2010: The Year of Health and Healing (At least, I think that this title will do......I guess)

I've got a lot on my mind. A LOT. It's been far too long since I've sorted my thoughts out in writing. A lot has happened in the past year. I'm a married man now. I lost my full time radio gig. I moved up the ladder at my part time retail job; which could, potentially lead to plenty of other job opportunities.

I've also dealt with plenty of family drama. More than I could ever imagine. More than I would ever ask for. (But really, who would ask for that type of bullshit? Okay, you got me!!!) It's more than I would EVER wish on another person.

Welcome to marriage.

Time to man up.

I'm not # 1 anymore.

This is so weird, admitting such things.

I've dealt with emotions that have been so overwhelming, I've found myself sobbing like a baby and screaming like a banshee.

This is normal? This is a MAN who is in control?


Not likely.

But I've realized something. If I didn't care, I probably wouldn't react in such a way. If I didn't care, I wouldn't be thinking about it, let alone writing about it.

I'm almost 32. I have a wife whom I love with every inch of my being. I have a 5 year old (step) son who I would kill for.

And I want more.

Despite ALL of the family bullshit (and there has been plenty - from both sides).

Though I am not old - I am not that young. It's time to be serious about a number of things that have to do with me growing old....at least growing old comfortably.

It's time to pay attention to my health. I'm no fat ass, but I could stand to lose about 40 or 50 pounds.

I have sleep apnea. That means I need a machine to help me sleep so I don't risk serious health risks (including dying in my sleep).

My temper, my patience, my memory - my overall health are ALL affected by my sleep (or lack thereof).

It's time to work on my health - and healing.

Too much thought has been wasted on the family drama. Too much energy has been wasted from the anger that has resulted. Too much pain has plagued me (or rather, I've ALLOWED too much pain to plague me) from letting it all add up. Too much time has been wasted on the tough breaks.... and it's crossed over into the good stuff.


That's NOT acceptable.



Blah, blah, blah.....



Time to man up.

If I'm going to be a good husband, a good father and overall good man, I need to swallow my huge pride and not be so angry. The misdirected anger does not help me feel good about myself. It doesn't help me communicate with my wife, and it doesn't help me with the youngster.

I've made it known to the appropriate people that I will bite if provoked - and that I will fight for my family.

That doesn't mean I have to hold on to the resentment.

I don't need hatred in my heart. I don't need sadness in my eyes. I don't need depression in my head.

I vow to raise this little boy in a happy household (with discipline of course!)

I want any child of mine to be protected, loved and to have a great childhood. I will learn from my mistakes and realize that the world doesn't have to be an overwhelming reality. It just is what it is.

Can I loosen up? Sure.

Can I move on? Sure.

Can I forgive?




Sure.


Will it help me?

I believe it will.

Round 3

I must be a sadist.


I'm giving radio one more shot.

I must be nuts going back to work in an industry that pays me out of bottle return money; where too often the scum rise to the top and the good people eat shit every day. An industry that chewed me up and spit me out.......twice. An industry where the bottom line is EVERYTHING.



I must not like myself very much.

No, really..... I do still love the idea of being a radio personlity. It's been a my dream since I was a little boy. I like being "the voice" being heard on the other end of the speaker. I like being able to ham it up with a microphone in my face (with no one watching...) I enjoy people hanging on to my every word......

I miss being on the air. I just don't miss the bullshit.

That's why I'm going back to working on the radio...... part time.


I return to the (Lansing) air waves on Saturday February 6th. I will be on every Saturday from 10am to 2pm on 99.1 WFMK (the station that gave me my start nearly 8 years ago).

Now you know.

Boo yah!

Halloween 2: Zombie Overkill

Let me start by saying that I've been a fan of the Halloween series for many years now. The original 1978 Halloween by John Carpenter is a classic (which is a bold statement by today's 'standards', ie. people with such small attention spans-if there isn't enough action-it's boring). The series got progressively silly from that point on (Michael's mask is different in EVERY movie), but so what? It's a slasher series. It's supposed to be fun to watch, and not taken seriously.

A couple of years back, Rob Zombie was tapped to write and direct the 9th film in the Halloween series. He decided to do a "reboot" and start the story from scratch. Zombie releases his Halloween in August of 2007. I gave that film a B- when I reviewed it. "There's plenty of blood, and there are plenty of boobies (not to mention a good amount of fucking, refereces to fucking and plenty of utterences of the word "fuck"). It's a slasher flick. It's Rob Zombie. You do the math. Just don't expect an AWESOME film."

Here we are 2 years later, with another Zombie Halloween film. More boobs! More gore! More Michael! MORE BACK STORY!!!!

Rob Zombie took a simple thing like the boogey man and turned it into a long, twisted story that requires too much thought to be considered fun.

The original Halloween: Little boy kills his older sister. He's locked up for 15 years at a mental hospital. He escapes and goes after 3 High School chicks. He wears a white mask that hides his face and features. He kills a lot of people. Why? NO EXPLANATION. SPOOKY!!!

Rob Zombie's Halloween: Ugly kid gets picked on at school. Has an asshole for a stepdad, a slutty sister and a mother who strips. He snaps! And kills a lot of people.... Spooky? Naw. Ugly kid escapes mental institution as an adult and goes after his younger sister. Wears a mask and kills a lot of people.....

Rob Zombie's Halloween 2: Escaped lunatic lives as a bum...... kills a lot of people... is still crazy..... has mommy issues..... kills a lot of people.... goes after younger sister...... who somehow feels a connection..... ???

Basically, Rob Zombie decided to add LAYERS and LAYERS to a story that shouldn't have been fucked with at all.

Not spectacular. I give it a C


P.S. I spent the past week trying to come up with the appropriate words for this review. I did what Rob Zombie did..... I OVERTHOUGHT!!!!

I still have time to do this!!!

I've been neglecting my blog as of late. Honestly, I've been busy planning a wedding, getting married, working, raising a 4 and a half year old, and getting fired. (As I mentioned before, I will touch more on those subjects soon) In the midst of all this, I have had a chance to see some great films.

Rather than blog about each one individually (since some of these film have been out for a bit), I figured I'd give a quick review of each.

MONSTERS VS. ALIENS
Honestly, this is a great film! Sometimes, animated films like these lean more toward the children, and every once in awhile sophisticated humor is thrown in for the adults (which throws the kids off). With Monster vs. Aliens, the film really does work for both children and adults. It doesn't try too hard to be a clever adult movie, and it doesn't dumb down too much for the kids; it's just funny. Well played by all of the voice actors. Bob (voiced by Seth Rogen) is hilarious. Great family film.



STAR TREK
The previews for this film didn't really appeal to me. (I went to see it because a buddy wanted to.) I expected a bunch of explosions and dopey dialogue, in other words; I was expecting it to be a worthless action film. (Besides, I was never much into Star Trek) Wrong. Not only was the story compelling, but the action was anything BUT worthless. From start to finish, Star Trek will keep your attention. It's a nice fresh twist on an older series. I was pleasantly surprised. When you hear the good reviews (and you will), believe them.




EARTH
There's not much to say about this one. It was a nice family outing. It was fun watching several groups of animals on the big screen, with narration provided by Darth Vader. I mean James Earl Jones!!! Sorry. "Cute" and "charming" would some up this film best. Enjoy.



ANGELS AND DEMONS
Mind you, this is based on the opinion of someone who has NOT read the book. I saw The DaVinci Code three years ago, and found that to be very entertaining. Tom Hanks returns on the follow up, Angels and Demons. I found this one to be a bit better than its predecessor. It seemed to have more action and fewer slow spots. This film, though long, and though it slows a bit by the end, does entertain.

Don't Stop Believin'

On Tuesday, I caught the new show Glee on Fox. It's the story of a High School Glee club, made up of all walks of life. It took a few minutes for me to get into the show at first; the writers sort of threw a monkey wrench in there. The beginning was sort of lambasted with odd humor. Don't get me wrong, that's okay. But I was afraid the show was going to get stale REALLY quickly. Thankfully it recovered before long. (Or maybe, I just needed the few minutes to get acclimated.) The characters turned out to be hilarious, and the circumstances surrounding the Glee Club were a hoot. Glee, in fact, turned out to be very entertaining. Despite the fact that I had to sit through some music by Journey (I'm so glad that I wasn't eating), the music was refreshing. It's too bad that we have to wait until fall to see the series.

Coming soon.....more blogs!!!

Dear readers,
It's been far too long!!! I'll get some blogs up here very soon! I've got plenty of topics to blog about!

Life:

-Marriage

-Fatherhood

-Unemployment



Movies:

-Star Trek

-Earth

-Monsters vs. Aliens

-Angel and Demons


and of course, the new TV show Glee

Lots to say! (Better late than never) Check back soon!!!

DAMN IT!!!

They made it a PG 13 film!!! Wusses!!!

I certainly hope that with this rating (which will obviously attract a younger audience) that the film doesn't sacrifice a good story for neat-o explosions.