Friday 5: Stickiness

1.What was the last song that stuck in your brain and wouldn’t go away?

Handlebars.....it's in my brain and it won't leave but I like it that way

2.What’s something that sticks around long after you wish it would leave?
Memories of ex-girlfriends...

3.To what use did you put your last sticky note?
When I was at work I'd use them all the time for sample numbers

4.When did you last have Pixy Stix?
At Aidan's birthday party and oh man are they excellent (for the record, Aidan is my buddy Alicia's 4 year old son)

5.What is something you are a stickler for?
I don't know I don't think I'm really a stickler for anything....

Friday 5 is as Friday 5 does...

1. What’s something really, really stupid you’ve done that could easily have resulted in your own death

My own death? Probably driving when I was really tired about a year or so ago....never a good idea.

2. What makes you feel stupid?

Anytime I go off on a little rant or tangent and it turns out the whole basis of my argument was flawed from the start.

3. What’s something that’s stupid in a very smart way?

Aqua Teen Hunger Force and Homestar Runner

4. What’s an example of a stupid idea working out in a way that solved a problem?

When I was looking for a place of my own I relied on someone who isn't exactly reliable on leaving her place and when she didn't I ended up with the place I have now at a far reduced rate, so I'd say everything worked out for the best.

5. There is apparently a brand of packaged popcorn called Smartfood. What might be found in the package labeled Stupidfood?

2 Fishbowls.....

Teenage? Check. Mutant? Check. Turles? Check. Ninja? Ninja...really?

Okay, before this post commences I would like to thank Miss Ashley Hoover (Listen to her at wjyy.com weeknights at 7 PM.....cheap plug) for the idea for this blog, even though she didn't know what can of worms she opened in my head.

The can of worms happened one night in college when my friend Danny and I were very bored and my roommate Joe was busy listening to his music. I had recently received the first six episodes of one of my favorite shows of all time: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. We decided to pull out some alcohol and watch all the episodes and analyze them with a critical mind, just to see if the show holds up.

Fortunately the show more than holds up despite the corniness of it...however in analyzing it, we realized how naive we were as youngsters. The first episode alone provides so many points of questioning that I would love to know how we bought it as kids. First off, the entire premise of the TMNT is a bit interesting and hard to swallow.

As Splinter explains their origin he tells April that "I knew the outside world would consider them freaks, so I trained them in the art of ninjitsu" (no I didn't need to turn on the DVD to get the exact quote, I'm just that cool/nerdy). Now the question I posed is why exactly would four walking, talking turtles knowing ninjitsu make them any less freaky to the outside world? I mean although they would be able to defend themselves, what other reason would Splinter have to teach them ninjitsu other than it was really the only skill he had? Keeping that in mind, why keep them in a big city atmosphere like New York in the first place? Wouldn't it be much more convenient to move them all to a place where at least there was a most hospitable life style for the turtles to acclimate themselves to?

There are a whole array of other questions I could ask about the turtles and their archnemesis Shredder. Such as how exactly do the turtles pay for pizza delivery? How does Shredder have cameras with perfect audio and video located on every street corner and even in the sewers of New York City, yet he still can't seem to find the turtles lair? With all the tunnels that the Technodrome and the transport modules have dug under the city, wouldn't there be long standing damage? Or how about the subway lines, wouldn't there be huge gaping holes in most of the lines?

I guess what I'm trying to get at by this very simple example, is to not believe everything you see on TV, no matter how pure you think it is. This could apply to the news, politics, drama seris, anything...just always remember to keep questioning and keep learning, to make yourself a better person. Now if you'll excuse me, tonight I dine on turtle soup.

Friday 5: Waste Not, Want Not?

1. What did you last replace batteries for?

My camera for the Yankee game I went to tonight, awesome seats despite the Yanks picking up an L (don't snicker too much Ashley)

2. What have you thrown away that you probably could have had repaired?

My last watch, just got a new one exactly like it...calculator watches ftw

3. Among items in your line of sight right now, what should probably be put in the trash?

My backstage pass to TNA that I was never able to use...

4. When did you last use disposable cutlery while dining in your house?

Oh wow.....haven't used it in a long time. I don't think I even use it when I order out.

5. Whose actions cause you to waste time you otherwise wouldn’t waste?

Probably the people who write out the friday5 questions each week. ;)

Silence is golden?

It's not often that I get inspiration for a blog from a Myspace survey, but that's what happened last night.

The question posed was what was the last word you said aloud?

Seems like an easy one right? Well not for someone who lives alone. Every time I see something like that I realize how little I talk out loud when I'm at home. I mean I still have loads of conversations with a bunch of friends and everything but 90% of them are done through the series of tubez known as the internet.

I'm not exactly sure how I feel about this seemingly lack of oral communication that seems to happen from time to time. I mean sure I could scream at video games or the television but it does kinda seem a bit odd because when you enunciate yourself aloud, you are usually looking for a response of some form and living alone, there is no one to fill that void.

Is this some form of saying that phone conversations have now become passe? Back when I was a little kid, anytime you wanted to talk to a friend or something like that you had to use the rotary dial phone and get the phone with the extra long cord and pull it into a room where no one else could hear your secret conversations (I'm really dating myself here I realize). But these days, you have so many forms of soundless communication. Texts messages, instant messaging services, twitter, even blogs have almost supplanted the subtle science of the spoken word.

I'm not sure if this has any cultural relevance to how the human family has evolved or anything like that...and I'd have time to think about it, but my phone is sending em twitters left and right so I guess I'll cut it off here for now.




......See what I did there?

Have a good week kids.

Friday 5: Let's go to the Movies!

In Citizen Kane, the main character’s last word before dying is “Rosebud,” which is discovered later to be the name of a favorite childhood sled. The idea is that this rich, powerful, hated man, in his last moment, finds himself thinking of happy, innocent times. If the film were about your life, what word might you utter in similar sentiment?

Wow, that's a tough call. I mean how does one who doesn't turn into an evil corrupt individual summarize innocence and happiness into one word especially if you still feel at least mostly that way now? I guess I'd have to go with something extremely random from my childhood that always makes me smile, how about "Technodrome."? Worst case scenario, I could always make up a word and then just have some people spend the rest of their lives trying to decipher it. That would be a lot of fun.

In Groundhog Day, the main character is forced to live the same day again and again until he has learned to love others and to love himself. If you found yourself in an endless loop, living one day repeatedly until you learned the lesson that was holding you back, what would that lesson be?

Sweep the leg.

In Freaky Friday, a mother and daughter who have difficulty understanding each other find themselves each living the other’s life (occupying the other’s body and everything!). If this were to happen to you for similar reasons, whose body would you wake up in?

Anyone else's shoes? Derek Jeter....without the VD.

In Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones has to jump into an underground room filmed with the one thing that freaks him out: snakes. “Why did it have to be snakes?” he asks. If the movie were about you, what would you see in the underground room?

Klan members

In Sideways, the main character is asked to explain his love for wine made from a certain grape. As he describes the grape, we realizes he is also describing himself, saying that it must be carefully tended and that it is easily damaged. If the film were about you, what passion (hobby, food, collectible, or activity, for example) would you describe and how would you describe it so that you were also describing yourself?

I'm gonna say professional wrestling. It's certainly a passion of mine, and it really encompasses everything. At times wrestling can get stale, seeing the same matches over and over again can get boring much like life sometimes. But there is also passion, drama, excitement, horror, almost any human emotion you can feel can be felt in wrestling. It's the male version of a soap opera with a lot of athleticism thrown into the mix. At times you can feel like the Macho Man when he married Miss Elizabeth at Summerslam 92, or you can feel like Chris Jericho at Wrestlemania 20 when Trish made out with Christian. Sometimes you can be as noble as John Cena, or as vicious as Kane when his mask was removed. Any true fan of wrestling can parallel any aspect of their life with some storyline or character or gimmick in pro wrestling. And apparently I can too.

YOOOOOOU'RE FIIIIIIIIRED!!!

Fired.

Let go.

Released.

Canned.

Sacked.

Outsourced.

We wish you luck in your future endeavors.


Well whichever term you like, that's my current state right now.

It's an odd feeling, a feeling that I personally have never experienced in my life before, and a state in my life that I haven't been in roughly since I was in 9th Grade. I am unemployed with no discernible sense of income for the time being. When I was in 9th Grade I started my first ever job: working at Toys R Us. It seemed like the perfect fit at the time. It was a part time gig, got to essentially make my own hours, and I got a sweet discount and was able to get all the prime toys. I got to experience a lot, got to work with kids and make them laugh, and best of all, it provided immediate job satisfaction. The look of joy on a parent's or child's face when you got them exactly what toy they were looking for made that job worth every minimum wage dollar, and it was the reason I would go back during college specifically during the Christmas rush.

And my second job was another part time deal that I did during off hours at Toys R Us which was tutoring some of my friends during high school. I was lucky enough to be the guy that could (at least seemingly) fit in with any clique in high school, so when the cheerleaders needed help in math, chem, bio, basically any subject I was the one they turned to for help. Needless to say, that wasn't too bad of a gig either.

College was quite kind to me career wise as well. Sure, I could have just as easily gone back to Toys R Us but I started to pad my resume at IBM with several internships. I went back and forth between the two IBM site back home and made some good money from it. But to be honest, none of the careers there really seemed to click with me. I'm not sure if I just didn't get enough time to really get to work there considering each session was only three months, or if I was simply distracted for the most part. But I was only mildly peaked by two out of the four internships there.

Right after I graduated college, I had another internship for IBM, but more than that I also had another job coming my way that I had a lot of fun with. I became the organic lab assistant for my Alma mater Manhattan College. Now granted, I was just starting my graduate school so this job wasn't going to be anything permanent but it enabled me to stay busy, learn more about chemistry and make a lot of really cool friends. The best part about that job was being able to actually help kids learn organic chemistry. And a lot of the kids there were really cool just to hang out with and chill, many of them I'm still friends with today. And they all say that the organic classes when I was there they learned a lot more and had a lot more fun at the same time, and in the long run isn't that really what it's all about.

As my grad classes neared their conclusion I knew the inevitable would come. I had to eventually find a job. So, the interview process began. My classic suit was donned over and over again for interviews, career fairs, and other such related things in order to sell my services to any company out there that would take me. I finally landed at Wyeth Pharmaceuticals. I never saw myself in pharmaceuticals before, but then again I never really knew what kind of profession I saw myself in. But when I got there, I made a whole bunch of really good friends and I gained a lot of experience both internally about the field and about myself. They helped me pay off for most of the rest of my Master's degree and I was able to get a lot of good knowledge from everyone there. And then this past Monday, I was brought in to my second line manager's office and promptly told to pack my shit and go.

And now here I sit.

Basically with nothing to do for work for the first time since 9th grade.

And part of me really wants to get right back out there and get interviewing again and to find something bigger and better.

But for now...I am sort of looking forward to just taking a well-deserved break.