Sunday, January 8, 2006

En Memorandum
This is my nod toward poetry in the Ginsberg style, as I see it. I can't say much about this poem, save that I was being bothered by a lot and had to let it all out.

I do hope that you'll enjoy.

[En Memorandum]

This is for those whose lives have been lost
In a world where lies collide with fries and hair dye
And society spins out of control in her vanity.
News gets the quiet side, dark side, blind side
That the people turn as they envelope themselves
In the sick sweet milk from the gods of
gluttony and sloth.
What was important no longer is so,
And everyday people die in vain
and pain for the little lie
Their country chooses to live in.

Once upon a long ago distant era
The art of listening was not lost
and innocence was not a crime. I saw
That as I sat upon the second hand of time,
Seeing connections between then and now,
Finding none, giving up, and drowning in
an eternal cry of disgust and weariness
For those who are voiceless, loveless, soulless
as they wander the scorched and barren earth.
Blinded by sin and misery they travel through their lives,
Never realizing that we all will meet the same end.

This is for those whose lives have been lost--
Your deaths shall not have been in vain.
Comments (2) | Permalink

Monday, January 2, 2006

Alan Ginsberg
I took it upon myself to read some of this man's poetry today, out of curiosity and out of respect. Here I am, a wannabe poet, and I haven't even read the works of this...god yet.

His work is simply amazing. Take the very essence of society, the pollution, drugs, sex, and industry, and translate them into a form that can be read and understood. That is what his poems remind me of.

So far I've read 'Sunflower Sutra', which is dark and simple and beautiful, and the first part of 'Howl', which is sepia toned, gritty, and stunning, and I am in awe. This is one creature I already adore, simply because of his passionate words and awe-inspiring imagry.

I do reccommend his works, even if you aren't a fan of the Beat Movement. If you're a punk, this is a must read--the punks of today wouldn't be here if it weren't for the Beat Movement. The Beat Generation was literally the first subculture in the modern era, so it may provide a little view with which people may find ideas and strength.
Comments (5) | Permalink

Wednesday, December 28, 2005

Media Issues
I look at the Drudge Report website (http://www.drudgereport.com/), and all I see is a load of crap. People honestly think this is one of the best websites to get the latest news? Yeah, it's good if you want to know about Michael Jackson or The Da Vinci Code being turned into a movie.

Once more I see proof of how apathetic the general population is.

Lately, I've found that going to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) or the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) websites yield headlines that are more worth of the news than the crap you see on TV. Honestly, people actually FORGOT that Sadaam Hussein was on trial? They FORGOT?

My God! I don't use his name in vain often, but the mood calls for it.

Anyway, we have two strikes against the US in mo Totalitarianism Barometer; Gross use of idealism (War on Terror)and control of the media.

Then again, there is probably good reason for this too--and the population itself is at fault. You see, Journalists go after what people are willing to read. If hearing about how the Dungey character's son committed suicide, then so be it. At least they are getting paid.

I'm just wondering what happened to the integrity that journailsts used to pride themselves on. Is it gone? Do the British and the Canadians have more than their fair share?

Oi. If this society does hit totalitarianism, then I know several people who will be taken out. Also, I'll have to go to google.com.au to get all of this stuff.

What? It by passes the filters at school!
Comments (2) | Permalink

Sunday, December 18, 2005

Final Grades!!
I thank everyone for their compliments on my poem--it really was nice of everyone to comment about it.

Anyway, I just checked my grades on the college website, and here goes the list:

Ethics--A

American National Government--B

Public Speaking--A

Introduction to Sociology--A

You wouldn't believe how ecstatic I am about this. Seriously, you wouldn't.

Anyway, another bit of news for everyone. I finally have a job! By that, I mean a job that doesn't involve cleaning toilets with the lady down the street and being paid under the table. By a job, I mean being a bagger at a local grocery store and being on a schedule that doesn't involve my employer calling and cancelling the next day's work only the night before.

Of course, I'm wondering how I'm going to manage this, considering that I have a spit-fire temper and a set of social skills that would make Squall proud.

If he even knows what 'proud' means, of course.

Ah, well. I'll at least get some cash. And, if I'm lucky, they'll like me and transfer me to bakery. That way, I can learn their secret recipe for their excellent cakes!!

lol. Don't mind me, I've been stuck inside all day.
Comments (3) | Permalink

Friday, December 16, 2005

Something That Came to Mind.


Gotta love the cards, ne? Kuroneko-Sama, tell Santa's Little Helper that Kiowa Day Legend says 'hello'!

Kiowa is my greyhound. ^^

On to business. Last night was my last class at the college for the semester--public speaking. As such, we had to give a trubute speech. My own speech, however, is irrelevant to this post.

The speech that is relevant is that of a classmate, a guitarist who's done a few gigs at a local cafe/art lounge called The Zone. It's one of my favorite places, both for the coffee and the music.

Yes. I am a coffee nut.

My classmate's speech was very unusual, and I'll probably only hear anything like it only once in my life. His tribut speech was for his guitar.

He found his partner, Rusty, in a pawn shop and it was truly love at first sight. In fact, around that time he was setting out to go cross country with his band mates. He wound up taking Rusty with him everywhere he went, from San Francisco to Maine, and even to Canada. In that time, both he and Rusty got quite some time to get acquainted.

His partner is named Rusty because he had rusty strings. Because of the cross country trip, he thought it unwise to spend $15 on a new set of strings, so he dealt with the problem and made it through perfectly fine.

Now, I have plenty of respect for people who have talent. That includes musicians, artists, manga-ka, songwriters, and poets. I try to come to par with these people, and only manage to write a few little poems here or there. These poems have no real rhyme scheme, and they usually are about something that is immediately on my mind.

I wrote a poem last night, about my class mate and his partner.

[Rusty]

Alone in the harsh flourescent light

An artist stood--

He swept his fingers over the strings,

Teasing his partner into song

It was a bittersweet pleasure

That combined reality with memory

The artist had the power of a god

And held his audience captive

With his raw skill

Silence fell with the diminuendo...

...

He smiled.


Comments (5) | Permalink

Wednesday, December 14, 2005

Confirmation
Yay! I got two Christmas cards!!





I'd make everyone a card, but I lack the program to add the text to a kick-ass pic of Jin. For the first time in my life, I'm hating my computer right now for that very reason. Sorry, guys.

Anyway, I see some people were confused about my last post. Well, for those of you who popped up recently, I started playing Final Fantasy 8 not that long ago. I had gotten my hands on the CD first--the soundtrack, that is--and I was dying to play the game that some of the music came from.

Laguna is the little animation in my intro, or even the guy standing below. V
V


Irvine Kinneas is this guy. V
V


And Squall...well, he IS pretty much my theme on the OB, but I'll give ya a pic anyway. V
V


As for the other people...well. I don't really want to hunt for images of them at the moment. I just happened to have these already on my photobucket account.

I've not given up hope yet for the cards. I'll find a way yet to add text to that kick-ass pic of Jin. Just you all wait and see!


Comments (7) | Permalink

Monday, December 12, 2005

Laguna Dream Sequence Part II
There is only one game character who can scream "AAAAHHHH! I HAVE TO GO TO THE BATHROOM!!" in the middle of a battle scene and still maintain my respect. That character is Laguna Loire.

My god. You have to sympathize with Kiros and Ward for putting up with such a doofus, but they are just as bad because they choose to follow him in spite of all that. It takes a certain talent, to babble so much and be plagued by leg cramps yet still have a pair of loyal companions.

I've also noticed that the Esthar soldiers love to aim Blizara at Ward. It's a mite annoying when I'm having him summon Quezacoatl, but nothing intolerable.

Plus, I'm still lovin' 'Man with the Machine Gun'.

After this sequence, the resident ladies' man makes his first appearance. Irvine Kinneas, while a sharpshooter, loves the ladies and is another bishi in the series.

Kuro-Tan. I can find you a picture of Irvine too. Just say the word, and I'd be happy to.
Comments (4) | Permalink

Friday, December 9, 2005

Su Doku
A very VERY addictive little puzzle. It's been called 'The Rubik's Cube of the 21st Century'.

If that doesn't say something, then I don't know what will.

It's full name is Suuji wa dokushin ni kagiru (The Numbers Must Be Single), and the name fits it perfectly.

It's a square of nine by nine, with a further nine blocks within the square. Furthermore, there are several numbers given within the square, one through nine.

The object of the puzzle is to fill the square so that each row, down and across, contain the numbers one through nine, with no repeats. Also, there can't be a number repeated within she separate blocks within the square either.

Maybe a picture would help.




A person in my public speaking class last night did a speech on how she became addicted to these, and gave everyone in the class a sample puzzle.

I'm terrible at these logic puzzles, but I'm now addicted to. NOO! It's just one step further for the people of Japan to further take over the world!!

Ahem. Sorry. Now, I have a little question for those who have given this puzzle a try:

Which is worse? Su Doku or Caffiene?
Comments (2) | Permalink

Wednesday, December 7, 2005

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
Shoot me now.

The christian fanatics are going to take this movie, based on a book and tear it apart to find nonexistant parallels between it and Christ's story, just like they did with thee Lord of the Rings trilogy.

I'm sorry. I don't even agree with this book even being made into a movie.

The tale is pure fiction, based in a fantasy type setting you see over and over again so much that it has become fodder for the noobs at writing. I admit, I've used this fodder myself, once upon a time.

But please, don't turn it into what it is not. The Elves of LotR are not Angels, and Aslan of the Narnia Chronicles is not Christ.

My only analogy would be a Robert Frost poem--in particular the last stanza

The woods are lovely, dark, and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

There is no hidden meaning in the above text, though scholars have been trying to find one for years. He isn't talking about his own, inevitable death. He merely wrote it because it makes for a good poem.

I did that for my little ditty, Sentry. you can go back a few pages if you want to read it. It is not about some ill omen that the narrator happened to see; it just makes for good poetry.

C.S. Lewis was a Christian, but he never intended his stories to have Christian undertones. If they're there, they happened by coincidence, and the fact that the writer is who he is.

I'm not bashing Christianity. I'm just saying that a masterpiece should merely be taken as it is.


Comments (3) | Permalink

"...like some other DJ, in some other town..."
Hope no one minds me quoting The Killers on this one. The line from 'On Top' fits too, because I had a thought this morning that simply won't leave me be.

What would it be like to be a radio DJ?

I figured that I'd do some research on it, and I found that I need to have experience before I can get a job in that field, and the best way to do so would be through a College radio station or through an apprenticeship.

I doubt that St. Pete. College has a station, so I figure that I'll try the apprenticeship after I graduate. If I still want to, that is.
Comments (1) | Permalink