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| It doesn’t seem to align properly here in Windows Live Writer(as I’m writing this in WLW, the text appears over the green area and this yellowish textured area, even though it’s only supposed to appear over the yellowish textured area and not over the green), but now that I can blog quickly and effortlessly, I might just do it. I still much prefer how WLW works with my blogspot.com account actually.
Oddly, I haven’t had much to say over the past few years…though much has happened, there just isn’t need for commentary on it. We’ll see if that changes with the coming days. I do have things I’d like to express, though I’d rather express them in the form of a book or a screenplay than as a series of blogs. I do have both a screenplay and a book as active works in progress, though the formats do not adapt so well to the free-form writing that blogging allows for. Curiously enough, blog entries can be edited pretty easily to serve as content in other formats though. I’m hoping that the free-form practice in expression will translate into higher productivity and higher product value in my other literary exploits. We’ll see.
Be well Xangites. -Rob | | |
| ...it's been a while. I like the new features. Making the new layout (well, stealing one from the available choices and modding it for my own purposes) was fun. I doubt I'll be back regularly unless Xanga becomes compatible with Windows Live! Writer though. Well, I might hang around and see what kind of a layout I can come up with since this editing stuff seems pretty dynamic...but not right this minute, because I have 3 huge papers to write in the next 3 weeks. Killing time, killing time...
-Rob
edit: okay, in order to see the new layout, you have to update your links because my old bookmark address still shows the old design that I had. This is the new addy: http://www.xanga.com/NoUseFrAName | | |
| Merry Christmas Season!
...so, I just checked my marks on the college website for the previous semester.
I was expecting to barely pass my sociology class, even though I got an A on our first midterm, and on our final exam I probably scored a B...my teacher was going to give me a zero on the only assignment he gave us all year.
...I found that out only after our final exam when he was handing them back to us...
...needless to say, I was pretty choked...especially since we handed it in back on November 23rd...
I asked if there was anything I could do...and he just shrugged at me blankly like I was retarded(in his defense it was the last day of school, so I couldn't exactly rewrite...but then again, it shouldn't take 3 weeks to mark an 8 page essay).
...he said he'd read it over...since it was worth 25% of our grade, and I said that he should at least give me a bad mark even if he's not going to give me a passing mark...
...so I went to him 2 days later...and he hadn't read it over yet...and he got all condescending about it asking if I wrote the paper for another class...to which I replied, "No. I just decided that I didn't want to regurgitate everything that you told us in class. I wanted to research the topic from an angle which was more personally relevant"
(The assignment was to research and discuss private troubles as a student in relation to the public issues of social structure...so naturally one would assume that problems which were more relative to the author of the essay would be acceptable).
...anyway...just got finished checking my marks in the class, and somehow I ended up with a B+.
...kind of infuriating actually...because he must have given me a pretty decent grade for me to get such a high mark...which leads me to believe that he probably didn't even read the essay the first time around...he probably just skimmed the introduction and conclusion or something and didn't find any of the 'keywords' he was looking for and decided I was totally off track....and instead of looking to substantiate the theory, he was content to just give me a zero...
...at any rate, I won't be taking any more sociology classes, since only about 5% of our textbook had any interesting information....and maybe 40% of that 5% was actually important to learn about in terms of studying sociology.
There was so much emphasis on Karl Marx and...George Ritzer I think it was....and neither of them really contributed a lot to intellectual advancement(although many might disagree with me on the Marx issue...I happen to think that the whole class struggle perspective is mostly useless in the face of understanding the states of consciousness/awareness of the interest groups that are involved in a given situation which serve to shape the way that social interaction unfolds. It's not about power struggles...it's about what individuals perceive to be integrous and what they are capable of perceiving).
...Ritzer's whole bit was about the 'McDonaldization of Society'...which is also a skewed perspective...looking at things in terms of how they're shaped by fear and greed and how that results in things becoming highly efficient and predictable or whatever...
...basically, the trend toward efficiency can be better understood in the context of evolution. It's not necessarily about people being insecure with unpredictability so much as it's self evident that efficiency is better than inefficiency...it's not an idea that's the product of the ideology of a particular interest group...it's universally true that efficiency is better than inefficiency...not a matter of anyone trying to mimmick a particular model for productivity.
...I think it's a shame that Marx is so embraced in the study of society, since his perspective really has little pragmatic value. It puts constraints on how people identify social patterns and biases them to think about conflicts in terms of a particular end(power) which may be entirely unrelated to the motivations and expressions of those involved (and of course there's the whole thing about Marx's ideas and predictions not going the way he expected which you'd think would mean somethin in terms of his credibility).
...in defense of sociology though, I did come across a number of interesting journals and articles during my research for the essay mentioned above....so it's not all crap...
...I just wouldn't reccommend taking my particular college class...since most of what was taught was outright disagreeable, not to mention completely biased and relatively ignorant of alternate explainations. (And my prof is easily one of the least articulate people I've met)
...but yeah...life's good. It's worked itself out...got a decent mark...don't have any more sociology classes...and my schedule for next semester is sweet.
...and I forgive my sociology prof. heh.
Happy holidays!
-Rob | | |
| Stand-Up Comedy Act
Alright, so Martin had this idea...a scenario really, where you're at a bar or a club and someone that you've had your eye on for some time says that they'd be your 'plaything'(Martin's words) if ony you could prove that you had a sense of humor...so they push you up to do a stand-up routine at the open mic...
...what's your act?
Here's what I came up with...at like 4am this morning, ha ha.(edited slightly)
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Hey ladies, fellow guys, and hot girl that I'm trying to impress! Welcome to open mic night.
I suppose it's awkward to say that since you've already been weclomed by the last three acts...
You're probably thinking "[bored voice]yeah yeah, inroduction, welcome, blah blah, just get to the funny part[/bored voice]".
Well come on, as you can clearly see, I haven't prepared anything...but like my older, wiser, less attractive, imaginary brother would say, "[brother voice]Ya can't blame me for something I didn't do![/brother voice]".
...I mean, audience, it's not like we're married! are you gonna start nagging me now?
"[heckler]Boooooo![/heckler]"
Hey, it was a rhetorical question man!
But really, on the topic of marriage, and since I'm only up here for the sake of impressing the most gorgeous lady in the building (*points*) go on have a look.(everyone shifts their seats in confusion, since I'm pointing at the not so attractive bartender guy)
Yeah, on the topic of marriage, let me just put it out there for ya: I'm not afraid of commitment. Yep. I said it. Betrayed my tesosterone pumping brethren, but yeah, I mean, what's so bad about commitment, guys? It can open a lot of doors for ya, let me tell you!*nudge nudge*
No I'm kidding...that's CON-mitment. It DOES work, but that's not what I'm all about.
As an aspiring comedian it's basically the key to a solid future in stand-up. On the one hand, people just eat up all the stuff about marriage
"[lame comedian voice]...she's a feminist, and yet for some reason she'll rip my head off if I leave the toilet seat up! so I says, 'hey sister, you want equality, you got equality!'[/lame comedian voice]
(pause)
...and then she got me pregnant.
That sucked.
I don't have a vagina, so you just picture that for a second.
No but really, marriage is perfect if you're going to be a comedian, because when you're miserable and need to blow off some steam, you just tell her you've got a gig, then come down here and get totally smashed.
Plus, if you don't wear your ring, you've got a chance at changing your fortunes by impressing the most beautiful lady in the bar *winks at bartender again* (audience shuffles again in confusion looking for hot girl).
No, I'm kidding *insert name of hot girl*...I'm not married.
...Anymore.
So when I say that I'm not afraid of commitment, I'm talking from experience. It's not so bad.
It's just unfortunate that my last wife had to go and get herself murdered.
I just wish they caught the killer. Reports said he was about this height (holds hand at my own height), with brown hair, blue eyes, a slender build, [suave]devillishly handsome[/suave]. He's also an aquarius, likes long walks on the beach, and isn't afraid of commitment.
Quite a catch if you ask me...so, like, if you're the next lucky lady, you might wanna think twice about turning him in is all I'm saying.
and speaking of turning in, I can see them getting that massive cane ready at the sidestage, so I'm gonna turn in the mic now and see if my ploy to impress the bartender will get me any free drinks.
You've all been great! Thanks.
[audience applauds]
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and for comparison, here's Martin's attempt:
Martin's Stand-Up Routine
...I've never been too good at 'funny'...puns are the extent of my regular repertoir of hilarity...and their awesomeness only seems to work on me...so forgive the less than brilliant first attempt. Perhaps I'll try again later.
For now howeer, enjoy!
-Rob | | |
| Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby
Hilarious. Ridiculous...but hilarious.
...not sure what else to say about it...
...all the characters verged on Napoleon Dynamite-stupidness...but to good effect.
5/5
-Rob | | |
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