Simple Randomness

Utah’s Rivalry Week - And I Don’t Really Care!

Here in Utah it’s the week of the big rivalry between the two big local universities, the University of Utah and Brigham Young University.  Some even call it the ‘Holy War’ of the state, and every year a lot of people get all pumped up about it.

I have to admit, I’ve never really gotten into it.  I mean, I guess in a sense I’m a BYU fan, but just because they’re closer to me and I grew up here.  But honestly in the end I don’t really care.

The funny thing is that I used to actually go to BYU, but dropped out and decided to go to a different college instead.  So maybe I should become a Ute fan just to be the rebel in my family .  I’ll have to think more aobut that one.

Even in the office where I work there are some fans that are die-hard both ways.  And they all make their jabs at each other which does make it pretty fun.  I just don’t know why, but I’ve never really been able to get into it.

Now that I think about it, I’ve never really ever gotten really into any sport!  I mean, I used to play soccer when I was a kid until I almost tore my ACL, but then never played anything seriously again.  Does that make me a strange guy that I’m not fanatical about any sports?

What’s crazy is that I have a brother who really isn’t athletic at all, and yet he is always talking about the BYU team and what they could be doing better etc.  Maybe that’s one of the things that bugs me about sports fanaticism, you have all these guys sitting around debating how their team could be better, etc., and yet they don’t play themselves!  I watch merely for the entertainment aspect, but that’s about it.  Seriously…does that make me a weird guy???

We’re All Getting More ADD!!!

So I was thinking about this the other day and would love to hear what other people think about this. Here’s the question that’s been on my mind:

Is technology making us all more ADD???

I think another way to ask this question is that is it making us more rude as a people?

For example, how many times have you been standing in line to buy something, and the person in front of or behind you is yapping away on their cell phone oblivious to anything else around them?  Then when they talk to the checker it’s like “hang on, I have to talk to a real person for a sec” then they quickly conduct their business and go about their way.  Ever seen that?  I think it’s one of the reasons why people who always wear their bluetooth earpieces drive me nuts!!!

There is a point where you need to stop multi-tasking and actually focus on one thing.  But with all the things going on at one time, I think it’s making it harder for all of us to focus!  Maybe you’re writing something, then an IM pops up on your screen and you attend to that really quick, then get back to work.  You just broke your focus!

I’m not sure what to call this exactly, I think ADD is a pretty good term for it since with all the different technologies and interruptions we don’t focus well.  At least I know I struggle with this.  Anybody else have this problem or have any thoughts on it?

Listening to More ‘Classical’ Music Today

Ok, not really.  I’ve really never been able to get into classical music.  Which is sad because my Dad is a HUGE classical music fan.  He has tons of CD’s, all classical.  Me, I could never get into it.

In fact, it was funny cause one year I thought I’d try to ‘bridge the gap’ between us and bought him an Apocalyptica album.  If you’ve never heard of them they’re a group of cello’s that play Metallica music.  Pretty cool stuff, but unfortunately he didn’t like it.  Oh well!  It was worth a shot at least!

So back to my own ‘classical’ music.  My type of classical music is movie soundtracks.  I’m finding that I tend to work better when I listen to music without words, so I’m exploring the music that I already have.  Right now I’m listening to a little “Two Towers” music from the Lord of the Rings Trilogy.  Great stuff!

i also really like the Braveheart soundtrack.  Anybody know of some other really good ones?

Tattoos Everywhere!

So when I was down in Vegas a few weeks ago, I noticed that just about every body had a tattoo. What’s up with that? Is it just me, or are tattoos becoming more and more common these days?

Now I’ll admit that I can totally see getting like a small tattoo or even a tribal arm band or something like that. I think those look cool sometimes.

But what I don’t get is the whole sleeves thing, and other types that just take up huge sections of skin. I saw one girl in the Paris casino that had two giant angel wings tattooed on her back. Kinda crazy.

I remember when I was in South America riding on a bus in the city, and there was this old lady standing at the crosswalk. She was dressed all nice, but she had this monster spider tattoo coming over her neck and down her chest. Just didn’t look right!

But hey, if that’s your thing, go for it! I’m just wondering why it is that they’ve risen in popularity so much lately. Maybe it’s because of shows like Miami Ink!

I Could Never Use an Asus Eee

So this weekend I’m hanging out and learning a ton at BlogWorldExpo (which I’ll write more about later) and I’ve seen a couple of people with these really really small laptops.  I have a 14″ Dell and it works fine, but I could never imagine working off one of these 7″ screens that I’ve seen a few guys have!

Here’s what I would picture myself as if I was using a laptop like that.  Or, rather than laptop maybe it should be called a ‘hand-top’, but I digress…  So here’s what I see: all hunched over looking like Quasimodo with a bent back and neck just trying to read anything on that thing.

Maybe it’s just cause my eyes aren’t that good or something.  I don’t know, but I really couldn’t see myself using one of those.  But if you could, more power to you!  I mean really, I guess for portability they really would come in handy, but not for every day use.  Maybe someone can give me a reason why?

Looking Forward to the Weekend

This is one of those weeks where I’m really looking forward to the weekend.  Some weeks it doesn’t seem like a big deal, but I’ve been waiting for Friday to come since Wednesday.

I guess it’s just been a stressful week!  I’m still debating if today needs to be a Rockstar day since my head is still cloudy from having so much going on this week.

It also helps that after work today we’re headed up to a cabin with a friend of mine to hang out until Saturday evening.  I’m looking forward to it and hoping we’ll have a good time.

I need more weekend vacations like this.  Hopefully in the next couple of months my wife and I will be able to plan a weekend getaway for just the two of us.  That would be nice since we haven’t been able to do that for some time now.  But I guess that’s just how it goes with two small kids!

Remembering 9/11 - The 7 Year Anniversary

Seven years ago, 9/11/01, is a day that I think few of us will ever forget.  It’s one of those days where everyone can remember where they were and what they were doing.

As for myself, I was actually living in South America at the time (Chile to be exact).  I was serving as a missionary for my church and we were headed to a meeting with some other missionaries.  On the bus a Chilean told us something about tornados and airplanes crashing into buildings, but we didn’t know what he was talking about.  I do remember at the bus stop seeing people watching a TV with a burning building on it, but I had no idea what it was.

So we get to our meeting and the janitor asks us what we are doing there, that we should be in our apartments.  We didn’t know why.  Then he hooked up a TV and showed us.  I remember all of us just watching with a blank stare, not sure what to think or do.  One of the guys with us was actually from New York City.  We found out later that some of his father’s friends were killed that day.

One of the really scary things about being in Chile during that time is that 9/11 is already a bad day there.  9/11 is the day that Pinochet took over.  If you know anything about Chilean history, he was dictator for a long time, and we helped to put him there.  So it’s not exactly a day when a lot of people are friendly to Americans.  So needless to say, we stayed in our apartments for about 2 days without leaving, wondering if we were going to have to flee the country.

It was a scary time to say the least.  But I also remember walking down the street a few days later and a man that I had never met walked up and asked us if we were all right, and offered his deepest sympathies for what was happening.

That day changed all of us I think.  For me, it gave me a renewed pride in our country for the way we pulled together to get through it.  It also opened my eyes to the fact that there really are people who don’t like us.  Whether out of actual hate or ignorance.

On this 7 year anniversary of 9/11, I think it’s important for all of us to remember that day.  It was tragic, and it changed us…for the best I hope!

Rainy Days…And I’m Liking It!

For the last 2 days or so we’ve had cloudy days with scattered rain.  Nothing major, just a little gloomy compared with the heat and sun that we’ve had for a long time now.

Normally I really don’t like rainy weather, but right now I think it’s great!  It’s just nice to have a break from all the heat for a little bit.  Who knows, maybe it’s signalling in the change to fall, but I think we’re still a little ways out for that.

Now, if you live out East or in the South East I’m sure stormy weather is the last thing you want to see with all the hurricanes and tropical storms and such.  Every time I talk to someone from there I am reminded of why I think I’ll try to stay out West.  But that being said, I hope you all stay safe!

Awesome New Mr. T Ads!

I heard on the news that one of these ads was banned because they thought it was offensive towards gays.  WHATEVER!!!  The ad is making fun of speed walking as a sport, which I think most people make fun of anyway!  So here are two of these ads.  Gotta love Mr. T!!!

The Best Salesmen in the WORLD

You know who the best sales people in the world are?  UNIVERSITIES!!!

Think about it, they have convinced all of us that we have to have a piece of paper in order to be worth anything in this world.  Not only have they convinced us, but they’ve convinced most of the companies out there as well!

Seriously, how many times have you been turned down for a job or not even applied for a job because you didn’t have the degree or certification that they were looking for?  And even worse, you might have been more qualified for the position in the first place!!!

Now don’t get any ideas, I’m not thinking of this topic because this has happened to me recently, but I know that it happens out there.  And how many of you are in college and half of your classes make you go, “Huh?!  Why am I taking this class???”

Think about it…