Call of Duty: Black Ops

Anyone a Call of Duty fan? I finally got the new game two days ago, and although most of the serious players probably already have it, a review probably wouldn't hurt. And don't worry, I'll get to the good stuff first by saying...

Great multiplayer.

The maps are the best COD maps yet, and my complaints about World at War and Modern Warfare's maps I cannot make about these. It has more multiplayer modes, and plenty of perks, sidearms, and other goodies available. I know most systems already had this, but I'm a Wii-er and I was glad to see that they finally added the headset for playing with your friends. All in all, no complaints here.

Campaign. The campaign has a great plot, but I have to say, it's by far the most disgusting game yet, and honestly, I'm starting to get embarrassed playing it around my family. Other than that, however, it is excellent: as I already said, great plot, great graphics, and the action scenes are really cool. This one gives off much more of a thriller vibe than the others; your character wakes up in a chair, being tortured through electrocution as he is pressed for answers on his military career. Mysteries are slowly unraveled as you play through his story: his participation in the Bay of Pigs invasion, his escape from a cruel Russian Labor camp, and many more. (those are the first two levels - I'm not giving away that much).

And the zombies is also pretty fun - but like the campaign, very gory.

Overall, a great new installment. I look forward to playing it more.

Lightning Storms

I have been thinking about the nature of a lightning storm. It is a truly amazing prospect; did you know that lightning can heat the air to a temperature of 3 times the heat on the surface of the sun? I am often fascinated by the amazing things that nature can bring us.

Iceland Volcano

I've been thinking about that volcano in Iceland. It's a pretty amazing event. Not only is the eruption spewing glass that can ruin jet engines, but it's also shooting out lightning. (http://bing.com/ has a pretty good image with lightning if you're interested; flick through the images with the arrows.) Anyway, I'm amazed at some of the things that we see in nature these days. Even though we have created great inventions and made great progress as humans, nature can still display power beyond belief all on its own - and dwarf our accomplishments in the process.

Hello

"Hello web surfer, and welcome to Blogger. Blogger is a website at which YOU can type your own free blog. Like this sample post you are reading now, courtesy of everyone's favorite Blogger site, http://jamesblog02.blogspot.com, posts are being created everyday on this influential website. If you aspire to be a good writer like King James, then maybe one day you too could have an excellent internet resource for enjoyable and slang-ish literature."

Think Blogger would put this on their homepage for me? Yeah, I didn't think so either. Darn.

New Computer

My family bought a new computer the other day. We haven't installed it yet, but it's really nice. Looking at the black widescreen monitor, I can't believe the difference between it and our 5-year old HP. I find myself saying amazedly, "and this isn't even the expensive model!" I once heard that the capacity of our electronics will double each year, and now I am starting to partly believe it. Technology is like a wildfire; it grows rapidly, and once it has started, it cannot be stopped. Trust me, your hardworking parents are not going to give up those shiny new Blackberries for anything but shinier, newer Blackberries. Not that I'm one to talk, being a bit of a tech guru myself.

April Fool's Day

Happy April Fool's Day everyone! I don't know about you, but my day so far has consisted of writing "James Wins, April Fools" in Scrabble tiles on a game me and some family members were playing and filling an orange juice carton with Coca-Cola. Me and a sibling also put stuffed animals in the dishwasher with a sign that said, "we heart dishes," and I ambushed my mother and sisters with a Nerf gun.

I like this holiday.

I think the most important thing to remember on a holiday like April Fool's Day is that you should never go too far, and you should never skip the holiday entirely. Sorry to put two opposites in the same sentence, but I think they are both things that need to be taken into consideration. Anyways, I'm glad that I had something different to do today, and I hope that all of my readers are having a good day as well.

The 21st Century

Has anyone ever considered the fact that we are now a decade into the 21st century? What has often been in the past considered the future is now the present. Eh, I know that sentence was a mouthful, but what I mean is, time has come a long way, and we are at the butt end of it. What will we do at the turn of this exciting but terrifying new century? How can we grab our lives by the handlebars and take control, making history one step at a time? A new millenium is underway, and we will be the makers of its beginning. The introduction to an epic, unchangeable story is being written as I compose this post. We are the people of the U.S., the U.K., France, Mexico, Germany, Sweden, Australia, Iceland - dare I list them all? The future is ours for the taking, and I know I won't miss out on the opportunity to make a change. Don't be the one who sat on the sidelines.

Merlyn's Pen

A few months ago I entered a writing competition for Merlyn's Pen. It was a national competition, and I was happy to see that I won runner up. Here's a link to the list of winners and runner ups: http://www.merlynspen.org/contentmgr/showdetails.php/id/44358/search/true. I'm pretty pround, since only 13 out of nearly 500 people were picked, and now I get to be on their website. It was a humor competition, so I guess you can call me a comedic genius... :). Just kidding, but still, I'm glad to have one.

Relativity

For anyone who's interested, I'd like to bring up one of my favorite concepts: relativity. Relativity means relation to - it's a comparison term. For example, if you drive a car at 90 miles per hour, then are you driving fast? Relative to the common civilian driver, you are. But relative to a Nascar driver - well, you get the picture. It's a beautiful thing, relativity. Did you know that you can fall at very high speeds without feeling any pain? Just look at your motion relative to the next astronauts who launch off in a rocket. Relative to the physicist shooting into space at very high speeds, you, and the entire earth and surrounding universe, are all falling at very high speeds. To the astronaut, the rocket isn't even moving. Intriguing, is it not? I hope I have incited within you a deep passion for physics. If not, you can always write a blog.

It's nice to know that we can find scientific, philosophical irony in unexpected places. Thank you Albert Einstein.

The Anatomy Coloring Book

As some readers may know, I've been taking an advanced biology course this year (advanced biology is basically human anatomy and physiology). The book you see to the left is an excellent way to study for this course. The Anatomy Coloring Book covers pretty much the entire human body, plus, it satisfies your inner childish desire to use a coloring book once more. I mean, who doesn't want to prove that, unlike when they were a child, they can color between the lines? And who doesn't want to know where the parietal bone is? I was stunned at the exellence of this, not only as a resource, but also as a great studying tool. Medical students heed this post!

Boredom

Boredom. From it we draw inspiration, joy. Without boredom, some of the greatest works of literature would not have been completed. For example, do you think Robert Louis Stevenson would have written Treasure Island if he had been busy with a million other things to do? Do you think we would have The Lord of the Rings if J.R.R. Tolkien had been infatuated with woodcarving? Oh, and I know this isn't literature, but maybe if Gregor Mendel hadn't had nothing to do in the small hours, then he wouldn't have begun experimenting with pea plants and he wouldn't have become the father of genetics. The point is, being bored is not a drag. Being bored is an opportunity. It's an opportunity to do something spectacular. So next time you are sitting around bored, use it to your advantage, and create a masterpiece, be it literature, science, or whatever you're interested in.

Also, an addition to this post: If James hadn't been bored, would we have the amazing http://www.jamesblog02.blogspot.com? ...OK, sorry, don't mean to stretch it there.

Silver Blaze

Loyal readers, feel free to click the following link and read one of my favorite Sherlock Holmes stories.

http://www.pagebypagebooks.com/Arthur_Conan_Doyle/Memoirs_of_Sherlock_Holmes/Adventure_I_Silver_Blaze_p1.html

Sorry I don't know a fancier website to link you to, but at least this one probably won't hurt your eyes. If I could give everyone the book, trust me, I would.

Typewriter

Hello STOP This font feels like I'm writing from a typewriter STOP It's kind of cool STOP I like periods better that stops STOP

Anyone miss the old days when things were simpler? I mean, I'm grateful for the internet, because I get to write this blog, but sometimes I wish that our only writing tool was a good old typewriter. STOP *Just kidding about the STOP ending there.

Baby

Say hello, readers, to my new child: Roger Luke __________(my last name), a.k.a. Roccie. I ask you, what better project for a school elective than taking care of a paper maché baby? Roccie enjoys sleeping, burping, crying and learning Newton's laws of physics (I know how to raise an educated child.). I predict that he'll go to Harvard, but who knows? I wouldn't mind if he picked Yale or Princeton. He's the only baby that has debuted on the internet for the first day of his life. At least, the only one I know of. Anyway, I think this project is the start of a beautiful friendship. At least... for the weekend.

Aw, he's so cute in his little blanket.

Camera

I'd like to make a note to people using digital cameras out there. Ever had one that slowly loses power until it stops working entirely? This is a common problem among digital cameras. I wanted to put it on this blog because it has a very simple answer, and my family had trouble with cameras before we learned it: you must use rechargable batteries. Lithium are good, but Ni-Mh are the best. It seems obvious, but many cameras don't even mention this on the packaging, and it is essential for them to work. After a few uses, most digital cameras will stop working with regular batteries. Hurray for working photography.

Valentine's Day

Hello everyone, and happy Day After Valentine's Day. I'm writing this because I forgot to add in a post on the actual day, but reading it a day late will probably make you remember the holiday even better. Personally, I think Valentine's Day is a little bit silly. I mean, if you don't have someone that you are romantically in love with, then what's the point? Another excuse to eat candy? And also, romantic love is not bound by one day; it comes when it comes. Why would you restrict your flower-buying to one day? Buy them on the day that you are in love. There's no point to giving your date a gift if the only reason you're doing it is because you think you should. I mean, I'm not saying that you shouldn't buy your date flowers on Valentine's Day. I just think that romance is too much of a variating feeling; you can't expect it to come on a specific day.

Today

Today. It was a very important day. Why? Because it was not, in any singular way, similar to yesterday. Maybe you have the same job you did yesterday as you did today, but the events of that job were different. No matter what happens, the knitty-gritty events of each day will always be different. No two days will ever be the same. We will always have variation, and this is what makes life unpredictable. Without variation, we would hold all of the cards in our hands. We would control more than we are capable of being responsible for. It is our job to learn that we can only control our actions and responses, and not only give up any attempts to control the actions and responses of others, but to never be angry or stop trying because we cannot control what we cannot control. Take what is in your power and act on it. Stability comes from knowing the bounds of your own power.

Break

By the way, sorry to all readers about the four-day break between posts, and the general slow-down of my posting rate over the past week or two. Don't worry; I feel confident that I will return to my usual vigor and keep it going.

Vancouver

I've been pretty excited lately about the Vancouver Olympics. For those who watched the opening ceremony last night, I just have to say that it was about a million times better than China's ceremony last year. Or Salt Lake City's, for that matter. Canada rocks.

I'm saddened by the story of the man who died on the luge - it's a terrible tragedy, especially for someone who had worked hard to get to the Olympics. A track that runs six seconds faster than usual in a sport where a half-second is a big deal is just too much.

Anyways, this Olympics is going to be a good one. I think my favorite sport overall is the long jump on skis - I actually don't know what it's called, but I think that's it. That's the sport I would do if I could pick one.

Television

I've recently realized that there is really hardly anything on television that I'm interested in. I can sum up, in a pretty short list, pretty much all the shows I watch on TV:

1. The Office
2. Everybody Hates Chris
3. Very rarely, Bonanza.

That's pretty much it. Anything else is just me turning on the TV and watching because I'm so bored that I don't care what's on. Generally that means the Disney Channel. Woo-hoo.

I think that television in general has fallen since it first appeared. Think about all the old TV shows we had: Dick Van Dyke, Get Smart, Star Trek (although that isn't quite as old), Bonanza... the list goes on and on. Modern-day shows just aren't that good anymore. We have fallen to a level of poor quality in pretty much all adult TV. Ah, well. I guess that's life.

Morse Code

Ah, hiding in a little cove, sending flashing light signals across a harbor to a hidden viewer. I'm not doing that, but it would be neat to be able to if it was ever needed. My point? Morse code is pretty cool.

I can't help loving Morse code, because it's made with dots and dashes. Because of this, you can signal it with whatever you want. You can use a light. You can use sound. In a book that I read, one character even did it by flicking his eardrum, as if he were fidgeting. And I'm sure some readers have heard that story of the guy who was trapped on a ship, and was rescued because he blinked out "torture" in Morse code with his eyelids.

Er, sorry for the morbid story, but the point is, if you can come up with a system with one thing representing a dash and the other a dot, then you can use Morse code. And that makes it awesome.

Super Bowl

I had a great time watching the Super Bowl tonight. Such an awesome movie. The story of how a bowl is dropped into toxic fluid, and mutates into... SUPER BOWL! Faster than a falling water droplet, he rescues dropped food before it splatters to the ground. The maid will never have to sweep again! Have no fear, Super Bowl is here!

I'm just kidding; I watched the football game like everyone else. There is most definitely not a Hollywood movie about a super-powered bowl, at least not one that I know of.

The Worried Golf Ball

Observe. This little fellow is what I like to call, "the worried golf ball." Why is he worried? I don't know. Perhaps he's afraid that he'll be put on a tee and smacked by a golf club. Or maybe he wonders why all of the other golf balls don't have googly eyes. Maybe he is pondering the meaning of his existence, and his lack of understanding scares him. At any rate, he is most definitely a worried golf ball.

For Children?

Hola, people of the internet. As you read a blog, scrolling up and down on a pixellated screen, I write on a blog, scrolling up and down on a pixellated screen. Who benefits? Well, you, because you get to read a blog, and me, because I get a hobby.

I think that some people, be them teens or adults, limit their reading only to "adult" books. Maybe they think that reading a children's book will make them look silly, or that they are too old and should be reading only adult books. But from my experience, all of the books that I consider good rest upon the kiddie shelves. The exception to this is some of the classic novels, which I enjoy reading, like, as I recently mentioned, The Adventures & Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes. But I find that most modern day adult novels are not, when speaking of sophistication, very much on a higher level than children's books anyway. Picking up an adult book generally does not mean that the literature will be richer. And in fact, I believe that if a writer creates an adventure story without age in mind, but desiring it to be appropriate for anyone to read, and gives it a level of intensity of, say, the National Treasure films, then there is an extremely high chance that it will be put on the children's shelf, simply because it is an enjoyable read that does not overly try the nerves, or a person's integrity. However, its audience will be limited to children nonetheless, because adults will not be willing to pick up the book.

Now think of the grand exception to this rule. Can you guess it? Harry Potter is a children's book, but it was read by millions of adults. What broke the child-only barrier for this multi-million dollar series? Look at the cover of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. What does it look like to you? It looks sophisticated. I can't quite put a finger on it, but something about the covers of the Harry Potter novels put them on a more acceptable level for adults. In fact, I admit that as a third-grade child, I found the covers of this series to be very unattractive, and would not have given the books a chance had they not been so popular, while adults were reading the books all around me. Anyways, the point of this very long post is that the cover of a book, and whether or not people feel as if they are breaking their "cool factor" reading it, has a big influence on its success.

Morbidness

Here lies James, author of King James blog at http://www.jamesblog02.blogspot.com/. He died a terrible death - the death of writing too many blog posts at one time. We hope that he will live on forever in our hearts. It is with great strides that we must move on from one person to the next, as some will pass away in our lifetime, and none last forever. He was a well-loved person, and his name...

Just kidding, I'm not dead.

Semi-Interesting Post

Oh yeah, check out this amazing picture. You see, lots of people take pictures with their cameras, but I have now taken a picture of a camera. Astounding, is it not? I congratulate you if it gives you a deep and philosophical insight into graphic perspective. It doesn't? Ah well, at least you got to read a semi-interesting post.

On Logical Deduction

Ever since I started reading The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, I've been trying to invoke Holmes' powerful use of deductive reasoning in everyday life. The thing that makes those stories so amazing is that although at a first glance the case appears impossible, Sherlock Holmes can always solve it using simple and understandable logic, which he proceeds to explain before the story's end. I think, reading these stories, that Arthur Conan Doyle had an immense understanding of how genius rests in simplicity, and how often the most intriguing cases are not solved because the most important points are overlooked. Sherlock Holmes can take a case that most people could not solve, and, without knowing any more information than the reader, logic out the answer on the simplest of terms. It makes me wonder what I have overlooked in my own life so far, myself not having such an intense power of observation.

The Happiest Caffeine Drink

See the above picture? The other day, my mom was making coffee, and the bubbles made the smiley face you see here. I mean, doesn't that just look like it's going to start talking to you? Coffee is officially the happiest caffeine drink.

Vomer

Hum dum fo fee fum, what to type. I have a pretty awesome bone for you to learn if you're interested. It's called the vomer. Want to know where it is? Touch the tip of your nose. Move your finger directly down your face, until you reach that little spot where the bridge separating your nostrils touches the skin on the region of your face that is directly above your mouth. The tiny bone there, sprouting out under your nose, is the vomer. Hurray for human anatomy.

Comments

Sigh. Sitting at the computer, looking at a bright, pixellated screen. How does this apply to life? Reading makes your brain grow.

Just throwing something out there, but I wanted to thank all the people who left comments on this blog. I love comments! They can be good or bad; it doesn't matter. A comment means that people are reading, so every one is a good one.

Star Wars: Clone Wars

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSE7zqQUWKE&feature=related Anybody remember the "Star Wars: Clone Wars" mini series? This was such a cool show.

Has anyone noticed that Demi Lovato is really pretty? That's a girl I wouldn't mind asking out. I mean, I probably won't date girls until I'm at least in college anyway, but I can't help noticing.

A Random Thought

You, reading this blog, might know me in real life without knowing it. Think about it. How many 17-year olds guys do you know? Any one of them could be writing a secret blog under the alias of "James." Scary, huh? I'm probably that tall guy who lives next door to you that all the girls are crushing on. O.K., maybe not.

Actually, there's really about a one in one billion chance that you know me in real life. Not that you didn't figure that out for yourself. I'm just stating facts in a way that is (hopefully) enjoyable to read. Sometimes I draw inspiration from random thoughts.

Giant Tanks of Wakefulness

Good morning, everyone! I'm sitting at the computer typing on this blog at 9:00 A.M., even though there's no school. Why? I think it's a mix of a small case of insomnia and just not needing as much sleep as most people. I've always gotten up kind of early, even when I was a kid. I hate it, but what must be done must be done. Actually, as a first grader, I wanted to get up, because my favorite show came on at seven.

Buzz Lightyear of Star Command was awesome.

I think some day soon, I'll reach psychological enlightenment and sleep like a baby for the rest of my days. It'll take giant tanks firing rockets outside my window to wake me up in the morning.

Wondering

James, writing dramatically on his powerful and influential blog, subtly twists his eyeballs into position and views his followers.

Five.

Wish I could be sure that more people are out there reading this.

Coffee Mug

Guess what I'm going to buy? A laboratory beaker coffee mug from "ThinkGeek." It's so awesome. I mean, it looks like a laboratory beaker, but you drink hot beverages with it.

Hot chocolate will never be the same.

I love to find ways to integrate science into society. I think that, deep down, everybody wants a laboratory beaker coffee mug, but they either think that they are too cool, or they think that they can never understand chemistry. I assure you, neither of these things are true. Too many people fall short of a life as a chemist or physicist because they are under confident and did not have a quality teacher to give them back their confidence. It's a sad world when we don't reach our full potential.

"The Village Blacksmith"

"UNDER a spreading chestnut-tree
The village smithy stands;
The smith, a mighty man is he,
With large and sinewy hands;
And the muscles of his brawny arms
Are strong as iron bands.

His hair is crisp, and black, and long,
His face is like the tan;
His brow is wet with honest sweat,
He earns whate'er he can,
And looks the whole world in the face,
For he owes not any man.

Week in, week out, from morn till night,
You can hear his bellows blow;
You can hear him swing his heavy sledge,
With measured beat and slow,
Like a sexton ringing the village bell,
When the evening sun is low.

And children coming home from school
Look in at the open door;
They love to see the flaming forge,
And hear the bellows roar,
And catch the burning sparks that fly
Like chaff from a threshing-floor.

He goes on Sunday to the church,
And sits among his boys;
He hears the parson pray and preach,
He hears his daughter's voice,
Singing in the village choir,
And it makes his heart rejoice.

It sounds to him like her mother's voice,
Singing in Paradise!
He needs must think of her once more,
How in the grave she lies;
And with his hard, rough hand he wipes
A tear out of his eyes.

Toiling,---rejoicing,---sorrowing,
Onward through life he goes;
Each morning sees some task begin,
Each evening sees it close;
Something attempted, something done,
Has earned a night's repose.

Thanks, thanks to thee, my worthy friend,
For the lesson thou hast taught!
Thus at the flaming forge of life
Our fortunes must be wrought;
Thus on its sounding anvil shaped
Each burning deed and thought."

- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow


Truly an amazing poem. I have a lot of respect for Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

The League of Extraordinary Gentleman

I watched "The League of Extraordinary Gentleman" last night on TV. I'm glad I saw it; it was a really good movie. Dorian Gray was dumb to turn evil though. He should have teamed up with the good guys on the condition that once they had beaten Moriarty, he could have his portrait. Then he could hide it away, live forever, yada yada yada, and not be evil. But alas, he didn't, and so the vampire woman was forced to destroy him. I thought the lead guy was the coolest. It was too bad he died in the end, but at least he taught the American guy to shoot well so that he could carry on his legacy. The one thing I didn't get was the last ten seconds, with the lightning striking the gun. What was that all about? Ah well, it seemeth too strange to ponder.

Blind Leaps

Picture this scene. A third-grade boy sits in the cafeteria with all of his friends. A kid stands up. "Hey, anybody want a 'Fruit-By-The-Foot'?" he asks. Everyone jumps up, eagerly responding. He then yells, "Get your own!" obnoxiously and eats it, and everyone laughs, including the main character in the story. The next day at lunch, the main character decides to try it for himself, because everyone wants to get some laughs, right?

So, a little timidly, he stands up and says, "Hey, anybody want a 'Fruit-By-The-Foot'!" One child, shy and innocent, responds with the face of an angel, "Oh, yes, please!" His face is the picture of innocent joy. Fraught with guilt over his attempted comic maneuver, our main character sheepishly announces his punchline: "Uh, get your own..." The little boy sits down quietly, disappointed, and our main character feels guilty for the rest of lunch.


Can anyone relate to this story? I know I can. I guess sometimes we people have a tendency to leap before we look, and it usually ends in disappointment. Never go along with someone without looking at the facts first.

And I was the third-grader, in case you were wondering.

"Pippo the Fool"

Wow. I don't read many books for little kids, but "Pippo the Fool" by Tracy E. Fern, illustrated by Pau Estrada, is awesome. I love this book. It's the story of Filippo Brunelleschi, known as "Pippo the Fool" because he was mostly unsuccessful as a "goldsmith, clockmaker, sculptor, and inventor," and how his revolutionary ideas allowed him to design a dome that was, at that period, practically impossible. The Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore still stands in Florence today - with Pippo's dome towering over it. It was a miracle of its time.

Jamesland

In case you blog readers were wondering, the reason that I call this blog "King James" is because I really am a king. I'm king of Jamesland, a fictional country where root beer is the only soft drink available, and there is at least one periodic table in every household. Also, there are no cars, only bicycles. And the crossword puzzles are all about chemistry; biology; physics; and human anatomy and physiology. And besides the Toure de France, there is also a Toure de America, a Toure de Britain, and a Toure de Pretty Much Any Country You Can Think Of. Fencing is an extremely popular sport, and is considered the only way to compete for a woman's honor. There are plenty of sugary desert foods, but NO food is processed in a factory. And cutting down trees is illegal.

What a wonderful world.

Imagine the differences we would see if everyone on Earth imagined their perfect country. Maybe we would gain some impeccable insight into human relations if we listened to enough different descriptions. Probably not.

Foiled Again

Oh yeah. See that tank? Mine. My blog is now loaded with 10,000 pounds of pure CIS firepower. Republic beware.



But wait, what's this? The tank is being piloted by Yoda!

Darn it. Foiled again by the Jedi.

Blunt Weapons and Crossword Clues

I bet you, as the reader, never guessed that taking an advanced biology class pays off in anything other than school and your career choices. Not that those aren't good things already, but yes, it does! I was reading a Sherlock Holmes story the other night (The Boscombe Valley Mystery, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes), and it was talking about how a character was murdered. Watson looked up a medical report in the newspaper, which said "that the posterior third of the left parietal bone and the left half of the occipital bone were shattered by a heavy blow from a blunt weapon." Even before Watson explained that those bones were on the back of the head, I already knew. It was my *sniff* proudest educational moment.

And that's not all. I also helped my mother with a cossword puzzle clue that asked for a muscle near the humerus. It was the bicep.

Psychological Questions

Ah, sitting down at the computer, typing at my blog. Staring at the artificial image created by the computer screen. Falling asleep as I ty

Waking up again. Wishing I had some candy to eat. Wondering what it would be like to live in Iceland. Thinking about what I am going to type next.

Like my recorded chain of thoughts? An art teacher would be proud of me. Anyway, I was thinking that maybe sometimes the first word that comes into your head, when asked an emotional question, shows what you really care about. However, I am starting to believe that that is a false theory. Your emotions show what you really care about, not random, meaningless thoughts. I think the same thing about those little ink splotches that psychiatrists show their patients. If the patient says the first thing that comes to his mind, but is just rattling off what he sees, and feeling no emotion, then it probably doesn't mean anything. It might show what topics have been in the patient's recent discussions and study, however; although even this doesn't seem foolproof.

Martin Luther King Day

Happy Mr. Luther King, Jr. Day, everyone! It's nice to sit back and reflect on how far our country has come in the fight against racism.

Toccata and Fugue

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FXoyr_FyFw See the guy playing in this video? It's me. No, really, I'm serious.

O.K., fine, you got me. It isn't me.

another untitled

I spend a lot of time writing, and talking. For once, I think I need to just shut up. Sorry to be gruff.

I often act like I know everything, and everyone else is clueless. But life is an even circle, and everyone is a point on that circle of exactly the same size. I am included. My opinion is often right, but it is also often wrong. Do what you think is best for yourself. I will do the same for myself. If that can be achieved, then perhaps, if we meet, we can work together to influence the world for good.

I'm sorry to all of the people who I have ever irked, frustrated, or hurt.

A Thought

Has anyone ever thought about that famous philosophical question, "If a tree falls, and no one is there to hear it, does it make a sound?" I've been thinking about that question, because I can be kind of philosophical sometimes, and I realized something.

I hate that question.

The regular person answers such a question with, "of course it does." Why do they answer this way? Because they have faith. They have faith in the laws of nature. They have faith in things that they cannot see or hear. Questions like that come from people who run from faith, who pompously believe that human logic is the only rational base for truth. But I swear, if the human race loses its ability to have faith, then it will lose everything. Faith is the drive for hope. Faith is the drive for friendship and love. Faith is the drive for Christianity. If we forsake our faith, then we forsake our ability to live a life of humility.

So I don't play the fool. The tree most definitely makes a sound.

The Distance

"Reluctantly crouched, at the starting line,
Engines, pumping, and thumping in time,
The green light flashes, the flags go up,
Churning, and burning, they yearn for the cup,
They daftly maneuver, and muscle for rank,
Fuel burning fast on an empty tank,
Reckless, and wild, they pour through the turns,
Their prowesses potent, and secretly stern,
As they speed through the finish, the flags go down,
The fans get up, and they get out of town,
The arena is empty, except for one man,
Still driving, and striving, as fast as he can.

The sun has gone down and the moon has gone up,
And long ago somebody left with the cup,
But he's driving, and striving, and hugging the turns,
And thinking of someone for whom he still burns...

He's going the distance,
He's going for speed,
She's all alone *all alone* all alone in her time of need,
Because he's..."

O.K., I'm tired of typing now. That was "The Distance," by Cake.

Buuuuuu budu budu buuuuuu...

It's official. "Strawberry Avalanche" by Owl City is the coolest song ever. Ever since my sister started playing it I've been going buuuu bu du budu budu buuuuuu budu budu buuuuuu.... you get the idea. The best part has no words, which is why I obnoxiously wrote "bu" and "du" a milion times. If this blog could have background music, it would be that song.

No Sentence Variation

I've been doing homework for way too long. I don't feel like adding any variation to my sentences. I'm going to go watch "Everybody Hates Chris." I think "Everybody Hates Chris" is really funny. I am going to miss it if I keep typing. I bet you are getting annoyed with this post. I'm going to stop now.

On Simplicity

People who read my blog might have noticed, but I keep it really simple. I don't add gadgets, I don't have a fancy opening page, etc. Why? Because it's the words that make the blog, not the finery. I thrive on writing, and nothing else. Well, maybe a little photography once in a while, but besides that, nothing else, I say, nothing else!

60 Posts

I officialy have made 60 posts. When I turn 60, I'll look back on this day and laugh. Nah; I'll probably have forgotten this day by the time I'm 60. If only I had photographic, never-forgetting memory. Wait, that might not always be a good thing.

By the way, with this one, the number becomes 61, not 60.

Fact

I have an unfortunate truth to tell. World famous rock stars, the Beetles, were liars. I have official evidence that they did not live in a yellow submarine. I'm sorry if I have caused any supreme or unbearable disappointment.

Biology

I've been studying the skeletal and integumentary (skin) systems in my advanced biology textbook. Right now, I can name pretty much all of the major bones of the body, only the major ones, mind you, but it's still a lot - including most of the bones making up the skull. All in all it's probably about thirty or forty bones.

I'm also learning about all the different types of skin and how it works. Did you know that the reason we have fingerprints is that the dermal papillae form ridges under the skin to allow more contact between blood vessels and the epidermis? Without fingerprints, our skin would be malnourished. Also, did you know that our hair follicles provide protection against scars from second degree burns? They hold extra epithelial cells deep within the dermis, so that if all of the epidermis is burned away, it can still grow back. The human body never ceases to amaze me.

Another Puzzle

1,000-piece U.S. presidents jigsaw puzzle. Extra large pieces. I had to stand on a chair to get the camera high enough to capture the whole puzzle in one picture. Did I mention I'm over six feet tall? It's a big puzzle.

There I go again, bragging about a puzzle. Try spending all that time sitting in a chair working on something and then not talking about it, and you'll see why I do talk about it. Sorry about the glare in the picture, by the way.

Multiple Blogs

Sigh. I wonder why anyone would want to have more than one blog. A blog is like a big soup pot. No matter what kind of vegetables you want in the soup, you can throw 'em all in there. Having more than one blog is like cooking multiple soups at a time - and that means that they won't be as well done in the long run. Nope, not me. I stick with uno blog.

A Tall Order

"I don't want to be percieved the way I am, I just want to be percieved the way I am." Me too, Matt Theissen, me too.

Do you know what I mean? I'm starting to think that everyone who struggles with social interactions wishes that they could just open up and be normal, politely and effectively dealing with other people. When we do that, we allow our true selves, our true personalities to show, and we are percieved the way we are, deep down in our heart of hearts. But most of us lack the ability to do this, because we want something at home that we are not getting, and so we subtly request it from other people in our actions and reactions, causing conflict. Everyone needs to be put in a place where they are surrounded by people who will not only set limits with them, but also provide unconditional love and encouragement.

That's a tall order.

So most of us, unknowing of our missing piece, our empty space, become someone else, someone partially closed up to the world around them. Someone different from who they really are.

Solitaire

Has anybody noticed that you can play solitaire for ever and ever and ever. It's just addicting. Especially on the computer, am I right. Also, have you noticed that I'm not using question marks. Hurray for monotony.

My Blog

Looking through the other blogs on blogspot.com, I've come to a conclusion. All of them are either a) a woman blogging about cooking, b) a couple blogging about their family, because they just had their first baby, or c) a very strange and unenjoyable exception to the first two categories. My blog is unique. "King James" fights the medium, defies the average! It is enjoyable to read for men and women of all ages! It's written by an ultra-cool 17 year old!

My point? Everyone out there should get on their computer and go to jamesblog02.blogspot.com, and enjoy some good, quality, non-brainpower-consuming reading.

Picture

Loyal readers, yearning to see the appearance of the author of this blog, fear not; for I have provided a picture. Or, rather, a silhouette. I have a pretty good-lookin' shadow, don't I?