Zowie Dealy

(z•ow•ee d•eel•ee) noun. the means by which something is noted as, or deserving of, enthusiastic reaction.

Example: After having drawn a banana from his pocket in the likeness of a gun, Gertrude pretends to shoot at Benson..."Zowie dealy!", Beulah blurts boomingly.

BR80's New English Dictionary for World Citizens - 1st Edition

The Innocence Mission

Typically, I'm not one to advertise bands...yet, I think when you stumble upon a particular sound of music that's truly remarkable…you have no choice but to share it. With The Innocence Mission, I suppose it could be the music itself that attracted me...however, in the end, it's truly the voice of Karen Peris that fills me with admiration. True to the name, she sounds incredibly innocent...and possibly sweet, yet haunting, in way. I don't even hear her words when she sings...just a melodic flow of tones that rise and fall in a lulling, pacifying, rhythm. As a band, It’s clear where their strengths come from...as it’s been said by them many times before...they feel music is a blessing from God...and I don’t doubt that for a second. In particular, "Lakes Of Canada", "Tomorrow On The Runway", and "Where Does The Time Go?", appear to have been touched.

Ear to the ground,
BR80

A New-fangled Sensation

I put some shredded tealeaves on my tongue…and it’s not as awful as one might suppose. I mean, I always figured it to be far more displeasing...but I guess things are never as bad as you think. 20 years of my life, and I never truly tasted tealeaves until tonight...and to think...I was living my life day to day with this gross misconception of shredded tealeaves. These can be the most enlightening and frustrating moments of life…enlightening because you have this revelation...and frustrating, because it’s a revelation so utterly simple, that it was under your nose the entire time. Or...it was just some tealeaves on my tongue.

Empirically,
BR80

Empathy

The nefarious onus,
The most arduous for us,
So entirely snared
That by any sign of its need
We unquestionably care

BR80

H5N1

I thought about the H5 strain the other day...and how its potential for destruction rivals the Spanish Influenza of 1918. And at the same time, I couldn’t help but think (selfishly) what this could mean for my future…for any of our futures…which are so painstakingly planned. How does high school prepare you for a pandemic? I don’t remember taking a course on career development in a post-apocalyptic society. Imagine…investing so much time and effort into achieving a goal through the rigors of society, only to see society collapse beneath you…we plan for the future, expecting that the future holds nothing but success and progress for humanity.

At this point my thoughts aren’t even on the H5 strain itself, but rather on the state of humanity as a whole. And yet, if society destroys itself, it won’t change my purpose…there’s always potential for purpose…because there will always be injustice…and there will always exist a place for those that wish to fight it. I’ve had to face it…we live in a world run by economics. You’ll see a father kill his entire family for some petty insurance money…or a kid throw his life away – rob a bank, ransack a house – for a little cash. And for what? To buy a nice TV or a better car…I mean, when you really think about it, people kill people…hurt people…for needless stuff! It’s insane. But what can you expect from people, when this is all they see from the societies that govern them?

My parents once told me that if a madman planted a bomb in a crowded mall and called in the threat, the mall authorities wouldn’t evacuate the crowds until they could be certain that a bomb was indeed in the mall…the reason? Purely economic. “What if it were a crank call, and we cleared out all of these paying customers from the mall? We’d lose hundreds of thousands of dollars!” Sounds crazy, right? But unfortunately it’s true. Unfortunately, some people die simply because a big-shot didn’t want to lose a buck. It shouldn’t be surprising…this type of logic exists in every facet of society…from wars, to disease, to disasters. H5 is no different, and the threat is imminent…the virus is one mutation away from becoming a full-fledged airborne virus, one capable of transfer from birds to humans to other humans. Vaccines can be created…precautions can be taken…but nothing is truly being done…the reason? Don’t want the malls to clear out too fast…might lose some profit. Purely economic. It kills me.

Sick,
BR80

BR80's Life: The Sequel

A little while back I composed a concept of what life would sound like if it were a movie, and since life is an ever changing sequence of events...and since sequels are all the craze these days...why not reiterate the events of life through music once more?

Click HERE to download the entire soundtrack as one big self-extracting "ZIP" file.

01 - Main theme "Blood On The Motorway" - DJ Shadow

02 - Opening credits "A Break In The Clouds" - James Holden (Ambient Version)

03 - Ordinary morning "Kites Are Fun" - Mellow (Free Design Remix)

04 - Honest day's work "Bittersweet Symphony" - The Verve (UNKLE Remix)

05 - Last day together "Look For Me As You Go By" - The Innocence Mission

06 - Love lost "Flames" - Vast

07 - Fallen "Sing For Absolution" - Muse

08 - The Journey begun "Midnight In A Perfect World" - DJ Shadow

09 - Mysterious stranger's advice "And Still It Sits" - Mice Parade

10 - "Good times" montage "Time After Time" - Cyndi Lauper (DJ Z-Trip Mix)

11 - Lurking danger "Zoo York" - Paul Oakenfold

12 - A New foe "Empire Strikes Back" - John Williams (DJ Z-Trip Mix)

13 - Trippin' out "Exploration" - The Karminsky Experience Inc.

14 - Missing her "What Are You To Me?" - UNKLE

15 - Hitting rock bottom "Dust In The Wind" - Kansas (DJ Z-Trip Mix)

16 - A Heart to heart "Brothers On A Hotel Bed" - Death Cab For Cutie

17 - Unfinished business "In A State" - UNKLE

18 - The Journey home "Red Dust" - Zero 7

19 - Searching for answers "Lost In Thought" - Jon Hopkins

20 - Betrayal "Angel" - Massive Attack

21 - Rooftop chase "Fire Starter" - Prodigy

22 - Final showdown "Building Steam With A Grain Of Salt" - DJ Shadow

23 - Redemption "Soul Meets Body" - Death Cab For Cutie

24 - Closing credits "Ordinary World" - Duran Duran

Orchestrated,
BR80

A New Year's Anniversary

I have this plan…to present a symbol of our future to her…a symbol which embodies the nature of our unique relationship. January 1st marks the first day of a new year…and just as it marks this annual inauguration, it is my hope that someday it will also mark the beginning of our lives together as a coalition, under the banner of devotion and the prospect of marriage. We’ll fight the cold outside, we’ll stay inside…it’ll be necessary to do so with it being winter. I aspire to marry my love at the stroke of midnight New Year's Eve, at the zenith of all wintry darkness and snowfall. We’ll have to hide ourselves away from the world, and survive the night, removed from civilization…we wouldn’t find another soul for miles – like the last people on Earth – our own nuclear winter. Starting a new year…and a new life together, we’ll stay out of the cold and be with one another. And every year thence forward, on that day and that night – while the world celebrates the New Year – we’ll celebrate our unity and the ensuing year ahead…together.

Envisioning,
BR80

Keep Your Paint Dry!

Saaay, you know what we’re missing these days? Some decent catch phrases! Where’d they all go? The world certainly seems a darker place without those familiar and catchy slogans lighting the way. The only phrases I recall noticing in recent times are half-baked ones like Juicy Fruit’s “Sweeeeeeet” or McDonald’s “I’m Lovin' It”. Here’s to hoping for more “Do you feel lucky? Well…do ya, punk?!” and “They’re grrrrrreat” caliber catch phrases. “Keep your paint dry” was a catch phrase I thought of when I was younger; I don’t know what it means exactly…but I stumbled upon it recently…written in an old book I have. And I’d like to think that my writing ability has improved since then…but the change doesn’t seem all that significant. It’s actually been a year now since I started writing on Blogger…and I’ve blogged my brains out…and in the end…you kind of feel like you’ve accomplished something. There are times when I should be doing something else of some importance…maybe it’s homework…or maybe it’s work-work...but the fact is, I can’t get my mind around what I’m doing, until I write what I’m doing, and get my head around where I’m going…in doing any of these things in life. You get a real sense of satisfaction seeing what you think fill a void other than the inside of your skull; and if I can bleed out these ideas for years to come…I will be satisfied.

Catch ya on the flip side,
BR80

Jack-O-Banter

You know...it’s as though our eyes rest in the indentations made by thumbs, and our lips arc, seemingly carved by a finger’s edge; the nose and cheekbones in themselves represent the intrinsic characteristics of an artisan’s sculpting touch...with both form and symmetry. It’s easy to see how distinctly the contours of our face resemble the impressions our hands make in clay...it’s difficult to replicate those contours through carving a half decent jack-o-lantern. Anyhoo...I always take Halloween this seriously...and I don’t see it as a real problem...just more as quirky obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Black and Orange,
BR80

Contentment

I know you far more than you think,
But not as well as I know,
That I know nothing of harmony
Without you
Here with me.

BR80

Characteristics of...

True
Honest
Earnestly open
Luring
Optimistic
Natural
Endearingly enticing
Lonesome
Open
Vulnerable
Ever hopeful
Intrepid
'
Loyal
Law abiding
Exemplary
Virtuous
Exceptional
Rarest of the rare
Wanted
Anticipated
Needed
Totally essential
Outstanding
Radical dreamer
Nexus
Enthralling
Encompassing
Duly sought
...
Trusting
Humble
Exceedingly genuine
Obliging
Nurturing
Loving
Yieldingly tender
Original
Nostalgic
Everything but ordinary
.

Longitudinal,
B
R
8
0

Heed

"...you’re the only song I want to hear,
a melody softly soaring through my atmosphere"

Lessons Learned

I attempted to enact a plan for payback some time ago; and so with the aim of both brutish and reckless reparation, I tried my hand at vengeance. Yet, in retrospect of that aggravation and those lucid thoughts of vengeance, I can’t help but recall upon that one sobering moment…the knife snapping shut on my hand…the deep gash I still wish I had...my deep, dark, blood: teacher of a lesson in hatred and forgiveness. Scarred hands strike a chord in me…they always have a way of reminding us of our debauched achievements…our lessons learned.

Battle-damaged,
BR80

Blind Aficionado

I know that love doesn't happen as one might suspect it does…within a moment, perhaps when two eyes meet, as mind-blowingly instantaneous as a stick of lightning struck dynamite; I know it’s far trickier than that...and far less stupid sounding. Understanding the complexity of love dismantles the idea of falling into it; and I, for one, know that we’d definitely fall in just as quickly as we’d fall out if we were to believe in love as a simple cliché. And for some, love is a simple thing, and it’s for those folks that love becomes elusive…because that simple thing is actually an unsteady, ever-changing, mess. We can assume love is as simple as spotting a girl ya dig…yet in that assumption comes the true weakness of eye sight…since sight is a never ceasing ever-roaming periscope, forever skimming the surface of the world around us…merely seeking what lies on top…something that “looks nice”…but has no substance…no depth. “Seeing” is all we human’s have to depend upon, and I won’t belabor the fact…but what I will say is that there are some days when sight becomes overbearing…and for me, it becomes a constant misconception...one which brims at my every chance to see people for who they genuinely are; and thanks to that, I sometimes lose sight of what love is.

Apologetically,
BR80

I Gotta Know What's Goin' Down at Mr. Sub

I find no fault in those that practice principles other than mine; whether that means they choose a belief that will in turn hurt themselves is something I have no control over...a fact that sometimes kills me. My qualms lie in ulterior motives; I believe the actions of a person are entirely forgivable, but that their motives are a little more complicated to absolve. I’ll overlook your choices if you'll just let me know who you are…otherwise, I don’t know what I’m getting myself into. Anyhoo, now that I’ve spoken my mind...and sounded completely paranoid…goodnight.

Wary,
BR80

"I Will Follow You Into The Dark"

Love of mine some day you will die
But I'll be close behind
I'll follow you into the dark

No blinding light or tunnels to gates of white
Just our hands clasped so tight
Waiting for the hint of a spark

If Heaven and Hell decide
That they both are satisfied
Illuminate the no's on their vacancy signs
If there's no one beside you
When your soul embarks
Then I'll follow you into the dark

In Catholic school as vicious as Roman rule
I got my knuckles brusied by a lady in black
And I held my toungue as she told me
"Son, fear is the heart of love"
So I never went back

If Heaven and Hell decide
That they both are satisfied
Illuminate the no's on their vacancy signs
If there's no one beside you
When your soul embarks
Then I'll follow you into the dark

You and me have seen everything to see
From Bangkok to Calgary
And the soles of your shoes are all worn down
The time for sleep is now
It's nothing to cry about
Cause' we'll hold each other soon
The blackest of rooms

If Heaven and Hell decide
That they both are satisfied
Illuminate the no's on their vacancy signs
If there's no one beside you
When your soul embarks
Then I'll follow you into the dark
Then I'll follow you into the dark

By: Death Cab For Cutie

The New Lyceum

If I were to create my perfect "Lyceum" it would consist of principles based upon:

Jesus Christ - Truth and Compassion
Aristotle - Wisdom and Logic
Da Vinci - Ingenuity and Creativity
Edison - Innovation and Practicality
Einstein - Knowledge and Understanding

Every student would experience and exhibit the above characteristics. We'd teach concepts of chivalry, honor, and all other knightly codes thought to be dead. They'd learn the value of faith and prayer, of God and country. They'd learn of the importance of helping others and of both unconditional and sacrificial love...ideals sorely lacking in a self-preserving world; and it's for these reasons that our students would be set apart from the world.

"The noblest pleasure is the joy of understanding."
-Leonardo da Vinci

The school building itself would be something rarely seen...it'd be school on location...in true “Peripatetic” method; if it couldn't be experienced it wouldn't be worth learning in my Lyceum. We'd be explorers of the world, of countries, cultures, and history...and after seeing all that's been created around us, we'd begin to know ourselves, and in turn, know God...a kind of wisdom that can't be taught. The three greatest characteristics we as humans posses are the ability to love, explore, and to create; and as creators, we use our God given minds to take what we have at our disposal and forge something new. And that's what learning should be; it should be about experiences, which leads to wisdom, and ultimately, the ability to become creators of new and revolutionary ideas that change the world.

Learn'ed,
BR80

Fallen Faultless

Crawl cruel winds and wake
Whisper long drain and flow
Willful winter in all without
Much rather loss than loosen

Chaste yet taint
With brail read hands
Though felt unseen
In rightful tread

Our sleepless day
The slightest drop
The utmost fall
I fell and fought

BR80

Psalm Ninety-One

Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the almighty. This I declare of the Lord: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; He is my God, and I am trusting him. For He will rescue you from every trap and protect you from the fatal plague. He will shield you with His wings. He will shelter you with His feathers. His faithful promises are your armor and protection. Do not be afraid of the terrors of the night, nor fear the dangers of the day, nor dread the plague that stalks in darkness, nor the disaster that strikes at midday. Though a thousand fall at your side, though ten thousand are dying around you, these evils will not touch you. But you will see it with your eyes; you will see how the wicked are punished.

If you make the Lord your refuge, if you make the Most High your shelter, no evil will conquer you; no plague will come near your dwelling. For He orders his angels to protect you wherever you go. They hold you with their hands to keep you from striking your foot on a stone. You will trample down lions and poisonous snakes; you will crush fierce lions and serpents under your feet!

The Lord says, “I will rescue those who love me. I will protect those who trust in my name. When they call on me, I will answer; I will be with them in trouble. I will rescue them and honor them. I will satisfy them with a long life and give them my salvation.”

Today was an important day for me, both in past remembrance of those I love, and in future revelation of what I’m to become. I attribute all meaning I’ve ever had in my life to the great works God has had in me; I only pray that I can repay Him through undying faith and unmovable loyalty.

Resolutely,
BR80

My Thirty-three Objectives

1. Fly, float, or levitate for at least 30sec
2. Watch the sun rise and set from the exact same spot
3. Blowup a replica dummy of myself
4. Pose in a Sears Catalogue
5. Have a philosophical discussion with a Lama (Tibetan Monk or animal...whichever)
6. High five Clint Eastwood
7. Get married at 12 O'clock Midnight, New Years Eve
8. "Ride the rails"
9. Solve at least one mystery ("Whodunits" included)
10. Write a book of poetry
11. Move to a random place and change my name for a while (May or may not included growing a mustache)
12. Achieve the title of "Doctor"
13. Start a legitimate freelance detective agency
14. Fire off a potato canon in Ireland
15. Teach a dog to fetch the paper, my pipe, and slippers
16. Slow dance to "I'll Be Watching You" in a gymnasium
17. See my name mentioned in a noteworthy publication
18. Learn to sharp shoot
19. Travel through time
20. Save a life and/or soul
21. Endure for 40 days
22. Lose my sight for a little while
23. Make a pilgrimage to each church founded by the Apostles
24. Remix a classic
25. Assist MI6, Interpol, CIA, or any other secret agency
26. Control the elements (Earth, wind, water, fire, etc, etc.)
27. Visit the hospital room where I was born before May 6th 2035
28. Scale a volcano and throw a straw hat into some lava
29. Live in the countryside
30. Swim to an island
31. Learn a language only I and one other can know
32. Recite the Gospel from memory in the Church of Nativity, Bethlehem
33. Discover something never known before on the face of the planet

Ambitiously,
BR80