NBA Markets

I didn't know how to phrase the topic the right way.

There's been a lot of discussion amongst the talking heads of the NBA world about how players are ditching the small market teams to running to the big markets. Some small-market owners are complaining, saying that there's a competitive disadvantage if they can't keep their star/franchise player because the larger market is more appealing to the player.

I think that's bogus. Absolutely bogus. The reason players leave teams (which, conveniently happens to be the small market teams) is because they're poorly run. It doesn't get much more simple than that. If you run your team smart, the players will stick around and reward you for rewarding them with the right pieces. Look at San Antonio, Tim Duncan has played their his entire career. Although Timmy doesn't seem like the guy who goes after the glitz and the glamour.

Or you can say the same with Oklahoma City. Kevin Durant is one of the best players in the planet, and just this past summer signed an extension because he was going to be playing with great players like Westbrook and Ibaka.

LeBron left because Cleveland wasn't putting the best players around him in an opportunity to win. It's that simple. He had stuck it out for 7 years. It's fair to say he gave them a fair shot. Now, going to Miami, to Dwayne Wade's team, is a totally different animal. But as far as "jumping ship" to a big market? If he wanted the biggest market he could of gone to the Knicks. He didn't. And just a year ago nobody would of wanted to go to the Knicks because they were in turmoil, with no direction and just seemed to be a mess. They freed up space to get Amare and now Carmelo, but so what? They're still a 6 seed, and might fall to 7 if they don't check their rearview mirror. They beat the Heat, but they lost to the Cavs. Riddle me that.

Remember, the NBA is different than the other sports because there is a max contract. There is no A-Rod deal. Kobe makes the same as Joe Johnson, who makes the same as Chris Bosh. That's as simple as it gets. So while money is nice, it's clearly the option of the players to determine where they want to get their money from. Although, that doesn't mean the NBA is free from it's boneheaded, scratch your head type contracts and just say "he makes HOW much to ride the bench and play 15 minutes a night?"

The league honestly is at an all-time high as far as popularity. I don't know if it's necessarily LeBron's doing, but for me it started right around then. There are so many subplots and story lines it's like a rich man's WWE. The Celtics Big 3 trying to show the young 3s teawmrok. Miami's Big 3. Orlando trying to prove they're the best team in Florida New York trying to make 3. Kobe still proving who is top dog. Blake Griffin trying to break the backboard. Kevin Love turning into the white Shaq. Durantula's continued evolution. And I haven't even talked about the Bulls, Spurs, or Mavericks.

Sure, nobody cares about the chaos in Detroit, or the Bucks, or the Pacers, or even the Sixers. I'm not sure I could tell you one player on the Memphis Grizzlies. Or the Rockets. But there are 8-10 teams that I would watch any time they're on television. That's about 8-10 more than I would have watched this time last year. I think that in itself is the accomplishment. The NBA is bringing the casual fan and getting them invested again, because there's fun to the league. Not everyone's having fun, but more people are than before.

So small market teams, shut up and run your team better. Your players will reward you for your efforts, if you play to win, and not play to make a profit.

Award Season

Aren't award shows really dumb? We've over-hyped them to make them not about the awards at all. Instead, it's about who was wearing what and how one looked vs the other. The awards really aren't the focus at all anymore. I don't know which channel, because I don't watch, but I'm sure E! or maybe ABC run some drawn out "Red Carpet" ceremony where they try to ask every celebrity what they're wearing, who it's from, and who they want to see win tonight (usually themselves cause they're egomaniacs.)

Or the other thing we worry about is the host. People are so excited that so and so is the host. Again, does that ever really make a difference? It's like we need some actor who can sing/dance/crack jokes because that's going to change the show. Do you remember any of the jokes from any of the shows? I only remember Russell Brand sucking in VMAs. The first time. Who even hosted last year? Which all circles back to who cares, why does this matter?

For instance, tonight is the Academy Awards. What do you think people are going to be talking about more; Natalie Portman's dress or her winning an award? I'd bet on the first. Or "I can't believe how terrible X looked." It's not going to be "I can't believe King's Speech beat Social Network."

The award show is supposed to be a celebrating of the past year in whatever form of entertainment. All of the nominees (usually) are great. True, only one can be voted "the best." but they're all worth recognition (duh, that's why they were nominated).

There's not much more to say. There's no way to fix this, like most things, unless we did away with the show altogether and they just announce everything without the glitz and the glamour. But why would they? They've got the market locked in for those 3 hours every year and make get paid extremely well for it.

That said, of course I'll watch. Although I'll definitely be flipping between the Knicks and the Heat. Funny that ESPN would try to steal ratings from it's own company (ABC/Disney). Great business strategy.

Sore Sports

Before you continue reading, you need to watch this video.

Since I know my readers are lazy, allow me to write the gist of it: A kid at Holy Family University (a small school in Philly) on the men's basketball team was knocked over by a coach during a rebound drill. This is where you really need to watch the video to see it demonstrated. Anyways, so he gets hit and falls over. His wrist is broken. He demands action from the university, they don't do "enough" in his mind. He goes to the police. They don't go into what happens next, I assume lawsuit, because America is a beautiful country.

So he contacts the authorities and the coach is being reviewed. There's footage of the coach crying. Then the video segment interviews both the coach and the player, who are with some kind of (I assume) legal representatives.

Is this really the what goes on in America? The problem with this story is that both the coach and the player are wrong. To push this kid over was more than just "tough love." But basketball is physical, so I'll let it slide. Then he kicks him. Not hard, but it's like a kick shove. That was uncalled for, but this can't be the first time that a coach did something physical to a player. Or the first time a player was verbally abused.

And the player? What a wuss. Calling the authorities? Really dude? The coach knocked you over, so what. Learn from it. That's why he is the coach and you are the player. And if you really "don't respect" the coach after this, then just quit. When someone does something you don't respect, you don't continue to associate with that person. It's that simple. When he said "I really want to play basketball at Holy Family" that's pathetic. He really needs to aim higher. The school owes him nothing. He wasn't maliciously hit with intention to harm. He was knocked down. Playing a sport. Tough nuts dude.

There's not much more to be said. Society sickens me.

Apple Rumors

I'm not obsessed with Apple. I think Apple puts out a superior product than competitors. What I mean by that is they make everything themselves, making the product run more efficiently. They make their own machine with their own parts that is powered by it's own operating system. Any computer/smartphone/tablet you see running on Windows or Droid is made by another company. Dell makes their computers to run on an operating system not made by them. The DROIDS are being made by Motorola, but run Google's system. Because they aren't created by the same company they can't run at it's optimized power. And that's why Apple's products, to me, are better. They're also typically more money, so you get what you pay for.

The tech culture (and most of the general population) seems obsessed with Apple. For the past four years that iPhone was on AT&T, we'd hear a new "iPhone to Verizon" story every three months until it finally came true last month.

I've been looking forward to getting an iPad for myself, but since I've been assuming iPad 2 would be coming out soon, I've been waiting. It's hard to avoid all the rumors for it. Let me go through some of what I've heard:

Apple will release the iPad on Steve Jobs birthday.

Apple is waiting until after the Chinese New Year is over to announce the iPad.

Apple is planning for iPad 2 in the spring, then iPad 3 will be released in the fall.

iPad 2 will be installed into your brain.

Okay, I made the last one up. That rumor is for iPad 75. But the other 3 are real. Think about them for a second, what would ever make anyone think that those three make sense? It doesn't. Apple doesn't care about Steve Jobs birthday or the Chinese New Year. People are just trying to connect the dots on their own. And with the Internet, these things can spread like wildfire.

The iPad 3 rumor is the best one. Why would they Apple ever release an iPad 2 now and 6 months later upgrade? They've already got the hottest tablet on the market, and it's going to sell more with the second iteration. They really don't need to upgrade it. The original could probably last another year. But Apple tries to stay ahead of the curve to keep itself on top.

Apple is honestly the only company I know that has such a crazy following. They don't have to say anything - everyone says it for them. They get in the news by not doing anything at all - it's all created by the media on their own. It's great PR. I'm sure Apple has it's own internal PR team, but they don't need to do much unless they have another Antennagate or iPhone 4 left at a bar.

It will be hard to see the future of Apple, especially since it feels like so much rides on Steve Jobs. Obviously he can't live forever with the company, but I'm sure the creative genius is more than just him behind the scenes. He's just the one everyone sees. I think anyway, I don't really know. I've never been out to One Infinite Loop, so who knows. Either way, it seems like there is no stopping Apple, unless Google starts to try to compete more with them, which has never been their modus opperendi.

In other news, I really can't wait for the iPad.

Update 2.24 - Okay, so they announced the new MacBook Pros today. I'd really like to believe this has zero correlation to Steve Jobs' Birthday. The world may never know.

The Melo-Drama

I don't claim to be an expert, but the Knicks are idiots. This trade to get Carmelo screams desperate. Melo told everyone before the season he wanted to be a Knick. He was going to be a free agent, so he was basically wrapped up. The Knicks could of kept their players and draft picks then still sign Carmelo to essentially the same deal.

The Knicks made this deal so they could get Carmelo now instead of in 4 months. And they gave up a boatload to make it possible. Let's be honest, Carmelo is overrated. At 26, is it too much to say he's already peaked? Or at the very least plateaued? He may get better, but the talent younger than him is making much bigger strides.

Honestly though, great move for the Nuggets. They got something for nothing. It was a given Carmelo was leaving. So why not trade for him now and get a little something. Ask Cleveland how they're feeling, think they wish they could of done something? Comparing LeBron to Carmelo isn't exactly fair (although they are tied to that same draft class) but it's a similar situation that teams face every year. The Brewers face it later on this year with Prince Fielder.

Knicks are hoping the big name of Carmelo and Amare can make the Knicks relevant, but they traded away the other pieces to see success. Any hope of getting Chris Paul or Dwight Howard after 2012 seems foolish. No way they don't take the max deal from somewhere else. Unless the Heat win the next two, which as of now doesn't seem likely. Spurs, Celts, Mavs, and Bulls still stand in their way.

So, end of the day? Knicks are chasing fools gold. Looks good now, but doesn't make sense long term. It's a great thing Isiah Thomas left that organization......

I'm just pissed: I'm moving to New York in a week and there's no way I'll ever afford a Knick ticket for my time there. Until I win the lottery...

Live Music

I'm sure I'm not in the minority here, but I believe that live music is better than studio-recorded music. I personally appreciate a band who can play their music live better than it sounds in the studio, because there are too many groups who auto-tune or can't execute on a stage, and that ultimately is the core of music, being able to perform live. Or when a band plays their music differently than it's recorded, something unexpected, but better.

There's two key elements to a great show. The band playing well, but the second is out of their control; the crowd. Each show varies on the people who come to the show. The more passionate the fan base the better the show, without a doubt. My favorite moment of any show is when the band lets the fans sing the songs. It doesn't matter how big the arena is (or isn't), it provides a sense of unity and connection between the band and the fans. But sometimes the fans get the shaft if the crowd isn't savvy enough - which is truly sucks.

The only examples I can give are shows I've been to. The best ones? Bruce (obviously), Jimmy Buffet, Green Day, Dave, Blink, O.A.R. and Sum 41. Each band has a huge following (well, Sum 41 doesn't anymore, but I like to pretend it's still 2000). If you ever listen to any of their live albums, you can hear the fans singing. Time of Your Life, Thunder Road, Ants Marching, etc. These bands know how to work with the fans, and that makes me love them even more.

I don't want to say if a band sucks live that I'm going to bail on them, but they lose serious credibility. When I first saw Fall Out Boy (right after "Sugar We're Going Down" took over America) they were terrible. Patrick Stump couldn't hold a note. I think I had a better shot. They lost a lot of respect. I saw them again a year later and it was much much better. Redemption is possible. I still like Fall Out Boy from when they were cool. I've just grown up a little bit for them. [I say that, but I listen to Blink 182 everyday, so I didn't grow up too much].

The other great thing about these bands with such wide catelogues is that every night can be an entirely different song. Some of the newer bands play the same set night in and night out - they can't play anything else. The old guys - they could literally play whatever they want. They change the set list on the fly or take requests. Every night is different - making it more or less special than any other night. That's where the crowd comes in. Some bands responds to the positive reactions from the fans and play more than usual or an old favorite. It's a fantastic connection.

I've been talking about rock concerts, but I'm forgetting about rap shows. I'm split on them. Because they can be a toss up. There's only so many times that a rapper can fist pump or rock his hands or grab his crotch before I'm disinterested. And if they don't have a live band playing their songs, I really lose interest. Hearing the normal track in the background blows. Plus I also think most of the clientele of people at a rap concert might not be welcoming to me. I saw Kanye in Scranton, and it was cool, but it wasn't the best thing ever. And I love Kanye. I'm much more impressed by people who can play music and sing at the same time.

Another interesting dynamic: The indoor vs. outdoor concert. Obviously timing is everything, as having a show outside in the winter is ridiculous. Part of the outdoor summer concert is the whole situation. I'm a big advocate of tailgating before an event. Having a few beers, cooking some steaks, sitting out and enjoying the parking lot. It might be one of my favorite things about summer. I can't say which is truly better, because I think an arena brings everyone closer together, whereas the outdoor lawn show isn't as together, but much more relaxing, open air, etc. Of course, I saw Blink 182 in the pouring rain in Hershey, PA, and it might of been my favorite show I've ever been to [read: not the best. Bruce. Obviously.]. And yes, I tailgated at Hershey Park.

One thing I'm surprised with? How much more vocal the European fans are. I've never been to a show, but some bands have released live albums from their shows (plus I've bootlegged quite a few) and they sing along to the music, almost sounding like a separate instrument in the show. I know it sounds weird, and I can't find a YouTube video that truly justifies it, but believe me. I'm not crazy. [Quick comment: How weird is it that Europeans go see American shows, especially if they don't understand English.]

My point is, live music is awesome. Go see your favorite artist in concert. It's awesome. And if you really want your life to change, go see Jimmy Buffet in concert. I'm not kidding.

Social Media "Experts"

I think we're starting to reach an overflow on social media. It's such a buzz word, as is it's varying friends in a very similar vein. Everyone is a self proclaimed expert. So, there's at least a million experts on social media. If there's that many experts, then it can't be anything all too special. Expert implies being the top of your field.

Everyone talks and talks and talks about the same thing. Everyone is literally just vomiting the same minutia. It's make me nauseous. Here's how to write a blog. Here's how to tweet. What's the next big thing? Join us for our chat about the future. Let's all get in a chat on Twitter and talk about how much we love social media, although we really don't know what the hell we're talking about, let's pretend we do #socialmediachat. Join us for a Tweet Up. OMG I'm so social because I tweet. It's like everyone is hopping aboard this train, but there is no more room left. Now it's a runaway train, and there's no stopping it. [That might be the worst analogy I've ever come up with. I'm sorry I've failed you. I'm losing my mind.]

(Also, while I'm on this thought, I hate the concept of Twitter as a chat anything. Isn't that the point of chat rooms? Or are chat rooms just for perverts who are on To Catch a Predator? There's too many things going on a feed like Twitter for any chat to make sense. Plus, limiting your point to 140 characters, minus the characters for the hashtag, you may not be able to make your point in one tweet. I clearly have a hard time saying anything concisely, as this short thought has turned into a six line paragraph.)

We've become such a culture of looking for that "next big thing" we all try to latch on as soon as possible. We saw that with twitter in 2009, even though it had been around for a few years. Last year we talked about Foursquare. These things become so big that they somewhat lose their appeal to me. The people who are/were considered "experts" are all saying the same thing. The same static. And then they try to tell the listeners how to be like them. When something major happens - like that Kenneth Cole tweet, for example - all the "experts" have to contribute their two cents and say how you should execute a corporate twitter blah blah. Over/Under on that was at least 250 people who jumped on that boat.

The truth is, there is no science to this social media. There's no "right way" to do any of it. Just don't do something stupid like Kenneth Cole. You do what you think is best for the brand you represent. It's that simple. There's no need to complicate it. Just don't look like an idiot. There's a lot of people online who look like idiots. And they have no clue, because, well, they're idiots.

There isn't really much else to say here, because just the thought of having to go over how everyone is repeating themselves makes me want to throw up. It can't be stopped. It's only going to go away when we find the next big thing (probably like when we insert chips in our brains to replace cell phones. the iBrain. I've got digs on copyright Jobs. You read it here first.). In the mean time, I'm going to start avoiding the noise and just focusing on the things that matter: what my friends and people of interest are talking/thinking/writing/tweeting about, not what "people I should know because everyone else knows them so therefore there are experts" are talking about.

Man vs. Machine

I'm sure you've heard about the Watson computer that IBM has made. Their methodology of proving it's intelligence? Putting it into a competition against homo sapiens in America's favorite game show: Jeopardy.

I'll admit, I usually don't watch Jeopardy (it's on during Seinfeld, obviously you know what I'm watching) but when I do I always learn something - and always feel proud of myself when I know something. I went through a game-show phase where my favorite thing ever was Game Show Network. I literally could not get enough. Anyways.

I caught some of the Jeopardy Watson episode tonight. It's an absolute joke because think about it, who is going to know more: Google or You? Who is going to think of it faster: You or Google? This machine basically uses Google, types the words into its "brain," and gets the answer. Of course it's going to know more than you, and it's going to be able to get the answer faster than you can think about it. You always have those things where you "can't think what it was" and then it may come to you 4 hours later. Google's able to figure it out in less than a second.

Watson is wrecking house. It usually knows the answer with 90% accuracy, and answers in less than a second. You can tell Ken Jennings is just pissed because he doesn't have the split second to process the question before buzzing in. He can't even buzz in and stop to think about it, because Watson is too fast.

What does this really prove? Nothing. Of course the computer is going to be smarter, answer faster, etc. The impressive part is that it "think" for itself. I don't fully understand the technology, but it seems like it's able to understand Mr. Trebek (I'll take The Rapists for 20), process the information, and then respond almost instantly - in English and in the "What is X" format. Watson choose the category it wants to answer, the money it wants to wager. There are a few times it is completely wrong and has an answer from left field, but usually it's dead on. In two days it's up at 38 some thousand.

It's impressive technology, but it scares me to think where this technology will be in 10, 20 years. We've seen too many Hollywood movies to think it could be anything good (Terminator, I Robot), but maybe it could be. Or it could turn into SkyNet and destroy us all. Either way, for right now, it's impressive. Is it necessary? Absolutely not. It's probably the beginning of the end. Embrace what time we have left humans.

New Jersey

I've been thinking a little bit lately about how New Jersey gets such a bad rap. Everyone picks on Jersey. It's America's armpit. Stuck between Philly and New York, it has no identity. In fact, it gets the luxury of being suburbs for Philly and New York, you're either close to one of them. Jersey has the distinct luxury of hosting sports teams that refuse to bear it's name in the football Giants & Jets.

When people from Jersey talk to people who aren't from Jersey, they just say "I'm from Jersey" which always leads to "where in Jersey" and they say "north/central/south" or "Near NY/Princeton/Philly." That's about as specific as it gets, because Jersey is filled with bumblef*** towns that nobody has ever heard of unless you live there. So does every state, but because Jersey has a close connection to these two main cities, they get out more. Nobody knows anything about a state like Idaho, cause nobody from a state like Idaho makes it out alive.

Going to a private school in Philly, we had kids from Jersey, and we always used to make fun of them in the beginning. It was like a "ew you're from Jersey" thing. Really really mature. There were a lot of them however. And my best friend from high school ended up living in Cherry Hill, NJ. I remember the first time I drove over there. What a pain in the ass. Can't make a left turn anywhere. The circles. I never wanted to go back. It's still a pain, but I've managed it. Cherry Hill at least, isn't any different than my neck of the woods in Lower Merion, besides for the main roads. It's not like they're living like barbarians and I'm living the life of kings. It's all the same. Okay, maybe the Thrill doesn't have the same reputation as the Main Line, but still.

But it's interesting, because Jersey has developed it's own attitude that has captivated America. Sure you could talk about the Jersey Shore epidemic - which is still better than ever by the way - and has swept the country all over again. But there's so many shows that relate to Jersey, the Real Housewives crap and that Jerseylicious shows that I've never watched, and I'm sure there are other quality reality shows that really get a sense of the Jersey culture. Of course there's The Sopranos wrapped up in there too.

I don't think it's totally crazy, but it's just interesting. I'm spoiled on my Jersey opinions because I know some Jersey-ites and my religion is Bruce Springsteen, so I feel like I don't know it the way someone in New England may think of it, if they've never been. I know it's not as crazy as the idiots on the shore seem (who, aren't really from Jersey, but capture the attitude that MTV wants you to believe). The way I see it, there are two types of people, there's the type that wants to get the hell out of wherever they're from (born to run), and they is the type that will never move on. Jersey has that "get me the hell out of here" mentality, weather that's to NYC or to California or wherever, anywhere is better than here. Again though, you can cheat that, because you could be "in Philly" and be 10 minutes over the bridge in Cherry Thrill.

In this freezing cold winter, while I'm immensely enjoying the snow (I haven't had this much fun with the snow since I was 8, I think I'm regressing. Benjamin Button syndrome,) I long for for those summer days down in my Jersey Shore. Not Seaside, but a couple miles down in the Ocean City/Stone Harbor neck of the woods. I think part of it is that I could easily be a beach bum for the rest of my life if I could afford it. But specifically watching Jersey Shore and seeing the scenes of the boardwalk and the rides make me miss it so much. It's such a relaxing life, living in warm temperatures by a beach. With my current virtual job, I could feasibly live there. I have no idea what the future holds, but maybe later down in life. We'll see.

That long-about paragraph above is meant to reference how while we all pick on Jersey, yet when the summer comes, I can't wait to get down the shore and relax. We don't treat the shore like it's Jersey, we treat it like an extension of our (non Jersey) homes.

My point is, Jersey's gets a bad rap, but we're obsessed with it. It's not going anywhere. Embrace it. Love it. Go get your full service gas from it.

John Mayer

I'm very fascinated by the antics of John Mayer. I can't think of a better way to say it. It's not something I think about everyday, or that much at all. I thought about it tonight because I saw Johnny boy at the Grammys (which leads to another topic later on).

It's weird. This guy writes music that makes girls melt, spilling his guts and thoughts out. He's been with so many hot women that a normal male would die to be with any one of them. Then he spills the beans about them, burning bridges, he's very outspoken, selfish, maniacal, insane, and yet his music still speaks to me and the girls still love his music. He's loved and hated at the same time. It's almost like he's bipolar, and we have a bipolar judgment of him, depending on the day of the week and what mood he's in.

The music is so raw and emotional. I love it. I listen to his album Heavier Things now as much as I did in 2003. He's gotten critcal acclaim for his music. The best part is that he hates the music he writes. He's clearly into the blues Continuum-style of music, but the money is in the love songs. And he says that too, it's not a secret.

John lives this bastard lifestyle. The celebrity attention has blown his ego to unreal levels. Part of me sympathizes with him; all of these celebrities can get whatever they want, immediately. They could have as many friends that they want, but these people don't want to be friends with them, they just like who they see, weather it's on tv/through music/etc. That's the person that the common folk wants to see. Yet celebrities live a life outside of the studio. They aren't always living the glamorous lifestyles that we think they do. They do the same things we do. We've boosted the ego of all of these people. That's why Lindsay Lohan thinks she can get away with whatever. We only have ourselves to blame.

Anyways, John is able to write this music that makes girls cry, yet he can't seem to hold a girl ever. He's been through at least 100 girls, and if you'd go just off the music, you say to yourself "why doesn't it work out with him and girls?". But outside the studio he's an asshole. I don't feel bad for him with that. I'm starting to get the same way with Taylor Swift. I love Taylor, think she's absolutely adorable, she writes these great songs, but I'm starting not to feel bad for this "poor girl who gets dumped by boys all the time". Why is she getting dumped? Clearly something wrong is going on - with her.

It's funny I wrote about TSwift and John in the same post - they clearly had a thing too. Which seems to make sense - except for the like 12 year age difference - in that they both seem relationship/love flawed so maybe they'd be able to work it out together. Clearly something went wrong. She's got that song, but who knows what really happened. I wouldn't be surprised at anything. I don't think Taylor's as sweet as she seems when it comes to love and everything. She might have these crazy expectations that every thing is like Romeo and Juliet or something unreal. John seems like an asshole, so it's almost no surprise that never worked out. I also feel like we really don't know anything about these people. As much as we think we do, we really have no clue. We only seem them through the lens/music, but there's still the other mmmmmm 365 days a year that we don't see them, know what they're going through, etc.

[Who knew I would ever be writing about celebrity relationship? Is this really what I'm doing with my life?]

The other thing I realized tonight from seeing him at the Grammys - John Mayer is old. Not only does he look like a normal Johnny Depp, he just looks old. He's not the kid who wrote Bigger Than My Body/Something's Missing/Home Life (you can see my Heavier Squares bias. I like all his albums, in case you were wondering). I googled him - he's 33. I can't be one to judge, but I just hope in 10 years I'm not living like that. He's a 33 year old boy. I have no idea what he sings at his concerts (I've always really wanted to go - to see the music and maybe I could pick up some emotional girls who are in the set up by the concert, but I never went) but this is getting ridiculous if he's still talking about your body as a wonderland. How long can he keep writing about this stuff? (I'm just putting this sentence in because I'm realizing that this paragraph has way too many parenthesis/footnotes. I'm clearly insane.)

I'm not sure there's anyone else like him out there. I really like his music, and I think he's talented when it comes to songwriting. I think he's compulsive, and it's our fault for giving him the attention to create. The curse of celebrity. Either way, it's very fascinating.

Now if I spent this much time examining my own life?

Real Estate Agents= Scum of the Universe

I'm in the middle of moving my life to NYC. It's been a long process, but it's (hopefully) coming to a close.

Why has it taken so long? Well the first 7 months are due to my career status, so I'll blame myself. But the last 2? It's because I'm being duped every weekend by real estate agents. I'll find their listing on their sites and it would say a building is something in my price range [which is low, but I'm trying to be as independent as possible on an entry level salary]. And then we see it and it's not in that price range, it's more like $500+ more.

Every time I ask the realtor why the price difference, they say "it just changed today." But it didn't. There was this one building that I had seen with one agent, and another agency had the same property (I knew based on the amenities) and it was still listed AT THE WRONG PRICE. I emailed and asked if that was the price, and *surprise* it was wrong! They just changed the price "today". I emailed back and said that they didn't, it changed at least a week ago, because I saw it and it was higher then. I then explicitly asked "why do you list the wrong price when you know the difference?"

That's the best, because you're flipping the tables on them, because you know their game and calling them out. The responses I've gotten are just hilarious. One was literally a smiley face. They squirm.

The other thing with these realtors is that they have no boundaries. Especially now because there are so many ways for them to contact you. I would give these people as little information as I could about me. I even lied about my name to one. I made the mistake of including my signature in my e-mail, which includes my phone number. Within the hour I had 3 missed calls from my new friend. Got some texts. There is no control. Needless to say, they did not get my business.

Realtors thrive off the bait and switch. Bait them in with a good deal, then give them the less good deal. How is this legal? How do we fix this? I'm not creative enough to come up with this solution right now, but this is outrageous. Seriously. How is anyone supposed to get anything done when all that's out there is bullshit? And to follow up with the bullshit, these pesky realtors won't stop bothering you once you give them your information.

Therefore I'm declaring real estate agents scum of the universe. Especially the NYC ones. I can't say I really know any other ones. Them and the bloodsucking lawyers that try to get as much money as possible. They're an unfortunate necessary evil because you have to find an apartment some how, but they need to be regulated. I don't want to deal with them every 12-18 months for the next 8 years. So brutal.

Also another note - how is anyone with a typical "business" job working 9-5 (but no one in NYC works 9-5 it's more like 9-6 and usually more like 9-9) supposed to see any apartments during the week? If you're looking at a "luxury building" the leasing offices close at 5. Limits you to only weekends to get your act together. It's hard to get anything done, and getting an apartment is kind of important. Washing your clothes? Not necessary. Finding a home? Necessary.

It's also been an interesting 9 months or so since graduation. I've been employed for 3-4 of those months, but not in a row. And that's not counting the stint back in retail. It's hard being homeless and trying to figure out your life when you want to live it in another city. I'm very lucky to have this virtual job where I can work from wherever I have internet. I'm going to post more on that experience soon. But it's been a weird 9 months. I'm glad to get some sort of normalcy back - and can finally start living, instead of getting ready for living. And to get back in game shape. It's nauseating when I don't have any routine, everything just is a mess. So things are looking up. I'm starting to ramble, last time I checked this isn't my diary. Bye.

Taking Your Love Relationship Online

This will probably offend almost 100% of my friends in relationships. Sorry.

I'm sick of people who turn their online presence into a dedication to their significant other. It actually disgusts me. There is so much more to you than just the person you're dating. It's just obnoxious. Does anyone really want to see 60 pictures in a row of you guys taking pictures of yourselves with one of you holding the camera facing yourselves? Maybe your parents. Most likely not your friends. There's a high likely hood it's going to annoy everyone. And taking pictures of yourself makes you look like losers. Can't you ask someone to take a picture?

When you're status/tweets consist of something like "with my boo" or "i love x" or "i don't know where i would be without x" or "i'm so bored x please come home" or "movie night with x" or "here's x's valentine's day gift!" "so glad my baby brought me soupy because im sicky and can't get out of bed :(," you are really pushing my limits for giving a damn. Part of that is the problem with social media - everyone thinks what they're doing is important, and it really isn't. I can't say I'm innocent here either - I'm sure not many really care about my thoughts/current happenings, but I try to limit things like that. I rarely share any of these posts to my networks, you came here yourself. You only have yourself to blame haha. I think I have some self control, but I'm sure someone can tell me differently.

[Random sidepoint - I'm tired of people tweeting their foursquare location when they are somewhere stupid - ANY coffee shop, the grocery store, work, their car, sitting in traffic, whatever. Try and retain some self control. No one cares if you are at Dunkin Donuts or Starbucks. Share the cool things - concerts, sporting events, swanky restaurants, the 'pocalpyses but no one wants to know you were getting your hair done on Twitter. Still check in - just don't over share.]

I'm not trying to be a Debbie Downer here, I understand you and your love are SO happy and want to take pix and write "i love you" on their wall etc. Just do it with some sort of control. Be more than just your girlfriend/boyfriend. Your friends distance themselves when you only have one person ever on your mind. And then the people wonder why they have no friends when they break up. People (mainly girls, but some dudes too) want to project this image that they are having a much better life than they really are. They want it to seem so glamorous and wonderful, they live this great life they travel to all of these places, have this wonderful other half, do all these fancy things, are "sophisticated," but it's all a facade. That's why people are crazy. They live on other planets.

I should admit, I've never been in a 'serious' relationship, so maybe I'm just bitter. It's something I really wanted in high school cause I was the only kid in my group without one, but by the end of college I was just whatever. It's dumb in college because college is so different than the real world. There's a break every 2 months, a 3 month break every summer, and after 4 years you will probably go your separate ways, seems like a waste of time. I've been meaning to write a post on my non-existent love life, but it's hard to write it without sounding like a total loser. This is probably as much from me as you'll get. Let me say this though: my friends with relationships say the happiest they've ever been is with so-and-so. My happiest-ever moments are Bruce Springsteen concerts and Red Sox championships. So far I've had 6 happiest moments in my life. 6 for 23 ain't bad. [Maybe this is why I'm alone......] Maybe when I do find a girl every post will be about this wonderful girl and how she brings me 'soupy when I'm sicky'. I'd like to think I won't. Someone hold this post against me if I do.

Anyways, this isn't about me, this is about you, love bird. To put it simply: control thyself. Everything you share doesn't need to be some inside joke. There's a reason some things are private and some things are public. There's a thin line where the outsider thinks "oh that's cute" and when they think "shut the F up." Less is more. You're doing everyone a favor.

Other random subpoint, and this is probably because I am on the outside and never experienced it personally, but isn't it even more ridiculous when couples break up online? The drama that comes with it: "She deleted our pictures. He defriended me. She defriended my friends. He doesn't follow me on Twitter anymore. She still has pictures of us, but I've moved on. I know he stalks everything I do, so I'm going to put pix up of me with another dude. She's dating someone else!?!?!" AHHHHH ITS SO STUPID. This is why you need to exhibit self control people. Otherwise you just look like an idiot to everyone.

Everyone have a good Valentine's Day!!!!!! #sarcasm!!!