Education rant for a "duck"

 This blog came about because it was requested.  I met MMA fighter Joanne Calderwood at the Invicta FC 3 event in Kansas City, Kansas in 2012.  We kept in touch for a while though I kinda lost contact with her as I did with several other "friends and acquaintances" after I started getting sick toward the end of 2014.  The request though, as I explain in the blog, was from Joanne's sister.  I liked what I wrote well enough that I felt it merited being reposted with a few minor edits.  Most of the edits come either at Jemma's request (her blog is no longer active) or because I felt something needed to be clarified that I said originally.  There's also a few formatting related edits. 

Education rant for a "duck" - 5/14/14

     Yesterday, a tweet and blog entry came to my attention from the sister a friend of mine.  The friend is MMA fighter Joanne Calderwood.  Her sister goes by the name JemmaPDuck on twitter. (hence why this entry is labeled as being for 'a duck')  Her blog can be found here.  Jemma is a math teacher in Scotland.  I am a writer and filmmaker here in the US.  Jemma's blog entry asked for educators to chime in with their thoughts on 'achieving excellence in learning and teaching' for a presentation that she has to give in a week.  

     I'm not a teacher or educator.  However, I feel like I am qualified to chime in here.  Furthermore, I've something to say on the topic.  I'm a harsh critic of the education system in the US.  I've become an even harsher critic at the recently implemented idea of the "Common Core Curriculum".  (However, the purpose of the blog is not to rant about that topic and any blog that I wrote on that topic would likely have obscene language.)  More importantly, I am someone who has two bachelor's degrees and who has shot down the idea of becoming going back to get my master's and becoming a teacher or professor multiple times over the years.  Therefore…

What does 'achieving excellence in learning and teaching' mean to me?

    Let's start with the learning part.  For a student to truly learn something, he or she has to want to learn it.  This goes for any subject rather it is math, science, history, literature, or whatever.  My background is in literature but I've always had a general interest in certain elements of history.  My worst subjects in school were math and science.  Why?  Aside from just a general tendency to be what some might call a 'Right Brain' person in a lot of ways, one of my biggest problems in most of my math and science classes were a lack of interest in the subject.  

    In math classes, mostly notably Algebra II in high school, I struggled with being able to memorize (and thus arguably understand) all of the formulas being thrown at me.  And honestly, part of that struggle was honestly because I was more interested in 'surviving the class' than I was learning the subject.  Another issue with the lack of interest was the constant lingering question of "how the hell am I am going to use this in every day life" that most students who don't intend a career in mathematics have at some point.  The teachers teaching the subject seemed to not only be aghast at the idea that a student would ask something like this but often pissed that students were not going into mathematics. 

    In college, I was usually just genuinely bored.   For example, I had a Biology professor who talked in more of a monotone voice than Ben Stein in Ferris Bueller's Day Off and had his back to the class for the most part as he did it.  (I mention this one particular professor for a reason.)  More importantly than this, there was little about the text books or his lectures that inspired any sort of interest in the subject.  The easiest time I had in "College Biology for Non-Majors" was the section on genetics.  Why? I'll get to that in a moment.
    If it wasn't boredom in college, it was because it was a subject that I legitimately struggled with for whatever reason.  Having to take Spanish classes comes to mind.  In that case, the teacher flat out didn't seem to give a shit.  For starters, she taught the class in such a way that made it more difficult to learn (for me at least).  Her idea of "teaching" was having us watch some Spanish telenovela and then quiz us on it.  I couldn't understand most of it and this was reflected in my quizzes.  When I tried to address this with her, she said she didn't care and that I was stupid and needed to study more.  (No, I am not exaggerating.)  I made it out of the class with a C- due to a loophole on the vocal part of final and a lot of what I was able to retain on the subject (and have retained since then) related to working in a restaurant. In this case, it was being a customer at a restaurant.
    Now any teacher worth their salt should know this about students. The idea that "it is easier to teach students who want to learn the subject and who are interested in the subject" is not new.  I am certain if you did a search for articles on the idea that you'd find plenty.  However, just knowing that idea doesn't really equate being 'excellent' by any means.  

    The first step to excellence in teaching is being able to inspire the students to both have interest in and want to learn about a topic.  

    In college, I took a Shakespeare class with an initial reluctance and fully prepared to loathe the class.  One of my college mentors, A.J. Hartley, taught the class.  A.J. started out the class by playing the song "Amnesia" by Chumbawamba and had us listen to the song all the way through.  After the song was done, he proceeded to explain the meaning behind the song that wouldn't be initially obvious to someone who either wasn't British or familiar with the politics over there at the time the song was written.  Then, he explained that Shakespeare's plays had a similar thing going for it.  We spent the quarter approaching several of Shakespeare's plays from that context.

    The idea that many educators I've had over the years didn't and many of the ones I know now don't do this sort of this puzzles me.  Some have claimed they are constrained by the curriculum but I've yet to meet any teacher whose lectures are written for them by a third party unless they are an actor playing a teacher in a film.  If you truly love the subject you are teaching then you should be able to get some degree of interest in the vast majority of your students.  You just might have to think outside the box to reach some of them.

So let's say, the second step to excellence in teaching is to know how to both relate your passion to your students and how your passion relates to your students.

    This goes for any subject.  JemmaPDuck is a math teacher so I will use math first as an example here. (And I'll even throw in a science example for the potential benefit of any science teachers in the audience.  Plus, I wanted to get back to that Biology teacher earlier.)  Let's say that you have a newly minted high school math teacher who is planning out what she plans to teach to his or her students for the year.   In doing so, start with the table of contents of whatever textbook you are using and note what chapters are covering what topics.  Now before you do anything else with any of those chapters, take a step away from the text book and turn on your computer or your tablet.  Why?  Simple.  Find out what is going on our there that is math related that could be of interest to your students.  
    For example, if there is a TV show like the former show "Numbers" that involved a mathematician helping his brother solve crimes then look into it.  Consider how he is using math and what math he is using to assist the police in solving crimes.  I'll give you a hint, there was a lot used over the six seasons of the show.  When you consider that Sherlock has used mathematical references on the show Sherlock as well then you've another bit of information.  

    Another great example, and one I am going to encourage JemmaPDuck to perhaps inquire with her sister's coaches about is the use of math in MMA.  I imagine this would go for any sport but since Jemma has a connection, she should run with it.  The issue here is statistics.  If you're coaching a fighter and you know your fighter's opponent statically favors a certain tactic in a fight then you can work on how to counter that tactic.  Or in the case of a fight I watched recently, a fighter had a reputation statically for doing a couple of certain things in a fight and intentionally went against what her opponent  expected her to do, threw the opponent's game off, and won the fight.  If anyone is curious, there is an attempt at keeping a record on the UFC website of the "skill breakdown" of the fighters based on their percentage of strikes, takedowns, and submissions. The same goes for baseball in the US, even more probably than MMA, as the statistics of the various players' offensive and defensive numbers play a huge part in evaluating how well a player is doing during a season.  Ever hear a pitcher having a .154 ERA?  What about a first baseman with a .372 batting average?  Those numbers are based on statistics.

    How about a couple of science ones for you?  I mentioned that in that science course that the only chapter that really 'struck a chord' with me was the Genetics section.  You can thank the X-Men (both comics and movies) for that.  And since the debut of the TV show CSI, the interest in Forensic Science in the US (and presumably abroad) seems to shown an increase, especially amongst females.  (A fun side note to that, three of the four forensic techs who were at the scene of the hit and run that happened in front of my mom's house last year were female.)

    The point here is that being able to relate your topic to things that the students are familiar with will help inspire their interest.  Knowing what is out there that might be influencing interest in the subject that you are passionate about will help even more.

The last thing I am going into here:

The third step to excellence in teaching is
encouraging your students to explore other resources.

    Here's is a sad truth for you.  "You are not a beautiful and unique snowflake." (Thank you, Chuck Palahniuk and Fight Club for that one.)  Okay, what I mean here is that you are not the only teacher that these kids will have for the subject and a good chance that applies to even within the course of the school year.  Furthermore, this is not a bad thing.  If your explanation of a topic is not clear enough to the student then help the student find a resource that will make it clearer for them.  And then encourage students to ask questions about what they have learned from other sources.

    A very good resource in the math department comes from actress Danica Mckellar.  Aside from her career as an actress, the woman is the author of four non-fiction books on math that are designed to help kids, especially girls, to become more interested math.  In addition, she is a published academic in the field of mathematics and has a theorem that is partially credited to her.  I'm sure there are other resources as well but there's a start.   

    Like I said though, one of the most important things on this step is to have your students ask questions about what they may be picking up outside the classroom.  If they are not doing well on the tests then may not be simply 'because they aren't studying' the material but it may be because they are not completely understanding the material because there are questions that are not being asked.  And  some students, for whatever reason, are hesitant to ask questions in a class (especially if you as a teacher have made it a particularly unpleasant environment for students to ask questions).

Now let's venture back to the learning side of things for a bit to close this out

    Students, learners, and even some of you teachers.  I have your back.  I also have some 'bad news' for you, though.  If you are doing it right, you will never stop learning.  I'm 38 46 and still learning stuff (new stuff even not to mention having to relearn some old stuff) to this day.  (Currently trying to figure out Instagram. Instagram figured out!)  The key is going to be maintain the interest to keep learning.

    Now, I just laid out a few steps for the teachers for helping you to gain or even maintain interest in the subject of that class.  I cannot lay out a bunch of steps for you on how to achieve excellence in learning, however.  There is no one surefire method to be completely honest.  I can offer a few key pieces of advice, though.

1. Discover what interests you as soon as you can.
2. Do not be afraid to discover new interests as you get older.
3. NEVER be afraid to ask questions.  But ask the right questions to the right people, for the right  reasons. (see next item)
4. Ask questions for the right reasons, never ask questions as a means to try to intentionally discourage others.  Don't ask questions as a means to bully someone or make them look bad.
5. Be willing to share your interests with the possibility of learning new things.  Rather it is with your kids, your family, your friends, your spouse, whoever.  And if, by chance, they don't share the same passion you do for that interest then accept then.  You can always try to share why you passionate about said interest as well.
6. Be willing to share in another's interest, as you never know where that road will lead you.
7. Always #InvestigateForYourself - meaning follow up on information... especially in this day and age where getting multiple sources and multiple perspectives (especially ones that may differ) on a subject may be helpful in fully understanding a topic.  Also especially in this day and age where too many people portray their opinions and their feelings as factual information.  

Alright.  That's all I have to say on the matter.  Hope it helps you out, Jemma... or any other educators in the audience.

Cheers.

12/29/2017 Lara Croft vs. Lara Croft (why does it have to be versus anyways?)

This had been meant as the first series of blogs relating to "fandoms" and pop culture, specifically my observations on a few various fandoms.  That ship has sailed though I may still revisit the idea someday.  I still have comments about the "Star Wars" and and "comic book" fandoms as a whole. Then there are some choice comments on the "Hellblazer and John Constantine" that is much more specific than my comments about comic book fandoms as a whole.  

Anyways...  I am leaving this here from 12/29/2017

Lara Croft vs. Lara Croft (why does it have to be versus anyways?)

Yesterday, I ran across a tweet from a Twitch streamer, about Lara Croft.  Specifically, it was a Twitter thread between her and one of her followers (and perhaps friends) regarding the upcoming Lara Croft film (starring Alicia Vikander), her lack of enthusiasm for it, and her preference for the original movies (starring Angelina Jolie) as well as the original games.  I got involved in that conversation and she indicated that she prefers the original games to the reboots. That's fine as well. (I personally found the original games to be nearly unplayable but managed to finish one of the rebooted games.)

What troubles me about the exchange was the idea "Lara Croft" fans are not willing to give Alicia Vikander a chance in the role as Lara Croft. There were two reason suggested to me by Candy why this was the case: 1) The preference for Angelina Jolie and 2) The story seems to based on the rebooted game.  I don't really buy either of them as particularly fair.  Here's why:

1) The preference for Angelina Jolie
I get the love for Angelina Jolie.  She was a fantastic actress back in the late 90s and late-00s. Her turn as Lara Croft was ahead of its time in many ways.  To her credit, she seemed to do everything she could to live up to what fans of the game were expecting.  And she proved that not only could a video game film be successful if done right but that a female led film could make bank at the box office. (Hollywood may have not learned much from the lesson but she definitely proved it.) Aside from that, the film was well shot and was a fun film.  It was everything the original games were (for better or worse) and did more to make a lot of viewers (myself included) interested in the Lara Croft character than the games ever did.  Those two movies were made in 2001 and 2003 respectively.  Angelina has moved on from do many acting roles and prefers to focus on her humanitarian efforts (though she still does take some acting roles).  Even if Angelina were still able to do the role anymore, the odds are that she would not want to do it.

And we can say all that nice stuff about Angelina in the role now because we have seen it.  What a lot of people fail to remember is that while audiences loved the film, the critics hated it despite praising Angelina's performance.  Though to be fair, that is not saying much.

What people fail to remember even more is that there was backlash against Angelina being cast in the film.  Many fans of the Tomb Raider game, and fans in general, complained about everything from Angelina not meeting the 'right physical requirements' to Angelina's tattoos and her "well publicized and controversial personal life".  There were other things as well.  (I recall some fans outraged that a professional model who was doing promotional work as Lara wasn't simply handed the role with no audition.)   In short, fans were equally hostile to the prospect of Angelina playing their beloved Lara as they are now seeming to be toward Alicia.

2) The story seems to based on the most recent reboot of the game
Alright. Can we talk about Lara's backstory for a minute? All three of them. Over the course of Lara's 20 plus year history, Lara's backstory has been revamped or retconned at least three times not including what was presented in the films with Angelina.  Lara has been:

1. the "Wimbledon born Aristocrat turned adventurer following her surviving a plane crash. She became known for her books on her adventures as a mercenary, big game hunter and master thief",
2. the "daughter of two archaeologists, her father still a noble, who was spurned to become an adventurer after her mother disappeared following their surviving a plane crash (and her father disappeared as well)" and
3. the most recent incarnation of the "the daughter of wealthy archaeologists who turned down her family's wealth in order to make her own path".

The original film stayed more in line with the first origin but still added content. (Particularly regarding Lara's relationship with her father.)  I suspect the new film will deviate somewhat from the recent reboot's backstory as well. (There are actually suggestions of this in the trailer.)

Regardless of which origin you prefer, there are still some standards when defining who Lara Croft is as a character.  Standards that go beyond an "outfit" and to some extent a "look".  And honestly, game mechanics and improved capabilities in game engines have made a lot of those standards easier to get over with fans.  Lara Croft is an educated, tough, athletic, independent woman who while not bad on the eyes is not afraid to get her hands dirty (or afraid of a few cuts and bruises either).  While she is independent, she is willing to work with others on an expedition.  And while her family may be wealthy and have some degree of privilege, she doesn't rely on that to survive but rather on her own skills and knowledge.  Sure, Lara has her iconic outfits and braided ponytail that let people know that the character in the game is "Lara Croft" but there is much more that defines her.  (Or am I missing something?)

Let's be honest, who wants to see a remake of the original film? There would be more backlash on remaking the two films that Angelina did than doing a new story to launch a new franchise with Alicia.  And rightfully so!!

Now we get to why I think it is wrong to compare "Angelina's performance from 15 plus years ago" to "Alicia's performance that we've only seen a trailer and some stills from".

The short version is that it is two different actresses from two different eras each doing their take on the character.  It is no different than "Michael Keaton, Val Kilmer, and Christian Bale doing their own takes on Batman" or Albert Finney, David Suchet, and Kenneth Braunagh doing their own takes on Hercule Periot" with the exception that the two actresses have the luxury of telling two fairly different versions of Lara's story.

And the other added advantage is that it is two very capable actresses playing the role. 
     As I mentioned, Angelina was fantastic in the late 90s into the late 00s. (I am less sold on her recent work.)  She delivered a particular version of Laura from a particular era and was (arguably) the perfect actress to do so at the time.  Of course, I recall people complaining at the time.
     The work I've seen with Vikander during her relatively short career has been equally fantastic.  If I recall correctly, she has some awards to prove it (the same as Angelina had at the time).  And given the version of Laura Croft that they are aiming to portray, I think she will be well suited to step into that role and will do the character justice.  Least I hope so.
     Both actresses have a good solid understanding that their are expectations on them from fans.  Both actresses have worked their butts off to do their best to embody the version of the character that they are bringing to screen.  And from my understanding, unlike Angelina, Alicia was familiar with the character and had played the game prior to getting cast.  

The biggest thing I am saying here is give Alicia a chance not to just in playing a fairly beloved and iconic character in video games but to stand on her merits and performance in the role instead of comparing her to the different performance that Angelina gave back in 2001.

Also worth mentioning here: While I am citing the "Lara Croft fandom" as an example here, the example applies to any fandom.  (See my reference to Batman and Hercule Peroit, for examples. James Bond is another good one.)  It is far too common an occurrence for fandoms to want to be negative toward any sort of "new portrayal" or "new interpretation" of their beloved character before even seeing what happens with it and refusing to acknowledge anything positive about any portrayal of that character or franchise other than "their preferred version".

It is one of my biggest pet peeves.  

Cheers.

The Journalism Incident (part 1)

The origins of this post were 8/31/12.  I have revised it slightly as I don't think a post that I referenced in the original blog still exists.  There were references to a documentary that I had hoped to shoot that wound up never coming to light but did result in an interesting trip to Kansas City. 

In that deleted post, I mentioned something about a documentary proposal that I was involved with (it was a documentary on women's MMA right before the big boom happened in the UFC thanks to the Rousey vs. Tate fight in Strikeforce).  

It had not occurred to me that more than a few people do in the ATL film scene, and entertainment scene, do not know my background.  The ATL film people just know that I went to The Art Institute of Atlanta for a bunch of film and digital video courses.  None of them know about any experience I have or have had with journalism or the media or anything of that sort prior to my attending there.  (And honestly, I claim more to be a West Georgia alumni than I do an Art Institute alumni.)  Furthermore, most of the people that I went to school with at the Art Institute knew very little about me other than all the rumors that many of them heard from other students and some of the faculty.  (One of the biggest reasons I do not claim being an Art Institute Alumni is due to the amount of slander that I have endured by faculty, former faculty, and former students there.)

So... I'm going to do a pair of blogs that I am going to refer to as "The Journalism Incident".   The first part being my own personal history doing (or attempting to do) work in the journalism field.  The second part regarding the amount of distaste I've come to have for the profession at large.

Without further adieu, "The Journalism Incident" part 1...

I wound up on the high school newspaper staff at some point during my freshmen year of high school and then again during my sophomore year at a different high school.  It was not a very pleasant experience, per se.  This was in large part because I was first the Freshman and then because I was the "new guy".  During my sophomore year, the school's newspaper actually got shut down in favor of a schools "TV news" station.  I never heard all the details and to this day don't care.  (I recall the Newspaper Staff advisor being a borderline unpleasant lady.  Though I regarded the sports editor, Travis, as somewhat of a mentor at the time.  I would like to say that I considered him a friend but let's be honest... I didn't.)

Flash forward a wee bit to Gainesville College, I wound up back on the school newspaper staff and working for the same guy who was my editor during my Freshman year.  I say working for as he was the Arts & Entertainment editor and that was where I landed.  Now, I'm not going to get into too much backstory here about why but the newspaper got shut down because of some sort of conflict with the Student Council from what I understand.  I had left at this point because of a huge disagreement with the new Editor in Chief.  I will say more on this.  He was a completely inept guy at dealing with other people in a professional manner.  He had no respect for the newspaper or anyone on the staff nor anyone at the school as far as I could tell.  It was all about him and everyone should literally bow before him.  I am not trying to be outlandish here.  This same guy would later come back and try to act all threatening to the editors who replaced him. (Funny note: I would later meet another dude with the same name as that SOB who was almost as equally unpleasant.)

A few months after the newspaper was shut down, a professor contacted me about helping to start it up again.  I wound up on board and one of the Editorial staff, the A&E editor to be exact.  After the 1996 Olympics, the US Collegiate Weightlifting Championship meet was held at Gainesville College.  On short notice, I stepped in and covered the event.  It is the only time that I was ever robbed of a byline.  I am actually cool with that though.   I was chiefly the A&E editor so it didn't matter.

One year later, September of 1997, I wound up at West Georgia.  I had not planned on getting involved with the newspaper staff there but things happen.  The Sports Editor of the paper had posted a couple of rather messed up editorials.  Around the same time that happened, there was a big news event that had happened on the campus.  (I seem to recall it involving either a theft or a visiting scholar getting attacked.)  The newspaper was short staffed and I volunteered to cover it since they had to make a deadline in 24 hours.  I was asked if I would continue to write for the paper.  I wound up agreeing on the condition that I would work sports as I didn't think the Sports Editor was being fair to the sports department.  The Sports Information department rep agreed with me on the topic and I wound up their preferred go to guy.  When that editor left at the end of the Spring Quarter (this was before the conversion to semesters),  I was actually asked to take over as Sports Editor.  Instead, I took over as Assistant Sports Editor.  I wound up holding that position for a year and a half and through two different editors.  I didn't want the Sports Editor position.

Then came the Fall of 1999.  To make what is already a longer story than I had intended a wee bit shorter, Fall Semester (it had converted by this point) saw the newspaper staff with NO editors.  Truth be told.  I had not intended to remain on as editor and neither did the previous sports editor.  I wound up staying on to help the new editors (who were thrust into the jobs with NO experience) and wound up serving as Sports Editor.  The former Sports Editor even came back as an Associate Editor after being practically begged by the faculty advisor.   It would be a short tenure as that both the semester that I graduated and the semester that I would take a nasty little spill while covering a football game that left me with a few cracked ribs and lucky that was all I did (that I know of).

Through all of this mess, my intention was to get my English degree (which I did) and to get a double major in Media Communications.  The latter wound up as my minor and was the closet thing to a degree in TV or Film production that West Georgia had at the time.  I wound up minoring in Radio Production and coming up with a reel (that has since been lost) that would have been a fantastic podcast demo or two in addition to my actual demo reel from there.

Afterwards, I would try to get a journalism job and figure out how to get moved toward my real interest which was writing and eventually scriptwriting and filmmaking.  Things didn't work out as planned.  I wound up hating my first two newspaper jobs covering sports a great deal.  It wasn't the work, it was the people.  And honestly, the people wouldn't have been a problem had the pay been better. 

I eventually went back to the restaurant business as an assistant manager at the place that I had worked at off and on for years.  However, I continued trying to write and get writing done.  Some of that writing was even kept.  I would eventually go back and dabble in a bit of A & E related journalism doing some movie reviews and some other editorial articles here and there.  I also stepped in and did some editorial work for a friend who was running the college newspaper at North Georgia while I was auditing a class there.

I mention all of this because the documentary that the proposal was about is a sports related documentary.  And Kevin, my co-producer, was completely unaware of my background doing sports journalism.  Of course, he and anyone reading this now  know more than they ever probably wanted or needed to know.  Of course, I also doubt that arrogant SOB will ever read this but I digress.

Cheers.  Till next time...  then I will get into the good stuff. 😁

Why I came to dislike musical theater

This is an edit of an earlier blog that I had deleted and I am now reuploading.  Not much of the information has changed.  Angie was a temporary professional acquaintance and I have long since lost touch with her.

Why I came to dislike musical theater 2/11/13

I had an exchange  on Twitter with a (former) acquaintance of mine, Angie, about the whole 'Glee and Jonathan Coulton debacle' and how it has added to her disgust with the television show Glee which I have had all along.  I mentioned the phrase 'musical theater fetish' to her which I figured needed some explanation and elaboration.

First off, I am not particularly a fan of musicals.  I get that some people like them and I've no problem with that.  However, the attitude regarding them that I experience during my days being involved with West Hall Drama turned me off to musicals even further.  I do not have the same distaste of them that I use to but this could be because I don't have to 'be backstage' and privy to the behavior going on back there.  Let's also note that I do not believe that this kind of behavior goes on backstage during the production of every high school, college, and professional musical (or theater as a whole) production.  At least, I hope it doesn't (though I suspect much of it does).

That said, I began to formally get involved with West Hall Drama during my junior year.  This was after some prodding by the school's Art teacher who had been teaching the drama classes during my sophomore year there.  The same year that I got involved, a new Drama teacher began handling the classes and the school's productions.  This lady's background was 'dance choreography' and it was not surprising to a few of us that her 'bread and butter' were musicals.

However, it was surprising just how she showed her love of musicals.  From day one of my being involved in West Hall Drama, I saw an atmosphere that openly discriminated toward people who were not 'musically inclined', who were interested in the backstage stuff primarily, or (if I can be blunt) who were not 'sexual' in some manner.  This teacher openly allowed and encouraged several of the Junior and Senior students to engage in several romps in the main dressing room.  I have long suspected that she may have participated in one or two of them but I'd like to think that I am just jumping to conclusions on that one.

Here's where the musical part comes in.  The core group of students that were involved in these 'little escapades' were a group of seniors and a couple of sophomores who were all this teacher's little group of musical theater 'aficionados'.  This bunch, nine or ten of them if I recall correctly, were only wanting to 'do' musicals and were prone to expressing this in ways that suggested they were 'getting off' on the material.  In one infamous incident, they proudly celebrated and bragged about having had one orgy in the teacher's office and another in a hotel room on the way down to a competition.  (Think it was the 'one act play competition' but it has been a while and memory is fuzzy.)

Meanwhile, I was on the sidelines like several other students in the class.   Being that I was not a musical person, amongst other things that I was not, this teacher consistent refused to allow me to participate in learning various technical things in the class.  I stuck with it out of hopes that I'd get to direct a one act play during my senior year like a couple of the seniors did during my junior year.   That said, I did what I could/was allowed to do to contribute to the class.  I and others in the class were consistently made to feel unwelcomed and unwanted in the class by several people there.

I never once got why some of the students and the teacher were 'getting off' on the musical theater stuff but there it was happening in front of me.  I came to believe that this was the typical behavior for musical theater and, to a lesser extent, theater companies as a whole.  (I was led to believe a few other things too because of this teacher and the class that I shall go into here.)

However, I did what I could to get as much positive stuff out of what WAS a very negative experience for me.  I managed to get a Lifetime Membership into the "International Thespian Society" out of my time there but that's not really worth anything.  (Well, to my knowledge it is not worth anything.)  I also became extremely suspect of drama teachers after my experience in that class.

As a side note: I would later co-write a piece, specifically write a segment, performed by the West Georgia Theater department that (ironically perhaps) had sexuality as an underlying theme to it.

As another side note: it didn't deter my interest in the performing arts.  I still would have liked to direct a theater production at some point... just not a musical.  (Oddly enough it would probably be something Shakespeare related if given the choice.)

Remembering Hot Rod

Quick Note: I wrote this original blog back on 8/7/15, a few days after the death of "Rowdy Roddy Piper".  Anyone who knows me that well will know that I was a huge fan of his growing up.  There were a few edits to it, including this note about when the blog was originally written but little else changed about it.  I scheduled this blog to be published on what would have been Roddy Piper's 67th birthday with a bit was added to add the end.

Remembering Hot Rod 

The story goes that when asked about good advice she’d received, actress Stana Katic replied, “Never marry your muse, it ruins the illusion. Some similar advice, though I do not know the source, goes something similar to “Be wary of meeting your heroes as you way wind up very disappointed and they will no longer be your heroes.” I suspect there is a bit of truth to both ideas. I will never know for sure.

Last Friday, one week ago from when I am writing this, I came home from running some errands and got on Twitter to find something shocking. That news was Rowdy Roddy Piper had died. I wanted to believe that it was one of those infamous death hoaxes that are prone to circulate via social media. However, the news was in fact true. The “Rowdy One” or “Hot Rod” or however you knew him had died.

Many fans, myself included, knew Piper has both a wrestler and an actor. During the course of his career, he did both and did so in a way that showed that he loved doing both. He was arguably one of the best villains ever in pro-wrestling and he was a legend as the heroic Nada in the sci-fi classic. "They Live”. Over the past year, he had a foray into podcasting which was short lived. In short, he was a storyteller regardless of what medium he was using at the moment to tell a story. He was also a father, a husband, and a cancer survivor.

Oh yeah… and he was one of my childhood heroes.

As a pro-wrestling fan, I frequently have found myself cheering for the heels. This is largely for two reasons. The first being that without good villains, the heroes are pretty much meaningless. (This applies to not just wrestling but to any form of storytelling. I mean what is Superman without Lex Luthor, for example.) The second reason, one that developed much later, is that playing the villain rather in pro-wrestling or a movie is so much more fun usually. I guess you could say that there is the third reason that I never got on board the Hulkamania train when I started watching wrestling but that is an afterthought to me in the long run.) The first time I watched any WWE (at the time WWF) content, Piper was one of the top heels in the company. Of course, my watching during that time was short lived. I honestly remember the old “Rock ‘n’ Wrestling” cartoon on Saturday mornings more than watching the actual matches back then. I remember Piper on that cartoon though and I remember being curious about who the characters were then. Years later, when I was more formally introduced to pro-wrestling, I managed to get a hold of tapes that included a dog collar match between Piper and Greg Valentine in the NWA just as easily as any of Piper’s WWE stuff. And by that time, Piper had just turned face going into Wrestlemania III. (I remember the Piper vs. Adrian Adonis match being one of my favorite matches at Wrestlemania III mostly because of the ending.) A few years later, I remember Piper returning to the WWE from his “retirement match at Wrestlemania III” and feuding with Rick Rude, Bad New Brown, Ted Dibease and more but as a face. In the midst of all that though Piper had begun his excursion into acting.

And to be honest, I am just as much familiar with Piper’s film work as I am his wrestling work. The first film I remember seeing Piper in was not “They Live” but a movie called “Body Slam” which was a movie where he played a pro-wrestler managed by a music promoter played by Dirk Benedict (of A-Team and Battlestar Galatica fame). It wasn’t a major release as I recall and I picked it up at the local video store on a whim. I grabbed “They Live” and “Hell Comes to Frogtown” as soon as I found them on video. I know most people know Piper’s work in “They Live” and if you don’t then go find a way to see the movie. Even today, the move holds some relevance and perhaps more so today than it did back then. Of course, Roddy also made various TV guest appearances including “Walker, Texas Ranger” (one of the few episodes of the series I genuinely liked), The Outer Limits (not one of the best episodes of the series remake but not bad) and the Robocop series. He stuck to the sci-fi and action / cop show genres mostly with some forays into other genres but he did well with what he was given. I’m not going to say that Hot Rod was a great actor but I will say that he did deliver some good performances and, more importantly, entertaining performances. I will say that a lot of times there were stuff that I saw Piper in that enjoyed solely because he was in it. He made some otherwise bland or just plain bad projects watchable and even entertaining. Sometimes, that is all that matters.

As I mentioned, I considered Piper one of my heroes as a kid. In short, I liked his style of work in the ring and found him to be fun to listen to on the mic. He came across as someone who was tough and had an unpredictable quality to him. I guess you could say he came across like a loose cannon or a wildcard. His quote “Just when you think you have all the answers, I change the questions.” summed up both what I liked about him and why. In eighth grade, I had decided I might want to try out for the high school wrestling team after we were given a three-day introduction to the sport. I did the three day clinic and the tournament. In the tournament, I wore my “Hot Rod” shirt because I was a fan. I regret nothing (excepting losing that second match by one point because I was too cautious).  I even tried to replace that "Hot Rod" shirt a few years ago but the XL shirt didn't fit right.  I still have the shirt at the moment but cannot wear it.  (And it was a Christmas gift so I can't return it.)

Regarding his place in pro-wrestling, I don’t think there will ever be another guy quite like him. Though, I would never fault a young guy getting into pro-wrestling wanting to be as good on the mic or as good in the ring as Piper. And mind you, while he was not the “a technical guy ala a Bret Hart or a Daniel Bryan”, he was still one of the best workers out there (especially for his day) when it came to ring psychology, working a crowd, or cutting a promo on the mic. And his acting? I don’t think we’ve seen his best work yet though. Before his death, he completed two movies that are due out later this year and the beginning of next year. The first film is called “The Rectifier” and it is being called a performance that really shows what he could do as an actor. The second film is called “The Masked Saint” and is a Christian-minded film in which he plays a supporting role. (He had a few other projects in various stages of production at the time of his death as well.)

I never got to meet Roddy Piper. I would have loved to and I would have been a bit afraid to at the same time. As I alluded to at the beginning, I guess I've always been afraid of meeting any the real "heroes" that I had as a kid because I'm afraid of being disappointed.  And honestly, some of that comes from seeing people, and in some cases meeting them, that I use to admire professional when I was younger turn out to be complete disappointments for one reason or another as I have gotten older.  Though, I am told that Piper was even cooler for real that I thought he might have been as a kid.

I do think I would have loved to have worked on a film with the man back when I was still working in film and television production.  I think it would have been a blast.  But most importantly: I would have loved to have simply told him “Thanks for everything.”

Publishing this blog on what would have been Roddy Piper's 67th birthday.  It just registered to me that he was about a little over a year older than my parents.   Actually, he was two years older than my dad, go figure.  And while I don't expect any sort of response to this... I will be posting a link to this blog on Twitter and tagging Roddy's Twitter account, which his family still seems to maintain. Why? because why not.   

At some point... I plan to upload a video to YouTube with commentary of me playing through the section of Saints Row IV where Roddy Piper makes an appearance.  (Spoiler: it is in relation to his role in They Live.)  My aim is to release that video later this year.

Cheers.

25 - odd years or so later

Sorta random fact.  I've been writing in various mediums for close to 30 years.  The argument could be made that it has been a bit longer.  However, it was a little over twenty-five years ago (closer to the twenty-eight mark) that I began to take myself seriously as a writer and to some extent as an artist though there are specifics to that which go back a bit further.

It was circa 1993 or 1994 that I first submitted my work any sort of competition.  I won second place and had my work analyzed by a writing professor who at the college where the competition was held.  (My friend Morgan, who I've forgotten the married name of, not to mention have not spoke with in years, won first place if I recall correctly.  Morgan was extremely talented, kinda enigmatic at times, and reminded me of a young Natalie Merchant with red hair.  She works in the airline industry now as I recall.)  The analysis inspired me to write a follow up piece to the work.  The poem that won second place was called "Tarts" and the follow-up was called "Tangy".  The two pieces were about addiction, madness, and Alice in Wonderland depending on your perspective.  I wrote a third piece called Asylum that kind of existed in that same stream of thought though I had other thoughts on my mind when writing it as well.

It was also 1993 that I wrote several other pieces during the "Blizzard of '93" that began collections that I've always known were not quite complete but never really was sure how to complete them.  I will get back to that in a bit.  It was during that storm that I realized that I was most comfortable writing and that I wanted to pursue a career in the arts and entertainment field.  This has been on my mind a lot lately.  It is one of the driving things that has fueled me a bit since the lung disease diagnosis and other health stuff start getting worse.

Before that, writing was a release for me as it was for many teens.  I started writing to deal with people around me.  Writing gave me an outlet to say some certain things that could not be 'politely' said aloud.  In some cases, some things that might couldn't legally be said to some people.  I mean my pre-teen and teenage years were not exactly "wine and roses" for various reasons not just for me but for some of the folk who I called friends back then.  As my best friend Daniel pointed out to me, "I'm surprised you didn't snap after [this at one point].  I'm surprised you're still alive after [this other point]."  And here I am, by hook or by crook if you wish, still full of surprises.  Stranger things have happened.
Side note: I mean the great thing about fiction is that you can say a lot things that you couldn't say at the time to some of the people around you.  Anyone who says they have never based a character on someone is probably either lying or writing non-fiction.   And the great thing about poetry, lyrics, and spoken word is that you can be even more vague about who and what you are talking about if you wish.

And yes, despite the amount of stuff that I've written, my history of being published is scarce by comparison.  I've had a few of my poems published.  I've done some journalism work.  I've had some academic work published.  Oh, and the University of West Georgia adapted a piece of mine into a part of their 1998 "Episodes in Sexuality" production.  That was all ages ago though by comparison.  More recently, I've done some blogging on the Zombie Cat Productions website.  I've looked into blogging for a few other outlets over the years.  Oh, and the scriptwriting thing.  I've been working on a few of those. (I have a draft of one that I co-wrote registered with the Writers Guild of America but whatever.)

Before anyone says anything, I know I should have more stuff published. 
I've always said my worst area professionally is 'marketing myself' and, to a lesser extent, marketing my work.  Which is odd because I am not completely clueless about marketing.  I guess it is because it is my own work and I'm by far a harsher critic of myself than anyone has ever been of me.  That might be hard for a few people to believe because I have had a few very harsh (or maybe just deranged) critics.  Even if it was not the intended result, I was essentially raised to have low self-confidence about a lot of things and arguably low self-esteem or some sort of inferiority complex.  This was largely due to various teachers during my elementary and middle school years.  (And I can't say that certain family members helped the matter any.) 

Before anyone thinks that I am getting off on some sort of 'sob story', I'm not but the facts are the facts. 
And the fact is that the one thing that I've always had confidence about is my writing.  (My typing skills maybe not so much but I've always had confidence in my writing.) And I am horrid, or at the very least inept, at the concept of "marketing myself".

That said, the incompleteness of the collection of writing stuff has been on my mind for a while now.  I even started a third collection of pieces in 2013 that has also been largely incomplete (though for different reasons). The extent of it being on my mind has involved an idea for a 'fourth collection" that was somewhat of an idea for something else entirely initially.  

Contemplating how much of that stuff I can fit into the "fourth collection" of stuff.  (Dare I say that it would be called "Harbortown Tales" or something like that.)  And well, if we are being honest, if I did what I was thinking about doing, it is not something that I could complete by myself.  That is getting ahead of myself though.   Again, as I like to say, stranger things have happened.

key lime and knowing product

I have six blogs planned out, partially written, and ready to be published after some minor editing. This one is include among those six.  Just now realized that none of them edited and set to be published when I meant for them for them to be and I have been occupied working on another writing project for my friend's YouTube project for the past few weeks when I have not been playing Marvel's Avengers (which is something for another blog all together).  

This is an edit and update of a blog that was written several years ago.  There's not much to be edited and updated on this one though a few things have been added and clarified.  The original draft was written in 2013 not long after I wrote the original draft of the Sunday Morning Playlist blog.  There was a bit of venting about things that happened that weekend that can be left by the way side.  There was also a few notes to myself about trying to implement some video blog content into this blog at some point.  I still intend to do that, just not today.

Anyways... spring time is officially here. 
We're getting into that season where I will enjoy some ice cream and frozen yogurt when possible.  And while I don't eat a lot of it (in part for reasons I will elaborate on in a bit), I still manage to enjoy some about once a week (or will go throw a pin during the course of a weekend depending on the circumstances.)  Except one problem: I didn't realize how rare "Key Lime Pie" frozen yogurt apparently is.  And I would love to say that maybe it is just the area where I am living but I've not been able to find Key Lime Ice Cream or Yogurt much of anywhere.  However, this still seems to be case after moving from the area where my dad use to live back to the area where my mom and step-dad live due to the health issues getting worse.

It is bad enough that the grocery stores don't carry it.  The closest I've found is a Key Lime Pie 'premium gelato' that was twice the price of the same size of container of ice cream, frozen yogurt and even sorbet.  And for a while, there were a lot of "self-serve frozen yogurt" places popping up and I had hopes that they would have 'Key Lime Frozen Yogurt' in their rotation of flavors.  The employees at the places I went to either didn't know or said they were pretty sure they didn't have it. 

Spoiler Alert: Key Lime Pie is my favorite flavor of Frozen Yogurt and one of my favorite ice cream flavors.  Especially if I can put graham cracker crumbs on top of the frozen yogurt.  It has been one of my favorites since back in the days when I was working at a Frozen Yogurt and Ice Cream place.  I also loved the Sugar Free Irish Cream yogurt, the Coffee Yogurt, and of course the Lemon Yogurt and Lemon sorbet.

But my point here is not simply about my love of Key Lime Pie frozen yogurt, it is about the employees at those shops not knowing if they carry a product or even it in rotation.  Though it is not simply that, it is about knowing your product in general.  And even to some extent, knowing your audience.

As I mentioned, I use to work at a yogurt and ice cream shop.  I worked periodically there for eleven years and I knew every flavor we had in rotation.  In short, I knew the product I was selling.  To me, knowing the product you are selling is basic 'week one or two' of any job.  I might be being a bit harsh there but the general idea is there.  You learn what products your business sells and if it is seasonal then when it will be available to customers.

In our case, Key Lime was a seasonal flavor.  The employees there knew this and could tell customers this if we were asked.  Some of us at the store (not including the owner/manager) were even able to state that we get it in from May to September and usually had it available till the the first week of October just due to the rotation schedule of flavors. (From the beginning of September to around the end of January, we had Pumpkin Pie in rotation if anyone is curious.)   If we wound up with Key Lime outside of that then it was because had left over or we got the occasional early batch in stock.  (Usually the latter but sometimes the former.)  And even if you are not selling ice cream and yogurt, if you work in a place that has seasonal stuff, it is important to know.  Most restaurants will even do employee meetings to highlight seasonal menu items and special promotions items.  And employees should at least make an effort to be familiar with the menu.

For example, there were a lot of Hispanic families who came in on Sunday afternoons at that yogurt shop that I worked at years ago.   Most of them got one of three items: a Yogurt Parfait (with strawberries and peaches usually), a banana split, or a waffle ice cream cone with either strawberry or butter pecan ice cream or yogurt.   We also made a bunch of smoothies but those were scattered amongst all the customers.  It was noted though that we sold a LOT of those three items to that group of customers and so we had it ready for them on Sundays.

And while that yogurt and ice cream shop that I worked at is no longer there, and I've long since moved on from working there too, many of the general lessons that I learned there still apply.  Especially in food service and retail but in other areas too.  (Side note: that whole section of the mall is no longer there actually.  They tore down that whole section of the mall where the theater, food court, arcade and other shops were located and replaced it with a sporting goods store.)  If you learn about the business you are working for and then become familiar with the market, you will be able to increase your chance of success with just about any field.  Generally, you will at least find some degree of success at the very least.  In terms of food service, you will be able to recommend menu items when the customer is either not sure or doesn't see what they are looking for at the moment.   If by some chance you are out of the product they would usually want then you can suggest an alternative.  You've a 50/50, maybe even a 60/40 of getting the sale.  The use in retail is a bit different but the same basic rules apply.  While it is harder to know your customers, unless you have a small business or some sort of mom and pop store, it is entirely possible to let regular customers know about new products and other things of that nature.

And furthermore, I will dare say that knowing the market can also help you with knowing your audience in terms of "content creation".  It is a bit harder perhaps to get a handle on in a lot of cases but not impossible.  And while it is a bit different when dealing with "content creation" than working in a restaurant, some basics still apply.  Though this is something to delve into another time.

All this talk about ice cream and frozen yogurt, plus it being almost 80 degrees out... 
I am now wanting some ice cream or frozen yogurt.  

Cheers.

too many things I could title this (RIP Rush)

Short post here:
I had a blog ready to publish on Sunday evening while watching NXT Takeover.  It was related to my general apathy about "Valentine's Day" and a few random jokes about wishing folks "Happy VD" and leaving them wonder if I was meaning Valentine's Day or something else.  Alas... I got extremely drunk that night and wound up deleting the blog.

Today is a different matter.

Rush Limbaugh died today.

For those unaware of who Rush Limbaugh was, and I doubt there are many who have not at least heard of him, he was a very well known American radio talk show host, one-time TV talk show host, and political commentator.   And rather or not you agree with the man, he can easily be seen as both a pioneer and an icon of the talk radio genre and of radio in general.  Anyone who chooses to argue with this is either an idiot or a fool.  Or both.  I am too well aware of how many hate filled idiots and fools are out there on Twitter and other places relating to social media.  

Understand this first: talk radio has been around for about a century.  In the 1960s, both KMOX, 1120 AM in St. Louis, Missouri, and KABC, 790 AM in Los Angeles claim to have been the first stations to adopt an all talk radio format.  And talk radio benefitted in the 1990s with the 1987 repeal of something called "The Fairness Doctrine of 1949" (which was hardly 'fair' by the time of the repeal despite the allegedly intent).  

So... why do I make the argument of Rush Limbaugh as both a pioneer and an icon in talk radio? 
Simple.  1) Ratings. and 2) Creation of opportunities in the field

1) Ratings.  
The "Rush Limbaugh Show" has consistently been one of the highest rated, if not the highest rated show of its kind for at least a decade (and I am playing it safe there).   That said, most of the folks under him that do "political talk shows" are where they are because he paved the way for their shows to exist as they do today.  Additionally, he did this without the benefit of other outlets in which to bolster and advertise his show.  For example, he doesn't have a nightly TV show to advertise his radio show like Sean Hannity.  (Not a slight against Hannity just a fact.)

2) Creation of opportunities in the field
As I said,  most of the folks under him that do "political talk shows" are where they are because he paved the way for their shows to exist as they do today.  Guys like Sean Hannity and Mark Levin have their shows and the success with those shows because of Limbaugh's success with his show being syndicated.  

 Let me put it this way...

I minored in radio production at West Georgia in the late 1990s. (I'd intended to double major but that is another story for another time.) This was in the days before podcasts were a thing and I was actively looking at "who had successful radio shows that were syndicated nationally.  The first two names that came up when I stared looking were Rush Limbaugh (on AM radio) and Howard Stern (on FM radio).  (Side note: this was also how I discovered the existence of Neil Boortz much to my faculty's advisor's chagrin.  Hey, he was the guy who brought Neil up.  I merely investigated for myself.)

I consider both Limbaugh and Stern to be icons and pioneers to the "talk radio" genre.

Also note: I am not saying that I am an ardent fan of them.  I had my agreements and disagreements with Limbaugh.  And Stern... eh, about the same though I am pretty sure that I have a few more disagreements with Stern than Limbaugh.  (though not by much!)

What I do not agree with is the amount of unbridled hate that I have seen in regards to the report of Limbaugh's death.  An unbridled and accepted hate.  
Orwell would be proud...?

Not much of a fan... not for the reason that you think...

 It is Monday, February 8th, 2021.  I am told that there was some sort of football game yesterday.  And a big one at that.  I vaguely recall something about it being a championship game though I recall that game being back on January 11th, 2021.  That was the "annual Alabama vs. Ohio State game" right? 

Oh wait... they meant the NFL championship, didn't they?  They call it something like "Super Bowl" aka the "Overpriced Ad Spectacle Show".   Some might even call it "The Tom Brady Show" but that might be too obvious, am I right?

Hmm... whatever.  I'm not a fan.  And not for the reasons you might think.  

My reasoning for the general apathy that I have about the NFL as well as the NBA and Major League Baseball has nothing to do with the political infection that has engrossed those leagues much like it has the rest of society. (see last blog)  In fact, most of the apathy I have toward most "professional sports" goes back to around the mid 1990s and my high school years if not a bit further.  And the funny thing is that despite that general general apathy, I love both collegiate sports and the Olympics.  

Okay... if we are being honest, the apathy use to be a flat out dislike for the NBA and, to a lesser extent, Major League Baseball.  And in general, there's different reasons for each of them.   

With Major League Baseball, the dislike began due to the 1994 baseball strike.  Generally speaking, I feel like most that the "professional athletes" in these leagues are overpaid.  I won't say all but I will easily say most of them.  While I get why there are large salaries, and in many cases there should be, I still think that there is a proven history of many of these athletes being irresponsible and reckless with their money.  Before you say "how dare you", do a little research.  Investigate for yourself just how many athletes, especially just how many professional athletes have squandered their money over the decades.  Especially during the 80s and 90s, when it was observed that a lot of the squandering of money went toward things like "a drug habit" and "prostitutes" among other things and not necessarily the athletes caring for their family or people who might be working for them.  Oh and don't forget the money spent on "performance enhancing drugs" which became a whole scandal itself by the late 90s.  

I have a cousin who wanted to be a professional baseball player growing up.  He played baseball throughout middle school, high school (as well as football, like his hero Bo Jackson) and into college.  He managed to get a tryout with the Florida Marlins as a matter of fact though that tryout never happened.  Right before the tryout was support to happen, he messed up his shoulder.  The extent that he messed up his shoulder actually ended his college baseball career.  I don't even recall if he completed college after that. If we are being honest, the injury was probably a blessing in disguise.   (This is another matter.  I don't like bringing up many, if any, of my cousins.  And I've some unpopular opinions on the topic of this one in particular.  I think he would have been a fantastic high school coach but whatever.)   My point in even mentioning him is that I made an effort to follow baseball largely due to him.  I even tried to dutifully cheer on the Atlanta Braves the year they won the World Series (which happened to be the year after the strike).  I've gone to games and even played a Braves fan as an extra in a movie with Ryan Reynolds.  But between the strike and the drug scandal in the 90s, I was left fairly jaded by the prospect of caring about the sport much less being a fan.  By the time that I started doing things in the film and entertainment industry in the mid-00s, I had minimal interest in professional baseball all together unless I was going as part of some sort of networking thing or it was for a film.

The thing with basketball is a completely different story.  I've never been much of a fan of basketball though I have tried over the years.  Even in terms of college basketball, I have never been much of a fan.  In fact, I hated covering basketball for the college newspaper at West Georgia just simply because I didn't care about the sport.  If I am being cynical or sarcastic about the reasons why, I can sit here and blame Michael Jordan though it is not really his fault.  If I am being honest, it is the way that sports media, and other media sources, built up Michael Jordan in such way that it made it seem stupid that the sport was even played.  I am going to be blunt here: the media made it seem such a forgone conclusion that The Chicago Bulls were going to win that it made the sport look rigged.  And worse than that, it made it look like that Michael Jordan was the only player on the Chicago Bulls and that none of the other players on the team (including Pippen and Rodman) did anything to contribute to the Bulls winning season after season.  They do the same thing nowadays with Lebron James and did the same thing for years with the late Kobe Bryant.  The biggest different is Lebron comes off as a completely egomaniacal asshole a lot of the times who in fact believes that the sport of basketball is about him.  At least Michael Jordan was capable of being humble about it.  Or at least Jordan seemed aware at times of how the media consistently demeaned the contributions of his teammates and chose to try to balance it out. The issue here isn't even Lebron, though I am no fan of his, it is the media.  It is about a media that takes a team sport and turns it into a sideshow about one player on one specific team then proceeds to shove that one player down the throats of fans and non-fans alike at the expense of his teammates and the other teams in the league.  And at times, it makes the NBA feel like little more than a series of rigged games though basketball is hardly the only sport where this occurs.

I mean speaking of rigged games and making the sport seems like "all about one athlete", that brings up to the NFL and the Super Bowl last night.  If you believed that The Tampa Buccaneers were going to lose last night with Tom Brady involved then I've got some ocean front property in Arizona that I would like to sell you.  The NFL has been more or less "The Tom Brady Show" for around 20 years with a few minor deviations to sell the fans a couple of other "feel good stories" and to generally keep up appearances.   You are probably saying "wait... is he saying what I think he is saying" and to that I am answer "you don't even know the half of what I am saying".  I've come to believe that the NFL is just as scripted as professional wrestling at the very least but at least professional wrestling is somewhat honesty about it these days.  (Not to mention they do a better job at hiding what is and is not scripted usually.)  And don't get me wrong, I am not saying anything about Brady's ability as a quarterback. 

In fact, my entire suspicion that the NFL has been somewhat scripted over at least the past 20-25 years only involves Brady in part.  After all, the Patriots were not in EVERY Super Bowl during the past 20-25 years.  For the most part, my theory involving the scripting of the NFL mostly involves the NFC and AFC playoffs to a lesser extent and mostly The Super Bowl. 

• The premise is this: The Super Bowl has become more about the advertising revenue than about the game of football. 
• With that in mind, the NFL has conceded, among its many concessions, to put together some match up "by hook or by crook" to try to make sure that eyes are put on those advertisements.
• They have also included a bit of proper storytelling into this matter.  Everything from the "feel good win of The New Orleans Saints right after Hurricane Katrina" to "the losing streak of the Buffalo Bills in the early 90s where they lost 4 Super Bowls back to back in spectacular fashion (everyone of the losses were pretty much blow outs).
• Should I even bring up Super Bowl XLVII? The power outage which seemed to mark the dramatic shift in momentum that lead to Baltimore winning over the 49ers?  What about the fact that it was heavily played up that the coaches of the opposing teams were brothers?  Oh and the quarterback of the 49ers that was thought to be the most promising QB since Brady that turned out to be an overrated flop?  Or that it was one of the few Super Bowls not to feature Brady from 2001 to 2020?  
• And don't get me started on what appeared to be The Atlanta Falcons throwing the second half of Super Bow LI and letting the Patriots win. 
  
• I could list several other instances.

But don't get me wrong, I am not mad about any of it.  (Well... aside from what appeared to be The Falcons blatantly throwing Super Bowl LI.)  I completely understand the NFL doing whatever it could to try to take the bad taste out of fans mouths that Major League baseball left during the 90s.  And while I think the politicizing of the various things in the NFL is tasteless and trashy, I understand why that has happened too given that politics has infected so much of sports in the past 20-25 years.  I do wish that the players taking knees would at least make sure they are wearing "knee pads and chapstick" with the amount of ass kissing (and who knows what else) going on but if they don't want to then that is their choice.  (Besides, they could always probably score an endorsement deal with the brand of chapstick and knee pads they are using for those deeds.) 

Seriously though, it makes sense that both the NFL and advertisers would do what they could to make the most of a relationship that is benefitting both parties. 

Just don't expect me to care about the game... or about your league.
And the commercials? These days... they are up on YouTube by time the game even airs. 

A-N-Y-W-A-Y-S!!
The short version of all this is that I am rather convince that too much of "professional sports" is somewhat rigged and distorted by the media. 

Cheers!

Social vs what? (Unfortunate necessities for communication in modern times.)

As I mentioned in the last post, this is going to be somewhat of a political blog entry. 
I don't like getting political about things but it is unavoidable in this day and age.  And I usually will try to be politically neutral on most of my posts.  Today though is a different matter.

This post was began on Monday the 11th of January and was immediate paused shortly after.  I had just done something that I had been debating on doing for several months prior.  I deactivated my Twitter account.  Of course, I would wind re-activating it by Wednesday morning so that "Failed Hero" and I would be able to communicate easier about the "Project WWWN" stuff via DM while he is at work.  (Being that he is a teacher, he cannot access discord easily (if at all) while he is at work but he can DM via Twitter from his phone easily.)  And since I am working on the "Project WWWN" stuff from home and other creative projects at some point since being put on disability then Twitter DM is unfortunately the easiest way to communicate.  (True Facebook messenger is technically an option but I don't honestly care for Facebook either.)  

This is just a bit of backstory and explanation on the situation.  The issue here is Social Media and censorship.

Social media tools have become unfortunate necessities for communication in modern times.  And as much as I loathe saying the phrase, it could be argued as something of a necessary evil.  And I think it has been argued in a few journals out there as being an addiction or bordering on one at the least.  It has also become something dangerous that I believe will even get more dangerous in the coming days.  

For starters, Social Media has created a society that, despite its denials, has glamorized hate and even made it seem cool. It has made ostracization of others fashionable. It has also made hypocrisy the norm.  Need proof? Go back and look at how many people in 2016 after the election were spewing hateful comments toward Trump, his family and Trump voters while also saying "#LoveTrumpsHate" and similar hashtags.  Want more?  Look how many of those people were "punished" for hateful rhetoric when reported on Twitter when reported for hate rhetoric and harassing other users.  

In the past four years, Social Media has also made censorship completely acceptable... as long as it is the censoring of those of whom one group or another disagrees.  And I don't believe that I am too far off base when I say that the people running social media platforms "relish" in the power that they now have in this regard to decide "who gets Free Speech" and "who doesn't get Free Speech".  (Spoiler Alert: FREE SPEECH IS A RIGHT UNDER THE US CONSTITUTION.  Another spoiler: JUST BECAUSE SOMEONE SAYS SOMETHING YOU DISAGREE WITH DOESN'T MAKE IT HATE.) 

These people, who I guess are not being called "Big Tech" have spawned something called the "Cancel Culture" movement that is little more than "angry mobs taking to the digital streets" if someone so much as says they are not a fan of "K-pop" much less anything political.   And the people running these social media sites?  Several of them have flat out lied before Congress without any sort of repercussions.   And don't even get me started on the alleged behavior of Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and that behavior's relationship to the late Jeffery Epstein.  (Oh and for the record: EPSTEIN DIDN'T KILL HIMSELF.  And if you think it was Trump's folks that killed him then you are not paying attention... or perhaps a few other things I can think of.  There were enough names political and otherwise and Trump's name was not even on the flight log.  And not to sound like a conspiracy nut or anything but there's at least five other "celebrity deaths" in recent years that I find the details of to be suspicious.  Four of them were ruled suicide.)

But enough about that... especially the bit of a tangent in the last paragraph.

I use to like Twitter.  It was a great tool as it was originally presented.  One could post updates on creative projects, link to information, post humorous observations about the day.   (If I am being honest, Facebook was not bad when it began either. (Though... I still miss the original Myspace for a variety of reasons.)  Somewhere along the way, Twitter mutated into the monstrosity that it is today. 

At some point, the "trending topics" started churning out assorted rhetoric that encouraged hate.  And then people discovered how the "trending topics" could be manipulated and they used that to put forth all sorts of other hateful rhetoric.   And all of this was before the 2016 election.  All of this was before Donald Trump beat  Hilary Clinton.   

Point #1: As a post I saw on Instagram pointed out: The election of Donald Trump didn't create the hate and division we now have in this country not to mention around the world... it revealed it. 

In 2012, a bill labeled as HR4310 was signed into law which basically "allows the use of propaganda to be used on US Citizens".  It effectively repealed the "Smith-Mundt Act of 1948" which banned the use of propaganda on domestic soil.  And while it is quite easy to argue that propaganda has been used anyway since the 1948 law, especially by those who do not have a full understanding of what propaganda is, the HR4310 cleared the path for there to be NO potential ramifications for what happens next just in case things got called into question. 

It also allowed for a few other things.  It allowed for the media to dishonestly cover events like the  Boston marathon bombing in 2013, the Fort Hood shooting in 2014, the San Bernardino Massacre 2015, the Orlando Nightclub Shooting 2016. The Vegas Shooting in 2017. and don't forget the various school shootings.  Now before you get the wrong idea, like you haven't already, allow me to clarify something:  the dishonest covering likely varied in all these cases.  The common denominator in all cases was the use of these events in the dissemination of propaganda during the course of the "media coverage" and since then.  

For those of you who don't quite understand what propaganda is:

Propaganda (from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.)

1) The systematic propagation of a doctrine or cause or of information reflecting the views and interests of those advocating such a doctrine or cause.

2) Material disseminated by the advocates or opponents of a doctrine or cause.

And as much of that propaganda was disseminated via social media as via the traditional mainstream media coverage.  Often times, it was mainstream media outlets using social media as well as various parties who were admitted "advocates" and "activists" for various causes.

Consider this: HR4310 being signed into law was the beginning of the problems we now have with "Big Tech" and the onslaught of both sides decreeing "FAKE NEWS" at the top of their lungs.  It essentially gave the media the ability to lie about the news and not face repercussions.  Social media gave them the means to do it with ease and to manipulate the public into helping spread the lies as truths. 

Point #2: You are being manipulated.  That manipulation is usually happening through you emotions being manipulated.   This manipulation has been on various fronts.  You have been coaxed into accepting lies that made you feel good rather that unpleasant truths that might be a bit uncomfortable.  And then your feelings have been manipulated and that has led to you being mentally manipulated.  They have banked on your cognitive dissonance kicking in at the slightest suggestion that you have been misled into believing some various lies. 

Consider this: Malcom X is quoted as saying "If you're not careful, the newspapers will have you hating the people who are being oppressed and loving the people who are doing the oppressing."  He wasn't far off the mark.  He might have amended that statement had he seen what's come about in recent years.  I mean we have generations of youths and young adults who believe they are oppressed because they hear a word that offends them.   Being oppressed is not hearing a word that offends you or having someone disagree with you.  Oppression is being told that you can not say something for fear that you will offend someone else.  After all... "in order to think, one has to risk being offensive." (paraphrased from Jordan Peterson.)

Final Point: I am going to leave you with a few "meme" images I snagged from Instagram.  Just a few last things to consider.  

Now I am off to watch The Royal Rumble.  

I suspect there are some things that you should #InvestigateForYouself

Till next time.

Cheers

when a title like "Untitled and Unsung" doesn't even start to cover it.

There is a song by the 90s band Belly called "Untitled And Unsung" that for years I always misremembered as being called "Untitled And Unstrung".  For the sake of this blog, both 'unsung' and 'unstrung' seem appropriate.  And while you are welcome to look up the band Belly (I am told they actually reunited a few years back) and the song in question, I particularly recommend the album "Star" though the song is on the album "King", neither are necessary for the context of this blog. 

You might notice from the date on this blog that I didn't post a blog last week.  The draft for it is currently sitting here saved but I couldn't be arsed to finish it up.  I even managed to have wrote it at the beginning of the week.  I do plan to finish it up and go ahead and publish it this weekend though.

This happens periodically.  I wind up starting on blog entries and abandoning them for one reason or another.  It is something that, per my earlier post, I am aiming to improve upon this year.  Doing so will be a bit of a necessity going forward.  Usually, the unfinished blogs are a result of either getting distracted by other things or various pain issues forcing me to stop.  (The pain issue being one of the things that has hindered a lot of my writing in recent years.)  Neither was the case here.

The halted blog was (more or less) a political entry and this not meant to be a political blog.  Though as I allude to in the blog, the political stuff is somewhat unavoidable in this day and age.  And while there will not be many political entries on this blog but we are sadly at a point where modern political bullshit has become a poison that has seeped into so much of society.   With that in mind, I figured it might be best to be up front with folks on some various things.  In this case, my own personal political leanings.

For the most part, I have always considered myself an "independent" though I frequently have found myself leaning as much libertarian in recent years as I have in any other direction.  An acquaintance of mine named Gothix, the Twitch streamer and YouTuber, used the phrase "politically homeless" to describe her own views recently to which I can somewhat empathize.

Personally, though? 

For starters, separate "political ideology" from "political party" before going any further.  I am equally critical of both the Republican and Democrat parties.  For the better part of 30 years, the Republicans have struck me as not entirely understanding various domestic issues. (And even when they do seem to grasp that a certain problem exists, they seem to underestimate the severity of it or they misdiagnose what caused the problem.) Then you have the Democrats who simply see no need to fix problems, especially ones that they caused, are benefiting from, or they can exploit.  And that is just the two parties in the past 30 years though it could be argued that not TOO much was different during the entire 45 years of my life. (Cold War ending and 9/11 type stuff aside.)

I am quite critical of the media.  The unposted blog is actually regarding this to some extent.  I have mentioned before in a now deleted blog (that I will be reposting soon) about my experiences in journalism.  When I do get around to reposting that blog, it will likely include some references to some of my experiences in media production as well.  A lot of my criticisms of media are from my idealistic hopes and expectations of working in those fields vs. the bittersweet reality of working in it.  And the best or worst part of it (depending perspective I suppose) is that I didn't even see the worst of it. There were things that I did see though that were enough to make me quite cynical and jaded before I even made it out of my twenties.  Much of my most recent criticism has been focused more on "social media" and also some various historical notes about the media.  The short version of things is that "media bias" and "media manipulation" are both very real.  And whereas it might have once been a case of such behavior being done for "altruistic" reasons that has not been the case in decades.

I am also relentlessly critical of academia or "the education system" in this country.  And this is largely from having survived it and then seeing how much it has gotten since I went through it.   The bits that are not related to that are more directed at various people who I have known over the years that are teachers.  (And apologies to my friend Failed Hero who is one on this matter.)    I will definitely be doing at least a blog or two on my issues with the education system on this topic.  It is safe to say that that many school in this country (both high schools and colleges / universities) are more interested in miseducating and arguably indoctrinating students than anything.  And while it is reasonably safe to say that it is not "all the teacher's fault", there is enough of it that IS their fault and many of them know it. (Screw you, "Mr. Jed"!  And that is as nice as I can be about it.)

And last but not least on things: I don't do Identity Politics.  (And there will be a blog on that one.)

Sorry for getting a bit off track.  The point is that I tend to approach things by various issues and find myself disagreeing with both of the US political parties.  That doesn't mean I don't vote for one or the other.  I frequently find myself doing so begrudgingly given some of the wankers on both sides of the aisle.  It is very rare that I will support any politician directly by name (or otherwise) and I am usually up front with people about why in the few cases when I do.   And I've been known to play devil's advocate on a few issues to point out the flaws in a few opinions on issues.

Basically... if I do get off on any sort of political or current events stuff on here, I am doing so based on my own opinions and observations on the topic.  And if and when I do comment then I will do my best to give you information on why I have those opinions.  If I can, I will try to provide information to folks so they can investigate things for yourself further.  Or at least start to investigate further.

And I will try to include this hashtag both here and on Instagram and Twitter to encourage folks to: #InvestigateForYourself 

Cheers

the whole "how I know AJ Styles thing" and a couple of stories on that.

So the following bits are scattered but connected.  I got on a a stream of thought about a few things while working on another blog post last year.  

I'm not usually not one for "name dropping" though that concept has become a bit sketchier and murkier to me over the years.  Having working in the Film and TV field a bit, I get asked about people I know and people I've worked with by folks.  And let's be honest, the variety of folks I have met over the years makes for some fun stories and sometimes the names involves are what makes the story. With this one though, I'm leaving a few names out either at their request, just don't want to bother mentioning them, or one due to my bad memory.

For those of you who do now know who AJ Styles is, he is one of the biggest names in professional wrestling and has been for at least the past ten years or so. The dude has worked for Ring of Honor, New Japan, NWA - TNA / Impact (whatever the heck they are called now), numerous other promotions, and currently works for the WWE.  He began his wrestling career (more or less) in a little promotion called "NCW" which would quickly become NWA Wildside.  

It is by no means a claim to fame on my part but I knew AJ back in high school.  We're from the same area and went to rival high schools.  I was not able to compete in any sports in high school due to health issues and injuries but I did manage the high school track team and help the coach out with record keeping and all that mess.  As a result, I got an earful from a few people (players and a coach) who had made his acquaintance regarding him though I legit don't recall if it was related to football or wrestling though it might have been both.  On top of that, a step-cousin of mine knew him and his family as they had attended the same high school. 

AJ and I didn't meet in person until he had started his run in NCW / NWA Wildside.  Two friends of mine had started training at the promotion around the time he was debuting for them.  One of the two friends still competes in the local indie promotions under the name Azrael.  The other guy, named Larry, never made it through the training school for a variety of reasons but he factors into a lot of this mess.  Interestingly enough, the cousin of a friend from high school and co-worker was training there too and worked the indies under the name "Slim J" for a number of years.

When Larry and Azrael began training up there, I'd had the idea that I might be able to get my foot in the door regarding learning production stuff.  I figured I might even be able to help my friends who were trying to get started in that field.  There was a lot of miscommunication though of my interests and I got met with a lot of runaround and outright resistance on the idea.  Looking back, it was probably for the best.  

While I have mentioned over the years that I know AJ, there's a couple of fun stories regarding him. 

The main one involves me trying to turn a bad situation into something potentially useful. It is something that I will have to tell the WHOLE story of another time but it loosely involves "AJ costing me a $39,000 job offer" (it was actually two jobs opportunities which were $20K a year and $19K a year respectively) and me poking fun at the incident on the NWA Wildside Yahoo groups both before and after his heel turn when he joined Jeff G. Bailey and the NWA Elite.  (Again, I will tell more about that story another time if there is enough interest.)  To his credit, AJ had a very good sense of humor about the whole mess. I told him what happened for real and he and I had a good laugh over it.  I am pretty sure he knew that I was somewhat working the fans on the yahoo group (though one of his colleagues IMed on yahoo messenger asking me if it was a work or a shoot) and at one point played along with it at what was termed as a "Wildside house show" in some bar and grille joint in Gainesville GA that had the ring sat up on the place's dance floor.  

The story that I was wanting to tell somewhat begins at that particular show.  

Prior to the show, I had been asked by Larry to drive him up to Athens, GA for his birthday.  Now this was not inherently a problem though honestly I didn't want to sit at a strip club with him while he was drinking and I was expected to be the responsible designated driver.  (There are reasons that I will address eventually.)  I had this hair brained idea to invite a few of the NWA Wildside guys to go with us.  Of course, the only ones who I spoke much to that I really cared enough to invite to go with us were Azrael, Slim J, and Seth Delay (who were not old enough to drink) and AJ.  Okay, I had an ulterior motive here. I had intended to leave Larry to his own devices at the strip club and go bar hopping with whoever we got from the Wildside crew to join this endeavor.  Plus, it might have served as a means for Larry to better his status among "the boys" of whom many of them didn't care for him.

Well bless his heart, AJ told me straight up that he was not about to do anything of the sort.  I didn't even get to the part about not staying at the club.  I don't begrudge AJ a bit for not wanting to go and I actually benefited from the idea not happening.

See... I did wind up leaving Larry at the club.  I wound up at a place down the road where this "goth band" was playing.  I am not sure how to describe the music nor remember much of it or the band's name.  I enjoyed the music and got to chatting with members of the band.  There was a girl in the band who had on some "fairy wings" and described her attire as that of a "bondage fairy" which should tell you enough.  The band members and I hit it off enough that we all wound up going back to the strip club after their last set for me to get Larry out of there.  

Another thing that happened night was I got more acquainted with a dancer there than I ever expected to.   And it is thanks to her that I would eventually become acquainted with one of my dearest friends.

And well... things probably would not have turned out as well had AJ not refused to go with us.  🤣

Cheers.