Random Thoughts #26 - the "late at night" edition

Hide the women and lock up the kids...the most dangerous man with a mic is LIVE!!! Yes it is yet another collection of random thoughts from yours truly. Here they are, live and in color:

 -  I was thinking that if I ever wanted to use an opening line or statement in front of some audience (most likely a wrestling one), the first sentence in this overall blog would be it. Of course its delivery would be more lively and vocal and done only in the way I could do it, but I think it would be effective. At least that's my opinion...

 -  I did watch the Oscars on Sunday night. I have to say, I'm impressed. They got the right guy to host it, Hugh Jackman, and hopefully he'll be the host for the next ten to fifteen. I thought he was that good. I liked how they presented the major awards, with soliloquies and testimonials to each actor and actress nominated. My only nitpick with that is that I think they could have done that with just two people instead of five. What worked against it this year is that with the exception of best actor, most of the categories had predicted winners and like in past years they didn't really have audience favorites or box-office smashes for best movie, just so-called "critical darlings". No Dark Knight, if you will. Overall, they got the format right for the Oscars, but if they want more ratings for the show they might want to get away from little-known films in picture categories. It's no surprise that the highest rated Oscar telecast was the one whose best picture was a box office smash named Titanic.

 -  Also, in last night's telecast, Mr. Jackman proclaimed "the musical is back!"...as long as they don't try to re-air or remake "Cop Rock" or anything like it, it might actually stay that way for a while.

 -  Remember a few months back (the end of May specifically) when I wrote a blog about the first girl I ever fell for and that I didn't know what was going on with her? Well, I believe I have found out (I'm 95 percent certain on this). Without going into real specific specifics, she's in the South and it appears that she is married with at least one child. I always wondered what happened with her. I have reached out to her just to see how her life is going. Regardless of whether she responds or not, I hope she's doing alright. Also, now that I know, it's one less thing to bug me and I can (finally?) move on to more romantic pastures.

 -  Regarding that last blurb...it is related to the "unrevealed issues" I've been alluding to over the past few months, but indirectly. It's the first bit of progress to getting through that stuff so I can move on. I've still got a very long way to go, but it's a start.

 -  I had a blast at the O.C. last Saturday night. My entire crew was there and we danced all night to the music that our friend and birthday boy Tommy D laid down. It's the first time in a while that my entire crew was together in one place, and the only regret was that none of us had cameras to commemorate the occasion. I think the next time this might happen again will be the second weekend in April, around Kevin's and my birthdays, so for any of you here, crew or not, mark that weekend down so that you can come celebrate with us.

 -  I watched the new animated Wonder Woman striaght-to-DVD movie over the weekend. Pretty good movie in my opinion but one thing did stick out to me during the film: I have never seen the word "crap" so formally discussed before in detail within a movie dialogue...very interesting.

 -  Song on repeat this week: "Will You Still Love Me" by Chicago...probably one of the most romantic songs I listen to.

 -  SLP to the following: Kevin, Dave, Griff, Ernest, Tommy D, Jay, Pastor Cory, Shane S., Scott D., Heather and Holly (who I call the Flyers twins, since that's where I met them).

Before I go, even though I've known for a while I want to congratulate my friend Dave on his engagement...he's got a good woman.  Until next time, when I come up with hopefully another decent opening line for a blog entry, take care and God Bless.

DJ

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Random Thoughts #25 - the "quickie" edition

Hello once again. I'm back with some random thoughts on stuff, though like the title states, they may be quickie blurbs compared to my sometimes long and tedious excerpts from random thoughts past. In any case, enjoy.

 -  Today is the two year anniversary of my becoming a Christian and giving my life to Jesus Christ. An important day for me, to say the least.

 -  This year it is also President's Day. Isn't it nice that we now have a worthy U.S. president after eight years of a crummy one?

 -  The areas where I have no updates for: those specific issues yet again, the potential new club, and my job prospects (though with the stimulus about to be signed tomorrow, my chances for permanent work will hopefully strengthen).

 -  Why do I keep bringing up the "specific issues" stuff even though I don't talk about it here? Well, it's not so much to keep reminding everybody else about it. It's simply a way for me to keep my focus on what I'm doing now, to not forget about it once I've got this stuff resolved, and to have a reminder of it whenever I look through my blogs in the future. I apologize if it bugs some of you that I keep bringing this stuff up without talking more about it, but I'm doing this more for me than anything else.

 -  Last Saturday night wasn't as good at the OC as previous outings had been. It was a bit too thuggish for my tastes. I think Valentine's Day had something to do with it and, dating/women issues aside (that's right, I'm still single), I rarely have good luck on that day anyway.

 -  As I told one of my friends recently, it seems like the crowd has been changing every weekend at the OC for the past couple of months. One weekend there were tons of hot women there, another was like bridal shower night, last weekend the thuggish stuff, and yet another it was old school dancing night. Sure there are us regulars and Tommy D spinning great as usual, but it's like theme night at the OC. In all my time clubbing I've never seen a phenomenon like this without advertising...it just happens. I don't know how long it's going to last, but it's been interesting there to say the least.

 -  I have to admit, last Saturday's NBA Slam Dunk contest was fun to watch for the first time in years. It had me laughing out loud a few times as some of the stuff going on. And Shaq getting down with the Jabbawockees before the All-Star Game? I loved that.

 -  I have updated my Myspace music playlist. For right now I'm removing the Chris Brown stuff as my way of protesting violence against women. I have added new songs.

 -  I'm still getting used to Linux on my computer. I found the right movie/video player for me, but there's still things I need to find that work for my tastes.

 -  Song on repeat: Sexy Lady by Yung Berg. Good song, nice and smooth danceable beat.

 -  Here's a new feature I'm testing for the blog: Shoutouts, Love, and Props, for people I talked to, people I want to remember, and those who kept in contact with me in between "random thoughts" blogs. It may be all-inclusive, it may not...it'll be the people I remember at the time I write a particular blog, so if you're not mentioned don't be offended because I do my random thoughts from memory for the most part and I value all my friends anyway...it's a way of giving, well, shoutouts, love and props to those important to me and not forget those who help make me better. I may not put in people I keep in regular contact with because they'll get that respect regularly anyway...or I might, depending on what's going on in my blog, maybe as an extra thank you or something like that. I'm calling it "SLP" for short and future reference...might be something for some of you to take up too. I'm starting it in the next blurb.

 -  SLP to the following this time around: Ernest, Daryl, Eldina, Tatjana, Marilena, Jay, Carlo, Dani and Tommy D.

Okay, so some of the blurbs weren't really quickies, but I hope you enjoyed them anyway. Until next time, when I hope to have all the world's problems solved...NOT (I'm leaving that to Jesus). Take care and God Bless.

DJ

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Random Thoughts #24 - the "really tired" edition

Hello, everybody...welcome to another brand-spanking new edition of randomized thoughts for your consumption. Enjoy.

 -  The weather is finally changing and it is warming up, and amazingly enough so is my attitude. Even though I've got that unresolved, unrevealed stuff to deal with still, it looks like the winter blahs are finally letting up. It's even gonna hit the 60s this week, which means the ice is finally melting and my hopefully my mood elevates even more.

 -  If anybody tried to reach me last night (at least one person did, so this blurb is mostly for them), I was out cold last night sleeping and didn't wake up until 5 this morning. As some of you already know, I've had trouble with insomnia and sleeping lately and before last night I had two hours of sleep over two days time. At least I got those two hours in before going to the OC Saturday night. I'm pretty sure it has to do with the weather and my stress, but since both are letting up I am hoping I can get back to a regular sleep schedule again.

 -  Speaking of the OC, last Saturday night was kick-ass. I had a ball and have had one generally over the past few weeks there, even with the differing crowds each weekend. My friends now starting to show up again may have a lot to do with that. On a related front, I did get word of another club that may open sometime in the near future with possible involvement from several people I know and trust, but nothing is confirmed as of yet. When and if that happens I'll let you all know because if everything does come to fruition the way I expect it to, it may be the start of new, exciting, and great things for many of us here. Most of you know my expectations about dance clubs, club clientele, and club environments. Some of you have actually followed me to certain places and had their lives changed considerably for the better because of those tastes. If this club does get off the ground, this is potentially going to be another one of those type of situations. In the meantime, stay tuned and keep your fingers crossed.

 -  You turn your back for a minute: I missed the Grammys last night because of the deep sleep I was in. I wake up this morning and I find out on the net that Chris Brown didn't appear at the award show because he was arrested on domestic violence charges. Are you kidding me? This came out of left field and I hope it really isn't true because I'd be disappointed. It does remind us that even those people we look up to for inspiration and hope and even release from boredom are human too and we should not put them on pedestals that makes them appear more than that.

 -  Valentine's Day is this weekend and the only plan I have for now is the club. Something different would be nice, especially if it involves female companionship, but that's the only thing I've got in the cards so far. I am open to doing stuff.

 -  A week from today I will celebrate two years since I was saved and became a follower of Jesus. It's been a winding journey, one that has actually intensified a bit in the past couple of months, but it's all been worth it. Given that, I am saddened by something that I read about in the Akron Beacon Journal (online version) yesterday about one particular Catholic woman who is desperately trying to get her son away from a Xenos congregation in Akron (they have a 5,000 strong church here in Columbus), claiming Xenos is a cult. From what I know, Xenos is just another church that follows and tries to spread the love of Jesus Christ, just like many other churches do. It may do some things differently, but you'll find that in each congregation and denomination. From what I know, cults don't normally follow Jesus, so based on that I don't think Xenos is a cult. The son, who found his way to Jesus through this group and seems to be doing okay in his overall life right now, thought his family would be proud of that. Apparently his mother appears to be one of those who believe that her way, being Catholic, is the only way to be religiously and she is acting up against the local Xenos church because of it. It is sad that she cannot accept that her son is a follower of Jesus even though he's not Catholic. I can only pray in this instance, for the son to be able to get through all this and for the mother to gain wisdom in seeing that her son is not in a cult and follows Jesus.

 -  Over the weekend I went to the Circuit City liquidation and found Smackdown vs. Raw 2009 for under $30. It is a newer game that goes for $40 regularly and it was that last fairly-recent game for PS2 there, so I got lucky. On the flip side, the store staff there treated me and others had questions about stuff very poorly. One could say it is because the store is closing, but other times I went to any Circuit City they did this too, and other people I know had horror stories from dealing with them. With that and their overcharging of prices for most of their items, it's no wonder the chain is going under. At least I got something good out of it.

 -  The economy is taking a beating and the word "depression" has come up. I'm having enough of a hard time dealing with economic and financial stuff as it is, but if it becomes a depression it's gonna make things that much more harder to deal with. This is all on the George W. Bush and his administration, so for those of you who voted for this guy in the 2004 election, this economy and hard times are what you got for that vote. At least we have a president in Obama that wants to make things right going forward. Hope is something this country needs right now, and Obama has it in spades...I just hope Congress gets that message when dealing with stimulating the economy.

That's all I got for now. I changed the background of this blog to a static version of the Matrix background found on my profile, so hopefully it won't be distracting to people who read this blog. If anything else comes up today, I'll add it later as an edit with the time. Until next time, America....take care and God Bless.

DJ

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