Alright alright... i have been slacking on updating... a lot.
I have some good excuses, I swear!
I had been going through the housing purchase process, which was a pain in the ass. It ended up with me finding someplace, having some headaches, but eventually closing on the place one week ago. So there has been a lot of work going on with the place right now - ie everything has been spackled, sanded, and is in the process of being painted. Maybe I am crazy, but I feel like a fresh coat of paint will do the place more justice.
Aside from that I am working crazy hours at work, trying to get done a number of random other things personally, and still trying to have time for a social life. Let me tell you - it isnt working out so well.
I guess here is to hoping I can get things situated in the house sooner than later. I have until the end of November before I absolutely have to be out of the apartment... but I would much rather have things completed within the next two weeks or so, in order to get back to something of a "normal" life.
ugh.
there holly - i posted for you.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Monday, August 24, 2009
baseball card fans - contests going on
a couple of baseball card contests going on that are amazing. take a look if you are a card collector / fan
http://collectivetroll.blogspot.com/2009/08/bloggers-vote-for-hall-of-fame-contest.html
http://cardcache.blogspot.com/2009/08/2009-allen-ginter-giveaway-complete.html#comments
http://collectivetroll.blogspot.com/2009/08/bloggers-vote-for-hall-of-fame-contest.html
http://cardcache.blogspot.com/2009/08/2009-allen-ginter-giveaway-complete.html#comments
Friday, August 14, 2009
Time passes, things change
Ive hit that time in my life when I think I am ready to settle down in the area. As in, its house hunting time. I guess I felt like now is as good of a time as any... I have held the same job for a few years, my lease for my apartment comes up at the end of October, and I am sick of throwing money away on renting something. While I have some sort of wanderlust, I also have a silly sense of obligation and the need to stay somewhat in the area / be stable with money.
Of course looking for a house adds a new level of stress. Money constraints, wishes for nicer places, monthly payments, etc etc etc. And there are so many additional costs that you have to remind yourself of: heating, homeowners insurance, random things breaking, closing costs, property taxes. Honestly its a nightmare and I will be happy when this process is over. Even moreso because I will have some of the things I have wanted for so long - a room to be able to do my artwork / writing / shirt making, more storage for things I have, someplace to brew my own wine, etc. There are lots of little processes I would love to take part in... but I cant with my current living constraints.
Aside from that its always really interesting to me to look at the many things that people do in their lives in order to change. For me... well change is coming rather fast. A coworker of mine passed away a few weeks ago from a massive heart attack, and then my stepfather was in the hospital for chest pain the following week. On some level I think that really played on my own psyche since I have changed my eating habits completely. Thats right, Ive balanced my diet, and I consume less and less now. Why? Well again, part of it had to do with fear, but part also had to do with comfort. What people miss is the feelings inside I have had. For example - most people wouldnt be able to pinpoint that I was having some major stomach issues that I was dealing with, but I was having some real troubles. So after changing my intake, I realized how much better I feel. heh.
I got rid of cable too. And now I see just how much time I wasted in front of the tv. In the past few months I have read through a few books Ive been meaning to get to, finished off some magazines, cleaned things out, etc etc etc. Aka all things I have been meaning to do but just never did. Now - I have more than enough time.
next book im reading - http://www.amazon.com/Monster-Autobiography-L-Member/dp/0802141447
and now im off. back to work. then tonight, a few drinks and roaming around looking at houses. heres to hoping i find one.
cheers.
Of course looking for a house adds a new level of stress. Money constraints, wishes for nicer places, monthly payments, etc etc etc. And there are so many additional costs that you have to remind yourself of: heating, homeowners insurance, random things breaking, closing costs, property taxes. Honestly its a nightmare and I will be happy when this process is over. Even moreso because I will have some of the things I have wanted for so long - a room to be able to do my artwork / writing / shirt making, more storage for things I have, someplace to brew my own wine, etc. There are lots of little processes I would love to take part in... but I cant with my current living constraints.
Aside from that its always really interesting to me to look at the many things that people do in their lives in order to change. For me... well change is coming rather fast. A coworker of mine passed away a few weeks ago from a massive heart attack, and then my stepfather was in the hospital for chest pain the following week. On some level I think that really played on my own psyche since I have changed my eating habits completely. Thats right, Ive balanced my diet, and I consume less and less now. Why? Well again, part of it had to do with fear, but part also had to do with comfort. What people miss is the feelings inside I have had. For example - most people wouldnt be able to pinpoint that I was having some major stomach issues that I was dealing with, but I was having some real troubles. So after changing my intake, I realized how much better I feel. heh.
I got rid of cable too. And now I see just how much time I wasted in front of the tv. In the past few months I have read through a few books Ive been meaning to get to, finished off some magazines, cleaned things out, etc etc etc. Aka all things I have been meaning to do but just never did. Now - I have more than enough time.
next book im reading - http://www.amazon.com/Monster-Autobiography-L-Member/dp/0802141447
and now im off. back to work. then tonight, a few drinks and roaming around looking at houses. heres to hoping i find one.
cheers.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Notes from Underground
I just completed Dostoevsky's Notes from Underground and I have to say, I'm impressed on multiple levels.
The book really pushes the antihero to the maximum limits. Actually I haven't seen such a great antihero character since reading Warren Ellis' character Spider Jerusalem in Transmetropolitan. He is edgy, impulsive, and yet passionate and brutal. It seems that he is very self loathing, and yet in the same he has such high expectations. It almost makes you feel like you are hearing this sad and lonely character who has this underlying sea of intelligence and life beneath him, but he cant seem to push it all forth. instead he relishes in the pain.
the man is so tormented that its almost surreal, but it is written in such a manner that you cant help but empathize with him. And at the moment you do, he laughs at you, telling you that he was just joking about that all along. So throughout you find yourself questioning the exact things he does, sometimes actually questioning if he himself believes what he is writing. that is until you hit the second part of the book where it ties all of his ideals together into a tight little package...
well played mr dostoevsky.
The book really pushes the antihero to the maximum limits. Actually I haven't seen such a great antihero character since reading Warren Ellis' character Spider Jerusalem in Transmetropolitan. He is edgy, impulsive, and yet passionate and brutal. It seems that he is very self loathing, and yet in the same he has such high expectations. It almost makes you feel like you are hearing this sad and lonely character who has this underlying sea of intelligence and life beneath him, but he cant seem to push it all forth. instead he relishes in the pain.
the man is so tormented that its almost surreal, but it is written in such a manner that you cant help but empathize with him. And at the moment you do, he laughs at you, telling you that he was just joking about that all along. So throughout you find yourself questioning the exact things he does, sometimes actually questioning if he himself believes what he is writing. that is until you hit the second part of the book where it ties all of his ideals together into a tight little package...
well played mr dostoevsky.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
memoir material
With some of the odd people I meet, I feel I should chronicle it for a memoir of sorts. Let me explain...
Yesterday I made my way over to Cigars International (which is a large cigar lounge / store) and was quite set to read my Dostoevsky while enjoying the pleasures afforded by a good cigar. I figured I could read and kill a little time before my dad called to stop over, as was the plan (as a side note, he didn't get home until late so I wasn't able to get there... anyway...) While a couple of the areas were a little overcrowded, I snagged a seat away from the commotion, near another gentleman who was also reading. He was working through the autobiography that Lee Iaccoca had written, which is of course interesting to me since its written by someone who was born and raised here in Allentown.
Eventually we get to talking and he notices that I'm in the midst of Dostoevsky. this simply opened countless doors for the guy, as he has read a lot of his works, and actually is well verse in some of the other writers and philosophers of the time (Hemingway, other niche authors [thanks Holly, I was being lazy], etc). So we get to talking and let me tell you, this guy was brilliant with some of the things he had to say. And it was nice to find someone who could talk about a lot of the items without getting too hot under the collar about it. Religion, politics, philosophy, etc - all great topics that were traversed. He mentioned he very much enjoys items that center around politics and economics. Especially those which have socialist ideas throughout (which I agree with in principle).
Now partway through the conversation he asks my thoughts on the 9/11 stuff. My response is my normal response - I personally feel that the government knew a lot more than they were told, if they were not the actual perpetrators. There are historical areas where governments used fear tactics to change the face of their country and push other agendas forward, and this may have been one of those times.
Of course it seems that was the answer he was looking for. He tells me I managed to run into him at just the right time. He explains that he actually makes copies of the "well made" conspiracy theory documentaries and distributes them to people who may be receptive of those ideals. Piracy in order to get ideas out there, what a thoughtful policy!
At any rate he passed on Tim Wise (who is a pretty famous speaker on racism), a documentary called In Plane Site (which is akin to the one called Loose Change), and Painful Deceptions. I plan to at least view them once... but with the intelligence the guy held, I almost wish he would have been producing the stuff himself. That would have been much more exciting. Instead I'll keep this as a possible memoir item, and get back to reading Dostoevsky - what a sick and spiteful man!
Yesterday I made my way over to Cigars International (which is a large cigar lounge / store) and was quite set to read my Dostoevsky while enjoying the pleasures afforded by a good cigar. I figured I could read and kill a little time before my dad called to stop over, as was the plan (as a side note, he didn't get home until late so I wasn't able to get there... anyway...) While a couple of the areas were a little overcrowded, I snagged a seat away from the commotion, near another gentleman who was also reading. He was working through the autobiography that Lee Iaccoca had written, which is of course interesting to me since its written by someone who was born and raised here in Allentown.
Eventually we get to talking and he notices that I'm in the midst of Dostoevsky. this simply opened countless doors for the guy, as he has read a lot of his works, and actually is well verse in some of the other writers and philosophers of the time (Hemingway, other niche authors [thanks Holly, I was being lazy], etc). So we get to talking and let me tell you, this guy was brilliant with some of the things he had to say. And it was nice to find someone who could talk about a lot of the items without getting too hot under the collar about it. Religion, politics, philosophy, etc - all great topics that were traversed. He mentioned he very much enjoys items that center around politics and economics. Especially those which have socialist ideas throughout (which I agree with in principle).
Now partway through the conversation he asks my thoughts on the 9/11 stuff. My response is my normal response - I personally feel that the government knew a lot more than they were told, if they were not the actual perpetrators. There are historical areas where governments used fear tactics to change the face of their country and push other agendas forward, and this may have been one of those times.
Of course it seems that was the answer he was looking for. He tells me I managed to run into him at just the right time. He explains that he actually makes copies of the "well made" conspiracy theory documentaries and distributes them to people who may be receptive of those ideals. Piracy in order to get ideas out there, what a thoughtful policy!
At any rate he passed on Tim Wise (who is a pretty famous speaker on racism), a documentary called In Plane Site (which is akin to the one called Loose Change), and Painful Deceptions. I plan to at least view them once... but with the intelligence the guy held, I almost wish he would have been producing the stuff himself. That would have been much more exciting. Instead I'll keep this as a possible memoir item, and get back to reading Dostoevsky - what a sick and spiteful man!
Monday, June 29, 2009
Back from Vacation
The nice thing about taking vacation is not having to worry about work or any stresses that are associated with it. I, of course, checked work email a couple of times in hopes of relieving any stress I would have coming to me when I came back to the office. Overall, I am really glad I did, as unfortunately there was a lot of crap I had to cover when I returned. I guess such is the reality of working for a corporation eh?
In other news I read much less than I anticipated while on the trip, but managed to finish The House of Thunder by Dean Koontz. not a bad book. More a psychological thriller than anything with some horror aspects to it. the concept was pretty interesting, although I don't want to give much away if anyone decides to read it in the future. I was extremely disappointed in the ending through. Honestly it was very anticlimactic (aka you read 330+ pages and then all of a sudden its summed up in 15 pages). Further, he ends with some trite cliche load of bullshit that really just pissed me off. Had he left the last paragraph out of it, I might not have called him a douchenugget.
On to another book - Notes From The Underground by Fyodor Dostoevsky. Its one I have been really excited to read for quite sometime. I've read through the introduction a bit, and honestly... its some twit who is trying to sound monumentally intelligent by breaking down the work. Honestly the intro is really misplaced as it talks about things that happen in the book in detail at a few points, thus partially ruining some of the reading (or at least decreasing my drive for the book). They should have thought that out a bit better... you leave general explanations there and put an afterword if you really feel the need to go in depth with your analysis.
People are generally stupid. I'm coming to believe that more and more, and I mean that in the nicest way possible.
In other news I read much less than I anticipated while on the trip, but managed to finish The House of Thunder by Dean Koontz. not a bad book. More a psychological thriller than anything with some horror aspects to it. the concept was pretty interesting, although I don't want to give much away if anyone decides to read it in the future. I was extremely disappointed in the ending through. Honestly it was very anticlimactic (aka you read 330+ pages and then all of a sudden its summed up in 15 pages). Further, he ends with some trite cliche load of bullshit that really just pissed me off. Had he left the last paragraph out of it, I might not have called him a douchenugget.
On to another book - Notes From The Underground by Fyodor Dostoevsky. Its one I have been really excited to read for quite sometime. I've read through the introduction a bit, and honestly... its some twit who is trying to sound monumentally intelligent by breaking down the work. Honestly the intro is really misplaced as it talks about things that happen in the book in detail at a few points, thus partially ruining some of the reading (or at least decreasing my drive for the book). They should have thought that out a bit better... you leave general explanations there and put an afterword if you really feel the need to go in depth with your analysis.
People are generally stupid. I'm coming to believe that more and more, and I mean that in the nicest way possible.
Friday, June 19, 2009
Vacation
Ahhh vacation. time for me to relax, have some drinks, read, write, and have a great time. I'll likely be away for the next week or so, enjoying (what I hope is) some summer sun and a gorgeous beach. but we shall see. If the weather doesnt hold up, I expect to be playing ridiculous gams with friends.... like good old N64 since i plan on busting that out. muhahaha.
goldeneye and bomberman? be ready for some rockage.
goldeneye and bomberman? be ready for some rockage.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)