• when i make my bed, the pillows must be evenly centered on the bed.
• thanks to an ex, i now check to see that my alarm is set–at least twice.
• the coffee table must be evenly lined atop the rug, which must then be evenly lined up against the couch.
• i count my steps, more than i care to admit.
• i separate the colors of food items: tri-color tortellini, m&m’s, skittles, etc.
• i organize displays while waiting in line at the grocery store.

yes, i really do these things. yes, i’m sure there are many more. and yes, it’s OK to laugh.

i often joke about my idiosyncrasies as part of a mild case of OCD, but recognize what i consider neurotic is merely a fly on a drop in the bucket compared to the sickness shared by millions of americans. but when i stood in line at border’s on saturday, waiting to pay for my mound of magazines and push (i might as well read the book while i wait for precious to make it to upstate new york), a special little book caught my eye: i am neurotic (and so are you). why i didn’t add it to my stack, i’ll never know. but there’s always tomorrow. and there’s always the web site.

i am neurotic (and so are you)

wait, what? there’s a web site devoted to sharing our neuroses with the interwebs, much like post secret* and group hug have already done so well? yep. well, shit. just add it to the list of awesome i had no clue existed.

*great story about post secret and its creator frank warren: when he spoke at the SXSW interactive conference in 2008, a former co-worker/buddy of mine, anthony armendariz, from dallas managed to finagle his way on stage (i’m still unclear how) where he proposed to his lady. adorable, i know.

I was browsing videos tonight and was reminded of some incredible works that I had seen a while back.  I wanted to share these videos with you all now, in case you hadn’t seen them, because they are truly captivating.

The videos I’m talking about are the Midnight Sun episodes created by YouTube user DarkSoulVamp.

When I originally found out about Midnight Sun, I didn’t want to read it, I wanted to hold out on the hope that SM would finish it and we would have a beautiful print copy to cherish forever. Well…I gave in over the summer.

Clickity click for more analysis and video!

We all know how intoxicating the Twilight series is. The story, the characters, the way it is written…it is absolutely addicting. Midnight Sun is just as riveting, and after reading the Twilight Saga, it is absolutely breath-taking. We get to go inside our beloved Edward’s head, and ohhh boy is it a funky place. Through Bella’s eyes we only see that beautiful angel, that protector, that tortured soul… In Midnight Sun, Edward is kind of…well…scary.
It is absolutely fascinating.

The story, obviously, wasn’t completed, and it only goes a little ways into the Twilight storyline, but man was it an addicting read.

If any of you haven’t read it…well, I recommend it. If you’ve held out, like I had, because you want the real thing, I understand that. But it is an incredible thing to get into Edward’s head, and I’m only sad now that it isn’t (and maybe never will be) complete.

So, some time ago, I stumbled upon DarkSoulVamp’s videos. And, actually, I just realized there are a lot more than I knew about, and you can bet your biscuits I’m going to watch them all upon completing this post

What DarkSoulVamp did was take video clips and masterfully integrate them to tell the story of Midnight Sun, with exerpts from the story. The videos are put to music that fits so perfectly and really gets your heart racing. The videos play like, well, a movie, and I absolutely got an adrenaline rush just watching them. DarkSoulVamp has some serious talent.

So I just wanted to share those videos with you,
because they really just blow me away.
Here is episode 1 (of 6!!)…give them a looksee! Let me know what ya think!

Midnight Sun really made me realize something, which I already knew but…let’s say it drove it home.  Rob channels Edward so well.  I absolutely admire what Rob does for the character of Edward…all those odd facial expressions he joked about in the DVD audio commentary…well, you may laugh Rob,
but they are perfect. 

Edward has so much going on in that head of his, his face is going to show that sometimes.  I know Rob got to read MS to prepare his character for Twilight, and I really feel like he took it to heart.  I’ve seen many interviews where I’ve just be so hot impressed with the way Rob describes Edward’s character.  He’s really given it a lot of thought and dedication and I think he really gets it.  He is a fantastic Edward.

People that don’t read the books don’t get this.  If they are only seeing the movies, they are missing so much. One of my favorite things about the movies is the cast, because they do such an amazing job portraying the characters from the books.  They are all just phenomenal.

*gives cast a hug, slips Rob her phone number*

So, readers, have you read Midnight Sun?  What’s your favorite thing about Midnight Sun; what’s your favorite part?  What do you think about Rob as Edward (like I have to ask…) and the rest of the cast?

After three messy days of weekend and bank holiday japery the Who’s Jack team have managed to crawl slowly back into work and attempted to raise their fingers to type only to bring them crashing down on top of an empty desk as we realised that what happened on Friday night wasn’t a dream and we were in fact ROBBED!

Yes, the Who’s Jack offices are now looking conspicuously bare as whichever bunch of cunts it was that raided seven of the offices on our floor made off with cameras, microphones, two laptops and probably more but we are still in too much shock right now to do any more looking.

I’m sure there will be more on this in the time to come, probably from an angry John as he had most of his life taken. Rest assured that the resulting outpouring of fury will find it’s way into October’s ‘Shit of the Month’ for your delectation.

However, it hasn’t been all bad this weekend, Who’s Jack was represented at most of the major festivals and events this weekend including Get Loaded in the Park and the Notting Hill Carnival. With this in mind, and to cheer us up, I thought I would go round the office and find out what everyone got up to:

John:

“I danced with Tom, there was some grinding going on. I got drunk with Tom… but nothing else with Tom. I busted out the ‘Jimmy Shuffle’ but not the ‘Bendy Pencil’ (both some of John’s amazing dance repertoire). I went to the country and was going to go shooting but didn’t. I got drunk in a very good pub.”

Tom:

“I went to G.A.Y on Friday with gays, went to a boat party with gays. I came into work on Saturday as a shell of a man. I met the most beautiful gay in the world and he showed me his abs.”

Lu:

“I feel a lot sick.” (This was confirmed by her turning down a group hug with me, Tom and John… sick indeed!)

Firgas:

“Went to Get Loaded, got it in the ear from a client. Went to Carnival, spent 45 minutes with someone as they were whiteying in a tent.”

In addition to these insightful quotes from all, I also know that Tom may or may not have been wearing a vest-top yesterday at Carnival and John also met the best dancers he has ever seen in his life. I meanwhile was in Essex visiting my girlfriends family and their new and extremely cute Border Collie puppy, Finn (which also means I have a water-tight alibi!)

Anyway, I hope everyone else had an exciting but not too eventful Bank Holiday weekend and guess what?!

It’s already Wednesday tomorrow!

Yesterday I spent much of my day with an amazing group of women.  There were 9 of us, ranging from 30 to 67 ( happy birthday Grace!)  We meet quarterly as part of our work in violence against women.  Writer, college professor, criminal justice professionals,  elder abuse expert,  nonprofit director, counselor, consultant.  We’re straight, gay, married, single, divorced. 

We gather at 11 AM and spend time catching up on each other’s lives.  Everyone knows the personal as well as the professional.  Some of these women have been at this work for many many years and have supported and mentored each other through tough times.  The business part of meeting can and does get sidetracked frequently- I’m frequently the culprit. We get off track; there is always at least one conversation about sex. Always! (I noted yesterday that we went for 80 minutes before the topic came up) That had to be remedied so I told my condom story at lunch!   Yet, we talk very seriously about work being conducted around the state, the country, the nation.  One idea can lead to another- we subtly challenge each other to think with different perspectives.

There are many groups I belong to and meetings I attend as part of my job.  Obligations, advancing of the mission, seeking to strengthen collaborative bonds.  All are important but few are nourishing. And nothing at all like this wise, wild group of women.  I love being with this group of women for many reasons.  I feel energized by their passion and I feel a camaraderie with these women, their power and their spirit.  They aren’t just doing a job, they’re passionate about what they do.  They live their vision of changing the world, making it a safer place for women and children.  Strength, passion, wisdom, experience, humor and compassion rule the day. I’m honored to call them colleagues and friends.

Consemnez in condica grupei MICI, azi am muncit mai mult decat ele care dorm probabil acum, in loc sa stea sa citeasca cum le scriu eu de bine.

E trecut de 2 dar noi nu am postat nimic pe blog, poate pentru ca ne simtim usurati ca am scapat de stresul prezentarii, care after all nu a fost asa un stres, a fost un moment foarte bun de a avea in fata oameni mari ca Hortensia Nastase, Ioana Manoiu, Sorana Savu, Bogdan Olteanu si inca multi specialisti si oameni de mare succes ai PR-ului romanesc. Sau de ce nu am mai postat nimic pe blog? Poate pentru ca nu am trecut de euforia de moment cand am simtit ca sala chiar ne asculta campania in care noi (grupa MICA si BCR) am investit atata suflet si culoare. Nu vrem sa distorsionam senzatiile si remarcile profund subiectivizate tocmai de aceasta euforie ca ne-am facut macar ascultate.

Dar acum ne-am revenit si putem sa spunem cu mana pe inima ca am avut niste emotii care faceau pe langa sufletul nostru un al doilea strat de suflet care parea ca se evapora pe masura ce ne apropiam de momentul prezentarii.

La panoul lucrurilor memorabile care ni s-au intamplat in Casa Poporului putem pune, chiar daca vom fi acuzate de lipsa de modestie, Povestea Plastilinei de Carrefour de 2, 3 lei pachetul, ajunsa in Casa Poporului si careia i s-a violat intimitatea cu pagina de revista glossy in cel mai inuman mod cu putinta. Povestea incepe o data cu cristalizarea ideii de card din plastilina, merge cateva ore in noapte cand se finalizeaza procesul de transformare a plastilinei in bici-respectiv in card de credit, a se retine, si continua cu trecerea ei prin tunelul misterelor dezvaluite de camera color, cu ultraviolete, infrarosii si alte cuvinte lungi. Cum se finalizeaza? Cu un discurs retoric de mare impact la nivel afectiv adresat lu’ nenea portar de la Palatul Parlamentului ca promitem ca plastilina sa ajunga in mana membrilor juriului si nicaieri altundeva, daca si numai daca aceea era plastilina si nu o alta substanta nociva sau producatoare de explozii, implozii si iesiri pe scara de incendiu.

Si dupa emotiile de prezentare a urmat o sala zambareata catre Branzan si Irina, o viitoare presedinta a tarii, sau profesoara, sau publicitara (Irina gandeste in imagini), group hug cu fetele noastre de la BCR care ne-au ajutat enorm de mult si ne-au primit in familia lor faina si unita, si apoi pronosticuri si voturi pentru si impotriva.

Asa a aratat prezentarea publica a campaniei noastre. A fost un succes din punctul nostru si al BCR-ului de vedere. Cat despre celelalte puncte de vedere, asteptam sa le contrazicem sau sa le confirmam, dupa caz. In noaptea asta grupa MICA stinge becul!

First of all, I’d like to express a heart felt “Thanks!” to everyone involved in the Blogger’s Appreciation Day, which turned in to a week of being absolutely spoiled with gifts from some of SL’s Best Designers & Creators.

The group has turned in to an amazing network with almost constant chatting, and camaraderie.    I have added many of their blogs to my blog roll, with many more to be added – so please be sure to have a look!

It truly is an honor and a privilege to be included in a group of such fantastic people, many of whom I look up to.

I look forward to getting to know and developing my own personal friendships with these folks.

Again, thank you everyone!

Though this is more like “GOT WOOD” amplified.  Levitra times 6.

Real or photoshop?   

Damn, this is a great picture, but it’s a ‘bmp’ and WordPress won’t upload it.  Sorry gang.. it’s like Stonehenge in a fantasy world of horny women… sci-fi with a twist. Wait.. maybe i can find it again and reload?  brb

Can’t find it… Over 150,000 images under the search for penis, wood ( which is where I found it the first time)  shit!

so, a little something for the ladies to gaze at this morning.. and tonight when I have more time I will search again for this picture.. or get someone to give me technical advice on converting stone penises into a more useful format! tee hee  This photo doesn’t disappoint!

By DAVID DIZON / abs-cbnNEWS.com | 02/02/2009 1:20 PM

It’s the question that keeps bugging Eraserheads fans: Why, oh why, didn’t the Heads do a group hug during their shortened August 30 reunion concert?

Last Thursday, more than 100 (mostly female) broadcom students from the University of the Philippines got the answers during a forum with Rock Ed Philippines founder Gang Badoy.

Before her presentation on the changing media landscape, Badoy told the students that she had the cell phone numbers of all four of the Heads in her mobile and said that she could ask them any question via text.

She warned, however, that only Ely Buendia (guitars and vocals), Buddy Zabala (bass) and Raimund Marasigan (drums) would most likely answer “because Marcus (Adoro) would still be asleep.”

After going through several suggestions on what to ask, one student settled on: “Why didn’t the Heads do a group hug during the reunion concert?”

Ely, the enigmatic E-Heads frontman, was the first to answer: “Antagal naman nun. They took that long to ask just that?”

A few minutes later, Raimund would send his own answer, saying: “Because we’re not that close. I want another question.”

Buddy was the last person to send his answer. He said: “We were never that kind of band given to public displays of closeness.” He also said that the Eraserheads were never the type of band that would give in to demands.

The August 30 concert, which was the E-heads first together since 2002, was cut short after Buendia was rushed to the hospital after complaining of chest pains. Before it ended, fans urged the Heads to do a group hug after noting the lack of interaction among the band members.

A second concert, titled “The Final Set”, has been scheduled on March 7 at SM Mall of Asia. MTV Philippines and Smart Communications will sponsor the event.

as of 02/02/2009 1:20 PM

In my ever-growing bloggy network, I’m amazed by the range and number of people that I find – or who find me.

Who knows if in person, we’d be friends? But here, where we share so much of ourselves… in an environment that should by all rights, be cold and impersonal (and is anything but)… where I share things that matter and/or pain me the most… I’ve found a number of wonderful friends.

Unfortunately, there’s been a bit of a disturbance in the force, so to speak.

By that I mean, a number of my blog friends are having a something of a hard time right now. Quite a few, actually.

So this post is a little shout out love to some of the peeps I read regularly – who are currently in dire straits. All of the following could do with a little cheering on from the sidelines.

(If you feel so inclined, leave a message of support on their blogs. I know they’ll appreciate it.)

Clinically Clueless – otherwise known as ‘CC’ – recently had herself admitted to hospital for treatment as she hasn’t been doing so well. CC has survived so much, and she’s still fighting hard.

Tricia – here’s another woman who’s been through the wringer a few times. She recently posted a laundry list of the trauma she’s been through in her life. I’m sure its not all of it from what I know about her already. But its more than one person should bear.

Dano – lately she’s been struggling a little. But I’m very proud that her art will be included in an exhibition in her local area. Hopefully she posts some pictures!

Chunks of Reality – she’s had a lot of trouble just getting out of bed lately, and has recently gone for a job interview that sounds really great. Good luck, Chunks!

Michelle Tackaberry – aint feeling so hot about her messed up school schedule. There are other paths though, and I’m sure something will turn up soon to help you on the way to writing that book you’d like to finish!

Jaliya – who also had herself admitted to hospital to combat her depression and PTSD in recent times. She’s got internet access there, so she’s still posting occaisionally.

Immi – it wasn’t enough to be dealing with mental health issues. Some f*#ker had to go and smash into Immi’s car – (with her inside). Yikes! Physical pain, while it does heal eventually… freakin’ sucks!

Victor – was recently retrenched from a place he’s been working most of his life. And now, he’s at a cross-roads with no idea which path leads forward the best. I’m convinced all will be revealed for him.

If you should also be on this list – my apologies. In fact, I’m sure this list isn’t complete. Mostly coz of my terrible bullet-hole ridden memory… which ain’t no friend o’ mine.

If there’s one thing my Guru has said that I’ll never, ever forget, it’s this:

No one gets enlightened on their own

Recently, I was discussing with a friend the sultry attractiveness of life as a hermit. In some ways, it’s totally my idea of a good time. However, I do get that community is very important.

And that’s what we have here, in the blogosphere. Community, of a sort.

There are plenty of other blogs I read and comment on from time to time. I consider y’all a part of my lil blog community here, too…

A little message, from me to you

Even when you think you’re on your own. Know that you’re not… (I need to remember this as much as anyone).

Your thoughts of self-hatred, sadness, alienation, pain, sadness, anger, distress, anxiety – and more – plus any positive feelings you might be having… you’re not experiencing these without others who can relate. Who’ve been there too.

Pick a person in the crowd – you’re gonna find that almost everyone has experienced pain, loss, grief of some kind.

None of us are so different than the masses, even when one of those masses in a huge all-wheel drive car, and you’re on a push bike and the dude in the car thinks its a good idea to monster and yell abuse at you for no good reason…

Well, that driver? He too, suffers in some way. And if he could get over his anger, his need to defend against others so much… maybe he’d see he doesn’t need to give a poor ol’ cyclist a hard time. Or be so damn angry in the first place!

This funny old world we live in, where for some, its easier to reach out to complete strangers online than it is to check if your neighbour’s doing okay… all we really crave, each of us, is… Friendship. Love. Acceptance. Support.

To all of my friends: know that you have mine.

~Svasti

Finally! My list of my “must-have” albums for this year is now complete. Last week, I unexpectedly saw the limited edition of Jason Mraz’s “We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things” in SM Makati. I am happy that I did not buy it online because it will cost me twice the price.

And yesterday was the much awaited day for all The CompanY fans like me because they already launched their album, “Group Hug”, The CompanY’s tribute to all legendary groups who left their marks in the music history.

Standing in the bus from Cavite to Pasay, and walking from Robinson’s Galleria to Shangrila Mall were all worth it… I arrived at Shangrila at exactly 6:00pm that’s why I have to stand up at the back already. Filharmonika at Sir Gerard Salonga came in first at the stage, where they played a medley of traditional Christmas songs. Yah, Christmas was in the air last night. Later on, The CompanY entered singing an impressive cover of The Beatles’ “Magical Mystery Tour”. They sang songs from their new album. And if I have to describe my feeling while they are performing… it’s “nakakakilabot… nakakatinding balahibo… sobrang galing”.

I waited for them to sing other songs included in the album, most especially “Bohemian Rhapsody”. I have known the song when “The Fugees” had a cover of the song. I just realized recently that this is a hard song to do. “Side A” has a good version of this song too. When I read that The CompanY did their own version of the song too, I knew it that they can do it… and I wasn’t wrong. It was a job well done!

They also sang the only original track from the album, “Nandito Pa Rin Tayo”. It’s such a nice song. I somehow get emotional whenever I hear this song. It’s perfect.

“Group Hug” is an audio/video CD. It contains “Nandito Pa Rin Tayo” music video, directed by Chuck Guttierez. The video was nicely done. And as they say, it is the best The CompanY’s video to date. Here is the track list of “Group Hug”.

1. Nandito Pa Rin Tayo (Music Video)
2. Magical Mystery Tour (The Beatles)
3. Blame It On The Boogie (The Jacksons)
4. You’re The One/I Just Fall In Love Again (Carpenters)
5. Play That Funky Music/Superstition (Wild Cherry)
6. Bohemian Rhapsody (Queen)
7. Should We Carry On (Airplay)
8. More Today Than Yesterday (Spiral Staircase)
9. Take A Chance On Me (Abba)
10. Boogie Wonderland (Earth, Wind And Fire)
11. Walk In Love (The Manhattan Transfer)
12. All Apologies (Nirvana)
13. Nandito Pa Rin Tayo
14. Nandito Pa Rin Tayo (Minus One)

What makes this album a “must-have” album? It’s The CompanY, plus Filharmonika and Gerard Salonga as the conductor. Do I still need to explain? Haha.

After the show was the “meet and greet” portion. I did not manage to get good pictures huhu, but I had my CD autographed by all the members of the group.

Here is a nice story…

Ms. Annie signed my CD, she asked for my name and the spelling. I thought she heard me right, till I saw that she wrote, “Rowenn”. Hahaha. Ms. Sweet, Ms. Cecille, and Mr. Jay signed too. And what an honor for me to have Gerard Salonga signed too!

The last one to sign my CD was Sir Moy Ortiz. While I was in the line, I was thinking if I have to introduce myself “Hi Sir, I am your friend in Multiply, etc”. But I did not bother to tell him so.

He looked at me then he stood and said to me, “Kilala kita!!! Hmmm… Row….”, and I said “Rowell”. He said, “Yah, Rowell! Ka-Multiply! Finally! How was it? Did you like the show? Thank you for coming!”. I forgot what I answered him. Haha. But the feeling is so nice for a Moy Ortiz to know someone like me. Hehe. These guys are really down to earth.

The much awaited new album (Group Hug) from The CompanY is about to be released on Sunday, December 14, 2008. And I hope I can go to the album launch.

The carrier single of the album is “Nandito Pa Rin Tayo”. It’s a nice and touching song. I hope I can use it soon here in my blog. Anyway, here is the very nice music video of  the song.

I’ve been a regular visitor of record bars recently because I am wondering if the special limited edition of Jason Mraz’s “We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things” will be released here in the Philippines. The special edition includes a CD of a compilation of We Sing EP, We Dance EP, and We Steal Things EP, and a DVD of Jason Mraz’s concert. OMG, I am mrazmerized again. I want to get a copy of the limited edition.

As I said, I’ve been regularly in record bars lately and I noticed that the number of newly released and soon to be released albums this holiday season is overwhelming. (Correct my grammar if I am wrong!)

Let’s start with Christmas albums… Sitti has released her Christmas album entitled “Ngayong Pasko”. In my opinion, she has released this album a little late because it seems like Bossa Nova wasn’t a big hit this 2008, unlike 2006 and 2007.

A Christmas version of Cool Sexy Jazz has been released too – it’s Cool Sexy Christmas. And if we are familiar with this Jazz series, we will know at first that this album contains “jazz” Christmas songs. They also have a special edition of Cool Sexy Jazz 1 & 2 with a planner for 2009. Quite interesting but I will not buy it.

If there are two Christmas albums this year that I might suggest, these are Lani Misalucha’s “The Gift of Christmas”, and Jay-R’s “Holiday Of Love”. I like Lani’s renditions of “Merry Christmas Darling”, and “When A Child Was Born”. I can say that Jay-R made the right choice when he did “Soul In Love”. Yeah, he is the RnB prince of the Philippines, but he is good in singing soul… with a twist of RnB. Well, at least he found his edge again. Holiday of Love contains Christmas songs with soul and RnB beat.

Regine Velasquez finally returned with a brand new album called “Low Key”. As the name suggests these are songs that “do not require Regine to put much effort.” Haha. Well, it’s quite interesting to hear these kinds of songs from Regine. Some of us might not like her when she’s hosting or acting, but many of us will agree that you won’t miss to watch her sing. Regine is Regine. I am not her fan but I do listen to her songs. Obviously, with the packaging of her album, she is still there on the top. I hope she will have good albums too, like Lani Misalucha, after she made an album under Universal Records. My favorite from the album is the song “Never Be The Same”.

Kyla has a new album again called, “Heart To Heart”.

If there is one OPM album I am really waiting for right now, it is The CompanY’s “Group Hug”, set to be released this December. It is a revival album, and I am sure that The CompanY will put a different style with the songs in the album which are good to the ears. I am really excited for this one.

Sony Music has a big line up of new albums this season. Some of them are new albums from Beyonce and Britney Spears. Christina Aguilera has released a greatest hits album. And I would agree that Christina really made hits in the last decade. American Idol Season 7’s final 2 contestants David Archuleta and David Cook both released their debut albums recently.

Woah, it is really an interesting sound tripping season! Go ahead and pick your choices and have a happy holidays with these music!

I know! I know! Everybody, including myself, is sick of all the election hooplah and crap. But, I got this in my email and it seriously reminds me of a lot of people around here.  I don’t know what it’s like in y’alls neck of the boogerwoods, but J-O-B-S is an ugly 4 letter word in the vocabulary of generational welfare families in these parts. Then, maybe, they are the smart ones (not!). Free health care, free dental care, clothing vouchers, food stamps, Thanksgiving/Chirstmas free dinners and food baskets, Shop With A Cop, Toys for Tots, Head Start perks for parents, and so on and so on and……

Hmmmm…..looking at all that written in black and white makes me rethink working and being self-effecient. I wonder where do I sign up?

In other news…..I came across a blog today that is written by two senior ladies who have been friends for 60 years. It’s very opionated and I don’t agree with everything that they write. But, I have added it to my blogroll because I admire the feistiness and gusto used in writing the blog. I’ve added it to my blogroll….Margaret and Helen.

Let’s see….hmmm…what else do I want to write about?

Oh….Vinyl Villager is competing with another blog on BlogExplosion. Go vote for him! He’s da bombdiggity!

And, Dear Allison, another really great blogger gave me an award which I really do appreciate. Here’s where I admit that I am a stooge when it comes to putting stuff in my side-bar. I really wanted to dispaly it and Vinyl V has offered to help me. I’m gonna take him up on it just as soon as I get some extra time. For now, I’ll just show it right here to y’all……

Go check out her blog. She’s great!!!! She writes about stuff that hits close to home for me.

I’ve really been busy lately and have been neglecting my blogging buddies. So, here’s a shout out to Big Hair Envy,  Moonbeam McQueen, Note To Self, saltedlithium, Girl From the Ghetto, and The Incredible Woody. These are not all of my buddies but frankly, I’m getting tired and it’s time to curl up on the couch in front of the television. If I have not listed you, friend, don’t worry. I promise to list you next time.

Were it not for the people that I’ve mentioned, I probably would have quit blogging by now. They do not realize (and I’ve never taken the time to tell them until now) how much encouragement they are to me. Their comments are funny, interesting, and informative. I am always pleasantly surprised to find my faithful blogging friends have commented on my posts. Even when I think the post is pretty much a piece of crap.

Here is where I was going to post a pic of a group hug but hold-the-phone-Hilda!!!!! I found something much better…….Group Hug.

From Group Hug……..

Click for more photos

“Group hug!” is an exclamation usually heard from the cute and alien-like mascots, the TELETUBBIES. Though it may sound absurd, Tinky-winky, Lala, Dipsy and Po say this to show love and care. They also give a feeling of togetherness whenever they do this.

A very sweet and warm episode had past last Sunday, October 26, 2008 and, like the previous KS gathering, many have been there to show LOVE with the grace of the Lord. We sang praises to our Lord and we made sure our neighbors heard it! “Yes Lord, Yes Lord Yes Yes Lord” was all over the hall. After prayer and praise and some news, we had a very tiring game at the court. Everyone was blindfolded and was grouped into sets of four. We thought it was just a typical “group yourselves according to animal sound” game but it was actually more. After finding our group mates using animal sounds, we were handed a rope and was instructed to make a rectangle out of that while blind folded. It took a lot of effort and strategy. Going back to our episode’s real essence, we were doing this to show oneness or unity among the groups. There were no winners. We just had to finish the task at hand.

At snack time we had buns stuffed with ground beef. After that, the most important part of “Pass d’ Msg”, we had a little inspirational talk from our beloved pastor, Ptr. Benjie. He started with a story of a cone and how it was conceptualized. We ordinarily would not spare a minute to think of how an ice cream cone was developed. That was probably why many were fascinated about it. Making the long story short, the cone maker benefits the ice cream maker and vice versa. We all need each other. Take it or leave it! The fingers need the hand. The hand needs the arm. The arm needs the shoulders. Simple yet meaningful. We will be more functional and effective if we could just be like those four funny cute aliens. KS, let’s have a group hug!

One of the latest secrets on Post Secret. I'm really looking forward to the Office Season 5 premiere!

–> If you’re an avid reader, you might like Book Mooch. It’s essentially a book swap, with a directory of books available to swap. Either request a book or post a book that you are finished reading. The site works on a points system, so that people can tell who is serious about swapping and who isn’t. As far as I can tell, there are a lot of great books available on the site.

–> My old favorite site, Group Hug, is back up and running! This makes me very excited. Group Hug is an anonymous confession site, similar to Post Secret. However, instead of mailing in a postcard, you just type your confession to the site (as many different ones as you want), and it will show up eventually on the site. I find reading through the confessions to be rather therapeutic (as well as confessing a few myself).

–> On the same vein as Group Hug and Post Secret, there is One Sentence. I don’t know why, but I am drawn to anonymous sites like these. I feel the honesty & candor of people using the sites is pretty inspirational. This site in particular lets people tell a story about their lives using one sentence. Here are a few of my favorites (taken from the front page):

Hope you all had a great weekend!

After the unnecessary roadtrip into the realm of crunchy bedsheets on Tuesday and Wednesday, we were dropped into a strategic planning meeting. It was held off-site on Thursday. Knowing where you’re going is important, and a critical part of my job is to guide investment strategy decisions.

Under a prior organizational regime, this was a vile, evil multi-functional process, consisting of two consecutive weeks of Power Point Poisoning, no written documentation, confused and often conflicting purpose (including annual data-collection, program execution evaluation in addition to strategic planning). Dozens of individuals were derailed from actual work to support “chart making” – both the compulsory charts and those used in the freestyle portion of the competition* for resources.

The architect of the new, improved process is none other than the Chief of Operations – and organizational goose slayer – my friend T.  Since the new process is streamlined and focused, it is tying up far fewer human resources. There were many people** who were apparently miffed at being “left out” of the process.

The day before the big meeting, T shipped an e-mail with logistics for the planning session to those involved.  With more patience than i could muster on my best day – soaking in a tub with vicodin and chocolate - he included the following:

ATTENDEES – Division Chiefs, Portfolio Managers, and a few staff members are the only invitees to the Thursday, 8 May meeting. The Portfolio Managers and a few additional players might be asked to come in on Friday, 9 May. Div Chiefs/Deputies, please be sure other division personnel (such as your Technical Directors, Branch Technical Advisors) know that while they are still cherished members of our team they are not needed for this particular meeting.

* i’ve considered sponsoring an annual event known as “The Program Management Olympics” — and one key challenge is to present information to an unknown audience, using materials prepared by someone else… No doubt, i’d be a gold medalist…

** These are, by the way, many of the same people who whined endlessly about having to do the old process…

Photo: scotersen, flickr

Last fall, Bill Woods, head of the Environmental Studies program, told me about a class called Media and the Environment. The class was going to be taught by Simran Sethi, who had worked with TreeHugger.com, NBC and everyone else, and that it was going to be really interesting, but a lot of work. I told him I was already enrolled.

Bill was right about everything. To make time to blog every week was difficult, but the schedule was nice. It taught me regularity and timeliness. Plus, the chance to blog about green tech for class credit only happens every so often. I strengthened my writing with the great tips I received: be personal, lead readers on, fact check, get out in the field, don’t be afraid to use humor, and so on; all of which are fairly self-evident, but brought to light by the most insightful and influential group of guests I’ve ever had in a class.

I learned about the systems of bees and ants, I looked up close at my trash, reaffirmed my hatred of photo-degrading plastic bottles, and learned on multiple occasions the stark differences between scientists and journalists in their ability to communicate. I still get a headache thinking about those CReSIS graphs. I learned through photo, video, writing, audio, but not by paper. I took from Simran and our guests, but learned equally from my classmates.

That was awfully, awfully gushy and apologize for that. I hope I wasn’t the only one excited about this class from start to finish.

Thanks, everyone.

Bobby

My friend Ronojoy, from the Real Gold crew, just sent me that link:

From the founder of the cool hunter comes dear-god.net; a startlingly new concept of spirituality where people from all over the planet reveal their innermost hopes and fears in the form of prayers to god.

Dear God is completely non-demoninational and the term god is used in the broadest sense – encompassing every religion’s concept of a higher power; be it a Christian god, a Muslim god or simply a fluid idea of universal energy.

In its first week, the site has sparked an organic revolution, with people all over the world embracing the opportunity to unburden themselves, to share their hopes and fears with others in an effort create hope, healing, inner peace and clarity.

From the poignant and the heart-wrenching to even the light-hearted and the humorous, the posts on dear god cover the gamut of human experience, providing a powerfully raw and honest insight into our world today.

It’s again something very polarising. Some people will find it risible, some people will love it. What is interesting is witnessing how the web is becoming more and more used as a way to find meaning and help (or hate!) one another. I guess it’s just the extension of Group hug and other confession websites. 

It will be worth keeping an eye on it.