Play Ball!

Today is my third day of training at the new jobby job and so far things are going pretty well.  It seems like it's going to be a really awesome place to work and I'm getting along with the rest of the pharmacy team as well.  I am a little disappointed about the rain though...kinda puts a dash of misery on the day. Boooo!

On an unrelated matter, it's Opening Day for Major League Baseball today!  This could be the best time of the year to be a Philadelphia sports fan.  On one hand you've got the Flyers, who are favorites to head back to the Stanley Cup Finals, with just 6 games to go before the playoffs get under way.  And on the other, you've got the Phillies who, on paper, have what could be the greatest pitching lineup that has ever been assembled.  Now, the Phillies don't actual play their first game until tomorrow afternoon, but it still gives me the chills thinking about the season to come.  It should be exciting to watch.

Play ball!



Song on iPod:
Incubus | Echo

Done. Done. And I'm on to the next one.

.reminder.

The days go by fast.  The only thing we know for sure is that tomorrow will be not be today.

Song on iPod:

Nine Inch Nails | The Collector

Mmm Oranges.

.orange tree.

I was walking back from a meeting tonight and started kicking an orange around as I walked.  Relax, it wasn't my orange.  It did accomplish two things though.

a | It brought a vision of a non-traditional orange tree to my head.
b | It made me hungry for oranges.

No oranges.  Damn.

Canned peaches will do.








Song on iPod:
AFI | Ever and A Day

A Good Night

I got home not too long ago from having dinner with my sister.  It was something that was long overdue and we had one of those talks that really made me happy that she's part of my life.  I hope that she knows (and I know she's reading this) how much that means to me.  Thank you, Snotface.  (Don't worry...she'll get it!)




Song on iPod:
A Perfect Circle | The Outsider

Tool...what else??

.change.

More often than not, Tool finds its way on to my iPod playlist and I doubt that there has ever been a time where I've skipped to the next song when that's happened.

Today, Forty Six & 2 came on.  It just stuck with me for the better part of the day and images started rolling through and essentially this is what came out.

I paid homage to the song by added a lyric at the bottom, one that really hits home, as well as creating a silhouette of the man who delivers said lyric with perfection, MJK.

| forty six and two are just ahead of me |





Current Song on iPod:
Tool | Reflection

Bzzzzz!

.bee.

Inspired by the book that I had previously mentioned, Generation A.

I haven't finished it yet, not even close, but it's got me thinking about bees.

Bzzz.

Current Song on iPod:
Ashes Divide | Enemies

Summer Teaser

Gorgeous day here today.  76⁰ outside and it's still March...this I could get used to.  I decided to take advantage of the weather today.  I found my way down to Center City, with a few job prospects that I was following up with on the agenda, so I took care of that first.  I wandered around a little while, checking different places and such, before I decided that I needed a break.  Coincidentally, I had found my way over to a Barnes and Noble and figured that I would go in there and check to see if they had a book there that I had wanted to read.  I used to read more often, but slowly gave that up over the course of time and have come to realize that it's something I enjoy and should really make an effort to get back to it.

Into the bookstore I go and I make my way up to the 3rd floor, where they keep the good stuff.  Ahh, there it is, only one copy left and it's mine!  Generation A by Douglas Coupland.  I've read a number of books by D.C. and I consider him to be one of my favorite authors, if not my number one all by himself.  He's got a really creative writing style and a unique way of interweaving different characters together.  $15+ tax and I'm out the door.

With my new book in hand, I made my way over to Rittenhouse Square, where there was a surplus of people, all of whom are taking advantage of the randomly warm weather as if it may never have come back again.  There were people walking dogs, people singing, dancing, hula-hooping, playing guitar, basking in the sunlight, reading in the shade and basically just happy to be there.  So was I.

Today was a good day and look forward to more of those to come.



Last song on iPod:
Linkin Park | The Catalyst

Olives anyone?

.olive.

Did you ever get the impression that when you were stabbing an olive with one of those little cocktail spears, it was smiling at you?

...


Yeah, me neither.  I was just asking.







Current Song on iPod:
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds | Red Right Hand

Red or Blue?

.vision.

Another experiment staying consistent with the style I have been working with over the last few days.

I kinda like the ghosty layer floating around the background a bit.  A simple effect, but not without its subtleties.

It seems I am partial to red these days.  Typically, blues would normally be the direction I would head, but for reasons unknown I've been gravitating towards reds.

| I know what you're thinking, 'cause right now I'm thinking the same thing.  Actually, I've been thinking it ever since I got here: Why oh why didn't I take the blue pill? |

I chose the red.




Current song on iPod:
Tool | Pushit

Just Go

I had to pee in a cup today.  That was exciting.  Just another step in the hiring process of a company I am interested in.  Or, they are interested in me... or both.  It was the first time that I had ever had to take a drug test and while I wasn't worried about the outcome, it was more the fact that once I got there...I couldn't go.  I drank an entire SoBe Life Water on the way and had 3 cups of water while sitting in the waiting room.  Nothing.  Of course, I was welcome to sit in the waiting area until I "felt the urge" so I sat there and watched the end of a movie they had playing.  They had on Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls.  How ironic.

So, I started trying not to think about it, figuring that if I just concentrated on something else, it'd work itself out.  Naturally, as my mind often does, I started thinking about the Seinfeld episode where Elaine has to pass a drug test in order to accompany Mr. Peterman to Africa.  (Isn't it funny how every situation in life can be referenced by Seinfeld?) She inadvertently ate some poppyseed muffins before she had to give her urine sample, which led to her testing positive for opium.  She admits that it was the poppyseeds in the muffin and Peterman lets her take a "pop-urine test" to try again.  This time she had eaten a very small amount of chicken at Jerry's apartment which apparently contained some poppyseeds.  Now, I would think that it would take an awful lot of those seeds to really show up on the test, but it's television... anything is possible!  This thought process inevitably led to what I had eaten before I had to whiz into a plastic cup.  I mentioned the SoBe drink, which was Apple Pear.  Clean.  Jolly Ranchers.  Clean.  Blueberry Pop-Tarts.  Clean.  Ok then, I think I'm good to go.

Alright.  Enough is enough already.  I was getting tired of waiting, so I just decided to tell the girl at the desk that I was ready to give it a shot.  So I went and that was that.  However, now that I am home, all of that water that I drank in preparation is making a charge.  So what's the lesson here kids?  I'm not really sure there is one, but I'm glad it's over.


Currently listening to:
Tool | Opiate

Another extraction from the iNoodle

.z.

Just some more tooling around with one of the few usable photos that I actually have of myself at the moment.

There really isn't any hidden meaning here.  Nothing that was intentional anyway.

I like the direction the style is heading though.  I'll have to try to fine tune it and work with different subject matter.  More objects, less people.

I dig.

Tribute

.bean.

The Unbearable Lightness of Bean.

Poor kitty:

Well, it was only a matter of time and today was that day.  The family cat, Kali, was put to rest today after almost 19 years of ankle biting and sleeping under the covers.  It wasn't exactly a surprise, I mean he had been sick for a while, not to mention deaf and going blind.  18+ years is a pretty long time for a cat though...it's amazing he lived as long as he did.  I'm pretty sure that he never really liked me much, which is bizarre, because most cats do.  It's good to know that he's not suffering anymore.


Just listened to: Mad World - performed by Gary Jules and Michael Andrews

A Monday night expression...

.Inside out.

So, I decided to tinker around with Illustrator and Photoshop for a little while tonight, just to see what would come out on screen.  As for today, I'm satisfied with it...but I know how that goes...I'll see what I think about it tomorrow.

It was done, first by creating vector art in Illustrator, then adding a little character in Photoshop.  I may have gotten a little filter happy, but it was necessary to accomplish the effect.

Hopefully the first of many...

Hello, and welcome to movie phone.

About a week ago or so, I was having dinner with some family and we were talking about movies.  My Dad had mentioned that he had seen a list online of the top 10 Guy movies of all time.  Now, this was obviously an unofficial list, just some random guys take on the subject.  Naturally, he couldn't remember the entire list, however it did spark a discussion at the table.  Pretty soon the question was thrown to me as to what my top 10 movies would look like.  My response was that this was not going to be a question that I would be able to answer on the spot.  Movies are organic.  The meanings of some movies change depending on the period of your life that you watch them in.  Some movies have more watchability than others, meaning that I can watch them over and over again.  Take The Sixth Sense for example.  When I watched it in the theater when it originally came out, I thought it was excellent.  Very well done.  I was definitely compelled to watch it over again to see the movie in a new light, and see what I missed the first time around.  After the second time though, that was it.  I believe that since the movie came out in 1999, those are the only two times I have ever watched it.  I just don't feel as though I would be entertained watching it again, even 12 years later.

With that said, here's a list of my top 10 favorite movies, and outside of the top 3 the rest are in no particular order.

1) Fight Club (1999) - This has been my favorite movie since the day I walked out of the theater the first time I saw it.  There was something about this movie that really blew me away.  The story, the characters, and even David Fincher's direction left me in awe.  Clear cut number one in my book.

2) Inception (2010) - It had been 11 years since Fight Club was crowned my favorite movie of all time and Inception was the first to really give it a run for the money.  The idea was one that I had never seen, coupled with tremendous visual effects and extremely likable characters across the board.

3) The Bourne Trilogy (2002-2007) - Absolute non stop, kick ass action that I could watch any given time on any given day.  I am actually holding out hope that they find a way to make a fourth installment.

4) The Dark Knight (2008) - It's Batman finally done right.  Well, Batman Begins was entertaining too, but this effort went far and beyond.

5) The Usual Suspects (1995) - There is something to say about how a story is told.  I've got news for you...even I'm afraid of Keyser Soze.

6) The Count of Monte Cristo (2002) - It wasn't flashy and it didn't win any awards, but it's a movie that I almost always watch when I am at home with a cold or something.  Always entertaining for me.

7) The Matrix (1999) - I was left in awe by the special effects when I watched the movie for the first time.  11 years later, I still find myself attracted to the story and genuinely entertained every time I watch it.

8) Heat (1995) - I have always liked this movie.  There's no mystery, no deeper meaning, just straight good guys vs bad guys... and you can't help but root for the bad guys.

9) Office Space (1999) - I have never worked in a cubicle, but find myself quoting this movie again and again.  Classic.

10) Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) - This was the first of two very similar movies done by Guy Ritchie.  Snatch. was the second.  Oddly enough, it wasn't until I watched Snatch. that I went back and watched Lock, Stock.  I suppose it could have been a toss up as to which of the two movies made it into my top 10, but more often than not, given the choice of the two I would undoubtedly choose this one.  Very well done.

So there it is.  I feel like I could have made a top 40 and still left some out.  I guess honorable mentions would have to go to: The Hangover, Gladiator, Indiana Jones, Star Wars (episodes 4-6), Se7en, and Sideways.

That's all for right now, I'll check back in later.

Cheers.

What the blog?

Well, this should be interesting.  I've never really used a blog before, nor have I really been one to regularly contribute to other blogs as well.  However, I've reached a turning point in my life and feel as though I need to make some changes and start trying to do some things differently.  This may just prove to be a single serving therapy session or who knows, maybe someone out there will start reading along with me.  The point is that this year is going to be about positive life changes and moving forward.  More to come...




Last song listened to today:
Snow Patrol - Disaster Button