Door

"That's our past."

"In the end, science offers us the only way out of politics. And if we allow science to become politicized, then we are lost. We will enter the Internet version of the dark ages, an era of shifting fears and wild prejudices, transmitted to people who don't know any better. That's not a good future for the human race. That's our past."

-- Michael Crichton, "Environmentalism as Religion," (A lecture at the Commonwealth Club, San Francisco, CA, September 15, 2003).

insmnx

The insomniacs are form watchers.

(via)

Short

You know what lives a short life? Toothbrushes.

You know what lives an even shorter life? A soda can.

And do you you know what lives a shorter life still? Toilet paper.

Seriously. You use it for a while (the toothbrush), for maybe an hour (soda can), or for approximately 10 seconds (your brain. No, wait. Toilet paper.)

What kind of disposable society do we live in?

Life Is Better When You Smile

Stars - Personal

Lyrics

Insipid Existence

[rant] There simply MUST be a way for the world to be something other than it is. (See? I write that sentence, and immediately the answer hits me like a magic eight-ball to the skull.)

The answer! Is! ...serpective. Er, perspective.

I just have to look at things a different way.

[random] By the by, I love the people you see in book stores. Sometimes they're eclectic hipsters with a definite chic they're trying to attain. And sometimes they're frumpy old women who haven't worn a bra for 40 years with carpet bags for clothing. I love them all! [/random]

See things in a new light. If perception is reality, my perspective must become what I want my reality to be. Simple as that.

Simple in the sense that "I think, therefore I am," is simple. (AKA, ridiculously deep and practically mind-numbing. That kind of thinking should be left to people in musty libraries and regal churches. And me. For as everyone knows, I am a musty clergyman.)

Simple doesn't mean easy, and easy doesn't mean simple.

Such are the thoughts that late nights, driving, and In Our Bedroom After The War by Stars bring to mind. Adios. [/rant]

Invictus

Out of the night that covers me,

Black as the Pit from pole to pole,

I thank whatever gods may be

For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance

I have not winced nor cried aloud.

Under the bludgeonings of chance

My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears

Looms but the Horror of the shade,

And yet the menace of the years

Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,

How charged with punishments the scroll.

I am the master of my fate:

I am the captain of my soul.

William Ernest Henley

I learned of this through the new movie, Invictus, with Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon. It's very good, and carries my regal recommendation. This is the poem that Nelson Mandela read while he was imprisoned for 27 years. Art can change the world.

30 Seconds to Mars - This Is War

I believe in nothing

Not the end and not the start

I believe in nothing

Not the earth and not the stars

I believe in nothing

Not the day and not the dark

I believe in nothing

But the beating of our hearts

I believe in nothing

100 suns until we part

I believe in nothing

Not in sin and not in god

I believe in nothing

Not in peace and not in war

I believe in nothing

But the truth in who we are

This album really resonates with me. Literally, and figuratively. While many of the lyrics don't seem incredibly profound or deep, they exude a simple air of quality. Jared Leto's voice and the backup choir of fans give a special something to the music I haven't heard in recent memory. If you've looked at 30 Seconds to Mars before and didn't like them, now is the time to look again.

Watch the Kings and Queens music video. Maybe it's just my imagination or bias for liking the band, but they seem to care. They put more into their music (and Mr. Leto, with his film experience, creates amazing videos under the auspices of Bartholomew Cubbins, a fantastic Dr. Suess reference) than other bands. They're conscious of the world and what they're doing in it. They make statements without beating people over the head.

To the leader, the pariah, the victim, the messiah

This is war

Fighting is not always a bad thing. If necessary to create the kind of world we want, let's do it. Do what you want to do, not what anyone tells you do to. Stand together. Whatever you may believe in, fight for it.

And the Result Is...Music

What Be Your Nerd Type? Your Result: Musician Doo doo de doo waaaa doo de doo! (<-- That's you playing something.) Everyone appreciates the band/orchestra geeks and the pretty voices. Whether you sing in the choir, participate in a school/local band, or sit at home writing music, you contribute a joy to society that everyone can agree on. Yay! Welcome to actually doing something for poor, pathetic human souls. (Just kidding.)
Drama Nerd
Social Nerd
Literature Nerd
Artistic Nerd
Science/Math Nerd
Gamer/Computer Nerd
Anime Nerd
What Be Your Nerd Type? Quiz Created on GoToQuiz

Well, it's not a big surprise. I suppose I'll take it as a sign from Allah that I've found the career I should follow. I don't care for the title "nerd," though. It has a duragatory connotation. I will simply choose to see it in the best light possible: focused, driven, and passionate. Which is exactly the way I feel about music.

Youth

I am not young enough to know everything.

-- Oscar Wilde.

Listening to Music Online

Article I wrote real quick. Please visit!

Listening to Music Online