Howdy ho people of the Earth!
It felt like a proper time to get some things off my mind, so, without further ado...
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WRITING PARTY!
The man with the golden mane, my friend Fionnegan "Justus" Murphy (I have no clue why I put his actual middle name in quotes) hosted a writing party this past weekend and invited me to participate!
I invite, encourage, nay DEMAND (ok, so not demand) you to check out his website HERE to read through the submissions from the participants, leave a comment, and vote for your favorite! The entries are intentionally anonymous so that everybody doesn't just vote for mine to gain favors from me. (HA!) But vote for the one you think is mine anyways, and I'll love you forever. Or vote for your favorite. Or vote for a free and independent Suriname. Or Las Vegas.
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I'm taking a poll to find out what the best "Far Side" comic was. My personal favorite is the "Midvale School for the Gifted" one. Gary Larson captured the spirit of a generation with one simple drawing. He was way ahead of his time as the generation that attends schools these days clearly seems to not be able to read well enough to know how to open a door. I blame Eisenhower.
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I've started really enjoying "Tosh.0" on Comedy Central. The guy makes fun of people who do dumb things and post it (or have it posted on the internet). Which, of course, is something I like to do as well.
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It's SHARK WEEK on the Discovery Channel. Two things that I'd like to point out. 1) the super-slow-mo cameras for "Ultimate Air Jaws" are unbelievably fantastic. Watching those great whites fully launch their entire bodies out of the water at 1000 frames per second is amazing. 2) The scientists / marine biologists that go into the water with no cage to observe feeding habits and HAND-FEED SHARKS are absolutely insane. More than me. And that's saying something!
I think Shark Week is a worthy follow-up to this past season of Deadliest Catch. Discovery Channel... (with the exception of "The Colony" - I mean, what the..??) Well done!
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What's more entertaining? Watching two people (or groups of people) debate passionately with only a small number of the pertinent facts about the topic, or jell-o wrestling? I think jell-o wrestling loses its charm quicker.
************************
I'm pretty sure my life is a not-for-profit endeavor. Otherwise someone's cooking my books!! (And I don't mean that as a euphemism for something else. This time.)
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Does anyone think the line from Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back:
"When it's all over, I want you to say 'My, what a lovely tea party!'"
Is funnier now than it ever has been?
************************
Jackie Gleason was really only responding to Kennedy's speech when he told Alice "to the moon!"
Not sure who's speech he was responding to when he said "Pow, right in the kisser!"
...though Mel Gibson may have been responding to Jackie Gleason... not sure...
************************
How do you trust someone who tells you they would "take a bullet for you" without finding out for sure?
************************
I think that about covers my lunch break....
Ciao!
03 August 2010
13 July 2010
Things in movies that don’t make sense to me…..
Note: This is not an all-inclusive exhaustive list… just the stuff on the top of my head.
Movie: Terminator Salvation
Skynet captures Kyle Reese to lure John Connor to them and end the resistance through his death.
QUESTION: Why not just kill Kyle Reese at that point and thus prevent John from being born?
Movie: Star Wars (Original Trilogy)
Galaxy far, far away, hundreds of planets, hundreds of species, etc etc etc etc….
QUESTION: Why do two relatively primitive species, Jawas and Ewoks, both speak the same language, AND C-3P0 needs to “learn” Ewok on the fly, but understands Jawa fluently?
Movie: Superman IV: The Quest for Peace
Lex uses Superman’s DNA from a strand of hair in the “Superman Museum” to create “Nucular Man” or whatever he’s called.
QUESTION: How did Lex cut Kal-El’s hair off the massive wrecking ball it was holding up with a simple pair of bolt-cutters??? Also, why did they make such a crappy Superman movie?
Movie: Ghost Rider
Nick Cage is rescued by the devil or whatever to be a “Ghost Rider” and exact vengeance on those that have wronged him.
QUESTION: Can I have those hours of my life back? Talk about ruining a comic book….
Movie: Signs
Mel Gibson is a priest who lost his faith trying to protect his family from an alien invasion.
QUESTION: Why does a race of inter-stellar being who are fatally wounded by WATER (like the Wicked Witch of the West) choose to invade a planet PRIMARILY covered in water inhabited by life forms that are PRIMARILY composed of water?
Movie: Iron Eagle
High school kid hijacks jet fighters, takes on a whole hostile middle eastern country, kicks their ass, saves his dad, and is let into the air force academy because of it
QUESTION: HUH????
Movie: Jaws the Revenge (Jaws 4)
Great white shark, rare in the New England coast, follows remaining Brody family to the Bahamas, where great whites are non-existent to go on a vendetta to eliminate the remaining Brodys.
QUESTION: Great white shark, rare in the New England coast, follows remaining Brody family to the Bahamas, where great whites are non-existent to go on a vendetta to eliminate the remaining Brodys?
Movie: Over the Top
Sylvester Stallone arm wrestles for custody of his kid.
QUESTION: Where do I begin?
Movie: Back to the Future Part II
Marty goes forward 30 years, then back to 1985, then back to 1955 to fix the mess the writers put him in.
QUESTION: How many different narcotics were the writers on when they added the part about the Cubs winning the World Series in 2015? Even I couldn’t hold the suspension of disbelief.
Movie: Terminator Salvation
Skynet captures Kyle Reese to lure John Connor to them and end the resistance through his death.
QUESTION: Why not just kill Kyle Reese at that point and thus prevent John from being born?
Movie: Star Wars (Original Trilogy)
Galaxy far, far away, hundreds of planets, hundreds of species, etc etc etc etc….
QUESTION: Why do two relatively primitive species, Jawas and Ewoks, both speak the same language, AND C-3P0 needs to “learn” Ewok on the fly, but understands Jawa fluently?
Movie: Superman IV: The Quest for Peace
Lex uses Superman’s DNA from a strand of hair in the “Superman Museum” to create “Nucular Man” or whatever he’s called.
QUESTION: How did Lex cut Kal-El’s hair off the massive wrecking ball it was holding up with a simple pair of bolt-cutters??? Also, why did they make such a crappy Superman movie?
Movie: Ghost Rider
Nick Cage is rescued by the devil or whatever to be a “Ghost Rider” and exact vengeance on those that have wronged him.
QUESTION: Can I have those hours of my life back? Talk about ruining a comic book….
Movie: Signs
Mel Gibson is a priest who lost his faith trying to protect his family from an alien invasion.
QUESTION: Why does a race of inter-stellar being who are fatally wounded by WATER (like the Wicked Witch of the West) choose to invade a planet PRIMARILY covered in water inhabited by life forms that are PRIMARILY composed of water?
Movie: Iron Eagle
High school kid hijacks jet fighters, takes on a whole hostile middle eastern country, kicks their ass, saves his dad, and is let into the air force academy because of it
QUESTION: HUH????
Movie: Jaws the Revenge (Jaws 4)
Great white shark, rare in the New England coast, follows remaining Brody family to the Bahamas, where great whites are non-existent to go on a vendetta to eliminate the remaining Brodys.
QUESTION: Great white shark, rare in the New England coast, follows remaining Brody family to the Bahamas, where great whites are non-existent to go on a vendetta to eliminate the remaining Brodys?
Movie: Over the Top
Sylvester Stallone arm wrestles for custody of his kid.
QUESTION: Where do I begin?
Movie: Back to the Future Part II
Marty goes forward 30 years, then back to 1985, then back to 1955 to fix the mess the writers put him in.
QUESTION: How many different narcotics were the writers on when they added the part about the Cubs winning the World Series in 2015? Even I couldn’t hold the suspension of disbelief.
27 June 2010
The U.S. Soccer Team Succeeds in the 2010 World Cup in Almost Every Way
For years they were scoffed at.
For years they didn't even qualify.
For years the only professional soccer player most Americans could name was "Pele."
In 2010, the US Mens National Team (USMNT)went to the tournament in South Africa. But something was different this time. There was a buzz... a legitimate buzz about a team that not long ago shocked Europe with their defeat of Spain in the Confederations Cup. Suddenly, the world took notice. Suddenly, the world showed respect for the talent on the pitch. Maybe there was no expectation that the USMNT would win the Cup, but the teams that faced them knew they had to bring their "A-Game" if they wanted a victory.
They were expected to make it through what was considered a "weak" group, with only England as a soccer-superpower to contend with. England didn't bring their A-Game. (Arguably, you could say England didn't bring their A-Game to any of their 4 matches, the closest being against Slovenia, but I digress). Then something else happened and the soccer world took notice: the U.S. *won* their group, and they won it in thrilling, magical fashion with Donovan's late extra-time goal, moments away from being eliminated from the tournament. This, coming off of perhaps 45 of the best minutes of US soccer in recent memory, the comeback from 0-2 against Slovenia to tie them at 2-2 (and indeed, many - not just US 0 - still believe the score should have been 3-2 but for a questionable invisible foul).
Team USA was making a buzz in the soccer world. Did they win? No, of course not. They lost against Ghana in the 1/8 finals. Did they play perfectly? No, not at all. Their strange habit of conceding early goals (3 of their 4 games they were playing from behind at a very early point in the match). They missed a ton of chances in front of the net. Was it fair and balanced play? Nope, there were controversial calls in this years tourney that felt eerily similar to 4 years ago vs. Ghana...
But other than the exit, the US Team succeeded in this cup beyond measure.
Record Setting Numbers for TV and Internet Viewing. New soccer fans are cultivated from those curious as well as formerly disinterested. MLS gains fans as people re-discover the sport that they used to play - and they DID used to play it!!! US Youth Soccer has a higher number of participants than Little League.
More importantly than respect of the team or popularity of the sport, the USMNT gave Americans a chance to stand side by side and cheer again. Like the Olympics in Vancouver, and perhaps building off their momentum, the sport has brought together a population normally bent on tearing each other apart because of political or ideological differences. Look in the stands in South Africa. Look in the pubs in America. Americans side by side, blowing the vuvuzelas and screaming their heads off chanting "USA! USA! USA!" because they found inside them that despite it all, we are still DAMN PROUD to be Americans.
If we could remember that moving forward, if we could stand together and cheer for common goals with the SAME PASSION AND ENERGY that we do for our boys on the pitch, imagine where our National Spirit could take us? Need an example? Watch "Invictus" - it's not a Rugby movie, so don't let that wave you off. It's an extraordinary story of how something like a sport can bring together a politically divided nation. Sound familiar? Were Mandela's problems all gone after that Rugby World Cup? No, of course not. But with the nation united, South Africa has come a long way in 20 years. How far could we go in the U.S.?
Imagine.
Nice job US Team, you gave us something to come together and cheer for, and reminded us of US courage, spirit, "never-give-up" attitude, and talent. We'll see you in 4 years, and scream our lungs out in a familiar chant. "USA! USA! USA! USA!"
PS -
Team USA's loss versus Ghana has had yet another extraordinary positive impact on the world. Sure, it's heartbreaking for the U.S., but, with Ghana moving on, they represent not only their nation, but a BILLION Africans as they are the last team on the continent to still be alive in the tournament. In a small, unintentional way, the US Team has again brought people together. Weird. But fun!
For years they didn't even qualify.
For years the only professional soccer player most Americans could name was "Pele."
In 2010, the US Mens National Team (USMNT)went to the tournament in South Africa. But something was different this time. There was a buzz... a legitimate buzz about a team that not long ago shocked Europe with their defeat of Spain in the Confederations Cup. Suddenly, the world took notice. Suddenly, the world showed respect for the talent on the pitch. Maybe there was no expectation that the USMNT would win the Cup, but the teams that faced them knew they had to bring their "A-Game" if they wanted a victory.
They were expected to make it through what was considered a "weak" group, with only England as a soccer-superpower to contend with. England didn't bring their A-Game. (Arguably, you could say England didn't bring their A-Game to any of their 4 matches, the closest being against Slovenia, but I digress). Then something else happened and the soccer world took notice: the U.S. *won* their group, and they won it in thrilling, magical fashion with Donovan's late extra-time goal, moments away from being eliminated from the tournament. This, coming off of perhaps 45 of the best minutes of US soccer in recent memory, the comeback from 0-2 against Slovenia to tie them at 2-2 (and indeed, many - not just US 0 - still believe the score should have been 3-2 but for a questionable invisible foul).
Team USA was making a buzz in the soccer world. Did they win? No, of course not. They lost against Ghana in the 1/8 finals. Did they play perfectly? No, not at all. Their strange habit of conceding early goals (3 of their 4 games they were playing from behind at a very early point in the match). They missed a ton of chances in front of the net. Was it fair and balanced play? Nope, there were controversial calls in this years tourney that felt eerily similar to 4 years ago vs. Ghana...
But other than the exit, the US Team succeeded in this cup beyond measure.
Record Setting Numbers for TV and Internet Viewing. New soccer fans are cultivated from those curious as well as formerly disinterested. MLS gains fans as people re-discover the sport that they used to play - and they DID used to play it!!! US Youth Soccer has a higher number of participants than Little League.
More importantly than respect of the team or popularity of the sport, the USMNT gave Americans a chance to stand side by side and cheer again. Like the Olympics in Vancouver, and perhaps building off their momentum, the sport has brought together a population normally bent on tearing each other apart because of political or ideological differences. Look in the stands in South Africa. Look in the pubs in America. Americans side by side, blowing the vuvuzelas and screaming their heads off chanting "USA! USA! USA!" because they found inside them that despite it all, we are still DAMN PROUD to be Americans.
If we could remember that moving forward, if we could stand together and cheer for common goals with the SAME PASSION AND ENERGY that we do for our boys on the pitch, imagine where our National Spirit could take us? Need an example? Watch "Invictus" - it's not a Rugby movie, so don't let that wave you off. It's an extraordinary story of how something like a sport can bring together a politically divided nation. Sound familiar? Were Mandela's problems all gone after that Rugby World Cup? No, of course not. But with the nation united, South Africa has come a long way in 20 years. How far could we go in the U.S.?
Imagine.
Nice job US Team, you gave us something to come together and cheer for, and reminded us of US courage, spirit, "never-give-up" attitude, and talent. We'll see you in 4 years, and scream our lungs out in a familiar chant. "USA! USA! USA! USA!"
PS -
Team USA's loss versus Ghana has had yet another extraordinary positive impact on the world. Sure, it's heartbreaking for the U.S., but, with Ghana moving on, they represent not only their nation, but a BILLION Africans as they are the last team on the continent to still be alive in the tournament. In a small, unintentional way, the US Team has again brought people together. Weird. But fun!
10 May 2010
Click Me!
Hello readers, time for a bit of shameless self-promotion.
Correction. Time for a bit of shameless promotion of the arts!
I have registered to ride in the UPAF's Ride for the Arts in Milwaukee. That's a boke ride, for those uninitiated. I will be riding 12 scenic miles from Summerfest to Miller Park and back for a couple reasons.
1) Get my butt into some kind of exercise regiment (I do sit at a desk all day for my job and stare at a computer screen)
2) Raise money for UPAF (United Performing Arts Fund - kind of a "United Way" for Milwaukee Area Arts organizations) and the Milwaukee Rep Theatre.
So, please check the link below:
http://events.upaf.org/ride/BradKostreva
or click the title of the blog if you can find just a smidgen of $$ you would be willing to sponsor my rider-ship. I see 0% of the money raised, the Milwaukee Rep sees 50% (because I am riding on the Rep's team) and UPAF sees the other 50%. The Milwaukee Area Arts Scene is one of the most under-rated in the major cities of the U.S. Members and Affiliates of UPAF stretch from the city of Milwaukee west to Brookfield / Elm Grove, and south as far as Kenosha.
I have had the opportunity to see plays, musicals, and whatnot at many of the organizations that UPAF supports, as well as Milwaukee organizations that are not under the UPAF umbrella and need to relay on other funding methods to keep going.
From the UPAF website, the organizations that benefit from UPAF include:
UPAF Members:
Bel Canto Chorus
Danceworks Inc.
First Stage Children's Theater
Florentine Opera Company
Milwaukee Ballet
Milwaukee Chamber Theatre
Milwaukee Children's Choir
Milwaukee Public Theatre
Milwaukee Repertory Theater
Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra
Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra
Next Act Theatre
Present Music
Renaissance Theaterworks
Skylight Opera Theatre
UPAF Affiliates:
Boulevard Ensemble Studio Theatre
DanceCircus
Festival City Symphony
Frankly Music
In Tandem Theatre
Kenosha Symphony Association
Ko-Thi Dance Company
Latino Arts
Milwaukee Chamber Orchestra
Milwaukee Choral Artists
Milwaukee Opera Theatre
North Shore Academy of the Arts
PianoArts of Wisconsin
Racine Symphony Orchestra
Sunset Playhouse
Theatre Gigante
Wild Space Dance Company
Windfall Theatre
Wisconsin Philharmonic
So join me and boat-loads of others in supporting the arts scene through sponsorship of my ride, or, if you decide you absolutely despise me and all I stand for, feel free to check out the UPAF website and if compelled, donate directly.
Thanks everyone for listening to my pitch!!!!
Ciao!
Correction. Time for a bit of shameless promotion of the arts!
I have registered to ride in the UPAF's Ride for the Arts in Milwaukee. That's a boke ride, for those uninitiated. I will be riding 12 scenic miles from Summerfest to Miller Park and back for a couple reasons.
1) Get my butt into some kind of exercise regiment (I do sit at a desk all day for my job and stare at a computer screen)
2) Raise money for UPAF (United Performing Arts Fund - kind of a "United Way" for Milwaukee Area Arts organizations) and the Milwaukee Rep Theatre.
So, please check the link below:
http://events.upaf.org/ride/BradKostreva
or click the title of the blog if you can find just a smidgen of $$ you would be willing to sponsor my rider-ship. I see 0% of the money raised, the Milwaukee Rep sees 50% (because I am riding on the Rep's team) and UPAF sees the other 50%. The Milwaukee Area Arts Scene is one of the most under-rated in the major cities of the U.S. Members and Affiliates of UPAF stretch from the city of Milwaukee west to Brookfield / Elm Grove, and south as far as Kenosha.
I have had the opportunity to see plays, musicals, and whatnot at many of the organizations that UPAF supports, as well as Milwaukee organizations that are not under the UPAF umbrella and need to relay on other funding methods to keep going.
From the UPAF website, the organizations that benefit from UPAF include:
UPAF Members:
Bel Canto Chorus
Danceworks Inc.
First Stage Children's Theater
Florentine Opera Company
Milwaukee Ballet
Milwaukee Chamber Theatre
Milwaukee Children's Choir
Milwaukee Public Theatre
Milwaukee Repertory Theater
Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra
Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra
Next Act Theatre
Present Music
Renaissance Theaterworks
Skylight Opera Theatre
UPAF Affiliates:
Boulevard Ensemble Studio Theatre
DanceCircus
Festival City Symphony
Frankly Music
In Tandem Theatre
Kenosha Symphony Association
Ko-Thi Dance Company
Latino Arts
Milwaukee Chamber Orchestra
Milwaukee Choral Artists
Milwaukee Opera Theatre
North Shore Academy of the Arts
PianoArts of Wisconsin
Racine Symphony Orchestra
Sunset Playhouse
Theatre Gigante
Wild Space Dance Company
Windfall Theatre
Wisconsin Philharmonic
So join me and boat-loads of others in supporting the arts scene through sponsorship of my ride, or, if you decide you absolutely despise me and all I stand for, feel free to check out the UPAF website and if compelled, donate directly.
Thanks everyone for listening to my pitch!!!!
Ciao!
04 May 2010
Happy Star Wars Day Everybody!
And now, a collection of anecdotal Star Wars thoughts in no random order whatsoever.
Thanks to a few others for their contributions:
- "May the 4th" be with you!
- A Joke:
What did the R2 unit say to the Mon Calamari?
"Bleep boop beep doo whee!!"
- Why does a guy named "Solo" have a partner?
- Is there anything a buttload of Force Lightening can't solve? Well, until it unloads a Phantom Menace in your pants...
- "Ewoks" funny after riding a Bantha all day... (Groaner Foul!)
- How many midiclorians does it take to make a Jedi? Apparently a bloodstream full at first, then, as happens, science gives way to mythology and the force becomes a mystical energy that makes lightening come out of your fingers.
- Really Empire? After the first Death Star was destroyed because of an exhaust port that caused a chain reaction, you didn't think that the MASSIVE HOLE in the next Death Star big enough to fly a Millennium Falcon through would be a problem?
- We need to hide Anakin's (Vader's) kids from him to protect them from his evil ways... I KNOW!!! Let's hide one of them on his HOME PLANET!!! Even better.. let's hide him with his FAMILY!!!!
- When did Han Solo's handcuffs "fall off" after he was frozen and before Leia thawed him?
- Here's a tough call... what was more damaging to the legacy of Star Wars: Jar-Jar Binks, or the entire "Clone Wars" CGI Movie?
- Sorry, that was a trick question, clearly the Wookie Family Christmas Card takes that cake...
- Top Five parodies of Star Wars from #5 to #1
5) Something Something Something Dark Side (Family Guy)
4) Family Guy: Blue Harvest
3) Robot Chicken Star Wars
2) Robot Chicken Star Wars 2
1) Star Wars: Episode 1 - The Phantom Menace
- Little known fact: Hayden Christensen caused more re-shoots during his lightsaber scenes because he kept making the sound effects of the lightsaber during filming.
- Estimated Cost to build the Death Star: $43,000,000,000,000
- What's George Lucas' obsession with "de-handing" people via lightsaber?
- Did... Did Darth Vader just say "People will come, Ray"???
Well, that's all I have for now...
I have just joined "Twitter" or as I like to call it, Facebook on ADHD, so I highly recommend you follow "TheBradK" on Twitter for my latest quicky Musings.
Ciao all!
B
Thanks to a few others for their contributions:
- "May the 4th" be with you!
- A Joke:
What did the R2 unit say to the Mon Calamari?
"Bleep boop beep doo whee!!"
- Why does a guy named "Solo" have a partner?
- Is there anything a buttload of Force Lightening can't solve? Well, until it unloads a Phantom Menace in your pants...
- "Ewoks" funny after riding a Bantha all day... (Groaner Foul!)
- How many midiclorians does it take to make a Jedi? Apparently a bloodstream full at first, then, as happens, science gives way to mythology and the force becomes a mystical energy that makes lightening come out of your fingers.
- Really Empire? After the first Death Star was destroyed because of an exhaust port that caused a chain reaction, you didn't think that the MASSIVE HOLE in the next Death Star big enough to fly a Millennium Falcon through would be a problem?
- We need to hide Anakin's (Vader's) kids from him to protect them from his evil ways... I KNOW!!! Let's hide one of them on his HOME PLANET!!! Even better.. let's hide him with his FAMILY!!!!
- When did Han Solo's handcuffs "fall off" after he was frozen and before Leia thawed him?
- Here's a tough call... what was more damaging to the legacy of Star Wars: Jar-Jar Binks, or the entire "Clone Wars" CGI Movie?
- Sorry, that was a trick question, clearly the Wookie Family Christmas Card takes that cake...
- Top Five parodies of Star Wars from #5 to #1
5) Something Something Something Dark Side (Family Guy)
4) Family Guy: Blue Harvest
3) Robot Chicken Star Wars
2) Robot Chicken Star Wars 2
1) Star Wars: Episode 1 - The Phantom Menace
- Little known fact: Hayden Christensen caused more re-shoots during his lightsaber scenes because he kept making the sound effects of the lightsaber during filming.
- Estimated Cost to build the Death Star: $43,000,000,000,000
- What's George Lucas' obsession with "de-handing" people via lightsaber?
- Did... Did Darth Vader just say "People will come, Ray"???
Well, that's all I have for now...
I have just joined "Twitter" or as I like to call it, Facebook on ADHD, so I highly recommend you follow "TheBradK" on Twitter for my latest quicky Musings.
Ciao all!
B
03 May 2010
11315 Days of Glory
Poor Earth... It has now been subjected to 31 years of me being on it. Or, as the title suggests, 11,315 days (give or take a leap day or 8).
Well, all I can truly say is "Happy Birthday to me, all hail.... YOU!"
What? Yeah. See, it's come to my attention that life is pretty crappy without the friends, family, and comrades we associate with. We come from different places, we will probably all go different places, but the crossroads of life where people meet, and sometimes journey together for seconds, minutes, days, and years, well my friends, those are the reasons life is so amazing and great. My life has been amazing and great, and it's thanks to you. Even Ditter.
So what have I learned in my 31 years? Well, some of life's simplest lessons.
Do unto others... That may seem ridiculously simple, but, it is about as true of a lesson as one can learn. And it's difficult. It's even difficult to do so in a selfless way. In some respect, many times people "do unto others..." for purposes of making themselves feel better or elevate themselves to a level of moral authority. That's kinda icky really, it takes what is intended to be something done out of love and respect for fellow humanity and makes it a perverse thing. So, do unto others is a good rule when the intention is (as best as one can do) altruistic.
Friendship and love can last forever... but it takes work. That work is well worth the effort.
Take responsibility for your actions. That can be hard. It can hurt. It can hurt those you care about. But, things in your control are in your control. The mistakes we make are usually repairable.
Help. Sometimes people ask for help, sometimes they don't, and sometimes they don't know they need it. Help when you can. Support when you can't.
Be respectful of others opinions. Surprise, everyone's different and even those that agree usually don't agree 100%. So, be respectful of others opinions.
...
and more. But why be preachy?
Let's get to the latest fun...
Last week I had the opportunity to serve on a jury. This was my first time (They found me, I don't know how, but they found me... RUN FOR IT MARTY!!!). I got to serve on a criminal case where the charges were 1st Degree Attempted Sexual Assault, Armed Robbery, and False Imprisonment. The maximum sentence was 81 years for the accused.
Not Guilty on all three counts, and what was more amazing to me is what we on the jury guessed really happened instead of what this man was accused of. It appears that to hide a coke habit, and to put guilt on the accuser's boyfriend, this accuser made up this lie (which she admitted she never would have taken to the police without her mother's coaxing) and threw this guy under the bus so as not to admit to her discretion. WOW.
Now, again, that's our guess. What we certainly saw was that the story she told was not true, so our best theory as to the truth came up with this terrible string of events.
My play is well on it's way. Act II is coming along nicely, and I hope to have it finished in the next couple weeks. I am very excited to set up a "reading" of it with some actor friends of mine to further develop it, and hopefully, I can work with some acquaintances on the West Coast to start a workshop.
Finally, I want to congratulate the cast and crew of both Milwaukee Rep's Route 66 and the UW-Parkside Theatre Department cast and crew of As You Like It for putting on some exceptional theatre I got to see this weekend. Bravo!
With that, I would like to leave you all with a quote:
"Never Start Something You Can't Fini..."
Well, all I can truly say is "Happy Birthday to me, all hail.... YOU!"
What? Yeah. See, it's come to my attention that life is pretty crappy without the friends, family, and comrades we associate with. We come from different places, we will probably all go different places, but the crossroads of life where people meet, and sometimes journey together for seconds, minutes, days, and years, well my friends, those are the reasons life is so amazing and great. My life has been amazing and great, and it's thanks to you. Even Ditter.
So what have I learned in my 31 years? Well, some of life's simplest lessons.
Do unto others... That may seem ridiculously simple, but, it is about as true of a lesson as one can learn. And it's difficult. It's even difficult to do so in a selfless way. In some respect, many times people "do unto others..." for purposes of making themselves feel better or elevate themselves to a level of moral authority. That's kinda icky really, it takes what is intended to be something done out of love and respect for fellow humanity and makes it a perverse thing. So, do unto others is a good rule when the intention is (as best as one can do) altruistic.
Friendship and love can last forever... but it takes work. That work is well worth the effort.
Take responsibility for your actions. That can be hard. It can hurt. It can hurt those you care about. But, things in your control are in your control. The mistakes we make are usually repairable.
Help. Sometimes people ask for help, sometimes they don't, and sometimes they don't know they need it. Help when you can. Support when you can't.
Be respectful of others opinions. Surprise, everyone's different and even those that agree usually don't agree 100%. So, be respectful of others opinions.
...
and more. But why be preachy?
Let's get to the latest fun...
Last week I had the opportunity to serve on a jury. This was my first time (They found me, I don't know how, but they found me... RUN FOR IT MARTY!!!). I got to serve on a criminal case where the charges were 1st Degree Attempted Sexual Assault, Armed Robbery, and False Imprisonment. The maximum sentence was 81 years for the accused.
Not Guilty on all three counts, and what was more amazing to me is what we on the jury guessed really happened instead of what this man was accused of. It appears that to hide a coke habit, and to put guilt on the accuser's boyfriend, this accuser made up this lie (which she admitted she never would have taken to the police without her mother's coaxing) and threw this guy under the bus so as not to admit to her discretion. WOW.
Now, again, that's our guess. What we certainly saw was that the story she told was not true, so our best theory as to the truth came up with this terrible string of events.
My play is well on it's way. Act II is coming along nicely, and I hope to have it finished in the next couple weeks. I am very excited to set up a "reading" of it with some actor friends of mine to further develop it, and hopefully, I can work with some acquaintances on the West Coast to start a workshop.
Finally, I want to congratulate the cast and crew of both Milwaukee Rep's Route 66 and the UW-Parkside Theatre Department cast and crew of As You Like It for putting on some exceptional theatre I got to see this weekend. Bravo!
With that, I would like to leave you all with a quote:
"Never Start Something You Can't Fini..."
19 April 2010
Where have you been all your life? Or at least for the last month?
Hello happy people. BradK here with an update on life as I know it and my general whereabouts and whatchyabeendoinabouts of late.
Well, I just got back from Europe. Barely. I left London's beautiful Heathrow Terminal 3 a scant 14 hours before the UK Airspace was closed due to the ash cloud belched forth upon this land by the Icelandic Volcano Mount Icantprounounceitandniethercanyou. So, counting my lucky stars (that you can see through the ash cloud) I have returned.
(By the way, I'm told the ash on the ground is so thick right now you can't see the potholes in the streets... Yep, some Icelanders can't tell their ash from a hole in the ground. Wokka WOKKA!!)
So after a whirlwind tour of the UK, France, Germany, the Ukraine, Russia, and Switzerland in just over three weeks, the BradK has returned to the mostly-English speaking part of the world, albeit, we do speak "bad English" more than "English" 'round these parts.
Now, you may ask, "But BradK, with all that travel and seeing all those sights, surely a Musing had to have hit you on your adventures!?"
Loyal readers (and occasional curiosity seekers), it's true, there was much to Muse me AND a-Muse me. But my mind was a razor sharp focus over the past month or so. See, just before I left, I was driving home from work, and I had a "Grand Musing" - one that is still to this day, not quite ready for prime-time (or rather, blog-time). I envisioned a story that needed to be put to paper...er... Word Doc. And several weeks later, I realized the origin of my story came from an unlikely place. I was having a conversation in a bar with one of my favorite bartenders and a very Sweet Man... er.. Sweetman... (it's his last name, bear with me). We were discussing "Honesty vs. Selfishness" in some context that was basically, a silly fun premise. Fast forward a couple weeks, and the conversation had sat quietly in the cobweb covered moldy part of my brain called the "subconscious" until it came screaming into the forefront of my thoughts.
So it became a play exploring an extreme, but possible, situation where honesty may be the more selfish option between a couple.
What you say?
Well, yes... I said the play explores the situation as a dramatic concept. Act I is complete and sets it up pretty nicely I think. Act II is a little more tricky because I need to decide on 1) how to resolve the Act I conflict, 2) IF elements are resolved, and 3) justifying properly 1) and 2).
So far... so good...
"Woah, that's pretty heavy man..." you say? Yep! (I sez)
And if you think the conceptual conflict is heavy, wait until you see the CONTEXT! I do enjoy a good dramatic element. As a director, I like those moments in the script that rip out your heart and eat it for lunch (EXTREMELY well executed in say, the first 10 minutes of the Pixar movie "UP!"), and then have a moment or two midstream that takes a sledge-hammer and whacks you a good one in the nether-regions (preferably just before intermission in a play). Also, I think a really well written piece is proven so by the discussion it generates afterward, where people can talk to each other about the choices that were made by the characters, whether or not they would have done the same or different, or whether or not they personally can feel what the character felt and empathize, even without condoning or agreeing.
So that's what I'm going for. And I'm trying to find that "thing" that carry's through those ridiculously difficult choices. In the case of my play, I decided that the "X-Factor" called Love must partially prevail (yeah yeah, call me mushy), and how that plays out in Act II will be the toughest part of the writing. The goal is to not have it get all Nicholas Sparks formulaic. Although that works for him, I think there's an element of realism that will make any tragic event a little less "cutesy" and a little more true across the entire spectrum of the human condition.
For example, in real life, the loss of a loved one through illness, though a sad event and generally overshadowed with grief, often includes an element of "relief" because of the end of suffering. Without getting all mad at me, consider this possibility: is it not also true that the relief goes both ways? What I mean is, although there's an end to the suffering on the part of the newly deceased loved one, is there not also a "selfish" element in there as well, where the relief also hits the surrounding family and friends, relief from having to *watch* a loved one suffer and care for them in their need? It does sound callous, but in fact, I think it's a normal part of the human condition, and depending on the person, that more "selfish" relief has a greater or lesser impact on them based on who they are as a person. Is that ok? How does that affect someone if they examine themselves and realize this? Is it something some / many / most people even realize? Are there exceptions to this (does that suggest a more pure soul)? Does this usually morph into a form of guilt, and if so, what's the resolution for it? What else could come of it? Is there a form of acceptance?
So that's another element I'm slightly exploring with this script.
Yeah. Heavy.
But fascinating!!! In any event, I'm very much enjoying putting together this piece and am looking forward to sharing it with anyone who is interested. Please bear with me, as there are only a few select people I would bounce it off of while in it's "early development" stage, but once I have a full draft I'm happy with (note: Not the "final" version, but a full workable version), I would be happy to post it here...
Well, that's it for this musing... sorry if it depressed you a bit... that's why I started off with the bad volcano / ash joke..
MAKE YA LAUGH, MAKE YA CRY!
Ciao!
B
Well, I just got back from Europe. Barely. I left London's beautiful Heathrow Terminal 3 a scant 14 hours before the UK Airspace was closed due to the ash cloud belched forth upon this land by the Icelandic Volcano Mount Icantprounounceitandniethercanyou. So, counting my lucky stars (that you can see through the ash cloud) I have returned.
(By the way, I'm told the ash on the ground is so thick right now you can't see the potholes in the streets... Yep, some Icelanders can't tell their ash from a hole in the ground. Wokka WOKKA!!)
So after a whirlwind tour of the UK, France, Germany, the Ukraine, Russia, and Switzerland in just over three weeks, the BradK has returned to the mostly-English speaking part of the world, albeit, we do speak "bad English" more than "English" 'round these parts.
Now, you may ask, "But BradK, with all that travel and seeing all those sights, surely a Musing had to have hit you on your adventures!?"
Loyal readers (and occasional curiosity seekers), it's true, there was much to Muse me AND a-Muse me. But my mind was a razor sharp focus over the past month or so. See, just before I left, I was driving home from work, and I had a "Grand Musing" - one that is still to this day, not quite ready for prime-time (or rather, blog-time). I envisioned a story that needed to be put to paper...er... Word Doc. And several weeks later, I realized the origin of my story came from an unlikely place. I was having a conversation in a bar with one of my favorite bartenders and a very Sweet Man... er.. Sweetman... (it's his last name, bear with me). We were discussing "Honesty vs. Selfishness" in some context that was basically, a silly fun premise. Fast forward a couple weeks, and the conversation had sat quietly in the cobweb covered moldy part of my brain called the "subconscious" until it came screaming into the forefront of my thoughts.
So it became a play exploring an extreme, but possible, situation where honesty may be the more selfish option between a couple.
What you say?
Well, yes... I said the play explores the situation as a dramatic concept. Act I is complete and sets it up pretty nicely I think. Act II is a little more tricky because I need to decide on 1) how to resolve the Act I conflict, 2) IF elements are resolved, and 3) justifying properly 1) and 2).
So far... so good...
"Woah, that's pretty heavy man..." you say? Yep! (I sez)
And if you think the conceptual conflict is heavy, wait until you see the CONTEXT! I do enjoy a good dramatic element. As a director, I like those moments in the script that rip out your heart and eat it for lunch (EXTREMELY well executed in say, the first 10 minutes of the Pixar movie "UP!"), and then have a moment or two midstream that takes a sledge-hammer and whacks you a good one in the nether-regions (preferably just before intermission in a play). Also, I think a really well written piece is proven so by the discussion it generates afterward, where people can talk to each other about the choices that were made by the characters, whether or not they would have done the same or different, or whether or not they personally can feel what the character felt and empathize, even without condoning or agreeing.
So that's what I'm going for. And I'm trying to find that "thing" that carry's through those ridiculously difficult choices. In the case of my play, I decided that the "X-Factor" called Love must partially prevail (yeah yeah, call me mushy), and how that plays out in Act II will be the toughest part of the writing. The goal is to not have it get all Nicholas Sparks formulaic. Although that works for him, I think there's an element of realism that will make any tragic event a little less "cutesy" and a little more true across the entire spectrum of the human condition.
For example, in real life, the loss of a loved one through illness, though a sad event and generally overshadowed with grief, often includes an element of "relief" because of the end of suffering. Without getting all mad at me, consider this possibility: is it not also true that the relief goes both ways? What I mean is, although there's an end to the suffering on the part of the newly deceased loved one, is there not also a "selfish" element in there as well, where the relief also hits the surrounding family and friends, relief from having to *watch* a loved one suffer and care for them in their need? It does sound callous, but in fact, I think it's a normal part of the human condition, and depending on the person, that more "selfish" relief has a greater or lesser impact on them based on who they are as a person. Is that ok? How does that affect someone if they examine themselves and realize this? Is it something some / many / most people even realize? Are there exceptions to this (does that suggest a more pure soul)? Does this usually morph into a form of guilt, and if so, what's the resolution for it? What else could come of it? Is there a form of acceptance?
So that's another element I'm slightly exploring with this script.
Yeah. Heavy.
But fascinating!!! In any event, I'm very much enjoying putting together this piece and am looking forward to sharing it with anyone who is interested. Please bear with me, as there are only a few select people I would bounce it off of while in it's "early development" stage, but once I have a full draft I'm happy with (note: Not the "final" version, but a full workable version), I would be happy to post it here...
Well, that's it for this musing... sorry if it depressed you a bit... that's why I started off with the bad volcano / ash joke..
MAKE YA LAUGH, MAKE YA CRY!
Ciao!
B
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