Diapers, Books and Money

Final Post

2007-11-25T13:50:00.000-07:00

Looking back on the whole blog experience I'd have to say I'm happy with some of what I've written and unhappy with others, but I figure that's probably the nature of blogs. Overall, it has been positive if a bit trying at times. When the project first started I was pretty excited, but that excitement began to fade after a while. For some reason I began to view my blog postings as a burden rather than something to look forward to. I felt like I always had to be "on" or people wouldn't read my posts, which, given that I didn't make it available for the masses, didn't happen anyway. I kind of regret that decision because with more feedback from people it might have helped drive me to make more postings and make more of an effort in how my page looked.

I think my favorite post was the one where my wife and I took our daughter to the pumpkin patch as that post best captures my feelings on that day and exemplifies the writing style that I try to get to come through that shows the "true" me.

I'd be interested in writing a blog in the future and making a public. I feel that i have some things to say on this subject and others and a blog provides the perfect forum in which to do that. It's just a matter of finding the time to do so, but that's the beauty: you don't HAVE to log in every day or every week, unless it's your homework assignment. =o]

Run of the mill post

2007-11-10T20:07:00.000-07:00

Well, I had a chance to talk about my schedule for next semester with one of the people in charge and, despite my plea, E 406 can't count as my Capstone. But there's another option so I'm checking in to that one right now. I did get registered for a Capstone course since that was non-negotiable. Yippee. If I thought this semester was hard with my course load, next semester will be even tougher - and my little girl will be mobile, making studying quite the adventure. But it's my last semester and I need to keep plugging away.

I did get some good news just today in fact- I had appealed a class that I figured could take the place of a lower division survey class and I found out today that my appeal was accepted so that's one less class I need to take! I have a rant about a certain someone in the English department who made this process extremely difficult, but I'm going to use my better judgment here. Or save it for another post.

I just read what I've written so far and I'm totally unimpressed. In fact, I'd say it sucks. C'est la vie. Win some lose some. Until next week...

Better Late Than Never

2007-11-06T09:36:00.000-07:00

In part two of my series of short posts, let me say that it's been a busy week and my in-laws are in town to see their granddaughter until mid-week. I guess that's not an excuse but let's just say that my mind has been elsewhere this week.

My daughter's rash has gone away and come back at least twice since I last posted, perhaps this is how it's going to go for awhile who knows.

I'm on the verge of having a total shit fit in regards to next semester and whether or not I'll be able to walk in May. Let me explain: I registered for classes, three of which are required as an upperclassmen, and I still need a Capstone class - except there are only two available this semester and they're both at the same time(s) as the other classes that I have to have. Jesus H. Christ! So now I have to go plead my case for E 406 to qualify as my Capstone due to the scheduling conflict and hope to God someone is understanding. Holy crap, I just want to be done with school and contribute to my family again - I'm not getting younger and I'm so damn close to graduating that if someone tells me I have to stay another semester in order to take ONE effing class I'm gonna shit myself. I want to be done with school. I just feel like the world is against me sometimes. I'll check in later this week and post how my plea went. Sorry for the expletives, but I'm not happy.

Another Week Down

2007-10-28T21:38:00.000-06:00

This is gonna be a short one.

I went golfing today for the first time in about three months, and it showed. Not that I was good to begin with but...today I brought the sport to an all-time low. I would give anything to be able to freak out on the golf course and throw shit, break stuff, and not have there be any repercussions. Alas.

I'm worried about my little girl as she has a rash on her face that won't go away, in fact it's starting to spread some. I feel so damned helpless and it just kills me to look at her and see these angry red patches that seem to multiply every night. So we're taking her to the doctor this week to see what the hell is going on and to get some medicine. This sucks.

Vaccinations, Pumpkins, and Homework, Oh My!

2007-10-21T09:52:00.000-06:00

Hmmm...about me logging in more often, that didn't exactly come to fruition this week did it? I had good intentions though. Let's hear it for good intentions! Here's some other things I had/have good intentions about: saving money, working out, not eating out every night, and doing homework in a more timely fashion. Sigh. Well, if I actually did those things I'd have nothing to complain about. Who am I kidding, I can always find something to complain about! Let's move on.

Here's a rundown of this past week's excitement. My little girl had a doctor's appointment for some vaccinations on Tuesday. We found out she's gained three pounds since her last visit six weeks ago and has grown another two inches! As for the shots, uh, she hated that. One of the shots made her a bit fevery, but that was expected, and she was a crabby little baby for the rest of the day and part of the next. And we get to the same series of shots again in eight weeks. Woo hoo! Since then she's rallied and is back to her cute baby self. I had a doctor's appointment because my throat had been killing me and it turns out I have a mild case of strep throat and am now on antibiotics. I have not returned to my cute baby self, but I haven't been cute in decades except maybe to my mom. Try not to get old folks. Saturday we took our little girl to a pumpkin patch and hayride, corn-maze deal and we were thoroughly unimpressed. So was our little girl as she slept in her Baby Bjorn the entire time, but we did get a couple of pumpkins and some cute pictures. As we were leaving we passed the "real" event for the day. Let me explain: there were two places called Something from the Farm: one was a place where they had a huge corn maze, hayrides, the real Cam the Ram, etc., (the link) and the other was a local farmer with a fresh vegetable stand, his own corn maze, "hay rides" and a pumpkin patch. Guess which one we went to? Aargh! Why didn't someone mention this somewhere? We did get some fresh apple butter though, but it's from Arkansas not locally made like you would think when visiting a local farm. All in all a bogus experience.

Now if you'll excuse me I have to write a 9-15 page page mid-term paper that's due Tuesday morning by 8:00. I heart weekends.

Plugging Ahead

2007-10-14T13:08:00.000-06:00

Where to begin...since I last logged on I've had numerous tests and papers due for each class, my mom was in town for four nights and three days (not that I was counting), my little girl is two months old, and CSU's once decent football team has now lost 13 games in a row.

As hard as it is for me to believe, I'm actually developing a "schedule" with my little girl in regards to when I watch her on M-W-F and I need to get homework done. It's pretty simple I guess: when she takes a nap, I read/write papers. Of course it's not that simple as she's inconsistent with her naps which means I try to get my homework done in fits and starts. Usually, on those days, I have to wait until my wife gets home from work before I can truly sit down and focus on my homework, which she loves (that's sarcasm folks!) because I haven't seen her all day and now I have to sequester myself somewhere to get some work done. Sigh. Thankfully this semester is nearly half over. Next semester could be a real challenge though as my daughter will be mobile which means I'll have to chase her all over the place.

Going forward, I'm going to try and log in more often as we probably won't have any family drop in until the holidays sometime. Anyhow, until next time...

Class Manifesto Posting

2007-10-01T19:21:00.000-06:00

This blog post is in reference to a class project on fair use in regards to the co-opting of materials from artists (music, or otherwise) to be used by other artists without getting permission we did early this semester. If interested, give it a read, if not, tune in next week for more exciting tales of college life of an adult student! See ya then!

I am all for the concept of Fair Use as I think artists around the globe should be able to take a snippet from here or a sample from there and turn it into their own piece of art. That’s the foundation of rock & roll and nearly all other types of music being made today. I can’t turn on my radio without hearing a new artist blatantly ripping off a riff that Keith Richards laid down 40 years ago, but they get away with it because they’ve changed/altered a note here or there. I remember reading at one point when I was a kid where Sammy Hagar said that when he writes lyrics for an album, he rips off bits and pieces of songs he likes and incorporates them in a new way so that it seems fresh and new, not regurgitated. The same can be said for newer DJ’s, remix artists, and basement kids mashing-up songs much like Danger Mouse did. Chuck D, of Public Enemy, has even stated that he fully supports other people remixing his songs/tracks without his permission. And this is someone who makes music for a living! Read the full article here: http://www.stayfreemagazine.org/archives/20/public_enemy.html.

Chuck D’s support falls right in line with Negativeland’s “Changing Copyright” manifesto. Negativeland reserves the terms piracy, theft, and bootlegging for those that copy entire works and then turn around and sell them for profit, but sees no harm in taking samples of music and creating something new out of it, and I agree. But I would add that you must credit the original source. Collage works expose people to all different types of music/art that might otherwise go unnoticed and if the original artist is credited then the consumer can seek out those songs/artists for themselves. It’s cyclical. It is one’s own ability to take something old (or new), twist it, and make something new/different that will take music, and art in general, into the future as long as the gatekeepers of culture are kept at bay. In Negativeland’s “Tenets of Free Appropriation” they state that “artistic freedom for all is more important to the health of society then [sic] the supplemental and extraneous incomes derived from private copyright tariffs which create a cultural climate of art control and Art Police.” In other words it is one’s own artistic freedom to do what they wish with what they wish, in this case music, and cannot be suppressed by any one specific authority regardless of ownership. And I support this point of view.

Communicating online is not going to go away; in fact, it will only assimilate further into our everyday lives. If I were to compose a piece of music I would certainly grab samples from existing artists and incorporate them into my own work and I think I should have the right to do so without the fear of being sued or having to ultimately pay someone for the use of said sample(s). As stated above, I would credit the original artist. As we move forward in this class I will certainly give credit where credit is due and if I get it from a source such as YouTube I will credit YouTube instead of the original artist as that’s where I got the information from. When making my audio post later this semester I will give credit to the originator of the material, whatever it may be.

A Brief Sports Aside

2007-09-29T20:44:00.000-06:00

I'm a big sports fan and I wanted to take some time off my regular postings so that I can get a break from writing about my life for a few.

This should be an exciting time of year for those of us who are sports fans: the NFL season is three weeks old, college football is three weeks into their season, baseball season is winding down which means the playoffs will start next week, and hockey has started as well. Normally, I'd be so geeked up I'd have a hard time containing myself, but this year is a bit different for me. First off CSU is 0-4 after losing to TCU, 24-12, and has now lost 11 games in a row. Which leads me to pro football where the Miami Dolphins are 0-3 and are clearly years away from being competitive. Thankfully, the San Diego Padres are on the verge of making the playoffs for the third consecutive year, but they won't win the NL West, which goes to the *@!damned Arizona Diamondbacks. Man, I friggin' hate that team. There's no way in hell they should be winning with that weak-ass pitching staff, Brandon Webb being the exception, and an offense that ranks near or at the bottom of the NL in hitting. It's mystifying. But I digress. If the Padres beat the Milwaukee Brewers tomorrow they win the Wild Card. Here's hopin'. The Colorado Avalanche start their season Wednesday and it looks like they could be real good this year which will make up for last year's missing the playoffs for the first time in franchise history (Colorado franchise history that is). So it's a great time of year to be a sports fan, even if a couple of my teams are sucking right now.

Thanks for indulging me this week, it'll be back to my regular postings next week.

Cheers.

Complaints

2007-09-22T20:25:00.001-06:00

Well, this week was tame compared to last week, that's for sure. No family emergencies or anything exciting for that matter. The semester is shifting into high gear for me and I have papers/projects due nearly every week in one class or other - like most of us. The biggest hurdle for me in getting my stuff done for school is trying to balance homework with being a dad. Just when I think I have time to read or write, I need to change her diapers or it's feeding time again. This happens off and on all day long - not that I'm complaining, not in the least bit - it's just making this semester more difficult and I'm a notoriously slow starter as it is. This wouldn't be as big of an issue if I could take night classes at CSU while completing my undergrad, but since that's not an option, this is what I'm stuck with. If I had one criticism of "traditional" four-year colleges it's that they're myopic when it comes to those of us who aren't "traditional" college students. Basically this means I can't hold a job that'll pay me more than minimum wage because I'm in school during the day and my wife is the "breadwinner" such as it is in Fort Collins. On the other hand, this is an advantage right now because I'm home M-W-F so I can watch our little one, which means no money out of pocket for daycare so that helps. I s'pose I could have gone to the University of Phoenix, DeVry, or any other quality institution of higher learning that can afford to advertise on television during Springer or any other excellent daytime program (cough), but I didn't, and my decision to attend a known university damn well better pay off because it's difficult right now.

The Week From Hell

2007-09-15T20:45:00.001-06:00

I'd like to start by saying that I'd like to forget last week ever happened.

Saturday, September 8, my wife's mom came into town to visit her granddaughter and hang out for a week or so. Let me quickly dispel any thoughts of me not liking my mother-in-law, she's one of the greatest people I've ever met in my life - seriously. Now that we've got that out of the way. So she gets in town and everything is going well, we even order Jason's Deli for delivery - I had a panini, my mother-in-law had a muffaletta, and my wife had a pastrami sandwich. This plays a key role later. Before I get too far ahead of myself, my wife had been complaining of pressure around her chest and it hurt to breath for a couple days prior to her mom's visit. We figured it was terrible heartburn and didn't think too much of it. Fast forward to 4:00 a.m. Sunday morning and my wife bolting for the john ready to yawn in technicolor. And yawn she did. At that point, coupled with her feeling crappy already, I decided to take her into the ER at PVH. Good thing we went. After numerous tests and more barfing they admitted her because her, and I'm quoting, "gall bladder was nearly overflowing with gall stones." So she ultimately stayed three days and had her gall bladder removed. This happens one month after she gave birth to our first child. How much pain can one woman stand?! My wife swears off pastrami for the rest of her life.

So she's laid up with five incisions in her tummy and can barely move, I have tons of homework to do and I can't concentrate, and we have a daughter to take care of. Thank God her mom was here. Things were cruising along, such as it is, and I began to study for my first test of the semester when I could find time to peel myself away from helping my wife or giving my mother-in-law a break. Test came and went and I think it went well, we'll see. Her mom had even decided to stay a bit longer to help us out, but then she got a call from her husband, who has a history of heart problems, and mentioned that he had some test done and needed to have a procedure done soon. So she went back to L.A. Friday to be with her husband. We're not sure how that will end, but we're hoping it's nothing too serious.

That's my week and I'm damn glad it's over.

Brief Introduction

2007-09-08T13:44:00.000-06:00

First off, I can't believe how difficult this is for me to get going! I keep deleting entries because nothing sounds good. Maybe I'm being too anal? Yeah, probably. Hopefully this will get easier as I get going, which is the point of my mini-rant here. Moving on.

My wife and I found out we were pregnant back in November of '06 which meant that if the baby got here on her due date, I'd have at least three weeks before classes started for the fall semester. Fat chance. Our little one was due on the 4th of August. She arrived on the 14th. I had five whole days to adjust to being a father before I started school, but I figured it'd be a breeze. I've never been more wrong about anything in my life. I blame television and movies. Everyone said "Oh, prepare for no sleep." Yeah, whatever, my little girl will be different. She'll adjust to OUR schedule. Wrong again. Dammit, was I ever going to be right about anything as far as being a father was concerned? Apparently not. That first week I averaged about three hours a night while my wife averaged about two. That has since balanced out to about five-to-six for me and four-to-five for my wife. And, yes, I'm taking part in the overnight feedings. Well anyway, you get the point so far. But I wouldn't trade the experience for the world. I'm reminded of why I'm doing this every morning when she stares up at me with those big blue eyes. Or when she smiles at me.

Only nine more months of college left and I know it'll be difficult, but in the end it will all be worth it. I'll add more details as I move along throughout the semester.

In case you're wondering, the title of my blog comes from a song by Warren Zevon called Lawyers, Guns and Money. Also, I plan on adding some links, pictures, etc. as we move along.