New Beginnings

Tomorrow I will be in Baltimore for a first taste of college. This is a very turbulent, but rewarding time, as many new exciting things are to come. I have no expectations of anything, everything will just be spontaneous. I guess I am ready for it all, maybe.

VAST - I Need To Say Goodbye

Elements of Writing

I've been interested in writing things for about over a year now and I've been reading an E-book by James Frey called How To Write A Damn Good Novel. I'm learning a lot of rudimentary things that I must employ in my writing. The reason my attempts at writing have all failed is because I lack this basic understanding. I must finish reading this so I can get on with my saga.

Damn Car Alarm Keeps Going Off Getting Me and Fellow Neighbors Pissed Off

More Korean Hostages Freed

One current event that I really felt bad for was when a group of South Korean humanitarian/religious group was abducted by the Taliban. It was the same song and dance we are all familiar with by now, capture innocent people caught between the crossfire and work out diplomacy.
Even though two men were killed before the Korean diplomats arrived, a pullout deal was worked out and the remaining hostages will/were freed. This is somewhat good news coming out of a horrific war/catastrophe/atrocity.

VAST - Candle

Crapshack

In less than a week I will be in college and be able to leave my home once and for all. This ultimate liberation is something I have craved for many years. I have become somewhat insane living in my house for so long. It is time for remedy.

Ministry - Nursing Home

Bush Cabinet Falling Apart

Just noticing some breaking news about Attorney General Alberto Gonzales resigning. It seems as if numerous members of the Bush cabinet is stepping down. A few weeks ago, Karl Rove submitted his resignation and now Gonzales. According to the article, a whole slew of others had quit last year, including Donald Rumsfeld, something I was unaware of until now. An administration filled with so much scandal is surely responsible for all of these resignations.

InkBall: The Ultimate Game

After being excited for so long about Windows Vista, I come to the conclusion that it is actually very confusing and unneccesary in some aspects. But one thing that was good was the preset game of Inkball . Preset games from XP and before were crap games like Minesweeper and some card games. Vista has the games from before and more. InkBall is very addictive and novel, in you actually use a pen cursor to draw lines on the screen. The goal is to use the free drawn lines to direct a colored ball into the right hole. This game is very entertaining and is overall great.

Nine Inch Nails - Kinda I Want To

Rare Look Into Politics

For some odd reason I decided to look into politics this morning. I see politics as an unnecessary evil of sorts, but it is "necessary" for control. Anyways I had some long-running thoughts about the Democrats running for office. The main headliners are obviously Hilary Clinton and Barack Obama, being female and black, respectively. I always believed that this combination will lead to an inevitable rift when it comes time to vote, since there are large groups for each side.
I also had a thought that Clinton and Obama are leading the vote because of being female and black, respectively. I can't really say that this is completely true, as I do not pay attention to politics. But I doubt that people are actually looking into the issues here. They are voting on impulse based on who the politician is. I can't really say I support anyone since I don't know anything.

Secret Chiefs 3 - Combat For The Angel

Texas Executes 400th Inmate

Saw an article on CNN about execution number 400 in the state of Texas. This made me wonder why there hasn't been more. There has been so much crime occuring in the US, crimes worthy of the death penalty. My belief in the death penalty is one of the reasons why I do not stray completely leftwards. I believe people cannot reform completely and they deserve to die for their crime.
The topic of death penalty has been very controversial through the years. While some states do not have death penalty, others are considering remaking the chemical formula of the injection. A very complicated this issue is, with salvation, reform, etc.

Weezer - Zep Jamb

Video Promotion

I'm trying to help promote this video created by William Reynolds. If anyone knew him, he was into film making and that is basically his career path for the future. He made a video recently called Lysergia and I believe it is quite good. Here is the link.

Weezer - The Damage In Your Heart

Seattle Like

I don't remember the last time I saw sunshine in Jersey City. Everyday has either been cloudy or rainy. Also, it is much colder as it is about 60 something degrees here in August. Odd weather has become more and more prevalent over the last few years.

Religion Discussions

I was reading this article just now, and it was about Madeleine Albright saying how religion is necessary in political diplomacy. She basically said that to correctly conduct foreign policy, one must understand religion's role in the whole spectrum, and how it impacts the lives of people in society. If people were more educated about religion, there would be a whole lot less confusion, and things would be better than they are now.
I actually do agree with this. I believe that there is a lot of ignorance from all three sides of the Abrahamic religions: Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. People from each side base others on limited knowledge and mainly stereotypes. This is why there is so much hatred and bloodshed.
Though Albright's message may be heeded by the diplomats, it cannot be applied to a majority of civilians. Most people do not have the resource to learn about other religions: whether the resource be time, money, etc. What I am saying is even though the policymakers would be fully understanding, most of the general public will not. And this will lead to more unrest and ultimately anger at higher officials.
If every religious person took time to learn about other religions (other than their own), there would be more understanding and less ignorance. But this goal is out of reach, it simply cannot be done. Expect these religious wars in the Middle East and beyond to continue for years and years.

Mr. Bungle - None of Them Knew They Were Robots

New Cellphone

Yesterday I got a new cellphone, the Sony Ericsson w850i. This phone has a lot of features that I have yet to figure out at the moment. But yeah, having a new cellphone is always an exciting thing. The sad part is that I will be tired of such a great phone in the future.

VAST - What Else Do I Need

Two Weeks Left

In exactly two weeks, I should be in Baltimore by now. Yes, the summer is drawing to a quick end and the college seed is about to be grown. I still do not have some electronic needs that I have to get real soon. I actually began packing clothes yesterday, to prevent the last few days from being too congested. But yeah, my time in Jersey City is about to end.

Queens of the Stone Age - Blood is Love

Matlock

It may sound odd, but one of my favorite shows I watched as a child was Matlock. I always found the suspense very captivating when I was young, though I did not know what was really going on in the show. I tried looking up episodes to watch on Youtube and on Torrent sites, but the searches always turned up empty. I was only able to watch the theme on Youtube. Even the theme is really good. But yeah, I prefer older shows and sitcoms to the reality tv explosion of the last few years.

Sparta - Vacant Skies

Replacement Post - The Scourge of Internet

(This is a replacement post)

I've been on Youtube and recently I have noticed more and more hackers. They would post replies like "if you like this video you should visit my site". I believe those links have viruses that will totally screw up someone's computer. These types of posts appear on about 70% of the videos I've seen. This is reminescent of people putting ads in myspace comments.
In my opinion, these hackers are part of the dregs of society, in the same level as all the rapists, murderers, and rascists int he world. Sadly, the trend of luring unsuspecting webusers to malicious sites seems to be increasing. I think the site administrators should inspect the bad links and ban the users who post these malicious links. However, this does nothing, as another Youtube account is very easy to make. These people cannot be stopped.

Kid Rock - Rollin'

College Clubs

Got something from JHU today about orientation and some volunteer clubs that I could join. I probably will be involved in something but I'm not sure what to do yet. My internet use has now been limited greatly becuase I my sister is always using it. Wish I had a router.

World's Oldest Person Dies

I look at cnn.com and I learn that the world oldest person has died. She was 114 years old, a Japanese woman. That means she was born in 1893. Such marvels of longevity fascinate me very much because I never envisioned anyone living to that age. At most, I see myself living into 70s or 80s. Being really old is like a double-edged sword. The good comes from living and being able to experience more of the world. The bad comes from dealing with all the sickness and frailty that comes with old age. It's a tradeoff. With the medical technologies becoming more precocious, the newer generations are expected to live longer. But then again, the newer generations are more obese and are more unhealthy.

American Hi-Fi - Another Perfect Day

Need to Get Started

While I do have a lot of provisions and supplies for college, I am still ill-equipped with electronics. I have to get a laptop, cellphone, and MP3 player in the 3 or so weeks remaining. For the laptop, there are so many choices to choose from, that I am undecided still. The decision might come down to the last week I have. The cellphone issue is that I do not know what is good, so I am undecided there. As for MP3 player, I am looking at a ZenCreative MP3 player, since those do have good products for their prices. I am not following the IPod trend.

The Ataris - San Dimas High School Football Rules

Relegated to the Basement

Today my sister comes back from a study abroad program in China. So that means I will be moved to the basement, where my room will be. There is a long cleanup and moving process, to make sure all of my things are downstairs. The only reason I a going downstairs is because it is naturally cool in temperature there. Since the other rooms do not have AC upstairs, living in the basement is the only feasible option. Yeah so I'll be off.

Faith No More - Epic

Headache

I have had a headache since the day of the flood and it has lingered for a while. While it is not unbearable, I'm afraid this could lead to worse things. Can't seem to find a remedy that works for ridding this. Feels like a vice slowly crushing my head from both sides. Yeah.

VAST - Tycoon

Rudimentary Info

There's nothing much to talk about now, so I might as well just talk about some things that may seem confusing about this blog.
WTF is Cheap Nihilism? Well it was a phrase I picked up from Gravity's Rainbow. Someone who has cheap nihilism, "has never quite been to hell but speaks as if he's one of the most fallen." In many cases this is me, as I often overdramatise things. However that flood the other day, that was no dramatization.
Ddevilisafterme obviously reads out as "the devil is after me." "Ddevil" is a song by System of a Down that I discovered only about 1 month ago. I thought it was a good song. In my infernal paranoia, I often am afraid of occult or demonic phenomena, and I always feel something is following me. I am insane after all.
Granfalloons and Ice-Nine are obviously things discussed in Cat's Cradle. That's all that there is I believe.


Oh yeah, this will be an everyday blog. I will attempt to be the "Cal Ripkin Jr. of blogging." If I'm not blogging I am:

1. Away from a computer for a whole day.
2. Injured somewhere.
3. Dead.
4. Lazy and gave up on the blog.

Mr. Bungle - None of Them Knew They Were Robots

Barry Bonds

I'm a very well-rounded baseball fan as I not only concentrate on a particular team, but I know what's going on for most of them. A couple days ago, Barry Bonds became the all-time home run leader. I am sure that almost everyone in the US and some worldwide know who Barry Bonds is because of his alleged steroid use.
I always believed that he did use steroids, and so does a majority of baseball fans. However, supporters of Barry Bonds always say that there is no hard evidence against him ever using a banned substance. Baseball commentators and analysts are also forced to say this, or they would probably lose their jobs if they said Barry Bonds used steroids.
I say that the only way to get rid of this whole issue is to test Barry Bonds, which I think was deliberately ignored because of the influence of others. What I'm trying to say is that because Barry Bonds is who he is, he was never tested for steroids. Players who get caught using illegal substances are usually nondescript guys who could be easily replaced. Recently, a player named Neifi Perez was suspended 25 games for testing positive for a stimulant. Then he failed a second test which got him banned for 80 more games. They tested him twice while not even testing Barry Bonds.
The reason IMO of this is because big money players help a franchise and the MLB itself earn much revenue. Many baseball fans go to games just to see the star players. Also merchandise, like jerseys are based on these important players. I don't think I have seen many Neifi Perez jerseys being worn by people. So yeah, this whole steroids issue links in with economic interest, as well as other factors.
Barry Bonds should be tested for steroids, as it is only fair, he probably never will though.

Mastodon - Slickleg

Singing In The Rain

So I wake up due to tremendous thunderstorms at around 6AM and decide to go take a piss. While I was doing so I hear a water pump, pumping water out. This meant that the basement was flooded. And I check and it was flooded, and the situation was exacerbating. The knee-deep sludge water was unrelenting, ready to drown me. Things were looking grim as the water was about 2ft deep and I was attempting to clog the toilet and shower simultaneously, in vain. But then the rain stopped, and the water at the peak. Then I spent 2hrs bailing out water, cleaning up sediment, and moving things outside. And thats about it. I am taxed, but there is more to come in the cleanup process. Worst of all, I won't have a place to sleep, because I was suppose to move into the basement next week to sleep.

I'm New Here

I am Jeff, from Jersey City, NJ. I'm new to this site, but not to blogging. I have written blogs in Xanga, Myspace, and Facebook. I write about totally random things that just cross my mind whenever. Somethings are important while others not so important. I will try to make this blog different from the other blogs I maintain regularly. Not much to say write now, except I hope I get to maintain this blog for a while and let it document my life. About to enter college, it will be a challenging and exciting experience, so yeah there should be a lot to write about. Until then...

P.S. - I always have my Itunes on when I'm on the computer so I will post what song I am listening to now.

KMFDM - Bullets, Bombs, Bigotry