BE AWARE!

If you see this man in a movie:
...TURN IT OFF IMMEDIATELY.

Christmas is over

Christmas and the New Year are over. I got to see and spend time with a lot of my favorite people. Christmas is my favorite time of year and I am so glad that it is such a long holiday from school so that we can stay at our houses and only have to worry about working. I love that everyone is in a good mood and a comfortable atmosphere. Everyone likes to have fun on the holidays. You get presents you get to give presents and most family traditions center on this, the largest holiday season from Thanksgiving to New Year. Snow comes and traps families together inside to settle on couches in sweatpants. The same movies are on, the same commercials, and football is in its prime. Its when you get to see people you never get to see and to catch up on where your old life went. Christmas is a chance to feel close to your family and New Years is an excuse to imbibe and reflect introspectively at the same time. A chance for a new start in a good mood.

So Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, even if a bit late.

This would be a cool job

I think certain commercials obviously strike people as more powerful or influential than others based on their content and the viewers interest as well as the music and imagery used. Some commercials (McDonalds, Ditech, etc) are just terrible but others obviously have some thought and design put into them. Barring Taco Bell (I can't help it, I just have to have their new arrangements of the same ingredients as soon as they let me know about them) almost all of these effective and moving commericals are for movies or video games.

Ever since the opening scene of Karate Kid where Daniel-son is moving cross country with a scenic view of his car crossing the plains set to a soundtrack (don't ask, I don't remember what it was, just that I liked it) I always thought it would be a great job to add soundtracks to movies or commercials. Picking the right song to set the mood and match the chosen imagery is crucial to creating a good commercial or a good soundtrack.

Check these out:
Pineapple Express with "Paper Planes" by MIA
Gears of War with "Mad World" by Gary Jules
Max Payne with "If I Was Your Vampire" by Marylin Manson

Driving down the road as the sun settled and dusk infringed on my commute home, I noticed three spanish people walking down the enlarged median with bags of something. I like to think they were filled with chips and dip and light beer for their celebration of the weekends arrival. They all seemed to be in good spirits and one was speaking to the others while they smiled at his effort.

At first I thought of how I would hate to have to walk between work or the store or a bus stop, whatever it may have been. But then I realized that they were in good company and feeling better than I was, even though I was the one with air conditioning on and my music blaring. They didn't need more than a couple of other people to listen to and the optimistic arrival of whatever they had been waiting all day to do. Then I envied how easily they were contented.

Dave Chappelle standup

Dave Chappelle's stand up specials Killing Them Softly and For What It's Worth are hilarious. His segments on Chip, a homeless dude jerkin it on a bus, and smoking with Indians are worth the DVD alone. Check them out on the internet or in stores.

CHIP NO!!

"Write one if you are legally blind."

This phrase is printed on Virginia's W4 tax form. Keep in mind this is not written in braille but in plain ink.


Why?

"I have 85 channels on my TV but nothing beats watching Hank use a crescent wrench."

Dale Gribble