Rise and Shine '09

Happy New Year!!

Parody

My friends and I haven't been in 'the studio' too much until recently. Sadly, I haven't gotten on anything noteworthy, but they made some pretty hysterical tunes. Wanted to put the link in here so if anyone else wants to take a listen, you're more than welcome to. Hur'yo'go: Street-Beatz!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas and Happy Birthday to Jesus!

The Eve

It's Christmas Eve! And aside from all the hustle, bustle, and other words ending in 'stle' I'm especially happy this year to be at least attempting to look at Christmas with different eyes. Eyes that really say, "Wow Christmas is the night my Savior was born so that he could give his life so that I may live." It's played over a million times, but when you really, and I'm mean really think about that line, it's an incredible feeling.

On top of it all, when people spread joy just because, that also makes me happy. Unfortunately, sometimes that isn't well received. I have this link here. It kind of makes me sad to see the responses, but equally happy to know that someone out there is giving for the sake of it.

Happy Christmas Eve!

Time Stamps

Something I've realized:

I've noticed this for a while, but just now had the urge to make it better known. The time stamps on here are WaAaAay off. Not even close. I make a post at 10:43 and the stamp say 4:27. I make a post at 9:10 the stamps say 11:12. Not as though its a huge deal, but it does irk me a little. I've examined and reset the time-zone feature a few times, it even had me questioning what timezone I live in for a few minutes. I've concluded that what I have is the correct zone, but to no avail.

I'm not sure why this was important enough to post, but too late now!

"Opportunity"

As I'm am sure anyone not living under a rock and perhaps some that are, interest rates have dropped drastically to accommodate for the faltering economy. So yesterday; My manager leaves us all this printout. The basic summation: After the completion of their transaction, you must ask every customer if they own their home and that we have an extremely low rate and if they would like to speak to a mortgage rep. Additionally, for everything single phone call you answer, you must say, verbatim: "Thank you for calling Sun National Bank today, where our current interest rates are at an incredible 40 year low, this is (insert name) how can I help you." Needless to say, I didn't partake despite it being 'non-negotiable'. Instead I watched everyone else try it and stumble and mumble and not make a lick worth of sense. Then, if the customer is remotely interested they ask further questions(90% aren't), they ask further questions that we couldn't answer if our lives depended on it. As you can imagine, someone trying to sell you a product/service that doesn't know what they're talking about, does not seem convincing.
Anyhow, that was all sort of a buildup to my overall gripe with this initiative. The bottom of the paper, specifically addressed to the reader says, "We have an incredible opportunity with rates being as low as they are and we need to capitalize on it right away." I have one GIGANTIC question. Who is 'WE'??? What exactly do 'WE' get out of selling hundreds of thousands of dollars in loans? Luckily, I have an answer. That answer, is NOTHING. But do you know who does have a tremendous "Opportunity"? The one who gets a big fat bonus check at the end of the month if he meets his goals? Yeah, that's right, my manager! Where I ask, is the incentive in that? And I'll answer that question the same way I did before, NOTHING. I think it's best not to build animosity among your employees. If you're going demand we bake the pie, well I'll put it to you this way; when it's all said and done, I want a slice.

Up and At 'Em

Today was my first official day of Christmas break! Could've slept as late as I wanted. However, I've been trying to not excessively oversleep lately. You know, going to bed at four and sleeping until... four. To be honest, it isn't so much the time I go to bed as it is the time I get up. I went to bed around 2:30 last night, which isn't early by any means, but instead of zonking right away, I set my alarm for eight hours, so 10:30. For some that might be late but it's a substantial improvement from a single digit number in the P.M.'s. I realized that by sleeping that eight hours I feel so much more rest than if I had slept until whatever time I woke up. The REM cycles match up and all that cool jazz. So my alarm went off and I felt great, but I still had a little of the grogginess, but not enough to go back to sleep. Instead, I lay in my bed for another fifteen minutes and soaked up the warmth and the joy of not having to get up for anything. When you're not rushed, man you enjoy the simple things in life.

Traditions

I was bored, so I stole the Xanga 'featured question' and I'm posting it on here. FQ: "What holidays traditions do you have or want to start?"

Well, lets see, first I'm going to limit it only to Christmas traditions. By saying holiday, technically I could include every single holiday throughout the entire year, so lets refrain from that. Done.
First part of the question: My family has a few holiday traditions. Every year the weekend after Thanksgiving we all go out as a family to purchase our Christmas tree. I actually mentioned this a few weeks ago when we did get our tree. Upon cutting the tree down, my brother and I drag the tree from where it was felled to the car. This has been going on since I was like... three? I have home movies to prove it. I must say, the whole draggin' bit has gotten a lot easier since I was a toddler. Anyhow, there's that.
Another tradition is that on Christmas Eve, we always stay home, and have a family devotion together. This is our attempt at maintaining focus on the real reason why we celebrate Christmas. This includes, of course, reading the Christmas story. As embedded as it is in our heads and culture, it's not bad doing an annual refreshing. Once that's concluded we all open one small gift as an appetizer until morning. Then, on Christmas morning, we don't barge down the stairs and proceed to tear apart the living room. There's a process! Only one gift is opened at a time. This goes in order, even Mom and Dad have to wait their turn! Doing this allows us all to savor the moment, and even draw it out for significantly longer than if we quickly unwrapped everything before falling asleep in the mountains of wrapping paper. Which, by the way, is yet another, albeit, unofficial tradition of mine.


I just answered this Featured Question; you can answer it too!

A Delicious Cycle

I have leftover Oreos, I'll grab some milk.
I have some remaining milk, I'll get Oreos.
Euphoric Bliss.

The Solution!

Mom and I were watching the news concerning the Auto Industry bailout the other day. Naturally, we began discussing our distaste for having to pay back thousands of dollars in taxes for a proposal we were certainly against. As is the common opinion, why should they get all this bailout money, are they deserving etc. And, if they don't, the feeling is that they'll go bankrupt which will further drive the economy into a recession.

Well, my ingenious, economically-swift-minded mother concluded this: The government is considering yet another stimulus check. So why not do this; instead of giving 'them' billions of dollars for free, and 'us' a lame $600 dollar check, why not give every American who wants it a $12,000 credit(which is how much it would costs every American) for explicitly purchasing or put towards the purchase of a car! It's brilliant! If 4/5 even 3/5 of every American bought a car from the Big Three, they would be 10 times the behemoths they already are! Not only would they be out of debt, the Americans would have cars paid off, and more money would be driven into the economy then a lousy $600 that people are depositing anyway! Why could this not work!? I need to call my senator. How come Congress hasn't thought of this yet? Clearly, they're a bunch of ninnies.

ABR

I trust in you for life to live, and air to breath.
Purity fills my lungs.
I no longer live in solitude.
No longer bound.
My heart beats with great devotion.
This is the start to a new beginning.
On my knees praying for mercy.
Hands raised high, humble and broken. Wanting your grace.
Wanting your security.
Memories of laying face down, motionless, with such a hollow feeling inside.
Soon I would end this life I was living.
I am just a man with a heart and sinful hands.
I am a fallen victim.
Lord, show me the way. I ask of you Father, let my words be your words.
Let my thoughts be your thoughts.
To you, I give my praise.
Show me the way. Take me in your arms. Never let me go.
Lord, show me the way, as I give myself to you.
Never let me go.
Hold me with your everlasting love.

Go ahead, do it. Tell me Metal isn't awesome. I dare you!

I'm just sittin' on the dock of the bay ...

... wastin' time, watching the tide roll away.

Yeah. That's my life.

I came home today, read for an hour. Fell asleep for three more, read for another. And now I've been since on here ever since. Doing N.O.T.H.I.N.G. I should have a ten page update for this, as much as I'm not doing anything else.

Baba ghanoush

Anyone seen that commercial where the guy references baba ghanoush? Well I wanted to know what it was, so I looked it up.

In case you were wondering too: Baba ghanoush: an appetizer or spread made chiefly of eggplant, tahini, garlic, olive oil, and lemon.

Yuck! And here's some Visual Aid.

Dryness

So, normally I'm against any form of hand moisturizers because, well, I hate them. I'm slightly OCD about hand washing as anyone who knows me probably can attest to, but I'm not going into details. (Really I don't think I'm that bad, I just like being clean). Anyway, this winter season I've climbed to new heights in my refusal to use hand moisturizers. Because I wash my hands considerably more than the rest of my family, my hands get dried out so much so when I make a fist the knuckles crack open and begin to bleed. It's fun. Well this year, I've broken out in a red rash all over the back of my hands from abstaining from creams. I tried to scrub the back of my hands less vigorously and it helped alleviate and eventually rid my hands of the rash. It worked, but then they're not clean, so I have to wash them so they end up breaking out again. It's a terrible cycle.

Darnit!

What the flip! Why haven't I written in here for several days yet again! This has got to stop! ..or start? You know what I mean.

Christmas Tree!

As you already guessed, I(my family) got our Christmas tree today as it is yearly tradition on the week following Thanksgiving. Typically we go that weekend, but schedules got busy so it was postponed. Even so, that's another memory I'm rather fond of(speaking of memories on my Xanga). I enjoy those types of traditions however unexcited I appear about partaking in them. If they didn't happen, I would be very disappointed.

Mental note: Make lots of traditions when I get married. (Unfortunately, not with any kids. But that's my own choosing, so it's not really too unfortunate.)

Christmas is soon!