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Thoughts on:
Now a thought 8/01/98 I heard a story once about a slave that was to be killed in the morning. He told the king that if his life was spared, within a year he would teach the king's favorite horse to sing. The king decided to take a chance and declared that the slave should live in the artists quarters promising dire consequences should he fail. As the slave was gathering his bedroll from his quarters, his friends told him he was crazy and that he would surely die a slow and painful death. The slave countered that he was going to die anyway and that he had just extended his life a year. "Besides," he said, "alot can happen in a year. I could die, the horse could die, the king could die. Who knows, the horse might start to sing."
Another thought 8/14/98 Good advice can come from bad sources. Just as bad advice can come from good places. What you do with what your world throws at you and how you act on it is entirely up to you. Be aware, and take responsibility.
If you want something ask for it.
Yet another thought
I was listening to Semisonic's "closing time" the other day.
Just a thought.
Yet another thought part 2
It turns out that I was right.
It's nice to get it once in a while.
Still more thoughts
Went to Disney over Thanksgiving. Not bad, but the Animal Kingdom
needs work.
For a site that uses text really well, try Wataki.com . The web site of the new millennium.
Some other thoughts
Life is just odd. I mean why is it that the color deep purple is this odd green on this page and that red on the art page? Oh well, may I suggest that when trying stuff you just start punching in letters and numbers. Hexadecimal HA! just 0-9 with a-f added on. Start punching in those magical six digits and see what happens. Don't forget to write down the results
Fast food thoughts 12/12/98 Had a BK Big King today. It was fresh and still quite good. I could taste the flame broiled meat, it's juices still hot. The veggies were still fresh and crunchy. I have decided that, when fresh and hot, McDonald's fries beat BK's hands down. The batter with which Burger King covers it's fries is just too much. However, McDonald's fries don't have the endurance needed to make it for more than 10 minutes out from under the heat lamp. That's where BK wins, like a mummy they last. They have the staying power.
So there you have it:
BK Fries - over the top at first but with lasting crunch
12/17/98
Right,
Well, I shot right back with the little known "Santa TARDIS Effect." The TARDIS, or time and relative dimensions in space, is a space/time machine. It allows Santa to not only bring presents to good little girls and boys all across the Earth in one night but also to small fry on several other planets as well. The other planets do have slightly different holidays. This also explains why no one has ever seen Santa or his "North Pole" home. He doesn't actually live there. He is a time lord from Galifry. The reindeer sadly do not exist. They are but the image thrown off by the TARDIS' time wake. Even then they can only be seen by those that are most observant.
12/19/98 I really don't like naming my art as I feel that by doing that I take away the flexibility that comes when the viewer has to decide what something means to him. This is odd because I tend to attach a title to the pieces that effect me the most. There are unnamed pieces that I like as much but they don't move me in the same way. When I name a piece it's almost selfish because I am demanding that the consumer at least try to get a clue as to what I am trying to say. That said have a look a my art page which contains mostly titled series and explanations. 1/15/99 First of all, the only qualification I have to speak about being a complete anything much less a martial artist is that I can draw a breath. I have studied a bit and I've lived some but there are many more people much more advanced and enlightened than I. However even the brass monkey has value. That being said; I think that it is important for a person not to define herself only by one thing. No matter how focused on that one thing a person may be, to be a whole martial artist one must also be a whole person. To be a whole person one must be able to see all of the world around him. John Lennon said, "Life is what happens when you are making other plans." Make your art happen by defining your self not just as a martial artist but as a life artist.
1/29/99 Right. So VW does this ad with a couple driving down a New Orleans street. Everything clicks into place with the music until a sheet of water from a passing truck breaks the magic. In another version of that ad, the magic is broken by them taking out the tape. In first version fate takes a hand and rips syncronicity from them. In the second they take the power and enjoy the moment until they feel it is done. "Drivers wanted," would seem to suggest that the power should and does rest with the occupants of the car. Why even bother letting fate take a hand. Control your destiny. Life is what happens when you're making other plans so you could at least notice and guide it a bit.
3/31/99 Well heck I got some spare time and all I can think to do is to ramble at the computer.
Right!
If I could describe it, it wouldn't be nothing.
4/13/99 It snowed this morning. This isn't good or bad. I just thought it was kinda interesting.
4/15/99
5/21/99 I had a birthday the other day. That was kinda neat. McDonald's has released their beanie babies and the rumors are flying. They have this one in Lisbon. That one will be in Freeport tomorrow. Folks they're for kids. Grow up and collect spoons.
5/31/99
6/16/99 Well I'm running a bit low on funds these days. It sure would be nice if y'all would send me some money. Whatever you can is great. Send it to
Support Schuyler's Art
What ever you send would be great but if you send
$1.00 or more, I'll send you a signed copy of my current art card.
Be sure to include your address if you want me to send anything back. Everything I send will come with a note of genuine thanks cause I could really use the cash right now. Checks are best to send through the mail. I'll take what ever you send though. Thanks loads.
7/5/99 Well Yahoo took over the homestead the other day. Apparently SECTION 8 in their Terms of Service suggests that they pretty much own whatever I put here. They've backed off of that sort of. I've gotten over feeling like a frightened orphan and decided that by the time they get around to using my stuff that I'll be rich or famous enough to fight back or at least join in on a class action suit. My brother's birthday is tomorrow, so
HAPPY BIRTHDAY FLETCH
7/12/99 Well yahoo did back off. Thanks to a boycottyahoo movement and the screams and yells of their clients. I don't think that yahoo really intended to be malicious but it was nice to see that corporate America does occasionally respond to their customers. If you want something ask for it. Always read the fine print. It may be easier to just click OK but sometimes there is something about which you may want to know.
8/17/99 I've been a bit on edge lately. I've got a new son, there have been some uncertainties at work, and I weigh way to much. Today as I left work it started to come to a head. I was traveling to fast on the highway and I passed a car with a plate that read "LET GO." That was a lifesaver. I let go of my troubles and they left or at least went back to work. They will be there tomorrow but at least they won't bother me at home. I feel that there must be a god that can allow me to do things like that. If I sit up straight and I can feel him. Apparently the Buddhists and every grade school teacher I ever had was right about posture. Let go of your troubles for a little while. Sit up straight and allow God or your chi or whatever you want to call it to flow through you. It turns out that breathing helps, too. Take good breaths with the diaphragm to really get the yucky stuff out. There is some question about how to inhale and exhale. Should they be equal? Should the exhale be longer than the inhale? You decide. Sit up straight and concentrate on your breathing. How does your body want to breathe? let go
Thoughts on the last two months
Well I've been gone for some time. All the time that I usually spend on thoughts, I've been spending on my and other peoples pages. A new thought that I have for people is invitations on the web . I figure it's new, it's cutting edge, it's the net. A great idea for a millennium party. Gotta go whack people with sticks (it's a stick fighting class).
10/29/99 Next day. I'm still in one piece. Always a plus. Not feeling too well but it is the cold and flu season. Thought I'd something more to say.
Thoughts on....DOH!!
Save your work often.
Thoughts on the birth of Christ
MERRY CHRISTMAS, Y'ALL!!
Thoughts on Y2K
Do you know where your towel is?
Thoughts on annoying ads
Well we seem to have survived the change of the year. I hope that next years change of the millenium parties can follow the parties that we saw a couple of weeks ago. And that kinda brings me to my thought for today. It's something that has been annoying for several months, the Gillette Mach 3 razor ad. Back when Gillette came out with the Trac II, Saturday Night Live did a parody of their commercial. It was about the Trac III. They went through the whole bit about the three blades cutting closer because of how they pulled at the beard stubble which was similar to the campaign that Gillette was running at the time. The tag line of the SNL satire was "Trac III, because you'll believe anything." Apparently we will. What's really weird is that I like commercials. When well done they are very short peices of entertaining television art. They have to be to attract the dwindling attention span of most of us, I understand that Fox or UPN is looking into 15 minute programs for a coming season. I do not, however, appreciate it when an ad agency thinks that our memories are so short that we won't remember things like that. Turns out that they are right though. Shortly after the mach III came out I read a colunm in playboy singing it's praises calling it a work of blue collar art and comparing it to the Mac truck in that respect. It's a truck alright barreling down on the American public with exactly what we asked for, more stuff we don't need.
Thoughts on ... Haiku
575 its
if you put up a page that no one can find does it exist back to top
9/27/00 Mark David Chapman, the man who shot John Lennon in the back a few hours after Lennon had signed an album for him, is up for parole. Among the statements he has made is that he feels that Lennon, as a liberal, would want him freed. I think that Paula Poundstone said it best when Sirhan Sirhan said something similar about Robert Kennedy. She said, "Gee, the one person in the world who would want you free and you killed him." Some people just don't think ahead.
01/28/01 Well yesterday Alex, Jen, Mercedes and I went ice skating. Jen caught a cold so when Alex took a nap today Mercedes and I went again so Jen could get a little rest. I had not been on skates for five years and today was Mercedes second time. She did really well and me, well I never appreciated how comfortable my shoes were until I put them on after my skates. My feet weren't quite so clenched today and I was able to skate longer than yesterday as was Mercedes. We went to Deering Oaks. It was a beautiful day, the noon time temperature was around 34 degrees and while it was a bit windy on the roads the pond is in a valley so there was minimal wind. The ice where we were today, near Park Street, was not bad but the rest of the pond was a bit lumpy. Next week we may try Payson Park.
02/05/01 Right. So I'm calling around town to get a price on printing color business cards, my standard opening is to say hi, this is Schuyler Meyers with Skart Designs , how are you today. It usually catches people off guard and makes them feel that they are important. I did this to one receptionist (email me if you want to know which printer it was) and mentioned that I had a few questions. My first question, because I am a web designer looking to help put people on the net , is always do you have a web site. She immediately heard sales call and started to slough me off. I said, "Wait, wait don't hang up I have some business questions." Then I said, "golly." because I do that. She replied, "Golly, we're very busy," in a most nasty tone. "Right, good bye," I said and hung up. I will only beg once to give someone my business. It turns out that salesmen and web designers have the need for printing services and there are lot's of printers in the greater portland area. Total quality is among lot's of other things the understanding that everyone is a customer and a supplier. It does not pay to treat either one badly. Because the receptionist was rude to me they lost a potential client and a chance to hear about good affordable web design. Because I was rude and hung up on the receptionist, I lost a potential client and what may have been good affordable printing. I called them back and it turns out that they don't do what I want and that they are not looking for web design work. So neither one of us really lost anything except for whatever good feelings we may have had. I am rarely happy about being rude to people and I never like being treated badly. So my hour is pretty much hosed. Good Thoughts
I'm making a cheese cake today.
05/29/01 OK so I got a rebate from my tax prep software today. I recieved my federal tax refund over a month ago on April 14 I think. I remember thinking that the date was a bit ironic and that I shouldn't go down to the post office and make fun of the people people rushing to mail their taxes into the IRS. And while I'm on the subject of rebates, CyberRebate.com filed for bankruptcy the other day. There's an interesting business model. They would sell people stuff for many times it's value on the promise that they would rebate the cost 100%. Apparently it worked for a year or so. The other shoe dropped hard though. Their top 20 creditors included customers, one of whom they owed over $70,000.
or why being a tech is better than being a deadhead 6/28/01 OK so I just realized that for the most part now, though not completely, my t-shirts all have the names of software or tech vendors instead of the dates of Grateful Dead concerts or tie-dye. Turns out that I have archived my collection of concert shirts and worn out most of my tie-dyes. So what does that have to do with Deadhead vs Techie. Well I paid for my dead shirts but the tech shirts I got for free. Actually I get a lot of stuff for free being a tech/consultant. I like that. And that is of course the point. Tech vendors and most B2B vendors realize that people like free stuff and gifting someone is often a good way to get a human's attention. Hats, t-shirts, gym bags, mugs, pens and more; I like it all. Free stuff is why being a tech is better than being a deadhead. Or is there a deeper connection? Jerry Garcia died in 1995. The internet started to come into it's own shortly thereafter. Coincidence, I think not. I think that the end of the Grateful Dead freed up a lot of talent that was being put to use following the Dead. Course I also cut my hair that year that could have had something to do with the growth of the hi tech industry, too.... or not.
12/13/02 I saw a poster once that said life is a bunch of tradeoffs. You don't have to sharpen pens but pencils don't skip. I realized this week that life isn't a bunch of tradeoffs but a bunch of choices. Which is pretty much just semantics, I know. It helps with the seque. It occured to me that the one of the keys to life is not so much making good choices, although that certainly helps. It's what you do with those choices that is important.
12/20/02 A while back I started this with the idea that it might be interesting to put down the occassional thought. I had hoped it would be less occasional than it turned out to be. This year I discovered blogs. So as I fill out this last entry here, I have started a new series at blogger.com. I plan to publish random thoughts and reviews of books, movies, parties, whatever. Got something you want reviewed, send me a copy and if it's not to bad I'll review it and include whatever links I think are relevent. If it is not worth the time I'll say so and no links.
take care and have fun sky
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