Recently I became inspired to create 2 minute vignettes documenting events/evenings/fun times that I have with my friends and family so that I can post them on Facebook and have them live in my timeline for me to revisit anytime in the future that I wish. I toiled over buying a camera, but worried about spending too much money on something I might not have follow through on. I talked with my good friend Craig about possible solutions. He suggested using my iphone, because the video quality is good, transferring the data to my computer and into imovie is easy, and it would not cost me anything extra. And then, if this becomes I hobby I wish to take more seriously, I can buy another camera.
My first opportunity to test my inspiration came when a group of us went to a concert for the band Fun. If you are not familiar with this band, they sing the song, "Tonight...We are Young!" I went to the concert and annoyed the group with my phone out. I captured a total of 16-17 minutes of video and edited it into a simply vignette over an audio bed of Fun. music. I spent about 2 hours on the editing process and ended up with a simple, yet compelling tribute to our Wednesday night concert. I posted the video on youtube in order to share with friends and family. Within 30 seconds, the video was banned due to copyright law!
So now I am confused. I can go on youtube and find videos on any and everything that exists or has existed dating back to the beginning of television. Or I can find dozens of recorded or live versions of random songs, either local bands or professional bands. Yet, 30 seconds after I post a homemade video, it gets flagged and restricted. And I could possibly be prosecuted for violating copyright law.
So, if I had to write a letter, I would write to Copyright Law and I would ask, "Why was my video flagged so quickly, while other videos are free from restriction?" And next I would ask, "You're not gonna to prosecute me, are you?"
Friday, March 30, 2012
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
81) Funny Story
Got a call from Chris White at 8a. His morning routine was interrupted by several power surges that caused his security system to beep loudly every fifteen minutes or so. This interruption began in the wee hours of the morning and continued on until it was time to go to work. He begrudgingly rose from bed, got dressed and drove to work, wondering why in the heck power surges caused him to get so little sleep. The one thing he did not do was look at his feet.
He arrived at his office on a typical Tuesday, one in which he has a weekly status meeting with his team first thing in the morning. Our friend, Chris White, walked into his meeting where his fellow employees noticed him wearing 1 brown shoe and 1 black shoe. I am not sure what part of this situation I like better: the funny reveal at the office where his team members get a good laugh at his expense, or the hour and a half drive of shame where he had to go home in order to get 2 matching shoes.
This story inspired me to devote a post to instances where the brain did not work properly and someone ended up at work wearing mismatching shoes.
* I made it to work one morning with my shirt inside out. In my defense, the stitching on the outside of the shirt looks similar to the stitching on the inside of the shirt.
* While in college I took a class with an Italian exchange student. He was extremely Metro and rode around campus on a smallish motorcycle. I lived far off campus and parked no where close to my classes. He drove by me one day and offered to give me a ride. I declined. He persisted with his thick Italian accent, letting me know it was common practice for 2 dudes to ride a smallish motorcycle together. Reluctantly I got on. Out of the 12,000 or so students attending Baylor at the time, Britt was on campus and saw me riding. He assured me it was more than unacceptable for 2 dudes to ride a smallish motorcycle together.
* At least once a month I forget my laptop at home and must turn around to get it. Each time, I discover the fact I forgot my laptop in the parking garage. However, I wait until I get inside my office so that I can be seen getting to work on time. I have to walk into my cube and pretend that I just realized my laptop is missing. My acting is good and works every time, but that does not make the drive of shame any less annoying.
* I teach a class at a community college and once showed up to the wrong classroom. I sat in there alone for 20 minutes before discovering I was in the wrong room. Amazingly, my students did not institute the 15-minute rule.
* To avoid using the office refrigerator, I bring my lunch in a small cooler (the bag-type, not the hard, igloo type). One morning, the plastic bag I use to hold ice did not work properly. The ice melted enough on my drive to work that water slowly dripped down my leg while I carried my lunch through the parking garage and up to my desk. My leg was so wet that I had to go home to change.
* I made it to my class one time without bringing my briefcase, which is to say I did not have any of my materials for the class. So I made up a class on the fly where I threw together random images in 4 different power point presentations and asked the students to deliver an impromptu speech using the random images as guides. The lesson was designed to show that you do not need words on your power point to spell out what you are trying to present. I now use that class each semester.
* I know a guy (promise that this is not me) that once put on shirt covered in dog urine. He did not notice until someone pointed it out to him. His response upon discovering the mistake was, "I wondered what that smell was?"
I know there are more, but have run out of time...
He arrived at his office on a typical Tuesday, one in which he has a weekly status meeting with his team first thing in the morning. Our friend, Chris White, walked into his meeting where his fellow employees noticed him wearing 1 brown shoe and 1 black shoe. I am not sure what part of this situation I like better: the funny reveal at the office where his team members get a good laugh at his expense, or the hour and a half drive of shame where he had to go home in order to get 2 matching shoes.
This story inspired me to devote a post to instances where the brain did not work properly and someone ended up at work wearing mismatching shoes.
* I made it to work one morning with my shirt inside out. In my defense, the stitching on the outside of the shirt looks similar to the stitching on the inside of the shirt.
* While in college I took a class with an Italian exchange student. He was extremely Metro and rode around campus on a smallish motorcycle. I lived far off campus and parked no where close to my classes. He drove by me one day and offered to give me a ride. I declined. He persisted with his thick Italian accent, letting me know it was common practice for 2 dudes to ride a smallish motorcycle together. Reluctantly I got on. Out of the 12,000 or so students attending Baylor at the time, Britt was on campus and saw me riding. He assured me it was more than unacceptable for 2 dudes to ride a smallish motorcycle together.
* At least once a month I forget my laptop at home and must turn around to get it. Each time, I discover the fact I forgot my laptop in the parking garage. However, I wait until I get inside my office so that I can be seen getting to work on time. I have to walk into my cube and pretend that I just realized my laptop is missing. My acting is good and works every time, but that does not make the drive of shame any less annoying.
* I teach a class at a community college and once showed up to the wrong classroom. I sat in there alone for 20 minutes before discovering I was in the wrong room. Amazingly, my students did not institute the 15-minute rule.
* To avoid using the office refrigerator, I bring my lunch in a small cooler (the bag-type, not the hard, igloo type). One morning, the plastic bag I use to hold ice did not work properly. The ice melted enough on my drive to work that water slowly dripped down my leg while I carried my lunch through the parking garage and up to my desk. My leg was so wet that I had to go home to change.
* I made it to my class one time without bringing my briefcase, which is to say I did not have any of my materials for the class. So I made up a class on the fly where I threw together random images in 4 different power point presentations and asked the students to deliver an impromptu speech using the random images as guides. The lesson was designed to show that you do not need words on your power point to spell out what you are trying to present. I now use that class each semester.
* I know a guy (promise that this is not me) that once put on shirt covered in dog urine. He did not notice until someone pointed it out to him. His response upon discovering the mistake was, "I wondered what that smell was?"
I know there are more, but have run out of time...
Monday, January 23, 2012
80) Insecurities
Getting back to the blog challenge put to me last summer, I am to write about something I am insecure about. This is a tough assignment because I worry about it coming across as whiny. For instance, I could write about my extraordinarily large nose that bends slightly to one side. Or I could write about how I am too short to be taken seriously in either high school sports or any of the construction jobs I've had. I could talk about my inadequate ability to grow facial hair even though I grow long thick, dark hairs on my ears, nose, unibrow area and all over my back. I could describe my smallish hands, or the fact that my toes are too webbed for me to move them independently of each other. I could tell stories about how my loud voice gets me into trouble, or that I snore so ferociously that I often wake up with a sore throat. I could write about my coarse Japanese hair that has so many cowlicks that my last stylist could not find where my hair is supposed to part.
I could write about these things, but the last thing I want to be is whiny. So instead, I am going to write about how I impressed a beautiful woman. I impressed her enough to spend her free time with me. I impressed her enough to marry me. Instead of whining, I am going to write how despite all these crazy truths I am the luckiest guy in the world. This is the point in the story where you say, "Awww."
I could write about these things, but the last thing I want to be is whiny. So instead, I am going to write about how I impressed a beautiful woman. I impressed her enough to spend her free time with me. I impressed her enough to marry me. Instead of whining, I am going to write how despite all these crazy truths I am the luckiest guy in the world. This is the point in the story where you say, "Awww."
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
78) The Little Things
A tragedy occurred this past Christmas. 2 men jumped a co-worker of mine in an attempt to rob him and his brother. Details are sketchy, but a struggle broke out that ended in my co-worker being shot from point blank range. He died on the streets of Little Rock just after 2am on Christmas morning.
I learned of this 2 days later via fb, and have had many troubles reconciling in my mind what has happened. The senselessness of the crime forces me to realize how little we actual control in the grand scheme of things. What sort of barriers truly exist between me calmly returning to my car after a dinner with friends or me being jumped and shot by someone desperate for what cash I may have on me? How many times do I leave my office after dark and walk the nearly deserted streets of downtown Dallas before reaching the security of my car without thinking once that my life were in imminent danger? Dozens? Hundreds? Infinitely more than my co-worker will ever again.
I returned to work on December 27th. Our agency closes the week after Christmas and I was the only person present in the office. I booted up my computer and before I knew what I was doing, I walked over to my co-worker's cubicle on the other side of the building. Everything was how he left it the day he departed for Christmas vacation. Toys and trinkets cluttered his messy workspace. 10 bottles of various liquors stood atop his filing cabinet out in the open, a blatant disregard for normal office protocol. Perhaps a clever case of hiding in plain sight. His cubicle walls adorned with posters of obscure bands he'd seen or festivals he'd attended.
I stood in his doorway and wondered what was going to happen to his things. I wondered who would have the unenviable task of cleaning out his cubicle and disconnecting his computer. Who would end up with all of his liquor? Or his toys? I thought about all the time he spent at his office and how his space reflected the playful sort of person he was. And sometime soon his cube would be cleaned and there would be very little trace that he was here at all.
That was when I noticed a postcard pinned up to the inside of his cubicle wall just behind one of his computer monitors. It read, "Don't Sweat The Little Things". It is a simple enough message, the sort you see all over the place. A positive mantra that reminds us not to worry too much because throughout our life there will be plenty of big things to worry about.
For 2012 I resolve not to sweat the little things. Life is too short and too important. Much positive can be said about Keye and the life he led. It is certainly true that he was taken from us far too early. But it is also true that we must enjoy as much of our time here as possible, because we never know when one particular day could be our last.
I learned of this 2 days later via fb, and have had many troubles reconciling in my mind what has happened. The senselessness of the crime forces me to realize how little we actual control in the grand scheme of things. What sort of barriers truly exist between me calmly returning to my car after a dinner with friends or me being jumped and shot by someone desperate for what cash I may have on me? How many times do I leave my office after dark and walk the nearly deserted streets of downtown Dallas before reaching the security of my car without thinking once that my life were in imminent danger? Dozens? Hundreds? Infinitely more than my co-worker will ever again.
I returned to work on December 27th. Our agency closes the week after Christmas and I was the only person present in the office. I booted up my computer and before I knew what I was doing, I walked over to my co-worker's cubicle on the other side of the building. Everything was how he left it the day he departed for Christmas vacation. Toys and trinkets cluttered his messy workspace. 10 bottles of various liquors stood atop his filing cabinet out in the open, a blatant disregard for normal office protocol. Perhaps a clever case of hiding in plain sight. His cubicle walls adorned with posters of obscure bands he'd seen or festivals he'd attended.
I stood in his doorway and wondered what was going to happen to his things. I wondered who would have the unenviable task of cleaning out his cubicle and disconnecting his computer. Who would end up with all of his liquor? Or his toys? I thought about all the time he spent at his office and how his space reflected the playful sort of person he was. And sometime soon his cube would be cleaned and there would be very little trace that he was here at all.
That was when I noticed a postcard pinned up to the inside of his cubicle wall just behind one of his computer monitors. It read, "Don't Sweat The Little Things". It is a simple enough message, the sort you see all over the place. A positive mantra that reminds us not to worry too much because throughout our life there will be plenty of big things to worry about.
For 2012 I resolve not to sweat the little things. Life is too short and too important. Much positive can be said about Keye and the life he led. It is certainly true that he was taken from us far too early. But it is also true that we must enjoy as much of our time here as possible, because we never know when one particular day could be our last.
79) Music Listography 1
Favorite 20 Bands:
Pearl Jam
Pink Floyd
Jethro Tull
Blind Melon
Led Zeppelin
Rush
The Beatles
A Perfect Circle
The Police
Blind Melon
Yes
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Nirvana
The Doors
Alice In Chains
Tool
Franz Ferdinand
Coldplay
U2
Radiohead
To make this post a little more interesting I decided to predict the bands that would have been included on the following people's list:
L.
The Cure
NIN
Better Than Ezra
The Killers
Ke$ha
George Strait
50 Cent
The Counting Crows
Stephen:
Kings of Leon
Muse
Incubus
Hootie and the Blowfish
Chris:
Our Lady Peace
311
Chevelle
Squirell Nut Zippers
Weird Al Yankovich
Craig:
Ozzy
Bob Dylan
Neil Young
The White Stripes
John Denver
Danzig
Michael:
Staind
The Raconteurs
Stone Temple Pilots
Britt:
Al Green
Guns & Roses
The guy who sings "A Country Boy Can Survive"
Joe:
Bob Dylan
Bruce Springstein
The Supremes
Neil Young
77) 2012 New Year's Resolutions
I suppose its time to think about resolutions for 2012. I feel like Wheel of Fortune where the contestants were saying the same 5 consonants each episode so the producers finally included those 5 consonants on every final puzzle.
R: Cut out the junk food (in my case it is tone down the beer)
S: Eat more healthy (I need to strive for portion control. No more eating the entire pizza!)
T: Make sure to work out more (I am trying to improve my speed and agility so that I can do better on the soccer field. I feel strange for wanting to improve my performance, but sometimes I get driven over the strangest things. And I am tired of being the slowest guy out there...)
L: Continue to improve my career (I have been working hard to strengthen the account I work on, and am excited to see what can be accomplished in 2012)
N: Strive to be a better husband (honestly I do not see this resolution on many lists. But it should be on every husband's list)
E: My final resolution is to watch The Wire. I've heard nothing but great things about the show and have wanted to watch it. However it gets pushed back by other shows such as Dexter, True Blood, Damages etc. So this year I want end the excuses and finally watch The Wire.
R: Cut out the junk food (in my case it is tone down the beer)
S: Eat more healthy (I need to strive for portion control. No more eating the entire pizza!)
T: Make sure to work out more (I am trying to improve my speed and agility so that I can do better on the soccer field. I feel strange for wanting to improve my performance, but sometimes I get driven over the strangest things. And I am tired of being the slowest guy out there...)
L: Continue to improve my career (I have been working hard to strengthen the account I work on, and am excited to see what can be accomplished in 2012)
N: Strive to be a better husband (honestly I do not see this resolution on many lists. But it should be on every husband's list)
E: My final resolution is to watch The Wire. I've heard nothing but great things about the show and have wanted to watch it. However it gets pushed back by other shows such as Dexter, True Blood, Damages etc. So this year I want end the excuses and finally watch The Wire.
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
76) 2011 Year In Review
2011 has been an amazing year for me. In general, I focus my efforts on balance between my family, my career, my physical health, my artistic expression, while at the same time making sure not to let stress negatively affect my overall well-being. I have been successful in doing this in 2011 and hope to continue in 2012.
Here are a handful of snippets from 2011:
* Feeling a 7.5 earthquake in the mountains of Japan. I was in a small town and when I walked outside to see what happened, no one stirred. The next morning I tried asking the couple who ran the hotel if they felt the earthquake. It took 20 minutes and no matter what I said, I could not get the message across.
* Waking up in the middle of the night unable to move my leg. A collision in a soccer game caused my knee to swell so much. L. reminds me of this night in an attempt to tell me I am too old to play. What she doesn't realize is that I will never be too young to play.
* Watching L. dance around a halloween party with Bruno while wearing a skin-tight Avatar costume.
* Watching a hoard of gigantic, crazy-looking caterpillars devour our peppers.
* Joining the Pen 15 club. Thanks, Erin!
* Making homemade pasta with L. It took 4 hours to make enough for one bowl of pasta.
* Playing guitar with Doss. My 72 series Tele Deluxe sounded so good coming through my VOX AC30. So good, in fact, that I could not really hear anything else that was going on.
* Reading Dugat's Maverick articles throughout the season thinking how awesome it is that he got such a cool gig. And wondering when am I going to see him hosting the post-game highlights.
* Exploring beer. I love IPAs and Stouts and discovered the following list of beers: The Harry Eyeball, Dogfishhead 90 minute IPA, Ten Fidy, Gubna, Yeti Imperial Stout, 400 Lb Monkey, The Gonzo from Flying Dog, Vanilla Porter, Left Hand Milk Stout, Real Ale Coffee Porter, The Hop Wallop...among others.
* Getting in a fight with an Italian woman on a train. She was mad at me because I had a lot of luggage that she felt should not have been in her way.
* Giving Stephen his first electric guitar. May it lead to much bad music!
* Spending a full weekend with Craig watching multiple documentaries.
* Making my crappy helmet out of paper mache.
* Making my first batch of homemade scotch. It tasted so sweet that it was undrinkable. I am on batch #3 and though the scotch has improved (just barely drinkable), it is still not as good as buying a bottle from the liquor store.
* Watching the Mavs win the 2011 NBA Championship!
* Sending air lanterns up into the Dallas Skyline for Lindsy's birthday. My favorite part was watching Lindsy get stressed when the lanterns flew above the freeway or got stuck in a tree.
* Helping my brother through one of his toughest experiences.
* Listening to my mom sing about her red converse shoes.
* Watching Stephen dressed as a 90's, poetic, high-brow Avatar trying to high five a ghostbuster. The ghostbuster stopped and said, "Oh, ok. We can high five if you want."
* Talking on the phone with Tomoko for more than an hour on multiple occasions. We do not speak the same language and much of the call is spent nodding and repeating the same phrase, "Domo for the Pakeji."
* Walking around Pompeii and seeing the ancient city that was destroyed by Vesuvius in 79 ad.
* Eating sushi with L. at Skiji Fish Market
* Watching the Rangers get to their 2nd consecutive World Series.
* Finally met Boo, an English Bulldog with a big heart, a playful left paw and a large bulldog tongue.
* Spending 80 hours a week for consecutive weeks putting together the largest presentation I have had the pleasure of working on. We presented early in 2011 and the account has grown leaps and bounds since. A huge win for our team.
* Slipping inside the Coliseum and falling so hard that the Italian police asked me a dozen times if I was ok and if I was going to press charges.
Here are a handful of snippets from 2011:
* Feeling a 7.5 earthquake in the mountains of Japan. I was in a small town and when I walked outside to see what happened, no one stirred. The next morning I tried asking the couple who ran the hotel if they felt the earthquake. It took 20 minutes and no matter what I said, I could not get the message across.
* Waking up in the middle of the night unable to move my leg. A collision in a soccer game caused my knee to swell so much. L. reminds me of this night in an attempt to tell me I am too old to play. What she doesn't realize is that I will never be too young to play.
* Watching L. dance around a halloween party with Bruno while wearing a skin-tight Avatar costume.
* Watching a hoard of gigantic, crazy-looking caterpillars devour our peppers.
* Joining the Pen 15 club. Thanks, Erin!
* Making homemade pasta with L. It took 4 hours to make enough for one bowl of pasta.
* Playing guitar with Doss. My 72 series Tele Deluxe sounded so good coming through my VOX AC30. So good, in fact, that I could not really hear anything else that was going on.
* Reading Dugat's Maverick articles throughout the season thinking how awesome it is that he got such a cool gig. And wondering when am I going to see him hosting the post-game highlights.
* Exploring beer. I love IPAs and Stouts and discovered the following list of beers: The Harry Eyeball, Dogfishhead 90 minute IPA, Ten Fidy, Gubna, Yeti Imperial Stout, 400 Lb Monkey, The Gonzo from Flying Dog, Vanilla Porter, Left Hand Milk Stout, Real Ale Coffee Porter, The Hop Wallop...among others.
* Getting in a fight with an Italian woman on a train. She was mad at me because I had a lot of luggage that she felt should not have been in her way.
* Giving Stephen his first electric guitar. May it lead to much bad music!
* Spending a full weekend with Craig watching multiple documentaries.
* Making my crappy helmet out of paper mache.
* Making my first batch of homemade scotch. It tasted so sweet that it was undrinkable. I am on batch #3 and though the scotch has improved (just barely drinkable), it is still not as good as buying a bottle from the liquor store.
* Watching the Mavs win the 2011 NBA Championship!
* Sending air lanterns up into the Dallas Skyline for Lindsy's birthday. My favorite part was watching Lindsy get stressed when the lanterns flew above the freeway or got stuck in a tree.
* Helping my brother through one of his toughest experiences.
* Listening to my mom sing about her red converse shoes.
* Watching Stephen dressed as a 90's, poetic, high-brow Avatar trying to high five a ghostbuster. The ghostbuster stopped and said, "Oh, ok. We can high five if you want."
* Talking on the phone with Tomoko for more than an hour on multiple occasions. We do not speak the same language and much of the call is spent nodding and repeating the same phrase, "Domo for the Pakeji."
* Walking around Pompeii and seeing the ancient city that was destroyed by Vesuvius in 79 ad.
* Eating sushi with L. at Skiji Fish Market
* Watching the Rangers get to their 2nd consecutive World Series.
* Finally met Boo, an English Bulldog with a big heart, a playful left paw and a large bulldog tongue.
* Spending 80 hours a week for consecutive weeks putting together the largest presentation I have had the pleasure of working on. We presented early in 2011 and the account has grown leaps and bounds since. A huge win for our team.
* Slipping inside the Coliseum and falling so hard that the Italian police asked me a dozen times if I was ok and if I was going to press charges.
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