Rain, Rain , Rain

So here I am. Another Florida day. Started out ok, not to shabby. I went to church, and then rode down to Uptown Altamonte to walk. I did end up doing some running so it was more a run/walk kind of time. It was sunny then. After I needed something to eat I haven't had anything all day. Dropped by The Greens and Grille up University.

This is actually the first Sunday all month where there isn't any work due on Monday. It's a great feeling especially when the pressures off. Truth be told I love the rain anyway. So I'm pretty ok with finding things to do. There is also ways things to do inside on a rainy day. However a portion of these activities one may not enjoy especially at an age like mine. There's the wonderful Ps3, there's the wonderful computer, the wonderful tv and so on. For us Audiophiles and budding recording engineers there is the ever popular Pro-Tools, which I am having a blast with. If my ears were not so fatigued I would be doing more mixing.

I know it wold be safe to say to each his own in deciding how to manage his time. I think it wold be good to make the case that sometimes doing absolutely nothing is the best thing you could do. especially when there is no other time where you aren't doing something. Well happy Sunday everyone.

To Put It Simply

I ask that readers may see me as sincere in my undertakings. There is very little in me that has left to feed off hate, but what happened last night was a night that forever has changed our country. It is something that I cannot ignore, and I refuse to be deemed in league with a political machine.

What I am about to say may not directly relate to the Health Care reform. Rather it Is a relation to the people behind it. All of them. For they have stripped the very foundation of this country. If it is up on you tube watch the speech the president and remember. The population or the majority of us the people were opposed to this. Now when he gets to the part about “this is a victory for the people…” or facsimile of just remember that the majority, you know the number that wins elections turned away from this. In the short story in the next paragraph the point of this post will be made clear.

So I was talking to Kevin the other day, more along the lines of listening actually. He didn’t vote for the candidate I voted for, but I don’t follow a party. This is where I used my dollar example to differentiate between the People running the presidency and the cabinet, basically the progressive agenda. WARNING! Reading further may increase your intelligence. Here is how it went. “So Kev you want to know the real people behind the suits. Ok say I want to give you money for helping me chop wood. I want you to bring me four chords of it and for simplicity purposes say I gave you 4 bucks a dollar a chord, sounds fair right you do labor I pay you”. “well yeah that’s fair, I mean I think I should get a little more”, “well” I said “ for easy calculation purposes we’ll say four”. “ok” he says “alright now I’m going to take that dollar you earned and I’m going to give it to a person who didn’t do any work, who did absolutely nothing to help you or anything, now is it still fair”. “well why did you give it to her”, kev asks. “Well kev since I’m the mindset of all the people currently in the presidency I thought everyone should have a piece of the pie. Besides I told everyone that the government will provide assistance.” “well so what was the point of doing the work” kev asks. “see” “that’s the mistake we made”. Folks we are all entitled to the fruits of our labor, or we should be that is what the constitution says as part of our inalienable rights, right. But when you give government the power to decide that you lost your freedom. That’s the truth behind welfare. “Government aid” THE GOV DOESN”T HAVE ANY MONEY. WE provide the money we always have. People should not reap rewards for doing nothing, and especially for being stupid. Why should I pay for a mother to was to stupid to realize she couldn’t afford to have kids. But WAIT! There’s this welfare and the more children I have the more money I get. FROM US from the working people that hold jobs for the college students desperately trying to pay off their loans and get out of debt. Know why they can’t because those taxes WE get are being sent to people who don’t earn it. They do nothing, and they get the things that were rightfully and fairly owed us.

Now with this HCR its going to tax students even more. To pay for the power hungry control fiends so called plan that benefits the country. It doesn’t benefit the country it strangles it. So now the students who paid so much to be educate now have to spend more time trying to pay off their loans. Does that make any sense? I mean the so called “government help” that people will receive. It does not make any sense, under any principled moral circumstances.

I ask that you see the faults look even though it may hurt. There are plenty of things to blame a party for but this isn’t about parties. This is about our country, our well being. It is about our children and our elders. I ask that you just take a stand and do not what you want, but do what’s right.

Tummy Manifesto

There are very few things I would change about life right now. As today I have enjoyed myself, and the company of other retainers. I eaten a days fill, and I have watched a flick. All the wile the spring rain moves in and drowns the land that has been dry.

At church today I kind of started thinking about paying for small vices. My stomach felt horrible today and it was really hard to concentrate. I didn’t get a lot of sleep the night before. Tossing and turning, small spurts of blight anger streaming through my head. With my faith I was able to again escape the clutches.

I know that people usually wait until New Years eve to make resolutions. But I think when one has good retainers one can shape his of her life daily to future seeking enlightenment. Today I have been introduced to something about me I can stand to admit I am less proud of. I have lacked the steeped training of the years following the shaolin discipline; as such it is now visible to see a vice on me, on my stomach. I remember being humble of not having a 6 pack I didn’t have a pot. But now my gut protrudes, and although the rest of me retains it’s trained disciplined physique the center of me cries for the lack of attention. I cannot let this linger. I know inside this is not me.

Now is the time to decide. To take it onto myself with the little time I have in the swamp to squelch the vice. To revisit the old way of my training that brought me so much. Doing the little things go a long way. Luckily I can avoid all manner of soda, but other things need to be taken into account when I eat, how much, and most important, what. The term diet is not one that is synonymous with leading a better life. Diets don’t work, and are only to find quick fixed for things that require more dedication. A life change needs to happen. Luckily for me I have always been athletic, so a complete over haul is not needed. I need to start walking again. For the past few weeks I have been unable to go walking do to work needed for school. I need to make time for that, which I know I can. Next is to focus on my core. By discipline myself to walk longer I can be successful in this Endeavour.

I guess the decision just has to be made. I can’t make excuses, especially in this time of great discoveries. Wile the time is there I need to be able to stand against the status quo. Ensuring further progression of the human character.

What about our Constitution?

When faced with the right to choose one may buy into something that an elected official says. We ask why not buy into it. I think that just the fact there are people out there with higher educational degrees than the man on the right, have understood how horrible it will be if this action comes to pass. Our constitution was founded to limit the Gov't power because in england the parliament had all the power. This was not to be the case in the new world. If this comes to pass then government will control almost everything. That's really not even the issue because if the system was run by dedicated men of the constitution, then this problem would not arise.

But no, this country is run by people with only self interest at their heart. On both sides of the House we have people who's salary is paid for the rest of their lives even though they outlasted their term. Who pays. Well we do, we always have paid for all of the progressive pushes presidents of both parties have made over the years. It as if we have lost our way, in a forest of deceit and have become to ignorant to notice. This flows to the real issue. The degradation of our constitution. The document that allows people like Obama, Pelosi, and all those other progressives to spill all that comes from their mouths in total freedom. Now we are the ones that pay, our children arrive in the face of massive debt because of foolish pride and selfishness. The constitution is like the Way. It is like bushido in that the writers were willing to give up their lives to make a better world, and make a place where people are allowed to be stupid without penalty.

Now it is threatened to be ousted because of something that a group of people can not begin to grasp. He is not worried. Today in this interview him saying he isn't worried it is not hard to see for those who look. We should not have to get the right from the government a human institution to get health care. We have claim to this right to begin with. It is a God given right handed down from our creator! It is clearly stated in that sacred document that we all have certain Inalienable rights that were from our creator. No Government has the right to change that it's not something that they should get to decide which get it and which do not.

So I type this to ask people to hold steady, this isn't about me, this is not about parties, this is not about vendetta. This is about the fabric of our country being ripped away because of the insatiable appetite for POWER and CONTROL!

To end there is a teaching in the Hagakure ("In the shadow of Leaves") the book of the Samurai that says " Because we do things relying on our own sagacity, we become self interested and turn our backs on reason and things do not turn out well. As seen by other people this is sordid, weak, narrow, and inefficient. When not is capable of true intelligence, it is good to consult with someone of good sense. An advisor will fulfill the Way when he makes a good decision by selfless and frank intelligence because he is not personally involved. This way of doing things will certainly be seen by others as being strongly rooted. It is for example, like a large tree with many roots, One manes intelligence is like a tree that has been simply stuck in the ground."

A Step Forward

I want to just give appreciation for the Glenn Beck show today. He is starting to change over form what he started last year with the 9.12 project and that has seen a real success. Especially from sections of the tea party. I think it's something special to have. I want listeners to try and get a grip on the new thing he is doing. I think this just gives more credit to the type of person he is. This new venture is not really based on politics, I mean ultimately they related but they are not foundational a part. The new venture is Faith, Hope, and Charity.

It's not about how politics these days lack these principals. Rather it's a look into something that transcends politics, and something that our country has not had to much of in recent years. This isn't a "conservative movement", it's not a radical sect, it's just plain value and common sense principal. Part of what Beck is doing is he's putting up for sale a painting and the proceeds will go to a fund to allow kids to take college courses for 6 Dollars a month. To beck one of the best ways to combat the times is to educate our kids. I think one of the things people end up no seeing is that they categorize a principal with weather it is liberal or not. This is not the way of things and it doesn't get us anywhere, as a nation. The conservative people and the liberal peoples can not be on this earth and those ideals those principals would still be here. They don't get shot up by human hands.

So I just wanted to Commend Glenn Beck and all the others involved from across the state who decide to support the new venture. Not a lot of things right now are easy, but its good to see people grinding forward, as well as trying to preserve the principals that built and made this country great. I wish I can be with them, and that I can attend the event Beck is putting on in Orlando at the end of this month. If anyone can make it I would go to it. Everyone is welcome provided there are tickets. It doesn't matter what party your in, we put those things aside because the values we speak of don't have a certain color. Just reveling in my first amendment right.

Cooking Lessons

I haven’t had a home cooked meal in a while. Since my dad was last here I’ve been sticking to easily preparable things. I don’t have the time to take an hour or so to cook something or make it from scratch. I even realized today that I have so little time apparently I haven’t even made a salad.

My grandpa came to visit me. It’s a real nice way to beat the isolation. Man’s almost 90 and he’s still up and about. He’ll go anywhere. Just today after we went to Denny’s, we shot to the Florida mall. I had to pick up some Teavana. I figure I would treat myself for the end of another month in the swamp. So I went and he was looking at all the tea sets. It’s good company. You get to hear all the stories to, of how things used to be. I think people are way to quick to become impatient about it. I listen because well, it shows how much choice we had and what we got away with, and now how controlled are the aspects of our lives.

I think I learned a lesson in cooking today. Well more of the lack of knowledge I actually have compared to my grandpa. We decided to eat in and cook at home. So my papa said lets go to the market. Or since he has a harsh Boston accent the “MAket”. We went a picked up a rib eye, some tomatoes and potatoes. We went back to my apartment, and watched what was left of the Golf Tournament. It was actually cool to me, I mean I was able to sit down and didn’t have to do any schoolwork I ended up not knowing what to do with myself.

So we started to go into the kitchen. I got some things ready and I started watching my papa. He did all this stuff that was so simple it was genius, the way he was cutting things, and how he disposed of rubbish. We even made homemade dressing because all the ones I had were absolutely rotten. I saw a lot of balance and flow in it. Even though I may not get any more time on my schedule. I’m pretty determined to at least get to be able to make a killer salad.

Love & Work

It was nice to have a day off today. Well the closest thing to one with the situation I am in. I guess that I would have to thank the pastor at church for sparking the next blog idea. Or well at least the first half of it.

It was a beautiful day in the swamp. A blessing if you have been surviving down here. Felt like spring back home. Not to cool, and not icky warm, like a cool ocean breeze all across your skin. I want to address what some may think to be a scary thing. For the most part it is. It’s something we could spend the rest of our lies getting right, but quit along the way because of our lack to the thing that brought us there in the first place. The thing I speak of is marriage.

With being an only child and the last of my family, there’s a big shadow over my head to be wed. I think this is a thing people don’t grasp in the beginning and then it comes back to haunt them. The thing with me is that for others who don’t know me that well or who cannot delve deep into the fiber of my being let me explain how I view marriage.

In my heart, in my soul; there is a place, a place that God has put aside. A place where no demons, no sin, none of the horrors a man is capable of none can penetrate to the side. The side reserved for the one. The yin, to my yang as Pastor Dave would put it. This is solely reserved for the woman who I will go through the depths of hell with a smile on my face, for I will know I walked like Jesus., to announce my unconditional love, and to cherish and share in the life another. Marriage is the sacrament that binds us to one another.

There is no easy way to do a marriage. We people are not one in the same, and the road that lies ahead for us will not always be smooth. But in this lies the deep understanding of what it means to be committed. For me I dream to bask and derive the strength men are capable of from the one, the woman who was strong enough to stare down a lion, and love with equal. This is why in conversations I admit to play as female characters in Role Playing games. Inner strength isn’t something that resides in size. A genuine woman could be the size of a rail or the size of a whale. But we are meant for someone who more or less complements us. Understand this in no way means constant agreement.

I believe that in the bible when they talk about woman serving their husbands, they are not referring to the slave kind. I think the meaning to serve is to value the spouse as a person whose love is for you only. As men we should give up trying to figure woman out and spend time figuring out the one who has chosen to be with. It could take a lifetime; we need all the time we can get. I do not wish or want my wife to be the cut and paste housewife. We are just as capable of washing dishes, and cleaning the house as they are. Our biological differences of gender allow us to be stronger physically, this we should use to help our wives instead of doing violence or harm against them. Also remember that we are of our own souls, and marriage is in no way ownership of one or the other. We were made equal, and to balance one another.

While we may not agree on everything, it is our values that help in bringing us close together. But do not discount how we see each other physically. Be wary tat reflections of which you are echo in your physical form, such is the way of balance. It is part of the promise of marriage to help each other in the ways they may fall short in. It is woman who can show men nurturing, it is men who can show women such things as courage. This leads to the life of Marriage, and in walking in the footprints of the man that gave his life for us. To love, honor, and cherish. To hold the one you love, in your arms. As she sleeps, watch her beauty, her soul at peace. As you protect her from the horrors that men are to face, and to succeed, in acting on our vows. This understanding extends to all things.

This leads me to my next topic of work. It is not a scary thing. Recently in the age of industry, the soul of American heart has been dealt a blow by the revolution of machines. I make a plea for the useful arts, and the rise of tradecraft.

I being a musician am happy to walk a wonderful line of creative ability and soul craft. My Music is the product, and I am the mechanic of my words. It is one of the last things that require one to come to accept the kinetic ability that people have. Our work has become soulless as we have become knowledge workers. We must strive to bring back the fullness of working with our brains and our hands. I find it deeply spiritual to be able to retain the two. It is great to be able to lead a life where all of you work to make a better life, and there is deep intrinsic value.

Think of how many record labels there were. How much better of a place it would be to have the spirit of the kind of capitalism that made this country. In the hopes of putting more money in our pocket employees have squandered the ability and hopes of countless workers. Think of how many craftsmen were around before the assembly line, or how many there would still be if we did what was right and held founding values over the need for personal gain. Of course there is still time, for people willing to take a stand, to build something great, something of immense value. It is in all of us because we all have the ability to love.

Sleep

There are nights that I sleep well; I’ve believe most people have nights like that. But sometimes I don’t sleep well. Sometimes I do not get the peace of rest.
There are many reasons. For some nights I am awaken by a simple noise. Not any noise that is dangerous, usually people outside my window ranting and raving. Usually to ridden with booze to understand the disturbance they are making.

Sometimes I am awakened by restlessness. A restlessness that does not allow me the quickly fleeing moments of rest I need. I can imagine others who have nights the same way sometimes. They toss and turn, inside themselves knowing they are tired, but maybe their body will no let them go to sleep.

However; here are some nights that I lie awake, awake form the thing sin my head. Sometimes without warning, rooted deep in subconscious. The visions, the dreams. Dreams are good, sometimes bland, and sometimes utterly weird. But these are nightmares, visions into a dark, tragic, and frigid place. Sometimes I travel to worlds with serpents. Sometimes, I am in different places in different lands. All with this foreboding, and dark atmosphere. Such is the way of nightmares. It is in their nature to surprise, and ambush the mind.

Maybe it is the place of anger inside me, the place where all my fears lay bare, and my sins and vices reside. Locked away so none can see. I don’t want them to. I ‘ll face the terrors myself for they are mine and mine alone to bare.

One of the things that we have recently been discussing in class is the staying power of independent record stores. For those who do not know, or are a little new to what I am talking about, I am referring to record stores that are owned and operated outside from major chains. In layman’s terms they are the Mom & Pap stores.

The meat and potatoes of the discussion is why, after the take over of the giant retail chains like Wal-Mart, and Best Buy, that Indie record stores are still in business, and showing rising sales?

The big reason is the experience, and I’m going to explain further. I’m sure you may have a indie record store in your area. Where I am in New England we have two big regional places that have a handful of locations spread out through the Tri-State area. They are Newbury Comics, and Bull Moose Music. Yeah sure these places aren’t extravagant, or do they have the latest architectural design, I mean the closest Bull Moose to me is in Salem, NH and it looks like an ordinary, bland place on the outside.



I mean this is it. Doesn’t look eye catching does it. Well I think that is part of the beauty of it. As of this past year of 2009 this store recorded more record sales than the best buy that is down the street of this place.

I think the next question is what do you feel like when you shop at a Best Buy? Don’t you feel kind of unanimous? Like you really know what your going there for. Maybe you’re a rock guy or girl who want to pick up the latest breaking Benjamin release. Best buy does happen to have it for 18 bucks. So you pick it up and walk out. That’s it? I mean you didn’t look around? I bet it was kind of a very bland experience. Well that’s the thing. When at a Bull Moose or a Newbury comics there this completely different feeling. When you walk to the Newbury Comics in Boston to by a new release from you favorite band you have this good feeling in you. You walk into the store, and know your going to invest in the time and experience of THE RECORD STORE.

You walk down the rows of records, stopping to look at all the niche music. The music that a handful of people you think likes. Now you browse over to the old Vinyl, if you’re an audiophile you would know the sound difference. Yeah they just don’t make them like they use to I know. So you might decide to ask an employee. You look and see a girl with green hair, and a nose piercing, and you ask, “Hey do you have Benjamin’s new Album”? Now you may think that they are more than just one Artist with Benjamin in the name. But this girl knows that the distributor made shipped the newest release of Breaking Benjamin. So she points you right to it. Now wait as you make your way over you see a bands album you never heard of displayed right near Breaking Benjamin’s cd. There a local band that’s getting some buzz. So you say hey I have points on my Freakin Buyers card they give you, so I can get this album for half price. Now you got two albums of your music. There is this feel of personal belonging and experience that no Best Buy or Wal- Mart could duplicate. This is your Music, the songs that make you smile, and cry and love, and everything in between, in a store in your hometown where you’re from and where your life is. You are not just buying an album your are buying a relationship and a experience, the complete package.

So I ask that everyone remember these stores. As we see an up rise in niche genres, and more Grassroots Independents hit the grind, the local record store down the street is a safe haven for upcoming bands and music lovers alike. I think we should appreciate that facet of our lives because it has been one of the things that have not become raced out, and diluted in what today is an out of touch, and fast paced culture.