This is not a review blog.   I am not a professional critic, nor have I ever claimed to be one. I'm just a guy who loves music in all its forms.  Whenever someone asks "what kind of music do you like", it's very hard for me to answer because, well, I like just about everything.  Name a style, and I've probably listened to it at one point in my life. For the record, I dislike digital downloads unless it's an incredibly high quality bitrate.  Given the choice, I'd mu...

About a year ago, I lost my best friend. I met her back in college, lo those many moons ago. She was one of those people who, when you met her, you liked her instantly. She had that aura around her, an open, friendly, pleasant personality that just drew you in and made you feel comfortable. I'd be lying if I didn't say I had a crush on her from day one. Had fate not intervened, and she was dating one of my friends at the time, I would've asked her out then and there, but that's n...

Let's get this out of the way right now. No, I didn't watch the game. No, I didn't see Incredible Play "A" , Defensive Play "B" , or Heart-Stopping Play "C" . No, I won't be watching the Super Bowl. No, I don't like football. Now, it might seem a bit strange to open a rant with these statements, but to help put things into perspective, here's a little background information. I'm a 38-year old, single straight guy. Normally, that's enough to make people wonder, since it s...

I have a kid. Granted, this isn't a spectacular revelation. Many people in the world have kids, so that doesn't make me any better or worse than anyone else. However, my kid is a little different. She has problems with her health...so she has some special needs, and requires a bit more attention than other kids her age. She can't see that well. She has trouble walking. She doesn't have the best memory in the world. She's got diabetes. She needs help in doing the littlest things...

There are certain events starting to unfold (again) over at DeviantArt. Cries of censorship have started to be heard as dissatisfaction grows. Ordinary users are being banned by administration...whether it be because of strict adherence to policy or abuse of personal power, well, it depends on how you look at things. I understand about "abusing power". I did it myself, years ago, when I started working my first, full-time job. It's not something I like to think about, but it is a ...

What do these names have in common: Fred Durst Hulk Hogan Brittney Spears Jose Canseco Besides being washed-up has beens, they're also making their own reality shows. And thus begins our rant. I don't know about you, but I was under the impression that so-called "reality television" was on the way out. Combine viewer apathy with shows like Lost, CSI and Desperate Housewives, reality shows seemed to be on the decline here in the US. In a recent "Keep or Cancel" poll run by...

I've run this column occasionally over on my Deviant Art page. As a courtesy, I'm posting it here. Hopefully, it'll help. Folks, Spyware, Adware and Malware are nasty. I've been spending a LOT of time at work cleaning that shit off of computers. Internet Exploder, the buggy, crappy, POS web browser that comes bundled with everything Micro$oft, has so many holes, exploits and vulnerabilities that your system is constantly at risk every time you open it. Even with the release o...

There are certain traditions in the holiday season that we all know, love, and celebrate every year. Whether it be gathering around the table for a feast, watching holiday specials on the TV, or giving gifts until you're deep in credit card debt, we all know certain things happen this time of the year. I, for one, partook in one of the newer holiday traditions just last night. I got into a fight with a guy at the supermarket parking lot. Parking lots, and the people and cars that park ...

With much thanks and love to my editor for making suggestions . Music is as essential to my existence as air, food and water. I've got a healthy CD collection at home. Last time I checked, there's close to 300 CDs...with everything from Classical to Pop to Jazz (lots of Jazz), with Country, Blues and a little Hip-Hop thrown in for good measure. The weekends are constantly filled with music in my home. First thing I do in the morning - even before I'm completely awake ...