Bucket List and Movies...

I updated my Spring movie list by crossing out the ones I've now seen, but it isn't quite time for a full post. Maybe after I watch a few more of them.

My Bucket List is almost 2 years old now...

I have only crossed off a few things since writing that - MOSTLY because the majority of them are Travel related, and a good portion of them are also general "Get Better At..." goals that will basically never be 'checked off' until that bucket is good and kicked, and then if I'm better than I was when I started, that's good enough for me!

How Bad Do You Want It?

Maybe this should be posted on my sadly neglected Fitness Blog but I think it is applicable in so many ways in life.

I think I forget a lot that I need to WORK for it. I need to want it more than I want to BREATHE!

Here's a good video/speech (football related but still relevant!):

How Bad Do You Want It from Greyskale Multimedia on Vimeo.
(via Nerd Fitness)

Humans Are Amazing: Dark Side of the Lens

DARK SIDE OF THE LENS from Astray Films on Vimeo.

Beautiful - Fascinating - Amazing - Cool

Freerunning Kids

WOW! These kids are amazing - and they've been training with Tempest Academy Freerunning (see earlier post) for LESS than a year! Amazing! I would LOVE to put my kids into something like this - these boys are going to have the whole world as their playground!



"Frank and Max have been training with Team Tempest for almost a year. Watch as the boys showcase their skills in their first ever gym video at Tempest Freerunning Academy!"

(via Super Punch)

Inspiration from Will Smith

Excellent montage of inspirational words from Will Smith:



You can do it!

And so can I.

(via Alwyn Cosgrove)

Finally finished something!

Skull by ~warlordblade on deviantART

The Skull A Day blog is awesome. A few years ago they posted a really cool Stencil skull for spray painting - I decided to draw it. I only changed a few things on the stencil - it's just too cool! Makes me want to spray paint stuff!

Over on my Zero Day Project I have "Create at least one drawing/piece of art a month" as a goal... so here's the first for June!

Now to keep it up or speed up - because I actually started this quite some time ago!

Any ideas? Requests?

Awesome Greeting Card!

best greeting card I've seen in a long time - Imgur

Danny Wallace' "Friends Like These" Review

I wrote this review over at goodreads after reading this book.

Friends Like These: My Worldwide Quest to Find My Best Childhood Friends, Knock on Their Doors, and Ask Them to Come Out and Play by Danny Wallace

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

BRILLIANT!
Like the author - I definitely went through (and even 2 years later am still going through) issues of REALLY passing into adult-hood - or reaching/passing THIRTY years old. I could definitely identify with many parts of this book.
UNlike the author however, at 32 years old I have FOUR beautiful children, I have not written best-selling books that have been (or will be) turned into successful movies starring Jim Carrey (good movie actually, and now I've gotta read the book), nor do I have the means to travel off to various parts of the world just to say hi for a couple hours to friends long disconnected.
I do, however, work in IT. Funny, that.
Reading this book made me think about how I look at a lot of things in my life. How I see what's important and what isn't. The fact is, especially with all the tools available today (Facebook, Email, Cellphones/Texting, Skype, Blogs, etc) it really isn't that difficult to MAKE time to visit face-to-face with friends. And I think more of them would love that connection too.
Anyway - this book is wonderfully and entertainingly written - Definitely something I think anybody could enjoy.

View all my reviews

Like I mentioned in the review - this book really made me think...
We disconnect from people all the time without even meaning to.
We move; We change jobs; We get a new haircut...
And suddenly we realize that we haven't talked to somebody in YEARS.
Why not?
The excuse we use a lot is "We just got busy with LIFE!"
It's not like we're really THAT busy!
Seriously.
My nights fly by and I feel like "I didn't have time to get it all done!" but what did I do all night? Usually it's checking out Facebook, reading blogs, watching a TV show, looking at Amazon. Stuff like that. Really it isn't hard to go out for a burger with a friend.
Amazingly, that's what I did tonight.
I invited a friend out for a burger - it was his birthday yesterday and his wife was out of town and my amazing wife was all for it - so we went and it was great to just hang out and eat a burger and talk about Martial Arts and Egyptology and Real Estate and Literature.
It was good and I really want more connections. So I'm going to do it. Added a new item to the bucket list:
"Stay Connected" and I DON'T mean Facebook, even though that can be a tool to do so.
Life is good.
I am happy.

Inspirational...

For Rock and Roll!

(via the Daily What)

Rockin' and Rollin'

This is my Youtube Playlist I listen to at work. I'm always adding to it - and I usually change the first song every now and again and put it on shuffle.

Let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions!

(Yes, I do realize there is no Techno Viking in there... and that is sad...)

Friday Quotes - Dr. Seuss

"You know you're in love when you can't fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams."

- Dr. Seuss

10 years ago this coming Monday - I met a stunning and amazing woman for the very first time. 1 day shy of 3 months later - we were married!!

I. Am. In. Love!

My reality is SO MUCH better than my dreams! All thanks to her!

Awkwardness

(Awkward Family Photos is hilarious)

A few weeks ago as I was driving home from work - I exited the freeway and into the left turn lane to head home. I looked to my right and, what do you know? Two good friends from High School who had married were in the next lane!

I waved at them and they waved back, looked happy to see me (it's really been years!) then I started to unroll the passenger window to yell quick obscenities greetings at them before the light turned green and they both got a really uncomfortable looks on their faces and pretended like I wasn't there... So I rolled down my other window (it was pretty nice out even though the weather has been very fickle this 'Spring') and drove on when the light turned.

In response to this experience, I added another line to my bucket list...

• Awkwardness is a choice - DON'T be awkward

Everybody has awkward moments in life - heck for most people the entire ages from 11-18 are full of almost 100 % awkwardness. But really - it doesn't HAVE to be that way.

If you choose not to let something make you feel awkward - it won't feel awkward! Laugh at it! Enjoy it! Life is amazing and we make it much too complicated and awkward for ourselves.


Granted, like everything else in life, you can't control how other people react, and more often then not people sure like to make things more awkward than they need to be.

I'm also not saying these friends did anything wrong either. It WAS a weird situation, in a very busy and fast moving intersection.

It just made me realize that too often in my life I've hemmed and hawed and made things awkward for myself! NO MORE!

Man... what an awkward post! :D

Barefoot Running Style

Cool video!



(via Chris McDougall)

Amazing Yoga

This video shows Darren Rhodes doing every pose in the Anusara Syllabus - pretty dang amazing! Shot over 2 days I guess... check it out:

Tanutara: Making of the Anusara Syllabus Poster from Ross Evans on Vimeo.

I like to think I'm getting pretty good at Yoga myself - but NOT to this insane level.

Nor do I ever plan on being able to do some of these poses!

Buster Keaton

A couple of days ago I watched Steamboat Bill Jr., an amazing movie from one of my favorite actors (and directors) of ALL time. Buster Keaton.

However my love for the films and stunts of Buster Keaton is something not easily shared because I laugh my head off during Buster Keaton films. Every. Single. One. Love 'em.

My wife and my mom think it's cute and funny, but most everybody else thinks I'm a bit odd.

Which I am.

Still - since I often share parkour-related stuff on this blog - a scene from Steamboat Bill Jr. reminded me of it, so I wanted to share.
The scene where he jumps down from the top, then later goes back up to the top of the titular Steamboat can be found here:


Amazing! That was in 1928!!

A fun Montage:


And finally - one I hadn't seen in a LONG time, from the Battling Butler (which I'm not sure I've actually seen all of - gotta get on that!)


Thanks for indulging me!

20 Year Old Advice from Ray Bradbury

In 1991 Ray Bradbury sent this to a fan... GREAT advice:

I think we definitely worry about what others think WAY too often. Sure the fact that I like Pirates and Fantasy books and Pullups and Exercising a lot is WEIRD to some/many people. But you know what? The obsession some people have with making recumbent bicycles or collecting clocks or religiously following the NFL season (and off season) don't make much sense to me either! We are all different and we should embrace that!

Be your own self!

Love what YOU love!

Thanks Ray!


(via Geeks are Sexy and other sites)

Bruce Lee Interview

In honor of the month of Bruce Lee Quotes - this video fits really nicely.

This man was amazing - unfortunately he tragically died at a fairly young age. Still, his books, philosophies and movies have inspired millions.

Imagination...

Dreams...

This is just a sweet video.

ShapeShifter from Charlex on Vimeo.

Not much else to say! Enjoy!

Were we meant to have Bosses?

No video in this post! Amazing!

VERY interesting article called "You Weren't Meant to Have a Boss"

A lot of this really rings true to me. I really don't have a problem 'having a boss' per se, but the greater implications of that boss having a boss having a boss and that top boss representing me in ways that aren't really relevant bugs me.
Good quote summing up the actual feeling

"The drawbacks will only become apparent later, and then only in a vague sense of malaise."

So it's not the problem of the job, the pay, etc etc, it's an almost indefinable feeling of discontent.

Good article.

(via Hunter-Gatherer.com)