Ok, I've posted some fun and/or interesting things today. Here's one a little more serious. I have a TV show that I've become hooked on since last season: The Biggest Loser.
Now before you jump up and down calling me a loser for watching it, let me say what I have to say.
In my profession (teaching), I interact with students from a wide variety of backgrounds. There are many days where it can become stressful- just trying to imagine what some go through at home- verbally/physically abusive parents, alcoholism, lack of food/heat, etc. I come home at the end of the day and after dinner and the gym (1 month and counting, yeah!), I relax with some TV.
Flip through the channels on any given night. The programming on 9 out of 10 stations have some mix of the following: police, criminals, yelling/screaming, fighting, drugs/alcohol, and/or violence. Oh, and don't even get me started on the wing-nut, neglectful parents Dr. Phil has on his show.
How is any of this relaxing in any way? Watching people yell/fight/etc. just makes me stressed. Don't get me wrong, I like blood and guts just as much as the next guy, but not when I'm trying to wind down.
* side note: The premise of The Biggest Loser is this: Couples enter the show, hoping to lose the most weight and become 'the biggest loser'- winning $250,000.*
One of the main goals of my profession is to build self-esteem. This is what The Biggest Loser is all about. Along the way, the contestants discover a lot about themselves and what they can accomplish. For most of them, the $$ becomes secondary. They're losing weight for their health and for their families. One competitor lost 30 pounds in one week. IN ONE WEEK! For some, they end up weighing less than they EVER have.
Watching these men and women (ages 18 to 63) work their tails off and then step on the scale at the end of the show and feel proud of themselves helps me relax. The 'where are they now' segment is always uplifting as well.
Today was Jackson Pollock's Birthday. I found a neat link where you can create your own 'paintings'. Just click the mouse button to change colors. I made my creation above into my desktop wallpaper. I thought I was going to have an original post, until a few minutes later, I found this one online. Damn you, RocketJumper for finding all the cool stuff first. Wait a minute...dammit! He (or she) posted the SuperFriends too. I blame this guy.
The White House website (www.whitehouse.gov) got an overhaul on January 20th at noon. The new Administration is embracing technology and the online world. The new website includes a blog, executive orders, bios, and much, much more. Very cool stuff and an easy way to keep track of what's happening in DC. Go here to view the first blog post describing the changes.
At 12:00 today, I sat in our school library with my students. The lights dimmed, the TV perched atop its cart. On the screen, the camera panned across the estimated 1 million spectators.
A lone woman screamed 'We love you Obama!'
As we sat there in silence, Senator Obama was called forward. His hand was placed on the Lincoln family Bible, and he uttered the 35 word oath.
The crowd came unglued.
For the next 15 minutes, the audience and I hung on every word. This dream of change finally became a reality. Welcome home, Mr. President. We've been expecting you.
I really need to upgrade my video game system.I just read that Pearl Jam- Ten is being released for Rock Band downloadable content in March.One of my top 10 albums ever.
Holy freakin' crap. I've been waiting for this for 2 years. It's too bad that it's made by Guitar Hero (since Guitar Hero: World Tour was so horrendously designed- the PS2 version at least). But, it'll still rock. Coming for PS3/360 in March. For PS2 in May.
It's been a while since I've had such a good day. My students were awesome, my meetings went really well, and Gaming Club was a lot of fun. As I drove home, this song from Beck came on the radio (89.3WHSN). It was one of those, 'wow, I haven't heard this song in forever' and brings you back to where you were when you used to listen to it kind of songs. Today was a good day.
*note: I wanted to have the original video here, but it has been removed from youtube.
Well, my thought of completing 5-10 more items on Sunday didn't happen, but that's alright. I still feel like I accomplished a ton of work around the apartment last week. :)
It's noon on Sunday, and I've crossed off a total of 50 items on my 100 item 'to do' list! Not bad for a week's work. The day just started, so I'm hoping to cross off 5-10 more before the end of the day. Then, it's back to reality on Monday [work].
We went out to a local casino last night for a little while before heading downtown. It's new to the area, and we thought we'd give it a shot. It's all slot machines- no table games, which is good, because I figured I'd blow through less $$. In 2 minutes at the $0.25 slots I lost $10. But, in 5 minutes at the $0.02 slots I won $400!!!! My fiancee suggested that I cash out. That was probably a good idea. Happy New Year!
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