Return of the Golden Adams?

Well, it's movie awards season again!  Time to watch all the beautiful people strut their stuff on the red carpet  and give everybody's favorite cliched response, "I'm just happy to be nominated."  That sounded a little bitter didn't it?  But seriously, I like the awards season.  I like it even more when Natalie Portman shows up.  But that's a story for another blog.  So now the real reason for this post.

Back in high school and the beginning of college I started my own awards called the Golden Adams.  I had categories for Drama, Comedy, and Action.  I even had a website one year where people could go on and vote for who they thought should win.  Of course, the votes didn't really matter because I just picked who I wanted, but it was still fun.  Granted, I used to see a lot more movies back then which made the process easier.  This year I saw six movies in the theater.  That is actually a high number for me.  So the feasibility of restarting the awards is not very high.  However, I also started giving a lifetime achievement award.  Past winners included Michael Winslow of Police Academy fame, Tina Majorino of Andre fame, and Jonathan Ke Quan of Goonies and Temple of Doom fame.  As you can tell I like to recognize those who probably wouldn't normally get recognized.  I thought it would be fun to at least bring back the Lifetime Achievement Award as a way to continue the tradition.

Here are some people I think might be worthy of the recognition:
Fisher Stevens - star of Short Circuit and Short Circuit 2
Stephen Root - star of Office Space
Judge Reinhold - star of Fast Times at Ridgemont High and Beverly Hills Cop

But I want to hear from all of you, my loyal readers.  Who do you think should win the award?  Feel free to comment here or on Facebook.  I will announce the winner the week of the Academy Awards.

Resolution Addendums!

In my last post I wrote about my resolutions and mentioned that I thought there was more I wanted to do but couldn't remember.  Well, guess what?!  I remembered!  So here's a couple more goals for me to achieve.

1. I want to do something every day to make at least one person smile.  I'm not sure how I'm going to accomplish this, or how I will even know if I make it happen, but I'm going to try.  So don't be surprised if you get a random message from me or if I call you just to tell you a joke or something.
2.  I want to floss more.  I know we all say this after going to the dentist, but this time I mean it.  I heard that you can add six years to your life just by flossing!  That didn't mean much to me before because I thought the world was going to end this past December.  But clearly that was a hoax, so now I have more reason to floss.

Ok, that's it for now, I hope.

My New Year's Resolutions

Well, we made it to 2013.  Congratulations!  I should start by saying that New Year's is quite possibly my least favorite holiday.  I mean, what are we actually celebrating, the fact that we have to put a new calendar on the wall?  There's nothing overly significant about this holiday.  It happens every year and it's the same every year.  People get stupid and crazy and act like they've never seen midnight before.  Granted, we celebrate all other holidays every also, but most of those carry some sort of importance.  Independence Day celebrates our break from the tyrannical English government.  Christmas celebrates Santa's birthday, I mean Jesus.  Memorial Day honors the troops that have fought for and served our country.  And New Year's celebrates the changing of a page.  Seems kind of anti-climactic if you ask me.

But enough of my ranting.  Like most people, I too fall victim to the curse of making resolutions that I will most likely not follow through on.  As I started thinking about why I never follow through, I realized that I never actually write them down.  So, about half way through January I've already forgotten about all these changes that I told myself I want to make.  That's why this year I'm doing things differently.  I'm going to list my resolutions in this post so I have a record to refer back to as I try to actually follow through on my wishes.  This is the point where I expect most of you to stop reading because I'm sure you couldn't care less about my resolutions.  But for those of you who continue, enjoy.

1. I want to read at least one new book each month
2. I want to write at least 100 blog posts
3. I want to start exercising more.  I'm not exactly sure what that means, so we'll see how this one goes.
4.  I want to stop cussing.  I have no real reason why I want to do this, or how, but I feel like it would be a positive change.
5. I want to cross at least one thing off my Life List.  Obviously, more than one would be great, but I'm not trying to get crazy here.
6. I want to hang some pictures in my home office.  This isn't much of a resolution, but I figure if I write it down here I will be more apt to do it.
7. I want to talk to friends and family more.  Too often I wait for people to contact me, so I want to switch that up a little and be the one to initiate the contact.
8. I want to gain some self confidence and learn to like myself a little more.  This is probably the biggest and most important thing I want to accomplish this year.

I feel like as I was thinking about this post over the past week I had a lot more that I wanted to put on this list.  But of course I didn't write anything down, so I'm sure I forgot things.  Which is exactly why I'm typing this post, so I don't forget the things I want to accomplish this year.  With that said, it's time for me to end this post.  Thank you to anyone who made it this far.  Happy New Year!

End of the World Playlist

As many of you are aware, the world is going to end on December 21.  Or maybe it won't.  Who knows.  Therefore, this could be the very last blog post I ever write.  Or all the mass hysteria and panic which may ensue this week could all be for nothing when we wake up on December 22.  Either way one thing is sure; I get a chance to put together a rather unique playlist.  And even if the world doesn't end this week, I'm sure there will be another Armageddon panic down the road when I can break it out again.

When thinking about what songs to include on this playlist, I thought about what songs best represented the end of the world.  Others suggested putting songs on there that represent happy memories from your life or your favorite songs that you would want to hear one last time.  I didn't go that route.  So without further ado, here is my list, in no particular order.

First, no end of the world playlist would be complete without a song about, well, the end of the world.  So as cliched as it may be, R.E.M.'s "It's the End of the World as we Know It" makes the list.

Next up, we "The Final Countdown" by Europe.  Again, it's pretty self explanatory, but let the countdown begin.

"Live and Let Die" by Wings is my next selection.  What is considered by many to be the best James Bond theme song makes the cut based on theme.  The live performance I've included here even has explosions and fireworks, which could very well happen as the world ends.

I'm going to go with another theme based selection next with Soundgarden's "Black Hole Sun".  This video is really creepy, by the way.

Let's switch it up and bring in a little hip hop flavor.  Bone Thugs n Harmony's "Tha Crossroads" represents what I'm sure many of us hope will happen after the destruction.  Plus it's just a cool song.

Let's keep with the theme of making it to heaven and go with "Knocking on Heaven's Door".  I'm going to use the Guns n Roses version of the song because I like it better.

How about one more heaven song?  This one has a little different feel, but I'm sure it represents the way many of us might feel as the world comes crashing down around us.

And then of course there is this song.  Judgement day, doomsday, it's all the same.  And while I don't think robots are going to take over the world and wipe out humans, you never know.

Next, let's go with another hopeful song, "I Will Survive".  I realize it's a song about surviving a breakup, but still, you know people will be singing it if the world does start to collapse.

We can follow that up with a little Destiny's Child expressing the same survival motif.

This seems like a good place to put another song that is really only appropriate by title.  But, again, I can picture people belting this out during the fallout.

And how about a song for those positive thinkers out there who may think the end of the world craze isn't going to be that bad.

Ok, let's wrap this up and finish off my list without the videos, since I'm sure anyone who's still reading this post has already given up plenty of their time.  So here goes, the rest of my list.
"In the Air Tonight" by Phil Collins because, well, I assume there would be something in the air that signal the end is near.
"People Get Ready" by The Impressions, partly because of the title, but also because it has a message of hope and positivity (not sure if that is word, but I used it in a sentence, so it's all good).
"Hell on Earth" by Mobb Deep for obvious reasons.
And honorable mention to songs such as "Stairway to Heaven" and "Highway to Hell".

I hope you all enjoyed the list, and the videos.  Feel free to tell me why certain songs on the list are bs, or let me know which songs you would include.

Random Thoughts about Song Titles

I was listening to "Safety Dance" the other day and I had to remind myself that it was Men Without Hats that sing it, not Men at Work.  That got me thinking a little bit.  Wouldn't it make sense that Men at Work sing a song called "Safety Dance"?  I mean, when I think of the phrase 'men at work' I think of construction workers.  And what's the number one priority of construction workers?  Why, safety of course!  (Or as my camp directors are fond of saying, risk management.)  So it would be quite easy to mistake Men at Work as the singers of "Safety Dance".  But it's actually Men Without Hats.

I know what you're thinking now.  So what songs does Men at Work sing?  Well, one of their most popular songs is "Who Can it Be Now?".  That seems like a great question to ask when dealing with men without hats.  After all, if they had hats maybe you would know who they are.  But they don't, so you're left wondering who it could be now.  Therefore, it would make sense that Men Without Hats sing "Who Can it Be Now?"  But they sing "Safety Dance".  And Men at Work sing "Who Can it Be Now?"

These are just some random thoughts I had about song titles.  I hope you enjoyed it.

What's the deal with bumper stickers?

As I was driving home from work today I ended up behind someone who had a pair of Obama/Biden bumper stickers on his car.  That got me thinking.  What is the purpose of political bumper stickers?Are they trying to convince others to vote for that candidate?  I mean, do people really see political bumper stickers on the back of a car and think to themselves, "You know, that guy supports Obama.  I think I will too!"?  Or is it purely to show your support for a candidate?  Because if it is, I have to think there are better ways to do it.  A bumper sticker is a pretty permanent show of support.  Four years later, you just look silly.  But to each his own I guess.

Triggering my inner actor

I have been searching for months for a new topic to write about, and as of today, I'm still searching.  But I really had the itch to write, so I'm reaching for something here.  But I know today's topic is something everyone can relate to.  Do you ever hear a word or phrase and automatically think of a line from a movie and instantly have to recite it out loud?  I thought so.  Well, I do it all the time, so I thought I'd share my most commonly quoted lines.

1. "Forrrrrreeeeeeevvvvvvvvveeeeeerrrrrrrr" - Every time I hear the word 'forever' I can't help but quote The Sandlot.  And usually when I do, countless others around follow suit in a chorus of 'forevers".  For those of you who may be lost, watch here:

 Of course, unless you remember the movie well and know that this scene is from the flashback when the boys tell the story of the Beast, you might not recognize it as being from The Sandlot.  But it is, trust me.

2. "Power" - This one is a little more obscure.  When I hear the word power I immediately think of Griff Tannen chasing Marty McFly in the future in Back to the Future II.  Like I said, obscure.  But watch:

I will say that when I repeat the line, "Hoverboards don't work on water.  Unless you've got power," I don't follow it with that ridiculous laugh.  But I do say it in that ridiculous voice.

3. "Paper Jam" - I know there are multiple people who know this one.  Office Space is a cult classic, one that everyone who has a job, whether in an office or not, can relate to.  And the dealings with the printer make for an easily repeatable movie line.

We have all been there and I'm sure we have all wanted to take our printer out to a field, blast some Geto Boys, and know that it does feel good to be a gangsta.

4. "What did you do?" - This is another obscure one, but when I hear this question asked, I immediately go into a mini Ghostbusters monologue.  And everyone who knows Ghostbusters, knows the answer to the question is, of course, the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man.

Most people don't get it when I say, "What did you do, Ray?"  They wonder why I'm calling them Ray.  But there are a few, and you know who you are, who follow my question with, "It's the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man."

5. "One, two, one, two" - This one is a two for one.  Haha, get it.  I totally accept pity laughs.  So depending on how this line is uttered is what I think of to recite.  If I hear it as it is written here, I immediately think of one of my favorite poems, The Jabberwocky, and the line, "One, two, one, two/ And through and through/ The vorpal blade went snicker snack/ And with its head he left it dead/ And went galumphing back."
And if I hear it like someone is counting, I start doing this:

But really, who doesn't? 

So those are the five lines I recite randomly most often when triggered by certain phrases.  I know you all have your own triggers as well, so feel free to share some of yours.  And hopefully, I'll get back on the writing horse and start posting more frequently.