here is another snapshot from my new upcoming book…it should be out soon:

“When Jesus said that He was the truth He was inviting people into a curious kind of relationship of ongoing discovery. The ancient Jews believed that truth was unfolding rather than something to be violently conquered or colonialized. It’s this perpetual rollercoaster that might begin with the scripture but is not contained only in scripture, it invites us into the awareness that the ride doesn’t stop there. It involves a lot of wrestling and journeying through mountains and valleys and on rollercoasters. It’s a red carpet being rolled out, yet, the red carpet doesn’t have an end…it continues on and on.”

This is truth.

R&B singer Keyshia Cole and her man Daniel “Boobie” Gibson of the Cleveland Cavaliers gave away turkeys and groceries to needy families at Bethany Baptist Church in Cleveland a couple of weeks ago. Now, that’s all fine and dandy, but homegirl’s belly definitely looks a bit rounder than usual … and she has been spending a lot of time in Cleveland lately. And let’s not forget how she’s been MIA these past few months, which makes everything add up to her being pregnant. Why else would she be hiding?
We’d also like to throw in this little gem we grabbed from the homie Necole Bitchie, which basically confirms it all.

“Necole, I am from Cleve and was at that event as a volunteer for one of the companies giving away food. And she is def pregnant. They were instructing people to shoot the upper body only. I saw it with my own 2 eyes. This event was in the Steeleyard Commons. And a guy that works in the Beachwood mall told us he had seen her in the LV store and she was big. And that was prior to me seeing her myself.”

And if that’s not enough evidence, a friend of mine who lives in Cleveland called yesterday after he saw my post and said that he saw Keyshia Cole at a game recently and her stomach was huge.”
So congratulations to Keyshia and Daniel! It’s about time someone in that family other than Frankie and Neffe had some kids…

Sources say Busta Rhymes is having some major financial issues and is maxing out credit cards left and right.  As if being broke isn’t enough, Busta also has an alleged sex tape with a tranny floating around.  More info under the hood.

An insider says that Busta is living on his mom’s credit cards and doing any show he can get now. His credit card most recently got declined at a 5 star hotel, some months back when he was checking in.

Debt isn’t his only problem; Busta also has about 6-7 kids. A source says he doesn’t like to use condoms despite the fact that he has herpes which he doesn’t disclose up front or at all. Now, there is  a sex tape floating around with him and a well-known tranny. He is on the top.

Monday November 23, 2009  3:17 PM

5 Ways to ALWAYS Win

I was in the shower and the idea came to mind to list 5 ways to always win. Must have been the inspiration of cleansing that sparked the idea, but it really does not matter why. So check out the post.

1. WIN IN YOUR HEAD

Number one is pretty much self explanatory, but I will explain it in depth. I will tell you what I’m “talkin bout…” Say you are in a competition, “I am in a competition…”, just kidding but bare with me. If you are in a competition where there is an imagined winner and an imagined loser, you feel that there are only two outcomes. If you look at it from the “TRUE” standpoint there really is no loser. There really is no competition. The competition is all in your head, the stress from the competition is all in your head.

So no matter what happens in the “competition” know that you are a winner regardless.

You are the only consciousness in your reality, everybody else thinks of you the way you think of you. So however you WIN is how you will WIN.

What you imagine you WIN is up to you.

If I’m at the local park and I play a basketball game, what do I actually win?

I have asked myself this many times, respect, bragging rights, mental superiority? None of these things are really things. They are all in the head.

So now number one is simply WIN in your head.

Find something to derive good from and focus on that.

2. Evaluate what you think losing is.

In order to figure out how to always win, you have to find out what you feel is losing.

What are you losing when you lose? Is there anything you see yourself as winning. An even better way to look at it is to say “There is no losing.”

If I have lost then I have actually won, because losing teaches me what I need to do to win. I can never lose. I can only lose what is not real, and in any case what is not real is an illusion.

So if the “Game” is not real, then I don’t lose anything that is real, I will only lose illusion.

When I lose illusion it is replaced with truth. The truth always wins.

3. NEVER hold on to FAILURE

Never ever hold on to failure. Failure is not real. The only way it becomes real is when you think about it. Other then thinking about it, or making it possible, you never fail. Are you failing right now as you read this blog?

You are perfectly ok as you read this blog. If you are in this moment and not thinking about the future or past then you have no failure. If your attention keeps going back to times that you have failed, then you will think of yourself as a failure.

The spirit can’t hold onto things that are not real. Meaning anything that is not perfect love will not be with your spirit. Just like your body will not be with your spirit. Are you a failure when you leave earth and leave your body behind?

You can’t hold on to your body, so why would you try when it is left behind. That’s why you should never hold on to failure. Mainly because it is a trick of your mind.

4. Know that you are neither a loser nor a winner

Another way to always win is to realize that winning and losing doesn’t exist.

What the heck do I mean?

I’ll find myself in a separated mind if I believe the two are real. The separated mind is the breeding ground for the “EGO”, the EGO is not edible like EGGOS, especially for the spirit.

The spirit, to inspire, inspirational, I’m inspired, is the internal knowing that exists beyond the perception of the mind. So to the spirit there is no concept of winning because it cannot be separated from truth.

It is truth.

When you remember this  it becomes easy to always win, because you know that you cannot lose. No matter what happens in the competitions set up in your mind, the losing and winning are all in your mind. Which means they are subject to your perception. Which means if you want to win when it looks like you have lost, just simply WIN.

HAHA

Nothing is stopping you but you.

5. Heal your mind from LOSS

Whenever you have thoughts about loss in your mind, forgive your self for believing that you have lost. Heal your mind of the illusion and find something that you have “won”  to focus on.

When you heal your mind of loss, you don’t have loss anymore. Think about it.

When heal your mind of the loss of a material item like a car, you no longer feel like you have lost anything. Because you haven’t. Just like the body, you can’t take the car with you when you leave this earth. But you can heal your mind from thinking that you have lost something.

Forgiveness is the new sexy. When you heal your mind, you always. Win.

Speaking of “winners” check out the video below.

Now as I post this I imply nothing about religion or anything material. I see that this man had a different idea of winning and it was his truth. Some people will say he really lost, but to him he won.

So I say to you to whom does it really matter that you have won? To yourself right? So why not ALWAYS win through the TRUTH within yourself?

Kevin Morrow out….Watch the video

We’ve all been w/ the wrong person at least once. When we break up and we look back like what the hell was I thinking. Now, personally if one of my chicks have any of this flag pop up! Imma Jay-Z that trick and be on to the next one. Check em out tell me what you think.

1. Her body issues exceed normal limits.
Who wants to spend time with a girl who constantly asks you if you think she’s fat? Every girl’s got her insecurities, but if she can’t eat a meal without calculating calories, cancels dates with you so she can get in those extra workouts, or walks backward when she’s naked because she’s afraid you’ll see her non-existent cellulite, we don’t care how skinny she is — she sucks.

The Story: “My ex didn’t eat pizza, but not because she didn’t like it. In fact, she loved it. She swore off pizza because of the calories. Then she swore off beer, also because of the calories. I understand not wanting to gain weight but come on, splurge once in a while. If your girl won’t chill on the couch eating pizza and drinking beer every now and then, you may as well swear off the relationship because you’re dating a total Debbie Downer.”

2. She doesn’t have a mind of her own.
If you’re talking to a girl and she thinks everything you say is interesting, she probably isn’t thinking at all or is too inarticulate or insecure to share her opinion with you. This inability to think for herself will likely snowball with time — soon she’ll be adopting your interests and agreeing with everything you say, which is a lot more boring than it sounds.

The Story: “I was dating this girl who was totally high maintenance but claimed to be a great athlete. She said she played softball, basketball and ran track in high school. For her birthday, I planned a special sports-oriented day. For the first half, I packed a picnic basket and brought two mitts and a softball. Once we got to the park, I grabbed a mitt for myself and tossed the other one her way … and she ducked … I called her out on it and she said she had lied because she knew I was really into baseball and wanted us to have something in common.”

3. She’s obsessed with marriage.
When a girl says she isn’t thinking at all about marriage and just wants to enjoy the moment, do not believe her. She is lying to you and herself — all girls think about marriage. The chicks you need to look out for are those who plan their entire wedding and are merely looking for a man to insert into their delusional fantasy.

The Story: “Considering proposal to my then girlfriend, I went window-shopping for rings. Finding not one perfect diamond, I took it as a sign that the relationship was flawed and decided to slow things down a bit. Well, I knew I had made the right decision when just a few weeks later she asked me where her ring was. Not, Are we going to get married and spend the rest of our lives happy together? but Where’s my ring? Then, when I told her I had to use the money to pay off some bills, she became outraged, throwing a fit.”

4. She tells you not to wear the condom on your first night.
Yes, in the heat of the moment, people make mistakes. If you’re both wasted and it accidentally happens, OK, we get it. But if a chick specifically tells you not to worry about wearing a condom, you need to worry about it — how many other guys has she said that to?

The Story: “At a Super Bowl party my buddies and I were playing flip-cup outside at a friend’s beach house and I charmed some girls into hanging out with us for the day. Things between me and this hot redhead were clicking … After a few games and some witty banter we ended up in my buddy’s bedroom fooling around. After an exhaustive search to find condoms at the house and asking everyone there to no avail, I told her, ‘Oh well, I guess no sex, no big deal.’ To this I got the response: ‘If you promise to be careful you can go right ahead.’ If a girl is willing to let a stranger go raw, and all you have to do is remember to pull out, you should run like I did. Or give her a fake name so then she can’t find you for the child support payments.”

5. She thinks her dog is your child.
You’re not living with the girl but somehow you end up being the one walking her yappy dog (and cleaning up after it) when you’re over at her place. Why? Because you’re its daddy.

The Story: “I’d been seeing this girl for a couple weeks when she decided to spend $400 on a hypoallergenic dog about the size of my fist. The first red flag was the fact that she spent that much on a pet, when I’d been helping her pay rent for three months. Then, she started calling her dog her ‘baby,’ and referred to me as the dog’s ‘daddy.’ I hit the road, knowing the longer I stayed, the more ‘children’ I’d have to support and rent I’d have to pay.”

6. She “doesn’t give blowjobs.”
What does this mean exactly? Like she doesn’t give head, ever? We don’t get it.

The Story: “I once dated this chick who stopped blowing me after a few months because she ‘didn’t like the taste.’ No offense, but that labyrinth you call your vagina doesn’t taste like sweet, delicious candy. If you don’t want to drop to your knees anymore, you probably shouldn’t expect me to have any more dinners at the Y.”

7. She has a record of dating jerks.
Girls with sketchy dating histories, particularly those who have subjected themselves to serious degradation in multiple relationships, present some major red flags. No, you’re not going to save her; you’ll just end up being the nice guy she once dated.

The Story: “Shortly into a relationship a girl told me that she had had a number of shitty boyfriends, among them a guy who used to make her do push ups and ab exercises every night to keep a lean figure. I obviously laughed when she told me this but seriously, what girl allows herself to be treated so poorly? The answer: the type of girl that, one week post break-up, calls at 3 AM hysterically crying and looking for consolation because the condom worn by some random dude she just met at a bar broke during intercourse. Needless to say, I was glad she was no longer my problem.”

My Brightest Diamond!!! I love this artist more than the Dresden Dolls (sorry).

Her voice is so captivating: it sways with her heartfelt lyrics and tear bringing melodies. I have a voice now that I can wail along with, every note a masterpiece by her.  Her voice added to the lyrics is one of the most gorgeous sounds ever heard! She sings of being alone and wanting, needing, yearning, for that one person to come to her or of others’  heart-wrenching worlds such as a the lonely bass player watching the depressed woman sing or of how she is always waiting for her lover to return to her and how she kept everything the same for him. But she’s just soooo intense.

The bass against chimes, cellos and her voice is a symphony alone. I’m a total girl, but if love were given a voice, it would be hers. I wish that maybe someday she could find this, and read it. That would be totally awesome.

So check out her music before anyone else!!!

Elvis and Mary Elizabeth, Vegas, 1996.

I was living in San Francisco, writing for zines like Bust and Might and bOING bOING, as well as grabbing occasional bylines in Wired and SFWeekly.

Had spent a year exploring the “nexus of sex and technology” as an editor at Future Sex with the likes of Lily Burana and Susie Bright and had recently started at a brand new web pub called Salon.

Going to parties at Good Vibrations and avoiding Lilith Fair.

Still processing it all. — Mary Elizabeth Williams

426

“Unable to strengthen justice, they have justified might” – Blaise Pascal

So I went down to the sea again for the last time, and I said to the sea, Well.  And she, who had been so talkative all day, replied, Shh.  I might have listened but for all the bad blood.  The leaving things around.  The boats, the docks, the overturned roofs and uprooted trees.  And yet, when I got home, and my wife asked me, What?  I repeated, Shh.  And she said, Shh?  And together we made a sound like a storm, until our basement flooded.  We watched from the roof as our lives floated away.  Goodbye, she said, and I thought she meant, Good God.  Good grief, I said.  And the sea replayed that message again and again all night.  Finally, we slept.  The seagulls woke us in the morning with ape-like barks and high-pitched laughter.  I had to agree.  We looked very funny.  The two of us lying at the peak.  As naked and as cold as the day we first splashed down.  Two strange astronauts launched from a good orbit into a salty sea.

“There’s only one way to succeed in anything and that is to give everything.” - Vince Lombardi

“The first requisite of success is the ability to apply your physical and mental energies to one problem without growing weary.” - Thomas Edison

What ever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might . . . Eccl. 9:10

]]> http://onewhosenameiswritinwater.wordpress.com/2009/10/23/an-exciting-incident-with-my-shadow/ Fri, 23 Oct 2009 19:07:35 +0000 John Keats http://onewhosenameiswritinwater.wordpress.com/2009/10/23/an-exciting-incident-with-my-shadow/

It happened again, and I think this time I understand.  It all started…  Wait.  Let me start again.  It all started before I was born.  My mother dreamed, my father dreamed, and here I am.  So then fast-forward to this.  Today, I am a product of two dreams.  Should I dare introduce a third?  And because my father was a statistician and my mother a womb.  So, to make a long story short, I climbed the roof of my house, and said to the moon, See?  And, for a moment there, it seemed the moon might speak.  But it wasn’t the moon I heard.  Who was it that said, Who?  Below me, the trees were bristling the way animals will that move in herds and are always something else’s prey.

Ps 40:1-5
Jos 2:1-24
Ps 27:1-5
Text Jos 2:1 “Now Joshua the son of Nun sent out two men from Acacia Grove to spy secretly, saying, “Go, view the land, especially Jericho.So they went, and came to the house of a harlot named Rahab, and lodged there.”

Rahab : known as the harlot

Muscles are strengthened by testing. Treat trials as pure joy James tells us –  ”heavenly gym” Faith is only tested and strengthened in  and through trials.

God had given his promise to Joshua – go in inherit the land.

Why does Joshua send in spies? Why not just attack, surly he cannot fail?

The spies where getting a feel for the country. Joshua is planning – he is not presuming on God’s promise. We are still called upon to use our God given “common sense” etc.

A) Plan in following the Lord

Faith is not a leap on the dark i.e. trusts blindly (True faith is based on trusts God because of the known nature of God)

Spies did not question Joshua’s command. Their duty put them at risk, but they in obedience to the call ventured out in faith. Fulfill their mission – takes planning but outside comfort zone as part of their role. Trusts God would protect.

NT calls Rahab a harlot – not simply an inn keeper as some commentators would try and sanitize the truth.

Abraham sends servant to find a wife for Issac. Give specific sign please – it was given.

Lord lend them to Rahab house.

In my situation how can I trust the providence of God?

Trust in God’s word. Do not try and fit providence of God into Bible.

Providence is only seen looking back. Looking forward we look to God’s word and plan accordingly. Making plans humbly says “God willing”

Ps 65 by terrible works of righteous thou wilt answer us.

B) Why did God lead the spies to Rahab?

Heb 11 James works of faith – faith already present. New heart new life already – lead to a believe’s house.

Heb 11:31 “By faith the harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe, when she had received the spies with peace.“

No hopeless cases. No one so deep in sin that God cannot rescue.

In her faithful action she risked her life for God’s people.

Faith without works is dead. Rahab is example to all of works by faith – James.

James 2:25 “In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction?“

Spiritual gift of “help”

Contending with spiritual matters.
Fight good fight of faith – not considering the consequences.
Follow no matter what.

We compromise when we take the consequences into consideration. We become weaker as Christians.

The Bible says if we are faithful in little then we will be faithful in much. Matt19:11f
If we compromise in little then you not stand a chance in more.

C) Confident faith

3 levels of faith

1. Knowledge of truth – ( we are sinners, salvation in Jesus etc) MIND
2. Persuaded of truth (assent to the truth but even devils do this) EMOTION
3. Trust, committing of ourselves to God alone WILL

Rahab’s saving faith:
Mind: heard history of Israel
Emotion : feared
Will: pleaded for her life

Noah – warned of God (mind) feared (emotion) and built the ark (will)

D) Depth of Faith

As the spies go to rest she speaks with them and shared her testimony with them.

Mind of God v9 “and said to the men: “I know that the LORD has given you the land, that the terror of you has fallen on us, and that all the inhabitants of the land are fainthearted because of you.”

Might of God – v10-11a “For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were on the other side of the Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed. 11 And as soon as we heard these things, our hearts melted; neither did there remain any more courage in anyone because of you“

Majesty of God – v11b “or the LORD your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath.”

The mind, the might & majesty of God show God’s gloriousness. Now Rahab trusts in God’s grace.

Mercy of God  - v12 “Now therefore, I beg you, swear to me by the LORD, since I have shown you kindness, that you also will show kindness to my father’s house, and give me a true token, 13 and spare my father, my mother, my brothers, my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from death.”

Ps 65:1-5
Xxx

Next week we will see about Rahab’s concern for family.

Question of her lying to protect the spies.

1. Update your machine!
Click the Apple Logo and select ‘Software Update’ and update your machine to the latest versions off all available options.

2. Download video codec for Quicktime 7 (Leopard) or X (Snow Leopard)
i. XVid/DivX – Download from divx.com allows you to play .AVI and Matroska files
ii. Flip4Mac – Search in Google, Microsoft link. Allows WMV and WMA to play.
iii. Silverlight – Play Silverlight content on the web.
iv. RealPlayer – Play Real Media files and enjoy downloading YouTube videos.

3. Messenger:mac
Presuming you were using MSN in the Windows environment, go to Mactopia which is at microsoft.com/mac and download Messenger, unless you’ve purchased Office for Mac in which you will have it already.

4. Drag Applications to the dock and use as stacks.
Go to the Finder, click ‘Macintosh HD’, then drag the Applications folder down to the right part of the dock, then, like Documents and Download you can launch applications through stacks.

5. Shuffit Expander
If you were on Windows I bet you’ve been using WinRAR to extract all those RAR files, well on a Mac, its Shuffit Expander, in fact your sure to encounter more formats such as SIT and SITX, its all indeed exciting.

6. Transmission
OK, we’re all lying if we say we’re not using torrent sites, on Windows the best around is µTorrent, which have recently made a beta for the Mac, but the best around for the Mac is called Transmission, Google it and get torrenting.

7. Microsoft Office
If someone told you that you can’t get Microsoft Office on a Mac, they were lying, and its not Open or Neo Office either, although they are available. Yes, since 1998, Microsoft have made Office:mac, latest being Office:mac 2008 featuring Mac versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint, if your not sure, I recommend checking out brief tours of Office:mac as it is nothing like the Windows way of looking, well it is, but, well, you’ll know what I mean when you start using it, oh and first thing to do when you open all Office programs, go to View > Toolbars > Formatting, that way you don’t always have to use that annoying Toolbox.

8. ClamXav
Whilst the Mac is 99.9% (feel like I’m on the Dettol advert) free of viruses, they are a miniscule amount still flocking, well, to counter these 7 or 8, you might as well download an open source client called ClamXav, its completely free and can scan and remove viruses in the rarity they arrive, seriously, put it this way, Windows virus protection deletes over 3000 viruses everyday without you seeing it, on a Mac, you’ve pretty much to ask for one. And the good thing about a Mac is you’re even more sure about pop-ups, its funny seeing pop-ups that are trying to fool people on Windows XP with the blue window bar and red cross.

9. Paintbrush
This annoys me a bit, listen up. The Mac was the first computer to come with a Paint, or MacPaint as it was called program, then Microsoft copied it with Windows 3.0, and then 10 years later it was gone. But have no fears campers, download Paintbrush, it more or less mimics Paint and is actually not all that bad. Oh, and free! Also available for Linux, if your the 1% of the world who’s bothered.

10. Enjoy!
That is it, your ready to vouch out and live life the Mac way, if your looking for new Mac software head over toapple.com/downloads or head over to macworld.co.uk for the latest all-things-Apple News.

If you?re at your wit?s end with financial/job woes and you?re ready to open yourself to something new and bold, this column is for you. If you?re closed to new and bold, I?m going to assume you?ll keep reading anyway just to see how crazy I am.

Or, perhaps better stated, how innovative Mike Dooley is.

Dooley is the author of Infinite Possibilities , a book released in September that has already enjoyed best seller status on The New York Times and Amazon.com lists. While it is filled with wise nuggets centered around the theme of ?Thoughts Become Things,? what he has to say about employment and money is particularly apt in our nation?s current state.

?We are the creators of change,? Dooley said in our recent interview. ?It must come from within. That?s the exact opposite of what we?ve been told all our lives.?

To that end, Dooley suggests in his book the idea of acting ?as if.? This is something actors do all the time when preparing for a role. Dooley recommends it to ?help suspend an old belief and install a new one.? Let?s take his section on finding employment. In addition to the customary things people do when looking for a job ? preparing a resume, contacting agencies, reading ?help wanted? ads and networking ? his advice goes like this:

If someone were without a job, she could start behaving as if she were already employed. She could set her alarm clock each night, and she could make sure her wardrobe was up to par. If she couldn?t afford all the clothes she?d need, she could make an effort to go window-shopping for whatever she?d buy as if she could afford it; she could also try on a few suits. She could even leave for work on the occasional morning as if she had the job of her dreams ? Perhaps the outing could involve a visit downtown or a drive to different prospective employers? buildings ? as if she already worked there. She could meet a friend and have coffee, lunch, or dinner wherever people employed in her field go to have coffee, lunch or dinner.

Still with me? If this comes across as too out there, then maybe you were also one of those folks who thought The Secret was a bunch of hogwash. Just last weekend The Simpsons took a swipe at that monumental best seller with an episode centered on a book called The Answer . But Dooley?s advice is a perfect example of what most critics of The Secret didn?t take into consideration ? your actions must match up with your goal. As I?ve said before, if your dream is to win the Pulitzer Prize but you don?t write, that?s probably not going to line up in your favor.

?People will say, ?I?m losing my house and my car and you?re asking me to do this??? said Dooley, who is featured in The Secret . ?And my answer is, ?Yeah.??

It?s what he calls playing both ends to the middle. For those who are already doing the customary things to effect change, like scouring the want ads or attending job fairs, one end is covered. But what about the other end? That?s the bold side. Months before I got this gig to write twice-weekly for FoxBusiness.com, I wrote a bunch of columns in hopes of securing a forum somewhere. When the opportunity came up, I was able to say, ?I?ll be happy to send you some sample columns tomorrow.? Voila. That was two years ago.

Is that magic? It felt more like preparing for the outcome I wanted and acting as if I already had a published column. One of my favorite lines in Dooley?s book addresses this: ?Faith in the Universe is a belief in magic, but once you understand the endless abilities of the Universe and realize that it offers itself to any and all who ask, the magic becomes far less mysterious and infinitely more friendly, dependable, and even predictable ? hardly magic at all.?

Think of it more like those aligned with The Secret do: The one thing you focus on is the one thing you?re going to perpetuate. If you?re going to create a self-fulfilling prophecy, wouldn?t you rather it?s a cool job than something that feeds into your notion that life must be drudgery?

Every so often, even though I subscribe to the beliefs presented in Dooley?s book, I like to have reminders. Dooley has made that easy. A little piece of his personality arrives in my email box every weekday. It typically goes something like this:

Without challenge, Nancy, adventure is impossible.

Shorty,

The Universe

Dooley ? working through his Web site www.TUT.com — is the man behind the messages from ?The Universe? that go to over 300,000 people each day. The emails are creative, witty and thought-provoking. As one of my Facebook friends wrote of them recently, ?I adore my special note each day.?

Life should be that fun, shouldn?t it?

As Albert Einstein said, ?A question that sometimes drives me hazy: am I or are the others crazy??

Nancy Colasurdo is a practicing life coach and freelance writer. Her Web site is www.nancola.com. Please direct all questions/comments to FOXGamePlan@gmail.com.

Workers distinguish themselves with enthusiasmWhat Job Could You Be Doing?

NASA plans to crash a rocket into a crater on south pole of moon Friday in hopes of detecting water in debris produced by impact… From VOA. Full story

This site may contain information about: ocean upwelling. For a different topic see sentences that begin with letter. The blog is also related to: deep ocean.

My Thursday column:

http://www.dailywritingtips.com/might-may-and-can/

In the lenowned Might & Magic universe, demon swarms spread chaos over the land in a relentless assault.In the lenowned Might & Magic universe, demon swarms spread chaos over the land in a relentless assault.

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PhillyBurbs.com: SEPTA strike could stall travel
Mix the World Series and a Pearl Jam concert on Saturday, toss in an Eagles-Giants matchup and another Phillies-Yankees game on Sunday, and what you have are a lot of people heading to the South Philadelphia Sports Complex this weekend.

SEPTA STRIKE: Day 1 – Philadelphia Speaks Forum – Neighborhoods …
Brace yourselves kids, in less than 3 hours from now the walkout is supposed to happen. I already talked to several drivers at the FTC and they’ve all been told to finish their shift and they will be &

Appetite for Destruction: Countdown to the Great SEPTA Strike ‘09 …
Another SEPTA strike? Must be a Friday. How much more crap is this city going to take from SEPTA? Poor service, hostile employees, constant strike threats, expensive fares, bus drivers aiming for pedestrians and bikers, exact change …

SEPTA Strike Scheduled
During the last SEPTA strike in 2005, the city made 2200 additional parking spaces available for the duration of the strike. No word yet about whether they might do the same thing this time. Either way, if you’ll need to drive to work …

Philly transit talks on hold as strike looms and World Series …
A 2005 SEPTA strike lasted seven days, while a 1998 strike hampered the transit system for 40 days. “I wouldn’t be able to get to work,” said Tonia Gaskins, 34, who makes two round trips on SEPTA each day as she juggles two waitress …

SEPTA Watch: Preparing for a possible SEPTA strike this weekend
SEPTA and its Transit Workers Union representing bus, subway, and trolley operators and mechanics are negotiating hard this week in the hopes of averting a strike this weekend. Here’s the Inquirer: The TWU is seeking 6 percent annual …

:::Philebrity…media, culture, music and more::: » Blog Archive …
Anybody with an ass to sit on could do a lot of SEPTA jobs (also unlike teaching), so there’s no reason besides threat of strike that SEPTA should listen to their employees when they demand better benefits than most skilled laborers. …

Philadelphia Transit Workers Vote to Authorize SEPTA Strike
On Sunday October 25, members of the Transit Workers Union, TWU Local 234,voted to authorize a strike, due to stalled contract negotiations with SEPTA. TWU Local 234, which represents 4700 workers in the city, has been operating without …

SEPTA Strike Guide No Real Help to Commuters
Strike guide paints a pretty picture for those not living within city limits.
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Last year’s Internet Summit sold out early and was one of my favorite events of the year. I’ll be there again this year–speaking on the Blogging panel–and I hope you’ll join me!

Note: Internet Summit is an advertiser on this site, but this post is not a paid endorsement. I’m going and speaking, regardless!

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SOUNDTRACK: TV ON THE RADIO-Dear Science, (2008).

The problem with TV on the Radio for me is that their first EP is so damned good that anything else they do pales in comparison.  Having said that, Dear Science, comes really close to topping that EP.  I liked Cookie Mountain (their previous disc) but I felt like they put so many elements into the mix that it detracted from the best part of the band: Tunde Adepimbe & Kyp Malone’s vocals.

And so, on Dear Science, the vocals are back up front where they belong.  This disc is a lot less busy, which may seem a little like selling out, but instead, it just heightens the complexity and originality of the band’s work.  The disc rocks hard but it also heightens some really cool jazz and dance elements.    But it all comes back to the melodies and vocals for me.  And on Dear Science, they pretty much outdo themselves.

And you can dance to it!

[READ: September 30, 2009] Shiny Adidas Tracksuits and the Death of Camp and Other Essays

After reading David Foster Wallace’s essay in this book, I looked at the other articles here and decided to read the whole thing.  And I’m really glad I did.  It’s an interesting book full of, funny and often thought-provoking pop culture articles circa 1996.  As with some of the other pop culture/political books that I’ve read several years after they were relevant, it’s often weird to look back and see what things fully occupied the popular landscape at the time.  And, when a piece is completed dated, it’s pretty obvious, and sometimes unintentionally funny.  But there are many pieces here that are timeless (or at least hold up for a decade), and those are still really good reads.

This book also does a good job of summarizing the tenor of the defunct Might magazine.  A dose of irony, a splash of humor and a lot of criticism of what’s trendy.

The strange thing to me about this book, though is the targets that they chose to go after sometimes.  Rather than critiquing right-wing attitudes or corporate shenanigans (which they do touch on), they really seem to be after pop and rock celebrity.  For instance, there are two separate articles which take a potshot at Eddie Vedder (this was around the time of the Ticketmaster fiasco which didn’t put him in the best light but which could hardly be seen as only self-serving).  This seems rather unfair, unless his sincerity could really be called into question by a bunch of ironic jokesters.  Magazines like Radar and Spy used to do snarky articles like this. I’d always thought that Might was a little better than that.  But indeed, there’s one or two pieces here that have a holier- (or perhaps indier)-than-thou attitude.   Which may have been fine in the 90s but which seem petulant now.

But aside from those, the irony-free pieces are very enjoyable. 

PHILLIP G. CAMPBELL-”Phil Campbell? Phil Campbell.  Welcome to Phil Campbell”
This fascinating piece shows a convention organized by Phil Campbell to invite every Phil Campbell in America to Phil Campbell, Alabama (one of only three towns in the country with a person’s full name).  It’s hokey and awfully silly and yet it is such a neat idea that it becomes utterly fascinating watching these people interact.  The author states that 2 more Phil Campbell conventions had happened since the article was written, which leads me to wonder if there were any more after that. (Oh, Wikipedia says no).

MARC HERMAN-”Notes on the Growing Tiresomeness of Flight”
This piece is actually about drivewaway car companies who loan you a car for free if you’re willing to drive it to where it is needed.  It’s a sunny piece about skirting the rules.  Evidently, these companies are still around.  I wish I had known about them years ago.

DAVID FOSTER WALLACE-”Hail the Returning Dragon, Clothed in New Fire”
Dragon slaying as a metaphor for AIDS (full review here).

TED RALL-”College is for Suckers”
Ted Rall is one of my favorite cartoonists. He’s weird and funny and always makes a point.  I’m not all too familiar with his articles, though.  And this article was unabashedly depressing.  Basically, it states that the money you spend on college is hardly ever recouped and, circa 1996, a liberal arts degree earns you barely more than a high school diploma. I’m not going to investigate his data; I assume he’s not lying.  But I do wonder if things have changed 13 years later.

HEIDI POLLOCK-”The Sudden Unsavory Ubiquity if Faux Ceaser Salad”
This is a funny and, at first, ironic-seeming piece about Caesar salad being everywhere.  Then you realize that you can get it everywhere, even at McDonalds, except that the McCaesar doesn’t have ANY of the same ingredients.  It’s bad enough that no one use raw egg or anchovies (the real ingredients for a Caesar) but some places don’t even use romaine lettuce!  And that is just an empty embodiment of the real thing.

GLASGOW PHILLIPS-”Shiny Adidas Tracksuits and the Death of Camp”
This piece observes the Adidas tracksuit through pop culture from its invention in 1980 through to the Beastie Boys and Run DMC and then its resurgence in the early 90s.  Phillips uses this one article of clothing to observe the state of Camp in America.  It is an admittedly narrowly focused piece but it works quite well.  And it’s funny, too.

CHRIS HARRIS-”Design Intervention”
This is the most aggressively “ironic” piece and really stands out among the others as being overly silly.  The conceit is that graphic designers should redesign the map of the world because if the globe looked nicer, the people who lived there would feel better abut themselves.  Eh.

DONNELL ALEXANDER-”Cool Like Me (Are black people cooler than white people?)”
This was the cover story of the final issue of Might magazine.  And I seem to recall it causing quite a controversy.  Although apparently not enough to keep the magazine afloat.  The piece looks at the coolness that blacks have always had to bring to get through tough situations and how white people have embraced so much of it so quickly.  It’s a funny piece which seems silly at first, but real depth comes to the article by the end, showing a lot of unexpected points of view.

MARC HERMAN-”Are You on the Bus or Off the Bus?”
This is a fascinating look at the, then current, 1996 Rock the Vote campaign.  With 13 years of hindsight it is even more interesting.  Especially trying to imagine what the people interviewed (like the couple at the very end) are doing now (since they’re no longer 20somethings but are closer to 40).  When Rock the Vote first started I never really thought critically about it.  It just seemed like a good idea to get young people to vote.  And yet, seeing the details that Herman points out, you really have to wonder what the point of the whole exercise was.  They basically just want people to sign up to vote but they don’t educate them about the issues, or even why they should vote in the first place.  The one point that Herman never raises, and it is even more cynical than the arguments he does, it that this may have all just been a way for MTV to either appear more involved or important in world events or, more likely, a way to get their logo branded on the elections.  Still, 13 years later I wonder what they’re all up to.  And if they vote.  And if Rock the Vote is still around.  Huh, I guess it is.

MATTHEW GRIMM-”The Zen Rub of Alcohol”
This is easily my least favorite piece in here.  Whether it was ironic or not I can’t tell (which means the irony didn’t work if it was).  The general tenor of the piece sounds like a drunken tool rambling about something that bugs him (and given that the piece is about the glories of getting drunk, I’m not surprised).  The author is pissed because evidently new ads for Haagen Dazs seem to position it as a, god forbid, alternative to booze.  But the author points out that ice cream is no substitute for getting blitzed with your friends.   He (the author) seems like a real jerk.

KEN KURSON-”Jews in Rock”
This is is a funny piece in which the author tries to locate all of the Jews in rock (after spending a childhood obsessing over the Jews in baseball).  I don’t know if this was less obvious in 1995, but it doesn’t seem like Jews are that hard to find in the music biz.  The whole piece is funny but seems way out of touch with musical reality.

PAULA KAMEN-”Paradigm for Sale”
The whole premise–that it pays more to be a libertarian/right wing writer than a left wing/liberal writer–is, of course, maddening but also utterly true.  Sigh.

TRIPP HARTIGAN-”Green Bay”
This strangely affecting look at Green Bay was quite an enjoyable piece.  Basically, the author returns to Green Bay after many years away to find out why anyone would stay there as an adult.  He and two college friends (who still live there) revisit old places and then go to other (even older places) for the first time.  And, amazingly, they get a ton of food at an interesting restaurant for less than $5 each.  It also makes me think of That 70s Show. Oh, and someone mentions wanting to move to Missoula, Montana–which was featured so prominently in Maile Meloy’s new book.

JESS MOWRY-”Wake Up America! There Are Gangs Under Your Beds!”
A wholly ironic (or a least tongue in cheek) article about white kids being affected by black (and therefore gang) culture.  It would be funny if it weren’t so cynically right on.

DAVID EGGERS-”Never Fucked Anyone”
Eggers argues that “to fuck” as a verb implies a violence in the sex act which he has never experienced.  But then he can’t find a better alternative word.  I find this piece to be pretty right on the money.

DIMITRI ERLICH-”Babylon by Bus”
This is a frightening trip through El Salvador–replete with anti-U.S. rioting, poor hotels and almost every other cliche you can imagine.  I started off thinking “Oh, poor-white person travels to scary Central America” but by the end I was hooked and genuinely nervous for the author and his friends.

ZEV BOROW-”The Old Man and MTV”
This is the interview with Kurt Loder that I’d always wanted to see.  Why is he on MTV?  Does he “get” it?  Is he “joking.”  What’s his deal?  I can only wish I had read this back in 1997.

HEIDI POLLOCK-”This Thing About Men and Nail Polish”
This is the second piece by Pollock that addresses a minor piece of pop-culture.  This one is about well, men and nail polish.  She’s happy to see men doing it (did men really use nail polish enough in 1997 to warrant this piece?).  Mostly, though she’s happy to see that women’s accessories are actually cool.

PAUL TULLIS & ZEV BOROW-”Fare Thee Well, Gentle Friend: The Sad, Untimely, Perhaps Even Tragic Death of Adam Rich”
This seems to be the piece that Might is most known for: a fake obituary of Adam Rich (from Eight is Enough). I recollect that people honestly thought he had died after reading the piece.  However, if you read closely, the piece is clearly silly and way over the top.  And the “quotes” from authorities and people who knew him are clearly unlikely.  It’s a funny piece though (and I am quite sure that Rich was in on it).

GLASGOW PHILLIPS-”The T-shirt: More Problems of Signification in American Low Culture (Or, what am I saying?)”
A fascinating look at the history of printed T-shirts.

DAVID MOODIE-”Pardon Me, Mr. Senator…Will You Please Give Me My Goddamn Money?”
An article about “notch” recipients of Social Security.   An odd inclusion here especially since it is so very circa 1995 and no one had ever heard of it.

ERIC WESTERVELT-”The Glorious Climb of the Affluent Recreating Professional”
A funny look at people who recreate all the time: climbers, bikers, hikers, and how much it costs for them to do this new hobby.

BOB MARGOLIS & DAN KING-”The Way We Were: Outtakes from the Haldeman Diaries”
This is a patently silly piece of “left out” sections of Haldeman’s Diary.  It’s a  chance to be childish at a politician’s expense.  The Diaries were published in 1994 which explains why this article was written.

JASON ZENGERLE-”Is Michael Moore the Last, Best Hope for Popular Liberalism in America? (And more importantly, does he have a sense of humor?)”
Zengerle was at the same Michael Moore talk in Cambridge, Mass that I was at.  And he came away feeling the same way I did…more insulted than inspired.  And so, Zengerle tries to rack him down ala Roger & Me to interview him and find out what his deal is.  He uses the same tactics that Moore did, all in the hopes that Moore will appreciate the effort and the humor.  This article is also a valid criticism of Moore as a “leader” and how there is very little in the way if Inspiring Popular Liberal Voices out there.  (There’s also a comment about, now Senator, then comedian, Al Franken).

M. DOUGHTY-”Listener Appreciation: Soul Coughing Front Man M. Doughty Takes a Long Hard Look at His Fans”
M. Doughty writes a funny piece about the type of fans who are aware of his “Celebrity” status.  I am clearly the 4th kind: people “who think bands are too cool to talk to them.”

JESS MOWRY-”Any Further Questions, Mr. Mayor”
A mayor tells Mowry that his books were “good but depressing” and wonders if he’d like to help mayors across the nation with trying to help inner city youth with the problems of their lives.  Mowry’s response is well thought out and articulate but very cynical.  And it is unlikely that it elicited a response back.  He does offer many suggestions, none of which will ever be considered.  Although his argument for lowering the minimum work age is quite valid: how much better would it be for kids who want to earn a living to do so honestly through a real job, rather than through dealing drugs?

TED RALL-”Quit Your Job.  Work is a Sham”
Hot on the heels of his anti-college rant, Rall is back with an anti-work rant.  He makes several valid points about how work is bullshit and wasting 2/3 of your life doing something you hate is soul-sucking.  However, he ends the piece by describing how he quit his job because he was able to do freelance cartooning–something he always loved. So why doesn’t everyone do something similar?  As if we can all be freelance cartoonists or actually make money doing something that we all love.  Those of us with families say no, Ted Rall.  No.   On the other hand, his arguments for restructuring the way employment is handled (shorter work weeks and longer vacations) is a wonderful idea that, sadly, will never be enacted.

R.U. SIRIUS-”The Future of Indentured Servitude”
A look at President Clinton’s Sponsorship Program, which essentially allows poor people to become servants in rich folks’ homes.  I can’t find anything about this anywhere, so I don’t know what it is actually a critique of, aside from Clinton (or President Chameleon) in general.

MARC HERMAN-”Slow Boat to Grenada”
Herman hops a boat in the Caribbean to sail around the waters to Grenada.  An interesting look at life there and the hazards of professional Yachters.

MARTHA McPARLIN-”Ever Closer to the Flame: Ten Days on Tour with David Hasselhoff”
What could have been a snide look at the Hoff turns out to be a bemused (and quite funny) account of Hasselhoff’s mall tour.  Despite the preponderance of cheese associated with Hasselhoff, he remains good natured and a rather fun guy.  A very funny piece.

JIM STALLARD-”Falling Down: The Rise and Fall of Down Boye, America’s First Angsta Rapper”
A preposterous article about a “loser” MC.  The premise is funny, although it goes on a bit much.  It feels like an Onion article.   Again, I’m not sure if there was a “reason” why this article was written or if it was just funny.

DAVID EGGERS, DAVID MOODIE, PAUL TULLIS, ZEV BOROW, MATT NESS, JOE GAROFOLI, MARNY REQUA, NANCY MILLER, RACHEL LEHMAN-HAUPT-”Virtual Enlightenment”
This was the only piece in the book that made me mad.  The central premise is that gullible people are using the internet to find enlightenment with New New Age. Now, who knows what was actually happening back in 1995 and if this really was some crazy happening that was ripe for mocking.  But the tone of this piece is really quite nasty, especially coming from these guys.

I’ve never done any of the things they mock here, so I’m not defending it because it’s “my” thing.  But it’s so weird that they take a stance that “you ” people are gullible (that word pops up again and again).  As if they are so superior to the young people who are involved with these things.

The thing that is most surprising about the piece is that the authors come across as so incredibly conservative  and borderline Christian evangelical.  Or, if not quite that, then like the hall monitor kid who’s not invited to a party and then stands outside saying “You’re not having any fun.  You think you are, but you’re not.”

I agree that there’s a lot of questionable nature about New Age practices, ambient music and everything else they go on about here, but without actually giving suggestions for how else these gullible people can have fun, the article is just a big, ugly nag.  Even the tone of the introduction: “We have had the pleasure of observing…the Nw New Age phenomenon–its most ardent goals and ideals, its most embarrassing follies and mistakes.  We had fun.”  So superior!

The first thing they take on on online paganism.  And fair enough, the chat room that they quote is certainly pretty dumb, and yet where’s the harm in kids joining a chatroom and trying to communicate with people in a meaningful and unironic way.  These kids are looing for a spiritual moment with likeminded folks.  What’s the difference between this and a ouija board?  The authors even dismissively suggest that maybe it’s a way to find friends.  And so what?  What’s wrong with that?

The second example is of a New Age Post-Christian type of church.  And the authors mock the proceedings for all of its hooey, even though it’s not that dissimilar to Christian masses (in fact the proprietors are Christian).  And listen to the authors criticize the guest list: “two-time coma survivor, convicted felon and notorious speedball junkie Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead.”  Wow, sorry Mr Gingrich, I didn’t know you were invited to the rave.

The third one is admittedly the most ridiculous. It is a pagan celebration involving cauldrons and fire and as Fucking the Bad Spirits Away and all that.  And it more or less devolves into a pick-up scene at the end.  And the authors bemoan the fact that it cost the gullible participants $10 to get in!   I’m left wondering how many interesting spectacles (with the possibility of a hook up at the end) would cost the authors only $10.  Just go to a bar and you’re easily out $10 and you don’t get a show.  This way, people are with other people who like this scene (weird as it may be).  And again, so what, maybe they are actually enjoying themselves.

The next thing to mock is the 8 people who are paid $50 to sit with a marketer to discuss ambient music.  When some friends of mine and I were in Las Vegas, we were offered $50 for a 30 minute survey about TV shows.  I was never going to watch any of the shows they asked us about, but hell $50 for giving my opinion..I’m there!  So, when the smart-ass particpant #8 tries to shit all over the parade, what makes him (or her) think he’s so much better than the other seven people there?  They all got $50 bucks, so what if they were honest about it and so what if they like ambient music?  This section also had the most egregious “your music sucks, mine is great” attitude.  I admit that most ambient music is pure drivel.  Yet they choose to mock Future Sound of London, a band that has actually done some interesting things in the genre.  Nyah Nyah, your music sucks.

Finally, the last story concerns a Superrave.  Participants pay $25 to get in (How gullible!) and the $25 for a hit of ecstasy (illegal drugs, the authors would never do illegal drugs!).  And for this the participant get a spectacle that lasts over 5 hours (in the article they say, hey, there’s only 5 hours left until the afterparty).

I’ve never been to a rave, and I’ll never go to a rave.  I’ve never done ecstasy.  This isn’t my sceen.  And I can see showing legitimate concern for the participants with dehydration and potentially questionable drugs and scams etc.  But to call the people who go there gullible because they spent the money for this is crazy.  $50 fora party that lasts all night long and makes you happy?  (Rave partcipants talk about feeling happy for days and weeks after the rave…sure its artificial, but still, feeling happy’s not so bad).  Let’s compare this to the above Zen Alcohol article.  The guy there talks about drinking 8 beers and hanging with your buds.  Well, you’re pretty much out $50 right there.  And, I’d all but guarantee you aren’t feeling as happy as the kids at the rave.

So, the basic gist of this article is that old fashioned values: Christianity, alcohol and rock & roll are good.  Anything new and different is bad.  What a great attitude for a hip alternative magazine!  Especially since I feel fairly certain that a few years later one writer or another might embrace Wicca after Buffy the Vampire Slayer made it okay to do so.

Thankfully, it’s only this article that is so mean-spirited.  The rest of the book is much more fun.  And, even if it is horribly out of date, I still enjoyed reading it.

First off, a man who needs no introduction. Jimi Hendrix is by far my favorite musician, you’ll probably see a lot of stuff you hadn’t heard of his on this blog. This is one of my favorite Jimi jams… It’s so original, so raw…. how can’t you like it?

Alright I’ll admit I didn’t find this one, I got it from a good friend Chris. Either way, you could throw this song on repeat and listen all day. That booming bass thump keeps the song going, and the monster waves this guy is surfing is just as mindblowing as the song. Definitely a cool song/video.

Figured I’d start off the blog with something dope.

Anyway two major releases come to mind as we come to October 1, 2009.

First… THEM CROOKED VULTURES!!

Josh Homme, John Paul Jones, and Dave Grohl…. EPIC!!! Not sure when the CD is going to be released… I read online somewhere that it was Oct. 23 but then I read it was fake news so who knows. Just thought everybody should know about TCV.

In case you’re wondering, they’re touring. Here’s there TOUR

Also here’s a full demo track that’s BADASS – (link)

Finally, Jack White, Jimmy Page, and Edge have released a indie film called “It Might Get Loud”

I personally can’t wait to see this. Pretty incredible group of musicians offering legit insight into the world of guitar and music making in general. I cannot WAIT to see this!

Here is a list of the release dates – (link)