10 Minute Rule

A lot to say tonight but none of it really goes together. Seems like the perfect night for…

 

Some Thoughts:

1. Some takeaways from watching my son’s football practice tonight–They’re gonna go undefeated. This game this weekend is a mismatch, which means a perfect record for the boys. I think he’s ready for the fall season and that level of competition. I also think the kids he plays with can handle a no-huddle offense. Smart boys who always seem to have an idea of how to execute. We are nearly at the point where coach can call plays in under 10 seconds. I didn’t watch the entire practice. I spent the second half spending time with my about-to-be-six year old prepping him for the next 6-7 season. He’s ready. He’s developing a great throwing arm and learning the offense very quickly. It isn’t tough–I rely on three routes with very simple names. I’m thinking about adding a fourth… Of course, I see my assistant coach running the offense next season–as much as it hurts to give it up. I need to work on his aggressiveness–especially on defense. He struggles with attacking the flag. Given a chance to run a practice at soccer I’d add the 50/50 drill to help train in that aggressive tendency.
2. Speaking of soccer, the mid-kid is doing outstanding in his tryouts for the U11 team, which is crazy, because he’s 8 and has only been 8 for like a week. This is not me bragging this is me freaking out after I saw the fees. How do you tell a kid who is so proud that you can’t pay the $1500+ these guys want from you?
3. I need a day off. I’ve had a few hours a few days and that felt sort of wonderful, but I was constantly nagged by impending responsibility. I need a full day–24 hours of gleeful reset.
4. #wealthies are very very stupid.
5. The Garland shooting story is going away very fast as news media shifts its attention to ISIS and their ‘potential’ involvement. However, the more I dig, the more the story falls apart. Tell me why there were no other human beings anywhere near the shooting. By no one I mean no protestors, no bystanders, no one. Tell me also why none of the so-called artists in the contest that were competing for the 10k actually attended the event… Those are just a few of the many questions that lead me to believe this was a False Flag situation.
6. Speaking of false flags, back in 1826 we had the so-called ‘auspicious incident’ in which Ottoman Sultan Mahmud II claimed the Janissary Corps had revolted and as a result was able to arrest and murder 6,000 in order to get the nearly 140k order in line…

 

I’m writing this post without the benefit of technology and it serves as a startling reminder of how dependent I’ve become on tech. For example, last night at 2 AM when I was trying to sleep but had this old memory stuck in my head, I popped open my commlink (read: cellphone) and downloaded an app to allow me to access my ‘capstone’ server and access the file. Then I routed that file through my phone to play on my TV. Once upon a time I would’ve gone downstairs and looked through a cabinet for the file, but this was techy and thus a lot better. Also, It was 2 AM and I was simultaneously lazy, tired, unable to sleep, and too stubborn to take the tech free approach to the problem. This is how I’ve come to live.

 

Technology is just another tool that allows the world to see the worst version of ourselves. I personally expose my innards on a daily basis in ten minute doses in a way that is far less intimate than the notebooks I used to keep, but at the same time is far more accountable. We are all apparently more accountable as a species now. When my mother, who is presently languishing half a continent away, calls me I can’t call and say ‘sorry I wasn’t home’ because there is no home phone. If I cannot talk I am normally expected to be able to text and if I cannot text, there is a nifty feature that allows me to vocalize a text into the phone to at least relay the message that texting isn’t an option. I am dependent on that tech and often wonder if I could function without these electricity driven devices. Remember, I’m the guy who used to watch at least two hours of TV everyday. Imagine what dreams could come in that time…

 

When I started weaning myself off of cable it was more about money than the need to stop filling my head with junk and smut. Now the need and value of the act is shifting as a direct result of watching how dependent I am on my daily fixes and routines. I need to learn to be tech independent.

 

I need to do it before the zombies get here…

 

Some Thoughts:

1. Obviously I found my way online.
2. Now that I’m here I plan to research this Texas shooting and do so very thoroughly. Something feels wrong about the whole thing. One passage from an article states that “Gunfire reverberated around the complex, from the two gunmen, the armed officer and a nearby SWAT team — four of whom fired high-powered rifles, according to a source familiar with the officers involved.” Now that article goes on to promote a single police officer armed with a .45 as killing both of the armored assailants. I’m going on to call bullshit. Something feels staged…
3. If all the world is a stage then 1825 was the opening act for a much later cold war. This is year that the Russian/Canadian boundary was established and was also the year John Q. Adams took office as the sixth president and tried to make his mark as someone beginning a global agenda.

While looking through reviews and easter egg posts about Avengers: Age of Ultron, I kept running across posts about someone named Bella Thorne. Now, I have kids of a certain age and as such know a little bit about teen stars. Still, I never heard of her. In fact, I didn’t even really recognize that she was a teen star until, on my fourth article about the future of the marvel shared universe movie franchise (Spidey is coming!), something popped up about her being on the cover of Teen Vogue. Who the heck is Bella Thorne and why should anyone, least of all me, a superhero fan, care? Then it hit me: She’s being media-groomed to play Mary Jane Watson.

Despite Andrew Garfield’s ridiculously impressive turn as the scarlet spider, he will not be returning for what is likely to be a mini-reboot in the shared universe. The Amazing Spiderman is dead. Long live the Spectacular Spiderman! Now comes the difficult part of maximizing revenue by casting individuals sure to fit the target market of this particular brand of Marvel. We know that Daredevil is meant for a certain audience. Avengers is the universal catch-all for the imprint. What about spidey? Some of the early choices fill us in. This will be the teenage spider. In other words, the focus will be on the high school years and that level of intrigue and balancing the dual worlds of teen-dom and fighting with super powered beings… Kinda like the Disney cartoon. Enter then the Disney actress, Bella Thorne. It doesn’t take a genius to recognize that they are betting on the early buzz by talking her up. The algorithm tells us that.

I can’t say much to the math that defines and creates this algorithm, but when we enter the web and look for things, our search history is not only recorded, but monitored to allow some selling agent/advertiser to glom on to what we are searching for and provide us products and even articles related to what it thinks we want. This is how Bella Thorne came into my life. As I said, I previously had no idea who she was. The seventeen year old did not pop on my screen based on a historical preference for redheads (I’m not into that anymore anyhow), she popped up because I am very curious about where Marvel is taking me and Marvel, in turn, is very curious about what the customer base will do when fed bait. I took the bait, purely out of curiosity. I wish I could express that to them, because I’m honestly not impressed with Thorne at all. I don’t feel that she brings the gravitas associated with Mary Jane. The iconic red is as close as Marvel is going to get to Lois Lane, and this girl is no Lois Lane.

So, Algorithm, send me someone else and while you’re at it, spin up a couple of possible male leads. Asa Butterfield, maybe?

 

Some Thoughts:

1. Clever too late, I should’ve named yesterday’s post ‘Orphan is the new black’
2. Back in 1824 Lord Byron shuffled off his mortal coil, leaving us with Don Juan as the great work to remember him by. The poem is particularly interesting because it looks at Don Juan not as the womanizer as he is seen by so many, but as someone who in fact, is more often manipulated by women…

Orphan Black is getting a lot better.

At the head of season 3 the storyline is about the male ‘Castor’ line of clones and more surreptitiously about the Leda line that created our protagonist sisters. My own, albeit limited, understanding of mythology suggests that Leda is the mother of the Dioscuri and as a result the Castor line may in fact be the child strain of the Leda line.

Director John Fawcett has improved as well. The progressions now are linear and make sense in the concept of the story and our natural order of understanding of the clones. As I write this I am preparing to watch ‘Formalized, Complex, and Costly’ which promises to reveal more of the story and develop the personalities of individual characters further.

I look forward to the promise of season three and the promise of original fiction that excites. There are few shows that do that anymore. I’ve grown accustomed to different flavors of the same crap stew. Orphan Black is one of the few that don’t give me that… not yet.

 

Some Thoughts:

1. What fleeting satisfaction racism provides. How much of people’s psyche is built around the idea that they are somehow superior to others and inherently better than one particular racial group? How much of it is unconscious? How much is challenged by the trials of daily life. It is no wonder then that those of racial exclusionism withdraw from society to a place of their own making–much as I discussed in the thoughts yesterday.
2. The last supposed appearance of an Angel that led to the formation of a church was in 1823, which was when the angel Moroni was said to first appear to Joseph Smith. The angel led him to a book written in what Smith referred to as reformed Egyptian, but based on what has been shared about the plates, has no direct correlation to any known human language. How much of this is real and how much is fantasy? No more or less than any other religion I suppose…

I’m recovering–if barely–from a haze of shuttling folks back and forth to practices and trying to find within myself this brief window of peace and writing happiness. I knew the day was long when, sometime around 3 PM I found myself on the couch, legs draped over the armrest and hands adjacent to a glass of wine. In the distance I could hear the boys spiraling up the bouncy house and bickering about which song to pipe in as their ‘entrance music’. A moment later it was 4 PM and I was still in that same spot, though slightly more rested and less aware. Such are the hot AZ days, and I have many more to come this summer.

Everything in my life seems to build towards Saturday. Though I often try to argue otherwise, my life seems geared towards the three little boys and their sporting lives. I’m a soccer dad. A football dad too it seems, and a basketball dad in the summers. All of it serves as wakeup call about the priorities I’ve chosen for my life. At some point we are all just slaves to the advancement of our children, and when they are gone it may feel too late to advance ourselves.

 

Some Thoughts:

1. Meanwhile back in 1822, Liberia’s colonization was starting to take place. Boston was finally incorporated as a city, and the American Indian Society got off the ground. Independent acts to be sure, but there is a thread here of a founding of places–new places and organizations–built on the idea that something new can be made and be reflective of the kind of place people want for themselves as an ideal.
2. If a math teacher says 2 + 2 = 4 and someone says, I’m skeptical of that being a legitimate equation, people view the skeptic as crazy. If a rising chorus of scientists across the globe point to climate change and someone says, I’m skeptical of that being a legitimate phenomenon, people still say, ‘he has a point there.’
3. Mayweather v. PacMan was not great. Decent, but not great.
4. With the cat dragging in so much stuff every night I am about to begin locking things down for the evenings again. It is a drag for the dog, who will need to be kenneled, but it keeps the house a little more bug free.

I’ve taken up cleaning grout as a reflective exercise. It clears the mind and allows me to think freely for just a moment. I do a little at a time–a few squares a night fading to tan. The messy home= messy mind equation feels spot on to me, though sometimes mess can be a good thing. That does not, of course apply to home maintenance and setting the tone for three impressionable young men (and one crazy ass cat. The dog gets what I’m saying…).

 

Moments of reflection are deeply important–especially in times of massive life change. Am I doing the right thing? Are the choices I make going to be good for those around me? Burger King or McDonalds? Event the smallest and most irrelevant seeming questions ripple outwards. Some involve the idea of what I am capable of and trying to define the core areas of my life. I’m still coming to grips with what I want and what is actually possible on a daily basis. One certainty is that I must continue to make time for reflection. As muscles heal and grow in the wake of exercise, so does the soul in the wake of reflection.

Some Thoughts:

1. Four out of 13 picks correct is failing in everything (except for baseball). It points to a need to do more research going into the 2015 fantasy football draft. I’m playing for the championship this year. Anything less would be stupid.
2. Iron man is a bastard in the new movie and I love him 100 times more. I want to be that guy but I want to make better decisions…
3. Though better known for the science fiction mainstay the faraday Cage, in 1821 Michael Faraday discovered electromagnetic rotation. This in turn (pun!) led to the birth of the electric motor. Thanks, Faraday.

This is the more coherent version of yesterday’s sleep-addled post. Seriously, I fell asleep writing the post. I was still typing at the time, so remember very little of what I wrote. I do remember what I did not write, which is a comprehensive draft board that identifies team needs and possible scenarios. Here is the philosophy: I think a QB goes first. Naturally, the biggest and most pro ready QB is Winston, so he goes to the Bucs. He is a BUST. Sure, he has a great arm and solid pocket presence, but the kid has entitlement issues that may pervade the locker room. Any able-minded individual reading this might wonder how I know this, especially given the fact that the Bucs have spent hours with and researching the kid and I’ve just watched his TV stuff. So, how do I know? Technically, I don’t. Still, I have a feeling for this sort of thing that comes from watching how these dudes interact and factoring that in with their backgrounds and past history of other players and playing styles given the offense and coaching situation they are walking into. That being said, Winston + Lovie  = Hot mess. The media pressure and lack of a significant winning culture and positive player role models (especially with him still in that Florida land) will end badly. However, it will start tonight. Here’s some other things going down (if only in my mind)

 

 

1. Bucs — Jameis Winston
2. Titans — Leonard Williams
3. Hawks (Trade from Jags) — Dante Fowler
4. Raiders –Amari Cooper
5.  Redskins — T
6. Jets — Marcus Mariota
7. Bears — Vic Beasley
8. Jags (From Hawks) — Shane Ray
9. Giants — Brandon Scherff
10. Rams — Todd Gurley
11. Vikings —  Melvin Gordon (and trade away Peterson)
12. Browns — Kevin White
13. Saints — Devante Parker

After this it gets really speculative because there are multiple trades in the works and people are moving around to fill needs in the wake of the Peterson trade…

Some Thoughts:

1. In addition about being a post about the draft, a modernized version of the slave auction (if only in terms of an individuals right to decide who to work for and how much they get to receive in terms of compensation), 1820 happens to be the year that 86 African Americans founded what would later come to be known as Liberia.

Tomorrow is the NFL draft, ending this tremendous and painful hiatus from professional football. It isn’t that they guys aren’t playing, its that the NFL network and its simulacra ran out of things to talk about a very long time ago, which made the network feel really empty and foolish to watch. Now things are back on track and we don’t have to hear poorly fabricated stories designed to keep us hooked. Well, I’m still hooked to the point where I feel the need to release my own mock draft. (Look out, Mayock!) on the other hand, I’ve avoided things so much that the below is the best I could do accurately.

1. Bucs — Jameis Winston
2. Titans —
3. Jags
4. Raiders — Leonard Williams
5.  Redskins
6. Jets
7. Bears
8. Hawks
9. Giants — Brandon Scherff
10. Rams
11. Vikings
12. Browns
13. Saints
14. Dolphins
15. 49r’s
16. Texans
17. Chargers
18. Chiefs
19. Browns
20. Eagles
21. Bengals
22. Steelers
23. Lions
24. Cardinals
25. Panthers
26. Ravens
27. Cowboys
28. Broncos
29. Colts
30. Packers
31. Saints
32. Patriots

More on this tomorrow as I fully tune in and start to sink into the draft..

 

Some Thoughts:

1. Unnaturally tired tonight. Not a fan of that feeling. I am a fan of 1819 though. Specifically,  Savannah, the steamboat, which got to cross the great ocean for the first time.

I’ve been thinking a lot about Myrlin Hepworth again–specifically his argument that all actions are about giving or receiving/hoping to receive love. It triggered a connection to the words of buddha who wrote, “In the end these things matter most: How well did you love? How fully did you live? How deeply did you let go?” I often wonder if I am abiding by those questions. I’ve become fearful of such things as loving and letting go. One oft leads to trusting (which can lead to hurting myself or them) while the other invites the unknown. This is not necessarily a bad thing. It is on the other hand a difficult thing. I sometimes wish that I could have my own Buddha moment and, in a fit of meditation, realize the answer to all that is bouncing around in my head. Only, that isn’t how life works.

I’m coming around to recognizing that life works on the fulcrum of chance and individual effort. Fear is the barrier to effort. Trying–in anything–leaves you vulnerable and exposed. This is a truth I see played out in writing students each day. Few wish to try because none are willing to fail or moreover be embarrassed or noticed for that failure. It is easier then to not try, to take the path of least resistance, which is no path at all.

Somewhere between my heart and belly is this force of nature that wishes to give and receive love everyday, and to be exposed and to try and to take risks–not just the smart ones, but the real ones. Layers of fat and doubt have grown over that force, locking it away. Each day it cries to get out and I think to myself, what will it take for this thing to get out.

I suppose all it takes is to say, and to believe, and to get behind the idea of “now.”

 

Some Thoughts:

1. Best Agents of Shield episode in a while. Vintage Coulson. Vintage.
2. Started at the gym again along with modifying my diet quite suddenly. The result is upset stomach, ridiculous soreness, and vomiting. Not a good look, old man.
3. Castle is one of the shows that gives providence to black women without being about black people. Way to go, Castle.
4. 1818 was the year Keats wrote his sonnet ‘When I have fears that I may cease to be’ the poem is its own reason for an appearance in this slot. I’ve always been fond of it, if only for the relationship I have with that same thought process. An older student and I spoke about death today. We talked about the afterlife and our beliefs and what it looks like for each of us. For her it was a singular moment of joy. For me it is a new start–a transformation into something else as the wheel of reincarnation and karma spins on. That is the most frightening.

I must confess to being at a loss for words this evening; snapped up in the vortex of basketball, grading, kids sports practice, kitty litter and fatigue. I find myself writing the same sentence over and over again like a wail for help or at least sleep–some temporary reprieve from what has come to be a semesterly period of raw de-energization more commonly referred to as the last few weeks of school. But soft, what light through yonder window breaks? It is the end and summer brings the sun. Arise fair sun and kill the desperate gradeless who are already sick and pale with grief…

Alright thats enough of that. How about..

Some Thoughts:

1. At Sam’s Club you wave your membership card in front of an automated kiosk and they give you free samples of drugs.
2. Two games left in the football season and I’m really starting to recognize what a stand up dude my son’s coach is. He’s good and I can see, as a father, why he relies on his son. Still, he wants each kid to have the best possible experience. He wants to win but he wants to have fun doing it. Too bad he’s done after this. The High School team demands too much attention. Does that mean I’m up?
3. 1817 marked the start of the firs Seminole war, which actually began because the tribe was harboring runaway slaves. It reminds me of how not terribly long ago people who look like me were merely seen as the property of people who don’t look like me. Yet today I can publish a daily blog, and write stories in books that feature best selling authors, and perhaps most surprisingly, stand in front of a classroom of mixed faces and races and teach them without fear of being whipped or even sold. Yeah, racial tensions are still here, but we’ve come a long way, baby.