Absolutely

I Can Do It And I'm a Lazy Fothermucker!

2010-04-27T20:23:00.000-07:00

I have recently undertaken an adventure. I am on a weight loss extravaganza! No really, I'm considered morbidly obese - only they're dumbasses because it's way too generalized and there's no way I could ever get to the medical "correct" weight without becoming anorexic. Anyway, I'm really just overweight.

Since January 4th I've been doing a Biggest Loser contest with my Dad and his girlfriend and her family. I'm kicking ass. Winner gets $500, so I'm currently booking appointments to get my hair cut and have a spa day. I will win no doubt because final weigh in is in a fortnight (not often I get to use that word!), and I've lost at least 4% more than all my competition. This is all wonderful rainbows and spaghettios but what I'm REALLY proud of are my physical accomplishments:

I could not run worth crap when I started and my goal is to eventually run an entire 5k, which is leaps and bounds more than I ever thought I could EVER do.

Tonight I ran 3/4 of a mile, and could probably go a little more but I didn't stretch out well enough.

The best part is my crazy active dog can't keep up with me towards the end and I have to drag him along - even better! Resistance training!

And for your pleasure I present to all those training to be all that you can be or just to get off the couch and struggle your way through the gym routine..

ENTIRELY KICK ASS WORK OUT TUNES:

Electric Avenue; Cover by Skindred, one of the best covers of any song, EVER. Love that reggae/punk/metal/British mixture that they do so well!

Mamacita; Collie Buddz, great dancing music - straight from the islands

Lapdance; N.E.R.D., angry and awesome motherf*cker

Mi Confesion; Gotan Project, Electronic Tango Spanish Rap. Yes please.

Supermassive Black Hole; Muse, we've all heard it and let's be honest - it's hard NOT to move to it

Wake Up; Arcade Fire, this is like 5 full minutes of inspiration and magic

Must Be the Water; Marc Broussard, gotta love that New Orleans pop/jazz

Chelsea Dagger; The Fratellis, Scottish. Energetic. Be careful though - might make you run faster than you planned into your workout

We Are the Night; The Chemical Brothers, badass electronica

Sorry's Not Good Enough; McFly, total Pop music and good like it came from the 50s - only it didn't

Are You Gonna Be My Girl; JET, no need for explanation

Canned Heat; Jamiroquai, from the Napolean Dynamite Soundtrack - been around a lot longer and is such a good dancing song

Ping Island/Lighting Strike Rescue Op; Mark Mothersbaugh from the Life Aquatic w/ Steve Zissou, ok this one sounds a little weird but I promise it's worth a listen to. It's the best running song that exists

Feeling Good; Muse, again Muse just makes sense to me

The Queen and I; Gym Class Heroes, underplayed on the radio and overplayed in my iPod

So there you have it. You might not like my style, but if I get you to look up and listen to at least one song on my list - then I have done my job.

Sweat it out!

LDG

Design Design Bang Bang

2010-04-15T20:02:00.000-07:00

Moving into a new place soon and in NEED of a great design for my place. I am desperately trying to make my place look like this place:

Found this on a blog. It's a photographer's house (last name Carter, not sure who he is but soon to be looking him up).

This is to the T exactly what I want my place to feel like.

YEEESSS.

Book Review: Glenn Beck's Common Sense

2009-11-14T17:24:00.000-08:00

I love the idea of a book that takes a classic work and applies it to modern thought. Common Sense (by Thomas Paine) is actually one of my favorite books about the fundamental idea and creation of our government. However, Glenn Beck strays away from the application concept and into his own dogma more than I personally hoped (and honestly, just about as much as I expected - who am I kidding?!)

Being of the opposite creed as Beck, I approached the book objectively, and he makes some valid points about government spending and the way the politicians are running the country into the pooper. When Beck uses facts to base his rants - it does give him credibility, and really will make a person want to punch Al Gore in the face. But there are some of his ideas that I (and you) absolutely have take with about 20 grains of salt. He can be very narrow minded in his ideas - but you don't realize it right away because the tone of his writing is so powerful. This is a great read for a look into the far right's perspective, and I'm thankful he had the gonads to put some of his thoughts to ink. If you are confident in your own position on the major issues and political thought, the book gives a good perspective on where you stand individually.

I do think, however, that this is a dangerous, cult-inducing book for the sheer fact that Beck knows how to put ideas in a way that make total sense in context until you stop to think about them seriously for a minute. Then it's like oh, Glenn Beck, you really had me going! Though, I don't agree with maybe 85% of the things that he says in this book, I do think he is entertainment gold, and I admire the passion he has towards the country and the government.

If you haven't already - go out and read Common Sense by Thomas Paine. It's short, and worth the struggle wading through old fashioned language.

Go out there and read already!

Grammar Experiment I

2009-10-26T20:49:00.000-07:00

Hello.

i am a hypocrite! !hypocrite a am i

endne.

Anecdote with comments

2009-10-26T20:07:00.000-07:00

A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier
Final Anecdote

“It was nighttime and we sat by the fire stretching our arms toward the flames as we listened to stories and watched the moon and the stars retire. The red coal from the firewood lit our faces in the dark and wisps of smoke continuously rose toward the sky. Pa Sesay, one of my friends’ grandfathers, had told us many stories that night, but before he began telling the last story, he repeatedly said, “This is a very important story.” He then cleared his throat and began:

“There was a hunter who went into the bush to kill a monkey. He had looked for only a few minutes when he saw a monkey sitting comfortably in the branch of a low tree. The monkey didn’t pay him any attention, not even when his footsteps on the dried leaves rose and fell as he neared. When he was close enough and behind a tree where he could clearly see the monkey, he raised his rifle and aimed. Just when he was bout to pull the trigger, the monkey spoke: ‘If you shoot me, your mother will die, and if you don’t, your father will die.’ The monkey resumed its position, chewing its food, and every so often scratched its head or the side of its belly.
“What would you do if you were the hunter?”

This was a story told to young people in my village once a year. The storyteller, usually an elder, would pose this unanswerable question at the end of the story in the presence of the children’s parents. Every child who was present at the gathering was asked to give an answer, but no child ever did, since their mother and father were both present. The storyteller never offered an answer either. During each of these gatherings, when it was my time to respond, I always told the storyteller that I would think it over, which of course was not a good enough answer.

After such gatherings, my peers and I-all the children between the ages of six and twelve – would brainstorm several possible answers that would avoid the death of one of our parents. There was no right answer. If you spared the monkey, someone was going to die, and if you didn’t, someone would also die.

That night we agreed on an answer, but it was immediately rejected. We told Pa Sesay that if any of us was the hunter, we wouldn’t have gone hunting for monkeys. We told him, “There are other animals such as deer to hunt.”

“That is not an acceptable answer,” he said. “We are assuming that you as the hunter had already raised your gun and have to make the decision.” He broke his kola nut in half and smiled before putting a piece in his mouth.

When I was seven I had an answer to this question that made sense to me. I never discussed it with anyone, though, for fear of how my mother would feel. I concluded to myself that if I were the hunter, I would shoot the monkey so that it would no longer have the chance to put other hunters in the same predicament.

Ishmael Beah
___

It is amazing to me which stories stick out in our minds. This story sticks out for me. It stuck out for Ishmael. Think about this: After the long and arduous task of writing his life on paper (and the translating of emotions to words - yikes!), he chose a story not at all related and so very related.

No thing is a sure thing. So the words we choose to communicate to others should reflect this notion of fleetingness in life.

"Goodnight, Americans. Sleep Well."

Random Observation I

2009-10-26T19:21:00.000-07:00

veni, vidi, vici = heroic

vici, vidi, veni = dirty

I Found a New Hero on the Syfy Network (?).

2009-10-25T19:27:00.000-07:00

Disclaimer: If you are not Jessica Toukatly (you probably are! hey Jess!), then I'm not sure why you are reading this. But feel free to keep on keepin' on. Maybe we are similar? Maybe you can relate.

___
I have recently discovered that I have no skills that matter. As a college graduate, I am great at things like cramming for exams, reading really really fast, and drinking. Though, now that I'm graduated, I don't see the use in drinking - so I don't. I do, however, have an aptitude for languages (am currently working on a third and fourth) and I pick up on things very quickly. This made college a breeze for me, though I did only go to a state university, which is ranked somewhere in the middle on the impressive list. I guess you could say I'm skilled at music since I did get a degree in music, however I'm not that great at my instrument or any of the other 3-5 that I picked up along the way. Anyway, I am decent at a lot of intellectual things, but not great at any one thing and thus have not gleaned anything useful for the real world. I realized this quite recently since I'm in deep debt and can only find temp jobs. I want to use my hands and make something. What I wouldn't give to know how to plumb! I do not want to be a plumber. I hate poo. Maybe I should have said mechanic instead. Readers, don't give me any insight on Roto-Rooter, please.

The unfortunate aspect of this mediocre plight of mine is that as an academic, I am painfully aware of all that I could be doing in the world. I could be like Paul Farmer who cures diseases in Haiti. I could be like Jose Abreu who started an inner city youth orchestra in Venezuela. I could even be like Dave Eggers who created a tutoring system free for kids at his workplace (in this case I would first need a workplace). More on these fellows later. I aspire to be like these people but I have no idea how to even start the transition from couch to SCUBA gear. I am stuck in the middle, and I can't really do anything about it. The bank wants their money, damnit.

Then last Wednesday I was watching Destination Truth on Syfy. Great show! Josh Gates is the man. It hit me how much fun it would be to do the things that Josh gets to do on his show, even if it's all fake (though the animals and bugs look real, hey-o!). I did a little research on him because that's what I do, and I found out he was recently inducted into the Explorer's Club. Damn fantastic! I rather admire the guy.

Now, if there's something I am proud of in my life, it would be my travelling. I LOVE to travel. I have been travelling all over the place with my family (mostly with my mother) since I was little. I have been to some amazing places and have done some amazing things.

My mother wanted to be an archaeologist. She always said she had to decide between archaeology and math because my grandfather wanted her to do something useful. She ended up as a computer engineer for 20 years. I understand that this is the reason for all the travelling, and I think I may have inherited that explorer gene. I think it must be a gene since my father hates to travel and hates change, I'm not really a product of my surroundings (since I get along much better with my father, and consequently spend much more time with him). My mom didn't have the will to do what she really wanted, and this is NOT what I want. I love moving, new places, and new things. I realized I don't stay with any specific job for very long, because once I have learned all there is to learn and get bored, I quit and move on. Not a good record for my resume, but I do have an array of extracurricular activities - and the stories to match.

My question is: how do I get a job similar to Josh's? Josh has my dream job: research and travelling! I don't want a TV show - I"m not so good with words on camera and I tend to lean to the sarcastic side of humor which doesn't translate well. But field research, that's my kind of research! I want to be knowledgeable and well-traveled. I want to talk to people. I love listening to stories - this is one of the reasons for my fascination with languages. I love folk tales and mythology, legends, even the elderly!
___
Sidenote: I just checked the Destination Truth facebook page to see if I could find some interesting tidbits about the show. Turns out the page is apparently for all those who would like to have a child by Josh. Sure he's a looker, but Syfy! Listen up! Post stories and links and websites for all of Josh's apparently adoring fans! Put up travel information, maybe even link to expedia or orbitz or whichever travel site Josh plugs every episode. Show some interest in what the fans want. Josh, do a live chat or something. Josh is a photographer, so put up some of his pictures that didn't make it to the Syfy site. Get Jael to blog! Good lord people. I thought television was a business? Maybe I'll post that on the fb page!
___

Anyway, so I have decided there are two roadblocks stopping me from my life adventure. 1: funds (I myself am anti-employed = temp job), and 2: I have a bit of an addiction to indoor plumbing. So, there's that.

But I love stories! Myths and Legends! Ideas and significant conversation! Maybe that's what I'll get my master's in. Thanks for the help, Josh.

Cheers!

All About Peter Tosh

2009-10-21T21:49:00.000-07:00

If there is anyone out there who has an interest in Reggae music, or has to do a paper on a popular musician for maybe a pop music class or American Roots Music (like the one at FSU perhaps, *ahem), take a look at this! If you just have some mild interest in Peter Tosh, Bob Marley, Jamaica, or Reggae music in general, you should also read through this. It's absolutely worth it for the surprise Mick Jagger video at the end. Cheers!
___
Peter Tosh was one of the foremost musicians to pioneer the musical form of “reggae” and bring it to worldwide attention and popularity. With the unofficial title of the juvenile delinquent of reggae and known to be much more politically aggressive than fellow Wailer founder, Bob Marley, Peter Tosh’s music is outspoken, sharp, sarcastic, and controversial. His stage presence was mesmerizing, he was lanky and stood over six feet tall, but he was charismatic and outspoken with a raspy baritone voice, a true stage performer. He was a contemporary political revolutionary who’s ideas were years ahead of their time, and the legacy he left still continues to effect music and culture today in the U.S., Jamaica, and abroad, probably more than he could have ever imagined.

Peter Tosh was born Winston Hubert McIntosh on October 9, 1944, in a rural farm parish in Grange Hill, Westmoreland, Jamaica. His mother, desperate to support and build a good life for herself and her only child, moved to Kingston in search of a better job. Unfortunately, Tosh and his mother found themselves in Trenchtown, an initially desirable neighborhood in West Kingston. It was built by the Jamaican government as a housing project to redevelop the area after it was destroyed by hurricane Charlie in 1951, but through lack of funds it turned into a slum and landfill due to inadequate sewage and garbage planning. Tosh’s father, James McIntosh, abandoned the family when Tosh was a young teenager because he never knew whether he was Tosh’s real father, and Tosh’s mother, Alvera Morris Coke, never let him get close enough to really know Peter. It is important to note that Peter never had a good relationship with his own father, because while in Trenchtown he gravitated towards Jamaican singer Joe Higgs as his mentor. Higgs is also the man that introduced Tosh to future friends and Wailers band-mates Bob Marley and Neville “Bunny” Livingston. Higgs is credited as the “Father of Reggae” and Tosh stated in 1976: “Joe Higgs was a brother amongst the Wailers for years. He was encouragement, and he inspired us and kept us together." Fortunately, Tosh was never drawn to the rampant gang activity of Kingston, but he did adopt a streetwise attitude for survival purposes. His family was very religious and he and his friend and cousin, Winsome, would go to church with his mother and his uncle every night of the week (twice on Sunday). The church had a large effect on Tosh and his later bitterness toward the “white man” and the Jamaican government, and quite possibly was one of the main forces in keeping him out of Kingston gang violence.

Living in both the rural country and the city slums had a big impact on Tosh’s musical styles and social criticisms that became the controversial foundation for his music. Growing up in a rural farm parish at a young age, Tosh was musically influenced by the “mento” folk music indigenous of the countryside. Mento music is generally considered Jamaican country or folk music, and greatly influenced the creation of Ska and Reggae. It was dancing music, and Jamaican farmers would celebrate their harvests with Mento dances. The typical Mento ensemble consisted of a banjo, acoustic guitar, a home-made saxophone, a bamboo flute or clarinet, and a rumba box (a variety of thumb piano, where the performer would sit on the wooden box and pluck notes, usually playing the bass line).
(Rumba Box)

The beat used for Mento dances is considered “proto-reggae”, featuring a choppy rhythmic guitar style beat, and is found in a lot of Tosh and Bob Marley’s music (“Sun Is Shining” and “Kaya” for example). Tosh loved the sound the guitar made as a child while listening to Mento, and decided to make one himself at the age of five using a board, a piece of tin pan, and some plastic strings. His mother even stated that at four years old he would walk around their house singing church songs, which shows the level of interest Tosh held for music at such a young age. When his family moved to Kingston, Tosh learned to play the piano in his church, around age thirteen (possibly earlier). He was also influenced greatly by American popular music of the 1950s such as rock’n’roll, the blues, and jazz. He would listen to these genres on the radio, picking up the stronger stations out of Florida and Louisiana. This led to the evolution from upbeat Mento and Ska into the mellow “Rocksteady” beat, which evolved into the popular Reggae style we associate with Jamaica today.

Tosh’s bitterness towards the white man and the Jamaican government formed at an early age. In a lot of his music he refers to Babylon, which is the Jamaican word for the “white kingdom” that can be translated into English as “the man” (as in “the man is getting me down”). He recalled that all the church leaders and missionaries at the time were white, and preached a white God and a white Jesus. In an interview he stated: “One of the songs we used to sing that made me sick was ‘Lord Wash Me and I Will Be Whiter than Snow”. Living out his teenage years in Trenchtown escalated his bitterness, and later on in his life after travelling to countless cities all over the world, he said that “The most dangerous things I’ve ever heard or seen in my life, is when I find myself in Trenchtown.” However, the silver lining of it all was his meeting Marley and Livingston, and finding a creative outlet for his emotions. Tosh eventually saved enough money to buy a guitar and would play at informal singing sessions and music lessons in Higgs’ backyard with the future Wailers. Eventually, Tosh was able to get Marley a guitar and teach him how to play it, turning the Wailers into a more serious band.

(Livingston, Marley, Tosh)

The most notable influence Tosh made on Reggae music was his use of trick language. He created his own vocabulary of words he used not only in his songs, but in his everyday speech as well. Many Reggae musicians emulated Tosh, using his words and making their own (Marley especially was fond of this style of language). Some of Tosh’s words are quite straightforward, such as shitstem (the system), politricks (politics), shituation (situation), shitty (city), Crime Minister (Prime Minister), tricknology (technology), Trinibad (Trinidad), etc. However, there are many words he created that are a little harder to understand, but just as political. Damagers (Managers, early in his career his manager cheated him out of money), Reducer (Producer, same idea as damagers), grudge (judge, he had many run-ins with the law), Killsome Shitty (Kingston City), downpressor (oppressor, sounds like “uppressor” but oppressed people are always brought down), queendom (kingdom, a pun referring to the kingdom of Queen Elizabeth), appricilove (a Rasta loves his fellow brother, love not hate), Lucifer Son of Devil (LSD, he considered this the drug of the devil), District Johncrows (DJ’s, he considered them immoral thieves because they stole other people’s tunes, and the Johncrow is a Jamaican vulture), Chris-T’eif Come-Rob-Us (Christopher Columbus, Tosh considered him a pirate that robbed Jamaica during the colonial period), and inicycle: “I and I, not you and I” (Peter was known for riding around Kingston on a unicycle). In Tosh’s own words about his updated vocabulary: “Words are not things that should be taken the way they are pronounced, so be careful of the words that you use. Try to define them spiritually within yourself before you use them.” This language is a typical example of Dread Talk, which was formed by the Rastafari in the 1930s to increase the accuracy of words in Standard Jamaican English as well as ensure secrecy of conversation in the presence of outsiders (most likely law officials), and was absorbed by mainstream Jamaican youth by the time it became popular with Tosh.

The Wailers were known for their politically charged music, but the main force behind many of their most radical songs was Tosh. The Wailers song he is most known for is “Get Up, Stand Up”, but also wrote “400 Years” and “Stop That Train”. He was anything but afraid to be politically outspoken and during his solo career (after a falling out with Marley), he wrote “Mark of the Beast” and “Legalize It” which were protest songs and were banned from Jamaican radio stations. Despite the violence and political outrage that he often caused, Tosh was a peaceful, passionate person. In the 1960s, the Wailers came under the influence of Rastafarianism. The Rastas believed that Emperor Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia (Ras Tafari was his given name) was the messiah who would lead the blacks out of oppression and into an African homeland. Rastafarianism came to represent an alternative to violence and a restoration of dignity for the poor in Jamaica and other places in the Caribbean. The Rastas followed strict dietary rules, avoiding drugs and alcohol, but considered marijuana or “ganja” a holy herb that brought enlightenment to users. This reverence for marijuana would cause Tosh into a lot of trouble with Jamaican authorities throughout his career. In fact, on April 22, 1978 a Peace Concert was held at Kingston’s National Stadium, with the entire political establishment present, including Prime Minister Michael Manley. Tosh launched into a diatribe on the economy and poverty, directing his critiques directly at the Prime Minister, and even smoking a marijuana cigarette onstage to taunt the police. A month later he was arrested on marijuana possession charges and beaten severely by the police. He carried scars from at least three separate police beatings, and eventually was shot and killed in his own home. The Rasta influence on Tosh can be seen as his music matures and his songs became more conciliatory. Despite the violence that surrounded him, he refused to compromise his religious and revolutionary beliefs, with albums such as Mystic Man, Wanted Dread and Alive, and No Nuclear War attesting to that fact.

The Wailers first hit the United States with a recording of “Stir It Up” with Columbia artist Johnny Nash, and sought out Island Records founder Chris Blackwell in London due to their success in the U.S. This made Tosh popular in England because there was a large population of Caribbean expatriates in Great Britain. Island Records produced Catch a Fire which established the Wailers as significant artists, and they began touring with up-and-coming artists such as Bruce Springsteen in England and the U.S. Tosh was eventually discovered by Mick Jagger and was the second artist signed to Rolling Stones Records after the Stones themselves. In becoming a successful act in the U.S., he contributed to the increased popularity of Reggae/Roots Reggae in the States, especially within the African American culture and underground culture in the Southeast, Northeast, and the West Coast.

On the evening of September 11, 1987, Tosh was shot and killed in his home in St. Andrew, Jamaica, by three assailants. One of the men was arrested and tried, and it is known that he knew Tosh personally. Nobody knows what really happened that night, but there is speculation that the motive was robbery, revenge killing, or an altercation with a drug trafficker. After his death the Red X tapes were discovered, which are one of the most important insights into Tosh’s music and personal philosophy, and form the basis for his Biography, Red X. Discovered in July of 1990 and recorded from 1983-1987, the tapes were named Red X because wherever he saw his name on any official document, he saw it marked with a “red x”.

The impact of his death, just six years after the death of Bob Marley, was felt all over the western world, from the Caribbean to London. Prominent newspapers and magazines such as the New York Times and Rolling Stone ran publications on the effect he had within the music industry, and the effect he had in his home country. The irony in his death is that he was brought down by the same violence that he came from, the violence he was trying to alleviate. Also ironic was that his death was in the wake of an album preaching peace and love: No Nuclear War (which won the Grammy for best Reggae album two months later). He was even given an official public funeral by the very politicians he had spoken out against so vigorously throughout his career.

Bunny Wailer can never take his place in history, just as he resisted the notion that he could ever replace Marley; Tosh was a truly unique individual. To many people facing injustice and inequality in the world, Peter Tosh was a man of principle and courage, a poet, philosopher, and prophet. He explained his own legacy best: “My words is the truth, and the truth causes offense. Without the truth, there is no consciousness.”

Davis, Stephen, and Peter Simon, Reggae Bloodlines: In Search of the Music and Culture of Jamaica, revised edition, Da Capo, 1992.
Mento Music, 1999-2009. Affiliated with JaMusica. 3 April 2009. http://www.mentomusic.com/index.htm
Nelson, Daniel and Seth Nelson. “Joe Higgs Memorial Website”. Affiliated with www.iration.com. 30 March 2009. http://www.iration.com/joehiggs/
“Peter Tosh”. Contemporary Black Biography 5 Feb. 1995: Vol. 9. Gale Research. Biography Resource Center. LeRoy Collins Leon County Public Library, Tallahassee, FL. 1 April 2009. http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/BioRC
“Peter Tosh”. Newsmakers 1 Dec. 1988: Issue Cumulation. Gale Research. Biography Resource Center. LeRoy Collins Leon County Public Library, Tallahassee, FL. 1 April 2009. http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/BioRC
“Peter Tosh”. Contemporary Musicians 15 June 1990: Vol. 3. Gale Research. Biography Resource Center. LeRoy Collins Leon County Public Library, Tallahassee, FL. 1 April 2009. http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/BioRC
Peter Tosh Biography. Rolling Stone, 2004, The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. www.rollingstone.com/ path: artists; petertosh; biography.
Pollard, Velma, Dread Talk: The Langauge of Rastafari, revised edition, Quebec: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2000.
Rap Dictionary, 31 October 2005. 3 April 2009. http://www.rapdict.org/Main_Page.
Rockwell, John. “POP VIEW; Peter Tosh, Reggae’s Rebel”. The New York Times, 27 September, 1987. section 2 pg 26. http://www.nytimes.com/
Stepping Razor: Red X. Dir. Nicholas Campbell. 4 June 1993. DVD. Bush Doctor Films.
Wilson, James, and Gael Doyen. Intelligent Diplomat, 2001-2004. 38 March 2009. http://intelligentdiplomat.free.fr/menu.html

I really haven't done anything (since: May 5th, 2009)

2009-10-21T20:55:00.000-07:00

May 5th, 2009. What is it's significance? I graduated with two Bachelor's degrees from a relatively mid-level state university. Not too long after 5/5 (the beginning of the rest of my life! according to my father), I started this blog to write down my thoughts and ideas. As you can tell however, I have not really utilized it as I originally intended. It was going to be amazing and astounding! I was really going to wow the idiot internet majority with my witty 20-something humor! I mean like the bee's knees, man!

So yeah. Here I am, sitting on my couch (mom's couch), playing an endless game of fetch with one dog and watching the other lick his paw incessantly for 3 hours. In his defense, his paws smell quite a lot like Fritos: (this dog)

Quick shameless plug: photo taken by Svetlana Kepezhinskas aka Nonstop 8 1/2. http://www.flickr.com/photos/nonstopfunk/sets/72157610702726368/ Check it out! designs, photos, and acid-trip-like ("organic") graffiti art!

Finally, I have decided I will use this blog as a kind of know-it-all information garbage dump. I have too many facts and opinions on these facts swimming around in my head, so I will now put them into digital format for all to see. And how!

If for some reason you have stumbled upon this blog on accident and found something interesting or found my reasoning/opinions as fascinating/maniacal, or if you were google searching a topic that I have decided deserves recognition on this blog for 5 seconds, feel free to take it. This is an open experiment for the benefit of all. Many of my papers for college may end up on here: so college kids, enjoy! Just give me a shout out or something later. Or a job.

Cheers.

Still Unemployed

2009-06-27T14:53:00.000-07:00

Job hunting in Orlando, FL is not the easiest thing I've ever tried to do in my life. I don't know if I can even count how many applications I've sent out. It has gotten so bad, the ice-cream man is back patrolling the neighborhood at 40 mph. After graduating with two 4-year Bachelor's degrees, you'd think it would be a little bit easier. Maybe I do really need to move to NY. Or at least West Palm Beach (as I have been considering a change of scenery - I'm somehow tired of staring at my backyard wasteland). I often wonder if I'm not going about it the correct way: sending out emails/cover letters/resumes, following up with them, physically going to places, talking to the manager/owner, calling back, etc. It just doesn't seem to work. I either have too much or too little experience. If anyone out there has any advice, I would sure love to hear it - and then I can pass it on to my other unemployed friends.

Sites I've tried:

Careerbuilder.com

Monster.com

Yahoo Jobs

Craigslist

Indeed.com

Towniejobs.com

Backstagejobs.com

Entertainmentcareers.net

Idealist.org

Not to mention all the big entertainment companies: NBC, ABC, Viacom, Universal, LiveNation, and Disney.

I've typed keywords into google and yahoo maps just to see what companies come up in my area so I can call them and/or send my cover letter/resume.

I have also tried temp agencies and oDesk. Also I have been selling my stuff on craigslist and eBay. I might go donate plasma tomorrow. Looking at the unemployment rate as of May 2009 for Orlando (10.2% and rising, 9.6% in Seminole county - go team) http://orlando.bizjournals.com/orlando/stories/2009/06/15/daily45.html , I don't expect to find a job anytime soon. I'm hoping I can scrape by somehow.

I think this blog will be good to relieve job search related stress, and since I'm also constantly looking at new ideas and trying to find out about everything, I can talk about everything else too. Maybe somebody will read this and learn something, and then give me advice. And anyway, I'm tired of watching South Park reruns.