigger) and figure out which one of these young men was healthy me.

Today I had pictures taken with my in-laws' extended family. In fact I took the pictures and used my killer Nikon D1H timer feature to get in some shots as well. It was a little stressful, a little fun and they turned out okay or maybe even better. There are a bunch of remarkably cute kids in the family.

Each smaller family unit also had pictures taken including mine and when I browsed the photos I was shocked to find a fat guy was sitting with my family where I thought I had been sitting!

See, in my mind's eye, I am not what I saw in the photos although I realize I am a little round. My face, that I used to worry was too long and narrow, looks like dough with holes punched in for some eyes. Excuse me while I wallow in vanity, but I looked (look) terrible!

Worse, I am modeling bad eating habits for my children and to top it all off, I am not healthy. So this will become one of the many things I will blog about in this topical buffet that I already call my blog. I need this space to be accountable to and I need reminders in my face often that remind me that I know full well that have a health problem and a discipline problem and really, an eating problem. Coca-Cola is my enemy. I should treat my own body with care, not with disdain and my mouth and taste buds should not be making decisions for my heart, lungs and other organs and muscles.

Incidentally, I know there are people bigger than I am and some might even take offense at my self evaluation but for the record, I don't think they look terrible and their weight doesn't bother me - mine does. Also, my wife has done a great job recently at being consistent with exercise and diet and has shed some pounds so I further need to support her efforts. My friend Jody has shed a lot of weight this year only to put some of it back on so somehow that matters to me and I want to be healthy and I want him to be more healthy and happy with himself.

Tomorrow is a great day to shoot some hoops, run some ladders in a gym and actually burn more calories than I eat. It has to start now.

Christmas Eve

2009-12-25T02:46:00.003-07:00

Some Christmas Eve when I was in Middle School (Butler Middle School for some old classmates who might read here occasionally - GO BRUINS!) the holiday and Holy Day had a really interesting effect on me. It caused me to deeply contemplate life and myself and helped me appreciate quiet and stillness.

I realize that isn't a clear explanation, but it remains true. I find myself on most or maybe every Christmas Eve letting my mind settle and be silent. Perhaps part of this process is that all-night taco joints close, the behemoth Wal-Mart closes and nobody needs to wake up, rush around the house and go to work. Anyway, all this stillness is unique and carries its own feeling which leads me to contemplate.

Today was my father's 79th birthday and I am sorry to report he is losing most of his personal clarity. He still knew the 36 members of our family that gathered in the cultural hall (fancy name for the gymnasium that Mormons put in virtually every church) but he isn't at ease and he isn't always clear about what is happening.

To me he seems to be literally in a fog; shapes are indistinct and vague and he must concentrate hard to make sense of his environment. He is an old man and when I pat him on the shoulder and talk to him I can feel his bones protruding as his muscle and skin lose their vigor. This is sad of course but I don't write in hopes of sympathy, it just is the reality of medical science that keeps us alive for many years now but cannot preserve our youth. A retired co-worked Jill used to say, "Getting old isn't for wimps," and "It is hell getting old." Jill was being funny but she was also speaking truth.

I doubt that by DeVon's (my father) 80th birthday there will be much left of him mentally. I feel like his capacity for speech will be greatly diminished and his movement will be slowed. It is possible he will be completely stilled by then and while I would mourn his absence, I already mourn his loss.

What I meant to write about tonight is my families tradition of getting together on Christmas Eve and celebrating DeVon's Day by eating Mexican food (which I am sure a native Mexican wouldn't recognize at all). This year I convinced folks to meet at the above mentioned LDS chapel to make it easier for everybody. My oldest sister Kenda ended up taking on a crazy amount of work, driving (for example) for miles and hours to get "low carb" tortillas because I happened to mention my family likes them.

We ended up just about killing her with all the work she did and the unexpected and unfamiliar back agony she was in. She has an inability to do things the easy way because her standards are always excellent. I think I over-teased her about the amount of extra food we had, and I do deeply appreciate all her days of work, but I can't see that we can continue things like that. With a family as large as mine (four older sisters with grown children who have had babies many now) there is no great solution for how to continue this tradition. I wonder if the question of how to celebrate my father's birthday next year will become moot.

The other topic on my mind is that I believe in the literal reality of Christ as a savior. Intellectually I find my belief interesting or maybe even odd but it is as real as well. Sometimes its easy to accidentally give lip service, even in our own minds, to what that means but when I am still and contemplative, I remember that I genuinely believe it and all its powerful ramifications.

Ten other topics are swirling in my mind tonight. I wonder if I have found a better stride as a blogger.

3D vs 3D in Avatar

2009-12-22T02:18:00.007-07:00

I have seen "Avatar" twice now. Once on Thursday at midnight with my pal Jody - who is a fine man, not a fine female.

I left work a tad early so I could make the show that night and I picked a theater near Jody's house and I was a couple of minutes late for the film. We rushed in a bit scattered, grabbed glasses and sat down to watch the three-hour epic unfold.

I had fun at the cinema. But I think my mind was too focused on the technical aspects of the film and I was watching it through critical lenses. (Not to be confused with me being critical of the lenses - that is coming up. I just mean my brain's own critical lenses.)

The second time I saw it at Jordan Commons, which had completely different 3D glasses, I was startled to discover the viewing experience was significantly better. The first pair of glasses wrapped around my head somewhat with curved lenses while the second pair had big flat lenses held out in front of my eyeballs.

The second viewing was vastly superior and I managed to turn off my critical mind more and enjoy the film. I already liked it and I already marveled at it but the second experience was greater!

I am tempted to write about some of the technical marvels in the film but there are others better qualified to do so ((here is one from last year)) and my blog is already topically scattered before I turn in a film special-effects commentary, but suffice it to say James Cameron and my friends at Weta Digital and ILM pushed the edges of what was possible and managed to be spectacular while they did it. Here is a "60 Minutes," segment about it, with some small factual errors from the narrator but is a great video for the average viewer to get what is going on.

Oh and the film is likely the first of a trilogy.

Sensitive viewers will want to know there is some language and a intimate scene between two 12-foot-tall blue people and it is violent but bloodless.

More seasonal laughs

2009-12-18T20:40:00.002-07:00

I am not a giant fan of either of these fellows but I am a big fan of people making funny things on YouTube, the second largest search engine in the world.

I was going to post an "Avatar" review but I don't think I will find the time. I enjoyed the film though and those special effects Oscars are definitely spoken for.

A good seasonal laugh

2009-12-16T05:59:00.006-07:00

For one the very few times in my whole life, I can't sleep. I blame tile, J.R.R. Tolkien, Guillermo del Toro and the Deseret News.

But, since I am awake, I have a little chuckle to share: A response from a Jewish drummer to Senator Orrin Hatch's song "8 Days Of Hanukkah". You are required to watch a lame commercial but temporarily turn the sound down and ride out the banality - it is worth it.

Enjoy! And read on for some good news.

I was delighted to find that "Precious: Based on the novel Push by Saphire," received two Golden Globe nominations. I called it a shoe-in and I was right (and I promise I didn't check the internet or ask anybody, it really was this obvious) and for Best Performance by and actress in a supporting role Mo'Nique was indeed nominated. Her Academy Award nomination should be in the bag at this point. But, the film was also nominated for Best Motion Picture - Drama and Gabourey Sidibe was one of five getting the nod for best actress in a drama. Horray!

Director Lee Daniels is among those being mentioned as a snub for not getting a director nomination. All this raises the film's profile to Joe Public considerably. I don't feel bad pointing out that I knew something when I said "If some studio wants a "Best Picture" nomination for 2010's Academy Awards ceremony, they will buy it up and promote it," in this blog post back in January.

Anyway, it is great to see an independent film that is all but impossible to market in television commercials getting awards love.

Customer service

2009-12-14T23:54:00.003-07:00

It is currently late at night and bitterly cold again in Salt Lake City. It is so late in fact that I am not going to head to the store and buy a Nestle Crunch Bar. I just don't feel like going out right now but tomorrow, when I get a minute, buying a Nestle Crunch Bar will be a top priority.

Why?

Because somebody in the company is smart and funny and unconventional. My friend Joseph (also known with affection as "Foe") suggested I call the Crunch Hotline at 1-800-295-0051 and simply wait after it gives me the option of listening to the menu in Spanish or English. I did and now I will be buying a bar.

I am reading the book "What Would Google Do?" by Jeff Jarvis and it too is smart and funny and one of the concepts it teaches is that having customers act as advertisers really works. Nestle could have spent money with an advertising firm to make a new slogan and bought time on television or space in newspapers but instead, they managed to get Joseph to spread the word for them and here I am doing the same thing.

Go ahead, I dare you to call 1-800-295-0051 and wait a few seconds after hearing the option for Spanish or English. You might be buying a Crunch bar yourself as a reward. I would love your comments here on the blog but don't spoil it for those who haven't called!

Precious indeed

2009-12-08T20:00:00.010-07:00

About ten months ago I saw a film at the Sundance Film Festival that was, to me, powerful and amazing. I blogged about it on Jan. 29 of this year and on Monday night I saw the film again. It has now been titled, "Precious: Based on the novel Push by Saphire".

The first time I saw it with 1,200 people quite enthused to see the winner of the Audience Award at Sundance. The film received tremendous applause and even tears and cheers and some of those involved in making it talked to the audience after the screening and were moved to tears by the response a film about a black girl in Harlem received from mostly rich, mostly white people in Park City.

Monday I saw it with my wife and two dozen people (at most) in Salt Lake City in its last week of release. By Thursday it will leave the only theater in Utah that is showing it and probably be gone forever. It might make a return when it gets an Oscar nomination for "Best Supporting Actress" (absolute shoe in) and perhaps for "Best Picture". But reportedly it hasn't done well locally and I wonder if more people saw it in one night in Park City than have seen it in its entire run in SLC.

Oddly, Utahns turn out for Sundance in great numbers but have given this Sundance film a pass in its regular run. According to BoxOfficeMojo.com it made $36 million and played in as many at 664 theaters, so those numbers are great. It turned a healthy profit.

This post isn't about the film's finances however but about the film's power.

It is terrible to watch because the protagonist, the titular Precious, has a horrible life. It deals with rape, incest, physical abuse, mental abuse and the difficulties that are living in the inner-city. It hurts to watch.

I know a lot of LDS people (Mormons) who will not view R-rated films. This film is definitely R-rated but it seems more wrong to me for my fellow man - including my fellow Mormons - not to see with powerful realism, the circumstances that some people live in. It seems wrong to remain blissfully ignorant of how hard life is for others.

This very day I received an e-mail telling the morality tale of the grasshopper and the ant and then bemoaning the fact that now the grasshopper is lazy and takes from the ant and those that work hard have every advantage taken away.

I challenge anybody who has that notion, to go see "Precious". One character in the film is exactly that grasshopper but others in the film grow up with disadvantages beyond any hope of control and with a ridiculously remote chance of overcoming obstacles. I know first hand, face-to-face, that this movie paints a realistic portrait not only of characters but of an overwhelmed support system.

I champion the cause of this film because as I said in January, it needs to be seen. It must be seen and not because it creates sentiment or sympathy but because it educates and informs. It pulls back the cover we, as a society, like to keep over our ugliest corners. The film will make viewers uncomfortable and it should. Nobody wants to go to the cinema and see this film because it is hard.

It is so much easier to go see "The Blind Side," and see the also-true story where one privileged family helps one big-hearted, unloved minority kid who "makes it". We all love to feel good and we love to feel good about "the haves" helping "the have nots". Good for Sandra Bullock and good for NFL players and good for feel-good stories. One cannot say enough good about the real people involved in that real story and I applaud the makers of that movie for telling an uplifting story. I am a big fan of all of those things but for the Precious Joneses of the world, there is no Sandra Bullock offering to adopt and nurture and help somebody who has it unimaginably hard.
"The Blind Side" has pulled in $130,309,730 and counting.

Precious Jones certainly fantasizes that there is somebody to save her but is told again and again by circumstances that there is not. Nobody helps her when she is being abused and raped in her own home and nobody is there to help her in math class where it is difficult to hear a word from the teacher when she genuinely wants to learn. If one watches the film carefully, there are a dozen characters in the film with really hard circumstances that we don't see with real depth while we experience everything through Precious' eyes. And there are heroes here too: nurses, teachers, social workers and those trying their hardest to make it day-to-day.

So Mormons and other sensitive souls will avoid the film because they think they are remaining more "pure" by not seeing the ugliness of the world. I think that is a great rule for life but an incorrect notion in this case. I think the film enlarges our love for our fellow-beings and increases our love for those who are different from us by circumstance and race and environment and education. I am convinced the greatest divide in society isn't by race but by financial standing and this is an unflinching look into the dank basement of society. I know it is real because I saw it myself. I knew a dozen Precious stories. It is easy to love the minority athlete who achieves excellence but it is difficult to love the obese 17-year-old girl who can barely read, was raised on welfare and who might triumph in her life by passing the GED.

I challenge readers to go to the cinema and be really uncomfortable for two hours and learn. You will hear vile language and see ugly souls and despicable actions and some of them will stick with you. They should, because those things are said and done to real people in real places and you can be sure they stick with them too. I challenge readers to ponder in this Christmas season who in society Christ would minister to and I challenge readers to watch "Precious" and not weep inside with love for those who suffer.

The perfect tree

2009-12-03T00:02:00.007-07:00

I love the fall season. I enjoy the crisp-aired evenings, football, the colder nights, dusting off leather jackets and I especially love the wardrobe change that trees and other foliage puts on and then takes off for us.

Each weekday morning I drive my kids to school and after navigate the great loop that allows me to drop them off and then exit the school grounds to head home, I pass by the perfect tree. It is located on the corner spot of a corner house as I wind down neighborhood streets to get back home. It is only about six feet tall and slender, yet full. It had clearly been well watered all summer.

Each morning of October and part of November, after enjoying the idea of sending my kids off to learn and experience, I would marvel at this tree. Its leaves were of many colors, changing from week-to-week, including some deep purples edging to dark blue, bright racing-car reds, blazing oranges and sunny yellows. I enjoyed the tree in all its subtle shades every day for a month or longer. Most days I thought that on the following day I would bring my camera, stop the car and get out and wait for some perfect light for this perfect tree.

I never did, but now when I drive by it with its naked, frozen twigs and branches, I still can recall the brilliance of that little tree. (Next year, maybe even this spring, I will spend 30 minutes to get the right image.)

I genuinely believe in a loving God and also genuinely believe that he engineered creation as a teaching tool for his most beloved creation: his children. Fall is an obvious reminder of our own mortality. We watch our own cycle of life play out before us multiple times before our own leaves fall and before our own sap stops circulating.

My mother has cancer that will eventually, hopefully after many cherished years, take her life. She has taken the news in stride and my poor, dear father has diminished mental capacity and cannot support her as one would hope. He lives in a fog and is scared and even angry a lot of the time.

I know my parents well enough to be well aware of their flaws. Like most people, they are complex and secretly vulnerable but when looking on their lives they too have showcased some spectacular leaves of various shades and colors. My dear mother currently is beautifully noble as she copes with fear and loneliness and mortality. She knows, though it may be yet distant, that winter is coming. Her foliage brought on by adversity, less sun and some deep cold snaps, is brilliant.

2009-11-12T00:38:00.009-07:00

Holidays are interesting to me because of how people perceive them and how they connect us to the past, even when we aren’t aware of it. We celebrate in ways that are similar to how people hundreds or thousands of years ago celebrated or acted on similar days.

I am deeply touched by the Christian celebration of Christmas and seemingly it actually changes how people behave and interact. For me it is celebrated quietly and it is privately deeply religious and it is also the single most special time for my family. Having said that, I am not a big fan of Santa Claus, earning me criticism from anybody that has this fact brought to his or her attention (almost never by me).

But, outside of that holy time, I enjoy Halloween more than any other named and celebrated day. It is a holy day for pagans and an excuse to gather kit-kats for children and some Christian groups label it evil while in some cities it is called “The Devil’s Day.”

I pretty much ignore all of that and just call it fun and give it my own meaning, which if I am forced to define it, has something to do with being able to play with monsters – which I loved dearly as a kid (and still do).

I try to make Halloween creative and fun for my offspring and they may grow up to claim great memories of it or they may grow up and curse me for it. I thought it appropriate to share it.

2009-10-16T23:09:00.004-06:00

The creation of the Glen Canyon Dam eight miles south of the Utah / Arizona boarder, backed up the waters of the Colorado and San Juan rivers and created Lake Powell. It is a spectacular lake with 1,960 miles of shoreline. It put some historic and religious sites under hundreds of feet of water and changed wildlife in the area permanently.

I went recently with friends to this spectacular place on a house boat and took a few pictures. These are the images of the trip that I liked best. I hope somebody enjoys them. I included some Google Earth geography lessons to help give the early October photos a place.

Rocktober

2009-10-01T03:27:00.005-06:00

I am feeling "older" for the first time ever and I am badly out of shape. This is the craps. I am vacationing at Lake Powell (borrowed photo below) where I will find some think time. I want to use my time better every day for a month and see what I can accomplish.

Plus, my house has a leak in the roof. This sucks.

We are heading to Rocktober! On the plus side, DeseretNews.com, including me helping sports, had over 20 million page views in September. That is a big number. Horray!

I think we are dead

2009-09-23T21:15:00.001-06:00

I am an irresponsible blogger but this is worth sharing:

Music - A top 10 of sorts

2009-08-25T05:27:00.007-06:00

There is one and only one forum I view regularly on the internet. Music has been a topic lately and a poster requested that we name 10 songs that meant a lot to us. Once I worked on it a bit, I knew it was worth a blog post. This is what I wrote:

It was a matter of time here on Off Topic before this came up and I admit to finding it much more helpful personally than the "getting to know you" threads. That isn't a criticism of those threads but I feel like this is more a window into a soul for me. That may not be true but it feels true. I have been to Bucharest, Wellington and Mykonos, but does that tell you as much as my passionate connection with lyrics and arrangements and the skills of Rush or Dream Theater?

The connection people make with music is largely emotional and that makes it intensely personal as others have noted. While there is an element of appreciation where you find it remarkable or impressive that a bit of music switches time signatures or uses an innovative approach to incorporating the percussion into the texture of the melody, it seems more common that people like what or how music makes them feel.

As horrifying as it is to me, there will come a day when those teens and pre-teens who fell hard for B. Spears will grow up and love her and her music for reasons of nostalgia. That adults will react emotionally to such a vapid and talentless collection of music (sorry fans) is yucky to me. But, I am not much different. Often what we connect to first stays with us, as if we are imprinted.

For example in my list, should you read it, you will find a couple of tunes by Scorpions. They will be taken seriously by few or none, but I recall clearly when I was 14 and the emotional connection they made with me. I love them still, recorded or live or otherwise. I feel like the universe and all of humanity just fails to "get them" while I do.

No order here, but 10 important songs to me, and I will write a lot about how they feel:

Rush - La Villa Strangiato This is an instrumental by a band that I continue to marvel at. I tend to "rediscover" songs or albums by them from time to time but this song never leaves me. It is technically excellent on guitar, bass and drum (a 3-man band for those who don't know) to the point that you can pick one of the three and follow only it and love what is done. Better by far, to me, is that its an instrumental with mood changes and a feeling that just gets me, even if that comes from me more than from Rush. I don't listen to it casually. It Alex Liefson's best (not most difficult) solo work anywhere.

Tool - 10,000 Days (Wings Part 2) - Another long epic here at 11 minutes. I often like a band's early work but this is Tool's latest album and IMHO, its best. This song carries a feeling unlike any other song I listen to. I carefully make sure NOT to decipher the lyrics' meaning because I don't quite want to know what its about. I like individual lyrical phrases and the overall tone. Pretty palatable for first time listeners.

Metallica - Master of Puppets This is a band that I was determined not to like. Then I listened carefully. To me, this is their best angry song clocking in at 13 minutes with appropriate outrage and venom but also intelligence. Add in some fast, technical and powerful instrumentation and its the band's all-time masterpiece. Some here might call it noise but do so at your own peril of missing something raw and emotional. (I posted the link with some warm fuzzies. Here is one without. It is live including a few mistakes but I liked the crowd but beware band language, and if you click feel obligated to make it until the slower spots at least if its your first time hearing it.)

Coheed & Cambria - Always & Never A band I appreciate more than I love, but this two minute 12-string arrangement is delicate and achingly beautiful. It ends on a sinister note but it captures the feelings of the love for a child. Part of a big giant (convoluted) story, but take this bit isolated and love it.

Scorpions - Coast To Coast Another instrumental and really, I just love it and don't expect anybody else to really get it. All the YouTube recordings I could find sound horrible. Its old German guys being rock stars!

Can't embed this one . . .

Led Zepplin - Babe I am Gonna Leave You - I suspect everybody knows this tune and forgets how beautiful it is and how it captures the sadness and regret of love lost.

Dream Theater - Voices / Silent Man - These two different songs blend together on one album and I can't help but think of them as a package. Beautiful, skillful, emotional, all over the place both musically and in tone, its dear to my heart. Better vocal performance on the album, but he sings his guts out here. Incidentally, I photographed them live in 2008, linked here in case anybody wants to see the album. Some suck, some do not, but photographers only have 3 songs, so its shoot fast.

William Clayton - Come Come Ye Saints - A hymn that is part of my family heritage but also a part of my own life experience. Below is the expected version and another version. Written in 1846 by Mormon poet William Clayton when, while away from his family, he received word that his wife had given birth to a son and wrote "All Is Well."

Scorpions - Eye II Eye The Scorpions song you never heard. Written about losing a father, I find it incredibly applicable to missing people I love, dead and alive. I also think Klaus Meine has a unique and incredibly appealing voice. This is a mostly great album that was almost completely ignored.

Extreme - Midnight Express The most talented people are not always the most famous. Holy cow. This guy plays like a monster/god and remains unknown. Masterpiece. Here is a case where just being technically brilliant is enough for me to deeply love the tune. He not only plays it, he composed it. Known mostly for one ballad this band was so much more and one of the best live shows I have ever seen, twice. What the heck, watch him play below as well.

I am surprised to find only one Dream Theater song and one Rush song on this list. Interesting.

'Distric 9' is a remarkable film

2009-08-19T19:59:00.006-06:00

The title of the blog has nothing at all to do with a review of the film 'District 9'. There are a lot of reviews, including my own but the film has been out nearly a week and you likely already know if you will see the film or not.

What is much more remarkable, and if you like the medium of film even a little bit this should make you happy, is that this low budget, almost independent film made a lot of money.

Why do you care? The Hollywood system, especially summer blockbuster season, is built around stars and known properties. A quick list of this summer's films will demonstrate that all the movies studios spent big money on were what they judged to be the safest bets possible. They hope to have movies with built in audiences and the same famous faces, both if possible. For example most of the summer list are sequels, based on something already popular and have famous people in them.

Studio safe summer movie choices:
Fast And Furious
The Hannah Montana Movie
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Star Trek
Angels And Demons
Terminator 4
Night At The Museum 2
Up (a creative film, known brand in Pixar)
Land Of The Lost
Transformers 2
Ice Age 3
Harry Potter 6
G.I. Joe

That isn't to say these are bad movies, just movies without an original concept, premise or execution (except Up). Some of them are terrible and although folks are content to show up for explosions and spectacle, if we refused to go to dumb movies the studios would make smarter ones.

By contrast, "District 9" comes along with a first-time director and a budget much smaller than all of those films except Hannah Montana and not a single actor you or I would know. The star is South African native Sharlto Copley. This story isn't based on a toy, a comic book, previous movies, children's books, television series or a hit novel. Its actually original and new and innovative and daring and all that cost $30 million and it looks "more real" that the Transformers or G.I. Joe flicks that cost six times as much to make.

It was first believed that "District 9" might make as much as $27 million when it opened. Then, some dared say it might make back its budget and climb over $30. After it earned $14.2 million on Friday that number nudged up to $35 million. When all was said and done, it had earned $37 million by Monday.

Twitter.com lists its "trending topics" which tell the world what people are talking about. Even if you hate Twitter or the idea of it, the trending topic tells you what is hot among the 3 million people who use it. (I am MrLDC if you ever care to follow me!) "District 9," the little film financed independently outside of the studio system, has been a hot topic all weekend. In my observation positive comments beat negative ones by about a 15-1 margin, we will call it 9-1 to be safe.

I believe this film is going to stay very popular. It has grabbed attention for being unique and smart and original which leaves it alone in this summer's fare. Ironically, there will surely be a sequel!

So yea, it's violent and bloody and gooey and the people in it are under extremely high stress and they say bad words. So, don't go to it and offend yourself and blame me, but I am more offended by mindless, cartoon violence without real consequences and retread movies that insult my intelligence and provide recycled action, characters and plots.

See, "District 9," actually has something to say and allows the viewer to think about his place in society and how humans treat each other and how we discriminate and justify and get corrupted by money and how we like people like us more than people different from us.

It isn't brilliant social commentary with deep messages, but its fun, smart summer fare that does present the viewer with some questions that he can think about or forget about.

The good news here is that Hollywood's greatest skill is following trends. Perhaps "District 9" will set a trend of low-budget-but-polished films that allows creative writing, direction, design and talent over fame. Perhaps the studios will discover that what people want is great storytelling, not great recycling.

In other news, my wife is one great little homemaker and we almost have a finished kitchen.

A song about an author not being your female dog

2009-08-14T01:39:00.004-06:00

My favorite currently writing author is George R.R. Martin. I love his books and preach them a little too fervently sometimes, but I believe in them. Classified as "fantasy" (a term that annoys me because of the baggage it carries) it reads like historical fiction meets the Sopranos.

I admire his writing skills and word smithing as much as anything I read.

He is four books into a seven book series and the last book and the one that is currently overdue is causing quite a stir among the readership. I can't imagine telling an author or a artist that they must produce great stuff on a schedule. (Journalists are different animals.)

Neil Gaiman came to his defense in his now famous blog defense and he told readers that authors are not their "female dogs". (That was for my over-sensitive Mormon audience).

Now a songwriter has put the sentiment to music. It is beautiful.

Hair still on fire

2009-08-10T23:47:00.002-06:00

Yea, so, I am a lame blogger. I even have exceptional things to blog about, but I have so much other writing stuff going on that I just can't manage. When my kitchen is finished, I will be back with a goal of blogging every other day.

I sincerely apologize to those who took the brave step of "following" me. It is actually an honor to have each one of you aboard.

My hair is on fire! My hair is on fire! My hair is on fire!

2009-07-18T01:51:00.013-06:00

I recently posted that I would need to either blog regularly or quit having a blog. Here I am at work at 2 a.m. and my content manager (the way I make the DeseretNews website compelling) has stopped working. I am counting on this being a temporary server issue since it needs to reset sometimes. The point is, it gives me time to blog so here is a whole lot of little tidbits of what is going on.

I am going to Comic-Con next Wednesday, as I have for years now. I have worked for SideshowCollectibles there and helped them in various ways, including interviewing Stan Lee and Elvira. This year they faced a hotel room shortage and decided to do it without me so I am a free agent. I will be laboring intently by updating TheOneRing.net, by co-presenting a panel (scroll down to the 10:30 a.m. programming) and conducting a couple of fan-participation events in conjunction with Weta.

Blah, blah, blah - no wonder I can't blog. Everything I type is a link and I work slow!

Anyway, I will also be writing for my own co-owned Website called *drum roll* www.GeekFreePress.com. You should bookmark that site and check it often, its not full of content at the moment but, we hope to make it great and I have good people helping me along the way. I have about every possible moment of my five days in San Diego scheduled already with video games, television, movies, books, Web casts and comics. I should be talking to Felicia Day, all the voices behind SpongeBob, see Gwar in concert (ha!), attend some screenings and so forth. Preparation for the event is maddening. I am also writing for the Deseret News and gathering a boat-load of future video games stories and writing a Weekend cover for the film "District 9" which has an entertaining trailer. See below.

The point is, my hair is on fire because, that is only one of my time sinks.

We are also, still, remodeling our kitchen. I would really like to write about it, but there is no time. Short version: We haven't had a functioning kitchen for six weeks. Its uh, inconvenient. Shannon wrote about it a bit.

And, at work I am working all nights this week, which is fine, but its hard to get things done and sleep at home. A big change is coming up soon at work, really as soon as I am back from Comic-Con, so again, my hair is on fire.

My good friend Scott Iwasaki, Dnews music critic, has asked me to review the Tool concert. This came up suddenly but I am excited! Anyway, sleep is a burden and my hair is on fire. None of this is a complaint though, all of these things will eventually be for my good and are the stuff life is made of.

The wonder of sports

2009-07-08T13:27:00.004-06:00

I love sports and mostly have always. I enjoy watching, I enjoy fantasy sports and I enjoy playing them despite lugging around about 40 extra pounds of man.

Shannon and I play co-ed slow pitch softball and have off-and-on for years, mostly with the Deseret News team. This year the games were on Monday nights but the company is too poor to pay so individual players coughed up the cash.

As (bad) luck would have it, I missed many games and then showed up to two games that were rained out. For me it was a short season but I was able to be present for most of the playoff run.

The final day of the season the two best teams in the league were paired in one semifinal while we played a far inferior team in the other game. We played badly and squeezed out a win leaving us to face a very good team in the final.

If we played the team we met in the championship 10 times we might win two or three games but the final game was one of those, leaving us as the league champions with a solid 16-8 win. Our first basewoman is well into her 60s is literally unable to run. I credit our infield defense for more than solid play and we were both lucky and skilled with our bats, scoring enough runs to keep the pressure on the other team.

The wonder of sports is that the best team doesn't always win. It doesn't matter in championships or even just games which team is better, it matters who performs better right then. Utah beats Alabama in the Sugar Bowl, the Yankees don't win every World Series and Austin Peay beats Illinois in the NCAA basketball tournament. If you don't recall that win, it was in 1987 and outspoken announcer Dick Vitale famously said the best 64 teams should be in the tournament and that some great teams were left out and the Governors had no business being there and had no chance to beat Illinois. Vitale even said he would stand on his head if they won. He kept his promise. He has also changed his tune over the years, speaking in favor of teams that aren't in the biggest conferences but have great seasons having a chance to dance.

Locally, Weber State beat North Carolina in 1999 behind Harold Arceneaux and beat Michigan State in 1995.

Once upon a time a former D-league quarterback named Kurt Warner, after all the other guys got hurt, led the St. Louis Rams to the Superbowl. The best teams don't always win and that is what makes sports so fun.

How to make a bad blog

2009-06-28T21:17:00.004-06:00

First, a fun photo from an oceanic blow hole on the pacific coast of Mexico with my kids and some cousins just about to get soaked:

Now then, I believe completely in the premise that bloggers want to be read. Even those who write journals are writing for the future audience of themselves and, I think, the idea of others reading is present then as well.

Some may disagree, but I think anybody who takes the time to write and then publish to the interwebs hopes for readers, even if they don't want to admit it massages their egos.

So, with that in mind, there is one really easy way to make sure nobody reads your blog: don't write. Simply avoid updating your blog on a daily or almost daily basis and all the momentum you built up with previous bits of humor, insight or personality will evaporate.

The best bloggers, the ones who achieve a following of readers who care enough to check back, almost certainly update almost daily. I believe there is an unwritten but real contract between a blogger and a reader. The blogger throws his stuff out there for others to partake of and readers participate by giving it attention and perhaps even commenting back. If a writer generates enough words and enough images that are of interest, they might get regular readers. The reader has invested time and brain power and in most cases, expects to read more.

Writers who don't update, break the contract and lose readers.

Going to Mexico this month and being off the grid completely ruined my habitual thought process of thinking about and posting here at the shower-thoughts blog. So, I decided that isn't acceptable and I am either going to maintain good posting habits or I am going to not blog any longer. It is either worth my time and energy or it isn't. I hope to find out from myself that it is.

Like any writer (even if they don't admit it) I produce content for a perceived audience made up of friends and perhaps even a stranger or two. If nobody read or nobody cared there wouldn't be a reason to write. There is some evidence that people care but if I can't maintain a steady posting schedule, if I can't demonstrate to myself that I care, the blog must die.

Off the grid

2009-06-21T01:42:00.004-06:00

I haven't touched the internet for days and days, which is odd and I have felt very disconnected from friends and news and the world. I was in Mexico on a family vacation and we enjoyed the beach and I was completely off the grid.

During vacations and preparation for vacation, things like blogs get ignored, which is sad because there was much to write about. Turns out everybody is scared to vacation in Mexico and we had the place (or at least part of the place) to ourselves. Great time. I will blog more at length but here is some photographic evidence.

Fun with my son

2009-06-05T02:31:00.008-06:00

Today I went with an elementary school class to a fire station on a walking field trip.

The first thing I discovered is that I am still socially awkward. One of the other parents talked to me and I found suddenly that I had no idea what to say and the two of us stood there in the hall outside the classroom waiting for about two minutes with nothing but uncomfortable silence. Grrrrrrrr.

This was all okay when the students showed up and we walked, I am guessing, about half of a mile to the closest fire station. The students were taken into a room and the nice firefighter went over some safety tips and demonstrated that he really doesn't know how to talk to kids in first grade.

Next he took us all outside next to the big red truck and did a much better job entertaining us all which is what we hope for in a field trip. We could have stayed in school to be bored after all. We didn't have enough time to ask any questions because suddenly his crew was invited out on a call which gave us all a chance to hear the sirens which was cool. But, the questions I wanted to ask:

* Why do all firemen have moustaches?

* Where are the poles and can I try one?

* Where is the dalmatian and does he bite?

* Are the girl firemen called firewomen or firepeople?

* Do the firewomen also have moustaches?

But really, the great part came next. I was quite surprised how much Dresden wanted me to come along on the trip. I mostly assumed he would be embarrassed by me but he was really glad to have me there. On the way home (hang on to your hats) he held my hand the whole way back to school. The - whole - way. Occasionally the grip was broken by circumstances or his friend Collin, and every time he would take my hand again.

I already loved my son completely but I loved so much that he wanted that kind of contact from me and wasn't ashamed. I got a little misty typing that sentence.

Then at his baseball game, he hit the holy crap out of the ball at least once, almost clocking the coach. Cool!

Mexico: I fear you not (but I will be careful)

2009-06-01T22:15:00.005-06:00

In the not too distant future, I will be at the boarder of Mexico with my passport and will get another stamp in my little blue book. I haven't been there since July of 2000 when I was in Cancun on a shared Honeymoon with Shannon.

I recommend Cancun as a divine vacation spot. My time there was one of the most relaxing weeks of my life and was also a lot of fun. I wish I could afford to load up my parents, family and friends and throw a week-long relaxation party in one of the all-inclusive hotels there. Ha! Anyway, soon I shall return to the U.S.'s neighbor to the south but on the other side of the country and I will be at a beach house with several other couples and I am really looking forward to it.

This has been planned for perhaps as long as a year.

In that year, Mexico has scared the world.

Mexico to world: "BOO!"

World to Mexico: "AGGGGGGGG!"

There are scares on two fronts at least. The first is that people think Americans are being killed left and right in Mexico when they hear about the hundreds that are dying in a drug war. The truth is, there have been only a few Americans killed but recently four San Diego residents. There are signs that link these four to drugs and they apparently frequented Tijuana to party, as they did the night they were found dead, but nothing has been settled. The State Department issued a warning around spring break to college students because they tend to drink, use drugs and hang out in dangerous places and the warning wasn't to avoid Mexico but to avoid sketchy situations. I can say for sure that my kids wouldn't have been going.

Headlines look really scary but the truth is if you aren't in Mexico looking for or using drugs and you aren't visiting prostitutes, your danger is relatively tiny, comparable say . . . to visiting Detroit!

Still when you read a story like this it certainly is a little chilling. I am not worried about drug lords attacking tourists because if they do kill and scare American's they are literally, killing their cash cow.

I wouldn't wander around Tijuana after dark to be sure, but I will cross the boarder from San Diego and head down the coast for vacation and I feel very secure doing it. I confess that having a gun along wouldn't be the worst thing I can think of but hey, crossing the boarder with a weapon and then heading to a Mexican jailhouse would increase the real danger exponentially. I also wouldn't take a job as a reporter or editor in Mexico as the drug lords or other criminals seem happy to kill journalists and the authorities don't seem to care much. But again, they aren't killing for the sake of killing, they are getting and scaring those who work for Mexican newspapers. In fact, Mexicans working as reporters are heroic to be sure.

The second scare is the dreaded swine flu that grabbed world headlines and sent thousands or millions heading for their bunkers to hole up while the world ended. As I don't plan to stop in any hospitals and lick people, I am feeling okay about this one as well.

My biggest fear is returning to the U.S. and getting grief from police who stop vehicles with the expectation of getting a bribe. This is troubling to me on so many levels, but I will deal with that when and if it happens.

Anyway, imaginary readers, would you travel to Mexico? Am I ignoring obvious signs of real danger? Is my life balanced on the edge of a knife because I am heading south?

Incidentally, here are the countries the U.S. State Department does have warnings about traveling to:

Nepal 05/22/2009
Lebanon 05/13/2009
Yemen 04/24/2009
Georgia 04/09/2009
Sudan 04/08/2009
Central African Republic 04/01/2009
Colombia 03/25/2009
Madagascar 03/17/2009
Saudi Arabia 03/04/2009
Algeria 03/04/2009
Pakistan 02/25/2009
Eritrea 02/18/2009
Syria 02/12/2009
Congo, Democratic Republic of the 02/05/2009
Haiti 01/28/2009
Philippines 01/27/2009
Israel, the West Bank and Gaza 01/15/2009
Burundi 01/08/2009
Sri Lanka 12/22/2008
Cote d'Ivoire 12/15/2008
Nigeria 12/02/2008
Somalia 11/15/2008
Chad 11/14/2008
Kenya 11/14/2008
Iran 09/15/2008
Afghanistan 09/10/2008
Uzbekistan 07/03/2008
Iraq 06/13/2008

Those places are a whole different level of dangerous.

A true story of devotion

2009-05-23T10:55:00.004-06:00

Coming home from work Friday in rather busy traffic, I was stopped at a light, barely missing the left-hand-turn signal at a busy intersection. Sitting there slightly annoyed, I noticed a bird descend directly in front of a stopped car and hopped in front of a tire.

I apologize for not being able to identify the bird's species, but you can picture whatever kind you are familiar with. Imagine a little gray songbird that you might see prospering in the urban sprawl mostly anywhere. It took a hop around what to it was a massive, foreboding truck tire. I noticed that there was another bird there, in way-to-close proximity to the truck that was waiting for the light.

Despite birds getting quite used to traffic, I couldn't believe these were so reckless as to sit immediately in front of this truck. The first bird took a few more hops and then flew up to rest on the horizontal pole holding the traffic signal. After a moment he flew half-way back down the turned and flew back up to a power line.

I realized then that the bird on the ground was completely stationary. It was standing almost immediately in the tire's path and it wasn't eating or hoping or walking or anything. It was hurt, having probably been hit by a car and broken a wing at least.

A few moments later, the truck, oblivious to the little bird, got its green light and drove off. The tire, from my perspective by the smallest of inches, missed the bird and the back tire did the same. I confess I was cheering for the little thing to live even though I knew it was probably unlikely at that point. Not only were all the many cars hazards, but it was hurt already or possibly suicidal or insane.

The companion bird watched with me as the second car also missed the little thing, raising my hopes that perhaps it was out of the most common tire path and he might make it, at least for a little while. The third car not only crushed my hopes but the bird - completely flat. I flinched in my seat, watching the end come quickly. The next car added insult to death as did the next car and the next. It was the first two cars that were off the standard path.

I quit watching the pancake-like corpse and instead looked for the companion bird, now alone. It flew from traffic arm to traffic arm, line to line, perch to perch. Can a bird looked distressed? This one acted that way, at least to me.

After a parade of cars over the flat little body, it was finally my turn to head left and I left the scene of the avian massacre, probably one of only two entities on Earth aware of the short but dramatic ordeal. I watched the living bird fluttering around, making circles around its dead former companion.

It made me sad.

A story that touched and taught me

2009-05-21T08:09:00.006-06:00

A friend shared with me a story that both touched my heart and expanded my mind. As a father, but still a new father, I always feel like I have a lot to learn and that there should be a guide on how not to mess up my kids.

Religious people will tell you that the scriptures is exactly that and that teaching the precepts contained in them will produce great young people. I actually believe there is divine truth there, but as far as I understand I should also be treating my children with perfect love, in other words, living the teachings of the scriptures. I already know I fail to do that.

I do believe that parenting should be done mostly with gentle persuasion and long-suffering and I already know how I fall short there sometimes. So while I mull over how to produce confident, happy adults with the ability to thrive in the wide world, I talked to my friend who has more experience and has watched all his children grow beyond childhood.

His son, dubbed Student X for this exercise, was in the resource program in elementary school. That means he wasn’t keeping up with regular classwork and falling behind the pace in the already slow public school system. He was more-or-less failing to keep up or even follow fourth grade. My friend and his wife are loving and kind people with good hearts and while I didn’t know them back when this story took place, I believe they were the same then.

So, loving their son, they visited the school counselor and tried to get some help. She sat down with them, I imagine to feel them out and see who and what she was working with, and upon finding them open to helping their son, their conversation was related to me like this:

Counselor: Can I be honest with you?

Friend & Wife: Yes of course, we want to know how to help Student X!

Counselor: This kid has no self esteem.

Friend & Wife: Oh no! That is terrible.

Counselor: His self esteem is on you. This is your doing.

Friend & Wife: (Silence. Choke back emotion.)

Counselor: I don’t want you to say a word of criticism to this kid for a whole year.

Friend & Wife: Okay, we will do that.

There was more to the conversation I am sure, but that was the meat, the most salient point. Wife went home and bawled of course, as a mother who has just been told that she has destroyed her child’s self esteem will do. Friend promised Wife that he would manage that for a year.

The second part of the prescription to restoring the kid’s view of himself is that he discovered he loved basketball. His family is athletic, his sisters perhaps gifted, but he had not had good sports experiences. So, when basketball happened Friend told him after every game how well he played and they also told Student X that his eligibility for school started right then. His right to participate in the Junior Jazz basketball league was predicated on his work in the classroom.

His teacher, conveniently named Joe Educator, would have the final word about Student X’s right to participate in basketball. Friend and Wife would come home from Parent-Teacher conferences and Student X would ask, “Will Mr. Educator let me play?”

He played.

By the 8th Grade, Student X brought home a report card with nothing but ‘A’ in the grade column. For those of you completely unfamiliar, it would look something like this:

Name: Student X

Grade: A
Grade: A
Grade: A
Grade: A
Grade: A
Grade: A
Grade: A

Friend & Wife took that piece of paper to share the joy with the elementary school counselor who had the guts to eviscerate two parents to save the child. She celebrated by making a copy of the results by framing them and sticking them on her wall.

“I have never seen a child so low, rise so high,” she said.

She has used it time and again to point out to students, or more likely parents, that children, few so low as Student X, are not irredeemable.

“If Student X can do it, so can you,” she has said over and over.

Amazing what a little self-esteem can do.

The seemingly never-ending saga with TORn

2009-05-18T01:49:00.042-06:00

If you haven't read the first and second and third parts of my personal saga with TheOneRing.net, I suggest it before you dig into this part. In short, those three were about how I came to know TORn folks and this one is a wrap up.

Trying to record my experiences with TheOneRing.net has turned me into a horrible blogger. Instead of smallish daily things I can blog about, I feel like I have the weight of this saga. As a result, nothing at all gets blogged about, so, this will be the end of the tale that I tell here, although far from the genuine end.

In short, I had made contact with a few TORn staffers, organized a successful and sizable line party in Salt Lake City, attended the now legendary "One Party," as a member of the media and there interviewed TORn co-founder Chris. Somehow the two of us kept in touch or he knew me well enough to return an e-mail. One way or another, I drafted a tutorial on how to host a line party and to my shock and surprise, not only did he run the thing in its whole, he gussied it up and designed it to be easy to read. I had my first taste of his excellent design skills. I am a bit embarrassed now, but this is what I wrote and what he did with it.

Before long, as a result of this, he asked me on the phone to be a staff member at the site. I was genuinely shocked but also honored. I admired, and this feeling would only grow, that the staffers at TORn did what they did not for money but for love and passion. I found their efforts inspiring. I was also forced to choose a "handle" for the site and I really couldn't think of anything at that moment except the original Online name I ever invented for myself in the stone age of public internet when I picked "MrCere" for my first AOL subscription. Ouch. That name came from a cartoon aardvark "Cerebus" and I am pretty much stuck with it now. I find other potential Tolkien-themed message board names I like all the time. Rick Cottontree makes me laugh as does Barrow Wong and SandWitch King but alas, I might as well have a MrCere tat. Early "Cerebus" is brilliant commentary and satire but late in the game it grew to be less than it was.

I had discovered in the process of line parties, that I was a big fan of fans. I loved that people would spend hours pouring their hearts into something like the books of J.R.R. Tolkien. Harry Potter was on the rise and Star Wars was enjoying its prequel trilogy and there were other temporary cults growing up around popular culture and the Tolkien fandom was in the middle of all that.

I had only just discovered that celebrations of popular culture, such at Comic Con, were full of people that shared common interests with me. I always felt that playing Dungeons & Dragons or loving goofy fantasy movies or enjoying Japanese cartoons (Battle of the Planets) somehow isolated me or made me unusual. I discovered instead that I was not alone in these passions and for the most part, the people who shared these passions were pretty great. Calisuri, Tookish, Quickbeam and all the other folks behind these odd names at TheOneRing were more than alright and so were the rest of the people I met. In fact, they were also exceptionally cool.

So, being invited to be part of the energy of TORn was astounding. I knew I was a lot like the staffers I had met in some ways, but it seemed like a closed club that I would not be joining. A great number of the staff all knew each other from the live chat room at TORn which still functions. I felt a lot more comfortable on a message board than I do in a chat room, but I did venture over there a little, but somehow it wasn't completely comfortable for me. I was pleased to make a contribution with the line party efforts and there was a lot of satisfaction in putting Salt Lake City on the Website map and in having great experience with locals.

I still didn't understand the way TORn worked so I asked Chris if he really had the authority to make me a staffer. He laughed and explained that yes, it was his website, and he could make me part of the team. He also invited me to Comic-Con to help TORn out. In short, he adopted me for no reason I can quite understand, even still, except that he knew my motives were pure. I wasn't involved to meet stars or get free stuff but to build the community.

The other question I had for him concerned what a staffer did exactly for TORn. He explained that there wasn't a charter or rules or defined roles but that I should make it what I wanted to make it with the understanding that I didn't ever represent myself as speaking for TORn and that I work toward the greater good.

That year at Comic-Con, Sideshow Collectibes and Weta Workshop were together under the "Sideshow-Weta," business banner. Sideshow had a massive space and it let TORn set up a TheOneRing tent which was all part of a grouping of many Lord of the Rings booths, including New Line Cinema. Fan-film "Ringers: Lord of the Fans," was part of the booth and they had a Tolkien confessional where folks stepped inside the booth to be filmed to give the team lots of footage for their film, which was as yet a great idea but not formed into its final state. I was on hand to help with the booth in any capacity and although I didn't know people well, I had a great time being on the floor of the giant convention talking with passionate people about LOTR.

I attended a staff dinner, had some other fun around the convention, met folks at Sideshow and had a generally wonderful time. Chris also pulled me aside and invited me to go to DragonCon later in the year and promised a completely different convention experience. I would be there to help with a very small table that functioned to sell t-shirts and in general just help. And so it was that I began a string of trips to Atlanta for a completely different and completely fun convention experience where I met a whole different slew of fans and, wouldn't you know it, made more good friends.

One of those friends was another co-founder of TORn, Corvar or Bill, a giant Irishman of good humor and more than any of the staffers or founders of TORn, a man who avoids the limelight. He keeps the website online and solves the occasional major server issues (like the one that suddenly prompted an emergency redesign) and gets almost no credit. Later when Chris and Amy were married Bill was his best man and I was extremely honored to be part of the wedding party. Shannon and I traveled east to be present at the wedding and it remains a fond memory.

To make a long story less long, I was more-or-less integrated into TheOneRing.net staff and became an event specialist, news reporter and photographer. I attended three Oscar parites, got a side gig with Sideshow Collectibles, hosted events with actors and celebrities called "ORC" and "ELF," distributed t-shirts, got to know other staffers that I see rarely but am fond of and generally had amazing experiences. I also helped bring the message boards at TORn to the founders' attention so that in the current version, the once heavily chat-centric site now warmly embraces another part of its core. Good friend Pat (Altaira) reinvented the whole message board after moderators worked hard on the site's behalf for a long time with very little recognition and she and I were both asked to join the "senior staff" which means we on rare occasions we talk over matters concerning the site with the founders. I am sure I am more fond of many of the staffers than they are of me, but I don't mind.

I have enjoyed very much representing the site at press events, book release parties, game junkets, and movie premieres (viewing the screening of King Kong with stellar company, remains one of the elite entertainment experiences of my life). I am a regular presenter at DragonCon and while none of this has paid off financially, it has been immensely rewarding in so many ways but especially with well-loved friends. The truth is, sometimes involvement has required financial sacrifice but I count the dollars spent as well worth it. I am rich with amazing relationships and the whole immersion into this fandom has changed my life forever.

Dear Shannon has been pretty patient while all this happens and probably rightly wishes I had put some of this energy and passion into things that would pay handsomely. My sons will be just old enough to enjoy the Hobbit events and I hope to create for them what I have from all of this - great memories.

Chris and Bill are both counted as close friends now and while visiting Wellington last year, and visiting with Erica, I can definitely include Tehanu as somebody I both respect and am very fond of. A lot of the original staffers are busy and not so active now, but new blood helps carry the site forward toward "The Hobbit." People would be surprised though how few people still keep things going. I don't know that it will return to the elite status among all websites in existence it once enjoyed, but I can see the bump in popularity already happening and it will be the salad days again.

Beyond that, TORn may have used up its lifespan. Perhaps not. Either way, it has left its mark on the history of internet and movie and Tolkien fandom and I have felt privileged to be a part.

TORn saga book 3

2009-05-09T01:59:00.018-06:00

If you haven't read the first and second parts of my personal sage with TheOneRing.net, I suggest it before you dig into this part.

Eight months after the first moment Shannon and I declared, on about our first anniversary, that we would now see if we could get pregnant, she was four weeks away from having Dresden. It was also time for the Oscars and "my" dark horse in the race was "Fellowship Of The Ring," which was nominated for nine Academy Awards. The good folks at TheOneRing.net, especially those on the message boards and those in California, planned to hold an Oscar Party. I was pretty convinced that Ian McKellen's Gandalf performance was subtle and great and probably deserving of a 'Best Actor' win, but I doubted very much an actor in a fantasy film would win such an award.

Still, all movies are about pretending and fantasy, and it seems that pretending somebody less familiar (like immortal wizards) is harder than portraying somebody more obvious and mundane. (Although good movie characters are never mundane, but hopefully you get the point.) Anyhow, I held out some hope for McKellen back then and was quite excited by the prospect of him winning. I felt a win would set the table for the two future movies. I am wiser now, and know the all-powerful Academy will never reward actors in fantasy films.

So back to the matter at hand, I badly wanted to go to California and attend this party. This wasn't a popular desire at home due to the rounded belly-full-of-baby Shannon was lugging around. In fact, there was a remote possibility that Shannon could go into labor while I was away so I think both sets of parents were biting their tongues except for my mother who wasn't biting hers at all and was speaking her mind. I made arrangements to fly in the day of the event and to fly home very early the next morning, meaning that my total time away was less than 18 hours.

Still, I am sure the possibility exists that I will get roasted even still for my decision to go and the at-home tension that it caused. I likely can't explain to anybody's satisfaction but I was 100% certain that Dresden wouldn't be born until I returned. To be on the safe side, we checked with a doctor who didn't think birth was quite upon us. A lot of LOTR Fan Club members were attending the party and staying together. I was a part of the group and yet not a part because I came in last minute and missed out on a lot but felt a lot of gratitude at having an automatic friend or two, even if they barely knew who I was. I was very kindly picked up at the airport.

Ian Smith, who was one of the first people I knew living on the digital-photography frontier with his camera and who is great at recording his experiences with images and words, was on hand as well. I refer you to his account of the event to really catch the flavor. There is even a photo of me in my shiny metallic shirt on his site, which was a way to try not to wear a traditional tux but still be in formal clothes. It may be the only such picture in existence and I didn't have the jacket on for the shot.

I was there as press which gave me permission to mostly walk unmolested and take a lot of photos, including of people I wouldn't know personally for a few years. I have a photo of TORn founder Bill / Corvar leading Peter Jackson into the party as he arrived which I just learned he had never seen and didn't possess. I took a lot of photos of fans and guests and V.I.P.s which later turned out to be McKellen, Jackson, Howard Shore, Richard Taylor, Phillipa Boyens and Fran Walsh.

Remarkably, a woman (Carlene) who was handling press, kept trying to get me to talk to one Chris Pirrotta. I informed her a few times that I was fine. I saw Xoanon's name on TORn all the time and I assumed it was a one-man show with some help from Tehanu the spy in New Zealand. Little did I understand that there were many, many hands behind both the party and the site. Carlene persisted and I kept declining the chance to talk to these TORn folk. Finally, a hand fell on my shoulder and this broad and genuinely friendly guy started talking to me. He was representing TORn and so we had the interview I had turned down probably three times.

Chris was impressive but I didn't understand who he was. He told me he was the "webmaster" but I was slow to comprehend so finally I asked him something like, "What do you have to do with the Website?"

"I own it," he laughed in his friendly way while still delivering the message that I didn't quite get what was going on. Knowing Chris now I find this remembered exchange a fond and funny memory. I did write a newspaper article on the whole affair for the Deseret News. I have a floating, unattributed quote near the end of the story but it reads like classic Richard Taylor, although it could be Jackson as well.

Reading the story now, I see that Chris did get his name in the paper and I wish I had elaborated on the sheer numbers TheOneRing was doing back then. It seems unlikely to be repeated, even with "The Hobbit," films because of the extensive competition in the form of big-time entertainment sites that will be throwing their weight around. This in no way diminishes the accomplishments of TORn at the time. Along with AintItCoolNews and a few other sites, it completely changed the way fans and moviemakers interact. This changed further with offshoot KongIsKing.net which I had some involvement with from the ground up.

The second worst reek of my life

2009-05-06T01:28:00.007-06:00

In my life I have smelled some foul smells, as anybody has.

Human feces comes to mind, having changed many a diaper from my two boys. My wife thought it was funny that I would dry heave and gag and maybe at first she thought it was an act. It wasn't, but after time I managed not to be quite so repulsed and make it through a whole diaper without almost losing it.

There was a clear-cut worst smell in my history but today I experienced the second worst. I wore a drywall mask and rubber gloves while I cleaned out a fridge, my fridge, that was broken and no longer kept anything cold. That would have been okay if I cleaned it out the day it went down but I didn't. In fact, I had no idea it was broken and Shannon and I figured tha the freezer was left open and that we had ruined some food.

By the time we figured it out, our food had gone south and the contents were toxic. Included was a full gallon of milk, some recently collected chicken eggs, remaining dyed easter eggs, vegitables that liquified, butter, mayo, leftover chili, some curry dish (that I really mourn not eating) and sundry items.

Shannon and I moved the unit out of our house and into the garage but missed garbage day by one day, so it sat in there for a week. A couple of times before the move somebody in the family, by force of habbit, would open the door to get some milk or water or something and the smell would overwhelm the entire kitchen if not the whole floor of the house. Horrible.

Today I masked up, masked up 5-year-old Logan, put on the rubber gloves and dug in to put everything in the garbage.

Wow, did it reek! The eggs were leaking brown ooze, the milk (skim) was completely separated and the humidity had grown a nice black mold around the fringes of the condiments, leftovers and tuperware. The muffin tin that held the Easter eggs, one per muffin cup, became a casualty of the unfortunate mechanical failure. I am sure I could have washed it off and it would have been sanitary but the association of that smell would have never gone away for me. Never. The ice trays were a casualty as well but nobody will mourn those.

I also hooked up a hard spraying hose and tried to wash all that moist mold from the vegie drawer, meat drawer and nooks and crannies of the soon-to-be landfill fridge.

Thing in a jar revisited

2009-05-04T18:51:00.002-06:00

A while back I made a thing in a jar and brought it to work and left it without any explanation.

I never heard a single word about it directly but I was told a few times that people were talking about it.

Somebody with a desk near the jar proved the social experiment a complete success when they wrote this on their facebook page:

What is in this creepy pickle jar that continues to sit on the desk occupied by the Web people? The guesses just keep rolling in: a freaky 10-year-old pickle, a sugar beet, a hobit embryo, a squid. The Web people claim it belongs to Larry and that he will soon have an unveiling. But I haven't seen Larry around for a while. Which makes me wonder if what is in the pickle jar is actually... LARRY! :0 :0 :)

Apparently, there has been much discussion when I am not around. I may need to make another one and darken the mixture slightly. Revealingly, 'the Hobbit' comment shows what I am associated with even though I very rarely speak about any such thing at work.

Good tunes, good times

2009-05-04T07:58:00.004-06:00

There isn't a MySpace profile in the world that doesn't say something about how much the person trying to summarize their life in a few paragraphs loves music. The teen set thinks they are 'so into it' when more likely they haven't learned how to balance their interests yet and its pretty easy to fixate on unapproachable demi-gods of modern culture. (On some level what is being a teen if not loving a popular-culture icon to help you gain your own identity?)

But keeping your ear buds in instead of listening to your family communicate with you isn't actually being more into music than the next person, its simply being more into yourself. The point is, we humans with our technologies and portable file storage, like music. We have it nearly everywhere we go.

On a recent night, I went with some friends (Shannon, Steve, Deidra, Jason) to see Chris Cornell sing to us at Salt Lake's The Depot. Somebody once dubbed Kurt Cobain my generation's spokesman, which really annoys me still. His lyrics never spoke to me, much less for me, although I don't mind some Nirvana songs, I found the whole tone a little bit depressed for my taste.

Since he committed suicide he is immortal along with James Dean and Marilyn Monroe while all his grunge contemporaries who lived were allowed to pass out of being the latest fad. I am not the first to note the fact that suicide is the best career move an artist can make.

From the era, I always much preferred Alice In Chains, Pearl Jam, and especially Soundgarden. None were ever my spokesman. Cornell and Soundgarden parted ways somehow without me ever seeing them in concert during an era when due to working security, editing the college newspaper and being a young cub at the Deseret News, I saw almost everybody in concert. I will make a list sometime.

Cornell then formed Audioslave, which produced two albums I love, but I managed to miss any live shows for that band as well. I dig the man's voice and I know if I could have been born sounding like that, I too could have been a rock star, despite the lack of musical talent infused in my genes.

Feeling like I better not miss hearing the dude sing live, Shannon and I paid the $35 each and went to the show and were glad to have the company of good friends. His latest album is a solo effort produced with the supremely talented but predictable producer Timbaland. (Think "Promiscuous" by Nelly Furtado or "Cry Me A River," from Justin Timberlake.) I was very skeptical about the new material but figured I would suffer through it to hear some Audioslave and Soundgarden tunes.

In short, the show was top-notch; Cornell sings like an angel and screams like a demon and fronts the stage like a mellow, comfortable performer who realizes he has it good and appreciates the fans without losing his 'rock star' persona. I was pretty impressed and when he sang tunes like, "Rusty Cage," and "Fell On Black Days," there was some serious energy in the room and I couldn't help but mourn missing that band at its peak and Audioslave as well.

But the revelation of the night was how well his "dance album" stuff translated to a great live show. Two songs in particular, "Part Of Me," (featuring a slander word I don't want in my kids' vocabulary) and "Scream," ("I said 'Heeeey' Why you keep scraming at the top of your head?") were instantly pleasing despite being the first time I heard them. Talking up the show to my music-critic friend landed me a loaned solo CD of "Scream" and I must say that it is supremely good. The eclectic mix of pop styles with latin roots, anchored by Cornell's distinctive, mature voice and some new age sensibilities have managed to mix with the end result being an album I can't get enough of. I ration it when I listen to music so I don't overdose, but it is always calling to me. Critics apparently don't like it, I definitely don't care.

Happy Birthday to TheOneRing.net!

2009-04-26T20:05:00.006-06:00

TheOneRing.net turned 10 years old today. I have been fortunate to be a lot of places, take a lot of pictures, and know a lot of great people in my association with the site. I feel very blessed.

This is a soundslide, used by photojournalists, sometimes to spectacular effect. The music is original from Arjan Kiel www.argankiel.com with thanks to fan film, "Born of Hope".

The images are mine.

Click the triangle play button to make it work and the button in the far right corner makes it bigger and cooler.

The tale of my personal OneRing saga continues

2009-04-25T00:49:00.019-06:00

I tend to be a bit wordy. Here is part one. Part two tells the tale of other events during Comic-Con 2001 and takes us through the Line Party events. I think the longer version is a better read.

I have liked comic books since I could read. I was an advanced reader as a child and I read often and in great quantity. Despite the medium's reputation as trash, I loved it fiercely and still do and I had always felt a casual desire to attend the famous San Diego Comic Con but when I knew "Fellowship of the Ring," was on the horizon and that TORn was going to be there, the website I was checking daily for LOTR news, I convinced the wife to take a trip. So there we were.

Like any good Tolkien fan would, I made it a point to see TheOneRing.net's panel at Comic-Con. I have photo of head of Weta Workshops, Richard Taylor, on a stage with Cliff and Jon (Quickbeam and Tookish) and I believe this was during the TORn panel but I don't know for sure. Others may read and remember and I will edit as I can. This pair of staffers was active during TORn's early days, Quickbeam writing his "Out on a limb" pieces and Tookish doing a humor section. They were part of the early content providers that kept me coming back, along with the news team, including Xoanon, and spy Tehanu, putting up notices when somebody so much as broke wind on set.

I even signed up for, and after much lurking, posted on the message board. It is the only such place I have ever remained active despite great interest in a great number of things. I can't define the alchemy, but no other forum has prompted me to do more than lurk.

New Line Cinema had an official LOTR presentation as well. Wouldn't you know it, but when Shannon and I went to the thing, we ran into our friend Heather again. I recall that she was in San Diego alone and also motivated to be there by the LOTR events and probably because she is nicer than me, she called Shannon and I over to some seats she had saved in the auditorium that fit several hundred people. They were close to the front and we were fortunate to have the kindness of a virtual stranger.

Then, Heather did something that mortified me. Cliff and Jon walked in the door and were in our general area looking for somebody or perhaps for seats. She stood up and yelled, "Cliff! Cliff! Jon!" She had more seats and they were intended for the guys from TheOneRing that she met. It is a fault of mine, but my natural instincts are to leave people alone, being a little self conscious. Heather had me help wave the pair down and I felt ridiculous but I did it and they came and sat with us. (I will ask Jon and Cliff if they recall this sometime.)

Cliff is pretty much the opposite of me in regard to how he deals with new acquaintances. Where I am reserved, he is friendly. Where I am stoic, he makes it clear he is happy to meet people. I keep a distance and he is immediately warm and gracious. I am not and was not then, completely without people skills, but he lights up individuals with attention and courtesy. I am perceptive enough to have watched and learned a little, especially when I have represented TheOneRing, but I think Quickbeam was born with this in his nature. I know of many, many LOTR fans that have been charmed by him.

So, Cliff was disarming and charming and Jon was friendly and cool and even gave me a shirt that never had a chance of fitting but was a treasure anyway. Heather facilitated this further meeting that led to me keeping in touch with Jon on occasion and being remembered. I wouldn't have flagged that pair down for money, but Heather made it happen. (Incidentally, I still see Heather at Comic-Con every year. Each of us has a social network there but we make it a point to say 'hi' and we both keep going back. She will always be my first convention friend.)

We ran into Cliff one more time where I got the impression that he had seen enough of the newlyweds from Utah.

After the convention at some point on TheOneRing, they posted a page called the "Line Party page" to facilitate organized meetings for fans to find other local fans and either watch the soon-to-be-released FOTR together or even to meet for other reasons such as the famous California-based Bilbo's Birthday party.

I checked the site to see if there was anything going on in Salt Lake City. There wasn't. I decided that was bad.

I signed up for a Salt Lake City line party and I had the idea that rather than wait in a line for tickets, I should buy a lot of tickets when they went on sale, a few weeks prior to the show, so a large group could enjoy the event together. I didn't know if just putting up the information at TheOneRing would be enough so I picked a theater, posted a flyer or two at a college, visited an anime club in person and before I knew it, things were happening. People were signing up in droves. Utah is a hotbed for not only Tolkien fans but fantasy fans in general. Why this is true would be a whole blog entry, but it is the case. Local columnist Lee Benson wrote about it.

Not only were people Tolkienites, they were trusting! I set up a P.O. Box and had people mail me checks for their tickets. Why they did this in such numbers I will never understand but scads of checks and a few in-person cash transactions came in. I asked for a little more than face value on the tickets, thinking that for so much work we ought to be doing something charitable. During this time we also established a good relationship with a book store which became the future staging place of many events and even celebrity book signings. Salt Lake became a star on the map of Houghton-Mifflin who publishes all thing J.R.R. Tolkien.

Our planned one-theater buyout sold out completely at 512 seats with the front-row empty, so nobody had to break a neck to watch the film. Lots of people were still wanting seats so we directed them to the same theater's auditoriums where midnight shows were playing and they sold out, mostly to our people, as well.

The theater of choice wasn't willing to work a behind-the-scenes deal to buy out the theater so, the morning tickets went on sale I walked up to the counter and asked for 512 tickets to "Fellowship Of The Ring." The counter girl was a little flummoxed and I learned it takes quite a while to print out 512 tickets and they are an awkward bulk that you can't simply drop in your pocket.

I called the local media and while the television stations followed other stories, the newspapers showed up and we had some good coverage. The Deseret News had some great photos and this article.

TheOneRing was very active in California in those days. Owner and founder Calisuri-Chris was in Los Angeles, after leaving Penn State, pretty much following his future wife Amy. News poster-founder Xoanon-Mike was in Canada, webmaster-founder Corvar-Bill in Wisconsin and spy-founder Tehanu-Erica was famously in New Zealand. But, a lot of the in-person energy was going on in California. Chris became connected with Sideshow, making a partnership between the company and TORn that helped establish the Sideshow-Weta brand name as the premier LOTR producer of collectibles and helped TORn pay the bills to accommodate its massive traffic.

Quickbeam was there, eventually partnering with Carlene to eventually make the documentary, "Ringers: Lord of the Fans" where I received my first film credit (so far!) as a unit director. It was natural with all this energy in California and lots of others staffers and friends like Garfeimao, Sarumann and Arwen, that the site would tackle the challenge of hosting an "Oscar Party," in February of 2002.

End of part 2

Ten years! The saga of TheOneRing.net

2009-04-17T03:16:00.021-06:00

I know I get a little wordy at times. The quick summary of this post is: I went with Shannon to the San Diego Comic-Con and met a couple of guys from TheOneRing.net and others from the Tolkien fan community. End of part one. I think the longer version is a lot better.

I do some freelance writing for a company I love called Sideshow Collectibles.
The company evolved over the years, matured if you will, and I was asked to write something to help mark their first 10 years, perhaps for a catalog. My copy is on some computer somewhere and the only version found online has been edited to be more commercial, as is fitting, but some of the deeper impact of the words about life is watered down.

I originally wrote that 10 years is a long enough time for significant changes in life. Infants become young humans, pre-teens become adults. Couples marry, some split, people move, some die, businesses start and fail or flourish.

Our Arabic number system, makes any "ten" significant and ten years, or a decade, is quite a big deal. So, about ten years ago I discovered a Web site that I was immediately impressed with. I heard that J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings" book (it isn't a trilogy, its one book in three volumes) was being made into a trilogy of films. It had long seemed amazing to me that somebody hadn't done this already and it was exciting to find that plans were made.

In an effort to scour the Internet for information, I found a place called www.TheOneRing.net which was a clearinghouse for information about the film from people who obviously knew the book. The tone was excited but not absurdly so, and the news and speculation was plentiful.

They had a month, maybe two, of archives and I devoured every single word, probably twice, and later enjoyed their more scholarly writings in "The Green Books." I was an immediate fan of the site and then my admiration grew as I read more over time. There was even a message board, where I would go and browse other fans' thoughts, not feeling a need to contribute, but I used them as a litmus test to gauge other opinions. I visited TORn daily, even though the content didn't yet demand daily visits.

In that same year, in December, I proposed to my friend Shannon that we get married and she agreed so in June of 2000 we tied our destinies together and became kid and wife. A year later we visited my first San Diego Comic-Con, which I still happen to think is one of the coolest events ever. It is a celebration of popular culture that everybody should attend at least once and many should and do attend annually. (Over 130,000 unique visitors in 2008!)

Shannon and I, by nature, aren't extremely outgoing with strangers but we somehow became friendly with a woman named Heather. We also gravitated to a modest booth put up by Sideshow-Weta (a joint venture of Sideshow Collectibles and Weta Workshop that has since split) featuring some design elements directly from the first of the Peter Jackson trilogy of LOTR movies, "The Fellowship Of The Ring". Keep in mind, those movies were still viewed as a gamble by many in the film industry (seemed an obvious "sure thing" to me) and they had not yet made much of an impact on culture and certainly beyond the core Tolkien fans that were significant but not yet a phenomenon. How under the radar was it? While at this booth, still a couple of years prior to it being made up of a giant cave troll, Elijah Wood wandered by to talk with the Weta and Sideshow folks on hand.

He wasn't at the Comic-Con promoting anything, he was wondering around the dealer's floor shooting the breeze and seeing the sights. Like me, he was mighty curious what Sideshow-Weta was up to. As press, I talked to Daniel Falconer who was on hand along with others including Wood. If the heartthrob showed up now he would be mobbed, to the point that there would be a security issue and he would perhaps be in danger along with those who would be trampled by the screaming hoards. Shannon barely knew or cared who he was but we walked up and said hello, talked for a minute or two and had him sign something.

I don't recall any of the discussion but I recall with perfect clarity his shocked reaction when I suggested six months from then, after "Fellowship Of The Ring," hit theaters, that he would never be able to walk around the Con floor like he was then due to his forthcoming popularity.

His naive but seemingly genuine response was to look at me in shock, grab my arm and say, "Oh don't say that!" I knew better than he did that he was going to be, probably forever, instantly recognizable and known for playing Frodo Baggins in Peter Jackson's adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings."

Also met were Cliff and Jon from TheOneRing.net! They were both polite and we either exchanged a greeting or a handshake, partly because Shannon and I were there and because I was "media." I think the Sideshow-Weta-OneRing-Wood contingent went off to dinner and Shannon and I went off to see what else there was to see. We had met Jon and Cliff from TORn, Elijah from the film, the graceful and now late Diane Kamahele from Sideshow, Daniel from Weta and Heather.

I had my first brush with the community around both Tolkien and the films. I didn't know it at the time, but it was to be life changing.

End of part 1

Me, sex, Oprah and kids

2009-04-13T12:20:00.011-06:00

First a preamble so nobody can mistake where I am coming from.

For the record I think sex is amazing and healthy and part of the joy of life. It isn't something to be ashamed of and it certainly isn't dirty. Some of the social circles I travel in or grew up in probably cast sex publicly as something "good" people don't do, which is unfortunate. The LDS Church officially believes and teaches that sex is sacred and should be saved for the bonds of marriage. Unfortunately, when this gets filtered through imperfect people it sometimes comes out, especially to teens, that sex is wrong and bad.

I think intimacy serves the purpose of bonding and binding people close together and I think it is a celebration of their commitment to each other, all of that outside of its other important purpose of creating life. I think both purposes are divine. Sometimes religions, or people in religions, so badly want to teach kids that sex is special and should be saved for the right time, they accidentally teach them that sex is bad. Worse, some religious people do think sex is bad. I disagree.

So, I am pro-sex.

Last Thursday Media Queen Of The World, known simply as Oprah, had Dr. Laura Berman on her show to tell parents how to talk to their kids about sex. Berman coached Oprah and her audience on the right words to say, the right attitudes to display to children and what to talk about at different ages. In fact, I downloaded her pdf "The Sex Ed Handbook," so I could read all of her instructions.

Oprah looked pretty uncomfortable during her own show and I am sure you can find clips of it somewhere and decide if I projected my uncomfortableness on the host. In short, I didn't like all of Berman's approach. She advises that we tell our children pretty much everything because they are going to learn it anyway.

I wonder how others feel about some of Berman's advice:

I found this humorous and I know I will not be following this advice: "Celebrate her bodily functions and be positive about them, not negative. For example, when changing her diaper, don't say, 'P-U! That stinks!' Instead, say, 'What a healthy bowel movement!' "

Apparently when I gagged and dry heaved and retched over my first-born's diapers, I was sending him a bad message. Sorry dude!

In the 2nd - 4th grades I am supposed to tell my kids, when they ask how sperm ended up in the woman's body that, "the man puts his penis inside the woman's vagina (anatomy lesson has happened already) and the sperm comes out of his penis in a fluid called semen, and it goes into her vagina. The sperm goes up into her uterus to her fallopian tube, where it meets the egg.

I don't feel like introducing "semen" into my 2nd grader's vocabulary. Am I crazy here? They can also live without "fallopian tube". I took my six-year-old to the body exhibit in town with dissected and naked bodies, but can I cultivate a healthy attitude without naming all the parts? They don't know what a kidney is either but they pee just fine.

5th and 6th grades gets you an anatomy chart. I included the male one here, so enjoy.

This is the age when I am supposed to discuss masturbation and orgasm with my child. Call it a hunch but I am pretty sure that isn't going to happen with a lot of people. It wasn't all that long ago that Bill Clinton fired his Attorney General for saying of the practice at a U.N. AIDS conference, ""I think that it is part of human sexuality, and perhaps it should be taught." I just suspect a lot of people aren't ready to have that talk with elementary kids, even their own.

Then we talk about birth control, including abstinence, and, "You can show them the different options and even demonstrate by rolling a condom on a banana." Really?

Well, the problem children face is that puberty happens younger and younger and sexuality becomes something they will face in school. And, they will be getting this information from somebody so I would rather it come from me. Berman explains that information doesn't equal permission and I will wrestle with her guidelines and my values for a while I suspect.

She says also: "Teach your children that their sexuality is a gift and a joy and that it is something that should not be tossed aside or used and abused by others. Let them know that sex feels great and can be amazing—but only under the right circumstances and with the right person." I fully agree.

What made me a little relieved not to have a daughter was the prospect of this: "You might want to have a candid talk with her about exploring or learning about her body or even offer her a simple clitoral vibrator. (Don't worry, it doesn't have to be a large toy or a toy that is actually inserted into the vagina.)" Oh the "don't worry" part makes it all okay for me to talk about then?

I finally figured out that I live in a society where nothing is sacred. Religious practices and sexual practices don't need to be brought into the light of day and carefully examined and discussed. Some sexual discussions and practices are so special and so rare and sacred, that they should be discussed between lovers. It isn't anybody's business what I do in my bedroom, not even my kids need to know. And, if I teach them correct principals and healthy attitudes, I don't need to know about their sex lives either. I do need to create lines of communication but not everything needs to be hashed out between us.

I hope I can teach them to value their sexual selves enough to save it for that exchange with the right person. I hope that sex isn't a hidden, dirty, taboo but also that it isn't a cake recipe or like dissecting a cat in high school. A sexual experience need not be like the Xs and Os on a coaches blackboard. I hope I can teach that love is the ingredient that makes it truly matter and makes it great.

Still, Oprah's guest gave me a lot to think about and I suspect a lot of parents could learn a little from the "sex talk" guide, found right here. I will ponder her suggestions carefully and evaluate how I am helping my kids often.

Pirates are in the news! Arrrrg?

2009-04-09T08:01:00.007-06:00

Pirates have been in the news for years now. Specifically Somalian pirates who live in a chaotic country, lack a lot of the wants and needs of life and so ply their trade of plunder on the lawless ocean.

I don't mean that pirates have been in the news that people are reading, just in the news. These Somali pirates have been taking a ship or ships each day for a while, which the news agencies report but not so much because mostly, people in the U.S. don't care.

Yesterday I was monitoring the wires at work, posting stories of interest, when I came across the latest pirate stories. I knew that this story would be a well read pirate story because suddenly:
A) It had Americans in it
B) The Americans were heroic

It turns out it was popular on the site I work for and became a big story across the country. The captain of the Dutch boat in question is still a hostage and things are very serious. People are dying and killing and somehow people (including me) find it funny that pirates are in the news. Blackbeard and Captain Jack Sparrow are the romantic representations we all conjure when we hear the word "pirates."

And, as a blogger I think its my moral obligation, since every other blog in the universe has done it already, to point out that the demise of pirates is the cause of global warming. Pirates are cool you see. Hahaha. Here is the obligatory funny chart that proves it:

But, really, people are dying. Even though the Somali pirates actually have public relations spokespeople (a high thought of job here in the newsroom) they are stealing, killing and eventually will be killed.

I think the pirates in the news now, made a grievous error when they involved Americans. The news coverage (yes, the press still has power) will shine too bright a light over in the waters surrounding Somalia. The area is near a shipping lane and while we Americans don't like it when our citizens are killed or taken hostage, we hate it when our business interests are threatened. Corporate America will not stand for this and, credit decent people everywhere who like to blissfully ignore the world, neither will citizens. President Obama will need to show rouge states and aggressive profiteers that there is a price to be paid for taking citizens hostage. If it needs to happen, pirate vessels will sink. The symbol of Obama not taking action would be too powerful and along with those business interests, make strong action a certainty.

More proof of the pirate - warming relationship, pirate weathermen:
If the pirates release the captain, there are now U.S. warships sitting there in the water with them. Their long term survival is highly unlikely. While the Dutch business that owns the boat might pay a ransom for the captain, the U.S. military is under no obligation not to attempt an arrest or to sink the vessel afterwards. The joke is over for Americans now that one of ours is a hostage.

The Happiest Place On Earth

2009-04-06T14:48:00.011-06:00

So I loaded up my household clan and jumped over to California for some Disneyland and to celebrate the naming and birth of a new little nephew, Baby C. Our trip was just under three days, not including a couple of evenings traveling.

My mind was open to the experience of the Mickey Mouse amusement park and its claim of being, “the Happiest Place On Earth.” (See my previous post.) I couldn’t buy the claim as more than a great advertising slogan and yet I know a great number of people who are infatuated with the place and wouldn’t dream of vacationing anywhere else.

I also received excellent comments from three friends on the blog who leant a little perspective to what might be the happiest of places. An elementary school friend, Jason, has some poignant hardships that provide him a clearer lens through which to view the world than most of us. The scales of the cares of the mundane day-to-day have been lifted and he sees with the sharpest of focus, as if he can peer into the realm of the spirit, the realm of the genuine soul from which most of us are obscured. Read his story on his own blog, but prepare to have your own focus altered. His story is mind altering.

Without the transcendent vision of Jason, this is what I observed at Disneyland:

Not only is Disney carefully prepared to maximize the money that seeps out of your wallet and into its hands, there is an empire of peripheral business that cater to the hoards that descend each day to the theme park. Tens of thousands, perhaps more, make a living because of the reality of this park

According to numbers I found on a website, when the park opened, Anaheim grew from five hotels and two motels with a total of 87 rooms to 150 establishments and 18,000 rooms today.

We were unfortunate enough to choose one of the busiest days of the year at the park, especially of the days when school is in full session. As (bad) luck would have it, the national cheerleading championships were in Los Angeles so joining us on our plane, and on our vacation, were scads of 15-18 year old girls. (The one next to me on our 737 smelled of bacon cheeseburgers and evangelized the film “Twilight.”) This multitude made lines longer, made the park louder and allowed us fewer rides and activities at the park.

But, as whiney as I sound, these were extremely minor issues. As cynical and critical as I was prepared to be, the theme park was and is great fun. I wouldn’t bother going without my kids but we had a grand time and I discovered the reasons why. It turns out the park is canvas for play while my children provided all the color.

I will recall as long as I am taking breath, the simple sweetness of holding the hands of my sons, each in his own turn.

Logan, weeks only away from marking his fifth year, actually enjoys the contact with his father, hand-to-hand. It was a practical necessity because of the crowds, the size of our group (which included seven extended family members) and the need to move together from place to place. The memory of this sweet little boy’s tiny hand clutching mine is flavored by his reaction when all four of my fingers weren’t closed over his. He consciously made the effort with his other hand to reach up and reclose my hand on his. He demanded that all my digits hold all of his soft, gentle hand, not because it was more secure but because he liked it and it felt right to him. This tiny action was endearing and unforgettable to me. I laughed when he did it and we made a game out of it at the time but I knew even then that this was a special moment, one I will recall when he likely grows temporarily imbecilic as a teen.

Dresden was perfectly content to engage in hand holding (more often with is mother) as well because -- and this is the great magic of the park -- we were focused on having fun. A little like friend Jason, the cares of the world were off our shoulders and we were in an 80-acre realm where we were intent on enjoying ourselves as we left behind our cares. The most obvious white trash and the wealthiest patron of the park shared the same experience of just trying to have a good time.

Dresden’s moment for me came while we were riding the train that circles the park with four stops and serves as a quick way to get form place-to-place and offers minor amusements in between stops. He was still energized even though evening was falling and he and I sat together and apart from the rest of our party. At each of the stops the teen-aged conductor speaks to the new passengers and reminds the holdovers of a few simple rules such as not standing up, not taking flash photos and explaining where the next stop would be.

She was mostly impossible to understand because of the sound system and because she had made a similar announcement the 42 previous times the train had stopped. I remarked to Dresden that it sounded like she was eating pudding as she talked. My boy sweetly found this hilarious and made his silly talking-and-pudding-eating motion while giggling and saying, “arg arg arg blah blah arg blah,” and then breaking into hysterics. He did this over and over, entertaining himself every last time.

He has always loved the sounds of words and been amused by those he makes up since he could first make sounds and there on the train I got the full, pure joy of Dresden at almost-seven; a perfect moment at Disneyland.

So in case that wasn’t clear, Disneyland is magical because we go there for the pursuit of fun. We go there to go faster and higher and get artificial scares and thrills and to participate in the illusions offered us. But I don’t think it’s the attractions that make all the difference (although they are smartly designed) but the way we participate in them. We go there to have fun. Sure, kids love seeing scary and yet safe pirates (oh so different from the reality of plunder and murder and boat-living) but I believe too that a good deal of the experience is that parents pursue the fun with them.

How often do I truly engage in the pursuit of fun with my child for an entire day? How often do I allow them to direct where we go and what we do? How often do parents spend eight or nine or ten solid hours laughing or playing with small breaks for cold drinks and cotton candy? I think my children, all children, deserve parents that on occasion make time to pursue fun. I get so busy scolding or “teaching” or following up with my children that I forget how well they respond to fun and love.

Disneyland is a license to focus on fun but I am going to give myself permission to plan and execute more fun days at home. We will vacation elsewhere. We will find other carefree play days close and far. When my sons are older and can put the world in better context, we will explore more of it together. I will be, I am, dedicated to having fun with Shannon and Dresden and Logan. Wherever we do that will be the happiest place on earth.

It will not smell bad on the inside until your kids use it

2009-04-01T22:17:00.010-06:00

I know a bit about licensing properties and I know a tad about collecting. So, I think I know a hot property when I see one.

ThinkGeek.com made up a sleeping bag that is pure retail gold. I don't know if the licensing folks at LucasFilm are too protective of their property to allow some harmless humor but what kid doesn't want to climb inside the belly of a Tauntaun? What parent who grew up under the influence of George Lucas doesn't want to buy this for his child? I want two of them immediately! ThinkGeek produced a product page as a joke but the flood of requests for the real thing have moved the company to seek a license. Like all Star Wars items, it will not come cheep.

Read more about it at ThinkGeek.com.

For those who missed it, there are some excellent comments on my blog entry found here on the happiest place on earth. I discovered some things at Disneyland and will post some thoughts soon. I found some (for me) answers.

A thing in a jar

2009-04-01T18:44:00.008-06:00

So, I made a "thing in a jar" and brought it to work and set it on public display. Nobody said a word. I tried to make it look like something that could be mistaken for a twisted monster fetus. I added a bunch of tentacles and used green / gray color to make it look inhuman or a bit unnatural.

Not a single soul at my work office has said a single word about it. I have moved it to be more visible but I think the end of the evil plan is near an end.

In the photo posted here, I put it in front of bright sunlight to give a little better view of what is inside. The office environment is less revealing. At the end of the day, I love my thing in a jar. Perhaps it needs a label so I am open to suggestions.

Update: I have been informed that two co-workers thought the contents of my jar were gross and didn't understand the humor, which means it worked. I was also told that it baffled a good number of other co-workers who don't know me all that well and so haven't said a word. Good times.

Eyes and brains are cool

2009-03-30T14:01:00.003-06:00

Here is a well-known optical illusion. Nothing is moving but your eye will not believe you.

The happiest place on earth? Seriously?

2009-03-27T01:27:00.006-06:00

I am in California, as I am a few times each year to visit relatives, marvel that there isn't snow on the ground, wish I had Dodgers season tickets and have fun.

In a few hours I will load the wife, our almost-seven-year-old, and the still-likes=to-cuddle four-year-old into a "FREE HOTEL SHUTTLE TO DISNEYLAND!" and visit the self-proclaimed "Happiest place on earth". Just Google that term if you don't believe me.

I have been thinking about that claim a lot. First, let me anger all the parents reading and declare that we are being suckered by a giant organization that doesn't exist to make the world a better place but, in fact, wants to take our money and pay the stockholders.

They do that by delivering family-friendly entertainment but they also do it by changing copyright laws because of their powerful lobby in congress, squashing creativity and they teach children ideas and principals that aren't as magnificent as they seem at first blush.

That sounds a tad over-negative and I don't mean that the Disney Corporation is evil . . . Well actually they are a little evil but they aren't trying to cause harm and they are probably less evil than some. They aren't giving us bad drinking water or making us wait six months for life-saving surgery.

Anyway, my kids will be having a grand time at the "Happiest place on earth," and I like it when my kids have a grand time and yes, it is all pretty harmless. But I refuse, absolutely, to accept that it is authentically a place that is so happy that it wears the undisputed crown. It has been carefully designed to drain my wallet and I know going in that it is going to do a fair job of that tomorrow.

That doesn't make me particularly happy actually, but all kidding aside, we will all have a good time. I would rather be at Six Flags, which also is a place where you might as well just throw dollars off the roller coaster as it loops around, but I don't mind spending money to create memories and together experiences.

According to the internet other contenders for the "happiest place on earth" are:

* Oktoberfest
* Some people called the "King Family"
* Hooters in Manilla (and that reminds me that I have a great Hooters story I must share here someday)
* the back of an establishment in Vegas
* Vassar
* Denmark
* A pit with foam bricks
* Utah

Stay with me here but numbers show that people are reading my blog so I will share a little secret. Ready? Shhhhhhh. People who write blogs want other people to read them. Some deny it, some will even argue, but its true. So I feel very grateful that anybody anywhere reads the words I type. The numbers also show, clearly, that people don't leave comments, but back to Disneyland.

What I want to know from all you non-commenting readers is where is the genuine happiest place on earth? I have been wracking my brain all the live-long day (approximately the same amount of time some people work on the railroad, or so I am told) and I just can't decide. I know the easy answer, and a genuine one, is that the happy place is at home with your family. But just like in Sunday School when you can always raise your hand and say, "Read the scriptures and keep the commandments," that is a bit of easy-way-out. It isn't wrong, but it isn't enough.

Stretch your brains and stretch your fingers and please, please tell me (outside of the obvious answer) where is the happiest place on earth? In the meantime, please enjoy some photos of happy places.

My wife would like to kill me

2009-03-24T19:02:00.005-06:00

That isn't just a salacious headline, its completely true. It isn't true all of the time every day but there are instances when it is. I have my moments so I don't blame her all that much but I do want to live so I try to temper my most annoying traits - not easy.

One problem is that I own a lot of books. Moving the Curtis Clan is hellish, often commented on those lending their backs to the cause, because there are boxes and boxes of books. I like books. I love books. I read them and hold them and smell them and cherish them. I like to think they like me too; books might be a little happier on my shelves with other books to keep them company. But, even more than books, I like my wife and at some point its probably me or the books that will need to leave so I try not to bring any extra home because one of us, me or the book, might not make it through the door.

They are a diverse lot, my books. They would make for interesting dinner-party companions if they sat around and talked. Some would be experts on 1840s pioneers crossing the plains in wagons and handcarts while others would have amazing black and white photos to display while a good many would tell fantastic tales of heroism, adventure, despair and beauty.

One of the temples of the book, not only in Utah but in all of the nation, is changing. It is a printed-word mecca called Sam Weller's Zion Bookstore and it is moving. It is an independent bookstore which are few and far between these days. It is 80 years old and has a gigantic collection of used books and because of its publishing contacts and used book networks, if you want a book they can probably get it for you.

Should you care to, you can read the 80-year history of the place right here. It seems unlikely the the store will ever be the same and even more unlikely that anything like it will ever develop again. I have spent a few great days in the store, browsing shelves and picking up books old and new, large and small that I want to take home with me. I am like a cat lady with printed volumes.

The building they are leaving is stuffed with books on three levels with small side rooms and winding isles. It has a post decorated with disco-ball mirrors. It has copies of National Geographic that go back about as far as National Geographic does. It has a fun collection of comics and photo books and archeology books, occult books and Mormon books, law books and biographies and so on and so forth.

If you haven't walked around in the basement, or the balcony browsing for fun, then you better hurry.

My poor wife tolerates the fact that not only have I filled all the shelves I have with books, but I have filled a good chunk of our storage room with boxes of other books. Why own books that are put away in boxes? I don't know, but I sure like them. So today when I took a stroll around Weller's I found many a lonely tomb that needed a good home, but I left them where they sat, ignoring the 25 percent discount.

I need a home as well.

We love brackets

2009-03-23T14:29:00.008-06:00

Not everybody follows the NCAA basketball tournament that just completed the first of its three weekends. Many call it the greatest sporting event in the nation if not the entire world, although there would be a lot of debate about that.

I do know that there is a gigantic increase of interest for college basketball once "Selection Sunday" takes place and colleges around the country find themselves as part of the field of 64 (okay 65) teams trying to win a national championship. No more than 16 teams have any chance of winning the tournament but interest and optimism are high around the country.

Part of the reason, maybe a lot of the reason, is because of the bracket format the tournament takes. People love to fill out these brackets and boldly make predictions for not only who will win but which teams will beat other teams and upset the carefully seeded field. It fuels a staggering amount of interest for a sport, college basketball, that plays from October to February without making many noticing.

But throw a bracket into the mix and suddenly everybody can play along at home or at the office, including the one where I work. Brackets rule and I think its the brackets that rule, not college basketball. People love lists and they love brackets.

President Obama filled out a bracket and it became national news and was actually talked about in coaches' press conferences and on talk shows.

This time of year brackets proliferate websites and news organization because they get clicks and they generate interest. They wouldn't do them otherwise. It seems anybody can make a bracket from even the most mundane topic and it will suddenly be interesting to the human brain.

Don't believe me? I will throw out some bracket subjects and I bet by reading them you will wish they were real and that you could go and fill out the bracket. Watch.

* Best movies of all time

* Best rock albums in the last 10 years

* Best looking Pope (with picturs)

* Most important news stories in this century.

Did you get the urge to look and click? I did. I made a couple of little visual brackets to further illustrate the point. Since you are going to feel the urge to fill them out, go ahead.

And one for the ladies . . .

If you read all the way down here, I have a fun little bracket reward for you. click me. Note: The Scorpions are not an option nor are most of the bands I love like Dream Theater and Rush. Grrrrrrrrrrrrr!

Why YouTube is great

2009-03-21T02:11:00.004-06:00

Since 1984 when I was 13 and I discovered popular music on the radio, thanks to one Brian Gardner, I have had an ear for a band called "The Scorpions". They remain my "favorite" band, although that doesn't mean I claim they are the best band or the most talented or most important or any of the things people often think you mean when you say "favorite". I just mean that I have an emotional response to the band and I still listen and enjoy.

After hearing them on the radio, I obtained a vinyl copy of "Blackout," and crossed out the lyrics to the naughty songs and was in music heaven. Only a few weeks later I was sitting in the hall of my parent's house looking at the album listening to a rock radio station. I remember thinking very distinctly that it had been two years since they produced an album and that they were due.

Literally, no sooner did I think that than the DJ said on the air, "Here is a new one from the 'Scorpions'," and he played "Rock You Like A Hurricane," for my first listen. I am mostly sick to death of hearing that particular song now, but it gave me a jolt that I still recall clearly. My stomach tightened, my pulse raced, I jumped up, sat down, jumped up, turned up the radio and listened. What a moment!

The band is still popular in some spots of the world but these days in the U.S. they are mostly remembered for that one song and a whistler about the Berlin Wall falling. My appreciation for the band spans a much bigger time frame and I found that in the band's "pre-hit" days the produced some very interesting music with thoughtful if unremarkable lyrics that were pretty good for guys not versed in English. They were a German band that knew English was the language of "rock 'n' roll" and they liked the early greats in rock including Elvis.

I have interviewed the band on the phone, photographed the band (somewhere in boxes of negatives) and reviewed the band live and have appreciated them for many years but these days, they aren't popular like they once were and they get lumped in with a lot of what I consider weak 80s "heavy metal" bands. (Which isn't to say I don't like some of those bands, just definitely not all of them.) Meanwhile the atrocious band Poison and others like them ride a surge of dirt-bag sentimentality.

So, YouTube allows me to see Scorpions footage that isn't widely available, and some of it is pure gold. The greatest treasure is a song from the 1972 album, "Lonesome Crow," which sounds very little like the group most people know and has a lot in common with more experimental musicians of the time. Michael Schenker was in the band, at all of 16 years old, and was already an astoundingly good guitarist. He went on to play for "Rainbow," and his own group and make his own legend while his brother Rudolf stays in the band even today.

YouTube is great because I can view this little glimpse of a German rock band in 1972:

Just since we are here, here is another pre-popular YouTube cut, played in this century with the Berlin Philharmonic. Yup, I am a geek but hey, it is my blog after all.

And, a commercial from 1988:

From what I consider a great album that didn't sell well. A song written about the love of playing live:

Thing in a jar

2009-03-21T01:58:00.002-06:00

I have a desk at work, I just don't get to sit in it. So this week I made and now brought in a "thing in a jar." It is meant to look like a monster fetus with tentacles instead of legs and its in a dark, murky solution to hide how bad of a sculptor I am.

I will post pictures soon but the "thing in a jar" social experiment has begun. One friend reacted already but he saw me carry it in, so it is hardly fair. Would you notice a jar of something on a public desk where you work?

Maybe I should label it "specimen 353" or something like that.

I can't dance but my face can

2009-03-17T19:09:00.002-06:00

Thanks to a new technology and a guy with friends that let him conduct experiments on their faces, everybody can dance. I can't wait until they hook up whole bodies to something like this and then I can feel good about going to a night club.

Read more about it right here.

Enjoy!

Brand new stupid laws

2009-03-13T14:05:00.004-06:00

I may end up writing about this for an official publication but it would be nice to have a short version here. I may go on and on about this later. The Salt Lake Tribune has a story here about a "truth in advertising" bill that passed both of Utah's houses last minute.

One irony is that this isn't a "truth in advertising bill" its a bill that targets video games. It also will have the opposite effect of what it is intended to do and behind-the-scenes it is partially sponsored and co-written by a bully and a scoundrel who is a disbarred lawyer on a crusade. His name is Jack Thompson.

The law will impose penalties on businesses that say they will not sell video games to minors and then are caught doing so.

The most obvious problem is that retailers will simply stop saying they don't sell to minors so they don't get burned with false advertising. The easiest and cheapest solution will be for stores not to advertise that they do this.

The next problem is that according to a study, the ratings system was working pretty well and is doing better all the time.

Here is a quote from game news site Joystiq: "We now have three consecutive events to eagerly anticipate -- first, the bill must be approved by Utah governor Jon Huntsman before it's officially adopted. Second, the new policy will go into effect on January 1, 2010. Finally, we wait to hear how the ESA will spend the humongous legal fee reimbursement check that the taxpayers of Utah will indirectly cut when the bill is likely found unconstitutional. Perhaps some sort of tropical outing for their employees? We hear the beaches of Costa Rica are simply breathtaking."

Joystiq pokes fun because a lot of game laws are struck down by courts and the money spent by the Entertainment Software Association gets refunded by states. California had this happen in February.

You can read more details here if you wish.

I hope Huntsman is informed enough to understand this "little" bill.

And parents, parent your kids and don't take them to see "The Watchmen" movie and don't buy them "Resident Evil 5," no matter how much they beg.

Finally, if any of you (I am pretending there are "yous" out there) still think video games are behind shootings like the one in Columbine, kindly let me know. I have plenty to say about that too.

I watched "The Watchmen" (part II)

2009-03-09T20:25:00.006-06:00

So I read comics and as fortune would have it, I happened upon the great revival of the form during some formative years for both me and creative forces of the industry. I caught the end and transition from one era of comics (commonly called the bronze age) that transitioned into the modern age of comics.

At the risk of losing my non-existent audience, I read the incredible run of Chris Clairmont on the "X-Men," Frank Miller and Klaus Jansen on "Daredevil" and Alan Moore on the "Swamp Thing" as they were published. Nearly everything printed then was superheroes, largely as a result of the U.S. government and some dudes putting pressure on the comic industry to publish sanitized stories. America killed one of its original art forms and three decades later I was lucky enough to be around for the revival.

Those creative fellows, along with lots of others (Neil Gaiman, Dave Sim) shook up comics and helped it diverge from costumed heroes back into fantasy and horror and crime. During this era of me visiting comic stores I picked up the first issue of "Watchmen," and recognized its quality along with a lot of other really good reading material.

The anti-hero was hot in the market, but Alan Moore's and Dave Gibbons' masterpiece deconstructed the superhero and presented them as very flawed characters. I recognized "Watchmen" was remarkable, although I didn't fully understand what it was doing and the long-term greatness of the work. I knew I liked reading it a lot.

Time Magazine later named it one of the 100 great English language novels published between 1923 and today and it grew very popular and very highly praised. However, it is still a funny book to most and so while a lot of people got on board, it was still on the fringe.

For an explanation of how I came to have a comic book store, please see the entry below.
This weekend, "my" "Watchmen" graphic novel that I have treasured for more than 20 years hit the cinema. I watched it adoringly at midnight and then the following afternoon on the IMAX screen. Its opening credits I declare the best ever. It is a film that is flawed, to the point that for some it will be radioactive. It is savage and sexual and it asks a lot of its viewers. It demands careful attention to dialog and even background references.

For me, it translates the graphic novel (no longer called a comic book since its always collected into a single volume instead of 12 issues and its really difficult for the mainstream to call something praiseworthy a 'comic book') into a film that I never imagined I would see. It is done with great (not perfect) fidelity and obvious affection. One of the actors isn't up to snuff and the decision to take the violence and sexuality into in-your-face levels seems distracting for me. It isn't my prudish self complaining but my analytical side that thinks it was over done.

Still, I embrace the film. I love the film. I will love the director's cut more and I will love the DVD edition still more when a story-within-the-story will be added as an animated part of the story. I rejoice that I have watched "The Watchmen," but "my" comic book, beloved since it was published more than 20 years ago has now moved into full on mainstream popular culture. I feel a wee tear in the corner of my eye and a lump in my throat.

Now everybody watches the Watchmen.

Every boy needs a comic shop or the "Watchmen" preamble

2009-03-09T18:46:00.014-06:00

I was originally going to write about "The Watchmen," but this came out.

It is cool and sad and the end of an era when things that are yours (mine in this case) become the world's.

An important part of every geek's life is having "their own" comic book shop. A comic book reader needs a comic book shop and I have had one, literally, since I was in 4th grade.

That is the year I moved away, Monday through Friday, from my home in Cottonwood Heights to the Family Support Center in Sugarhouse. My parents were full-time house parents for a crisis nursery funded by the United Way called The Family Support Center. My parents were attempting to make extra money so they could pay off their mortgage sooner and we went back to the old neighborhood on weekends.

It meant I moved away from my friends at Butler Elementary (worst website ever) and moved into the boundries of Hawthorne Elementary (much better website).

My first and best friend was Josh Platus and among our shared interests were Star Wars and comic books. I have lost touch with Josh because stupidly, as a teen, I didn't value having friends in two places and so when my father had a heart attack and we left the crisis nursery as a full-time family (Mom worked there for years after) I was just glad to be back home. Josh was a cool guy and a good friend and I should have stayed in touch and been a good friend. Sorry Josh!

Josh and I visited the legendary and awesome Cosmic Aeroplane to get our back issue comics. (That link is a pretty informative, worthwhile story). It turns out we were in the middle of an important collection of golden age comics as well. Read about it right here.

I liked Daredevil and he liked Captain America and I love my memories of that store. I loved the smell and the weird postcards and the used books and the creaky wooden floors and the crazy-haired people who worked there. I didn't know it, but I had stumbled upon comic books at the perfect time, and the coolest used book store at the perfect time. I wish I could smell that store one more time.

Then it was on to the Baseball Card shop on Highland Drive and then Nightflight Comics in the now razed Cottonwood Mall. Even while on a two year stint of church service in New York City, my dedicated mum and/or sister picked up my comics each month so that I could read two years worth when I returned home.

These days I shop at Dr. Volts, mostly because when I forget to go in for a month or two, all my requested comics are still there and the owner doesn't complain that I am late. I suppose my relationship with a comic book shop will last as long as there are comic book shops in Utah. I could always go to a mail subscription if that fell through but I prefer to buy them in the flesh. Now, on to "The Watchmen."

Some people are amazingly talented, other people are me

2009-03-03T18:31:00.003-07:00

Paintings can be educational, historic, moving, beautiful and many other things. Such things are called "art". I admire paintings, love them occasionally. Scale or size does matter to me in this case as "big" paintings do something extra for me. I suppose it highlights my ingorance of the form. Anyway, I never wanted to be a painter much.

Creating street art however appeals to me. The problem is, it's way too late in life to learn this. I am happy to enjoy it. The following video shows the creation of an amazing work and I guess I love that people who observe it are almost forced to consider it or react to it. I suppose I love street art.

My next evil plan

2009-03-02T21:19:00.006-07:00

The internet is cool. If you haven't checked it out, you really should. It has a lot to offer. One thing I love about it is the inevability of finding things or pages accidentally when you are looking for other things. In this way, my "Next Evil Plan" was formulated.

First, a primer.

I work in a nine story building with my company owning all floors but only using 3 - 8. For several years I have worked on the third floor and enjoyed this because it gave me a space of my own where I could express slightly my personality and hang up nerd stuff and adjust my chair exactly how I like it. It featured the fewest number of people on it but provided excellent communication among those who did work there. We enjoyed the privacy. It provided us a feeling of friendship and togetherness. It also came with ample storage, a phone number I could call my own (XXX-PIGS which will now go unanswered) and just a place to feel comfortable.

Recently my department was informed that we would be working on various floors and sharing work stations. There are good and bad things about this but it meant no iTunes, or CNN or ESPN and no chair, phone and "stuff" to call my own.

-sigh-

So, while looking for something on the internet, I found a really cool website that tells you how to make a "Thing In A Jar". With some rubber cement, some sculpy, some paint, a jar and some coke, I can make my own "Thing In A Jar." I then plan to display it on the desk that is shared by at least five workers and sits in the middle of a high-traffic area.

The concept behind "Thing In A Jar," is that it shields the viewer from seeing exactly what they are looking at. This would be a masterpiece of unspoken hilarity (for me) and would let people wonder what is in the jar on not-my-desk.

You can learn to make your own if you simply click right here.

Enjoy.

I slept through a revolution

2009-02-26T21:32:00.004-07:00

I am sick and sick of being sick but I feel like poo. It has been a few days now and I have slept a lot this week.

Tuesday, I think, while I slept, I missed a revolution.

The newspaper I work for removed a key editor, the guy who dishes out assignments and serves as the central figure on the hub of the newsroom. I can speculate about the reasons but I don't really know them.

I do know the figure removed was well respected, including by me. He knew news, he spoke his mind, he wasn't afraid to disagree and he didn't take differences of opinions personally. He knew writing and editing and didn't see the world and things as they first seemed on the surface but could look a bit deeper and understand the truth behind the sometimes easy answer.

So, when the memo announced that he was being removed and somebody less-known and trusted put in his place, there was a revolt.

Everybody needs a job but nearly ever writer, I believe excepting only those who could not be contacted, took their bylines off their stories for the day. This sounds rather incredible but once you see the edition of the paper that says every non-wire story is written by "staff" you get the idea how much solidarity and dissatisfaction this shows.

I don't believe I have ever seen a newspaper like it. I only learned about the memo and the paper later but it was a rather shocking chain of events and like other tumultuous events - I missed it.

You just can't make this up

2009-02-18T19:46:00.005-07:00

I no sooner writer a little rant about the Utah Legislature and use Chris Butters as my easy target and the guy goes off. It really is this easy.

First in this story he says homosexuals are the "the greatest threat to America . . .". Now, if he wants to believe that, I certainly don't want to keep him from thinking it but does he not realize he is an elected official? Does he not realize there are gay and lesbian people in his district?

Things on my list that rank higher as threats to the U.S. include the breakdown of the family (and heterosexuals are in on this one), the collapse of our economy (I think heteros might be to blame again) which will lead to a great increase in crime and finally, terrorism and the war and violence that surrounds it. (Some of that caused by countries that outlaw homosexuality, for whatever that is worth.)

He is a public figure and can't seem to know when or how to filter himself.

He also exhibits his "vast knowledge" of gay sex acts in this brand new YouTube video. You can follow my link or find it by searching "Pig Sex". No seriously.

He lists a few odd sexual activities (immediately after saying he isn't going to talk about it and getting a verbal "ok" from the interviewer) and he seems to think heterosexual people don't engage in any of them. Woah.

I think the government has no business in anybody's sex life, but hey, that is just me. My wife said my last post was too wordy, so I think that is enough.

The self-serving Utah Legislature

2009-02-16T10:43:00.007-07:00

It would be funny if it weren't so serious but the Utah Legislature is in the middle of yet another comedy routine where they pass a lot of laws, get a lot of publicity and scare the few people who can be bothered to pay attention.

The easiest target of them all is Sen. Chris Buttars. Don't confuse him with Butters on South Park, although that might not be too difficult because both are ridiculous and hilarious.

Butters has a few famous snafus. He called a bill he didn't like a "black baby" a "dark, ugly thing," which is incredibly insensitive even if it isn't meant to be racist. It is a pretty clear demonstration that he doesn't know much outside of his fairly small circle of reality.

He also claimed on the radio that the Supreme Court decision (Brown v. Board of Education) to integrate schools was "wrong to begin with." He mounted some lame defenses, including fibbing to a local TV station.

He also wanted the legislature to urge stores to use only "Merry Christmas" and not "Happy Holidays" or other terms around Christmas. While I am pro-Christmas, I am not in favor of the government telling stores what to say or promoting Christianity. I think Christianity can defend itself. His list goes on but I didn't want this to be about him, he just makes it extremely easy. I am not saying he is a bad person (although there is a fair amount of evidence that his actions cause harm to individuals which pushes me toward that conclusion) but I have no problem at all saying he doesn't have the vision or awareness to be making laws for Utah or even a school board. I am sure the folks in his ward think he is great and he probably knows a lot of funny jokes and has some charm.

I have also known a legislator who was also a vice president of a college which immediately strikes me as a conflict of interest since that body governs education. He was the obstacle to my college newspaper getting some crime reports from the college. The police are required by law to share information with the public to discourage corruption and encourage us to have a free and informed society. These are called "Sunshine" laws because they shed light on government (not just police) information.

After my newspaper made legal efforts to get more information from the campus police after he refused to tell us about threats to a teacher made on a voice mail. By keeping this "hush hush" he wanted to protect the teacher and not give publicity to the caller which he though the person craved. The threats were violent and heinous and frightening when he shared them with me as part of the course of the discussion but not for publication. Those aren't horrible goals but they might also have the effect of not having other teachers who received similar threats come forward or might alert somebody who knew the offender to bring his name to the police or to alert others (non-teachers) that a crazy person was around the college, was making threats and was potentially dangerous. It seems to me that that students and teachers' best interests were in knowing this was going on. But, this "good" fellow didn't want the information out at his college.

So, using his perhaps conflicted position as a lawmaker, he drafted a law to alter Utah's existing laws on government records access known as "gramma" laws. This rallied not only journalists but other lawmakers and it didn't pass but it illustrates my point.

My other personal experience involved an a landlord legislator that I thought was dishonest and mean, making what I and others viewed as pro-landlord, anti-renter laws. The whole thing adds to the popular notion that politicians are self-serving. This year they have tried to get year-round pay which I find completely obscene when many in their districts have no pay and no jobs.

Finally they spend a lot of time doing personal things for their voters like honoring them from the floor or in an easy example, (honoring a sports team). This is well intentioned but is it more important than doing what might serve the state?

The best solution for all of this that I have heard is to reduce the time the legislature meets to a few days. I am willing to give them a week but it already seems that most things that get done happen in the last few days or even the last 48 hours anyway. This will never happen because the folks who need to pass the laws would hurt their own interests and they will never do that but I suspect they would accomplish a lot if they only had five days to do it. Certainly the focus would definitely be on what is deemed most important.

Wow, this might be the most boring blog post in the history of blogs but I sure feel better.

When serious things are very funny

2009-02-06T21:41:00.003-07:00

Missing children aren't ever funny. Mistakes on the news are almost always hilarious.

A film that explains what I can't

2009-01-29T19:37:00.008-07:00

If this blog had readers, which it doesn't, some of them would not know that I served a two-year mission for the LDS church in New York City. Others would forget and almost all of these theoretical readers could never understand what that means to me exactly.

I saw a lot of things there. I served about 8 months in middle-class areas on Long Island and a fair amount of time in lower-middle or economically depressed areas. I spent time in the Prospect Park neighborhood in Brooklyn, living on the Eastern Parkway about halfway between the park the "Bed-Sty" neighborhood named for streets.

I also spent time in the Bronx near the Kingsbridge Road exit on the D train near the Grand Concourse. Neither were horrible neighborhoods but I was by far in the ethnic minority and there was a good deal of poverty to go around. I knocked on doors a lot; almost every day for a few solid hours, then for weeks and then months trying to find people who wanted to hear what I had to teach.

I met a lot of interesting people that loved and hated me and what I represented. I enjoyed playground basketball and saw dead people and knew where to get cheap pizza and generally had a good time. But in the process of knocking doors I got in a quite a few doors and saw into the lives of the people who lived around there. I saw ugly, horrible glimpses into suffering and hardship and despair. I tried to help people and I think sometimes I did help.

It would be fair to say I loved the Bronx and by the time I was doing my last six months in New York I was there and I was good at what I was doing. I knew how to talk to people and I knew the culture and the lingo and people. I recall leaving New York and flying over the Bronx and feeling a homesickness far greater than anything I felt for Utah while I was gone.

Back here among very middle-class, much more advantaged people, I often encounter those who have a lot of assumptions about people who live in the "ghetto". The most realistic people realize nobody can help where they are born and improving your life from difficult circumstances is a steep climb. Still, almost universally, there is a sometimes spoken but more often an implied attitude that most people who live in bad places are at fault for not pulling themselves out of the hole the live in. Anecdotally, everybody knows of a story where a remarkable individual manages to achieve and leave economically depressed areas and get a better life. It happens and Hollywood makes movies about it.

I have often felt powerless to explain to people that for many, especially people born closer to average than to exceptional (like me), this is realistically almost impossible. The environment crushes people before they ever find their own footing. I never feel like I properly convey this to people. It requires a first-hand experience to live among the despair and feel the hopelessness fill your lungs and permeate your being.

So, along comes the Sundance Film Festival feature "Push: Based On A Novel By Sapphire." I saw the film as the showing of the award winner for the festival (audience and Jury awards as it turns out) and it might be the only way I would have viewed it. After all, our main character Precious Jones is overweight and has two pregnancies from her father. Incest, rape, ghetto, and despair aren't especially attractive film fodder. Precious' mother and home life are far worse than her father even.

So its a bit more than a bit grim but when I sat down to watch the film, it hit home - hard. Director Lee Daniels, a child of Harlem, captured the inner city life that I have such a difficult time explaining to those who have never been there or seen the inner-workings of the slums. Not using drugs, not accepting a lifetime of welfare, not getting pregnant for prestidge, profit or because you want to feel lovved and choosing to try to improve are major victories. Somehow in white middle America we expect the disadvantaged to have college graduates instead of GEDs and major achievements instead of mere survival.

Those things are possible but not until those mired in despair have their vision raised. Education and self-worth are the keys of course. Easy to type.

So, this film is cinema and art and truth. It is ugly and beautiful and powerful and poetic and tragic and hopeful. If some studio wants a "Best Picture" nomination for 2010's Academy Awards ceremony, they will buy it up and promote it. It remains unsold as of now which I take to be a bad sign. This is a film that deserves to be seen. This is a film that must be seen.

Oh and Mariah Carey is in it and is solid but Mo'Nique is transcendent in creating one of the most vile characters in memory.

Am I paparazzi now?

2009-01-17T03:03:00.004-07:00

Today I stalked Mariah Carey for a minute because I knew it would make good fodder for the Deseret News Sundance blog which can be found right here.

Anyway, I am a horrible paparazzi as evidenced by my photo of the diva. I am horribly amused by the experience and result. People actually think its a good use of time or fun or somehow rewarding to try to get photos of famous people. Its amazing how empty the experience is.

Catching up #2

2009-01-10T13:27:00.005-07:00

Popular culture is fun to photograph. I have taken a lot of photos of a lot of costumes from DragonCon and ComicCon over the years. This is from the Sideshow Collectibles booth where writer David Baxter, all 6'7'' of him, plays Darth Vader. People love to have a photo with Darth Vader including these 'Evil Cheerleaders' who walked around the convention to get attention and promote themselves. This photo captures diverse pop-culture icons that crash together at conventions. Click the photo for a much higher quality version.

An evil plague scourges the land

2009-01-06T11:25:00.003-07:00

I don't like bullies. I don't like selfishness. I get angry at both when mostly I can hold my temper over most matters but people who knowingly take advantage of others' weakness and are willing get away with outrageous behavior when they know better raises my ire.

So, the BCS system in college football is, in my view, genuine evil. Yes, I am naive and idealistic and worse things happen in the business world every day but the power brokers in college football knowingly disregard the greater good because they have the power. The BCS officials are arrogant and they lie and unfortunately many buy the party line and swallow the load of feces that these people are selling.

The NCAA is another incredibly offensive group of hypocrites that allows the championship of NCAA football, a sanctioned sport, to be decided by a different group. Why? Money.

But more than just money, these two groups want to protect their friends. They want to keep perks and protect their kingdoms and that of their friends that have been built up over the years in the bowl system. They don't care about the student-athletes, they don't care about supporters of the schools and they don't care about fans. Worst of all, they don't care about doing the right thing.

So, when bowl season rolls around each year I simply cheer for the teams the damage the bowl system the worst. This year there is a bonanza of teams. Things have gone just right to expose the bowl system.

Utah is undefeated.
Texas has one loss.
USC has one loss.
Florida or Oklahoma will have one loss.

Each of these teams has a legitimate claim to the national title which I will not rehash here but the fantastic scenario happened. Not only is the title contest disputed but a "plus one" bowl game wouldn't solve the problem.

The other people that anger me are members of the media who don't speak out against the bowl system. Newspaper writers seem to do a better job of wanting an equitable system than the television reporters. My theory is that reporters on the network must protect their jobs and therefore they defend their network so while I am sympathetic I find it weak when they call for the current system plus a bowl game.

Competitive sports leagues exist to crown a champion that is decided on the field by the participating athletes. Evil people put their own interests above the greater good and will not allow this to happen. I don't use "evil" lightly. Selfishness, greed, and behavior that damages many is, in my estimation, evil.

More seasons that end like this one will eventually force a change. Enough of the right teams, the ones with power to make change, will need to be on the raw end of the stick. I don't cheer for any team, I simply cheer against the BCS.

Catching up #1

2008-12-28T21:47:00.005-07:00

Note: I am trying to learn how to post satifactory images. At first they were too small and when I fixed the size problem, as in this photo, the quality suffers. If you click on the photo the quality image is visible. I am annoyed that I can't get a decent, decent sized image posted on this page.

The problem for me starting this blog in 2008 is that I have a lot of things I wish to post from the past. This goes against all blogging protocols but I can't help it, I still want some things posted publicly. At least twice I have photographed a Dream Theater concert. The first time I used film and those photos sit in a box. The last time I was digital which is why this image is available anywhere at all. This is Mike Portnoy, the excellent drummer of Dream Theater. I have Brad Webb to thank for introducing me to this band and Rick Miller's former girlfriend to thank for introducing Brad to the Band. Her name was Tiffany but I called her "T2".

Christmas Eve

2008-12-28T03:16:00.005-07:00

On Christmas Eve there was a blizzard; a powerful, windy storm, the kind that puts people in fear of nature. It didn't seem especially dark outside, not even as dark as it should be near midnight but I couldn't see far, not even to the fence of my backyard from my upstairs bedroom window.

I can't put a finger on why exactly, but I become very quiet and thoughtful on Christmas Eve. The evening is always spent with family and is often loud and social. When finally getting home, it is quiet and the world is more quiet than usual.

So, this Christmas Eve, my thoughts were of spiritual matters, as seems appropriate - and soon after, friends. Thoughts of God and thoughts of friends really aren't disconnected at all but I do have friends, plenty I think, who have completely different views about God than I do. I make every effort to not emphasize these differences but to demonstrate genuine feelings of care I have for friends.

I am fond of people perhaps more than it is prudent to be. I expect very little from them but I sometimes feel for people and I do wonder if I draw conclusions about them that are false or imagined and love them from what I think I see about them.

Anyway, the world is a busy place but on Christmas Eve most people are home and most people are preparing for Christmas. I thought, on this night, of the many people I know around the U.S. and around the world that were doing about the same things I had done on the same night. Some had done them before me or after me but Christmas is still a universal experience and it was a comforting, touching thought.

I thought of my friends who live across the Salt Lake Valley, on the mountains opposite me. We should have a zipline between our homes so that neither party needs to decend into the valley and then climb the foothills again to visit. It looks like I can visit John's house on New Years Eve though. I thought of Steve and Deidra who live easy jogging distance away. I thought of Rick in his domed house. I thought of friends who have much less family. I considered friends from work and how much more time I actually spend with them than just about anybody including Shannon, Dresden or Logan. There is no comparison in terms of closeness but time is time.

I thought of friends in California, some who exchange messages or e-mail. I know a lot of West Coast people. Odd. Some of them because of culture and religion and societal pressures should be pitted against me but I certainly don't see enemies when I think of them and I do wonder if they do. I think of parents of a preemie baby and difficult daily challenge that is and a French woman who lives alone and allowed me to crash at her place for a couple of nights this summer. I wondered where her Christmas was. I considered a wealthy business owner I know and wondered what his intelligent mind was working over that night.

My mind turned to to sisters and their mother, split for now. I thought of Kenosha Wisconsin and Allentown Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Atlanta Georgia and its surrounding area, Long Island, Boston and then I traversed the ocean in moments and hopped a bit around Europe. My friend in the U.K. considers herself a Pagan-Christian or a Christian-Pagan so she was aware of the shortest night of the year and the birth of Jesus Christ both. Even two friends in Greece who probably don't remember me at all came to my mind.

To my regret I have not kept active friendships with the many people in New York City that I love so dearly. I think of them often and wonder in what ways I might have made different decisions and stayed in their lives and perhaps improved their lives or changed mine. I remember the noble but ugly struggles of Elsa and her crack addiction and her children but particularly her daughter Jessica. I saw such potential in her but the obstacles before her were immense, not the least of which was her self-esteem coming from as dysfunctional a childhood as one can imagine. Even her own children must be older than my own.

I thought of Jurrice Ballard. Can a single 21-year-old adopt a pre-teen girl who has managed to survive a hellacious childhood? No, but should I have tried? We last met on a porch with a tight bear-hug and tears in about 1995. She is grown and I hope somewhere her Christmas Eve was peaceful and so much better than my worst fears. Dominick, Pavola, Prudence, Ted, Karen, Shorty, Destiny, Frank, Peter, Purunday, Shakira, Joan and others were all somewhere having Christmas Eve. And former New York resident Murial who is dead but I have absolute belief that she lives on.

My new-Mommy friend in New Zealand - also with a preemie - may not even be Christian and I thought of her as well, even if she isn't celebrating Christmas Eve because it was yesterday already. I thought of others there who were well into Christmas Day while I was looking forward to it. As I always do, I had some candles burning.

Nothing even slightly profound came from all of this but it just settled into my mind that many people were having a common experience. I felt rich to have people I care about and poor to have not maintained stronger bonds with these people and so, so many others. It would actually be impossible to keep in regular touch. Facebook certainly helps.

It snowed powerfully all night. It would blanket everything, leaving only lumpy impressions of the true landscape outside my window.

Ice grass alternatives

2008-12-23T09:31:00.004-07:00

I am not a terrible photographer but I know a lot of very good photographers because of my professional life. These men and women take photos, edit photos, talk about photos, look at photos and think about photos a remarkable percentage of their lives. Most editors don't go home and edit their family but paid photographers go home and photograph their family and if they are unlucky or nice, they photograph neighbors and friends and wannabe-friends and everybody else.

Again, I am not a terrible photographer but I know enough to know how far from greatness I am and that even "good" is at best a distant speck on the horizon that may be more my imagination than something I actually see. Photos I post here shouldn't be taken as anything more than a creative exercise on my part. I have no illusions.

Still, I want to be "see" better, understand and use light better and present the best pictures I can. Looking at my "Ice Grass" post I decided there were a lot of ways to look at that picture. Here are two alternatives. I supose "better" is a noble pursuit.

Ice Grass

2008-12-21T23:51:00.009-07:00

While driving one early morning this fall I saw some sprinklers that an irresponsible business still had running despite the summer and need for water having passed. The photos, particularly the grass shot, get better when you click on them and view them large. Perhaps that means I must crop and make the right picture.

The shower

2008-12-21T12:22:00.004-07:00

I communicate with others nearly all of my waking hours. I over-instruct my children, hash out the details of daily life with my wife, communicate in several mediums at work (phone, computer, meetings, social chat, work related conversation) and when I travel (train, car) I have music or radio talk in my ears nearly all the time. Information is coming to me or being sent out by me nearly all the time. I am probably an information junkie.

In the shower however, and on the rare occasions when I mow the lawn, I am alone with my thoughts. I had a couple of good ideas in the comforting spray of almost-scalding water today. One of them was this blog. I wanted to record more words and images and make them available for friends and strangers alike. I realize few will care but I do and in this case, mine is the only opinion that matters. Welcome to my blog.