- Have you been following Big Brother at all? My summer guilty pleasure. I missed the first season, caught most of the second, and have been an addicted viewer since the third (except for the infamous Season 9; I found that cast so vile and disgusting that I didn’t watch past the second week). Just my opinion, of course, but the current season is shaping up to be one of the best. I say that because the people I like are doing well, the people I don’t are gone or self-destructing, and there is no shortage of controversy. Gotta love Reality TV!
- Hate to see summer end, but love to see football season start! Even if my team is the Cleveland Browns. Only one preseason game in the books, and I’m already thinking, “Oh, well. Maybe next year.” Which, I believe is the Official Motto if the Cleveland Browns’ Fans.
- Another problem with the end of summer is everyone trying to cram in one last cookoout in a short period of time. I went to two this past weekend, and another is looming before school starts. On top of that, I’m visiting family in Ohio for a few days soon, and the day I hit town, I’m being taken to a sushi bar. I spent three months struggling to lose 15 pounds; in the past 60 days, I’ve gained 10 of them back.
- I’m a huge, huge fan of Michael Nesmith‘s solo work. Check it out! I particularly like Infinite Rider on the Big Dogma.
- The “l” on my keyboard has detached itself, and I don’t know how to stick it back on (I have a Dell XPS M2010, if you have any ideas on how to fix this annoyance).
- That’s all for now. Aren’t you glad you stopped by? I am!
blogging
Self-Discipline (Something New)
When I started this modest little blogging effort, it was my intention to write daily. Since the subject is “Random Thoughts”, you would think it would be easy. Write a humorous anecdote one day, perhaps pass along a favorite recipe the next, followed by a movie review and then a link to an interesting video. It hasn’t quite worked out that way.
There are a number of reasons to assign to this failure to communicate, but the main one is, to be frank, I’m not overly ambitious. This blog thing isn’t “monetized” or anything, so there’s no compelling reason for me to take keyboard in hand and pump out content on a daily basis. On the other hand, Nothing Interesting Is Going On, I Haven’t Got Any Extra Time Today, Man I’m Tired!, blah, blah, blah.
And my natural inclination towards procrastination isn’t doing me any favors, either. I was going to write a weekly blog about my summer Guilty Pleasure, Big Brother, but the third week just ended, so I missed that boat. I was all fired up to do a review of The Bob Dylan Show (co-starring John Mellancamp and WIllie Nelson) after the July 14 stop in Allentown; I did a mini-review on my Facebook page, and did a little online research, but 10 days later, that project has kind of lost it’s immediacy.
So I’ve decided to revamp by blogging schedule in hopes that I don’t lose interest. A little self-discipline is all I need. I’ve applied it to my martial arts training, my diet and my music. Surely it will do me well with this. Instead of attempting a daily blog, I shall make it a weekly habit, and post something each weekend, starting with the first weekend in August. I already have a few weeks worth of ideas, so we’ll see how this works out.
See you next weekend!
Random Thoughts #2
Ya see, this is why I don’t promote my personal brand and monetize this here blog thing. It’s been over a month since I’ve made any entries. Not that I can’t find anything to write about, it’s making the time to do it that’s my problem.
Anyway, a few random comments to catch things up:
• The computer problem outlined in my last post has been resolved successfully. I did have to install a new hard drive (and, naturally, strip a screw while putting everything back together, which resulted in one of the plastic cosmetic covers sticking up ever so slightly higher than the other). And I did blow $80 on a data recovery program that didn’t work for me (my own damn fault; I didn’t read the program description close enough to notice that it would not work on a striped RAID array). But with a step-back-and-rethink and the help of a wonderful free program called Pandora Recovery, I was able to recover the photos, documents and most of the music I’d lost. And I now have two 500GB external that I back up everything to on a regular basis.
• I loved loved loved the season finale of Lost! I had kept all Season 5 episodes on my TiVo, and went back and rewatched the entire season, and found it quite satisfying (although I’ll miss Elizabeth Mitchell terribly). I have complete confidence in the creative team that the Final Season will cement Lost’s place in TV history as one of the best series ever.
• The 24 season finale, however, seemed oddly disappointing to me. A bit of a let down, really. Don’t get me wrong; bad 24 is shelves above most other dramas, but after 23 rockin’ hours, the ending left me cold. It didn’t rock my world. The Season 7 DVD set was available to buy the next day, though. (Lost? You hear that?)
• Go see Up. After careful reflection, I think it’s my third favorite Pixar film (nothing can replace Buzz and Woody on my list). The story has always been Pixar’s strength, and this one is no exception. It’s a life-affirming message that applies to everyone. Well, everyone except for the young girl sitting a few rows behind me who loudly told her mom that she didn’t want to watch this movie anymore. But I bet by the end of the movie she was glad her mom told her to shut up and watch (or was that just a wishful thought I had?).
• Next gen iPhones are rumored to be available Monday. Still going back and forth as to whether or not I want to take the plunge. OK, you got me. I want to take the plunge.
OK, Loyal Reader. That’s enough for now. I shan’t wait another month to post again. Good bloggers post daily. Let’s see if I can do that.
Random Thoughts #1
Yes, it’s been a while since my last post; I’m sure you all have missed me terribly. Truth is, I’ve been fighting a severe case of Procrastination lately, and have only recently felt recovered enough to attempt to string a few words together into a coherent sentence.
I’m still feeling too weak to attempt an entire post on one subject, so instead I’ll throw out a few disconnected Random Thoughts:
• Only three more new episodes of Lost this season. Then I guess that’s it until, what – January? Thank goodness I’ll have summer and Christmas to distract me while I wait. One thing I’m not looking forward to during the Final Season is the amount of spoilers that will no doubt be floating around. Why can’t folks just enjoy the story as it unfolds?
• I’m seriously considering getting an iPhone when the new ones hit the market this summer. Burning questions: What do I do with my 16GB iTouch? Use the phone strictly as a phone and the iTouch as my .mp3 player? eBay the iTouch? What about all apps I’ve purchased? Can I move them to the phone, or will I have to repurchase?
• I need to do some unfollowing in Twitter. I’m sensing some Superior Attitudege by some Tweeters towards those of us who are using this social media to be…well, sociable. Some seem to think that Twitter should be used exclusively for entrepreneurial networking and selling, I don’t know…stuff. Unless you’re a Social Media Guru or Maven or Whatever, you need not apply. Like every enjoyable activity since kids first starting tossing pie tins back and forth, the money people are looking to make a quick buck on folks having fun. The new buzzword is “Monetize”.
• I started using MySpace, Facebook and Twitter before all of my friends. I guess I could promote myself as a Social Media Pioneer.
• Heh…those last two Thoughts may lose me enough followers that I won’t have to wade through my list looking for cutoffs.
• I am still of the belief that Bluetooth headsets should never be utilized outside of one’s vehicle. If you’re walking around Wal Mart wearing one, people are not looking at you thinking, “There goes someone obviously very important, and leading the pack in cutting-edge technology.” They’re thinking, “What a douche.” Particularly if you’re walking around with your phone in your hand.
• I’m participating in a weight loss challenge at the MMA school I train at. I’m not leading, but I’m close. I really want a couple of tacos, or a Five Guys burger.
• Speaking of douches, I’m hoping Coach Dragon Slayer gets blindsided sooner than later. Preferably by someone he despises. I don’t care how much Jeff likes him (gotta love Jeff’s blogs, though).
That’ll have to do it for now; I feel another attack of Procrastination coming on. I have to go be apathetic for a while.
Happy New Blog!
Blogs are like opinions: everybody has one, and nobody cares about yours.
So why am I creating one? Do you care what I think? Do you crave my opinion on various matters? Am I some vacuous celebrity who believes that my public awaits my every outpouring?
No, I’m just some guy, living a normal life, fighting the good fight to survive in today’s world. I just don’t get a chance to use words like vacuous or outpouring very often. Chances are nobody except me will ever see these ramblings.
I think I’m doing it because I’ve tried it before and failed to keep it up, and one of my 2009 resolutions is to finish what I start. So, unlike my various paper journals and my failed Xanga blog, I am determined to keep up with this thing, posting at least weekly, but hopefully more often.
What will I be blathering on about?
Well, let’s see. I’m the divorced father of a 14-year-old boy, so I’m sure I can throw in a few thoughts about relationships, parenting and dealing with teenagers. I love all sorts of music, and my son and I bang around on guitars (he’s taking actual lessons), so there’s that to talk about. I’m not a particularly political animal, so I’ll probably throw out a few uninformed political opinions now and again. There’s a plethora (another word I never can fit into everyday conversations!) of subjects that I know nothing about that I’ll discuss anyway.
Another thing I’ll do is share what I think are interesting websites. The first one I’m going to mention is the site that brought me here in the first place, 43 Things. You sign up for a free account, and make a list of 43 things you’d like to accomplish. You can keep track of your progress, and read “How I Did It” stories from other members who have done the task you want to do. Does it help? That’s pretty much up to you, isn’t it? Can’t hurt.
And look, I’ve accomplished my first task: starting a blog.
Hopefully I can follow through and post on a regular basis.
No, not “hopefully I can”…I will.
Random Thoughts of an American Male 
