quarter life crisis

Posted on February 22, 2011 by t. sterling — 1 Comment

I’ve been noticing an interesting trend going on among my peers, including myself. We’re all in our mid-twenties when some form of reality or real world hits us in the face. Sometimes its a punch in the face or maybe even a Bernie Mac slap to the face. Either way, it’s something that shakes us down to the core: my life needs to change.

Or something to that effect… But essentially, we’ve come to that point in our lives where we reevaluate our standard of living and realize if we’re truly happy with our current situation or not. Sometimes this evaluation is voluntary. Sometimes it’s forced. Sometimes we just wake up from the Matrix realizing we’ve been asleep at a job or a role or a dream that we never really intended on being in. OR we realize, “ya know, maybe I’m not cut out for this.”

An events coordinator wants to be a nurse.

A retail worker wants to be a teacher.

An electrician wants to be an accountant.

A sociology major wants to manage a restaurant.

And a dozen or more and they know who they are.

(All of these examples are real people who are following a new passion on what they want to do with their lives, and I wish them the best and all happiness in their pursuits.)

What I haven’t told you about myself is that a few weeks ago I was laid off from my office job. It was a hard pill to swallow, but I think I swallowed it rather quickly. The funny thing is the night before, and a few weeks prior, I had been thinking of how bored I was getting with my job. I mean, I was good at it and it was easy work (when there was work to do) but I didn’t get any real satisfaction. Sure, I made my quota and production (when there was work to do) but what did I really have to show for it? I could tell my friends, but what did they care about 50 files a week? Unlike my creative side, if I took 50 photos or wrote 50 poems or completed 50 scripts (I wish), that’s something I could show to the world and they’d possibly enjoy.

Now I’m not having a crisis, but hours after getting the news, or as I call it “the call”, reality hit me: I was free and I really wasn’t happy where I was. I also had tremendous love and support from my family, friends, and even my fellow former co-workers whom I plan on staying in contact with. Am I sad I lost my job? Honestly? Not really. There’s a reason for me having that job. For one thing, it helped to pay off my first car. It helped to pay for a lot of things. I met some really interesting people. I’m also able to recognize certain locations based on area codes! But the work I was doing wasn’t fulfilling and getting let go only allowed me to, essentially, let myself go. By that, I mean I was free to do whatever I wanted to, go wherever I wanted to go. I’ve been telling people for years my dreams and what I wanted to be. Now I have the chance to do what I was taught: don’t tell me, show me.

I knew changes were going to happen. I even went on a 10 day fast and no sooner was that over did my life begin to change. I’m a very spiritual person. I have no shame in that and I know God had a hand in everything that’s happened thus far.

And I want you to know I’m not the only one. Like I said, several of my peers are having similar epiphanies and have quit jobs to start new ones or even gone back to school to get that new job. Some are in the process of finding out what their true passion really is. For me, it’s doing what I’m doing right now… entertaining you. I’m sure I can get a desk job anywhere, but I don’t think I’ll be as happy and satisfied. And I’ve been done with that previous chapter and I’m shelving that book… I’m on to the next new book. And you Indoobians are welcome to go along with me. Well, in blog terms, of course.

[Insert some meaning encouraging/motivation/inspirational quote here.]

Life happens and is continuing to do so.

Tagged with: careers, changes, jobs, life, life update
Posted in dreams, Friends, life update, wisdom

call me crazy, but i would like to have this…

Posted on February 21, 2011 by t. sterling — Leave a comment

My closest friends know I have an appreciation of potty humor and poop. More than once it’s been a topic of conversation at the dinner table. Seriously. So a friend of mine sent me a gallery of gifts that friends of mine, including myself, would find amusing. Was it amusing? Yes. Would I actually want to own any of these things? Yes. Starting with the toilet mug.

I like things for my desk and I have a boring tape dispenser… but this would be awesome to have.

And these I couldn’t imagine where or why I’d wear them, but I’d think of something.

This isn’t gross or potty themed. It’s just cool. It’s probably the next best thing after the AirZooka, which I also want someday.

The AirZooka is still #1 though.

Tagged with: pictures, poop, random, toilet
Posted in random

true grit (2010): film review

Posted on February 20, 2011 by t. sterling — 3 Comments

I’m not too crazy about western movies, but I don’t hate them and I’ll watch them over a horror flick any day. Or most days. Plus I’m really starting to admire the talented and versatile actor that is Jeff Bridges. But if this hadn’t been nominated for an Oscar, and Oscar night literally being a week from today, I wouldn’t have watched the film so soon. In fact, out of the 10 best nominees, I’ve seen 6. More on that in another post.

First point I want to make is this: True Grit is first a novel. Everyone is quick to call this 2010 film a remake of a 1969 John Wayne classic, which isn’t exactly correct. It’s sorta like Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Facotry vs. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The latter is closer to the book, so they say. Such is the case with the Coen Brothers’ True Grit. Does that make this version superior to the older one? I can’t say yet. But I am interested in seeing it sooner or later. I already know one difference which I can’t say without spoiling.

I admire the Coens, but I don’t want to call myself a huge fan. People say you can spot one of their films by their style, but I’m not sure I know what that is. Maybe it’s the dialogue? If that’s the case, then that’s one thing I certainly enjoyed.

With that said, if you haven’t seen the film yet and plan to: pay attention to how all the characters speak. Maybe it was a sign of the times or perhaps it was intentional writing, but I loved that they didn’t use contractions. In fact, I think I would find it difficult to go a whole day without using a single contraction. It gave the film a bit of humor when the characters spoke or said certain things. There was also a few lines that were just genuinely amusing, most notably from Jeff Bridges.

"But why is the whiskey gone?"

And while watching Jeff do his thing, I related him to Johnny Depp’s Jack Sparrow: an anti-hero that loves his liquor. He also shares the love of getting paid and has a strong sense of adventure. But, this is an adult drama not a family adventure so don’t expect a lot of fun to happen.

By that I mean the film, at times, was a little slow. I wasn’t bored but there were moments my eyes wandered off the screen, like to my watch. But these moments didn’t last long. In fact, when people are speaking at great length, it’s best to pay attention. There are a few “shoot ’em up” scenes, but not enough to qualify as an action movie.

Hailee Steinford

What’s this story about? Well, I’ll put it this way: I kept the title in mind throughout the whole movie and asked myself “What does it meant to have true grit?” And as we meet our main characters, do they show what it means? Especially this 14 year old girl, Hailee Steinfeld, who is also nominated for an Oscar. I’m pulling for her, by the way. Although the story is centered on her and she seems to have the most scenes and dialogue (like the book), she’s considered a supporting actress. Either way, she did an excellent job. You definitely see her growth as a character. Early on, you get the sense she can hold her own in a fight, but I’ll leave it at that…

Matt Damon did very well too. I often forgot Matt Damon was playing his Texan character, a good sign of a good actor, right? Or maybe because of all the facial hair and big hat? I was impressed regardless. He’s another actor whose work I admire.

Overall, this movie was good. Good enough to own? Only if you really love westerns or you have a Coen Brothers collection or love everything Jeff Bridges. This isn’t a movie I’d pick out to watch over and over, but I wouldn’t mind watching it again. It also reminds me that if a 14 year old girl can man up, I better not complain about a paper cut.

Tagged with: awards, hailee steinfeld, jeff bridges, movie, oscars, review, true grit, true grit 2010, western
Posted in academy awards, movie, review

“all of the lights” music video review

Posted on February 19, 2011 by t. sterling — Leave a comment

I loved this song the first time I heard it, which happened to be during Kanye’s Runaway short film. Those who follow music much more closely than I do have known about the awesomeness of “All of the Lights” before the rest of the world did thanks to leaks and the like. But I spoke more specifically about the song when I reviewed the album. So as a recap of what I already said: the song it absolutely awesome and if there’s the off-chance I’m rummaging through radio stations and I hear it, I’ll stop to listen to it. It’s one of those songs I’ll listen to in my car, and if I’m a block away from my house, I’ll keep driving until it’s over.

So, like many other songs I love, I tend to either wish or envision a music video. I didn’t exactly have in mind what Kanye did with this song, but I still approve. I’m just glad there’s even a video for this at all. I feel these are one of those songs that’s more about the music than celebrating the celebrity making it. Making music for musician’s sake, if you will. I also feel this is a song that can’t quite be limited to “hip hop” or “rap” because of the way it sounds. All of this is my opinion by the way. But enough of my jibber jabber, let’s watch the video! I guess there is a minor caution to those that may easily suffer from epileptic seizures…

I wasn’t expecting to see all artists involved that contributed to this song, but that would’ve been awesome. I was glad to see their names in shiny blinking lights by the end. I already know Rihanna’s wardrobe might be subject to discussion. As a guy, I’m fine with it. I recently read something somewhere about putting a stop to this “suspenders look” that seems to be trending at award shows and photo shoots. And I may not be a huge fan of her music, but she is nice to look at. Kid Cudi continues the trend of being filmed from behind. And of course there’s Mr. West doing his thing and on top of a police car with all it’s lights… as the song suggests.

I will state that I didn’t need Wikipedia to tell me what inspired this video. (I did use it to keep track if the video had been released, but I first found out via Twitter.) I’ve been aware of this movie Enter the Void for a few months and I have a mild interest in seeing it sooner or later. But what’s been reported so far is that it has the most inventive and interesting title sequences since… I dunno… And if you don’t know by now, I’m a sucker for words in animation or when the typography is the main attraction, as is in this video or the following credits scene for Enter the Void. The film also has been noticed for it’s POV filming style, which is also shown in the music video.

I’ve already wanted to do something like this one day and blatantly copy this very style of blinking in your face style of writing. But this style works very well for Kanye’s music video. In fact, I wish I got to see this on a big screen with full audio… which can be arranged actually.

Tagged with: all of the lights, enter the void, kanye west, music, music video, my beautiful dark twisted fantasy, review, rihanna, runaway
Posted in kanye west, music, music video, review

fripodding black history (video): nina simone

Posted on February 12, 2011 by t. sterling — Leave a comment

Once again, I’m not exactly on time posting my videos but better late than never. As a side note, I mention that I like a number of songs but forget to actually mention what they are. “Here Comes the Sun”, “I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free”, “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” just to name a few. But check out the video to hear my thoughts on Nina Simone as well as my stance on Black History Month. For the past couple years I had wondered if we still needed this month, and thanks to reminders like Nina Simone legacy (and many other civil rights activists) as well as unfortunately ignorance by many people in this nation and this world, everyone needs to remain aware of not only the greatness and accomplishments Black people have brought, but also what struggles and atrocities we overcame. Sadly, things like racism still exist today, and hopefully we learn from studying the past not to repeat the future.

I posted an additional video of Nina Simone talking about what it means to be an artist and her views on race in society at that time that still reflects today. It also features a live performance of “Revolution” with images of the struggle of Black Americans followed by the very powerful song “Strange Fruit.” I will warn you, the last third of that video features images some people should find disturbing. It’s important we remember how disgusting we as humans can be and should be a reminder that we all deserve equal and civil treatment no matter who you are. After watching it, I wanted to cry.

Tagged with: african american, black history, black history month, history, nina simone, sinnerman, strange fruit, video
Posted in black, fripodding, history, music, video

best of 2010 (video)

Posted on February 9, 2011 by t. sterling — Leave a comment

Most people–magazines, websites, TV shows have had their Best of 2010 list already out by the last week of December or the first week of January. So I’m a bit late. I’ve also whittled down my list to only one thing only because I haven’t seen it that often on anyone else’s lists. Watch the video to learn what it is and why I picked it.

What one thing did you like most about 2010? Are you up on this game?

Tagged with: 2010, angry birds, best of, indoob, video
Posted in favorites, new year's, opinion, video

fripodding and glam rock: “teenage dream” – t-rex

Posted on January 28, 2011 by t. sterling — Leave a comment

This song is on this album

This might seem like an odd or obscure pick for me, only because of the video I’m posting along with it… which is why I’m posting two videos to explain why I chose this song. But then again, do I really need to explain my eclecticism? I listen to “odd” things all the time.

And how I found this song isn’t very odd at all. Like a good chunk of the music I like, I first heard it in a movie. Scott Pilgrim vs The World is where I heard “Teenage Dream.” And it was only the first few seconds! The rest of the song I got into and now it’s on my iPod. I came across the supposed music video of a “live” event by the artist known as T-Rex. Watch the video and you’ll understand why I put live in quotes.

He’s lip syncing. And that’s okay… I guess. What I found most amusing was his outfit, the gyrations, and the audience members. Who’s the dad sitting in the front? And what’s with the military officers in the back? I don’t know, but it amused me and was a gentle reminder that this was the weird times before my time known as glam rock. I’m not sure why but it’s now part of music history. The only glam rockers I was aware of was Queen, but now there’s this guy T-Rex. I’m not really trying to add more to my collection, I’m just stating a fact according to me. To be honest, this is borderline disco which already has it’s let’s-not-go-back-there vibes. I think it’s the fashion. But I’m sure my future kids will say the same thing to me about the 90’s and 00’s. I’m ready to defend some of it. But they will know I did not partake in skinny jeans nor will I ever.

Anyway, I’m avoiding going into a review of a new favorite movie Scott Pilgrim vs The World and what this song has to do with this movie. Hopefully I’m not spoiling too much by posting this if you haven’t seen the movie, but these scene is maybe about 1/3 of the way in. Not only is it a transition in scenes, but it’s also a transition in the story.

For those that haven’t seen it, trust me, I’m not really ruining a lot for you. There is still more awesomeness to be seen and story to tell. And those who have seen it, go see it again. I am. (Wish I saw it in theaters.) I’m stopping now before I go into review mode.

P.S.
Tomorrow at 5:55 PM I will have made my 25th trip around the sun. I’ll be watching Inception on a big screen with my friends and family to celebrate.

Tagged with: fashion, fripod, glam rock, movies, music, scott pilgrim vs the world, song, t-rex, teenage dream
Posted in fripodding, movie, music

the inevitable oscar nod snub(s)

Posted on January 25, 2011 by t. sterling — Leave a comment

The Oscar nominations are in. (How cliché is that phrase today?) And closely followed is the “snubbed” list.

Surely you can find the nomination list anywhere, and they probably have their own list of snubs and in a day or so will be followed by predictions. I will post my own prediction list in the next few days. But right now, I just want to air my disgust on some of the mistakes everyone will complain about and soon forget about as that eagerly anticipate the big night… and soon after that, we’ll forget about the snubbed altogether and maybe even a few of the nods.

But maybe we won’t forget about the brilliant Christopher Nolan who is one of my favorite directors out there today. He was left off the Best Director’s list, and apparently has yet to be nominated for such. INSANITY! Sure, at least Inception has Best Picture and Best Screenplay (which he would get awards for) along with 6 others, but the film wouldn’t be as great without it’s helmer, right? Not all the time, but often if a film gets the Best Picture, the same film will get Best Director. Not all the time, though. This is a case where it should have been. I also read that this film should have gotten a Best Editing too, which I also agree.

Another snub that a few on the internets pointed out is Scott Pilgrim vs the World. On a personal note, this has become one of my newest favorite films. But what was this snubbed out of? Best Visual Effects. If you haven’t seen the movie, I highly recommend it and you’ll understand why. In the same category: TRON: Legacy.

Speaking of TRON: Legacy, it would’ve been nice to see Daft Punk get a nomination for Best Score.

By the way, there are still a number of nominated films I haven’t seen yet, so I can’t say too much about The Fighter, Blue Valentine or The Kids Are Alright, and probably a few others.

Lastly, I thought Andrew Garfield was a shoo-in to not only get nominated for Best Supporting Actor, but possibly win. Sure, he’s got to go against Christian Bale which might be a lock, but I’ll get into analysis later. But while we’re on The Social Network, I would’ve liked to see Justin Timberlake as a nominee too for that role.

Another surprise to me was a documentary I plan on seeing: Waiting for “Superman” …also snubbed! I hear documentaries are weird at the Oscars anyway.

One of my crushes Mila Kunis was not nominated for Black Swan, and I’m not too shocked by this. She was great and all, but I wouldn’t have minded either way.

That’s it for the snubs, be sure to come back soon for my predictions.

Tagged with: 2011, awards, black swan, christopher nolan, daft punk, inception, movies, nominations, oscars, scott pilgrim vs the world, snubs, the social network, tron: legacy
Posted in academy awards, awards, movie, oscar

fripodding can be exhausting

Posted on January 21, 2011 by t. sterling — Leave a comment

My makeshift workshop

My fellow Indoobians! I wholeheartedly apologize for the lack of friPods last week and now this week. As I often say, and seemingly saying more often than just regular often, “life happens.” And life has been happening more than I can live. Okay, I’m not sure that even makes sense…

Just to update as to what in life is going on, I currently have about 3-4 jobs. I mention these on Twitter on occasion and refer to them as Job #1, #2 and #3.

Job #1 is the office job I’ve had for the past few years and as of about 2 years ago, I got the opportunity to work at home. It’s mostly pretty awesome, but it has it’s setbacks. For example, I don’t get snow days. Also, if the power goes out, I can’t escape from the darkness to my home because I’m already there. The pros outweigh the cons so I won’t bother finding other nuisances. Again, I like working at home. And only 2% of the time do I work in my pajamas. I get dressed because I’m anxious to get out of the house whenever I can.
Job #2 is my tech job at my church. It mostly started with being the A/V guy, which I’m really just the A because we haven’t gotten into V yet. But I take care of the audio equipment and make sure everything sounds nice. Due to our church growing and expanding into some other areas of business, I needed to take care of the computer situations. Not only have a been the techie for my family, but now I’m the go-to guy at my church. In a few weeks or so I’ll be starting a computer class for those who want to learn how to use these machines a little better. I’ve also recently acquired a projector, so that’ll make things easier for teaching purposes. Oh yeah, and I’m the webmaster too.
Job #3, which I’ve spoken very little about here, is my first freelance job for a local online newspaper called Patch. Maybe you’ve heard of it? I’ve written a few articles for them so far and have a few other plans lined up in the coming weeks. Being a freelancer, I’m not really on call that often, so it’s more of a part-time job. But when I am working, I put my all into it.

I’d like to add a job #4, but it’s kinda hard to call being a go-for a job? My family is very hard working and we are the central core to the church (my dad is the pastor). So whatever needs to be done, sometimes I’m the one that’s called. I spoke about this earlier this week. But between picking up items or people or working on routers or laptops, some of my off-time is filled with these odd jobs. And I’m not complaining about it, but it can be tiresome. Shoveling snow is at the bottom of the list of things I enjoy doing. Cooking dinner, pretty sweet. But hey, we gotta live!

So I said all that to say this: some weeks I just might not be able to get to do a friPod post as badly as I’d like to. Mostly because I don’t have the time. I really would like to start getting into making a few more videos, but recording them is one task, editing them is something else. I enjoy both, but I need a good hour. And unlike blogging, I’m not always in the mood to record and/or edit. But I did promise a video regarding my last friPod and I will deliver eventually. I will also continue my subject on neoretro-soul.

With that, I want you all to know I’m still dedicated to the Indoob, I just need to work on my time management skills. But now I’m off to work on a wireless router and maybe catch a local comedy show.

Tagged with: A/V, blog, church, computers, fripod, indoob, job, office, Patch, techie, work
Posted in blogging, fripodding, life update, office, writing

12° of jumper cables and snow faces

Posted on January 17, 2011 by t. sterling — 3 Comments

The things I do for love…

Love of my God, love of my family, love of my church, love of my friends, and the love of my food. I’d say I’m joking about that last part, but I once took an hour ride for a Cinnabon.

First, let me start out by saying that today is the first day of the fast my church is on. A twelve hour fast for twelve days. We did something like this last year too. And interesting things happen during these fasts.

With today being King Day (which has it’s own special history for me now), not only was I home, but due to it being a federal holiday, I didn’t have any work to do. And I was okay with that. I stayed in my room, watching movies and wasting time on the Internets. I had plans to watch HIMYM. But then I got a call…

My mother hadn’t been feeling well the past few days and she’s normally my dad’s right hand man. A regular his girl Friday, if you get that reference. But I would be second in command, and my role in the family is the go-for. One thing I hate doing: driving the church van. But if they need me to do it, I’ll do it. And I’ve done it a few times already. But due to my mother feeling ill, she called me in to take the van to the church in place of my dad’s car. They had more people at church than they expected and needed a larger vehicle to get them all home.

I gave a sigh and put on my coat. I checked my phone to see how cold it was outside: 12°. Yikes. Actually, I didn’t say that until I got outside. But then I went to start up the van. Not even the click click click of the ignition. Dead. Great.

My first thoughts were, maybe I can get out of this? But then I said, no… that wouldn’t be right. So I first informed my mother, and she informed my father, and I went to work doing what my father taught me: the jumper cables.

I have a healthy fear of jumper cables. It’s more of a respect than actual fear. My dad has some rusty cables that once hooked up to the live battery, he’ll bang the other side together which would make sparks fly. I was never sure why he did it then, but it always made me cautious… hey, these are live wires here! That and the fear of accidentally making a battery explode let alone getting myself electrocuted.

But I swallowed that nervousness and went to work. Fortunately, my dad parked the van with the engine facing in. I always park my car so I can easily drive out. I was also parked in the garage where there used to be a cat… but that’s another story. I pulled up a few feet to meet the van and began the hook ups… ever so carefully… not to let any… of… the… clamps… touch.

After a good 5 minutes of worrying, which I later learned wasn’t needed, I hooked up the van. The total time was about 15 – 20 minutes until the van got a steady enough charge to run on it’s own. I brought it to the church and came back home with apple juice (again, another story).

I told you that long story just to tell you what these pictures are all about.

This is the first face I made...

I was feeling a bit more creative here...

I was going for something else but kinda screwed up. Now it looks like commas and a parenthesis

This guy said something that resulted in him getting slapped.

By the time I finished “Slappy” (the last one) the van was ready to go. I told my mom how cold I was and she asked me why I didn’t just sit in my own car since it was running.

Sometimes I miss the obvious. Anyway, mission accomplished.