I ordered the Adobe Creative Suite 3 Master Collection the first of this month. It is supposed to come with a pdf user guide, but apparently it actually doesn't. If you call and complain, asking them where it is, they will mail you hardcopy for free (normally $50). So, if you have made a purchase of any Adobe software and it doesn't come with a pdf manual it promises, call 'em up and get the hardcopy for free!
I know I promised a new standup story a while back and have failed to deliver. What can I say? Things are crazy, busy, and I still have that stepfather family thing going on, which I keep writing I'll explain. I will. Like I keep promising, it is absolutely insane. It has to be done right, though, and I will probably have to coordinate with a new website. More later...
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Debut Q&A Up!
My debut Q&A with another author on the subject of dating is up at www.lunchisnotadate.com. Check it out; the subject is interracial dating. The appearance on WGN this morning went very well; they have a great morning team there and they make it easy. I'll have it up on the site early next week and keep you posted. Have a good weekend!
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Busy Week and First Blogger/Author Q&A
I will be on Chicago WGN Morning News Thursday morning at about 7:45AM Central Time, answering dating questions. They are a fun group and I'm looking forward to it. Also, the first Q&A with another author/blogger on Lunch is Not a Date will be posted this Friday as the column. I am looking forward to it. Again, her name is Halima Sal-Anderson and she wrote Supposing I Wanted to Date a White Guy...? She runs a blog at http://dateawhiteguy.blogspot.com/.
Also, I am looking into doing a children's book and amateur photography book using my various photos from recent trips. So, a busy week!
That crazy, infuriating thing I promised to blog about? Well, it is coming, unless it can be settled quietly but it doesn't look that is a possibility. It will be a while before I discuss it and I will probably set up a website for it, too. You know I'll keep you posted!
Also, I am looking into doing a children's book and amateur photography book using my various photos from recent trips. So, a busy week!
That crazy, infuriating thing I promised to blog about? Well, it is coming, unless it can be settled quietly but it doesn't look that is a possibility. It will be a while before I discuss it and I will probably set up a website for it, too. You know I'll keep you posted!
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Community
Ever think about what that word really means? It seems like some people get it and others don't; or, more likely, they just don't give a rat's ass. We are all part of communities, starting with the world community and working down from there. Each community can be broken down into a smaller one. Being in a community often creates an immediate bond, recognition, and respect among people. Communities are dependent upon location and situation. For example, two guys who meet and learn they are both civil servants, instantly bond as part of that community. That bond becomes even tighter when they learn they are both firemen. If they are both captains, or started the same year, or both lost a co-worker in a fire, that connection grows as the community they belong to becomes smaller and smaller; hence, tighter and tighter. When I'm in Illinois, I don't think about other Illinoisans. Yet, when I was in Yellowstone, my fellow statesman and I spoke to each other simply because we noticed each other's license plates. I quickly met some new people to keep in touch with who were also from Chicago; people I never would have spoken to if I had met them in Chicago. Interesting, eh?
In Yellowstone, everyone was part of a community. Whenever we pulled over to observe an animal, people would tell each other where they could see other animals. The community is created because everyone there wants to see animals. Often, if you saw some cars pulled over to look at a few Bison, you would pull over and tell the people, "Hey, there's a whole herd up the road, right along the shoulder." They would thank you and drive up the road for a better experience.
I detest it when people violate a community for their own perceived selfish gain. Or, when they fail to recognize the community and their role in it. I saw a gross example of this on my latest trip to Yellowstone. My mom and I came around a bend in the road and found ourselves looking smack at a wolf, not far off the shoulder. A van was pulled over and two obvious photographers--based on their equipment and hefty triopods--were standing on the shoulder, taking photos of it. We pulled over on the other side of the road and went to get some photos ourselves. I caught one photographer give us a look of disapproval. The wolf started to walk back further, seeking the sanctuary of tall grass. I heard one photographer say to the other, "Man, these are the best wolf shots I've ever gotten."
A car pulled up and slowed down. "What do you see?" asked the elderly driver--a common question among the Yellowstone community.
"Oh, just a coyote."
She nodded and her group drove on. Coyotes are a pretty common sight in the park and many people stop pulling over to observe them; wolves are rare and people always pull over to see them. The two most commonly asked questions rangers get--by far--are "Where can we see grizzlies?" and "Where can we see wolves?" This elderly group of people, perhaps on their only trip to the park and having their only opportunity to ever see a wolf, were deprived of it by an outright lie. It's almost like theft. Why did the photographer lie? A few cars pulled over leads to a lot of cars pulled over, often known as a "(animal)-jam," like a "wolf-jam" or "bear-jam." Such a jam typically scares wary animals away, such as wolves.
The photographers, who had already gotten great shots of the wolf, didn't want to share. They felt they had a special right to observe the wolf, take photos, and that a simple park visitor didn't have those rights. True, you could argue that the photographers were part of a tighter community than just the Yellowstone community; they were part of the professional photograhper community in Yellowstone. Perhaps; however, what is their role in the Yellowstone community? Who buys their photos, displayed on postcards, or their books of photographs? The woman in the car and her group. Why do they come to Yellowstone? To see the real thing these photographers' photos depict. If it wasn't for the Yellowstone visitor, the photographers and Yellowstone would be out of business. No doubt, the photographer violated the unwritten rules of the community. Had I acted quickly enough, I would have told the woman it was a wolf, although the photographer may have used his expert position to again lie in order refute my truthful claim.
Whatever communities you are part of, I hope you follow the rules of the community. You may go beyond the duties of them, if you wish, but at least hold the basic rules to heart; breaking them can ruin aspects of the community for everyone. As a comedian who other comedians have let crash at his place, I've let comics crash at mine; however, the last few stole some items, so now I will no longer do that. See how they have hurt the rest of the community? Alex, an acquaintance of a friend, left a key for me under his mat at a his place in L.A. without ever having met me. (He was in Vegas for a few days and let me crash at his place while he was gone, without ever having met me.) Alex is an actor looking to make a name for himself and I was coming out to L.A. for a week as a screenwriter looking to make a name for myself. That was our community; our bond. Often, actors, comedians, writers, and other artists will let each other in the community know of open gigs, bad gigs from which to stay away, agents who steal by taking too big a cut of the gig purse, and so forth. That is a responsibility in the community.
Whatever communities you are part of, remember to obey the rules of them, even if it might deprive you of something. Remember, the community is after the same thing you are after; that's what makes it a community. There may be times when you have to reach out to the community on a larger scale, to let them know of something or to warn them, so that they don't suffer the way you may have suffered, or to simply help them by shedding some light. If you choose not do so, that's fine, as it may be a big burden to carry and not wanting to do so is quite understandable; however, stop to think If someone had written about this or warned me, would I have benefited? Will others in the community benefit if I do so now myself? If so, hopefully you can find the strength to do so, or to allow someone else to do so for you. People often ask me why I wrote God; that's why. We are all part of the dating and relationship community. I felt I had some good stories and advice to share that could help out others in the community. Period. (Oh yeah, and I love to make people laugh, as you know.)
Communities. If you think about it, where would we be without them? Nowhere. And, if you think a little more, what creates all the problems in the world today, including crime? Simply a violation of a community's rule, unwritten or written. If we all keep our communities in mind all the time, the world would almost be a perfect place.
In Yellowstone, everyone was part of a community. Whenever we pulled over to observe an animal, people would tell each other where they could see other animals. The community is created because everyone there wants to see animals. Often, if you saw some cars pulled over to look at a few Bison, you would pull over and tell the people, "Hey, there's a whole herd up the road, right along the shoulder." They would thank you and drive up the road for a better experience.
I detest it when people violate a community for their own perceived selfish gain. Or, when they fail to recognize the community and their role in it. I saw a gross example of this on my latest trip to Yellowstone. My mom and I came around a bend in the road and found ourselves looking smack at a wolf, not far off the shoulder. A van was pulled over and two obvious photographers--based on their equipment and hefty triopods--were standing on the shoulder, taking photos of it. We pulled over on the other side of the road and went to get some photos ourselves. I caught one photographer give us a look of disapproval. The wolf started to walk back further, seeking the sanctuary of tall grass. I heard one photographer say to the other, "Man, these are the best wolf shots I've ever gotten."
A car pulled up and slowed down. "What do you see?" asked the elderly driver--a common question among the Yellowstone community.
"Oh, just a coyote."
She nodded and her group drove on. Coyotes are a pretty common sight in the park and many people stop pulling over to observe them; wolves are rare and people always pull over to see them. The two most commonly asked questions rangers get--by far--are "Where can we see grizzlies?" and "Where can we see wolves?" This elderly group of people, perhaps on their only trip to the park and having their only opportunity to ever see a wolf, were deprived of it by an outright lie. It's almost like theft. Why did the photographer lie? A few cars pulled over leads to a lot of cars pulled over, often known as a "(animal)-jam," like a "wolf-jam" or "bear-jam." Such a jam typically scares wary animals away, such as wolves.
The photographers, who had already gotten great shots of the wolf, didn't want to share. They felt they had a special right to observe the wolf, take photos, and that a simple park visitor didn't have those rights. True, you could argue that the photographers were part of a tighter community than just the Yellowstone community; they were part of the professional photograhper community in Yellowstone. Perhaps; however, what is their role in the Yellowstone community? Who buys their photos, displayed on postcards, or their books of photographs? The woman in the car and her group. Why do they come to Yellowstone? To see the real thing these photographers' photos depict. If it wasn't for the Yellowstone visitor, the photographers and Yellowstone would be out of business. No doubt, the photographer violated the unwritten rules of the community. Had I acted quickly enough, I would have told the woman it was a wolf, although the photographer may have used his expert position to again lie in order refute my truthful claim.
Whatever communities you are part of, I hope you follow the rules of the community. You may go beyond the duties of them, if you wish, but at least hold the basic rules to heart; breaking them can ruin aspects of the community for everyone. As a comedian who other comedians have let crash at his place, I've let comics crash at mine; however, the last few stole some items, so now I will no longer do that. See how they have hurt the rest of the community? Alex, an acquaintance of a friend, left a key for me under his mat at a his place in L.A. without ever having met me. (He was in Vegas for a few days and let me crash at his place while he was gone, without ever having met me.) Alex is an actor looking to make a name for himself and I was coming out to L.A. for a week as a screenwriter looking to make a name for myself. That was our community; our bond. Often, actors, comedians, writers, and other artists will let each other in the community know of open gigs, bad gigs from which to stay away, agents who steal by taking too big a cut of the gig purse, and so forth. That is a responsibility in the community.
Whatever communities you are part of, remember to obey the rules of them, even if it might deprive you of something. Remember, the community is after the same thing you are after; that's what makes it a community. There may be times when you have to reach out to the community on a larger scale, to let them know of something or to warn them, so that they don't suffer the way you may have suffered, or to simply help them by shedding some light. If you choose not do so, that's fine, as it may be a big burden to carry and not wanting to do so is quite understandable; however, stop to think If someone had written about this or warned me, would I have benefited? Will others in the community benefit if I do so now myself? If so, hopefully you can find the strength to do so, or to allow someone else to do so for you. People often ask me why I wrote God; that's why. We are all part of the dating and relationship community. I felt I had some good stories and advice to share that could help out others in the community. Period. (Oh yeah, and I love to make people laugh, as you know.)
Communities. If you think about it, where would we be without them? Nowhere. And, if you think a little more, what creates all the problems in the world today, including crime? Simply a violation of a community's rule, unwritten or written. If we all keep our communities in mind all the time, the world would almost be a perfect place.
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Friday, October 19, 2007
Tomorrow, I Promise...
I can't believe it has been a week since my last post. (So, what's new, right?) I just got back from Yellowstone today. I have some very cool new photos and some thoughts to share. Fortunately, I am on Chicago NBC morning news tomorrow, around 6:50AM, if you happen to be up that early and get the station. So, for now, I have to prepare for the show; but I will have a new post tomorrow, I promise... really, I will!
Friday, October 12, 2007
Next TV Appearances and Craziest Blog Ever Coming...
In Yellowstone again, this time with mom. Great time to be here; fantastic colors and most of the animals are in heat, which means clashes among Elk, Moose, and deer. I'll see if I can get any on video to share...
Of course, as always, I am working even while on vacation. (Have to be! Always have to be working to help out the dating impaired, as I used to be one.) I will be on TV next for NBC Chicago Morning news on Oct. 20th (Sweetest Day) and on Oct. 25th for WGN Morning news. I'll keep you posted on the times as we near the dates...
Something recently occurred with the passing of my stepfather that has the potential of being both unbelievable and one of the most horrific things I've ever heard. It promises to be my craziest blog ever, which will infuriate. When I return from my trip, I'll have more details and the blog will post... trust me, this is just wild, wild, wild stuff!
Of course, as always, I am working even while on vacation. (Have to be! Always have to be working to help out the dating impaired, as I used to be one.) I will be on TV next for NBC Chicago Morning news on Oct. 20th (Sweetest Day) and on Oct. 25th for WGN Morning news. I'll keep you posted on the times as we near the dates...
Something recently occurred with the passing of my stepfather that has the potential of being both unbelievable and one of the most horrific things I've ever heard. It promises to be my craziest blog ever, which will infuriate. When I return from my trip, I'll have more details and the blog will post... trust me, this is just wild, wild, wild stuff!
Saturday, October 6, 2007
Rudy's Letter
This is a letter my mom came across while going through Rudy's (stepfather's) stuff. It adds fuel to the fire to get the celebrity-signed-book copy for Ebay, donating the proceeds to a Vet benefit fund. (Thus far, btw, I've heard from the following celebs, all of who want to sign: Brett Butler, Jimmy Pardo, John Caponera, and Rocky LaPorte.) It also provides some insight into the simple everday things Vets struggle to get that the rest of us often take for granted. I will be heading to Yellowstone with my mom roughly from Oct 10-20 and will be focused on the book signing project 100% upon my return. Of course, I'll keep you posted as I hear from more celebs.
Actually, I think I mentioned this letter previously but now I have an actual copy and can quote it. As I indicated previously, Rudy was a big Paul Harvey fan. He wrote this letter in '92, after which his heart greatly improved due to various medication and he was taken off the heart-transplant candidate list.
Dear Mr. Harvey:
For years I have read and heard about Kup's Purple Heart Veterans Cruise. Royko applauds it, as you do. I don't know anyone who doesn't think it's great, including me. Few veterans can benefit from it, however, and most get treatment of a far different sort.
I am an ex-marine with a bad heart trying to qualify for a heart transplant. My beef is that while recently a patient in the Hines Veterans Hospital I was shocked to learn that the pateients' library is unable to provide a daily newspaper. I was told the library had no budget for this. Imagine a lonely, hospitalized vet looking for a job, a cheap used car, a sleeping room, cremation services or just some current reading material - and he cannot go to the library in a huge hospital like Hines and read a newspaper in the great city of Chicago.
Isn't there something three heavy weights like you of WGN, Kup of the Sun Times, and Royko of the Tribune could do? Even a day old paper would improve on the current situation and give some help to our guys.
Where in hell is all the recent Desert Storm spirit? How soon they forget...
A faithful listener,
Rudy Kara
Personally, I find the situation appalling and ironic. There is a lot of rhetoric reminding us that our soldiers fight to protect our freedoms, especially emphasizing our freedom of speech. Yet, these same soldiers can't even benefit from their own work and dedication--they can't read the current freedom of speech expressed in the latest newspaper while they're laid up for defending that freedom of speech. Rudy was right; something is very screwy about that.
Actually, I think I mentioned this letter previously but now I have an actual copy and can quote it. As I indicated previously, Rudy was a big Paul Harvey fan. He wrote this letter in '92, after which his heart greatly improved due to various medication and he was taken off the heart-transplant candidate list.
Dear Mr. Harvey:
For years I have read and heard about Kup's Purple Heart Veterans Cruise. Royko applauds it, as you do. I don't know anyone who doesn't think it's great, including me. Few veterans can benefit from it, however, and most get treatment of a far different sort.
I am an ex-marine with a bad heart trying to qualify for a heart transplant. My beef is that while recently a patient in the Hines Veterans Hospital I was shocked to learn that the pateients' library is unable to provide a daily newspaper. I was told the library had no budget for this. Imagine a lonely, hospitalized vet looking for a job, a cheap used car, a sleeping room, cremation services or just some current reading material - and he cannot go to the library in a huge hospital like Hines and read a newspaper in the great city of Chicago.
Isn't there something three heavy weights like you of WGN, Kup of the Sun Times, and Royko of the Tribune could do? Even a day old paper would improve on the current situation and give some help to our guys.
Where in hell is all the recent Desert Storm spirit? How soon they forget...
A faithful listener,
Rudy Kara
Personally, I find the situation appalling and ironic. There is a lot of rhetoric reminding us that our soldiers fight to protect our freedoms, especially emphasizing our freedom of speech. Yet, these same soldiers can't even benefit from their own work and dedication--they can't read the current freedom of speech expressed in the latest newspaper while they're laid up for defending that freedom of speech. Rudy was right; something is very screwy about that.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Quick Update
I will be working on another comedy story for the site; of course, I will post it here, too. It should be up within the next week or two. This has already been an extremely busy week. A popular cable show is currently speaking with me about being on an episode; would be a lot of fun, so I'm hoping it will happen. I am also setting up my first Q&A with another dating author. I want to do Q&A's with other dating authors and bloggers, as it will bridge some gaps out there and create lots of intriguing discussion and thought.
My first Q&A guest will be Halima Sal-Anderson, who is located in the UK. She blogs about interracial dating between black women and white men. It is an intriguing topic and I read her book, Supposing I Wanted to Date a White Guy...? If you've read God is a Woman, you are familiar with my humorous encounter with a black woman--Aretha. I also have some other exposure and a fair amount of questions for Halima. So, sometime within the next few weeks or month, the Q&A will be my weekly "Lunch is Not a Date" column. It will probably be a two-part column, due to the length. I'm excited about this and really looking forward to it. In the interim, feel free to check out Halima's blog at http://www.dateawhiteguybook.com/index.htm, aka www.dateawhiteguybook.com.
As for other things, I am taking some time to help out my mom. We will be hitting Yellowstone for a trip her and my stepfather had been planning to take (she was going to surprise him with the location), and I will be traveling to and fro to Ohio to help her out with things. Also, I found a letter from my stepfather written to Paul Harvey (he was a huge fan of Paul's), trying to get some publicity for Vets so they could have simple things like current newspapers in VA hospitals, instead of week old one. This makes my mission to auction a celebrity-signed book on ebay all the more important.
Out for now; off to unwind and play some hockey!
My first Q&A guest will be Halima Sal-Anderson, who is located in the UK. She blogs about interracial dating between black women and white men. It is an intriguing topic and I read her book, Supposing I Wanted to Date a White Guy...? If you've read God is a Woman, you are familiar with my humorous encounter with a black woman--Aretha. I also have some other exposure and a fair amount of questions for Halima. So, sometime within the next few weeks or month, the Q&A will be my weekly "Lunch is Not a Date" column. It will probably be a two-part column, due to the length. I'm excited about this and really looking forward to it. In the interim, feel free to check out Halima's blog at http://www.dateawhiteguybook.com/index.htm, aka www.dateawhiteguybook.com.
As for other things, I am taking some time to help out my mom. We will be hitting Yellowstone for a trip her and my stepfather had been planning to take (she was going to surprise him with the location), and I will be traveling to and fro to Ohio to help her out with things. Also, I found a letter from my stepfather written to Paul Harvey (he was a huge fan of Paul's), trying to get some publicity for Vets so they could have simple things like current newspapers in VA hospitals, instead of week old one. This makes my mission to auction a celebrity-signed book on ebay all the more important.
Out for now; off to unwind and play some hockey!
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