Hello? ::endless echo::

So, apparently I am the king of the abandoned blog…  As you may have guessed the WordPress Blackberry app did not magically turn me into a blog-oisseur, but alas I have returned again.

If you only know me through this blog, you probably think I am dead.  However, if you know me outside of this blog, you know that my wife and I have recently moved to the magical land of Pittsburgh.  In all honesty I love it, but I figured I would take some time to recount the good, the bad, and the ugly that I have found in Pittsburgh so far…

The Good:
I love the diversity of the neighborhoods of Pittsburgh.  There is so much to see and do around the city, and I don’t see myself running out of options for things to do around the city anytime soon.  Some of the highlights so far in the food category have been the tourist-staple Primanti Brothers, Church Brew Works in Lawrenceville was fantastic, and I also really enjoyed D’s Six Packs and Dogs in Regent Square.  If I decide to not think about food for a moment, I also really enjoyed checking out Frick Park, as well as going to a few Pirates games (despite all of them being losses).  The city is also quite scenic.  I enjoy being able to go from rolling hills, through a tunnel, and then be in the middle of the city.  It’s a dynamic I haven’t seen anywhere else.

The Bad:
Moving from a metro area of around 300,000 to one of 3 million has been quite an adjustment.  A 9 mile commute to work typically takes 30 minutes or so, and even driving a mile up the road can at times be frustrating.  Along the same topic of driving… I have a great fear of the winter time here in Pittsburgh.  Some of the hills I have seen while driving around are a bit intimidating to drive on even in the summertime… I can’t imagine how things may go come Winter.  Are snow chains legal in the city limits?

The Ugly:
Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING that has had to do with getting our cars registered, licensed, and inspected to exist in this fine Commonwealth we call Pennsylvania has been a nightmare.  From the long lines at the license center, to having to go to AAA three times to finally have everything I needed to get my plates and registration, to finding out that between my wife and I, it will cost 1500 dollars to have our cars pass inspection… ::breathe::  I am half tempted to take both of our cars to the top of one of the previously mentioned steep hills, put them in neutral, and let them roll to the demise of their choice… Given the way this city is laid out, I’m sure they would hit a river at some point.

Despite these frustrations, I do not regret the move to Pittsburgh one bit.  Our new home is wonderful, we have a new member of the family (a rescued cat named Lilly), and we are both settling in well to our new jobs.  I am, however, still working on perfecting Pittsburghese so I can more well communicate with the natives.  So… If yinz ever want to visit and go dahntahn, we can get some jumbo, pierogies n’at.  Just make sure you let me know early so I can redd up our house first.

Music Choices for the Moment:
MuteMath – Armistice
Imogen Heap – Elipse
Derek Webb – Stockholm Syndrome

Why, Hello Blackberry

So apparently there is a WordPress app for Blackberry now. In fact, I’m blogging from it right now! Perhaps this will cause me to blog more often?

Check out the details here:
http://blackberry.wordpress.org

I love technology…

Don’t Wake Me, I Plan On Sleeping In…

There is a problem that I have had for as long as I can remember, and I’m beginning to get fed up with it.

I NEVER feel rested after sleeping.

I can sleep for 4 or 5 hours, or I can sleep for 14 hours, and I still feel the same when I wake up.  Miserable (and no, my last name has nothing to do with that word).  I have always wondered why this is, and recently I’m beginning to wonder if it’s my attitude.  I’ll be honest, I’m a pessimistic person.  I often struggle to find the positive in things, and I attribute that to my over analyzing everything that happens on this earth.  My wife will often look at me and think I am upset, when really I am just thinking so hard that I have developed a perma-scowl on my face.  My mind is constantly racing, and often fails to enjoy the moment, but rather is constantly analyzing what is to come.  I really believe this does affect my waking up in the morning, as I have found on days that I am excited about what is to occur that day, I have a much easier time waking up.  On the flipside, I find weekdays are the worst.  That leads me to believe that  my job is contributing to my morning misery.  The reality is my job is not all that bad.  It pays well, is not overly stressful, and is a hell of a lot better than what most people have right now.  I should be thankful.  Unfortunately, even telling myself all these things never fixes the fact that when I wake up, I begin to think of anyway to stay in bed longer.  My attitude really does suck sometimes…

I honestly believe I need to stop worrying and analyzing so much (easier said than done), and begin enjoying the little things in life more.  I also need to just be more disciplined.  Like I said, this has always been an issue, and in college, my failure of getting up for classes had a huge negative effect on my grades.  Now, I do wake up, but it’s always in just enough time to get ready and get to work on time.  It really puts a cloud over the start of my day, and I know my wife would appreciate me joining her for breakfast from time to time.  Hopefully I can find a way around this issue.  Old habits are hard to break, but this is one that really needs to go.  If anyone has any tips on making the “wake-up” process a bit more pleasant, I would definitely appreciate hearing them.

Where to Start?

If blogging were my career, and I sat down for my review today, I would hear a few comments like these:

“Starts strong, but fails to follow through”
“Typically starts with a deep post, followed by a few random posts, followed by months of silence”
“Has potential, but lacks discipline”

So.  Here we go again.  My name is Josh and I am a fair weather blogaholic. (“Hi Josh“)

Since the last time you heard from me in mid-November, I have gotten married, have 3 kids, and a beautiful 2-story home with a white picket fence.  (I’m lying about the kids, the home, and picket fence)  We are adjusting to married life quite well, and Kelly and I have some awesome potential opportunities on the horizon (will discuss those more, when/if I am able to).  Married life offers all sorts of new challenges (sharing space, sharing resources,  sharing chores), but has incredible benefits that make it totally worth it (sharing life with my best friend).  On a personal front, I am faced with a few things lately that have been weighing on my mind, and that’s really what brought me back to this stagnant blog of mine.

Faith.
I’ll come right out and be honest.  Kelly and I haven’t been to church in several months.  It isn’t because we don’t like the preaching.  It isn’t because we don’t like the people there.  We are just completely lacking Christian fellowship of others our age.  Our church is great, but the number of people between 20-30 is very low.  If they are there, they come to service and leave right after, just like we do.  Although preaching is nice, church is really about the fellowship, and when you don’t have that, it’s hard to go week after week.  In addition to all of that, I have been struggling lately with what Christianity should look like in our day and age.  I struggle with the relevance of the typical church format.  I don’t want to go sit in silence, save for a few songs.  I want to talk.  I want to discuss.  I want to challenge and be challenged. I believe the modern church should have much more room for dialog.  This is what builds my faith.  I have questions, and they aren’t basic questions like “does Jesus love me?” or “does God care about my finances?”.  They are deep, meaty, philosophical, theological, and metaphysical questions that could take some time to dig through, and I want to be able to do that with other Christians.  The questions may not even have answers, but I at least want a venue to discuss them.  In the words of Bono “I still haven’t found what I’m looking for”…

Conflict.
As many of you know, I am an avid news reader/watcher.  I have become very interested with the conflict going on in Iran over the recent elections there.  I have been following a lot of the grassroots journalism over on Twitter and have become quite impassioned by a lot of what I have seen.  The graphic, yet eye-opening images of the violence there have raised a lot of questions in my mind.  Is it ok to show pictures and video of such horrific things?  What social responsibility do I have after seeing the things I have?  What role, if any, does America have in this conflict?  I have talked before about my disdain of the US having the “god-complex”, but at the same time when there is injustice, do we have an obligation to act on it?  Is it truly an injustice?  Do we blindly trust what we hear and see from the media?   One thing has definitely moved me though.  Many of those opposing the election results are my age, and seeing them risking their lives in the streets for something they truly believe in has been awe inspiring and challenging to me.  How many times in my day-to-day life do I stand boldly for the things that matter to me?  All things considered, I have far more questions than answers when it comes to this issue, but I do know that my prayers do go out to the people of Iran in this troubled time.

Future.
Kelly and I have had a lot of discussions recently as to where our future will take us.  We know one thing.  We don’t have a strong desire to stay in the Michiana area.  Don’t get me wrong, there are some good things about this area, but the rising crime rate in South Bend, mixed with the limited options in a city this size has us looking to move on.  Where and when that will be are still up in the air, however we want to make sure we are making the best decision possible.  There are a lot of  possibilities out there, and we are just waiting to see if things line up.  This chapter is definitely unfinished, and more will be added as time goes on.

To wrap things up, if I could describe my life in one word right now it would be “transition”.  Things are very shaky all around right now, but suprisingly I am ok with that.  I feel the winds of change, and that excites my soul.  Where the winds will lead is still to be determined, but I know that whatever direction they go, there will be lessons to be learned and experiences to be gained.  These things, my blog friends, along with a faith that is always under construction is what makes life worth living.

If you have read through my 922 word recap, I appreciate it.  I would give you a cookie if I had a cookie, and a digital way to transmit it to you.  I will try to keep future entries a bit more readible.

United We Stand…

I am a bit disgusted with what I am seeing this morning.

Two candidates who both fought a very hard presidential election stood before us last night.  One conceded victory, the other earned the title of President-Elect.  The tone of the speeches were very different.  One was saddened in defeat, the other was proud and optimistic in victory.  Despite this difference, one theme was evident: A call to come together as a country and address the issues we all face as a nation.  Despite this, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised to wake up this morning to a country bitterly divided in emotion.  I have read items from McCain supporters talking about leaving the country, and how this could be the worst 4 years in American History.  I have also read pieces written by Obama supporters talking about how this decision will change the course of America, and how everything will be better now.  The comments from McCain supporters have been overly negative and critical, while the comments from the Obama camp have been a bit too confident at times.  Here is the reality of our situation… and I will state it directly from the speeches given last night… first from Senator McCain:

“These are difficult times for our country. And I pledge to him tonight to do all in my power to help him lead us through the many challenges we face.

I urge all Americans who supported me to join me in not just congratulating him, but offering our next president our good will and earnest effort to find ways to come together to find the necessary compromises to bridge our differences and help restore our prosperity, defend our security in a dangerous world, and leave our children and grandchildren a stronger, better country than we inherited.

Whatever our differences, we are fellow Americans. And please believe me when I say no association has ever meant more to me than that.”

And now from President-Elect Obama:

“…even as we celebrate tonight, we know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime — two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century.  Even as we stand here tonight, we know there are brave Americans waking up in the deserts of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan to risk their lives for us.

There are mothers and fathers who will lie awake after the children fall asleep and wonder how they’ll make the mortgage or pay their doctors’ bills or save enough for their child’s college education.  There’s new energy to harness, new jobs to be created, new schools to build, and threats to meet, alliances to repair.

…This victory alone is not the change we seek. It is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were.  It can’t happen without you, without a new spirit of service, a new spirit of sacrifice.

…In this country, we rise or fall as one nation, as one people. Let’s resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long.  Let’s remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House, a party founded on the values of self-reliance and individual liberty and national unity.

Those are values that we all share. And while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress. As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, we are not enemies but friends. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection.  And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn, I may not have won your vote tonight, but I hear your voices. I need your help. And I will be your president, too.”

The messages stated by BOTH of these candidates are not ones of division and imminent failure, nor do they paint a picture that all of our problems are solved.   Instead, both are calls to unity, in the midst of the mighty battle ahead of us.  Regardless of our feelings, and individual political views, we must be willing to give the new president a chance, and support him as a country.  If we find in four years that he is not taking us in the direction it needs to go, we hold the power to make that change.  This is not a time be discouraged or a time to give up hope, but rather it is a time to celebrate the historical significance of what happened last night, and a chance to move our country in a better direction.

God Bless America.

Yes We Can??

I’m currently blogging from bed, which is a first for me for a couple reasons.  First, I just recently got a nifty ASUS Eee PC 900 so I can blog on the go (which I will talk about at a later date), and secondly, this just couldn’t wait until morning.

So I’m lying here in bed watching some Jay Leno to wind down, when he does his “Jaywalking” segment in which he goes out on to the streets and asks people questions to normally prove how “stupid” they are.  Tonight’s segment quizzed the contestants about the upcoming election.  After watching the segment, I am thoroughly convinced that we need to have a standardized exam for those who want to vote in our elections.  I do not believe things have always been like this.  I believe there was a time where people were better educated and not spoon-fed by the media and the Internet, but clearly that time is long gone. If I had a reputable enough blog, and could fudge a few documents, and have some seemingly reputable sources, I could probably make a case that Obama is the son of Hugo Chavez and McCain is the son of a velociraptor.

You may wonder, “Gee Josh, why are you so upset?”.  Well let me explain…  Several of the people whom Jay interviewed tonight were actually wearing candidate t-shirts, and showing very vocal support of their respective choice.  Despite this, they couldn’t tell Jay who the vice-presidential candidates were, or even answer questions regarding the 3 branches of the United States government (one person believed that the Parliament was a part of the US Government).  Another interviewee had never heard the term POW, and another believed that Kennedy was in office for 4 or 5 terms, and was the predecessor to Harry Truman…  The fact of the matter is that one of these folks can walk in and vote just as easily as a well-educated political science professor from a prestigious university…  Some may see this as the beauty of the “freedoms” we have here in America.  I see it as scary.  Without going into too many of my personal political views, I will say that I believe that the next few years are going to be very important in American history, and I often wonder if I have enough insight to really make an informed decision in this election.  Then I see people like I saw tonight who are sold out to one candidate on the premise of popularity and hype only, and I wonder how many people really know the candidate they are voting for in November and the core values that person stands for…

So what do you all think?  Is the right to vote more important than ensuring that the voter is making an informed decision?  I’m split myself, but after seeing the ridiculous lack of knowledge tonight, I certainly question the precedent…

The Music Lovers Dream

So (if anyone is reading this) you may have noticed that I didn’t blog much last week.  That was because it was an incredibly busy first half of the week at work, and a fun filled second half of the week consisting of seeing my two favorite musicians/bands.

On Thursday night, Kelly and I made the 90 minute drive to Chicago to see Weezer in concert.  Opening for them was Tokyo Police Club and Angels and Airwaves.  I really enjoyed Tokyo Police Club, but Angels and Airwaves were a bit too “emo” for me.  I typically like that type of music, but Tom DeLonge was moving awkwardly around the stage, and it all just was too much for me.  We were standing very close to the front, and when Weezer took the stage it felt like we were going to be shoved right onto the stage.  I have never been so pushed around in any concert I have ever been to.  Regardless, Weezer put on an amazing show and even though the guys are all around 40 now, they still know how to rock.

After the Weezer concert, we drove back to South Bend, and got home in time to get a whopping 3 hours of sleep before going to work on Friday.  As soon as work was over, we drove another 90 minutes to Fort Wayne to see Ben Folds perform with the Fort Wayne Philharmonic.  This was a much more subdued concert than Weezer, due to the “symphony” aspect, but it was still just as fantastic.  After the concert Kelly and I got tour t-shirts and then headed to my mom’s house for the weekend.  Kelly and my mom went twice to the Vera Bradley sale over the two days, while I tried to catch up on sleep.  It was a nice weekend at home, and I got to meet my mom’s new cat, Gracie…. (If you didn’t know, I’m a sucker for animals).

This week has started very busy at work again, but tonight was a great time as Kelly and I celebrated her 21st Birthday!  I got her a necklace, and took her out to a fancy restaurant in Elkhart (Indigo on Seventeen).  It was an amazing meal, and even though I was treating her, it was quite a treat for me too.

Now, I’m sitting here after watching the end of the Presidential Debate (lame and uneventful like the first one) and listening to the new Keane CD, and contemplating sleep.  I really need to blog more, but it seems like the idle time I have sitting at a computer is becoming less and less.  Oh well.  Good tidings of great joy to all of you.

The Tech Nerd Within…

So here are some things that I have been using recently within my geekdom, that I think you may enjoy as well….

Google Chrome
I work in IT, which instantly makes me a computer nerd.  So I love to try out new software.  And now, the browser battle has a new contender.  Just when you were getting used to Firefox, Google’s new open source browser has hit the market.  Keep in mind that this is still in beta, so it still has alot of work to go, but it certainly looks promising!  The speed is incredible, and it has a lot of great features as well.  I also appreciate the minimal design as it leaves more room for the website, and less for unnecessary toolbars

Mega Man 9
I grew up as a Nintendo dork… and even now, 20 some years later, I still am.  So of course, I am excited about the brand new Mega Man game that uses the same 8-bit graphics and music of the original Nintendo Entertainment System.  I just got this game tonight, and I played it for around and hour, and died probably 10 times… which makes it identical to the past NES Mega Man games… very tough, but incredibly fun to play.  It’s amazing that the old formula still works.

last.fm
It’s no secret that I am a music nerd.  And I love to find new music.  This website, and the installable program have made that process even more enjoyable for me recently.  There are many different things this program does, but the two that I enjoy most are the radio options, and the scrobbling.  Scrobbling is a process that logs all the music you listen to on your computer, and saves it to  your profile (and other places if you so wish).  It also uses this list to recommend other artists to  you.  You can also enter your favorite artist, and listen to a radio station based solely off that artist and other related musicians.  Another radio program exists called Pandora that does some of the same things, but I have found last.fm to be much more robust.

Ok… now that I’ve got that nerdiness out of me… I’m going to listen to the new Ben Folds album as I drift to sleep.  I promise I will have a more introspective post soon, but I’m far too tired and busy to do so tonight!

Peace, Love, and other positive emotions…

On a Ben Folds kick…

In honor of the Ben Folds Five reunion concert tonight, I felt it appropriate to post a video of a vintage 1998 BFF performance of the song “The Last Polka”… Good Stuff!

Remembering a fantastic album…

It has been quite awhile since I have listened through the entire album “The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner” by Ben Folds Five, but I am glad I brought it back off the shelf (or off the iTunes Library).  Being an avid Ben Folds fan, I enjoy all of his albums, but this one may be my favorite.  I remember when I first got the album (the day it came out), I was a bit dissapointed.  It wasn’t the same as the past releases by the ‘Five’, as it had alot of variance in the style from song to song.  It had more jazz influences, and a more mature sound from “Whatever and Ever Amen.”  However, as I continued to listen to the album, it grew on me more and more, and soon passed the previous BFF albums in my favorites list.  Listening to it again now, I am reminded of how fantastic it is.  It makes me sad that I can’t make the trip to North Carolina tomorrow night for the Ben Folds Five reunion concert where they will play this album from front to back.   If you only know Ben Folds for Brick, The Luckiest, or “Bitches Ain’t Shit”… I seriously recommend you pick up this album and give it a listen.

My favorite tracks:
Don’t Change Your Plans
Magic
Army
Jane