Blood! Not Funny

This is a cute little video some guys at my youth group showed me this sunday. Kids come up with some of the funniest things.

Dodge Poetry Fest Here I Come

I am leaving obsenely early this saturday morning to attend the Dodge Poetry Festival. It is the biggest poetry festival of its kind in the united states. I started attending it years ago and only missed one since then. And only one time would I have considered it a real dog. When I get back I'll post some of my thoughts on the event. And I think some of the writers block is slowly starting to lift.

9/11

This is one of those where were you moments. I have heard people who are old enough ask that question about the day Kennedy was shot. Now I on occassion hear the same question asked for 9/11. Living a few hours away from Philly and DC I have very vivid memories of that day. The day was ordinary. Aren't they all? The weather was moderate, the sun was shining, and nothing special was going on. At that time I was working in a finance office for the state, a small closed off room sharing four desks. Each morning we'd listen to a morning program getting a few yucks when one of the mentioned a news report that a plane hit one of the WTC towers then kept going on their usual shtick. We all commented how it was probably some knuckle head who flew off course and didn't know what he was doing. We went on with our business and they interrupted again to mention how a second plane had hit the second tower. Now we knew there was something going on. Everyone in the courts kept working, but we all switched our radios to news stations and find a TV to see what happened. Now I wish I had never saw what happened. It is still upsetting for me to remember the images of desctruction and of people falling to their deaths. What made it worse is thinking about my father who works at a naval yard in Philly. I ran to the nearest phone to see if he was ok and to convince him to go home. I don't think he did. I remember where I was that day. I was probably planning on taking a walk on the AC board walk down the street from my office. Who knows?

So where were you?

Notebook Review

In spite of my post yesterday, when I read a recent post on notebooks I had to reply. I admit I am a total notebook nerd. I love the way they look and when considering which one to buy I take into consideration things like will it fit in my bag or pocket, cost, quality of paper, and how easy would it be to write with on my lap if I didn't have a table at hand. I do not have a preference as to what type of notebook I will write in. Usually they are whatever I find or am given for a gift. I feel bad whenever people buy either expensive notebooks or pens because I either will lose them or they'll just fall apart. So I tend to go on the cheap picking up whatever is available at the local Borders in the bargain bin. I can usually find a decent hardbound for about 3 bucks, but they are hard to keep open and for some reason have alternating blank pages instead of lined. It's wierd. The good thing about them is they fit easily in any bag and I can usually last a year before buying a new one. I also use the marble composition books because I can find them at the dollar store. The problem with them is they are not very durable and fall apart too easily. Plus the paper bleeds if I use any type of pen other than a ball point. For a buck what can I expect? In spite of what people will have you believe ultimately it doesn't matter what you use. The brilliant sci-fi writer Octavia Butler once gave the advise that we try mixing it up from time to time. Don't be afraid to try out different notebooks. I do recommend you do not waste your money on Moleskines. They are so over rated. Besides being way too expensive they tend to fall apart. A few weeks ago when I was walking through Philly I saw a bunch of people all using the Moleskine hoping to tap into the mistique that Hemingway may have used that type of book (he hadn't). It makes me giggle. Save yourself 8 bucks and just buy yourself a composition book.

It's All So Quiet

With the exception of some lame postings I have been real quet lately. Nothing is going on. Just some writers block. Perhaps I have said all I need to say? I do not know. This isn't a sebatical or another attempt at leaving this behind because every time I tried to I wind up coming back a few weeks later. I just got nothing right now. With all the considerations I have as far as career and life are concerned you'd think I'd have more to say.