Was just doing more thinking (some of you are thinking: again?), this time about fatherhood and what it means to be a father. I once heard a quote from somewhere that read: it’s a shame you can get a license to drive, but you don’t need a license to be a father. Of course, a father’s responsibility to his children depends on your sense of morality (or if you even have one – I’ve seen enough of the world to know not everyone does), but most people can come to a consensus that father’s should take care of their children. I mean, any boy past the age of puberty (I use the term boy here, because that’s what you really in your teens), can get a girl pregnant, but it takes a real man to say: “you know what? I got the girl pregnant, it’s my responsibility to take care of it”. I’ve even heard of some men taking care of other people’s kids that they know aren’t there’s, yet they love them like they were.

Now, you may be asking why not having a father is a problem. Haven’t plenty of normal, functioning adults been raised by a single mother? My answer to that is yes, but there have also been plenty of broken people too. There’s a whole generation of boys out there who walked away from their kid – and looked how messed up we are now. Children learn part of who they are from their dad – how to be a man / treat women for boys; how to choose the right man for girls. You take that away, and add the financial pressure you put on a woman without you helping here, and she doesn’t have much time to teach her kid. Without a doubt, people do the best they can – but sometimes that isn’t enough. Even some of my friends who grew up without fathers wish they had someone like that – if you were to go back and offer them a father, they wouldn’t say no.

If your a guy, think about it this way. Do you know what it does to a child’s psyche not to have a father? To always question where they came from? You wonder why so many guys are bad to women? They were never taught otherwise. Either they never saw their dads and drew their own conclusions about how to treat a girl or they saw their dad mistreating her and picked up his behavior. You wonder why so many girls sleep around? They’re looking for that “model” guy, but they were never shown who that guy should be. Absolutely no child should feel like they were an accident. Be thankful for what you have. And maybe, if you see someone who’s in need – be that father to them.

You ever heard that Russell Peters quote where he goes: “BE A MAN. DO THE RIGHT THING”?

-B.S.

I’d like to share, if I may some random thoughts I’ve been having recently. These were spurred on by that video about hating Jesus but loving religion, and some videos over at ZJ’s channel (the self-described queen of atheism). Before you read on, let me inform you that I am a Christian. As such, my views may differ from yours, and I ask you to please respect them as I respect yours.

This whole thought process was started by watching that first video, although the ideas have been stewing in my brain for a while. As a Christian, it is my responsibility to test everything about my faith;as my pastor once said “there’s no place in this world for lazy Christians.” Here I will ask for a temporary suspension of disbelief, but afterwards, please test everything you read here for yourself.

As I thought this through however, I began to wonder at all the damage religion has done over the years. An ideology can be a dangerous thing: it can enable people to kill where they would normally not, hate where they would normally not, over look similarities, and commit crimes in the “name” of their ideas. This is not only true of religion, but of Nazism and Fascism as well, which has lead many to equate them in terms of their potential for danger.

However, as I only know Christianity (and I’m far from being an expert on it) I can only speak to Christianity and my brief observations on people that comes from personal experience. First of all, I came to the conclusion that no religion is perfect because no people are perfect. Have crimes been committed in the name of Christianity? Certainly. In fact, many people who Christians have tried to “save” through judgment have often ended up running the other way as a result. However, Christians have also done good. So have other religions.

Many Christians forget 1 Corinthians 5:12, where Paul instructs us to judge those inside the church and not out. In fact, many Christians I meet will be quick to say “you need Jesus” and forget completely to add “…and so do I”. In front of God, all sins are equal.

The “gay” issue (and other issues facing Christianity today)

Will you go to hell if you participate in homosexuality? I believe so. But you will also go to hell if you lie, cheat, steal, kill, and any commit any other sin. The singling out of homosexuality as the biggest sin ever is, I believe, a definite mistake.

After all, sexuality is only a small part of what makes a person who they are. When meeting someone, do you instantly start talking about who you had sex with? I don’t think so! Being gay will not have any effect on your ability to be my friend. However, on the flip-side, please be respectful of my religion and do not try to convince me that I’m gay, or try to sleep with me. I’m not that attractive anyways.

So how should Christians approach those who differ from them? With love. What should you do if a gay person comes to your church? Love them. I mean, if they start making out in your service then you should definitely ask them not to, but you should otherwise treat them like any other person.However, if a gay person wants to become Christian, I believe they should revaluate themselves. I mean, if an atheist wanted to become a Christian, they would have to reevaluate their own beliefs as well, right? We should establish what we believe, and stand by it.

I think that there’s issues that more important to tackle than someone’s sexuality like abortion or genocide. How about we solve those issues first, and then move on to these issues?

Question: Do you believe in Gay Marriage?

Answer: Yes and no. Should LGBT couples get equal rights as straight couples? I think so. However, I think it’s wrong for a gay couple to get married in a church that opposes gay marriage. There are some denominations that believe in gay marriage, and couples should find a church that sanctions gay marriage. It also depends on your definition of marriage: there’s marriage as a social institution and religious institution.

As a Christian, I don’t think what another couple does affects my relationship at all. I know what marriage is to me, and that’s a union before God. However, if a couple doesn’t even believe in God, it kind of makes that moot point, doesn’t it?

(for more arguments: go here)

Many people today have embraced atheism and attitudes/lifestyles contrary to Christianity not on their own accord, but as a result of the failure of so called Christians in their life. I think if most people took the time to establish respect before they judged, the world could be a better place.

So, John Lennon, is the answer “no religion”? I don’t think so, but if you want to believe the world would be better without religion, I’m perfect fine with that.

If you ever want to have a chat with me, (especially if you’re not christian!) please feel free to contact me. However, remember that I predicate all my chats with respect; if I ever feel you’re not being respectful it no longer becomes a discussion.

-B.S.

*cue old person music* On the whole, I am not a fan of today’s music. I feel that it’s really too dance-y for my tastes. Not that there’s anything wrong with techno (or electronica, or dubstep), but I feel there’s just too much of it. I mean, not everyone spends 100% of their time at a club, so why should that be all there is on the radio? Specifically, there’s been a rise of the trance-style song where a person sings over a techno beat that really bothers me. Back before this new era, I’d enjoy a dance remix or two because it enhanced a song, not because the original started out as electronic music. I’ve read somewhere that a pioneer of a style can get away with a lot of mistakes because of the novelty of the genre, but as people try to follow that act it gets more difficult to be unique and bring something new to the table. What can you do to a dubstep beat that hasn’t already been done by Skrillex? Sample a vocal? Done. Insert a hard-hitting wobble bass? Done. Maybe it’s just me not being very imaginative, but maybe we need a little change of pace.

It’s not that talent is gone from today’s music; I’d say it’s gone deeply into hiding. This is because, on average, your typical listener is either too lazy to go out and discover music, or is just really shallow in their musical tastes. Many artists must make the choice between artistic integrity (what they’d like to make), and what sells records. A friend recently pointed out to me that GAGA used to make jazz music. I’d seen some of her piano intro(s) to her songs, but I was floored when I heard her stay at the piano and not get up to dance. Now I’m not saying that originality is easy, but it still lives – I think Florence and the Machine and even Adele are proof of that.

After studying some music, I began to wonder what made artists like Jay-Z, Michael Jackson, U2, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers so successful. I mean when everyone else has say, a couple records, how do you form a career? Perhaps it’s because they began their careers in different eras than today? I believe it comes down to adaptability. When it comes down to it, although successful artists do many things they often able change their style or sound throughout their careers without changing who they are. Hard work is a given – all artists need to perfect their craft at some point in their careers, either before or after they get famous. Sometimes, artists may even need to reinvent who they are, but often this leads to momentary success. I’m talking about being a legend.

So what can we do as listeners (and possible artists in the making)? I’d say it comes down to a little homework. Support the artists (not necessarily monetary, but that helps!) that you like, but also don’t listen to the same songs over and over. That way, fewer artists will have to choose between making good music and popular music, and soon enough there may not even be a dichotomy between the two. One of the most difficult thing for an artist to do is get exposure for their music. As a music maker, try writing a couple songs (I definitely need to do this more) instead of playing covers all the time. For me, covers are only a means to an end – they may showcase your talent, but when it comes time for people to hear what you have to say, if you can’t write it will show.

Wow, that was random.

-B.S.

A little confession: I have a serious inferiority complex. I think this stems from childhood, when I was always being compared to other people by my parents. For some reason, I just didn’t have the motivation to work as hard in school or, at anything really, and as thus as I got older lost the drive for excellent. It really is true that if you hear something enough, or repeat it to yourself long enough, it will become true. I’ve never been able to see myself as brilliant or especially skilled, although I’ve been told somewhat to the contrary (although I’ve never been told outright I suck, I suspect there are people out there who think so).

Maybe it highlights my own failures, but other people’s successes have always made me slightly sad. A part of me goes “oh, that’s great for you”, but I’m no Mahatma Gandhi or Siddhartha Gautama; I definitely haven’t transcended jealousy yet (I haven’t even transcended university, which I should have two years ago). Perhaps in a couple years (if I live that long) I’ll look back on this time and laugh with the comedy that comes with experience, but for now this really hurts, dammit.

Here’s my cover of Goodbye To You by Michelle Branch (a blast from the past!)

Production notes:
- See if you can spot the mistake somewhere in the song.
- Quite happy how this turned out, the vocals could be a tad better, but damn morning voice.

It’s been a long while since I’ve had the motivation to write an actual blog post. As I’ve said in the past, the reason for this is I prefer to let things accumulate a bit in my life so I actually have something to talk about, as opposed to just write about every little insignificant thing. In my opinion, that’s one of the things that makes for great writing, selectiveness.

To that end, not much has happened; I have a pretty routine/boring life. Got my annual flu shot yesterday, and my arm hurt already. I thought that I might have a bad reaction due to the stomach ache I had (unfortunately, I’ve experienced both stomach flu and food poisoning), but luckily now it just feels like I’ve been punched in the arm. I read on the brochure (that little blue handout they give you) that the vaccine is only 70-90% effective. What the…I thought it was supposed to be 100%? That means if you go to get your shot you can still get the flu? That doesn’t even seem fair; I think they should come up with a better treatment. (In case you’re wondering, I do know how vaccines work; they give you a better chance of not getting the flu. I’m not that stupid. I hope.)

Have a dentist appointment today (which I absolutely love hate), to get a cavity filled in. I have really weak teeth, so something that would take longer to form on a (normal?) set of teeth forms quicker on mine. I’ve gone to the dentists’ so many times over the years that it doesn’t really hurt me too much, but my dentist’s really bad at what she does. The only reason why we go to her is because she’s cheap, and in this case you absolutely get what you pay for. She’ll laugh at some joke in Vietnamese while fixing your teeth, which will cause her to sometimes miss with the drill. Also, she’ll sometimes miss with that sand-blaster thing (whatever the proper term for it is), causing you to start spitting blood from your tongue.

Other than that, been writing an essay on Oscar Wilde’s Picture of Dorian Gray, which is not in the least bit interesting. At least when I’m done this one, I’ll be set for essays this year.

-B.S.

Often, when faced with the unpopulated expanse of a place there’s something primal inside of me that wants to yell as loud as I possibly can, just to hear the echoes yell back at me. Every time I’m about to, though, I have to remind myself that I’m not a kid anymore. I sometimes wonder what the world would be like if people existed without inhibitions that make us "adults" in a "civilized" society.

At some times I feel like my psyche is an empty space. Sure, there are people that I have to exist with (like the slightly irritating people on the bus behind me right now), but in terms of people who enter my stream of consciousness I’m often by myself. I’m not sure if its a technique I’ve developed to filter out all the noise, like a built in pair of headphones, or a product of being a naturally introverted person.

I hope I never forget my headphones again.

-B.S.

Today I thought I’d bring you a review of David Sedaris’ Me Talk Pretty One Day, because I’ve been in an audiobook mood lately. Say what you will about audiobooks, but I’ve always preferred them to reading myself. I suppose this preference goes back to my childhood before I could read, when I would fall asleep to the sound of the radio or my parents telling me a story. Also, back in high school when you have to take those kersey temperament tests, I scored mainly in the auditory section (although I also placed high on the hands-on category, but I’m sure you can’t "do" a book).

Anyhow, Me Talk Pretty One Day is a collection of humorous short stories (and one essay) from Sedaris’ life; each one punctuated with Sedaris’ unique brand of humor. While I’m not sure how to describe it (for I really know nothing about humor except slapstick and parody), it really takes effect when you listen to the audiobook in David’s deadpan delivery.What is really interesting about the book is Sedaris’ ability to enter his childhood mind as an adult without interrupting the narrative flow; you feel as if he really could have had these very mature thoughts as a child. No more present is this in the audiobook than in the story “The Youth In Asia”, which is told to a live audience.

Collectively, the short stories come together in a coherent voice. Sedaris is willing to both make fun of himself as well as the circumstance, which establishes an amenable rapport with the reader as opposed to the air of superiority you often get with other writers. Overall, the book is both thought provoking and funny, which makes it a great afternoon read (or listen, in my case!). I would highly recommend it.

- B.S.

I really admire Tina Fey in many ways. As a woman, she’s not only attractive due to her comedy, but she has this nerd-chic that makes her kind of hot (okay, I have something for women in glasses). She’s also a rare breed of lady that has monumental fame (SNL AND 30 ROCK?!?), but isn’t completely taken over by it and still remains humble (note the difference between being humble and being a doormat). This book is as much a biography as it is an insight into the mind of a comedic genius. It’s one of those books that, for me, was extremely easy to read; I felt as if  she and I were having lunch together, and she was telling me her life story.

The book is always colored with Tina’s one-of-a-kind humor, whether she’s telling her childhood stories of growing up with “old” parents, becoming a woman, or documenting her rise to fame as a writer. And it is her job as a writer that really makes the book shine as it is never boring.  It seems like every chapter has that sarcastic bite to it that you see in her work on 30 rock and SNL.  I found myself actually wanting to listen to it, as opposed to some books *AHEM ENGLISH TEXTBOOKS* that I have to literally force my way through. For instance, Agee’s Let Us Now Praise Famous Men. My professor literally told me that it’s supposed to hurt when you read it. This, however, is anything but; if it were a pill, it would be one of those chewable vitamin pills that you have to check yourself to make sure you’re not over-dosing on. You know the ones.  

I’ve decided not to post too much of the story, because I figure there’s professional reviewers that do this for a living, and if you actually want to know the books synopsis and don’t want to read it (lazy bums!), you can look it up online. This is only my opinion, which is never supposed to be taken without salt.

Anyways, I leave you with some music…that Tina Fey really is in a league of her own…

-B.S.

Person of interest is a television show that is based on a screenplay written by J.J. Abrams. It follows John Reese, an ex-military operative who is now homeless. A mysterious man named Mr. Finch approaches him with a job; he has created a piece of software that predicts the identity of those who are about to be involved in crimes. He cannot predict who will be the perpetrator or victim, but he can offer Reese the opportunity to “be there in time”, to make a difference. Think minority report-style drama, but with Jim Caviezel (that guy who played Jesus) playing the main character.

I like the concept, but with only one episode to go off of, I’m not really qualified to make any sort of comprehensive judgement. However, from what I’ve seen, the show seems pretty interesting; the plot moves forward quite quickly, kind of like a mini-movie in every episode. A large majority of the show is detective work (investigating the “person of interest”) on Finch’s list, but the action is quick paced and well choreographed. There’s no speed envelopes (speed up/slow down), so the fight scenes feel really fluid. As this is the first episode, there’s a lot of flashbacks to Reese’s former life where his love interest (status yet unknown) was murdered.

Part of the intrigue of the show is that each week, the audience is never told who’s the victim and who’s the offender. Little old lady? She could be a murderer. Convicted felon? He could be the target. You just never know.

All in all, I’m excited to see what the show has to offer.

-B.S.