The Blog

Sitting Here, Not Doing Anything

2009-02-08T01:14:00.003-05:00

So I figured I'd hammer out a quick blog post.

Saturday: nothing really accomplished, spent most of the day on twitter really. Got a change to go the Apple Store, bought myself a WesternDigital Harddrive, 320GB. That should keep me going for the next few years as far as Hard Drive space goes, unless they invent some new lossless file format that I suddenly really really feel like using. In other news, there is no other news. Class is going alright, life is chugging along, and the cold New York winter is leaving me.

I'm gonna try and get really intellectual with a few of my blog posts, and I'll put cross posting those to web.me.com/pilot3033 so...look out for that, I guess.

-Matt

Cross Posting

2009-02-05T12:37:00.000-05:00

I continue to maintain the iWeb blog at web.me.com/pilot3033 , But I will try to cross post everything to the blogger account.

-Matt

Blogger is Back

2009-01-22T12:29:00.003-05:00

I'm taking COM297D, Writing for Convergent media. Time to re-open the Blogger blog. I haven't updated .mac anyway :P

-Matt

More .mac Updates

2008-03-10T03:00:00.001-04:00

I've updated the .mac blog if you're interested.

http://web.mac.com/pilot3033

.mac

2008-01-26T14:56:00.000-05:00

I've added some pretty cool Brooklyn Pics to the web galleries, you should check them out at web.mac.com/pilot3033
You can look through the various blog posts for links, the seth posts have a couple, and I'll add some redundant ones to "beautiful brooklyn."

Post 100

2008-01-23T16:32:00.000-05:00

I hate to spend post 100 plugging my other blog, but what the hell?

http://www.web.mac.com/pilot3033

I've even added a huge long thoughtful (sort of) post, with more pictures!
-Matt

The Fancy Blog

2007-12-30T14:38:00.000-05:00

I've started using iWeb and iPhoto '08, and am doing some test blog posts on my .mac account.

You can check it all out at http://web.mac.com/pilot3033

-Matt

(Lots of photos!)

Its Fucking Cold

2007-12-05T21:29:00.000-05:00

Its a mere 30 outside, but it feels more like 0.

Wind Chill factor has much to do with this, but it sucks because I love walking around this neighborhood, especially when it has snowed, or is snowing (as it is currently, and when I was just outside).

Alas, no gain without pain as they say.

Who 'they' is remains to be seen, but 'they' seem to be spot on a fair amount of the time.

Snow Pics

2007-12-02T19:11:00.001-05:00

Snow

2007-12-02T13:45:00.000-05:00

Day 2 in December, and snow has fallen.
It took me a second this morning to make sure I wasn't still asleep, and that it was in fact freezing outside, evidenced by the layer of frozen raindrops.

It's going to be a fun fun winter, now that I've got my wool socks on.

A Bowl

2007-11-27T19:15:00.000-05:00

I was walking around Union Square today just for kicks (I was bored, I didn't have class, others did), enjoying the scenery, taking advantage of the seasonally warm (55 degrees) weather, working through my own thoughts etc. I was deep in thought somewhere near the Virgin Records store, contemplating going and browsing movies and music, (I want to pick up the new Foo Fighters CD) and decided to NOT go back to Whole Foods today. On a recent trip there, I figured out that healthy food is really rather expensive. I bought some turkey breast slices, pepper jack cheese, multi-grain bread, and some Fuji apples (which are probably what did it...this things are HUGE!). I had originally gone in to buy some Hazelnut Butter/Spread, but alas, could not find any. All in all though, I ended up dropping $35 at the place, but the food is really good, and I guess good for you if you like clichés.

That's my tea (coffee) cup next to the GIANT APPLE. They're the SAME SIZE!

In any case, as I was walking I heard an "excuse me!" but didn't bother turning around, as it was one of those attention grabbing ones, not the kind that lets you know you did something outside of a social norm, and I figured it belonged to someone else. Almost instantly though, I felt a tug at my jacket, and looked down to my left to see a girl about a third my height, in a sweater that either had a high school, or college name on it. I made brief eye contact and was greeted with, "do you know where I can find a bowl?"
This is where my Communications courses should come in, in that I should be able to explain the encounter more academically than "I just knew what she wanted", but alas, I can not. For those not yet with me, she wanted weed.
I mean,

She was young
Was in Union Square (near NYU, the New School, Pace, and a host of other Universities)
I have hair down below my shoulders
I was in a leather jacket

And of course all these things flew through my head in a split-second, but to be sure I just wasn't mis-hearing the girl, I asked "what?" "A bowl," she replied. Confirming to myself that she wanted pot, and I had none, nor knew where she could find some, started to walk way while saying "sorry man, can't help ya," or something to that effect. I don't quite remember (but yes, I did say 'man').

It kind of caught me off guard, the whole thing. I guess now that I think about it, I am walking around looking like a hip, young dude, with long hair, and I can see how one would think I would have, or know where to find grass. Most people, for that matter, would know, and probably do have Mary Jane, or at the very least look like it.

To the Lady Handing out Jesus Pamphlets to us Trick-or-Treaters...

2007-11-26T16:27:00.001-05:00

I ran across this story while reading the Craigslist "best of" section.Incredibly funny, well written, and enlightening. Click read more to read the story.

Excerpt:
I mean really, why would anyone think that on Halloween people are open to being converted into believing in some invisible sky fairy that magically grants wishes if you beg it hard enough and donate some of your money to its church? Do you not even understand the point? Again, thanks for nothing.

read more | digg story

Over the Hills and Through the Woods...

2007-11-22T11:38:00.000-05:00

... more like left on to the insterstate, and through the miles of nothingness... to Grandmother's house we go.

But alas, today is T-Day so I can deal; there will be plenty of pie. Pie makes things better.

Balmy 19 degrees outside, with light snow flurries...joy.

Yeah, I really just woke up, and not much to say, as not much happened. Just breakfast.

I'm just not sure if there is blog access where I'm going, so just being safe.

Anyway, here's what's playing on iTunes right now:

----------------
Now playing: Barenaked Ladies - Be My Yoko Ono (iTunes Originals Version)
via FoxyTunes

mmmm..PIE!
-Matt

South Dakota

2007-11-22T00:26:00.000-05:00

First day in South Dakota.
Not bad really, got a chance to see my uncle and my aunts.

But overall, not much to blog about.

Flight Day

2007-11-20T17:17:00.000-05:00

Sitting in the Newark Liberty International Airport, on my way to South Dakota for the wonderful, gluttonous holiday we call Thanksgiving. With 3 major airports in the NYC area, on top of busy regional airports to the west and north, and the fact that all 3 major airports pack it tighter than a can of sardines, its to be expected that we are delayed. With luck I'll make my connection to South Dakota, but it will be tight.. we're talking less than 20mins.

But I don't want to be too gloomy, I'll save my rant on the TSA (Thousands Standing Around) for later.

Instead, here is a link to an awesome Space Mountain enthusiast site.
They had some videos made up, recreating the entire ride in RCT3.
Very Awesome.

Testing mobile blogging.

2007-11-19T00:10:00.000-05:00

Just testing out mobile blogging so I can blog from the road.

Sent from iPhone

-Matt

Making Up for Things

2007-11-18T23:52:00.001-05:00

So I was in Boston this weekend, and it was a blast.

And I did fall behind on the blogging....

I'll do some extra posts to make up, and perhaps build a stockpile as I will be in South Dakota, and no telling when or if I'll be able to blog...

The Village Vanguard pt.2

2007-11-15T21:11:00.000-05:00

So I apparently need to write another Jazz review.

So off to the Vanguard!

Short Film

2007-11-14T23:41:00.000-05:00

For whatever psychological, subconscious reason, I continue to have difficulty in completing classwork in a timely manner. This is not to say that it does not get done, rather that I have emense difficulty getting it done over the entire period of time assinged to do it; in short: I do it during the proverbial 11th hour.

This is nothing new, by any means, but I have the feeling that getting good grades on papers done literally an hour before class time is re-enforcing the bad behavior.

The annoying part is that I fully recognize the problems, and the problem areas. I also recognize how I am doing things, and how I SHOULD be doing things. The disconnect is in the line that links the too. I have tried several different approaches to doing work in a timely manner, yet I never seem to quite get it right.

In any case, while recently procrastinating, I started to brainstorm about a paper I needed to write, and this lead to fantasy about film directing.
Well, it actually first lead to memory of stage play direction, and then lead into thoughts about great cinematography, and THEN led to the brainstorm about creating a really cool film as an experiment with the camera.

I've always loved great camera work, and I am a particular fan of the long take (Wells was a master of this, as evidenced by Citizen Kane, or Touch of Evil).

In any case, this brainstorm continues to pester me, and I'm considering investing in a small, but good DV camera to start shooting some shorts.

But first, I will glue myself to this fucking chair and get this paper done.

Other Life Notes:

Going to Boston on Friday
Going to South Dakota on Tuesday
Back in NYC on Saturday
Back in LA hopefully by the 20th of December
Major: Declaring Communications with a Film and Screen Studies minor, or a double major in Communications and Film and Screen Studies
I need to take a Science course next semester. I'm looking at Biology or Chemistry.

Trains, Planes and Automobiles.
-Matt

DRANO

2007-11-13T22:51:00.000-05:00

It works.

My shower drains were clogged before I used them, and I finally got around to clearing it out.
Glad I did.

Now...to get working on my paper....

maybe....
hopefully...

...

Pie

2007-11-12T22:30:00.000-05:00

I. Love. Pie.

I simply adore pie. Apple pie, blueberry pie, cherry pie, key lime pie, pecan pie, choclate pie, pear pie, cream pie, lemon meringue pie, all types of pie.

More importantly, I like the things I associate with pie: Autumn, Diner's, Cafés, Noir, Jazz, Coffee, friends, late nights...

It kind of sucks that I associate good times and socializing with food, but, there could be worse things.

The ~~Cake~~ Pie is a Lie

No Time

2007-11-11T20:29:00.000-05:00

Writing papers...would love to blog more in depth today, but must try and focus. I'm having tons of trouble actually starting the work.

Oh, going to Boston next weekend too.

Crossing Bridges

2007-11-10T23:59:00.000-05:00

I was walking just after dark, down to what is known around here as the “promenade.” While many may think of a shopping mall like atmosphere, this is in fact a large plaza here in Brooklyn, built hanging over the Brooklyn-Queen Expressway (BQE), and looks out over Lower Manhattan. And while you probably still don’t know what or where I’m talking about, if you have ever seen a low angle shot of the Twin Towers, or Lower Manhattan since then, it was most probably taken from the promenade.
I introduce the setting here, because I like to walk down there often, and let my mind wonder. On this particular evening, I walked the 2 blocks to the place and was instantly caught up in “what am I going to blog about tonight?” My thoughts quickly wondered into friendship, and self-doubt. That is to say, I started to feel lonely. I’ve never been good with making friends, and I certainly have had a world of trouble really clicking with the people around here. Not to say I’m isolated, I’ve met quite a few people, and have friendly interactions with many, but there are really only 1, maybe 2 people I can call a “friend”. I started thinking about fiends back in LA, who I wanted to see, people I’ve met over the years, and who has become a life-long friend, and who has become “someone I hung out with in High School?”
It was at this point in time I reached my destination and started to see the downtown skyline, the lights, the buildings, the bridges… part of me wanted to cry. I feel I have prefaced this point with the wrong thing. I wasn’t feeling this way because of my lack of friends (I’ll elaborate later), but I can’t quite specify what it was either. Perhaps the constant wind was causing my eyes to water, perhaps it was the beauty of downtown, the happiness I was feeling for just living in such a wonderful city, some other random reason, or perhaps a mixture of everything.

It sucks that you can’t bring your friends with you where ever you go. Even with the internet, and all the on demand communication methods, the picture sharing, the blogging, the podcasting, nothing replaces doing things with those you know, and sharing experiences. It’s interesting how you can know so much about a person, yet only have been with them in person 3 or 4 times.

I called this blog entry Crossing Bridges because I was going to talk about the different ways people cross the bridge from “We hang out” to “We’re friends”.
I just don’t think I’ve been able to fully develop the thoughts I wanted to lay out. I guess I just kind of have gotten home sick, and it is affecting me more than I thought. I’m not cut off from the world, far from it, but there is something that you just don’t get from video chatting or IMing.

One of these entries is going to be devoted to either politics or poetry, so look out for that.

Oh, and just to tidy up Chicago so I get it off my mind:
Bob played great, Amos is an awesome dude to hang around, already said I need to check out more Elvis Costello, while I’ve been out with people at 4 in the morning, I’ve never been standing outside of a hotel with 4 guys over 50, ordering a pizza, and having it delivered not to a room, not to the lobby, but to “5 guys on the bench in front of the hotel,” Chicago is an awesome city and I can’t wait to go back in March, and I overall had an awesome time. Even going out for steak at 1 in the morning on the morning of my flight back that was due to depart at 8… that morning….

WGA Strike

2007-11-10T00:26:00.000-05:00

I thought I would cover it a little bit. I'm wholly on the side of the WGA, and rather than giving a long and boring explanation, I thought I would show you this video I ran across: (plus, its a great use of Apple's Keynote software!)

The Village Vanguard

2007-11-09T23:18:00.000-05:00

I ended up in the Village last night for the jazz club. For $20 I suppose it was worth it, but I must say the set felt very lackluster and generic. I do enjoy jazz, and some of the musicians in the group last night were fucking fantastic, but overall I was underwhelmed.

On a separate note, I was super healthy yesterday, having a salad for lunch, and a vegetable platter for dinner. Time now, to just get committed to doing the sit ups (30 a day, and increasing every week). I did 15 last night before bed, so I'm hoping to do 45 tonight to make up.

Other notes: its raining again, I wrote some fantastic analysis for Citizen Kane but I think I trailed off too much, and hopefully I can re-write it for a better grade when it comes back as a B or B+ (as I did with my North by Northwest paper when ended up with an A when all was said and done).

Jazz

2007-11-08T22:08:00.000-05:00

Off to a Jazz club tonight. Should be good, will give a report.

Keeping Track

2007-11-07T23:55:00.000-05:00

I should let you all know that I've been collecting google analytics data for a while, and I finally found out some interesting things.

First off: I found an outlier in the search engine data. Most of you were looking for me, but it seems one person was looking for information on Chicago Gypsy Cabs.
Not the strangest search string, but still interesting that I was the top of the 2nd page.

I've also discovered that I've received readers from Spain, Japan, China, and Canada with the US making up the majority of hits. According to analytics, I've been visited from 2 cities in Japan, one from China (Beijing), 1 from Spain, and 2 from Canada. Pretty good I think.
One of my favorite pieces of data is this though: (click for larger version)

Chicago...again

2007-11-06T23:39:00.000-05:00

Images! Yes, I figured I should add some more Chicago photos from the trip the other week. I saw Bob for 2 of the 3 nights at the historical Chicago theater, and while I took many shots inside the place, I think the ones of the Marquee came out the best overall. It really was a great time, and I look forward to going back in March for QC.

In other news I've been trying to keep up on the school work. I almost think I have too light of a load this semester, and its hampering my ability to focus. I'll have to see. I go in for a meeting with an advisor in the morning, and I'll be declaring either a double major in Communication Studies and Film Studies or a Major/Minor combo with those two. I haven't decided exactly what I want to do yet; I feel though, that these two majors cater well to my interests and should be quite enjoyable.

While I don't exactly want to go into a film profession, I have always loved the medium, and I look forward to taking the opportunity to learn more about it. Communication Studies for me offers a broad range of topics, that fit into my perspective on the world, and while I still have no real occupation in mind, declaring COM sets me up nicely for any job I wish to pursue in the future.

On an unrelated tangent, as I look at the picture on the right, I can't help but notice how awesome the iPhone camera is. I have to say, that is quite a good shot, if the scaffolding wasn't there it would be fantastic, perhaps I should invest in a good digital camera like I've been meaning to. Perhaps a copy of Photoshop to help with some of the cropping. But I must say, the lighting was great. I'm glad I went outside to take the shots when I did.

Back to Chicago though. Dylan was playing with Elvis Costello and Amos Lee as his openers. Elvis was doing this awesome solo acoustic thing, and it really turned me on to his stuff, I'll definitely be checking it out. Amos was also great, as always, and if you haven't heard him, I suggest you check him out. He writes some solid stuff, and it sounds fantastic, not to mention he's a really cool dude. He also featured some new songs he hasn't recorded yet in his set, which is always a plus for me, it means that the artists is still working and perfecting, and not trying to milk out his 'hits' for all they are worth.

In other news, if you haven't seen (but most of you have), Ze posted a new video which is highly amusing.

Otherwise, I'm out of things to talk about.

Peace, Love, and FUCK PAD THAI,
Matt

Video Chat

2007-11-05T23:32:00.000-05:00

Seems my younger (14) brother has dicovered the wonders of iChats, video chatting features. He won't stop bugging me with video chat requests. I guess that's a + overall (love and all that). But to be honest, vagina jokes, and faux wigger-gang humor is only funny for so long.

or...is it?

muahahaha

Right, I promise I'll get back to Chicago one of these days!

Study

2007-11-04T23:45:00.000-05:00

This Jazz thing is driving me more nuts than it should...

Jazz

2007-11-03T17:13:00.000-04:00

I need someone to go a Jazz club or restaurant with. I need to write this firggen paper by Monday... crap....

Shitty Shit Shit

2007-11-02T15:54:00.000-04:00

I completely forgot that I agreed to help someone sell t-shirts tonight... It takes up too much of my time, and I'm not really getting paid, but I have a policy of helping people when I can (and if they deserve it), so here I am doing this favor.

last time though, I CAN'T STAND doing this type of work.

*sigh*
-Matt

More Chicago

2007-11-01T23:21:00.000-04:00

Got on plane, good flight, landed, went to hotel.

There, nice n' neat.

Tidbits:
Approached by guy looking for money using cover story of "trying to see his grandmother." It was a believable story, but it felt too much like an act. He approached, but kept his distance at first, saying under his breath: "Bullshit! Bullshit, man! Bullshit!" although, I hadn't expected for him to actually ask for money at first. His story his long and boring, and I could tell he was trying to be personable by asking my name, shaking my hand, and saying "oh, hey, I met another Matt at the bus stop!" And while believable, (he was dressed appropriately, flashed a student ID card), his story just didn't quite strike me as worthy of my time. Perhaps this city has been too rough on me, and made me too skeptical about people.
On that note, he also was asking for way too much money, so perhaps he was telling the truth (the pros here in the city are good at reading people, and generally ask for low amount, usually between 50 cents and a dollar, sometimes 2 dollars if they are going for the "I just need to go home on the subway" approach, but only really go for anything more if they think the person they have is a tourist, or gullible, or both). He asked me for $10 or thereabouts, which while I have and could give, wasn't impressed enough to actually do so. I gave him a buck (my usual rate), and wished him luck, and departed to find my ride.

Wow...little elaborate for a tid bit. I'll keep the rest of the brief...

I've now been to every location featured in the Alfred Hitchcock film, North by Northwest. Completing the quest I didn't know I was on, by staying at the Ambassador Hotel in Chicago (link is to the wikipeida page for the hotel's restaurant: the Pump Room.)

I was at the launch for Apple's OSX 10.5 Leopard at the Chicago Apple Store, and while I didn't actuallyy buy the new OS there, I did get a free t-shirt! I apologize if the images are not the same size, I tried... In any case, after playing with Leopard for an hour or so, I walked outside only to find that it was now pouring rain outside, and I had a 20 block walk back to the hotel, and while the walk was not very long (5-10min), it was about to seem like an eternity. So I called Cody Walker. I figured he would be entertaining enough to keep me distracted from what was essentially a second shower for the day.
I eventually did get back to the hotel, and dried off.

So...tidbits turned into a full on blog post...hope you weren't too bored..

Hopefully I'll have some pics of the theater for tomorrow, and talk about some of the shows.

PAD THAI FOREVER!
-Matt

Comitment

2007-10-31T22:26:00.000-04:00

I've decided to try and blog everyday for a month.
This post fills that requirement.

1 day, no tea...so far so good...
but stupid cookies are so hard to resist. I just need to throw out that box...I bought all healthy things except the cookies dammit!

Not to interrupt...

2007-10-31T01:16:00.001-04:00

Not to get in the way of my new Chicago story, but I particularly love this video...and hapen to enjoy a few of the things parodied in it:

Chicago - Friday pt. 1

2007-10-31T00:42:00.001-04:00

I promise I'll get around to uploading some of the photos I took with my iPhone over the weekend (count the 'I's' in that sentence!). But for now I'll try to give a brief rundown of what occurred over during the period in which Chicago was the setting.

Friday pt.1
I woke up at around 7am to the horrible sound of my phone alarm (imagine the stock "red alert" style alarm sound, often heard in naval movies when the ship gets hit), twice. I had forgotten to pick up my laundry from the wash/fold place the day before, so I threw on the previous days clothes and ran down to grab my fresh folded laundry. That done, I took out my carry-on and just threw the already folded clothes into it, 4 pairs of socks, 4 boxers, 4 shirts, and 1 pair of pants (I would be wearing the 2nd pair). Now while I was only going to be in the windy city for a few days, I like to keep extra pairs of everything just in case, except pants because I wear jeans, and lets face it, jeans are tough... not to mention I only have 4 pairs on jeans, and one was already dirty.
Look, jeans can last you a good long while if you haven't been doing anything in them. On the road, I wore my jeans for up to 5 or 6 days straight without a wash.
In any case, I went downstairs again to grab the required egg sandwich from the local café/diner/corner sandwich place.

I was scheduled for American Airlines flight 321, an MD-80 from LaGuardia to O'Hare, set to depart at 11:35. I made my way down stairs with all my crap to go and grab a cab. However, an open cab is scarce in my part of Brooklyn, especially at this time in the morning. In an attempt to remedy this, I asked the security woman at the desk if should would mind calling me a cab. She made a call, and insisted that I stay inside. Strange, I thought, but sure, whatever. As the time kept ticking away, and I still wasn't seeing a cab outside, but I saw two cabs drive nearby, and asked if it was a city cab she had called. A long winded 'no' came back, and I promptly told her to call them back, tell them never mind, and walked out before she could object.
I'm not going to pay for shitty gypsy cab, or faux car service to take me to the airport.
In any case, I quickly hailed a cab on the corner and was one my way.

Boring entry, but at least it's something. When I get my head straight, I keep going with the more juicy details on my trip, and how much I enjoyed it.

On a separate note, I'll be using the blog to keep track of my 2nd attempt to drop caffeine from the system. I was successful for a long time, and then I started to drink tea again. While actually good for you if you have the right tea, I feel it is probably better that I just abandon the whole substance rather than keep drinking it. Although, I do enjoy tea...
In any case, I'm also using the new drive as a way to stop eating candy as well, and start eating better, exercising.
I have a lot of though, and a lot of talk, but no walk. Maybe I have commitment problems? I also don't like spending money...so..

Peace, Love, and Bonsai Trees.
-Matt

Chicago

2007-10-27T16:12:00.000-04:00

Did you know that Chicago is actually called the windy city because of the hot political climate, and all the hot air blowing out of politicians mouths? Nothing to do with actual wind... although plenty of that too...

I'll have a full report of what I'm doing here, why I came, and how it was when I get a chance to actually sit down, write, and think.
Trying not to neglect the blog so much.

Tea is your friend,
Matt

Struggle

2007-10-17T16:53:00.000-04:00

I've made mistakes, and I feel like I can not overcome the steep learning curve, and at the same time feel like I am unable, unwilling, or just don't feel the need to keep at this.

I have a few options left, and I intend to explore all of them. For now, stay the execution and try to accomplish at least mediocre, but even that feels like a shot to the gut.

Stuff

2007-10-15T23:31:00.000-04:00

Hola,

I don't need to say more. The video is funny enough on its own (even if you haven't the slightest idea what these new fangled "video games" are).

Academics n' Insomnia

2007-10-08T03:01:00.000-04:00

Yay old procrastination habits!
I may have been too easy on myself this semester. There is no balance at all, I'm all out of whack. I've had little difficulty with all but one of my classes. Let me explain:

All but one of my classes are in the afternoons, so I can sleep in, but I'm done in time to have my day. Not to mention, most of the classes are very laid back. I enjoy the lax attitudes, but that combined with their scheduled times has lead me to not start papers until very near their due dates. It also completely crushed my study habits. As a result, the one difficult class has multiplied in difficulty ten fold. Japanese requires constant study to keep up, but I don't feel any pressure to actually study for it...even though I really DO want to learn it.

All this has lead to my sleep schedule being thrown off too. I went to bed at 3am the other night, and woke up at 5....pm! 5pm!

I'm going to try and get a little more zen, start talking more afternoon walks (perhaps start a morning jog), and start drinking real good hot tea, instead of the canned Arizona green tea I keep buying for $0.99 at the corner store.

-Matt

PS: Yet to order internet steak, will do so soon.

Not Yet a Rooted Tree of Wisdom, More Like a Bonsai of Awesome... (Wisdom is Assumed). Did I mention the Bonsai has Wheels! And Jet Engines?! Woo!

2007-09-25T00:27:00.000-04:00

In my efforts to not remain in one place for very long, I'm going to what is essentially Baltimore, MD, then up to Rhode Island, and down to Connecticut this weekend. I'm booked on the 10am Acela Express out of Penn Station on Friday for the 2.5hr train ride down. While I would have preferred flying, the train is a cheaper, and probably faster option what with security and actually GETTING to a New York area airport.

I intend to meet up with my father in Maryland go to the show, and travel with the tour until Sunday night, at which point I'm automagically going to end up back here (read: not sure... It'll get figured out eventually).

Not much to report on the Brooklyn side, loving my Film Studies class (Art of Film, very Hitchcock centric right now..and I love every second of it), and Japanese is proving to really put my procrastination and motivation sides at war with each other (I WANT to learn..but I don't want to learn...wtf?).

Oh, and my good friend Erik (transiit, his blog [mmm...donut] is linked in the side bar...too lazy to link it right here), helped out the cause and bought me (the poor, starving college student!) an amazon gift certificate for use in the purchase of Omaha Steaks.
I'm going to place the order off amazon (you are reading that right...internet steak!) on Saturday I think. I do owe you one buddy, I'm finally going to get to use that George Foreman for something other than veggies n' the occasional salmon.

Peace, Love and Rock n' Roll,
Matt

PS. I resolve to stop using parens so much (transiit, I spelled your name right, right? Feel free to make fool of me if I didn't).

Brooklyn Pics

2007-09-21T02:11:00.000-04:00

Crossing the bridge from the Brooklyn side to the Manhattan side, with the skyline, outlined.
Just before the bridge, near Cadman Plaza
These pics were taken not long after I moved in, so about 2 weeks old. But I still think they are cool :)

Walking the Bridge

2007-09-21T02:09:00.001-04:00

A healthy, beautiful thing to do.
And yay for cellphone cameras lack of quality, turning bad shots into good ones.
(it's about 2 weeks old, I just figured I should post it...because it's all cool like)

Brooklyn Pizza

2007-09-20T23:56:00.000-04:00

Best. In. The. World.

I don't have much to write about still.

Tour ended wonderfully, and it was great to see everyone in LA for the two weeks I was home.
I'm thinking of flying home for a weekend in October or December, I'll let you guys know if I end up doing that.

Not Much to Say

2007-08-10T12:53:00.000-04:00

Perhaps I'm too tired...I've been trying to write a meaningful blog post for the last 15 minuets and have yet to come up with anything.... oh well.
Perhaps another time :)

PS: I'm in Germany again...it's rather interesting.

Musings & Mannerisms

2007-08-07T16:43:00.000-04:00

If you have Pownce, you've read this already. If you don't have Pownce... hit me up for an invite.

It's strange being away from home for so long...you start getting used to certain things about other cultures, and I feel it sort of permanently changes you.
It is not always a big thing, and for met at least it has been mostly mannerisms if I am not sure I'll every lose. Bits and pieces of accents from one country to another, regional slang, heck, I've even started writing my '7''s with that line in the middle (because many European cultures draw the '1' as if it were a cursive lower-case "L".
What is even stranger to me though, is that I've been on the road for about 2 and a half months...and it feels like nothing. This has become normal...my job. I miss home, but in many ways I no longer feel like I always have to go back there.
A new step forward perhaps, at the very least a giant 180 from how I was feeling from April to May of this year.

Nearly a Month Gone by...

2007-08-03T16:25:00.001-04:00

I am very bad at the updates in general, but touring Eastern Europe really adds to the difficulty.
After Budva we high-tailed it to Serbia and the wonderful Belgrade. Following this we continued on to Bucharest, Romania; Budapest, Hungary; Brno, Czech Republic; Warsaw, Poland; and St. Petersburg, Russia.

The highlight for me (and it WILL get it's own blog post) was most defiantly St. Petersburg.
When I get time I'll post a few stories (if I can gather them), and explain some of the technical details of working with our stage...and explain exactly what it is I've been doing out here using more than the word "roadie". :)

peace n' love
-Matt

Budva

2007-07-08T07:25:00.001-04:00

Ah, the former Yugoslavia...
Quite beautiful...very fucking hot, but quite beautiful.

Roma

2007-07-05T12:28:00.000-04:00

So...holy shit. Rome.
We've had two days off after our 36 hour drive here from El Ejido, Spain.

Just walking around this city will drop your jaw and dilate your pupils. The ruins of Ancient Rome are obviously still visible and blend in seamlessly with the buildings from 500, 100, and 10 years ago. Cobblestone streets add a certain something to the vibe of the city (and make car and bus rides feel like a day at sea), and offer a nice accent to the abundance of sidewalk cafés.

Obviously the Colosseum is a must, and I'm glad to say that I went very early in the morning and was able to spend 2 very quiet hours inside. Later that day I was able to take a tour of Vatican City, including the Vatican Museums, the Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter's. Again, most if not all of the art visible (buildings included) will cement your jaw to the floor. I felt an amazing sense of reality and history while visiting, my mind busy with thoughts of ancient times and historical significance of the places I was standing.
I feel like I can't honestly describe how amazingly awesome this city is in a blog post.

Anyway, today was load-in for Rome so I'll go over some quick notes:
1)Bus Driver got lost on the way to the gig (oops), 1/2 hour ride took a little over an hour.

2)All of us crew have been hanging out in the hotel bar/lobby since we got here..and it was let out who we work for. I can't tell me how many times I've heard, "so...are you 'here' for 'the stones?'" in the last 2 days. It was novel at first (talking about the industry and what I've been doing on tour) but now it has gotten on the annoying side. Still a unique experience I suppose.

3)As I'm sure you heard we had an unfortunate accident in Madrid a few days ago. It hit a lot of the crew pretty hard as many knew the touring rigger, and it really brought everyone back down to earth and reality. Out here, both of these things are often forgotten in work. You lose a sense of time and place, and go from one city to the next in a near haze. I was completely oblivious to both the day of the week and day of the month from the moment we left Brussels right up until here in Rome where we finally caught a long break (and in all honestly, I didn't know either until mid-way through our first day off). On a similar note, most of us completely forgot about our respective national holidays. Canadians forgot Canada Day, and I forgot Independence day. And to be truthful, it was not a bad thing I lost track of time. The sensation is very zen like. Breaking standard routines and picking up new ones... very peaceful. (And just so you don't think I'm crazy, this happens to every one on the tour except maybe the Band because they work 5 of the 48 we do).

4)Anyone ever been to Montenegro? It is my next destination and I have no idea what to expect. But hey, that could be a good thing.

Peace y'all.

PS: Going to meet Ruth after the show before we fly to Budva. I'm excited to see what she's been up to. I'll try to blog more often and keep everyone in the loop. It's pretty hard with limited internet access, and when I do have hotel access it usually costs an arm an a leg (22 Euros, $30 for 24hrs!).

mmm paella...

2007-06-27T07:49:00.000-04:00

Hola Madrid!

It's certainly been an interesting few weeks on the road, all sorts of twists and turns that I'm not going to be able to fully explain...:\
I'm just going to say that Madrid is an awesome city with amazing architecture, and an wonderful climate. It's like a nice mix of New York and Los Angeles, only without the coasts. Last night A few of us took a cab downtown to the famous Palace hotel, where we proceeded to walk about for a bit until we stumbled into one of the best Paella places in the city. La Barraca
It was a small, quaint place, tucked in the middle of a narrow street, completely hidden from the hustle bustle of downtown.
I wish I wasn't as tired so I could truthfully, and fully explain how cool this place was, and how great the atmosphere and food was.
Ah well, perhaps when I get a few days off in Rome I'll be able to sit down and actually write a full on blog post, with descriptions and everything.

PS: San Sebastian, Spain is a beautiful city if not a bit touristy. Lisbon was cool, but HOT. Barcelona is like Miami, I didn't get to see much of Lyon, Paris kicked arse even in the rain.
Check the map below if you want to see my progress. :)
Love

Updates

2007-06-10T09:24:00.000-04:00

Afternoon all, I know I haven't blogged in a month, but I've been really busy.

Currently, I am in Frankfurt, Germany continuing the tour, and getting work done. If I find time, I'll elaborate. For now, I'm keeping an updated Google map of the stops along the tour. The map gets updated as soon as I get internet access in the new location.

Hope all is well! And remember, I do have skype and iChat, so I'm not completely out of reach :)

-Matt

Da Google Map

Ron Paul

2007-05-10T11:35:00.000-04:00

This is a copy of a forum post I made this morning.
I was being vague and insinuated that Ron Paul is a bad choice for President.

I'll elaborate even further perhaps later:

The dude is a straight up isolationist who's biggest goal is to hand over federal agencies (FDA, FAA, DEA, etc.) to big buisness. It's called "privatizing", its like the anti-socialism.
The lay person may look at this and go "Great! Government in the hands of the people" or simply, "great! small government, less taxes."

My frustration comes from those who take his admirable values (low taxes, smaller government, separation etc.) but fail to realize the potential of what they are saying.
Under President Paul you could expect a foreign policy that ceases to exist, and a government owned by AT&T, Verizon, Wal Mart, etc.

The funniest part about all this, much of Paul's support is internet based (digg.com for example, has a major hard on for this guy), but one of his main goals would be to privatize the internet: (buh bye ICANN) hasta la by-by net neutrality! Hello "The Internet, from Cingular/AT&T!"

Los Angeles

2007-05-02T21:25:00.001-04:00

I'm back in LA.

More details to follow.

Our Existance

2007-04-05T11:21:00.000-04:00

Morning all,
I thought I would pose the question:

Can science and religion exist side by side?

el fin pt. 2 "the revenge"

2007-04-01T21:09:00.000-04:00

Hey folks, after a few revisions I'm re-posting the essay.

App has been submitted (2 days later than I had hoped, but still technically on time). So..here's to hoping.

Transferring

I consistently fail to see how the name of an educational institution dictates the type of education received. Quite frankly, expert education (sans a few specific courses of study) can be received at many, if not all, accredited universities and colleges. The question arises then, why (if I believe that good and bad professors exists everywhere, and that essentially all schools are equal in that regard) would I even consider leaving a 4-year university where I stand a good chance of graduating on time, and without much effort? I would respond to this query by asking a question of my own: what good is the time spent earning the degree, if I am unhappy for the duration? A university education is more than just working towards a career goal. Colloquial wisdom says that these are the best years of my life and I have no reason to disagree I've been given four years to grow as an adult with the added benefits of emotional and financial support. During this time I plan to learn about anything and everything I am interested in, by exploring multiple disciplines, meeting new people with diverse views and by putting myself into challenging situations in which I will gain life experiences.
My ideal university experience includes passionate discussion and debate not just in, but out of class as well. So far, this has eluded me. While I find some of my classes as great platforms for probing and prodding issues for greater understanding (a joy of mine), generally this does not leave the classroom. I get frustrated when I try to continue debate and discussion outside of my classes, as my fellow students seem uninterested. I find this contributes to my not connecting or building lasting relationships with my peers. There is just a certain set of circumstances working against satisfaction in my current setting. One, most students I interact with are from the tri-state area (New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut), and have cars. Two, the top the subjects of commonality are Business, Nursing, and Sports in that order. Three, in some but not all cases a “high-school” mentality still exists. By this I mean the ideals of popularity contests, partying like it is the end of the world, and excessive (albeit playful) use of certain derogatory insults. Let me also make clear that none of the people I have run into are undesirable. Despite traits that I dislike, nobody I have run into is a “bad” person, rather one that I personally have trouble connecting with.
Due to this lack of connection, I’ve had to resort to other means of enjoying myself. I take particular interest in exploration. However, I’ve found few people who are willing to join me in simply walking around New York City and giving into impulses. I recently went into town and met with a few friends (whom I’d previously known) to just walk around. We ended up downtown, in Battery Park for a bit and then headed up to Chinatown for dinner in the first place that looked good. I'm glad I have at least a few people who value exploration as I do, but I'd like to have a larger group of people to connect with. I want to come home after 4 years and be able to say I had some amazing experiences while at school, that I met some great people, had a great time, not only academically but personally. Connection, experience and opportunity are big parts of what the college experience is about. It's not necessarily learning things in class, but gaining life experience, and knowledge from nouns (people, places and things) around me. I am no longer a stranger to New York City, and I wish to share my own experiences with new people. Everything ends up back at people. NYU offers a larger student base with which I can explore. My current situation severally limits the people who I come in contact with, and this needs to change. I consider myself an open-minded person; I consider my self and accepting person. However, open mindedness, and acceptance are two-way doors.
This is not to say that I have not tried to look for people. The majority of my time here has been spent looking for my niche. However, I feel limited. As I have mentioned, my current university tends to have certain labels attached to it. The majority of the student body is made up of only a few similar personalities, and of people who share similar goals. The other limiting factor is the smaller size of the school. There is less of a sampling for me to explore. The school’s size also has provided me (or at least feels like it provided me) with less opportunity. While I am still unsure myself of what I want to do with my life, I want to be able to explore different fields within my own interests in order to eventually make a choice. In my current university, I feel almost trapped. I’ve made an effort to explore my school’s New York City campus (by commuting down via Metro-North every Monday and Wednesday for class) in order to free myself. While I feel much more free down in the city, I somehow still feel trapped.
What I have now, is not enough. I feel like I am missing something here, as if something hasn’t clicked yet. I’ve spent as much time as I could evaluating and re-evaluating my position now. I’ve stuck it out with my current school for as long as I could, but now it is time for a change. I am not meeting my academic and collegiate goals, and I need to put myself in a place where these goals can be achieved. I have been unable to meet new people, put myself in challenging situations. Summed up, I need a bigger sandbox to play in. And perhaps in this new sandbox, I will be able to find more kids who are willing to play.

This
work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.

el fin

2007-03-31T15:13:00.000-04:00

Done.

I don't know how I feel about this one. I think it starts strong, but it gets weak in the end.
I was so unsure of how to curve everything back around.

I'm going to let it stew for a few hours before I go back and revise.

The Day's Progress

2007-03-31T01:39:00.001-04:00

A paragraph

Due to this lack of connection, I’ve had to resort to other means of enjoying myself. I take particular interest in exploration. Yet, not many I’ve found would be willing to join me in simply walking around New York City and giving into impulses. For example, I recently went into town and met with a few friends (whom I’d previously known) to just walk around. We ended up downtown, in Battery Park for a bit and then headed up to Chinatown for dinner in the first place that looked good. I’m glad I have that with at least a few people, but I’d to expand that. I want to come home after 4 years and be able to say I did some pretty cool things while at school, not just with a piece of paper that says I’ve learned things. I crave experiences like this. This, to me, is what college is about. Not necessarily learning things in class, but gaining life experience, and knowledge from the nouns (people, places and things) around you. I am no longer a stranger to New York City, and I wish to share my own experiences with someone new. Everything ends up back at people. NYU offers a larger student base with which I can explore. My current situation severally limits the people who I come in contact with, and this needs to change. I am an open-minded person, I am accepting and I don’t get hung up on things like politics or religion. However, open mindedness is a two-way door, and as I have discussed before, it is not always easy.
Beyond people, and experience (and experience with people), however, are ideas. I need a place to foster my ideas, a place where I can explore them without fear (contrived or not) of ridicule. Someplace where thoughts don’t end at the classroom door. I feel like my thoughts and ideas in class are genuine, while others are not. I feel, in fact I know, that many students live double lives. Their school life and the outside school life. One in which they let ideas flow, and one where they are stifled in favor of “entertainment.”

Why Can't I get Shit Done?!

2007-03-30T22:20:00.000-04:00

This is annoying.

I mean, seriously, what the hell is my problem? Why can't I get past this dam essay?

Short entry, I know...so enjoy my sisters home made chocolate cheese cake until I finish my essay and blog about it.

WIP 2

2007-03-29T10:59:00.001-04:00

for reference:
Transfers only: Please discuss your interest in transferring to New York University. Explain your reasons for wanting to leave your current college or university (or if not currently in attendance, why you left the last institution you attended), and describe how you feel your educational goals can be better achieved at NYU.

Bodies 1 & 2
A staple of my ideal university experience includes passionate discussion and debate not just in, but out of class as well. So far, this has eluded me. While I find some of my classes a great platform for probing and prodding issues for greater understanding (a joy of mine), generally this does not leave the classroom. On only a rare occasion have I been able to continue such debate outside of class, and even then the debates have lasted for the duration of the walk back to the dorm rooms. In all honesty, it annoys me. Not so much that I have no sparing partner, rather that those who have the capacity to continue and enjoy said discussion, would rather go get intoxicated instead. I hope I do not sound aloof or naïve, this is not my intention (and I would say the opposite of who I am). It is just a certain set of circumstances are working against my satisfaction in my current setting. One, most students I interact with are from the tri-state area (New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut), and have cars. Two, the top the subjects of commonality are Business, Nursing, and Sports in that order. Three, in some but not all cases a “high-school” mentality still exists. By this I mean the ideals of popularity contents, partying like it is the end of the world, and excessive use of certain taboo insults. Let me also make clear that none of the people I have run into are undesirable. Despite traits that I dislike, nobody I have run into is a “bad” person, rather one that I personally have trouble connecting with.
Due to this lack of connection, I’ve had to resort to other means of enjoying myself. For example, I take particular interest in exploration. Yet, nobody I’ve found would be willing to join me in simply walking around New York City and giving into impulses. For example, I recently went into town and met with a few friends (whom I’d previously known) to just walk around. We ended up downtown, in Battery Park for a bit and then headed up to Chinatown for dinner in the first place that looked good. I’m glad I have that with at least a few people, but I’d to expand that. I want to come home after 4 years and be able to say I did some pretty cool things while at school, not just with a piece of paper that says I’m educated.
This is the other th

WIP

2007-03-29T00:59:00.000-04:00

Just an intro for now. I'm still working on everything...probably should speed this up a bit though (it being due Sunday an' all...)
(size enhanced for readability)

Transferring

I consistently fail to see how the name of an educational institution dictates the type of education received. Quite frankly, expert education (sans a few specific things) can be received at many, if not all, accredited universities and colleges. The question arises then, why (if I believe that good and bad professors exists everywhere, and that essentially all schools are equal in that regard) would I even consider leaving a 4-year university where I stand a good chance of graduating with a high GPA, and perhaps even honors status? I would respond to this query by asking a question of my own: what good is the time spent earning the degree, if I am unhappy for the duration? University is more than just working towards a career goal. Cliché would say that these are the best years of my life, and I have no reason to disagree. Basically, I’ve been given 4 years to be an adult on my own, but have most things paid for. All the while, taking time to learn about anything and everything I am interested in. Before education comes people, experiences, and ideas.

Procrastination

2007-03-23T04:05:00.000-04:00

Don't you just hate it when you know you have to do something, but you just keep putting it off?

You say:
"I'll do it in the morning...I'm about to collapse on my keyboard."
or
"I have the whole day" the days goes by, "there's always tomorrow".

I want to know, why do we do this? I know perfectly well that everything is much easier if I do it now, and the reward is much greater, yet I (and we as a species really) contentiously put things off against our better judgment and common sense.

:|

You also notice how you hate what you look like in pictures? I hate photos of myself.
Not related, sorry...whatever.

Proof

2007-03-19T14:36:00.000-04:00

EDIT: here's a better one (thanks to Rachel C), just not AS personal:

but I'm not going to lie...a creepy photo...(I didn't have time to change my pose :P)

Nervous Knot

2007-03-06T20:59:00.000-05:00

I don't know...it just kinda "hit" me.
Only moments ago, I've got that weird nervous/excitement feeling you get in your stomach. I can't quite explain "why" either...
I mean, I can think of reasons, but nothing that would cause this intense feeling.

I don't know, perhaps I am feeling a little bit of pressure to get certain "things" in.
Or perhaps I've just been struck by the fact that it's MARCH!!

Hell, where did THAT come from? March!? Already?! But 2007 JUST started?! How can we be in March already?
And what does that mean? It means that we are THAT much closer to April..which means I am near 8 weeks away from FINISHING FRESHMAN YEAR OF COLLEGE.

Whoa.

Let's break that down.
1 week until Spring Break.
2 weeks left in March (school weeks)
4 in April
1 in May
Then...that's it..done. Home until September.
and what does that mean?
Three little letters:
J-O-B
I need to apply for a job too? dam.

Also, housing...need to call them. Get that situation sorted out.
meetings in the city
commute to the city
Daylight Savings?
Re-read 1984...
Defend atheism...
re-evaluate relationship status with certain individuals
re-evaluate college life it's self
re-evaluate the whole dame situation.

Oh, and my dog of 11 years died a few weeks ago.

*sigh*

I really should get more articulate in this blog, write essays instead perhaps.

There IS a Story Behind These...

2007-02-28T14:52:00.000-05:00

...but I'm in between classes, so it will have to wait.
These are not even all of them, these just happen to be my favorite.

Just an Update

2007-02-25T14:48:00.000-05:00

Nothing new or really major to report (read: nothing willing to blog about right now).

Um...

I went to Philly again a few weeks ago. THAT was fun. I had an amazing weekend involving cheesesteak, Chinese food, and anatomy.
Yeah...

Anyway, classes are good so far..Just taking it one step at a time for now.

I need to re-asses my options as I continue through school, see what it is I want from these 4 years..and figure out what and where is best for me, and why.

I'll have details about that later.
Feel free to IM, e-mail or call!

-Matt

PS:
Spring Break is March 18th-25th. I'll either be home (in LA) on the night of the ides, or the afternoon of the 18th.

Blogable Antics, aka Crazy Shit on the New York Subway

2007-02-05T22:46:00.000-05:00

Preface:
I've posted this other places, so you might have read it. It happend this morning (2/5/07) as I got in the Subway. I was a little shook up for the rest of the day. I'm glad New Yorkers are not the assholes everyone says they are though. I'm a little proud to be able to call myself one (at at least look forward to being called one)

Setting: Grand Central Station, 4/5/6/7 Subway Entrance.
Up/Down escalator and stairs, very crowded.

as I approach said escalator to descend into the bowls of New York City, I notice something. A woman, in a wheelchair, missing a leg (I think both actually), disheveled, probably homeless, crazy, or both.

She's actually a little too close to the stairs for my taste, I should probably tell her to go to the elevator. I don't know where it is, and she looks like she might harm me, so I think nothing of it and continue down.

As I reach the bottom, I hear screams and crashing. Turning around, I see this woman pinned under her chair face down on the moving escalator (Shouts of "STOP THE ESCALATOR" can be heard).
Quickly, I fumble with the red button and stop the dam thing, whereupon a half-dozen busy New Yorkers, proceed to lift the chair up and put it at the bottom, repeat for the woman, and then finally her spilled belongings.

A gentleman and I run and grab a transit cop, and within a minute medics are on the scene treating the womans bleeding face. I hesitate for a few seconds to make sure everything is ok, and then continue to catch my 4/5 express to city hall as if nothing happened.

And I want to put some emphasis here. Everyone who was on that escalator (or nearly everyone so far as I could tell) did their part to help this woman. (I'm sure some just walked off, but to see 6 people carry this woman off the escalator does make me feel very good about humanity, I'm glad I could do my part)

The first hour after the ordeal, I ask myself why I could not do more.
Within three I realize, there were plenty of people helping, and if I had told her about the elevator she probably would have snapped.

NYC Subway=Crazy shit.

Shush...no talking..

2007-01-28T13:03:00.000-05:00

Bad with updates, breaking resolutions and all.

It's hard to really figure out what you want to say, or blog about.

Let's run down the list:
I flew back
I'm cold
I'm cold
City is cool
I'm cold
3-day weekends
Awkward Moments that can't be shared

what?

Recently I found my self in a very cool, yet very awkward situation. The problem is, there are only 4-5 people outside my family that I can share it with. It's nothing to do with lack of friends or acquaintances, rather, it has to do with person knowledge of me. It requires that I reveal something, or keep something current...that for my own sake, I don't.

Don't go crazy, it's nothing like "I'm dying of cancer", it's a very cool, very positive thing.

Let me try to explain to the fullest extent I can without giving out too many details.

I'm very lucky when it comes to be being born at the right time. And I really appreciate that. It's hard to talk about because you don't want to "jinx" it, or come off as an arrogant asshole.
Anyway, part of my life includes access to certain things that not many have access to. I've made it a personal rule regarding this. I have said that I will no longer tell people what kind of access I have or how I have it. People need to be friends with me for me, and not for who I know or what I can get them.
I did a really bad job of keeping this rule in high school mainly due to a lack a maturity.
This is not to say I think I made the wrong friends, rather, I feel in this new setting of college, and life, that it would be better overall to keep certain secrets in order to find out who wants to know me, and who wants to know what I can get them.

Make sense? I'm a little better at explaining this verbally. Sorry.

Anyway,
Call or e-mail me if you want a little better explanation, or hey, if you just want to chat.

Shit, in fact you might want to. Maybe I'll post again when I figure out the right way to really get a full explanation on this thing.

so..

I'll try to blog more, (I always say that)!
Off to the library!
Shush, no talking!

the ORG

2007-01-03T01:54:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone!

So, I'm doing this thing called the ORG.

It's similar to social networking, but it's MUCH cleaner and MUCH safer. A very plain site, easy to navigate, participate, and have fun.

Make it your own:
http://www.zefrank.org/signup/key/JOLXNISK

Feel free to explore, but please use the above link to join (if you wish), it's one of things where I get bonus points for getting new people to sign up :)

Reading List (Oh, and happy new year)

2007-01-02T22:59:00.000-05:00

Current Reading List:

(in no particular order)

iWoz

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

The World is Flat [Updated and Explained]: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century

The God Delusion

Mark Twain's Helpful Hints for Good Living: A Handbook for the Damned Human Race

Oh, and Happy New Year :)

-Matt

PS: If you're on Netflix, here is my friend thingie:http://www.netflix.com/BeMyFriend/PjfGwdiG1pjrdSU5EEGH

Home

2006-12-21T13:21:00.000-05:00

I've been home for near a week now...and I'm loving it!

I had a great flight home on the 16th (last Saturday),
Went Xmas Shopping Sunday
Disneyland Monday
Chill Tuesday
Movie Wednesday
Car Service (ugh) Thursday
and ??? Friday

One of these days I'm going to sit down and make myself update this blog with real, meaty updates...weekly.

But for now?

Happy Chirsmahanukwanzaka, and I can't wait to see all of you!

-Matt

Dude....I met Ze Frank

2006-12-15T22:37:00.000-05:00

www.zefrank.com/theshow

I met this guy.

I've been workin' on a secret little project to get him some xmas gifts (because there are more than a few of us that really enjoy his show).

This afternoon I took the 4 train to Brooklyn and caught up with Ze in a Starbucks and gave him our little bag of handmade gifts.

We got into a conversation that lasted around a 1/2 hour and I am now a very enlightened individual.
I need a day to recoup and report on what I learned. There was just so much....

Anyway, I'll be home Saturday afternoon!
See ya then!

Buckle Up

2006-12-08T18:39:00.000-05:00

Sit down, buckle up and hold on for the ride!
Finals time!

Study, study, study, study....yeah...right!

I'm a bad student I guess...I'm not in a cramming sort of mood. I'll get stuff done, I'll take the test, and let things fall as they are. Right now...grades are not a big concern of mine....at least I think.....

Came and Went

2006-12-02T17:34:00.000-05:00

I was home for Thanksgiving, and that was very interesting.

Such a weird feeling coming home for the first time in 2 months. What's even stranger, is being away for that long.

I say that mainly because I never did the long "sleep away camp" thing. Don't forget, I love to travel, but I had bad separation issues at the time. 2 months is not even that long (and it didn't feel very long either), but it was still a first.

The strangest feeling, though, was that of vacationing at home. Living out of s suitcase in your own house...

Anyway, I had a great time while home. I had a chance to act upon my recent self reflection, and honestly feel better about many things I perceived as "family issues".

Back in school now though, doing that final push before the end of the semester, need to make sure everything is tied up and secure before I head back home, which should be soon actually. I think I get to leave either the 15th or 16th...so...yay! There is a small possibility that I will need to stay until the 18th, but I am trying to work it out so I don't have to be here.

More blogs when I get a chance (read: finish my work).

I need to go holiday shopping as well, so expect a blog on that too :)

Boston Baked Beans

2006-11-15T00:39:00.000-05:00

I love travel. I adore it. I would marry it if possible…extreme? Perhaps. However, I have had so many great experiences that I am almost addicted! Last I left you, I was complaining about the regional service, well, I’m on the Acela now…on my way back to New York, and the dated Penn Station. I can already feel this train moving much faster and it is much more comfortable. It’s still a bit dirty, but I can live with this. The speed is really great. The power port is not working though, so I don’t know how long I can keep the laptop. Updates when I can!

Wow, this thing moves FAST! We’re already at and it’s only been around 15 minuets! This is going to make things very nice for the rest of the trip..

The only downside to this particular trip is that I have a longer layover in New York. This train arrives at around 7:45pm. The trains leaving Grand Central for my school depart at 7:50 and 8:50pm. So…unless I get in early, I have some time to kill. Last time, I bought a gyro on the street. I’m thinking I will do the same this time around.

Providence, Rhode Island: 4:45pm. And it is really dark too. Damn.

And…yes, yes I am just typing down my thoughts and feeling about arbitrary things. What did you think a blog was?

No pics of food this time around…sorry. The food was really nothing special, it was more about the company. That is what made it such a great breakfast. We were all able to sit back and reminisce, and talk, and really just enjoy each others company along with funny coincidence that landed us all in Boston.

I’ll have a better recap later…for now..homework.

Oh, and I never got to try a Boston Baked Bean. Oh well.

P.S. I understand some of this post is out of context. I swear I'll fill you in!

The Federal Government

2006-11-12T22:06:00.000-05:00

Election, election, Rumsfeld, Bush, Democrats, House, Senate, Pelosi, Dean, Amtrak…what? Turns out everything I’ve listed are related. Unbeknownst to me, Amtrak is owned and operated by the U.S. Federal Government, no wonder their service sucks!
Of course I am happy that the Democrats won the house and the senate, something about “checks and balances” comes to mind…it’s a familiar feeling. Like something I (we) once knew, but lost somewhere along the line. I get all warm and fuzzy inside knowing that one branch of government had its leaves trimmed.

On (apparently) a related note: I’m sitting in the first coach car of AM174, Regional service to Boston, MA. Why? I dunno, figured I would go have some fun this weekend. Brennon and Daniel go to school up there, Emily is nearby, and as it happens, my father is going to be in town as well.
Quick! Where is Exit 15 on 1? What do you mean what 1? The 1! The 1 that leaves New York City! Where that is, I am…er…was. Coming up on 16 now..heh.
All this aside, I’m really enjoying all the traveling I have been doing recently. I really need to find a job that lets me travel like this. Trans, Planes (my particular favorite method of transportation) and Automobiles baby!

So…not much substance in this post, I apologize. I’ve been trying to design a new class schedule for next semester. I’ll attach an image of my plans (yeah, my handwriting sucks…)

I did move that evening class in between the first two though. It works out a lot better. Just need to work on the M and W classes.

Note 1: Passing an I-95 toll booth, I assume the tracks follow the Interstate.
Note 2: Turns out that at least part of the track is shared with the Metro-North New Haven Line. I really wish trains had internet access.
Note 3: This makes me sad, we’re coming up on the Tappen Ze Bridge, which means I am basically going to be parallel my campus. I was on a 10:40 train to the city to catch this 1:00 to Boston. It’s now 2, and I’m just starting to make headway…good thing I like transportation! (Rye Station on the New Haven line, I-287)
Note 4: 5 o’clock and all is well…I guess there are more stops on this train than I had previously thought. Rhode Island is very beautiful though. Coming up on 128 right now, then just one more stop until South Station. Phew! I think Acela is the best way to go from now on!

Phily Pt. II

2006-11-09T14:00:00.000-05:00

Hey hey!
I've already been back to Philly since I last left you all, and I am going back next weekend...so I figured I would finish up the story.

Andre greeted me at 30th Street Station with his usual big smile, and playful demeanor. Like a scene out of a buddy movie, I dropped my luggage and we embraced as if long lost friends who had not seen each other in decades. (Reflecting, the lighting was perfect in the main concourse for a warm movie scene...) We did a quick game of catch-up before we figured out a way to get to his dorm. Eventually, we got on SEPTA (the subway) and took it to City Hall, and walked the rest of the way.

I met a few on André's friends, and that night we went to Pat's for cheese stake (the ONLY place to go hehe). Afterwards, we cabbed it up to this independent movie theater to see This Film is Not Yet Rated, defiantly a movie you should check out. A short walk back to his dorm concluded the evening.

The next morning we grabbed a quick breakfast at this mini-mart/diner (the best types of breakfast places), and were pretty spontaneous the rest of the day.

André and needed a place to eat on Saturday. Previous to this, we had spent time exploring Philadelphia (which is a beautiful city by the way), and went to an outdoor concert with some of his friends. I forget the band now, but it was a lot of fun. That night he and I could not decide on a place to fill our gullets. We had taken cabs, been up and down Broad street, and were getting desperate. A quick call to my father landed us at this small place in Chinatown called SangKee. I don't know how he knew about this place, but I'll tell you what...best Chinese food outside of NYC!

As you can see, we ordered enough for about four people, and we didn't wait long before we dug in!

André with Chow Faun ...
The Aftermath:

As if this wasn't enough, the next morning we headed out for a nice breakfast :)
Unsure of exactly where to go, we started walking around Center City, mainly just seeing what was reasonable. Within the half-hour we had come across this place called MarathonGrill. I mean...it was alright, could have been a little bit better, and defiantly did not compare with the monster of a meal we had the night before.
I forget what this was called, but it had eggs, bacon, a cheese, ham (I think), I know there was a sauce...but I forget what it was. Regardless, André and I did finish it...all.. :)
My train back to school didn't leave until later that afternoon (evening almost), so we spent the rest of the day down on South Street.

If you are ever in Philly, do check out South Street. Lots of cool shops over there, and plenty to do. We grabbed some steaks at Jim's (not nearly as good as Pat's) and concluded the trip with a stop at a shop who's name I can't remember, but was defiantly worth stopping in.

André helped lug some of my stuff, and we walked back to City Hall to catch the subway back to 30th. In a classic romance movie ending, Andre and I hugged, and said our goodbyes as I walked down the stairs to the platform.

The train back to NYC was easy and uneventful. The wind not nearly as bad as it was when I left, so the walk to Grand Central was also uneventful. With time to kill, I bought a Gyro at a vendor outside Grand Central, and ate it on the train while waiting for it to pull out of the platform. I caught the shuttle back to my dorm.

Overall, defiantly a fun trip!

So, I still owe you blogs about my NYC trips, and my 2nd Philly trip.

I go to Boston this weekend, so expect something on that. Then I to Philly for a third time next weekend..busy busy.

OH! I also went to Canada just this weekend. Not sure if I'll blog about that (unless you like 8 hour bus rides....)

Also, feel free to buy me something off my Amazon Wish list haha...:)

Until next time,
Matt

Not a Real Blog Post

2006-11-01T00:25:00.000-05:00

I'm bad at this updating thing. I still owe you Philly, and I've already collected more city stories, another trip to Philly, and a trip to Canada this weekend! Yikes!

Anyway, I set up an Amazon Wish List, ya know... if you feel generous ....:o)
My Amazon.com Wish List

I owe you a Blog

2006-10-15T21:53:00.000-04:00

I know, I know!

Shh you!

Lots to talk about, little time to write it.

Updates:

Not quite hitting it off on the friend level. Expect a full blog on this
I'm going to take Japanese (and probably Minor in it)
I want to move to the acutal City next year
I owe you the rest of the Philly trip
I'm doing internet radio! www.wpaw.org M: 5-6p Th: 345-5p F: 5-6p
The friend thing does not bug me, but I'm still trying to find people to do things with. It will get better, I just take a while. (it's always been this way for me).
More soon, I swear!

Leaving on a…..Locomotive?

2006-10-07T13:09:00.000-04:00

This was last weekend, I forgot I drafted the post. There was no Internet where I was and when I got back I forgot all about this post!

Yes, it’s true! This morning after my computer science class, I took off towards the campus shuttle stop, carry-on and laptop in tow to make my way to the Pleasantville Train Station (pictures on the return, although it will be night). Once aboard the Metro-North train to Grand Central Terminal (one of the most beautiful building by the way, I love commuting through there), I settled in for the long haul (50 minuets). Nothing eventful, but it stopped raining which was nice.
Anyway, I arrived at around 11:40, and took my time walking down 42nd street to 6th ave where I hung a left and heading down to Harold Square. Why you ask? Well I needed a sleeping bag, but more on that later. A quick walk on 33rd and I was in front of the Madison Square Garden (another New York Favorite of mine), and the wind began to howl. No, that way lame, but it did get quite windy. I made my way down the steps into Penn Station, which hasn’t changed since the 1960’s. I swear, it looks almost the same. Defiantly needs an update (it’s kind of a mixture between Terminals 3 and 6 at LAX, if you have been in either).
Regardless, I still had time to kill and decided to walk back up and stand outside, no reason to stay in the muggy station (as a safety measure, Amtrak does not announce track numbers until 15minuets before departure). Nothing happened between then and the time I got on the train (track 13W). So, here I am now, on the train, sitting in car 3 (which looks like it has not changed much from the later 80’s early 90’s, although it has electrical outlets, which is nice), on my way to….oh right, I didn’t tell you. I’m going to Philadelphia! I’m going to meet André and spend the weekend over there, I can smell the cheese steak now!
So, the train is interesting, defiantly a lot less hassle than flying. Full report on Monday when I get back from Philly.
Hope you all are having a good weekend!
-Matt

P.S. The weekend was great, I'll have another post up soon with more details. It also turns out that they don't announce trakcs in advance, becasue they don't decide until the train is in a yard on the Hudson shore. Thanks Ed!

The Wildwood Effect

2006-09-26T01:07:00.000-04:00

I don't have time to exapnd on this fully, but over the course of the last few weeks, I have been surprised at how much my Wildwood education has come in handy. All the skills that I learned: public speaking, presontation, writing skills, critical thinking, all of them. They have really allowed me to stay aove the curve so far this year. Granted these are just intro classes, but a good start is much better than a bad one :)
-Matt

The Pain and Agony of Writing

2006-09-24T22:52:00.000-04:00

I wrote this for English class. I haven’t proofed it yet, and it's really raw, but it's a nice stream of consciousness I think. I'd give it a B? B+ maybe? I'll have to read it again in the morning.

Ah writing, the age-old method of communication, education and entertainment. There are many way to write, different standards and practices for every language of the world, different types of writing (essay, analysis, editorial, novel, truth, fiction, short story, fantasy, etc) to fill any void that needs filling. Writing is also one of those things that is required of anyone wishing to pursue any sort of career in which one wishes to move up. No one is saying that in order to be successful you must be an accomplished writer, but basic communication relies on writing skills. So why is it that only a few take pleasure in writing? That is to say, why is it only a few who take pleasure in non-opinion based writing? These questions I will answer by exploring my own writing process.
Starting with the pre-write, roadblocks pop up. In writing (perhaps sans some but not all opinionated [op-ed, editorial, essay] writing) the first step is brainstorm. You can’t write something of any academic, analytical, or entertainment value without having a basic outline of what you want to talk (write) about. Personally, I take about half a day either in a Library, or in my room if it is quiet, to jot down or outline my ideas. I gather evidence for a literary analysis, or construct a skeleton of my piece on paper. In my opinionated writings I can sometime jump right in (especially if I am passionate about the subject), but even then I like to take a few minuets to construct a mental outline. Back to analytical writing though, after jotting down these ideas I move to write a thesis. I don’t set anything in stone yet, but before I organize evidence, I need to know my argument. Naturally, I organize my evidence based on the argument presented in my thesis, and from there topic sentences are generated. Finally, I end the pre-write by rethinking and reshaping the thesis and topic sentences to so they work to compliment each other, and that the topic sentences are just that, topics for the paragraph.
Once I have completed the pre-write, the intro must be written. Depending on the paper, this can take anywhere from 10 to 100 minuets to complete, although, I usually average 15. The intro of course serves two, sometimes three, purposes. The first is to hook the reader, the second is to present the argument, and the not-always-necessary-third is to present a map to the reader, conveying the general flow of the paper. But wait, what ever happened to those roadblocks? Ah yes, it seems that through pre-writing they have disappeared or, to better describe it, we took a detour (the pre-write)! So where is the pain and agony?
For some, the pain comes from this pre-write. Usually, the gathering of ideas is not an easy task. Coming up with something to argue, and then evidence to support it does not happen at the snap of a finger. However, I tend to be very opinionated. It is rare that I can’t argue a point in a piece of writing, so I find the pre-write to be a piece of cake (most of the time). I just take my opinion and perspective, and translate it to a viable thesis. My struggles relate back to the topic sentences.
With one day gone, we move on to the body paragraphs, which of course start with topic sentences. It is here the aforementioned roadblocks show their faces. Even with the pre-write, I find myself drifting from the thesis and topic of the paragraph. I let my opinions and my mind get the best of me. For example, this essay! Notice how it sort of jumps around, and is not very analytical, more of a self-exploration piece. Regardless, it’s my essay and I’ll do what I please. Back to what I was saying, I get flowery with my writing, and drift off topic, which leads to an interesting paper (never dull to read), but one which may have strayed too far from it’s point to prove it. It is for this reason that my topic sentences need to be continuations of my thesis, they need to be to the point, and they need to be blunt. This way, it is easier to notice when I stay off topic when reviewing my work.
Ah the review, arguably the most painful part of writing. I find (and I feel this holds true for others) that once I complete something, I rarely want to look at it again. I just want to turn it in and be done. However, we all know this is a bad idea. So, I review my work. I read it aloud, and I have friends and family look over it. This way, I get fresh perspectives and fresh eyes to point out grammar and spelling errors, and to get comments on the flow and strength of the paper. It’s bloody agony. Nobody likes to get criticism, especially on something they felt they spent a long time on. We all know it’s useful, and only serves to improve our writing and our paper, but we still don’t like it. And this is what can lead to procrastination. If you don’t have the time to get a paper reviewed, you won’t. Thus saving you from your peer’s critical eyes.
Not just your peer’s eyes though, your instructors or your mentors, or whoever you are writing the paper for. You spend what seems like an eternity on a paper only to have it sent back to you full of red ink. Grammar, flow, spelling, things that don’t work, sentences that don’t fit, a thesis that does not argue the perspective, an opinion lost in the evidence, evidence saturation, not enough evidence, error after error after mistake after fragment, you feel like it never ends. And really, it doesn’t.
It doesn’t end, and here is where the real agony comes in. I need to write at least 3 drafts of an academic paper. Well, shoot, who has time for that? Who has time to be nit picking at every little thing that might be a little wrong in a paper? It stinks! Draft, after draft, after draft, al repeating those nit picky steps I mentioned in the above paragraph, over and over and over, all day and all night. It is truly my hell. I don’t care how good it makes my paper, by the 4th draft I feel like I’m going insane! And I’m sure that this plays true to not just me. There are only a few situations where you would not mind writing 4 or 5 drafts: if your getting paid lots of money, if you’re a up and coming novelists who wants to be paid a lot of money, or if you truly love to write. And I doubt all writers in those situations don’t mind drafting in other situations. For example, I doubt a novelist would enjoy drafting a literary analysis, or a non-fiction book.
But we do it, we draft until we reach a point where all that’s left are the minuscule decimal points. Once I (and I assume we) am (are) here I/we feel a great sense of relief, a sense of euphoria, a sense of accomplishment. Good feeling yeah? Yeah. But we don’t think about this end result when sit down to write. No, what we feel is dread. We dread the drafting, some of us dread the evidence, others the thesis, or having to argue a point when they don’t like to. We don’t see the end result; we see the time it takes to get there. And I discovered a long time ago (through my own experiences writing) that it is this pessimism that drives us to procrastinate, and to experience all the pain and agony of academic (and sometimes opinionated) writing. And yet it is so funny, I can write certain pieces without even a hint of agony or pain, but others are written with great disdain, and hatred, and procrastination and fear, and written while experiencing the full force of the pain and agony. It’s funny how the subject can make a 5 page paper either the easiest or the hardest thing in the world.

Community

2006-09-22T17:38:00.000-04:00

The thing about being here on the Westchester campus is that I'm surrounded by lots of others who are from the area. Many of them drive, and my classes have lots of commuting students. And of the students who do stay many of them have cars and can go home, or are close to other friends in the area (at least, the people in my immediate vicinity, not sure about the other floors/wings).
Now, I tend to be a little shy in these situations, and I tend be to selective about friends, and am having a hard time dropping some prejudice (I had images of my peers from orientation day 1, and it's not easy dropping them. Not to mention the fact, that many I have met only support my judgments....).
What this all boils down to is my rethinking of choices. I am sometimes really happy with Pace, there are certain classes that really make me happy, and the weather this time of year where I am is beautiful. Perfect. A little brisk, clear sky, or sometimes big puffy clouds, and clean air. I can go to the city (and have) and love it even more there. Then I start to wonder, if I went to the NYC campus, perhaps I could have entered a situation where I was with a more diverse group of people. And I'm not talking black and white, I mean where people are from.
Anyway, I'm here for the rest of the year, and perhaps I will decide to go down to NYC for next year. Who knows? We need to see what happens with this community.

Missing Class

2006-09-15T10:58:00.000-04:00

Damit all!
Friday's I have an 8am CompSci (ready easy) class that meets once a week. I went to bed at around midnight for a 7am wake up call. Plenty of time.
At around 3:30 this morning my room mate calls my cell phone begging to be let into the building. Apparently he misplaced his keycard that unlocks the doors. He was(is) drunk, and had been waiting out there for 2 hours for someone to come by. I get up, find pants, and start to head down, when he calls again letting me know that via a storke of luck someone has come by. (I thought I was having a joke played on me, but no, he found his card this morning is a shirt that was on the floor (and has been for 2 days)). Anyway, I fall back asleep only to wake up to my alarm, shut it off and then not remember anything until 10:30a. So, here I am. I must have fallen back asleep and missed the best class of my week. Man this sucks.
-Matt

Ze Frank once again hits the nail on the head.

2006-09-12T16:24:00.000-04:00

The best description of college life ever. Period.

the show with zefrank

Oh, and Apple has a new iTunes version out that kick lots of ass.
-Matt

Prius Cabs!

2006-09-10T17:17:00.000-04:00

Dude! I saw this comming down 7th ave and I just had to take a shot of it! The quality sucks becasue it's from my Razr, but still a great sight to behold. There is a good high quality version of a Prius Cab on Flickr if you care to search. I'm thinkng about using it for my wallpaper :)
Enjoy!

The obligatory 9/11 post...

2006-09-07T16:43:00.000-04:00

This is a seemingly mandatory post in the blogsphere so I thought I would express my opinions through Ze Frank.

the show with zefrank
Once again, Ze has artistically put into words what I simply can not type down. One thing to work on, expressing my opinion through the written word to make a powerful 1-2 combination argument.

Classes go well, I have a 6p-8p basic math class (stupid placement tests). Anyway, I'll be in touch.
-Matt

First Day of Classes

2006-09-06T18:35:00.000-04:00

Defiantly less class than High school, but still, it seems like a lot. Mondays happen to be the worst of my schedule. Let me back up...

I signed up for Environment 110, an introduction to environment. Unfortunately...that class was cancelled. So now, I'm stuck in Philosophy 115. Hey, I don't really have a problem with this; the professor seems like a smart guy and defiantly has opinions. Not to mention, instead of a final we are going to have a debate. However, on Monday my schedule read as follows:
8a-10a: English 110
10:10a-11:05a: Environment 110

Now, the PHI115 replaces the ENV, however it's a two hour monday block, so I have 2, two-hour classes BACK TO BACK! Then only an hour before I go to another two-hour class! Ooohhh... Next semester I really need to try to give myself a full day of no class. For now my saving grace is the 8-10a Comp Sci class on Friday. That's my only class that day, although it gets out too late to catch the free NYC shuttle (I could take it down, but would need to Metro-North (train) it back up. It's possible, but I can't go for too many day trips. Would need to make a weekend out of it.
Let's see how the rest of my first week of classes go.
-Matt

Leaving on a Jet Plane

2006-08-31T19:31:00.000-04:00

There's more to post, but I need time to write it all out. It's been quite a trip getting to where I am now. Stupid dent. AND! I left my Bose headphones case on the plane! Thankfully the headphones are with me but, still, I lost all the batteries and attachments I had...:(

As I right this I am siting in seat 10A on American Airlines flight 118 KLAX-KJFK. Captain says we are at FL370 (37,000ft), and I assume our speed over the ground is between 500 and 600kts. Because I am geeky like that, the aircraft type is a Boeing 767-200 (B762). The time now is 9:40a.m L.A. time.

I woke up this morning at 4:00a.m. on the dot. Rose quickly and took a business shower, finished packing and did my "idiot" checks. In my haste I forgot to install my copy of Microsoft Office for Mac...oops. When I land I'l download the freeware, open source version for use until I can get a new copy. Thankfully I have iWork so I don't need to worry about PowerPoint, but Word is still a nice program (despite it being Microsoft).

Also, I don't have an official laptop case. This morning I put it the MacBook Pro I'm using now in my carryon (it has a space for the laptop). However, it seems somehow, something bumped into it and there is now a small dent on the front left side! Bah, I'm pretty sure this is covered by my AppleCare, but I figure I'll ask about it when I go buy Office for Mac. For now, I have to deal (but it's REALLY annoying considering this laptop is is less than a week old). Any tips Aaron? I'll take a pic with my cell and upload it when I land. For now I'm going to sit back, relax and enjoy business class.
:)
-Matt

AND NOW: THE DENT!

Motherfucking Snakes on a Motherfucking Plane!

2006-08-18T20:21:00.000-04:00

I saw Snakes on a Plane (SoaP) at 10pm on Thursday, otherwise known as the first possible moment to see this film!

I have to say... Best. Movie. Ever!
By this time you should know plenty about SoaP so I wont want to you, but you MUST GO SEE THIS MOIVE. NOW!!!

In othernews, I have founded a religon...SoaPism. We worshiop the allmighty Samuel L. Jackson. Look for websites and a wiki entry soon.
-Matt
SEE SNAKES ON A PLANE!

Getting beyond our airport security obsession

2006-08-11T00:33:00.000-04:00

From Digg.com
Commercial pilot Patrick Smith discusses why confiscating corkscrews and tweezers didn't make us safer after Sept. 11.... and banning liquids isn't going to make us safer now. Great level-headed view of realistic airline security over knee jerk responses to recent threats.

http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2006/08/10/bomb/
http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/col/smith/2005/12/16/askthepilot166/index.html

read more | digg story

Happy Now?

2006-08-10T21:23:00.000-04:00

With this recent revelation that Terrorists still want to blow the shit out of us, I sit back and laugh.

The UK bans any for of carry-on luggage sans your wallet, passport and prescription meds, the US makes it worse by banning all forms of liquid, and people are scared out of their minds.

Terrorists/Bush admin: 1
Gullible People (almost everyone in the US and UK) : 0

Good job! We as a nation are now even more afraid and ready to let the selfish extremist, radical, evangelicals restrict our freedom and take away our liberty.
I should not have to sit in a 2 hour security line at the airport! IT DOES NOT DO ANYTHING!!

Look, if you want to fix this mess teach the dumbfuck TSA guys what to look for (and that does not mean look for people with brown skin idiots). Get better screening devices that can detect explosive material better. The less human interaction (and the less I have to take off my shoes) the faster it will go. Also, come to accept that by freaking out and raising our terror alert level to "CRITICAL CODE RED HOLYSHITWE'REALLGONNADIE" only serves to accomplish their goal (even if we did arrest them).

How do we win? DON'T GIVE A FUCK. Simple. Come to accept that 10 out of millions of aircraft will have gone down and people died. Cancer, Smoking, and Cars will still be more deadly.

Here, this guy can explain it better:

the show with zefrank

Bob Dylan pacts with iTunes for preorder deal

2006-08-09T02:07:00.000-04:00

From Digg.com:
Bob Dylan has teamed with Apple's iTunes Music Store to offer fans who pre-order his new album through the retailer first crack at tickets for shows on his fall tour.

Saw this one comming a mile a way, but then again for those who know me it's not the big a surprise.
It's a good album and I suggest buying it.

read more | digg story

It's a Fu*king Tank!

2006-08-08T02:13:00.000-04:00

Have you see the new Apple Mac Pro?! The thing is a friggen tank! 12Ghz of processing power, extreme graphics capability, 4 Hard Drive bays, up to 16GB of RAM!? That, is lots of power.
Imagine the types of things that could be done with that power, we're talking high end video/film and audio editing, 3D graphics work, need to use two 30in. monitors type stuff.
And the lowest end product (which is still a top end computer) starting at $2,500!

As you can tell, I'm a little in awe right now.

I want one.
-Matt

I'm Still Alive!

2006-06-29T20:54:00.000-04:00

So, I’m not so great at keeping up. I hold that truth self-evident.

Anyway, I will think of something witty to post about in the next few days. Other than a wedding in New Jersey, there has not been much that I have been up to.
-Matt

A Little Birdie Told me To…

2006-06-07T23:53:00.000-04:00

Blog! Although, I’m not sure I can go with anything too interesting. I must lead a boring life. Maybe…? I don’t know. Anyway, Graduation is Thursday and I hope to high hell that it does not last as long as they said it would. Three hours!? I want to go up there, smile, get my diploma and hightail it outta there! I’m ready to go man!

In other news, I recently went to the Flight Path Learning Center. It’s a great museum located on the south side of the Los Angeles International Airport, on the field it’s self. The Center has a great history of the airport it’s self, as well as memorabilia from aviation from the 50’s and on. Flight Attendant uniforms, china, books, cards, magazines, swag, and a whole bunch of other cool stuff is on display. Even better (at least for the planespotters like me) is the ability to walk onto the tarmac of the airport and…planespot! As it turns out, the building was a terminal building at one point, housing a few charter airlines, and the scheduled service from MGM Grand Air. There is lots of history in the building now, and I encourage everyone to check it out for the sheer educational value.
So, I’ll see if I can get some pictures up when I blog next, see if I can find some direction with this blog.
-Matt

We Won!...

2006-05-15T02:37:00.000-04:00

Sort of….
A republican radio host falls to the bowls of the evil liberal media, and he makes some kickass points along the way.
Personally, I feel the democrats are too right wing. They are constantly moving to the right, and imploding while they fight for the presidency. All while the Republicans are fighting each other for power, money, and richman’s tax cuts, all while the man at the helm wants to turn the Mexican border into the next DMZ. It’s going to get worse before it gets better my comrades, but hopefully on the other side of this apocalypse there will be the holy light of smart politics.

Being Regular (with Metomusol!)

2006-05-13T03:41:00.000-04:00

BDegan: Vlogs and Blogs
Seems Began linked to my blog (thanks!), but he is right. I'm not that regular (Oh! The potty jokes are ripe for the piken, must...refrain...)
Anyway, as he promised I am working on getting better, just need more things to talk about :)
'Till later,
-MK

Sosumi

2006-04-24T04:37:00.000-04:00

I’m bad with updates…sosumi (so sue me, obscure Apple reference).
So, I’m in this weird state of mind tonight. I guess I have fallen back into that lazy stage we all love falling back into. Problem is, I fall into this rut far too often. Over the last four days I have done zero work. Not one school related task has be fronted me. Not one singe piece of work. It’s amazing. I stopped going to the gym, I stopped eating right. I guess, I guess I’m just tired. I am tried of dealing with school, and with myself really. I crave for vacation, but I don’t know if I deserve one.
Well at least I know one thing, whatever job I go into I better really love it. I even have a quote set out to be my mantra: “You know you have reached success when you can’t remember if what your doing is work or play.”
Wish I could remember who said that.
I really should not blog at 1:30a.m. Oh well.
-Matt

New Podcast?

2006-04-14T18:44:00.000-04:00

Yes. :)
I finally got around to doing a Podcast for the school yesterday. I know it's been a while, heh.

Anyway, check it out at radio.wildwood.org .

I R teh Stressed

2006-04-05T00:57:00.000-04:00

One would think with the two weeks given to spend doing absolutely nothing, I would have fun. But for one reason or another, I remain annoyed with the world and it’s inhabitants. Perhaps it’s the over exposure to my siblings. I need to get out more.
Yet, who do I go out to do something with?

Friends.

Now, I have some strange views on friendship. There are varying degrees of friendship.
There are
Acquaintances- people you know, say hi to online every so often etc.
Semi-friends- those who you hang out with from time to time, but don’t really go anywhere or do anything with.
And,
Friends- the people you know will be there fore you, those who you can share anything with and always feel comfortable. In many ways, these people are trusted more than close family members.
This is me at least. Now, I have many of the first and second group, but not to many of the last. If I were any normal teenager, I would probably be disappointed. For one reason or another (I’m no social analyst) many of us crave this feeling of love from everyone. Not me.

Hell, I don’t even crave my so-called Semi-Friends. I am happy with a core group of one or two people I can whole-heartedly trust and know.
It just makes more sense to me.

Anywho, I could go on for pages on my views of friendship, but that is not what today’s (late) post is fore. Today, I am talking about why I am bored and possibly lonely.
Now, due to fact that the majority of those I hang out with live 14 miles from me, I find myself at home annoyed, pissed off and just angry in general. It sort of makes me disheartened to know that I am not Mr. Popular, but at the same time I am comforted by the fact that I can keep a few people close, and that is all I need. It just gets hard not being “normal”. There are times I wish that I was able to call someone up and go to a party, but I know that is not me at all.

So with all this thinking comes the stress I was hoping to get rid of on this break. In any case, I am feeling less stressed than I did on the weeks leading up to this break.
Now it is time to clear my head lest I start thinking about the minimal amount of time I have to do two senior projects and prepare my exhibition. Oh Joy.