Upon Further Review: Week Eleven Picks

It's late.

I just got home after a harrowing trip down to Salt Lake City for a cousin's wedding. I'll blog about that more in length this week.

So here are some quick picks.

Cleveland Browns over Jacksonville
Detroit Lions over Carolina
Green Bay Packers over Tampa Bay
Miami Dolphins over Buffalo
Oakland Raiders over Minnesota
Dallas Cowboys over Washington
Baltimore Ravens over Cincinnati
St. Louis Rams over Seattle
San Francisco 49ers over Arizona
Atlanta Falcons over Tennessee
Chicago Bears over San Diego
NY Giants over Philadelphia
New England Patriots over Kansas City

Random Ramblings: Too Many Questions

And not enough answers...

Writing: I am now 9 days (I have not written yet today) into my new novel and I am proud to say that I have posted 20,773 words and I am way ahead of schedule. Like I have said before, one of the most satisfying things is when the novel begins to write itself. When story beats suddenly come out of nowhere and characters come to life. I was worried that my novel was lacking in an antagonist when suddenly the idea of turning a good supporting character into one of the main villains came to me. And it fits so perfectly and I don't have to change anything that I have written before. So when should the main protagonist discover the true antagonist?

Listening Part I: While I write I like to listen to music. I usually get distracted when I listen to Queen (I start to sing along) so I try to listen to movie soundtracks and the like. And one of my favorite bands/orchestras came out with another album. E.S. Posthumus's new album Makara is fantastic and the cover of Moonlight Sonata (featured below) is wonderful. What other music do you recommend I should listen to when I write?

Debating: So I feel that I am at a moral crossroads. I see something in the future that I feel can either turn into some sort of Dateline show or could be completely innocent. What makes matters worse is that I recently saw a Dateline episode that was basically the same thing I am seeing now and that did not end well. So what should I do?

Listening Part II: I have gone through the last five studio Queen albums and I have to say that these new remasters were well worth the purchase. The sound is so much clearer and crisp on the Miracle and Innuendo albums especially. The last two albums are bittersweet, Freddie knew the end was coming and it shows through the songs. While artistically I feel Queen was at their best on these final albums, the songs definitely had hints of retrospect, sadness and dealing with the cards you have been dealt with. So when am I going to post my reviews of each album?

Wishing: I wish I had the NFL Network so I can catch the Thursday games. I just cannot justify paying that much more a month for a TV package when the NFL Network would really be the only channel I would watch. I think I may cancel my TV when the football season ends. It could be that I am getting old but there is just nothing good on TV anymore. The bad stuff on TV clearly overshadows the good. And what TV I would watch, I can catch on the Internet. So should I cancel my TV service at the end of the season?

Calling: Speaking of the NFL game tonight...

Oakland at San Diego:

Both the Chargers and Raiders are in a free fall. Oakland is without RB McFadden and I think that is what will be crucial in this game. RB Michael Bush can also run the ball but lacks the explosiveness that McFadden has. The Chargers usually wake up at this point in the season and I think they will bounce back here.

Winner: San Diego Chargers

Singing: So a couple of Sundays ago I was attending the community choir practice and I got to hear the gospel song we are going to do. Oh boy... ...I really am going to be stepping out of my comfort zone here. A lot of dancing and hand waving and praising. I like to sing and the song is a ton of fun but the actions are not my style. I am going to have to hype myself up to do what they want me to do. I am gonna have to channel my inner Blues Brother.

And shame on you if you don't know who the Blues Brothers are. Have you seen this movie?

So there are some questions... ...now to find some answers.

Late Update

I had to blog on this historic date!

11/01/11

Isn't it that cool? I swear that I grew up during the best time of history. I got the best toys, best music, best movies and now best dates!

So I have started my Nanowrimo novel and I am happy (and yes I am tooting my own horn) that I am now at 3, 301 words! 

And I had a major distraction as my final Queen boxset arrived today. HUZZAH!  I really want to do a review on each disc. I am looking forward to rediscovering these songs.

I had a fun evening yesterday at my dad's and trick-or-treating around his neighborhood. We ate a ton of pizza and a ton of candy. And Logan was able to go around the block with his cousins and come back with a decent haul.

Logan was a Dementor this year. I did his make up even though he didn't think he needed it. 

Happy Halloween (and more)!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Logan went as a spider last year. This year he is a Dementor from Harry Potter

Today not only is Halloween but it also marks the 1-year Anniversary of the conclusion of the 365-Day Blog Challenge. And if you re-read that last entry you will also see that it was the last time that I have spoken in Church as well.

It is hard to believe that it was only a year ago that I finished up this quest. It doesn't seem that long ago at all. This year I obviously have not blogged as much, by my count, including this column, I have blogged 192 times this year. Which is ten more than if I blogged half the time during the year. So I did blog more than half the time (although that was just barely)!

I do plan on blogging a little more this year than I did last year but if I got the same amount, I think I would be satisfied enough. But don't look for a lot of blogs coming this coming month. The Nanowrimo competition starts tomorrow and I plan on cranking out my novel furiously. I even have some new music that I got just for this occasion.

I will still be blogging but it may only be once or twice a week during this coming month.

Random Ramblings: Da-Doo

Shivering: I rather would have cold weather than I would having it unbearably hot. But then I would like to live in a place that has a decent furnace. Our place gets soooo cold. It is nice in the summer because it stays pretty cool most of the time. We finally turned on our heater the other day after trying to go through days without it on.

Watching Part 1: Speaking of shivering. I watched the 2nd episode of the Walking Dead. I cannot recommend this show enough if you like your TV a bit spooky.

Writing: You are going to see this every Random Rambling I do. The Nanowrimo competition starts this Tuesday and I am looking forward to cranking out the first couple thousand words. Reaching 50,000 words really is not that bad when you average out how many words you should do a day. You need to do 1,667 words a day, I like to do more on an average because I like to take Sundays off from writing. Seriously, if you can blog for 365 days in a row, this is a walk in the park!

Meeting: I am meeting with my writer's group here in a couple of hours. Unfortunately I cannot stay to long but I look forward to getting some motivation going.

Watching Part II: Last night Kristy and I went and saw a production of "Little Shop of Horrors" put on by Utah State University. Now I love the movie a lot and I absolutely love the music. But I have not seen the original Broadway musical. This production was set in this small and tight theatre and it was a blast. We sat only a few rows from the stage and I was amazed at how detailed this small production was. The sets and costumes were absolutely perfect and the plant was surprisingly detailed and animated. It actually felt like it was its own person. I know an actor was in the plant giving its motion but the plant felt like it had its own emotion. I won't spoil the ending here if you have not seen the musical and have only seen the movie. It is a lot darker than the movie but a whole lot more entertaining. I would love to see this again.



Singing: Last Sunday I joined the Logan Community Choir with a friend of mine. He asked if I like to sing Christmas songs (which I love to do) and said that this choir is a lot of fun. We sat in the tenor section and I was overwhelmed. Luckily we were sitting by a guy that knew the music. I am really looking forward to tomorrow's session when we are introduced to a couple of new songs that we will perform. Last Sunday we started to learn "Still, Still, Still", "The Virgin Mary had a Baby Boy" and the main chorus from the Messiah. Tomorrow we learn some sort of song heavily influenced by gospel music and he expects us to dance and really go to town. Should be a lot of fun.

Resolutions Halftime

It has been six months since I made my 2011 New Year's Resolutions and even though I don't want to, I guess I should take a look at how I have done. I will rate myself using the Mountain Dew Rating System with 5 Dews being the best (meaning I totally nailed the goal) and 0 Dews meaning I totally flopped.

Resolution #1
"Take Time to Write More"
I did complete another ScriptFrenzy round but aside from that I have not taken the time to write anything else. I do have that children's book that I want to work on. And I really should complete my other novels and take some time to plot my new novel that I will be writing in November.

Resolution #2
"Read More"
The year started out really good. I read a couple of books during the first quarter and I read the Ensign every month for the first quarter. Unfortunately I am struggling this 2nd quarter. I am a little over halfway through my book (Mick Foley's Have A Nice Day) and I think I can finish it off before the end of the month. I have fallen off the wagon when it comes to the Ensign reading. I missed one month and I am behind this month. I have got a lot of reading to do these last couple of days!



Resolution #3
"Be Healthy"
I said I would exercise 5 days a week and I think I have been very close to doing that. I might have missed a day or two here but I can honestly say that I have been exercising a couple times a week. I have played racquetball, I have been riding my bike to work, I have been walking with Randy and I recently have been hitting the Total Gym. I can also honestly say that I have been careful in what I eat. I am definitely eating more healthier foods (more fruits and veggies) even though I still eat my share of treats. I have cut down my soda consumption as well. I still have time to train for my 5K and hopefully my knee will keep up. I think I hit this goal outta the park!

Resolution #4
"Pick up a Pen and Draw!"
Sadly I have not done as much with a pen as I would have liked. I have taken some time to do some doodling but that is about it. I still am interested in doing some art based on the songs of Queen but I have not done anything yet. Looks like I know what I need to do for the rest of the year.

Resolution #5
"Play the Bass"
I still have not learned how to read music but I still manage to pluck my bass a few times a week. Some of the songs I thought were difficult at first are now pretty easy. And some of the songs I am able to sing along with while playing which is way more difficult than you would think. My voice wants to follow the bass and the timing is off and most songs. I am also active in my choir.

I was thinking that I had not done so well with my resolutions but after looking and thinking about them, I think I have done a pretty good job (averaging about 3 Dew per goal). There are things that I definitely need to improve on and now I am feeling a bit motivated to work on them.

List-Mania: Yo Joe!

I am now down to just 3 pages left in my epic GI: Joe comic book script! And to tell you the truth I think I am getting a little burnt out from writing that and also trying to keep up on this blog.

But I really only have one days worth of scripting and I am FINISHED!

So in honor (and to keep a theme going with yesterday's blog) of completing this task, I thought it would be proper to make a List-Mania column devoted to one of my favorite childhood toys (and I still am interested in the Joe franchise) GI: JOE!

Here are my Top 5 Favorite GI: Joe characters along with some teasers of what they are up to in my comic:

5) Firefly
Cobra definitely had some of the better and cooler looking characters. This was one of my favorite action figures as a kid because he looked like a ninja but he carried a cool looking sub-machine gun and was an expert in explosives. And he was a sneaky little dude.

I honestly didn't have much of a role for Firefly in the beginning but the more I wrote him, the more he became important. He is one of the very few that escape from the alien infestation and he plays a major role in getting the Joe team involved.

4) Flint
In the Marvel comics this character was extremely brash and cocky but I didn't see it that way. I only saw that this character oozed confidence. He is a leader and a tough guy and he has a cool shotgun for a weapon. I always wanted to be Flint whenever I played GI: Joe, what girl wouldn't go for a guy in a beret?

Flint is part of the GI: Joe rescue team sent in to Cobra Island. His fate has yet to be plotted out but I am sure he will survive since I like him so much. But then a heroic death would be right up his alley.

3) Storm Shadow
This was the first GI: Joe action figure that I ever got. It was the 80's so Storm Shadow was cool because he was a ninja. But he was also an evil ninja! And not only that, he was cocky enough to wear all white so he couldn't hide. You can also never tell where his allegiances were.

Storm Shadow saves Cobra Commander from an alien attack. He slices one of the alien's tails off which dissolves his sword. He pushes Cobra Commander to safety and we never see Storm Shadow again. But that doesn't mean he is dead.

2) Snake Eyes
How could you not like this guy? He was just the ultimate soldier. He was a commando, a ninja, dressed in black, carried an uzi... ...I could just go on and on about how cool he is. He was the best part of the lame GI: Joe movie even though he had no lines! Some of my favorite comic books centered around this Joe.

He has a pretty major role in my story. In fact he is quite integral to the end and the final confrontation with the Alien Queen. Hmmmm... ...I think I may have shared too much.

I drew this back in 1986. I found the Snake Eyes action figure while visiting the Case cousins in Orem. It was at the grocery store down by the 7/11

1) Zartan
This guy was so evil, so scary and so cool. Not only was he a tough dude, he had his own gang of bikers in the Dreadnoks, he can hold his own against ninjas, he was NOT to be trusted by anyone, he had his own base in a swamp and he could change his features like a chameleon. So he could be anyone!  He also came with a cool Swamp Skier. And not only that, he caused some controversy when he was released in toy stores in Canada. They thought he was too violent and freaky for kids so they used a black marker to mark out his dossier card. That only made me want him more!

And he plays a major role in the my story. Unfortunately Zartan is one of the first to be killed. But trust me, his legacy will definitely live on throughout the rest of the story!

Special thanks to YoJoe.com for the pictures and also for all the detailed information.

The Ballad of G.I. Joe

I have only 10 pages to complete in my ScriptFrenzy competition. I have not written anything today so I should be able to at least crank out 3-5 pages by the end of day. And if I get on a good roll I might be able to finish tonight. Some sessions it seems that it is like pulling teeth trying to put some words to paper. And I think that is because I am writing on the seat of my pants.

But when I do get on a roll the story just writes itself. That has to be the best part of writing, the purest joy of writing is when you get into the zone.

Since I really should be concentrating on writing my script I only want to be here for just a quick second. And in honor of writing some of my favorite heroes (and villains) of the GI Joe team, my thoughts immediately turn to a very funny video about GI Joe. I don't remember if I have posted this before on my blog. Forgive me for being lazy enough not to do a thorough search.

The Ballad of G.I. Joe from Olivia Wilde

Random Ramblings

Celebrating:  I love Easter. It definitely is my favorite holiday. I had a fantastic Easter Sunday. I had to wake up a bit earlier than normal since I had to make it to church before it started to choir practice. I was a little nervous since this song has a ton of high notes that are just a little out of my reach. But with some prayer and some faith I managed to hit my notes. We sang Consider the Lilies and our choir knocked it out of the park! After a fantastic church service we came home and relaxed and ate a wonderful dinner (thanks Kristy) and ate some candy. 

Puppy Love: I am not sure if it is puppy love or not but Logan did something that I am sure will embarrass him when he gets older. So I have to blog about it! Kara, (one of the Young Women) had her tonsils out and she looked downright miserable Sunday. I am sure she was sad that she couldn't sing in the choir but she also looked very uncomfortable. I felt bad for her so I stopped to chat with her and told her that drinking soda is supposed to help. I offered to bring her a Dr. Pepper (since that is who I am) and she smiled and said sure. So after church Kristy, Logan and I put a can of Diet Cherry Dr. Pepper along with a Barq's Red Creme Soda and we tried it in a bow and wrote a small note for her. Logan signed his name and before we left he said that he didn't do it right. So he took it back and made a small change. Instead of an "O" in his name he put a heart! Now I don't know if he did this so the card would look more girlie or if it was something else. It wouldn't surprise me either way since I know he certainly is enamored with them

Color Me Eating: I am looking forward to eating some deviled eggs out of the ones we colored last Saturday night. We have colored eggs for the last couple of years. Logan gets a kick out of doing them and I must say that I kinda do too. We made some real nice ones this year and of course I had to make a New York Jets egg. That has been a tradition since my mission whenever I colored eggs.

 

Eating Part II: Easter candy is the best candy! My poor tongue and mouth are sore from eating so many SweeTarts!

Listening: I downloaded a new album the other night and I cannot stop listening to it. I really liked the music that accompanied the X-Men: First Class trailer so I googled it and found that it was done by a band called Two Steps From Hell and they had just put out a new CD. I went to iTunes and sampled them and then immediately downloaded it. If you like original movie scores, I definitely recommend getting this album! It gets me in a writing mood.

Writing: I only have a few days left in the ScriptFrenzy competition! I am at 70 pages (you need to do a 100 during the month) and I got to crank out 30 pages. Last Friday I killed Zartan and it was awesome! And I hope to kill Duke by the end of the month. I never liked Duke and when I first plotted this series many, many years ago, he was the first to go! 

Seriously: Yup. When I said I was doing a GI Joe versus Aliens comic, I meant it! 

Feeling Better: Yesterday I was sick as a dog. Cold and hot chills and I must have barfed in every dream I had. Luckily I didn't in real life. I don't know what I ate or what happened. But I am feeling much, much better today. Glad it didn't stick around. I wonder if it was because I ate too much Easter candy.

Random Ramblings

On the Bad Genious message board (yeah, Genious is misspelled on purpose... part of the joke) we have a thread called the Watching, Wearing, Doing thread. Here we talk about what we are doing, what we are wearing, what we are listening and pretty much anything and everything.

So I thought I would steal that format and blog about it:

Explaining: Some of you may not know what the Bad Genious is all about. Essentially we are a bunch of online friends that all read and collect comics. We met on another message board and now we have our own private board where we all chat. I have known these people for about 10 years or so and I have met a few of them in real life.

Writing: I normally don't blog on Mondays since I am so lazy. But here I am!

Writing Part II:  I really should be working on my ScriptFrenzy project. I am so far behind. I only have 12 days till the finish line and I have only posted 42 pages. I should be writing that instead of blogging but I need the break.

Listening: Currently I am listening to A Night On The Bare Mountain by Mussorgsky. One of my all-time favorite classical music pieces. I notice that I write more intently when I have music that is all instrumental. Earlier it was Ennio Morricone and the Kingdom of Heaven soundtrack.

Watching: The other night I watched a movie based on a comic book (wow! does that surprise anyone) and it just may be my new favorite. Scott Pilgrim vs The World is based on the series of Scott Pilgrim books and this movie was fantastic. It was a great adaptation but I couldn't help wonder if I enjoyed it because it was a faithful adaptation or did I enjoy it because it was unlike any other movie I have seen? I'll make Kristy watch it here in a few days and get her opinion. She knows of the comics but is not familiar with them at all.

Hoping: We are getting so much rain here. We live close to a river and there are some fears that we may have some major flooding. I hope that we get a slow warm up and that it stays relatively dry for the next week or so.

Catching Up: I have been bad at keeping up with reading blogs. Look out for a plethora of comments!

Wearing: A short sleeved shirt! And I am not cold! It has been awhile.

Celebrating: I have been playing racquetball every Tuesday. Thursday and Saturday mornings and I have been trying to run on the other days. Today it has been raining a ton and I hate running in the rain (affects my asthma) so I decided to so some of the Wii Fit. I have done a session in 171 days and I have found that I have lost 5.1 pounds since that time! HUZZAH!

Thanking:  Thanks to all those that reached out during my last couple of rough days. I am already feeling better and am moving on. Seriously though, I do appreciate all the comments.

I Really Should Be Writing...

ScriptFrenzy started a few days ago and I have not completed one word.

I am in some big trouble here if I wanna complete this writing challenge. I should have written 15 pages of my script already at this point and I have NONE. Not good. I am going to have to get cracking on it to make my goal.

So what should I write about? I have already decided to do some sort of comic because I am more familiar with the scripting since I have done one before. I have a couple of ideas but nothing is sticking until I was going through my old writing blog. And then an idea was born...

Think this:

Mixed with this:

Yeah, I know I am a geek.

I found a fantastic online scripting program that helps you script pretty much any type of entertainment. They assist you the whole way so you don't have to type in every little bit of information. A lot of times it will do it for you. It is called scripped.com and I highly recommend it. I better get going, I have a bunch of pages to crank out today.

Random Ramblings

Today I came home a winner! For the last few weeks I have been playing racquetball with a guy from my ward. Last week he beat my brains in to put it nicely. I was determined this morning that I would win back the title* from him.

And I did.

I wish I won it convincingly but I didn't. I barely beat him in our second game, in fact we were so evenly matched, I barely won 28-27.

*The Logan 13th Ward Championship

On April 1st I start my first writing competition of the year. It is my second year of doing ScriptFrenzy and I am not sure what to do. I am completely unprepared for this. I don't know if I am going to do another comic book this year. That is how unprepared I am for this. UGH! Anyone else want to do this with me? The more the merrier! I know the perfect online software you can use. Seriously, any writers want to take a stab at this? I would love the company motivation.

I am getting lazy with the blogging. It seems like I am blogging less and less. It is not that I don't have something to blog about, because I do. I am just getting lazy. I really need to get on the ball and keep a decent schedule for blogging. Not only am I getting lazy at blogging, I am also getting lazy at reading other blogs and commenting on them. You can probably tell this when suddenly a fellow blogger will get scores of comments all at once. I need to change this.

Maybe tomorrow...

Random Ramblings

Okay, I am not doing so well blogging. I am not doing it as often as I wanted and there are a couple of reasons for it. One of the reasons is I am just not as disciplined anymore. I know I don't have to blog everyday. Yeah, that is just plain laziness.

The other reason, and perhaps the biggest reason is that I just don't know what to blog about anymore.

I know that I do have some stuff that I would like to blog about but then the first reason comes around. I am just too lazy to start what I know is going to be a big blog. For instance during my 365 trek, I wanted to blog about the time I coached the 9th grade girls basketball team. I know those would be lengthy blogs and that is why I have never blogged about them.

But for the most part, I just don't know what to blog about anymore. So I might have to get geeky. For the past couple of months I have been reading all my X-Men comics from the beginning of the new X-Men. Long story short, I have every issue of the Uncanny X-Men from issue #94 to the current one #531. And that is not counting all the other X-Men series as well. And there are hundreds of other issues. So I thought it would be fun (well, for me, maybe not everyone else) to review them all. Take a run of issues and give my thoughts about them. Currently I am in the middle of the Chuck Austen run and that is what brought about this idea. His run was probably the most controversial run on the book. In fact, I may have to go back and count how many times the word "naked" appeared in his run. Yeah, I usually don't antiquate naked with the X-Men. But it sure happened all the time during his run. We'll get to that more in depth when his time comes up.

So that will get me blogging a bit more. I will have to pool some of those columns before I start publishing them. Another thing that I noticed my blog is missing lately is List-Mania! Look for that to return sometime this week. Those are a little time consuming to put together but I always get a kick out of doing them.

Blogging also allows me to stretch my writing muscles and my dad found another cool and fun way that I am going to try. NPR has this contest called 3 Minute Fiction. They give you a topic or some specific instructions and you write a story and submit it to them. They judge it and read the best one on the air. It sounds challenging and I think it could be a lot of fun. I might publish it here on the blog when I finish it. I better get cracking, it is due on the 23rd.

While I was cleaning out my bookshelf I also found something else that I had no idea I even possessed.

When Kristy bought me my bass guitar for Christmas she also included a book on how to play. I don't recall that at all. We were talking about it just the other day and again I didn't think I owned such a book. Boy was I wrong and my face red when I found this book while cleaning. So cleaning is a good thing! Now at least I know if I am holding and plucking the strings right.

Random Ramblings

I am so glad that my year-long blogging quest is over because yesterday I was in NO mood to blog. Yesterday was just not a good day. It wasn't anything specific but it was just an accumulation of stuff. But I don't want to get into it.

I know for a fact that I don't miss blogging on Sundays. But you know what I miss most about the 365 Challenge? Reading everyone else's blogs.

WHERE ARE MY FELLOW BLOGGERS AT?

I used to love to log in and see all the blog updates. Now instead of six-seven blogs, I only get a couple. I guess I am going to have to figure out another challenge because I miss reading those blogs. C'mon fellow bloggers! Let's see some blogs!

I have made a new friend named Randy. He is an older gentlemen and we have spent a few hours last week getting to know each other. I met him through another new friend of mine, Leslie Sansone.

Yeah, in an effort to lose some weight and to keep up with exercising, I now do these Walk Away the Pounds videos. And I have to admit that I like them and they are pretty enjoyable and you do get a good workout doing them. Usually videos like these are annoying. They have a host that goes way to fast and is way to cheesy and there are usually other people in the video that are just annoying as all out. I have found that these people are pretty normal and are not cheesy. These walking videos are almost all women, except for my new friend Randy. I am glad he is there so I don't feel so stupid marching around the house with a bunch of ladies.

I recommend them to anyone. In the last two weeks I have already lost the three pounds I gained from eating that EggNog Fudge.

Thanks Randy! You can see him way in the back.

This is my last week of the NaNoWriMo challenge and I am lacking motivation today. I have been writing on the fly with this novel. Not knowing at all where I am going with it. But last night while watching Sportscenter I think I know where to take it. And it is very close to its conclusion! I have written 37,024 words.

At least I don't have a lot of blogs to read so I can concentrate on my writing... *hint hint*

Random Ramblings

It's Tuesday.  My favorite day of the week.

Already it has been a long week. Yesterday my father-in-law came over to help me replace the starter in my car. We have done it before years and years ago but I don't remember it being so difficult. But eventually we got the first bolt off the starter. It only took two hours to accomplish that. Eventually we did get it out and somehow we did get the new one in but I don't think my hands will ever be clean again. Big props to the Miltonator for helping me with it. The car did turn over and it still has some work to do but at least it is running.

I just need to remember that next time my Geo needs the Starter replaced is that it would be easier to just to buy a new car. I woke up this morning sore. The bottom of my back is killing me. Right at the belt loop because I spent hours on my back in the driveway.

I am sure you have noticed some changes with the blog. I thought about renaming the blog but I have followers and people have links to the http://365daysofmatt.blogspot.com/ address and it would be a headache to have everyone switch addresses. And it looks like blogger is not friendly with redirects so I am leaving it be. But I have a new banner and I have a new name for the blog. Bonus points for those that can tell me where the name and font comes from. I also set up a specific page (with link on the side menu) that talks specifically about the old challenge.

It is that time of the year again and I am already behind schedule. But it is one of my favorite times to crank out some writing under the gun. I have decided to write my western in first person perspective. I wanted to get the blog all worked out before I started and I am about 800 words behind. But I am getting this blog out of the way early and then I will be hitting the keyboard this afternoon to get some words out of the way. I am a little nervous about changing perspectives but I am sure I will find my way with it.

Last Days of September

Day 343

This is it. I did my final Matt at Work column just a few days ago and now this will be my last Last Days column!

But that isn't entirely true. I still have two months before my New Year's Resolutions are up and I cannot quit now. So the blog and this column will continue for at least a little bit longer. We are entering the home stretch, I gotta gird up the ol' loins and take it to the end.

WRITING:

No set writing yet but I have been jotting down notes in preparation of next month's National Novel Writing Month. I have an idea for a story involving vampires (I know, I know... so overdone) that I thought about six years ago. It is a horror story (sorry ladies, no lovey-dovey vampires here) set back during the Old West titled Blood Mine. I know how the story ends and I know how the main character gets there but I have no idea where to begin. I am hoping NaNoWriMo gets the creative juices flowing.

READING:

I am currently reading two books this month. I finally received The Extraordinary Works of Alan Moore and I am about halfway through that book and I am a few chapters in Driven: An Autobiography by Utah businessman Larry H. Miller.

Both books have already proved to be well worth reading. I'll have some reviews of them when I complete them sometime this month.

EXERCISE AND EATING RIGHT:

Same old song and dance. I don't think I eat what I should and I think I eat way too much. But I am eating better than I was a year ago. I am still exercising, I am trying to run every other day (except Sundays) and I work out on my Total Gym the other days. I feel better and I think I look better. This is definitely the longest I have been exercising, I don't think I have done something like this since high school. I am going to run the Top of Utah 5K next year so I am some motivation of working out during the winter.

OTHER STUFF:

I am still playing the bass guitar almost daily and I am really starting to pick it up. I don't know how to read music and I don't know what notes I am hitting on the bass but my ear is picking up the notes and telling my fingers what I should hit on the bass. Recently I have learned Queen's Under Pressure and I can almost do it without looking. I am probably up to about twenty to twenty-five songs.

So it was not a bad month at all. I only have two months before I hit the one-year mark and I am looking forward to seeing how far I have gone.

April Day(s) of Reckoning II

Day 179

Part of me likes doing these columns because I really don't have to think much about what to blog that day. On the other hand, I hate doing these columns because I have been BUSTED!

Remember last time I said that I wouldn't guarantee anything because the time before I got caught with my pants down (not literally) and guaranteed I would do something?

Well, I did it again. Joe Namath would be so disappointed in me. I won't let you down Joe!

WRITING:

Yes, I am still working on the novel. Yeah, I still have that stupid small chapter beckoning for me to finish it. UGH! As soon as I am done with this blog and a few pages for my ScriptFrenzy project I will work on this next. Seriously. I know you don't believe me.
My ScriptFrenzy project is so close to be completed and I am having a hoot with it. I can crank out ten pages at a time and then I take a few days off to recharge and then I crank out another batch of pages. Script writing was so intimidating before but now it is a lot of fun. One thing I do appreciate is comic book writers that do team books. Keeping track of a large cast of characters is pretty difficult.

I just 7 more pages and I am finished with a 100 pages! A few today and few tomorrow and I am done. And I have a fun geeky epilogue to end with that I am excited to do.  I will definitely do this again next April.

READING:
Nothing. Since I am ahead on books, I have not read anything. This obviously will change soon. I think I will give my fellow blogger Chelsea's books a try.

EXERCISE AND EATING RIGHT:

Much better than the last time. All of my Easter crap is gone so now I can refocus on my treat consumption. I have been exercising more too. When it is nice out I walk to the Logan Temple and walk around that block a couple of times and I run on the steep up hills. When I come home I try to run the last block or so. I just hope the weather stays good so I can go out.

And that is about all for my goals. So not bad but not totally good. So now I need to close my Mindsweeper game and get some writing done!

Please Help! I have Minesweeper Addiction

Day 170

Hello. My name is Matt and I have a Minesweeper problem.

I cannot stop playing that stupid game. Even when I defeat a board, I have to go back and start again. And the problem has steadily become worse.

Now when I should be writing or blogging, I am instead playing Minesweeper.  Today is a perfect example. I should be writing my script and putting up a blog but instead I am playing with my addiction.

I have defeated every board from Beginner to Expert.  My best time in Expert is 195 seconds. And I almost beat that time yesterday. It came down to guessing with only 3 mines left and I guessed wrong. Frustrated, I closed the game and tried to get into writing but a few minutes later I was playing it again.

Can someone help me with this? I really need to stop playing this game.

Did you know that they are making a movie based on this game? Take a look at the trailer! (Unfortunately I cannot get it to resize on the blog so you are going to have to check the link) Minesweeper Trailer

I love that trailer. Only those that are obsessed with that game really get the trailer.

Anyway, I better get back to writing, playing Minesweeper.

ERNIE UPDATE: Sunday while writing about Ernie the Cat, I introduced him to Logan and they hit it off tremendously. Looks like Ernie is back! Logan and I are absolutely thrilled!