The Return

Well, it was a great ten months of working in a small, family business, exploring Southern Ontario, meeting new people, making new friends, winning the city championship for baseball over the summer, reawakening dormant social skills (more on that one later), and finding out what I missed about the great world during those years of inactivity. I learned a lot about writing, too, and discovered that there is more to life than going overboard and spamming people day after day. Twitter gave me an opportunity to publish my blog and post my musings on the message boards on the farthest corners of the earth, and make some potentially exciting new friendships via Twitter and Google+ (including one with an up and coming Youtube "peasant" from Richmond, Virginia, and a new and HIP alternative rock band from Tampa...more on that later! LOL XD)

A sobering thought, which I discovered blowing out my knee during a baseball game over the summer, is I am not getting younger and I should cherish every moment and every friendship. There are times when going bananas is cool, like during a Dr. Mario church Tournament, but there is never a good time to spam the living daylights out of people you care about. As I enter this new chapter in my life, I hope I can reach as many people as I can without losing my identity and becoming an overbearing, needy leech. There are still things about me which need to change, and God willing, those habits I formed back in the day will no longer hamper my present and future relationships. Hooray for time management and the lessons learned from piano and guitar practice sessions ^_^ Now, I really can't wait to see what is in store for me as we enter the autumn, and progress into the winter. I'm so stoked about this year and 2012, I'm going to post an image, and then embed a video about a music group I think is HIP. We follow each other in a great, big circle ^_^ ...on Twitter o_O

Second Thoughts During Baseball Excitement

"Why did I just tweet Charles Trippy of CTFxC about the Tampa Bay Rays game?" o_O

Classic Post - AIRBORNE: Remembering Lindsay

Exactly one year ago I lost a dear friend of mine in a freak car accident. She battled hard for days afterward before succumbing to her injuries on September 29th, 2010.It took me one week to write up something in her memory, not just because I never did something like it before, but she played a part in getting me to come out of my shell, and actually converse with people. As a matter of fact, I started "Just Phil" with this blog entry almost one year ago. I am writing another entry to Lindsay Tamminga just now, but in the meantime I want to share with you what this lively, witty, and wonderful young woman meant to my life.

Isn't it rich? Aren't we a pair? Me here at last on the ground, and you in mid-air.

I last saw Lindsay Tamminga in person seven years ago. Our church youth group went to AIRBORNE trampoline place to the west of Erin Mills, and when it was her turn to bounce on the trampoline she jumped really high. She leapt so high that she almost touched the ceiling! This was incredible when you consider she was a few feet shorter than me, and I couldn't reach that high.

If you ever saw her smile, then you know how much you felt like smiling, too. If you were standing in the corner of the room, she would make you a part of the group discussion; if it was me though, she would order me to contribute, and most of time I would.

Before she quit Facebook because it was "time-consuming", we would chat a little bit about our life and times. From her pictures, she seemed very happy with her family and her friends. I remember getting a notice of uploaded pictures of her trip with friends up to Wasaga beach, and looking at a girl enjoying a small paper plate of french fries and wondering how happy she must seem. Just like that girl at Airborne so many years before. I remembered another picture of her with her family at the LAC in Mississauga. Family was always important to her, and she did not mind showing off her cool parents. Her dad rode into the church parking lot one night on his motorcycle, and I remember being very, VERY afraid of him. She was low-key about the motorcycle, and she said there was nothing to be afraid of. I took her advice and before the night was through I was able to talk to Mr. Tamminga about motorcycle stuff. She even had a red motorcycle jacket; I thought it was neat.

If there is something I learned from her is that independence is nothing without family. Friends are good, too, but the best friends should be part of your family as well. It is important to remember how precious each moment must be, and why we never forget where we come from as we move forward. I doubt I will ever meet someone like her again, but I hope I will someday, and she will still be wearing that patented smile.

To the family and friends of Lindsay Tamminga, who knew her best, I send my heartfelt condolences. Words cannot adequately express how sorrowful I am about the news of Lindsay's departure. My family and I continue to have you in our thoughts and prayers during this difficult time.

I Should Be Asleep

I told a friend via Skype I was going to sleep, but I'm still awake for some...wacky...reason!

I was on Twitter the other day, when I recalled how I used to follow someone back in the day. So I tried to access their tweet page, and Twitter said I was blocked. I don't recall doing anything creepy, although I was following someone I don't know really well, if at all. I can understand how you only want family and friends to read and follow your tweets, so blocking is a helpful tool. However, this is why I left Facebook because I was being blocked too much, not in a creepy way, but in an annoying, spammer way which is also creepy. o_O

I do wish that person well, and if they do manage to see this blog post I apologize for being a creep. If I was giving off creepy signals at that time, please know I didn't do it to cause harm. Now, if you all will excuse me, I need my Zeds (Yes, in Canada we call them Zeds, not Zees.)

BIG NEWS!

I received my invite to join Google+ (Well, I received my invite via Charles Trippy of CTFxC on his YouTube page), and now I google plus. It's the same as regular Google Profiles, but I can sync my YouTube, Twitter, Blogspot and email accounts into one application; I don't know what that will mean to me in the future, but I'm excited by the possibilities! You can also sync you Facebook page to Google+, so why not give it a try?

It is still in alpha phase, so once it goes BETA everything will be working. Speaking of BETA, a hearty congratulations to my friend Geoff, who recently returned from his honeymoon with his wife of...one month Kaitlyn! All the best to you two as you spend your lives together ^_^

I'm Not Nearly Dead...Wait, What?

Before returning home from a long day at work to crash on the bed for a couple hours, check the Twitter account: It is entirely possible four people, out of Tampa, are following that account.

The notice of them following appeared from out of the blue: Who would name their band "The Nearly Deads"? Clicking on their picture in the list of followers switches to the Twitter page of a female-fronted, alternative rock band not unlike Paramore, who are not unlike Blondie, who are not like Gladys Knight & the Pips (Where was I getting at? Oh yeah, The Nearly Deads!)

One would question why The Nearly Deads would follow a baseball-loving, fashionable-claiming twenty-nine year old writer from Toronto. One clue could be the act of following Paramore for more than four months without getting arrested (Oh yeah, follow on Twitter; that's what I meant o_O). It's possible they followed because they want something? The followers/following ratio is almost 1:1, and there is a TND benefit concert on September 17th in Nashville (More information available on their MySpace and Facebook pages, if you click on the links).

There are many likeable things about The Nearly Deads, yet its the music that tops the list. It was such a list topper there is one more album of of theirs sold off iTunes. Plus, the band is up and coming, so to be part of a small fan base of a grassroots band is the new trend. Needless to say, TND will perk up anyone's day, and hopefully will bring some life back into one's weary bones ^_^ (Get it? Because The Nearly Dead bring life...into...no? Oh, okay.)

No, I'm not getting kickbacks from The Nearly Deads for fire-selling their band. They don't need me to do that ^_^ (Ceiling cracks open, gold bouillon and ingots fall on Phil, golden crown falls on his head, jewel-encrusted scepter falls in his hands, and giant "Thank You Phil" banner falls and drapes over his shoulder.)

o_O If only I had enough money to get the ceiling fixed? Food or shelter; the debate rages on...!

There Is No Title

My friend Jeff posted his video on his Facebook page. I remembered him from the "Spartacus" miniseries, but to see him in 21st century street clothes was unfamiliar to me. I clicked on the link, and saw this movie (THIS ISN'T REALLY FOR KIDS. IT'S A SPOOF OF A SHOOT 'EM UP VIDEO GAME FROM THE PREVIOUS DECADE). It was the first Freddie Wong video I ever watched, and although many more Freddiew movies hit YouTube since then, this one remains my favourite. So, when I discovered this morning that Andy Whitfield passed away, I was upset and contemplative as well. Among other things, I discovered he was born on what would eventually be my birthdate only eight years afterward (July 17th).

Since I began blogging on "The Franchise", the big split into many blogs two years ago, or when I harnessed the power of Twitter to get my musings global the subject of death is still an unspoken subject. Perhaps Brittani Louise Taylor came the closest when she spoke about her recently deceased father earlier this year, but no one talked about death occurring to someone in the YouTube or Twitter community. What would happen to the global community should someone we love, respect, or admire could no longer upload or tweet because their time had come? How would we remember them? How would we mourn? What would be their legacy?

I don't have an answer for those or any questions rising from this blog; I'm just putting it out there. I don't know what I would do should something happen to CTFxC, nevertheless those in the "culture of watching" should pause the video and think. While we watch their lives play out before us, what happens to the lives we live? Would anyone remember us? Would anyone mourn? What would be our legacy?

From what I read about Andy Whitfield, he lived a full life. He had a blast while he was on planet Earth, and he brought a youthful enthusiasm to each project he participated in; that is the same love and enthusiasm which flowed into the lives of his family and friends. Possibly the best way to remember him is to seize every moment, and make it count like Andy did while he was still with us. It may not involve guest starring in a Freddie Wong special, or battling insane blood-thirsty gladiators in a spectacle of Roman sport, but it will still count for something.

People may remember him as "Spartacus", but to those who knew him best he was always "Andy". His legacy of love and enthusiasm is yet to be buried. RIP Andy Whitfield 1974 - 2011

Ten Years Ago

It was my first day of school at university ^_^ I went the day before for a couple of classes, however it was just to pick up the syllabus and discuss the marking scheme for the course. Tuesday was going to be my first REAL day of class. In preparation for the big day, I got up early and got ready. My bag was already full of books, pens, pencils, notebooks, calculators (Yes, I had two), and various material one needed to have a successful first day of university.

It was almost nine in the morning when the radio station played some forgettable Sheryl Crow song for the second time that day, when the song cut out. The radio announcer alerted that a plane flew into one of the buildings of the World Trade Center. Initially, I thought it was a Cessna plane. Cessna planes were always in the news at that time, and when they were in the news it was for silly things like that. I heard the announcer say "jumbo", but I was not listening. That would never happen...a jumbo jet into a building; that was silly...

Fifteen minutes later (?), they announced a second plane crashed into the South Tower of the World Trade Center. At that moment, I realized something was wrong. I ran to the television, and turned the knob to see what was happening. I thought something was wrong with the screen, because there was a gaping hole right in the middle of the screen with smoke billowing from its center. I fixed my eyes, and discovered that was a building and not the television screen. I fixed my eyes again, and discovered I wasn't dreaming either.

Time stopped for about an hour as I watched the towers burn, mayhem ensuing on the streets, and the buildings collapsing in the streets of New York. Scenes like that were only in movies like Armageddon, I thought. Those things never happened in real life, but much to my surprise they did. Real life was coming at speeds I couldn't comprehend or control. I had enough when the top of the North Tower folded down, and sent the building plummeting to earth; I turned off the television, grabbed my things, and ran outside.

Above my head in the clear blue sky were planes of every sort flying towards the one airport in the area. It was almost as if everyone in the world shared the same shocking and bewildering dream, and were too frightened to do anything but accept what just occurred. The bus rides to school were silent save for the discussion and panic surrounding what will happen in the days and hours ahead. All I knew was the life I knew up to that moment was gone.

I can only look back to those days of the 1980s and 1990s as an age of innocence. Nothing back then mattered except having fun, and enjoying life as it came. Life didn't really come into focus, and 'believing in something', 'taking a stand', and 'courage' were only catch phrases to me. The problems of the world were not my concern, nor were they my problems. My innocence and childhood fantasies died on that day, and they would never return.

Every room with a television had channels and eyes fixed on the proceedings that day. I was in the North Building of the University of Toronto's Mississauga Campus with a handful of students watching Prime Minister Jean Chretien address the nation that afternoon, and no one in the three-hour English class that night wanted to talk books. I took the night time bus home and spotted the rest of the family huddled around the television watching in stony silence.

The world was never the same after that day; this is something children born after that day will never understand. I envy them, because they have the innocence, hopes, and dreams I once held up until September 10, 2001. Everything changed the following day, and reluctantly, so did I...

...Ten Years Ago

Thanks for Topping the Thousand!

As of September 7, 2011, the "Just Phil" blog topped one thousand pageviews; this includes the purposeful and accidental visits to this blog since it started...way back when (start of the year?) I want to thank each and every one of you for your tremendous support. I hope I can send a bigger THANK YOU should this blog reach two thousand ^_^ In the meantime, I began my foray into the world of video blogging by putting together this little number. Consider it a thank you gift to all of you for your ceaseless support over the past year.

Even in Mathematics, Tangents are Bad!

The Winds of Change

Maybe it's time to change my webpage...it's so...PINK!

As summer winds down, I discover lots of things were happening in my life. I travelling to various places in Ontario, and now that I'm twenty-nine I sense a move is imminent. I ran into a friend of mine at a Wal-Mart near my house (there are two near my house; they are spreading their big box super-center goodness like it's Soylent Green), and we spoke about this subject.

Wherever I move, I want to invest in the welfare of the town. Not only do I want a house there, but I also want a favourite restaurant, hot spot, Wal-Mart, church, etc. I know I will not dump my friends, because...they're my friends! I may need new ones in town so not to look like the Ice King, or the Creepy Dude with the Hat Collection.

While we are on the subject of change, I'm going to give YouTube another try and see how many people I can upset with my videos o_O I'm just kidding, I'm sure my account will be suspended by higher powers before I find out how upsetting my videos are.

Listening to Utopia right now...Todd Rundgren sounds good with his band, but I think I'm digging the sounds from bassist Kasim Sulton. He did backup vocals for Todd Rundgren's "Sometimes I Don't Know What to Feel", but he took over a couple songs I replay on my iPod like "The Martyr" and "The Angel".


EA Road Trip 11

Autumn is coming to Ontario; this is a perfect time to purchase a new camera, and take some pictures of the great outdoors. Once I get some time off, I will take a trip to a nearby park and take pictures of trees in their cacophony of colour. In the meantime, here is a nice picture of a college town underneath an autumn sunset.

I flirted with the idea of a road trip with friends to a small college town in the interior of New York or Pennsylvania last year. However, I soon dumped facebook, and the opportunity to chat up friends about that idea went down the tubes because there was no way I could contact them -_- #EPICFAIL. I will be back on facebook again (See my Hits & Errors blog to find reason why), and there may be a chance to get some people together and do that. However, I am aware car rental firms are asking consignees to agree on paper not to drive their cars over the border; a smart idea, given what happens to rental cars when driven out of province (They get smashed! I'm just kidding, but it's true). Driving to Unknown, Ontario isn't a bad idea either, and the autumn air may inspire to take photos ^_^ Sounds like fun! Let's do it! The 2011 PhilHollywood Road Trip is on. To Oshawa: AWAAAY!