New Design, back to Wordpress

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on May 19, 2009
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So, I have come back to wordpress. After a long jaunt with Drupal, and then general muckings around with symfony and other MVC frameworks, I have decided wordpress still is the best personal publishing platform to me.

A little nerdery, the site is based on the K2 theme. I am going to develop a media gallery sometime this week hopefully using either Pods or Flutter.

Also, with the new design and internet at the house, I am planning to be posting a lot more. Thanks for stopping by and please leave me any comments about the new layout/design.

It is 4:30, what are you doing?

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on May 7, 2009
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As I sit, awake, in the hospital room, my wife asleep with the pulsating heartbeat of our unborn child echoing throughout this suit, I contemplate the next few years, months, days, and minutes will bring to me.

The winds of change are blowing, yet it’s still difficult for you to set a course because you’re not fully decided on your destination.
Think about your upcoming journey, but don’t book your ticket yet unless you have no other choice.

That is my horrorscope for today, well…, no shit google. The past nine months have been the long deep sigh before the storm, the initial ascent in the rollercoaster of parenthood which can be shown in this singular moment that one only gets to experience in their life momentarily and it would be easy to miss if you slept through it or let it pass by in the whim of labor.

This is one of the few moments in life that really get me, the crux of being human is uncertainty and as of right now I cannot believe there is ever a brief period of time where uncertainty is the keyword, the insignia of impending parenthood.

As much as I cannot wait for the rollercoaster to start, it is nice to have a moment to sit back and reflect on not only what is to come or what has taken place, but what is happening right now.

So in walks the nurse…. let’s get this show on the road.

Check out my Arizona Pics

Published
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on October 21, 2008
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http://flickr.com/photos/stevenwarren/collections/72157608210624349/

Take a look at my Arizona pics. it was a great trip out to the city of Flagstaff. While northern Arizona is a beautiful and diverse part of the country, it was a tad dry for my taste. I felt like Beef Jerky after a couple of days.

But we got the VIP treatment the whole trip getting an insiders look at Flagstaff, bypassing the cover to the Grand Canyon, and getting to see one of the most beautiful places in the country. If you ever have a chance to go, go. Ask the park rangers how to get to Shoshone Point, you won’t be disappointed.

The tale of two nominees

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on October 21, 2008
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As I viewed the last debate and watched all of last weeks’s rhetoric and spin the only opinion I can clearly state is my sorrow for this country. I do not know if it is campaign strategist, media, or the sound bite/reality tv culture that we lead that is responsible for some of the most empty and embarrassing debates I have viewed in my entire life. There were hardly and solutions offered by either camp through their restricted and convoluted verbosity that aims merely to not piss anyone off.

Well, I must say that it is more of a tragedy for Obama than McCain. John McCain is who he is. He is power hungry and will do whatever it takes to get in the White House. He was no different in 2000 than in 2008, the main reason for the change in ideas, beliefs, and platform is because his opponent changed. Obama, on the other hand, seems very intelligent. An eloquent and thoughtful speaker whom could actually do some good for the country. But in the third debate he got caught in the wrangling political doublespeak about Joe the Plubmer, Joe Sixpack, and all of this other crap that assumes that most of the general population cannot understand the basics of the economy and foreign policy. Also, I worry that politicians now assume that so much of the electorate is illiterate of national affairs that they can blatantly lie and distort the facts for their own self serving interest.

Case and point when both pundits debated about Abortion. I happen to agree with Obama in that the right should be protected and it is a personal decision of the mother, father, and doctor about a such a grave matter. The Federalist argument for abortion is complete bullshit. If total federalism is applied, you would still have segregation, lack of universal suffrage, and there would be no chance of homosexual couples to enjoy the same economic benefits of heterosexual couples because the government goofed up and named legally binding unions between couples the same as its religious counterpart. McCain and the religious right should at least have the balls to say, “I think abortion is wrong and therefore outlawed.” But instead they twist and turn arguments to outrage the ill informed people who make their decisions not based on fact, but what they glean from watching the appropriate cable news show that aligns with their misguided beliefs. They instigate rather than inform. So why should any medical procedure not be available to protect the life of the patient? Interesting when you view it without spin of “women’s health” being a pro-abortion veil.

But personal beliefs are personal beliefs, I still can not understand people’s total incomprehension of our current economic downfall. It is not just Wall Street, the democrats, or the republicans that are to blame, it is all of them. Every single one. The democrat desire for more low income housing created the vehicle for Wall Street to hedge their bets on risky loans which all happened while a Republican and Democratic congress fell asleep at the wheel with ineffective oversight. They all suck, they are all to blame.

But in the end, it is the lesser of two evils and I feel that Barack will be the best choice. My only reservation with the Obama/Biden ticket is that we are looking at at least 2 if not 4 years of a Democratic majority in the House, Congress, and President of one of the most lopsided governments since the New Deal. Hopefully, if Obama wins the Democrats can use their positions to make some positive changes that this country desperately needs.

Guilty Pleasure

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on August 5, 2008
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Marriage or living with a significant other is always an adjustment. There are things that you would never do until you move in with her like watch Troop Beverly Hills, pick up your beer cans at the end of the night, or a myriad of the things of bachelor life that isn’t conducive to living with a woman. One of the many things that I had to adjust to is Bravo.

Before Jane and I started living together I was not a TV watcher. I did not spend a lot of time in front of the TV. I would either read while the roommates were watching TV or I would go out. Jane is a TV watcher, which is fine because we like a lot of the same shows that are on PBS, travel, food network. But one channel that I could easily say I never watched before living with Jane is Bravo. Bravo is not really targeted to my demographic (read beer drinking, hairy southern male). I am not a racist or homophobic, but in all reality I don’t understand fashion. I don’t get design, hair dressing, and making it work. I wear jeans, khaki’s from Sams Club, and a pair of Dickies from Wal Mart that stay wrinkled. When I was younger it was a day of full of dread when I was forced to go “School Shopping”. But, being a fair person and knowing how much college and Titans football that she has to deal with from August to January, I don’t put up a fuss about watching Project Runway or So You Think You Can Dance. And to be fair, Top Chef seriously is one of the best competition shows on TV.

And so, much to my dismay I have been bitten by the Bravo Bug by one extremely neurotic, obsessive compulsive, and hopelessly addicting character: Jeff Lewis. If you have never seen Flipping Out, then you have missed one of the best shows that has been on TV for the past two years.

I am not a fan of reality TV and it pains me to see perfectly good shows such as Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip get canceled because it is cheaper to make reality TV. But Flipping Out is Real Reality TV. Much like having a train wreck unfold in your living room, Every Tuesday Mr. Lewis accompanied by his faithful and patient assistant Jenni. Whether he is berating his employees or clients, Jeff Lewis is sure enough one of the most original and intriguing characters on TV.

Jeff Lewis is demanding, controlling, but most often right. At first I watched the show and thought he was a megalomaniac intending on torturing all those who surrounded him. But, after watching the show I realize that he has to be the bad guy. Much like the football coach or great teacher who was a taskmaster and strict disciplinarian, Mr. Lewis has to run a tight ship on his large real estate business because in the end it is his reputation and face that goes on any failures. And also, most of the people working for him are smiling and seem to enjoy it. Also, he does great work on the houses. For my untrained eye, they are awesome. Also, being a web developer, I have to deal with clients and I must admire how Jeff does not take shit from them when it is not needed. He is not afraid to tell them “No, it is not in your budget. Phase II.” Also, Jeff is a savvy businessperson who seems to be one at the top of his field. This is based on no research, but the appearances let on by the show. In all reality it could be a bunch of actors in a Hollywood studio, but even if they are, I still will watch because the character of Jeff Lewis real or written is still too good not to watch.

Archives

Published
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on July 29, 2008
in Music, Personal and Uncategorized
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Over the past two weeks there has been a revival of music in my life. This period of rejuvenation was started by my discovery of the website http://www.archive.org Archive.org is simply an internet library started in 1996 to provide a repository for digital texts, audio files, and web pages. While the site has a myriad of offerings, the cause of my patronage is the exhaustive listing of Grateful Dead bootlegs. If there is a show (that hasn’t been commercially released) you are looking for, they probably have it.

My fascination and love for the Grateful Dead started at the medium early age of 12. My mom innocently bought me a Steal Your Face hat while in New York and my curiosity delved further into the vast ocean that is the Dead’s music. My love affair started appropriately with Two from the Vault, a live show from August 1968. But the more I listened to the deeper my appreciation for the Dead became. So for the past two weeks I have been peeling through Barton Hall, Europe 72 shows, the mid 70’s at LA Coliseum, and numerous versions of songs interwoven with the fabric of my adolescence.

Through revisiting the Grateful Dead, I have gone through boxes and boxes of CD’s to listen to many of my old favorites that make up the most musically formative years of my life. And as I listen to my archives I realize that this is not just rehashed classics that are good for a listen, but also a conduit to the person whom I used to be when these albums meant everything. It is really depressing how much work, marriage, and the tribulations of daily life seem to completely take over the important things. How we do forget to stop and smell the trees as we begin to become concerned with LIFE. As I listen to “Fragile” by Yes and Lou Reed “Rock n Roll” I remember riding home from a shit job as a junior in high school. Or riding with Coltrane, Cannonball Adderly, and Miles Davis winding through modal scales with my sentra through the curves of Percy Warner Park. Hendrix reminding me of the days struggling through “Stone Free” and “Foxy Lady” on my white Japanese strat.

Much like reading, my passion for music seems to be waning because I am too tired or don’t have enough time to hook up my stereo after a long day. As much as I would love to have those days back I know that they are passed for better and worse. But now, I must muster all of my spare energy and time to come back to the appreciating music and books along with my other new passion of photography. If man just works and watches tv, he will become a slave to schedules and a paycheck. I guess we all have to make time for what is important, it is just really hard to make time for everything.

Death of a Beard

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on June 5, 2008
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Last night I commenced in my bi-annual trim. I had to finally say goodbye to my facial friend who had been residing on my chin for th past 6 months. I started growing the latest iteration of my beard November 1, 2007 for the Whiskerino contest. If you would like to see pictures, go to Death of Beard.


deathofabeard0033

But just like fall fading in to winter, as summer began to start full swing in the Dela I realized my quest for the Yeard must end. It wasn’t the heat, or societal pressures that brought on the need for a trim … I just felt I needed a change. A good friend name Brad Gunter made me aware late one night after many beverages of the power of a beard. How a beard can make you think different, act different, and show less inhibitions that your normal non-bearded self. I agree, but I also view a beard sort of like a Phoenix which must experience a rebirth and rise from the ashes.

RIP Bo Diddley - You rocked before there was even such a thing.

Published
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on June 5, 2008
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http://tinyurl.com/652ggn

Bo Diddly died today at 79 of heart failure. An icon of R&B. No one did it quite the same with his avante garde guitars and pounding rythms that could make even the most stoic member of the crowd get up and shake it.

Metro Officers Get Stun Guns … Again

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on May 30, 2008
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I read yesterday in the Tennessean about Metro Police reissuing stun guns on a ‘rental’ basis for officers who wish to carry them. Inherently, I have nothing against tasers and I am all for police officer safety. But after reading this article in the tennessean my confidence in reasonable government sinks farther.

If you don’t remember, Patrick Lee was killed outside of the Cannery Ballroom three years ago at a Dark Star Orchestra concert by police officers trying to restrain him in the parking lot. While the official cause of death was “excited delirium” (found in this article), it was also determined that he had been stunned 19 times by the tasers. At 50,000 volts a piece this cannot be considered a humane way of disarming a suspect.

Again, I am not against the police or police protection, but I hope that the 8 hours of training isn’t a bunch of meatheads shocking things and laughing about it.

Kitten Update

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on May 23, 2008
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kidsareallright

Just so you all know, the kittens are doing very well. They are both very nice animals and have become adjusted to our household very well.

The thing about cats that has amazed me the most is their comprehension of the litter box. I don’t know how it works or who figured it out, but it is cool. All I had to do is take a little ‘present’ from Gary and put it in the box right after he did it. The boy walked in scratched around a bit and they are set. A designated place in the house for #1 and #2.

Also the cats are a delight to have around. they are playful critters who love dog food (and dog’s love cat food - maybe they got the formula wrong) a belly rub, and beer. I haven’t give them beer, but they have already knocked over two bottles trying to get a sip.

My kind of animals.