So much for trying to keep this updated… ha. It’s been a while and you know what that means: a fragmented entry to try to bring you up to speed quickly! I can smell the excitement.

- College is going well… It’s a fairly big workload with my other various jobs, but that comes with the territory. The first semester is over in two months and then I am a quarter of the way through the program. Booyah. So what would I like to do afterwards? I’m not sure yet… Eventually I wouldn’t mind ending up in California…

- I finally got around to seeing Across The Universe. Really cool movie. It was one of those movies where you aren’t quite sure what to think immediately following the movie, but as you think back more and more you realize it was really good. It is a bit of a ‘rougher’ movie though, so I wouldn’t recommend it for a young audience or the easily offended. But for the most part it should be an entertaining watch for the majority of Beatles and music fans alike. I’m considering seeing it again, actually…

- I’m going to see KT Tunstall in concert on November 22nd with my friend Krystle. Looking forward to that a lot… She’s supposed to be awesome live and I’m a pretty big fan of her music. You can bet I’ll be talking about it more as the date approaches. My ticket arrived today actually…

- I ordered a new 80GB iPod Classic and it arrived. The only thing that sucks is there is a stuck pixel on the screen. Grr. That’s what I hate about LCD screens. So I’m going to see if it goes away, otherwise I may call Apple and see what they say. I don’t know if it’s going to be more of a problem to fix if there is a custom engraving on the back or not…

- Aside from Xbox 360’s Halo 3, I think the next four to six months are the PS3’s season for new games. There are so many I want to pick up that are coming out… One of which is the new Ratchet and Clank (releasing October 30th). The free demo went online yesterday and it’s awesome. Then there is Uncharted, Simpsons (though its on the 360 too), Little Big Planet, Haze (not 100% sure on that one yet), Killzone 2, Unreal Tournament and more. I may not play games as much as I used to, but I definitely love my PS3 to play when I get the chance…

- The new seasons of Heroes and The Office are both awesome so far… Not a bad episode yet. I love Mondays and Thursdays…

- So the Canadian dollar is currently three cents higher than the American dollar. What a weird situation. It’s too bad we’re being charged more up here now for goods and services than in the States. They need to adjust that so we’re not being ripped off… Rumor has it they will early next year (after the holiday, of course).

- Speaking of rumors… Rumor is OS X.5 Leopard will be releasing on October 26th or 27th. Can’t wait!

- To the industry personnel who have asked: yes, I’m aware my bio is over a year old. Ha. But unfortunately it isn’t that high on my list of priorities right now. So unless someone would like write one for me (ha), it’ll have to be put off for longer. I should try to quickly re-do the links section though, since I barely read any of the current list anymore…

Well, I think that’s enough for now… I’ll try to update more frequently from here on out…

Just a quick entry for now to bring you guys up to speed…

Things have been busy with numerous things. I’ve had deadlines for A&R scouting work, wrote some articles for both print and online journalism publications (including an interview with a top 10 American Idol finalist on Renown Magazine), had a few business meetings for a couple projects and more.

Work hasn’t kept me from playing though. I decided to pick up a PS3 to play with it and see how it fares… I have 30 days to try it and return it if I’m not satisfied. Gotta love Future Shop’s return policy. Then I’ve been playing around with more social sites and programs… Gosh, I don’t know why I find them so addictive, but I do. Obviously my favorites are still Twitter, Flickr, Facebook and YouTube, but I still constantly mingle with both new and old ones. Perhaps it’s to see what’s currently hot (the “old” ones), but I also love playing with the freshly made ones to try and find what is going to explode as the next big thing… I can be such a geek…

Speaking of being a geek, I’m toying with the idea of dipping my toes into more audio related things… Podcasts and what not. I don’t know, we’ll see. It’s always been something I’ve been interested in, but I don’t consider myself the greatest public speaker so I’ve never pursued it too deeply. You never know for sure or can work out the kinks until you dive in though… And you all know I’m always game to try something new. ha. We’ll see.

I went and saw Hairspray with my sister and some friends on Friday (yes, opening night. She was adamant about that)… It was actually not that bad. For a musical, it was done really well… I enjoyed it. Everyone sung well, the story was interesting and you walked away smiling. What more could you ask for?

Man, I love OS X…

Anyway, I’m out…

Wow, so here’s a fantastic surprise. Originally when I ordered my MacBook Pro, it said it wouldn’t ship until this Friday (June 29th) and the earliest I would get it would be next week on July 3rd, though it could be later. I just got an e-mail at 1:50 AM this morning saying it has been shipped from China and it will be here no later than Thursday (June 28th). Woo hoo! Talk about being ahead of schedule…

They shipped my brother’s iPod one business day earlier from China too, so it’s supposed to be here by June 27th. It’s fun watching the tracking numbers as they come across the pond… Last update on the iPod was Saturday when it was checked in at a station in Hong Kong (though it’s probably further along by now). I’ll keep you updated on the shipping status…

Either way, I’m pumped! Here I thought I’d have to wait at least another week to play, but now it’ll be here by Thursday. Can’t wait!

Side note… I went and saw Ocean’s Thirteen last night. Great movie. Definitely a LOT better than the second one. I’d put it right up there with the first of the series. Right from the get-go you are put into the planning stages of the big heist, so it’s non-stop fun that actually holds your attention the entire time. The movie was funny, the actors played their parts well, and there were lots of people from the first two movies who made appearances. Super Dave Osbourne was even in the movie, though he wasn’t playing the Super Dave character… He was actually a serious guy.

The cool thing about the movie is that the motives behind a lot of the planning were kind gestures… The heist is based around helping one of their own who has fallen, for example. Or another instance (and this may be considered a spoiler to some, though it doesn’t really wreck anything): during their heist they need to use a guy off of the street (so to speak) and give him a really hard time to do what they want. So at the very end of the movie they go out of their way to make him win millions of dollars on a slot machine to pay for his trouble and say thanks, only without him ever knowing about them. That was really cool… See? They’re nice guys. ha.

Anyway, I need to head out to work soon. I just wanted to fill you in on the MacBook Pro update. To sum it up: it’s way ahead of schedule and I’m excited. ha. Stay tuned…

Tomorrow is inventory count at work. It comes once every four months and I have done the last five or six… Last time, two of the managers and I were the only three people to go the entire stretch: 1pm to 4am. Yikes. This time we are doing things differently and should hopefully get out by midnight… Knock on wood.

I went and saw Pirates 3 on Thursday with a bunch of people (Francois, his two brothers, my brother, and someone else who I don’t know)… It was a lot of fun. Great movie too… I liked it better than the second for sure. I think I still like the first the best though, since it’s the one that started it all…

I’m watching the hockey game right now… It’s 4-3 for Ottawa after the second period. Lots of goals tonight! I wonder how it’s going to end… The final period starts after this commercial break…

It looks like I’ll be going to the Kelly Clarkson and Mat Kearney concert with some friends in August… It’s at the Air Canada Center in Toronto. This will be my third show there… It’s a great venue when you have good seats. ha. Either way, should be a great show!

Hmm… I think I like M&Ms better than Smarties. I enjoy both though… Neither can hold a candle to Skittles though. Amazing candy…

I definitely need to try my brother’s Wii games in my free time over the next couple of days. I’ve been meaning to try them for a while now, but after playing Mario Party 8 with him yesterday I have decided I should give the rest of the games a go. Namely Super Paper Mario and Zelda…

Okay, I’m off for now…

I’m tired. I should be used to starting a shift at 7 AM, but I guess the late night yesterday didn’t help much. I’m not looking forward to working at 6 AM tomorrow… eek.

Oh, so late night… Basically it was just a concert here in my town. Local band Hello Kelly did a hometown show with a few other local bands. Hello Kelly put on a good show… The other bands? They had their moments, both good and bad. All I know is I’m beginning to get tired of this Emo fad, both the genre-embellished fans and the whiny lead vocals… Plus I felt so old being there as the majority of the kids must have been around thirteen or fourteen… Anyway, again, Hello Kelly did a good job. Even in the midst of constant member reorganization, they seem to have their act together. Out of all of the band’s that played last night, they’re definitely the one destined to go somewhere…

In my few hours of spare time here and there, I’ve been playing Kameo: Elements of Power on the 360. It came out in November 2005, but I got it for free the other week from a friend so I can’t complain. Plus I enjoy the developer (Rare) and their games usually, so I’ve been interested in playing it. It’s actually pretty decent… There are moments that can get pretty frustrating due to a control issue or lack of direction, but other than those couple of hiccups it’s a fun game. It’s nice to kick back and relax to after working all day… I’m pretty much done it too, with only a couple of sections to go. Maybe tomorrow or Monday night I’ll have it beat… Yes! Then I can move on to another game. I have so many games now that I have barely touched (if at all), I’m trying not to pick up any more until I beat at least a few of them…

It’s been a few days since I’ve checked my MySpace profile. I have four pages of “friend” requests… ha. It’s not the longest I’ve had (the most was ten or twelve, I think), but it’s still time consuming. I really don’t feel like going through those right now… MySpace is kind of screwy right now anyway (big surprise), so I won’t even bother.

My sister wanted to go see Happy Feet, so we went on Wednesday. Though it isn’t a movie of the year contender, it wasn’t a bad movie… I didn’t really pay much attention to the previews on TV, so I didn’t realize it was sort of a musical. ha. Shows what I know… That could have been a million dollar question with Regis Philbin and I would have lost. The movie had some funny moments though, especially with Robin Williams playing two characters…

I need to re-organize my iPod and iTunes library. I have a pile of old music on there that I don’t even listen to anymore but I had originally put on to fill up space. I should replace most of it with some better material… There is no need to carry around a pocket full of junk from two or so years ago. Then again, I don’t really use my iPod much right now anyway…

Oh… Switchfoot is coming to Toronto in February with Copeland. I think I might go to it… I’ve missed them the past four or five times they have come down. I was close to going last time too, but it fell through…

I finished my Christmas shopping on Thursday. I had pretty much all of it done by November 29th (which is really early for me), but I bought the final gift(s) Thursday night. Hooray. Now I can just focus on working…

Wait, I want to focus on working? For the love of Dr. Phil, what’s wrong with me? The good ole retail Christmas season is messing with my brain… Almost done… Almost…

Rock on.

Yesterday afternoon I had a conference call with Sylvester Stallone and a few other members of the press about Stallone’s upcoming movie, Rocky Balboa (aka Rocky VI, the final in the series). I didn’t know he was a Christian… Really nice guy. He seems to have a heart for wanting to create a family friendly movie with a good story morally, something that is really lacking in Hollywood right now he said. He’ll be appearing on the big late night talk shows and other media outlets soon to promote the film as well as to get the word out about why he’s making this film.

The movie hits theaters on December 22nd and I think I might actually go see it. You should too. What I’ve heard about it storywise from the call yesterday sounds intriguing…

So I’ve decided it doesn’t hurt to splurge once and a while on myself. I used to be really, really cautious with my money and limit myself since I’m saving up for more post secondary education. But I’ve decided that I’m making a decent amount of cash at work and I have enough saved up that I can afford to buy a few things without having to worry about the bank account. I’m not buying for the sake of buying mind you, I’m just picking up some things that I’ve wanted for a while now but didn’t want to let go of my money. You only live once, so there’s no point in missing out on playing with some new toys if you can afford to purchase them. ha.

Lately I’ve picked up a new monitor for my computer, the 360 (though the system itself, a game, and a few accessories were paid for with vacation pay), and on Sunday I finally bought extra RAM for my computer so I could run a new program that was given to me back in October. ha. I’ve gone from 512MB to 1.5 GB of RAM. Now I can run Pinnacle Studio Plus 10.5 Titanium Edition, a program my boss gave me when she came back from a conference for work. It took forever to install (it’s a huge program), but it’s awesome… It’s very professional with tons of transition effects, picture-in-picture features, chroma key features, video overlay and so much more. Now I wish I had something to edit… ha.

It’s a pretty professional program though and can even edit High Definition footage thanks to its rendering-on-the-go. I likey. It also came with a free Hollywood FX bonus disc (normally a $129.99 upgrade) that added a ton more special effects into the program… Thanks Sharon!

Eventually I’d like to pick up a new graphics card so I can stop using my integrated graphics card… Plus with a new card, I could have a secondary monitor output. Then, once I get that, I’d also like to pick up a second 19″ LCD monitor just like the one I have and get a dual-screen setup going. It would be fantastic. An external harddrive wouldn’t be too bad either since I’d be getting into more editing and what not.

I came across a funny video the other day. It’s actually pretty old, but I hadn’t seen it before. It is a spoof of Monty Python’s And Now For Something Completely Different skit only with footage from the first Halo video game for the Xbox. They use the original audio then recreate the skit in Halo… It’s amusing.

I think that’s it for now… Off to work I go…

Rock on.

I’ve always been interested in trying out the new laser technology for computer mice. I just didn’t want to drop a lot of cash down to try it out. Plus it seemed that most of them are wireless, which I don’t really care too much about asI’ve got lots of room on my desk anyway, so it would just be another factor to drive the price upwards. But I told myself that if I ever found a nice, wired laser mouse that is a cheap price, then I would pick it up and give it a go. If I didn’t like it or think it wasn’t worth the price, I could just bring it back.

So that being said, every week I go down the mice aisle at work to see if anything is on sale. Usually it’s only wireless laser mice going for 40 or 50 bucks or higher. But yesterday it finally happened… A wired laser mouse that was on sale from 70 bucks down to 30 bucks. Not bad. It was a Logitech MX400. I’ve always loved Logitech’s products, so that was another selling point. Plus it had a more comfortable curved design (something I’ve never had before) and a few extra buttons than my current one. So I went for it. It’s actually pretty nice… You can tell it’s more precise, plus it’s definitely a lot more comfortable. Me likey. Though, I’m not going to lie, I was sort of tempted to splurge and pay twenty more bucks for the MX610 as it’s fifty bucks off and has e-mail, IM, and music buttons; three things I use a lot. Hmm…

So the first PS3 box art has been revealed… But some may ask, “It’s just a box, who cares?” If you read the accompanying article with the image, you can see there is actually a few interesting tidbits that show some changes on the PS3 boxes when compared to other box art out there today.

Also, Sony has addressed the shortage of PS3s that will be available at launch. They are still confident that they’ll deliver six million units by the end of the fiscal year… Yeah, I think I’m going to be breaking down and buying one. I just have that feeling. ha. Maybe I’ll use my vacation pay on it, since I never travel anyway…

A teaser trailer for the new James Bond movie, Casino Royale, has been posted online. For those that don’t know, there is a new actor playing Bond (and he’s blond, which seems to spark controversy. ha)… The creators are essentially trying to start the franchise from scratch again, so this movie is supposed to be the “first” James Bond movie. It’s set in modern times and is supposed to be more realistic too, apparently. Anyway, the trailer doesn’t look half bad… Maybe I’ll end up seeing it…

I received a Newsboys EPK in the mail earlier this week which includes two full length songs and snippets of five or six other tracks from the band’s upcoming album, Go. It’s their first pop/rock album in five years. I’m intrigued by what I’ve heard so far as some of the songs are definitely appealing and enjoyable. It’s certainly better than their worship albums. Apparently a full copy is coming by the end of the month… Looking forward to that…

I was experimenting with Flickr the other day, just because I wanted to see what all the excitement surrounding it is. So I uploaded some pictures of what advance copies of big releases look like these days (they almost look like they contain toxic material or something), plus there is a picture of my ever-growing CD pile. But my question to you is this: Should I use Flickr for posting my own pictures on here, or would you prefer me to do it the way I have been doing it already? Let me know.

Well, I should do some Renown work. Or maybe I’ll play a video game first. ha, it’s weird having a Saturday off… I don’t know what to do with myself.

Rock on.

It’s been a whirlwind, however my five days of work in a row have been completed. But the best part is that I needed a couple of days off this weekend, so because I worked five days in a row my boss gave me a few more days off as well. So out of the next seven days, I’m only working one of them (Friday). Hip hip hooray… Or something. Uh, no, that wasn’t a skip… Anyway, now I need to catch up on Renown stuff, plus maybe I’ll actually have a day or two of relaxing. What an intriguing thought…

So a friend came over on Saturday night after work and hung out for a bit. We actually decided to go see a movie spontaneously, so we went and saw Lady In The Water since we are both M. Night Shyamalan fans. It was a really good movie… I’d definitely recommend it.

Man, I have a headache again…

Oh, I forgot to mention before… My sister found me a cool Dilbert plush doll at Value Village (a secondhand store) the other week. It’s pretty spiffy. It’ll go right beside my Hutch plush doll. Booyah.

So I felt like new music while I was killing time at work and bought Rob Thomas‘ Something To Be. It’s a pretty solid record… He has such a knack at writing catchy pop hooks that are incredibly addictive (ie: This Is How A Heart Breaks). I’ve also been considering picking up a Matchbox Twenty (his former band) album and a Dave Matthews Band album… Hmm… For Dave Matthews, I would probably purchase Stand Up… For Matchbox, I’m not sure if I’d go for More Than You Think You Are or Mad Season. I’m sure I’ll end up getting both eventually…

Alrighty, that’s all for now folks. For the next entry, I’m going to post some quick thoughts on a bunch of current radio singles, just to keep things interesting around here… Stay tuned for that…

Rock on.

I’ve decided that YouTube.com is one of the greatest innovations to hit the internet in recent history. Okay, so I’ve actually known this for a while now as I’ve been using it since it first launched, but it seems that now you can find pretty much anything on it. Seriously… It’s amazing. I’ve just been typing in old TV shows that I used to watch when I was younger for nostalgic reasons, and I’m finding so much. Shows like Tiny Toons, Muppet Babies, Reboot, Sonic The Hedgehog (the cartoon), Ren And Stimpy, The Raccoons, Tom And Jerry, Gummy Bears, Animaniacs, Pinky And The Brain, and so many more… Heck, I could even find the intro to Under The Umbrella Tree on there. It’s fantastic. You can also find video clips for old games and what not that you haven’t played since you were a kid. YouTube: talk about the ultimate nostalgia run. You can also (obviously) find video from current shows on TV like the Simpsons. Pretty funny stuff… I could spend all day on this.

Speaking of watching things, two guys from work and I went to see Nacho Libre last night at the late showing. It was… interesting. ha. It was pretty stupid, along the lines of Napoleon Dynamite, but it had more of a plot than that one so I was happy about that. It was pretty funny for most of the movie, but there were a couple of especially hilarious moments that had the three of us almost in tears. I’d recommend watching it, but I don’t know if it’s a must see on the big screen or not. If not, at least watch it once on DVD whenever it comes out.

I received an interesting e-mail the other day entitled “Fraud.” It was from a “Joshua McConnell” claiming that I’m using his name with permission and that I need to go by something else from now on so I don’t hurt his image with the ladies (since, you know, I’m not as good looking as him). ha. It was amusing… Juvenile, but amusing nonetheless.

I need to travel more. I’m so tempted this year to just hop on a plane and fly somewhere, even though I wouldn’t have any sort of transportation once I get to wherever I’m going (aside from public transporation). I just want to see some sights, experience different places outside of my own province, and so on… One day…

Anyway, it’s almost 11 PM and I want to read some of my book. I really need to stop searching YouTube…

Rock on.

Well, today was another holiday for us Canadians. It was Victoria Day, where we celebrate the Queen’s birthday even though it’s not really her birthday. Basically, it’s now become just another day for the government and businesses to take the day off work. But I got the day off since we were closed and was paid for it though, so I can’t complain.

It is Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s birthday today though. His actual birthday… not a fake birthday…

So instead of work, I just did some things around the house today. I uploaded a new review on Renown, played some games with my sister, let her do some filming with my MiniDV camera, read my book, and burnt a new family DVD. Following supper the family decided to go see a movie too, so we went out and watched Over The Hedge. It was pretty funny and clean. I’d recommend seeing it. Avril Lavigne does a voice in it and I think it’s pretty safe to say she should stick with making music… ha.

My sister and I ate way too much popcorn tonight though. Man, do I feel so full and gross. Now I’m just sitting at my computer, hoping not to explode while listening to Stabilo’s new record (an awesome disc)…

So the Da Vinci Code was the big seller at the box office on the weekend. Not a huge surprise mind you, considering the controversy and promotion behind it. But apparently, according to the majority of critics and people I know who have seen it, it isn’t all that it is cracked up to be (no pun intended). I only know one person who says they sort of enjoyed it. Hmm. I’ll have to see it eventually, but it will probably be when it comes out on DVD. I’m saving my pennies for X-Men 3.

It looks like the Edmonton Oilers could very well make it to the Stanley Cup playoffs as they are winning their series 2-0. Crazy. We knew the teams would be revamped after the lockout, but who would have thought this? Imagine a Stanley Cup final series with Edmonton vs. Buffalo… We sure wouldn’t have seen that before the lock out. Either way, it would be great to see a Canadian team (besides Ottawa, heh) bring home the cup.

Well, tomorrow marks the beginning of the end of American Idol for this season. It’s the final two performing on Fox, with the results (and finale) airing the following evening. It’s going to be a fun two shows… I’m especially looking forward to seeing Daniel Powter singing Bad Day live tomorrow. ha.

Of course, things will depend on how well the contestants perform tomorrow night, but I’m still thinking my long time prediction (since the top 12 anyway) of Taylor Hicks winning is going to come true. I could very well be wrong though if Katharine’s fans pull through for her… But Taylor should definitely be the winner out of the two regardless of who actually wins.

Anyway, I’m off for the evening. I have to get my beauty sleep before work you know…

Rock on.

Every time I start an entry for this blog I really don’t feel like writing it. Why I never just wait until the next day is beyond me…

Today I worked from 8 AM to 5:30 PM. Hooray. It was just dandy. I am so sore and tired because it’s basically just merchandising all day long, it’s not even funny. But the last hour or so of the shift was lots of fun… I had to laminate something when I had no idea how to work the manual machine, we had to take a picture of some of the staff for Future Shop’s internal website since our store is currently number one in the company, and I joked around with a guy from my old department for a while (he was always a blast). Good times.

I also got a shock at work, it was pretty fun actually. My back was up against a metal shelf and our Wave (the motorized “vehicle” which you can drive around and go up to get things from high above) passed by. I was talking to the person driving it and I touched a metal part on the Wave, which sent a quick shock through my one arm, around my shoulder, and down the other arm to go to the metal shelf. The major hit was taken on the arm on the shelf though, as it was all tingling and I couldn’t feel it for a little bit. Ha ha

I went and saw Chicken Little on the weekend… Good movie. It was really funny at times. Obviously it’s not the best movie of the year or anything, but it was still a good flick and worth seeing I think. I had fun anyway.

I also watched the new Left Behind movie today (World At War). It was actually not too bad as well… It still had its flaws, but for the most part it was done well. Lots more action and things blowing up too. All of the fun stuff. Plus most of the actors are back too, it’s just the Pastor that was played by someone else. Why the old actor didn’t come back, I don’t know.

Anyway, I don’t really have much more to add right now I don’t think. I’m off to bed now… Sleep… Yay…

Rock on.

So much can happen in five days, it’s crazy. I’ve been meaning to update this sooner, and even started it a couple of times, but then something else suddenly came up.

I’m trying to remember what all happened since the last entry… I know there has been a lot, so it’s hard for me to pinpoint a few. I’ll give it a try though…

- On Sunday I played “lead” guitar at church for the first time. Again, I’ve been playing the guitar for about a year now, and I felt pretty comfortable after the last practice for my first “performance.” But then it happened. The sound guy who was doing it that morning (normally it’s me), didn’t know what the heck he was doing… Gah. It was so frustrating. Things just got screwed up and the whole thing bombed. Mind you, people still said it sounded okay, but I know it could have been so much better. Now I’ve made the stipulation that I’ll only play again provided it’s a different sound guy, someone who actually knows what they are doing.

- I saw War Of The Worlds in theaters on… hmm… I can’t even remember what day it was. A few days ago, anyway. It was good though, I enjoyed it. There was a bit of swearing, but overall it was clean I think. The higher rating it received (PG-13 in the States, 14A in Canada) was because of the concepts implied and tense scenes, not so much for what you actually see. Though, there is a fair share of violence. Either way, it wasn’t really that bad. I liked it.

- Future Shop called today and said I got the job! You are now looking at (err… reading from?) Future Shop’s newest Sales Associate. That’s one position higher than the entry level, which is kind of weird but cool. I’ll be working in the computers section, selling all of their accessories but not the computers themselves. So hard drives, video cards, sound cards, mice, keyboards, blank CDs, blank DVDs, printer cartridges, etc. The thing is they want me to work tomorrow morning at 9:30 AM. Wow, talk about fast. So I’m working tomorrow from 9:30 to 1:30, then Saturday from 9-5. Ouch. I’ll let you know how it goes.

- I talked with a firm that looks after Hollywood Records’ publicity/promotions (they originally contacted me a while ago), and it looks like we may have some stuff coming on Renown Magazine for one of their new artists. Things like a review, maybe an interview, maybe a giveaway. Lots of possibilities.

Those were a few of the “major” events, I guess. Other than that there has been the regular amount of review writing, a shift at the arena, and so on and so forth.

I have been reading The Barbarian Way over the past few days too, and I must say it’s been quite good so far. I’m digging it a lot. I’m only about half way through though, so we’ll see how it finishes.

Alrighty, well, my laptop battery is going, so I’m off. I’ll let you know how my first shift at Future Shop goes.

Godspeed.

So I saw Charlie And The Chocolate Factory last night. I went in with mixed feelings since I didn’t mind the original movie, but I also loved the book and wanted something closer to it. But then I remembered that it was Tim Burton directing and starring Johnny Depp, so I knew it would be great. Thankfully, I wasn’t disappointed.

The movie was fantastic. Like with a lot of Tim Burton’s movies, it is admittedly strange, so when it finishes it takes a bit to figure out if you liked it or not. But in hindsight, I loved it. I actually wouldn’t mind going to see it again, which is very rare for me (wanting to see a movie again in theaters, that is). Johnny Depp IS Willy Wonka, he does such a great job and proves why he is one of the best actors in the business; he’s so versatile. Then when you add in Tim Burton to put a twisty, darker spin on it, you get a winner of a movie.

It was pretty darn hilarious too. I laughed out loud many times. It was such a great script that stays reasonably true to the book with a few alterations. I definitely recommend that you go and see it.

Anyway, so aside from that, Sunday was church and then just relaxing for most of the day… It was very nice, as things have been busy as of late.

Today the entire morning was dedicated to Renown Magazine… Updating the website with new content, sending out e-mails, posting news stories (I still have a few more to go, actually), and so on. Then after that I had to do a bit of running around town, then I went swimming. Then I got out and did a couple of other things before going out to get my hair cut and getting supper, then I came back and once again worked on some things around the house. Then I hopped back in the pool from about 8:30 to 9 PM and finally watched some TV afterwards. Overall, not too stressful of a day, but still had some work to do. Monday mornings are always hectic because of updating Renown.

I like my haircut though… It’s really short so I could get rid of most of the bleach from my last haircut in May. The haircutter thought she should leave just a little bit left on the top though to make it look like highlights, so it’s kind of cool. Next time I’m going to get real highlights I think, though.

Who wants to read a good article? It’s called “Secular, Sacred, or Both?” and it’s on ChristianityToday.com. Check it out by clicking here. I really liked it.

Alright, that’s all for now. More to talk about later.

Rock on.

Today actually ended up being a fairly active day for the most part. It turned out that I didn’t have to help set up at the fundraising garage sale because they had a lot of help already. Honestly, I would have still gotten up early and went to help out if they needed me, but I have to admit I’m kind of glad I didn’t have to since I was up until 12:30 or 1 AM the night before. I know, I know, it’s selfish. I’m a loser. But again, had they not called me the night before saying I wasn’t needed, I would have still gotten up early and went to help out. So it’s not that I didn’t want to.

Instead I actually slept in (oops) and woke up in time to have a shower, get ready, and head to church. After that we went through the Wendy’s drive-thru (hooray for Homestyle Chicken Strips) and brought it home where my sister wanted to watch the movie A Cinderella Story. I haven’t seen it before, but it was actually not too bad I guess.

After the movie, it was off to the city where we only went to a few different locations (sadly not in the area of the music store though). I ended up picking up the new Lifehouse album for four or five bucks cheaper than I’ve seen it everywhere else, and the book “Bono: In Conversation with Michka Assayas” for over ten bucks cheaper than other places. Not bad at all.

I’m actually just finishing the Lifehouse CD now. It’s pretty good, I like it. It’s mellower (seems to be the thing to do these days), but it’s got stuff that fans of their older rock material will dig.

The book I picked up is essentially like one big long interview with Bono of U2, only each chapter is a different session that the author sat down and spoke with him. So I guess it’s like a bunch of interviews together making one big long one. Bono speaks about a number of things; some he hasn’t spoken about before. He talks about the band, the music, his faith, politics, and tons more. It sounds somewhat boring, but it honestly isn’t from what I’ve read so far by skimming the book. It should be a good, educational read. Now I just need to find the time…

When we came back from the city I had some supper and then my sister decided to want to watch Raise Your Voice (I guess she was on a Hilary Duff kick or something). She hadn’t seen it before this time around either, so it was a new experience for both of us. It was alright too I guess… There was a guy with a cool accent in it.

Tomorrow is update on Renown Magazine time. Man, I’ve got so much stuff to do for that site in general… But we will have four new reviews and an interview sometime tomorrow for, as I said in the previous entry. More content will come once I’m able to get my feet firmly planted on the floor again…

Now another week begins and I’m back at it. What new surprises will be in store for me this time? Who knows… I smell something big is possibly brewing though…

Well, that’s it for me tonight gang. Remember to check out Renown Magazine tomorrow and read the new content, then tell me what you think.

Godspeed.

Wow, it’s been a while since I’ve updated this… Sorry guys, things have been insane.

I promised last time that I would talk about an amazing concert I went to on Sunday. I guess I’ll have to be a little more brief than originally planned, but I’ll still hold to my word.

A friend of mine, Greg Sczebel, was holding a concert in Kitchener. And since I haven’t seen him live before (he’s from B.C.), and his live show is supposed to be incredible, I decided to go for it. Man oh man was I not let down…

First of all, another friend of mine (and friend of Greg’s) was there – Joel Geleynse. Greg’s manager pulled Joel aside before the show and asked him if he wanted to play a little set, so he did. It was really last minute, but it turned out great. Joel played one of their acoustic guitars and did a solo set with five or six of his songs. The crowd – though not that large in number, unfortunately – really liked him. As they should, he’s a talented musician.

After a brief break it was time for Greg Sczebel and band to take the stage. Crap, these guys are insane. They are all reasonably young guys (very early 20s, with the exception of the bassist who just turned 16), but they all have incredible talent – each and every one of them. Greg especially blew me away, he just seems so natural up there. Without question, these guys are a must see if you ever get the chance – they are going to be huge very soon, I’m sure.

On to other things… Last Friday that article about me and Renown Magazine ran in my local paper…

Not only was it rather large in size and the first story in the Entertainment section, but it was a nice surprise to also have my picture and a teaser for the story right on the front page. Many props to Ashley for the great job on the article… Thanks!

Last night my dad, brother, co-worker, his friend, and I all went to see Star Wars Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith. We went to the final showing of the night (10:10 PM), and there were tons of people there I knew – including Francois and Mike from Hello Kelly (rock on, guys!). All in all, it was an awesome movie. I wasn’t really a big fan of Episode II, but this one definitely made up for it. All of the loose ends are now tied.

Tomorrow is Spring Celebration at Paramount Canada’s Wonderland. I will be getting there at lunch time, but I won’t be in the park area itself at all most likely. I’ll just be in the locked down concert area the entire time (I’m not entirely sure when it opens to the public), so hopefully security won’t be a problem… Last year Spring Celebration was horrible logistics wise behind the scenes. It was easily the worst event I have worked at to date. But the concert itself was great for music fans, they didn’t see any of the complications obviously… It was just the management of the day for the people running around doing work. Hopefully this won’t happen tomorrow…

I’ve got three interviews tomorrow, so hopefully they will all go well too. Two of which are fairly big names in the industry that I have still yet to interview, so that’ll be fun.

I also changed my look a bit today… It was a somewhat off-the-cuff move, and I think it turned out alright. But you have to wait until the pictures from the interviews to see it.

Alright, I think that pretty much brings you back up to speed briefly. Lots of stuff is always going on still though… Everyday I’m on the move and it’s packed solid. Hopefully things will start dying down next week, I think I’m going to explode.

Until next time, may the horse be with you.