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2009-06-19T00:22:00.001-04:00

guesses the Red Sox were okay losing to the Marlins in 5 innings. After a 2 _ hour rain delay, they called the game just as it was clearing up.

2009-06-18T23:46:00.001-04:00

guesses the Red Sox don't mind losing to the Marlins in 5 innings. After a 2 _ hour rain delay, they call the game just as it starts to clear.

2009-06-18T20:57:00.000-04:00

is getting rained on at Fenway Park.

2009-06-10T13:09:00.001-04:00

slept unfortunately.

2009-06-06T09:13:00.001-04:00

I suspected it wouldn't take long to find something I was less than happy with.The Pre is awfully short on Preference options.

2009-06-06T08:32:00.001-04:00

I got it! Immediate first impression, coming from the Centro, I love the keyboard.

2009-06-06T07:31:00.001-04:00

BTW, sending pictures from this corner of the mall is tricky, so I'll upload those later.

2009-06-06T07:29:00.001-04:00

Sprint employees are hard at work. Promotional ads uare up. Satisfyong that they are using superlative language.

2009-06-06T07:09:00.001-04:00

Me and two others. Store manager walked in, chuckling. I think he was unimpressed.

2009-06-06T06:44:00.001-04:00

The employees are in and setting up all the crap for the launch.

2009-06-06T06:37:00.001-04:00

The mall walkers are doing their laps. The mall is beeping to itself. Whirring machines war against dirt. All to an Easy Listening soundtrack.

First in Line!!!

2009-06-06T06:12:00.001-04:00

I am both thrilled and disappointed. I really do want to see a great turn out for Palm and the Pre, but knowledge that I AM getting mine makes it bearable.

2009-06-06T05:50:00.001-04:00

Have Dunkin' Donuts; will travel.

2009-06-06T04:43:00.001-04:00

Okay, I'm up and about to shower. I can already feel the fog that I'm going to be operating through today.

Me, Pre-Palm Pre

2009-06-05T23:52:00.002-04:00

Yeah, I'm excited. I'm about to try to get what ever amount of sleep I can get.

Malden Residents Not Allowed to Have Acne

2009-04-12T20:13:00.005-04:00

I dreamt last night that the city of Malden, where I live, was given some special health benefit. I have no idea what said health benefit was, but the trade off was that acne was now forbidden, as the skyrocketing costs of acne treatment would presumably offset what ever this great new benefit was. The residents begrudgingly went along with the new rule.

There actually was some kind of Zit Zquad that would come door to door to ensure that the public was conforming to the new rule. The device they used was one part needle-nose pliers and one part tube-of-benzoyl peroxide. I don't think I have to explain how the device was used. Consider yourself lucky if you can't figure it out.

Well, the ZZ came to my house to remove my acne. In real life, right now, I have two zits: one of the bridge of my nose and the other in between my eyebrows. In my dream, these were relocated to my navel. The Pimple Pliers didn't hurt, oddly enough.

To confess, I intentionally mischaracterized the Zit Zquad. It was too easy and too fun not to. The guy who came to my house wasn't like Nazi Germany's SS at all. He enjoyed his job and performed it with a smile. He was barely more than a kid; early twenties at most. He also wore some kind of a colored safety vest so you knew this was the official guy and not some perv who just did it for thrills.

The Palm Pre Comes With An Actual Mirror

2009-01-10T16:13:00.004-05:00

Complete with greasy fingerprints, too.

This is the kind of thing that is likely to get axed in the final version, not because it's a bad idea - No, it's an AMAZINGLY FANTASTIC idea - but simply because it's an extra component and drives up the cost by that little bit more. Palm's smart to add the Sprint logo to it, even if it only increases the likelihood that the mirror will remain.

This is smart, obliterate-the-box thinking. On every other device that area is completely unused, but Palm, clever as they are, found a great, simple, obvious use for it.

Me, I Think

2009-01-03T16:56:00.019-05:00

Here is an essay that I wrote for my College Writing II course back in the summer of 2004 that I ultimately failed. This was the spark that got me to Mass Rehab that got my ADD diagnosed and got the ball rolling that led me to my shrink, medication and then back to school. That I'm not in school at the moment is its own issue.

This essay bounces around a bit chronologically because I was keeping, too strictly, it turned out, to the five questions Professor Mason gave us to work from: Explain what led to my decision to pursue a college education, explain why I chose Bunker Hill Community College as my initial step toward a college degree, explore and explain the various courses I have taken, or courses that I am interested in, briefly explain my personal methods of study and examine how my life outside of the college affects my academic pursuits, discuss my future plans and ultimate goals.

I only list the questions to explain why time shifts around. You can probably find where my answer to each question begins if you're bored. I don't think I've edited anything from the original document. If it turns out I did I'll delete this and the previous sentence and deny I ever wrote them.

Me, I Think

My life has been a disappointment to my friends and family, I’m sure, but mostly to myself. I’m 31 years old, still living with my folks with no solid plans for my future. I’m smart and creative, but I can’t seem to get any where. I believe my problems stem from Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, which I was thought to have a mild case of when I was twelve. Treatment brought results, but was not continued, and I struggled through high school, my first college attempt, and life in general.

I have never really stuck with any thing long enough to get good at it. Coming out of high school I was into music and I played the drums. Then I wanted to design things and I attended a school for Drafting. Then it was Acting and I joined the Theatre program at Bunker Hill. Then it was Web Design and I taught myself HTML. Then it was back to drums and I took more lessons. Then I was thinking of Graphic Design and researched several programs, but couldn’t get financing. Then I sold my drums, wanting to write songs, and bought a multi-track recorder and a few guitars. Then wanted to learn Screenwriting and bought a few books and took a few courses. Then I stopped. I jumped into things hard and would hit a wall every time. I then jumped into something else, often something I had abandoned before. I was going in circles.

I decided to put some things away. I gave up on acting. I sold my guitars and my recorder. I may play drums again, but only as a hobby. I still dabbled in Web Design, but was not for hire. I still did Graphic Design, but I did not seek new projects. I chose to focus on Screenwriting.

Then a cakewalk of a reception job landed in my lap. The day was mine to do as I pleased as long as I answered the infrequently ringing phone and attended to the rare guest. There was no more perfect job for an aspiring writer, but I could not maintain effort and, more and more, each day was squandered with mindless internet surfing. The office manager had, over time, given me small tasks, but I had problems following through. Then, without warning, I was fired. Her concerns were valid, but I resented not being given a chance to correct them. So, again, I had nothing to show and no where to go.

After the shock wore off, the void that is my life scared me. I soon had the idea to go back to college to earn a degree in Graphic Design, which I discovered a talent for when I first attended Bunker Hill. This idea didn’t come from the impulsivity of my ADD, as many others have. I have been drawing since I was very young, but rarely freehand. I was always more comfortable with a ruler in my other hand. I would draw new logos for my favorite bands, making sure the letters were evenly spaced. I would make a cassette inlay card for my some-day band, making sure each consecutive panel was smaller than the last to fold properly. In my senior year of high school, I took a computer aided drafting course and now designed on a computer. It wasn’t until Bunker Hill that I received praise from informed people.

Knowing that Graphic Design had strong career potential, I would research schools every couple years. Some approached the field from the business side, but the best ones were, first and foremost, art schools. I liked the New England School for Art and Design and Mass Art, both of which have connections to other schools to explore other areas of study.

That being said, I chose to return to Bunker Hill Community College because it is a quick, inexpensive way to a degree due to its low cost and its two-year Associate Degree. But I am concerned that the line between inexpensive and cheap has been blurred in the Graphic Design program’s use of a design application that has barely advanced in ten years, while others now dominate the industry. I don’t think it’s because of licensing issues. The application’s developer, Adobe, has a history of being education-friendly. It is possible that the older program serves as an introduction to the more complex applications later on. I am trying to contact the department head to learn the answer. If need be, I can learn the new applications on my own. I have always been good at that. It’s the theory behind the choices that I need to learn.

Bunker Hill is also a safe choice. As a returning student, there will be few surprises. I’m familiar with how the school works and I already know the layout. I’m finding many of the same personell, though some have changed offices. The MBTA buses and trains that I’ve taken for years let me off at the front door. The school is also close to my long-time home in Malden. There’s no learning how to live somewhere else while learning new skills.

Mostly, however, I’m coming back to erase the two wasted years at Bunker Hill a decade ago because I had no focus. I joined the Theatre program on a whim. In my second semester I began taking Graphic Design classes, while staying involved with Theatre, to the detriment of my other courses. I failed College Writing II, Intermediate Desktop Publishing, and Foundations of Music because my mind was stuck in the auditorium. I took Play Production four semesters in a row, paying for two of them, for no extra credit. In my final semester, I withdrew from two courses, failed one and got an A in another. The capper was my switch into the Music program, for what reason I don’t remember. At the time it was fun, but I wasn’t thinking about a degree. I wasn’t thinking about my future at all.

After high school, I made a couple attempts at formal education. I studied Drafting at the then recently co-ed Women’s Technical Institute, and there was the mess that was my first Bunker Hill attempt. I finished WTI with a 3.97 GPA, but the idea of a professional job terrified me. I had an irrational fear that one bad interview would prevent me from getting any others, so I only made a few phone calls and never went on an interview.

But I also did a fair amount of self learning. Through books and the internet, I taught myself Web Design and Screenwriting. Both of these were supplemented by eight-week classes at community education centers. A designed websites for a friend’s band and a local playwright (actually getting paid for the latter), but I left when I tired of how the two major internet browsers displayed the same code differently. But I have accomplished more regarding screenwriting than any other effort. I have written at least one absolutely dreadful, but complete, first draft of a screenplay. I also helped crew an independent film and traveled to Los Angeles to attend a Screenwriting conference.

As I now return to Bunker Hill with the goal to get a degree (of all the crazy things), I am looking forward to the Why of the Graphic Design theory courses. I have a talent for design, but I work too much by feel. I am unable to spend too much time planning. I have to jump in. I think this is part of my ADD. Design patience is a big part of what I hope to learn.

The few credits that transfer into the Graphic Design program gain me some freedom to explore Photography, Painting and other creative courses. I enjoy taking pictures, but I want to learn how to better capture what I see, such as low light situations. Painting, oil or watercolor, would be an exploration into the uncharted. I also may take a second drawing course beyond what’s required. I want to learn to do perspective drawings of subjects from my imagination.

To satisfy the science requirement, I very much want to take Astronomy, which my previous credits do not save me from, fortunately. I am a big fan of space science and exploration. It started in the early 90s when I became a Trekkie, but I have since become a member of the Planetary Society, the largest, private space interest group. I have been following the various robotic missions exploring the planets in our solar system and dream about life on extrasolar planets circling other stars. A major challenge for this class will be my hatred of all things math, but with help from a calculator and some formulas, I should get through it.

And although I’m now shooting for a Graphic Design degree, my mind is too full of story ideas to give up on screenwriting. I want to take some online Writing courses at either the Gotham Writer’s Workshop or the UCLA Extension school. There is also a summer program with the New York Film Academy in Hollywood, Los Angeles that I am interested in. That would also be a trial run at life in southern California. But only if focus allows.

As for what draws me to creative things; I have a fair amount of raw talent that allows me to try many things; from art, to sports, to performing, etc. I think I crave praise and where I find it, I stay. My focus problems keep me from success, but those talents again allow me to find something else to be good at.

But a degree is impossible if I do not get my focus problems properly diagnosed and treated. They tint/taint every memory I have. If it’s not ADD, I don’t know what it is. It is not just an inanimate obstacle, however daunting, that can be overcome with raw effort. It has arms to pull me down, teeth to tear me to pieces and a voice that it knows hurts me. It is alive.

But as savage as this monster is, it is not all bad. In fact, my daydreams are a major source of my creativity. My mind is forever dreaming up new scenarios. Often, it’s only after following one of these thoughts long enough do I realize that I have something worth developing. I fear that this well from which I draw might be lost with the medication side of treatment.

There is still another aspect to this increasingly complex thorn in my side. In spite of all the problems it causes, at times, it allows me to focus very intensely. As Edward M. Hallowell, M.D. and John J. Ratey, M.D., both of which have ADD, write in the preface of their book, Driven to Distraction, “The syndrome is not one of attention deficit but of attention inconsistency; most of us with ADD can in fact hyperfocus at times” (x). There are times when nothing exists outside of my current project. This is also what allows me to continually jump into new projects and do well in the beginning, while everything is new and stimulating.

And if that wasn’t enough, I also am an expert procrastinator. I can see how distractions can delay the start of a project, but I don’t understand how distractibility makes procrastination the problem that it is for me. As it is, I handed in a half-finished version of this paper because I didn’t get started until the day it was due.

There is something about deadlines that I find difficult to work with. I can’t feel them until they’re on top of me. When playing baseball as a kid, I remember being a better hitter after there were two strikes against me. Sleep is another. I can’t get my brain in gear until late in the evening and then stay up until early morning to finish. Then I sleep late and the struggle starts again. This cycle has already affected this College Writing II course.

But I have had some successes. The screenplay I wrote and, over the past year, I’ve lost 87 pounds with Weight Watchers and am 25 pounds from my goal. That is absolutely an accomplishment, but I can’t feel it emotionally. I’ve been close too many times only to fail. I don’t know when my attitude will change, but I believe it will be a choice.

As for my actual study habits, it’s been so long since I studied at someone else’s pace that they can’t be good. When I’m being creative I can have either music or a ballgame on in the background. But when I’m reading or learning something new, I need things to be quiet, although I have experimented with classical music. I also have trouble prioritizing, if my friends or a television program I’m interested in is calling.

My immediate goal, is to earn an Associates Degree in Graphic Design, making Dean’s List each semester. I will be signing up for the joint enrolment program with another Massachusetts school, but I will also apply at the art schools mentioned earlier. I would also love to take classes in England, as a base to explore Europe. I’ve also thought to continue my education in Southern California to see if I really want to live there. Doing Graphic Design for a film company would pay the bills, while building contacts for my budding Screenwriting career.

I’d like to win some kind of award where I would give a speech at some kind of reception. I don’t think I’ve ever written that statement before, but it’s such a common image in my daydreams that I can’t imagine it’s not a desire of mine. I have no idea what I’d say. I can’t remember the vision ever getting to the first, “Thank you.” It’s about everyone looking to me for what I’ve accomplished. Again, I think this is me craving praise.

I suppose my ultimate goal is to be successful working in film, music, or some other creative field, dreaming up screenplays and designs, supporting my parents with my talents. I’d like to be living in a sunny location like San Diego, sticking to a schedule of my own design.

But still, I fear that these goals, short term and long, will not be accomplished. That my ADD will eat away at my desire as it always has and I will again be stuck working at nothing jobs for nothing pay. I suppose the first thing to do is confirm the diagnosis and start treatment, but procrastination has delayed the start of that, too.

Works Cited

Hallowell, M.D., Edward M., and John J. Ratey, M.D. Driven to Distraction. New York: Touchstone, 1994.

What Cartoon Character Am I?

2008-09-18T21:22:00.003-04:00

Your Result is: Snoopy

Snoopy (from peanuts)is loyal and kind but makes smart remarks at times. He's adventurous and funny.

DO NOT DO THIS POLL. It's a simple, stupid poll, yet it demanded to know my birth date, which I gave as 1970, January 1st. Accurate enough yet still completely wrong.

Then I skipped through what had to be 40 offers for absolute garbage. I hope the bank whose address I gave doesn't mind the children's book offer I was forced to agree to.

If I was getting anything of value, then some of this maybe might have made some tiny bit of sense, but as it was just the stupid poll answer it was unbelievably retarded.

In fact, I changed my mind. I think everyone should do this poll and elect to receive every piece of nonsense they throw at you. Just give a fake name and a real address to a business that you hate. Don't be a jerk, though. Giving the real name of someone else and sending this crap to them would be harassment.

Instead, you need to waste the advertising company's money. The company trying to swindle this information out of you will become momentarily rich, but if enough companies tire of this tactic, they'll stop using it and we won't be bothered by it anymore.

I'd Say Yeah

2008-05-18T20:34:00.004-04:00

You Are 51% Feminine, 49% Masculine

You are in touch with both your feminine and masculine sides.
You're sensitive at the right times, but you don't let your emotions overwhelm you.

You're not a eunuch, just the best of both genders.

Are You Masculine or Feminine?

Nearly Nailed It

2008-05-18T20:17:00.006-04:00

You Are An INFP

The Idealist

You are creative with a great imagination, living in your own inner world.

Open minded and accepting, you strive for harmony in your important relationships.

It takes a long time for people to get to know you. You are hesitant to let people get close.

But once you care for someone, you do everything you can to help them grow and develop.

In love, you tend to have high (and often unrealistic) standards.

You are very sensitive. You tend to have intense feelings.

At work, you need to do something that expresses your personal values.

You would make an excellent writer, psychologist, or artist.

How you see yourself: Unselfish, empathetic, and spiritual

When other people don't get you, they see you as: Unrealistic, naive, and weak

Everything but the "spiritual" comment is spot on.

Take the quiz yourself

Ignore This Post

2008-04-12T20:32:00.008-04:00

I do.

Giving the Devil This Undo

2008-03-27T12:50:00.005-04:00

Above all, I believe in fairness. If the Republican Party wasn't hell-bent on domination I would fight for fair. I'd walk out into the open, unarmed and earnestly work for our mutual benefit. Unfortunately, I know better.

Knowing that Dick Cheney's an asshole makes his comments and actions at least understandable. He's still a fuck for being an asshole, though.

Still, in all fairness, he's being mildly misquoted with his "So?" response to ABC reporter Martha Raddatz's comment that 2/3's of Americans don't feel the war is worth fighting.

I first saw this on the Daily Show. Then I received an email in which Michael Moore said this

... A reporter from ABC News this week told Dick Cheney, in regards to Iraq, "two-thirds of Americans say it's not worth fighting." Cheney cut her off with a one word answer: "So?"

"So?" As in, "So what?" As in, "F*** you. I could care less."

I would like every American to see Cheney flip the virtual bird at the them, the American people. Click here and pass it around. Then ask yourself why we haven't risen up and thrown him and his puppet out of the White House. ....

To Michael Moore's credit, he did link to a clip of the interview from Think Progress.
This is a vital point:Never Blindly Believe Anyone. Especially people you trust. We all make mistakes, but parroting someone else's mistake is dangerous.

I noticed something wrong with Think Progress' transcription, though

CHENEY: On the security front, I think there’s a general consensus that we’ve made major progress, that the surge has worked. That’s been a major success.

RADDATZ: Two-third of Americans say it’s not worth fighting.

CHENEY: So?

RADDATZ So? You don’t care what the American people think?

CHENEY: No. I think you cannot be blown off course by the fluctuations in the public opinion polls.
(Emphasis Think Progress's)

Cheney didn't say, "No [Period: End of Sentence] I think ... ," confirming Raddatz's statement. He said, "No [Comma: Continuing] I think ... ," correcting her. The devil will always be in the details. This time, the details support the Devil.

This was enough for me to write a post. And wanting to back up my words with proof - and neatly tying in with my new fascination with YouTube - I went there to grab a clip to embed.

I wanted context, too. I wanted to kill any claims of misrepresentation by showing what ABC showed, not the snippet Think Progress showed me. Now I noticed something else: The background noise jumped up and down and words sounded clipped. The clip was chopped to hell.

Editing is necessary. Only a tiny fraction of what anybody says or does is actually interesting. The Sound Recordist and Editor, though, both should be fired. The edit was a total hack job. See/hear for yourself.

And now here's what actually was said -

THE VICE PRESIDENT: ... It's hard to go into a country that has never experienced democracy and expect to be able to flip a switch and have it turn overnight. But it is turning. They do have a democracy today. They have basic --

Q: Two-thirds of Americans say it was not worth fighting.

THE VICE PRESIDENT: They ought to go spend time, like you and I have, Martha. You know what's been happening in Iraq. You've been there as much as anybody. There has, in fact, been fundamental change and transformation, and improvement for the better. I think even you would admit that.

Q: Let me go back to the Americans. Two-thirds of Americans say it's not worth fighting, and they're looking at the value gain versus the cost in American lives, certainly, and Iraqi lives.

THE VICE PRESIDENT: So?

Q: So -- you don't care what the American people think?

THE VICE PRESIDENT: No, I think you cannot be blown off course by the fluctuations in the public opinion polls. Think about what would have happened if Abraham Lincoln had paid attention to polls, if they had had polls during the Civil War. He never would have succeeded if he hadn't had a clear objective, a vision for where he wanted to go, and he was willing to withstand the slings and arrows of the political wars in order to get there. And this President has been very courageous, very consistent, very determined to continue down the course we were on and to achieve our objective. And that's victory in Iraq, that's the establishment of a democracy where there's never been a democracy, it's the establishment of a regime that respects the rights and liberties of their people, as an ally for the United States in the war against terror, and as a positive force for change in the Middle East. That's a huge accomplishment.
Pulled from the White House's transcript because ABC had split the quote across two pages.

Out of context? A little, yes. Misrepresented? Hell no! Dick Cheney still comes across as an asshole. He should be cheneyed for the smirk, alone. He was, however, polite about it.

And this is what got to me. Moore said Cheney, "cut her off," remember. He didn't. In fact, Raddatz cut him off a moment before. Think Progress wasn't thinking, either. Their transcript implies the aired segment was continuous when clearly it wasn't.

Shit stinks all on its own. No effort is required to make it repugnant. Yet, they - ABC, Think Progress, and Michael Moore - all seem to have taken that extra, needless step.

ABC can be forgiven. They're just trying to keep you hooked so they can sell commercials. Think Progress could just be the reactionaries the Right paint them as. Maybe they can't help it.

Michael Moore, though? How many films has he made? Granted, he doesn't edit his movies but knows how films are made and put together. He knows better. He knew what he was doing. Now you do.

His letter is dated 5 days after the March 19th interview and 'though it's likely a coincidence, he sent it out the same day that Cheney gave a follow up interview to Radditz that ended with him asking us to believe that he's not that big of an asshole.

Like trying to shine shit.

Star Trek: Aaaaarrrrrrggghhh

2008-03-22T23:20:00.003-04:00

Again, no. Aaaaarrrrrrggghhh is not the title of the new Star Trek flick, either. It's the stupid way I've chosen to pronounce the Alternate Reality Game being used to promote it.

For the moment, you'll have to find the door yourself. Go to www . Star Trek Movie . com, wait for the red dot and click it. I'll share more after a bit more thought.

In the mean time, do bask in the glory of my triumph.

Supposedly, it's a corridor from the re-envisioned Enterprise.

I am not nearly the first to snag the image, but I dare say mine is by far the largest.

Star Trek XI: The Sickening

2008-03-21T19:28:00.008-04:00

No, that's not the name of the new Star Trek flick due out May 8th, 2009. The Sickening will by my expounding on it for the next 13 months.

I've just signed up to shill for Paramount, getting access to the noodly bits before the masses do. But since I, myself, avoid plot detail like the plague, 1) you will not learn more plot than you wanted to know, and 2) you will learn more production info than you ever wanted to know.

Further, as some film trailers reveal WAY too much, I may skip many of those, too. The YouTubed trailer below is safe to view, however. Here's the full list of available trailer formats and sizes.