As most of you know, I became a father to a perfect baby girl on October 18th. she is perfect in everyway. We are all in love. And yes, it is a HUGE change. If there is one thing I have been able to rely on that doesn't change is that everything is changing all the time. And it's been that way since I was 18.
The first change I remember that started it all was when my sister became engaged and then married. I don't want to talk about that one right now because although it was the start of constant change, it's very small. The one I would like to discuss happened roughly 10 years ago this week. I remember it very vividly. I was working swing shift and I had fallen asleep watching Walking Tall part 3. My dad woke me up and as calm as he could told me that my best friend Michael who had moved to Arizona had passed away. He told me his brother had called him and it took him a bit to get it out of him. The only thing I will say about the event was that he was hit by a car accidently.
Around this time I had boarded an airplane by myself for the second time, dealt with layovers for the first time and arrived in the driest place I'd ever been in my life. Scottsdale, Arizona. I attended the first funeral of a close person in my life who was young. and stayed for more than 3 days at someone else's house who I was not related to.
I had a hard time accepting his death because although he had a good heart, spiritually his life was a little off. I know he believed in God and Jesus Christ, he told me, but he had a hard time keeping the commandments. At the time, my lack of knowledge of Christ's atonement told me he was doomed and I could not believe that. His heart was good. To make a long story short, This change in life helped me to study and find my testimony of the atonement. I know Michael isn't doomed, and I know where we are going when we leave this world. I know it! I think about Michael everyday. I know he's there for me and everyone he knew and loved. Even people he didn't know. Shoot, I'd bet money he's jamming out with Syd Barrett, Sid Vicious, Jimi Hendrix, and although I hate to admit it Bradley Nowell.
The world misses you Michael. We can't wait to see you again
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
Wednesday, September 17, 2014
Movies that are great but offten dismissed
I've compiled this list because I love these movies but they are often dismissed because they are "different".
The Seventh Seal: This movie is often dismissed because it is Swedish movie that is subtitled but actually very famous and scenes are often parodied in comedies such as the muppets and Bill and Ted's bogus journey. This movie filmed in 1957 stars one of my favorite actors Max Von Sydow as a soldier coming back from the medieval crusades. He is approached by Death and through an ongoing game of chess yearns to find out if God is real. I really like it because the acting and cinematography is great and the story of not only this man's journey to find God but the other people it portrays are fantastic.
Metropolis: I avoided this movie for a long time but did not regret watching it. Metropolis is a silent movie from 1927 (hence the avoidance) which portrays a dystopian future society where the poor people work in shifts to keep all of the machinery for the rich people's luxurious life working. A man from a rich family decides he wants to find out the source of his luxury and goes to work. After doing so he helps with a revolt against the rich. I love this movie because both the plot and the special effects were ahead of it's time. It is long, but the fact that you do have to read it keeps you entertained.
Speak: This movie is often avoided 1. it has Kristen Stewart, 2. it involves rape. The fact is Kristen Stewart is a good actress, when she's not in Twilight. and I hate to say it, rape, especially teenage date rape, happens a lot more than people think and you don't know it until somebody comes out with it.
Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol: I can't tell you how many times people have told me oh yeah I saw that movie and then they will describe the plot of the 2nd or 3rd Mission Impossible movies (which in my opinion are garbage). This movie had a great plot with a ton of cool spy technology. and somehow I was able to look past Tom Cruise as being well, Tom Cruise.
PCU: It came out in the early 90's and I don't think it got enough reception. This movie is about a Pre-Freshman who visits a college in order to find out if it's the right fit for him. he ends up with a group of burnouts in a former frat house where he gets schooled in P.C.U. Politicaly Correct University. It's really funny. My favorite is when they dump the raw meat on the vegan protesters
Clerks: Often avoided because of it's modern B&W low budget film making, Clerks is full of hilarious but crude 1 liners, hi jinx, and elements that make a great comedy. I remember I had seen almost every Kevin Smith movie with Jay and Silent Bob before I finally decided to watch this movie. The sequal is still just as funny.
The Seventh Seal: This movie is often dismissed because it is Swedish movie that is subtitled but actually very famous and scenes are often parodied in comedies such as the muppets and Bill and Ted's bogus journey. This movie filmed in 1957 stars one of my favorite actors Max Von Sydow as a soldier coming back from the medieval crusades. He is approached by Death and through an ongoing game of chess yearns to find out if God is real. I really like it because the acting and cinematography is great and the story of not only this man's journey to find God but the other people it portrays are fantastic.
Metropolis: I avoided this movie for a long time but did not regret watching it. Metropolis is a silent movie from 1927 (hence the avoidance) which portrays a dystopian future society where the poor people work in shifts to keep all of the machinery for the rich people's luxurious life working. A man from a rich family decides he wants to find out the source of his luxury and goes to work. After doing so he helps with a revolt against the rich. I love this movie because both the plot and the special effects were ahead of it's time. It is long, but the fact that you do have to read it keeps you entertained.
Speak: This movie is often avoided 1. it has Kristen Stewart, 2. it involves rape. The fact is Kristen Stewart is a good actress, when she's not in Twilight. and I hate to say it, rape, especially teenage date rape, happens a lot more than people think and you don't know it until somebody comes out with it.
Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol: I can't tell you how many times people have told me oh yeah I saw that movie and then they will describe the plot of the 2nd or 3rd Mission Impossible movies (which in my opinion are garbage). This movie had a great plot with a ton of cool spy technology. and somehow I was able to look past Tom Cruise as being well, Tom Cruise.
PCU: It came out in the early 90's and I don't think it got enough reception. This movie is about a Pre-Freshman who visits a college in order to find out if it's the right fit for him. he ends up with a group of burnouts in a former frat house where he gets schooled in P.C.U. Politicaly Correct University. It's really funny. My favorite is when they dump the raw meat on the vegan protesters Clerks: Often avoided because of it's modern B&W low budget film making, Clerks is full of hilarious but crude 1 liners, hi jinx, and elements that make a great comedy. I remember I had seen almost every Kevin Smith movie with Jay and Silent Bob before I finally decided to watch this movie. The sequal is still just as funny. Saturday, August 30, 2014
My favorite albums part 1
Here is a list of my favorite albums. This will be a very wide range and if you ever watched Sesame Street "One of these just doesn't belong here, one of these things just isn't the same." that's right. but, must of these albums bring back times in my life that I either wish I could go back to, or forget.
Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young's Deja Vu: The first time I remember encountering this album was when I was 9. My oldest brother was finding his groove playing the guitar and at that time I listened to whatever he did. Deja Vu was one of the first album, not song, album that I had any real feelings about. with songs like Our House, Teach Your Children, Almost Cut My Hair, and Deja Vu it had a combination of 60's/70's pop, and psychedelic. others would say different I'm sure, but there are not many groups that have that kind of harmony.
Slayer's Reign In Blood: I know it sounds like an oxymoron for a Mormon to listen to Slayer but that's me. I once went into a cd store in the town of Lynden, WA and purchased a Godsmack album and a Robert Carlisle cd at the same visit. but that's another story. I still remember when I heard Tom Araya's shriek at the beginning of Angel Of Death. I have tried to emulate it since. I was 16 and borrowed the album from my buddy Vince. With songs like Angel Of Death, Raining Blood, and Piece by Piece, fast paced, and heavy. It was one of my first taste of thrash that I liked. I liked it cause I could understand what was being said. I had heard groups like Cannibal Corpses and just couldn't get into it once they started singing.
FM Motion Picture Soundrack: Technically this is a compilation but still a favorite. I have nev er seen this movie. Never been able to find it not sure I want to. It has songs from the 70's from groups like queen, James Taylor, Joe Walsh, etc. I listened to this soundrack countless time on an 8 track, which I got along with a lot of others from my mom's friend Donna. I listened to it a lot with my dad in his buick station wagon we called old blue.
Peter, Paul, and Mary's In The Wind: I have had many of copies of this album. largely due to the fact that it's one of their most popular albums so when finding older copies it's hard to find one in good shape. It's popular for a reason. It's amazing. The vocal harmony is cannot be duplicated. The songs are both inspirational and dark. you got gospel songs like "Very Last Day", and"Tell It on the mountain" and then you have "Polly Von" which is about a hunter who mistakes his girlfriend for a swan and kills her. Classics such as their version of Bob Dylan's "In The Wind" and "Stewball" are epic. There isn't a Peter, Paul, and Mary album I haven't liked yet and I have most of them on Vinyl but this is my favorite.
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Whitney Houston: This was the first cd I ever got. I was 8 years old and our family got our first cd player OOOOOOOOOO!!!! with the coming of our first cd player, each got a cd. I decided I really like Whitney Houston at the time and so that was the first cd I ever got. it's a good album with songs like "How Will I know" (interesting fact, the song was originally intended for Janet Jackson), and "You Give Good Love", it propelled Whitney Houston to stardom.
Neil Young's Harvest: I like Neil Young's work but I will be honest, there are songs of his I don't like. he's not my favorite album artist. Harvest is an exception. I love every song on the album. I had it on cassette when I first got my license. I still remember putting it into the cassette player of my 1988 suburban the first time I went on a drive (legally) on my own. the famous songs from this album are "Old Man", and "Heart Of Gold". My favorites are "A Man Needs A Maid", "The Needle And The Damage Done", and "Words (Between The Lines Of Age)". You have to listen to it front to back.
The Moody Blues' Days Of Future Passed: This was one of the first albums I ever heard that told a story from the beginning to the end. it starts with morning and goes through a whole day of work ( including lunchtime ) and ends with night. Nights In White Satin is the big song from this album that really launched them into stardom.
Guns N' Roses' Appetite For Destruction: When I heard "Welcome To The Jungle" for the first time when I was 14, I flew out of my seat. At the time it was the heaviest thing I had heard. Also, there are very few albums that come out where every song goes on the charts. my favorite was "Rocket queen". only thing I hate about this album, Axl Rose.
Led Zepplin IV: I don't think there is a musician that made music after 1971 that wasn't inspired by this album. everything between the songs and the album artwork has a story. "When The Levee Breaks" was recorded in an old house. the echo from the drumwork by John Bonham was achieved by him playing in a hallway to achieve the sound. The song Black Dog came from a stray black dog running around outside the studio.
Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young's Deja Vu: The first time I remember encountering this album was when I was 9. My oldest brother was finding his groove playing the guitar and at that time I listened to whatever he did. Deja Vu was one of the first album, not song, album that I had any real feelings about. with songs like Our House, Teach Your Children, Almost Cut My Hair, and Deja Vu it had a combination of 60's/70's pop, and psychedelic. others would say different I'm sure, but there are not many groups that have that kind of harmony.Slayer's Reign In Blood: I know it sounds like an oxymoron for a Mormon to listen to Slayer but that's me. I once went into a cd store in the town of Lynden, WA and purchased a Godsmack album and a Robert Carlisle cd at the same visit. but that's another story. I still remember when I heard Tom Araya's shriek at the beginning of Angel Of Death. I have tried to emulate it since. I was 16 and borrowed the album from my buddy Vince. With songs like Angel Of Death, Raining Blood, and Piece by Piece, fast paced, and heavy. It was one of my first taste of thrash that I liked. I liked it cause I could understand what was being said. I had heard groups like Cannibal Corpses and just couldn't get into it once they started singing. FM Motion Picture Soundrack: Technically this is a compilation but still a favorite. I have nev er seen this movie. Never been able to find it not sure I want to. It has songs from the 70's from groups like queen, James Taylor, Joe Walsh, etc. I listened to this soundrack countless time on an 8 track, which I got along with a lot of others from my mom's friend Donna. I listened to it a lot with my dad in his buick station wagon we called old blue.Peter, Paul, and Mary's In The Wind: I have had many of copies of this album. largely due to the fact that it's one of their most popular albums so when finding older copies it's hard to find one in good shape. It's popular for a reason. It's amazing. The vocal harmony is cannot be duplicated. The songs are both inspirational and dark. you got gospel songs like "Very Last Day", and"Tell It on the mountain" and then you have "Polly Von" which is about a hunter who mistakes his girlfriend for a swan and kills her. Classics such as their version of Bob Dylan's "In The Wind" and "Stewball" are epic. There isn't a Peter, Paul, and Mary album I haven't liked yet and I have most of them on Vinyl but this is my favorite.Whitney Houston: This was the first cd I ever got. I was 8 years old and our family got our first cd player OOOOOOOOOO!!!! with the coming of our first cd player, each got a cd. I decided I really like Whitney Houston at the time and so that was the first cd I ever got. it's a good album with songs like "How Will I know" (interesting fact, the song was originally intended for Janet Jackson), and "You Give Good Love", it propelled Whitney Houston to stardom.
Neil Young's Harvest: I like Neil Young's work but I will be honest, there are songs of his I don't like. he's not my favorite album artist. Harvest is an exception. I love every song on the album. I had it on cassette when I first got my license. I still remember putting it into the cassette player of my 1988 suburban the first time I went on a drive (legally) on my own. the famous songs from this album are "Old Man", and "Heart Of Gold". My favorites are "A Man Needs A Maid", "The Needle And The Damage Done", and "Words (Between The Lines Of Age)". You have to listen to it front to back.The Moody Blues' Days Of Future Passed: This was one of the first albums I ever heard that told a story from the beginning to the end. it starts with morning and goes through a whole day of work ( including lunchtime ) and ends with night. Nights In White Satin is the big song from this album that really launched them into stardom.
Guns N' Roses' Appetite For Destruction: When I heard "Welcome To The Jungle" for the first time when I was 14, I flew out of my seat. At the time it was the heaviest thing I had heard. Also, there are very few albums that come out where every song goes on the charts. my favorite was "Rocket queen". only thing I hate about this album, Axl Rose.
Led Zepplin IV: I don't think there is a musician that made music after 1971 that wasn't inspired by this album. everything between the songs and the album artwork has a story. "When The Levee Breaks" was recorded in an old house. the echo from the drumwork by John Bonham was achieved by him playing in a hallway to achieve the sound. The song Black Dog came from a stray black dog running around outside the studio.
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