Archive for the ‘Insights’ Category
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Friday, March 5th, 2010 |
This morning, I set out to astound you with my thoughts about the Elton John & Billy Joel concert I saw the other night. I figured what a great thing this is to blog about; two ROCK LEGENDS live on stage, “Face 2 Face,” turning out classic song after classic song, sending every fan into their own nostalgic musical frenzy. After completing what I thought was going to become my blog entry, I passed it on to my lovely wife (the true writer of our crew and whom I dearly respect and love) to get her always honest opinion. “It sucks”, was the response I received. “Too much like a review”. So I sat back down and thought hard about what I was really trying to do. Explain the experience of a concert of this caliber, a musical experience, something that you need to experience with your senses, with a few words on a blog. IMPOSSIBLE!
Unable to bring my usual plethora of equipment into this venue-precision lenses, tripods, etc.-I was forced to use my wife’s point and shoot. Once again, I turn to my passion for photography and leave you with a photo from the concert.
If you listen real close you can you can still hear the sound of 15,000 strong belting out “Piano Man”.
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Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009 |
 With Christmas a few days away, I’ve survived the sea of humanity crashing over the halls of Towne East, the parking garage otherwise known as Rock Road and electronics glut that permeates the gift market. This doesn’t imply that I’m not a techno-junkie, but as a kid, Christmas was always a time to revel in the latest-greatest innovations from the toy industry – real tangible toys! One of my all-time favorites was the now-obscure Evel Knievel Stunt Cycle that I received from Santa in the Christmas of 1973 (not to date myself or anything…I always celebrate the anniversary of my 29th birthday!).
Time warp…back in the 70’s, Evel Knievel was at the height of his popularity and was a marketing machine. Ironically, he built his daredevil legend not from a successful jump, but one of history’s most famous un-successful jumps, the infamous Caesar’s Palace jump over the fountains in 1967. The result was a crash for the ages, with Evel famously twisting head over heels down the landing ramp. The other irony was that his other most famous failed jump, the Snake River Canyon jump, signalled the beginning of the end of the Evel Knievel era.
Not discounting his motorcycle prowess, he really was a master at his craft, he built an image and mystique that led to an entire Evel Knievel industry and product line. Which brings us to the toy…
This was a gift that was completely out of the blue. I had no clue that it even existed and Santa was on top of his game when he picked this one out for me. I ripped the gift wrapping off, set GI Joe aside (see earlier post), snapped the launching kit together, strapped Evel onto his bike and it was go time! My brother and I made a makeshift ramp from a shoebox lid and stacked some Encyclopedia Britannicas neatly together to resemble the buses that the real Evel would jump. I grabbed the handle, started turning the wheel, and the bike make an evil whirring noise. Turning the wheel faster, the deafening roar of the bike soon drowned out the Mills Brothers Christmas music playing softly in the background. And then it happened… the bike shot off the launcher, went screaming down the hall, hit the ramp and shot over the Encyclopedia’s – ending in a perfect landing. SWEET!!!!
I quickly retrieved my daredevil and launched off two more jumps. Then I discoverd the true ‘nuance’ of this toy, the design flaw that a generation of boys would come to call “the knuckle buster”. As you can see in the photo (taken by yours truly) the handle isn’t very large, and after a few exhilarating launches, we would grab that handle with our now sweaty hands, crank the gyro, then WHAM! The hand would slip off the handle and…CRUNCH! A little hydrogen peroxide, a band-aid, a kiss on the knuckle from mom, and it was back at it! A busted knuckle wouldn’t keep Evel down, so it would’t stop me either.
So now here we are in the electronic age, the games are everything that we wished existed when we were kids, but the games come and go quickly in this highly competative market. They might be really cool, but nothing can compare to the toys of my youth like my Evel Knievel Stunt Cycle and a lifetime of fond lasting memories (and scars!) .
Merry Christmas!!!
M
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Monday, November 30th, 2009 |
 The color combination of red and green together automatically leads us to think of the Christmas season; but what are the origins of the duo that steer us to that train of thought? Here are a few explanations based on historical fact and Christian faith.
In the 14th Century, churches celebrated Miracle Plays which were a means of bringing religious education to the illiterate. One play, The Paradise Play, was presented each December 24th and was the story of Adam and Eve and the Garden of Eden. As there was no way to provide an apple tree in the middle of winter, a pine tree with apples tied to the branches served as the Tree of Good and Evil. This became a popular prop among the many churches and soon it became a tradition.
In Germany, the Paradise Tree was so popular that people began erecting pine trees in their homes and decorating them with apples. Soon this tradition spread as well, giving birth to our modern-day Christmas tree, and the colors of red for the apples and green for the pine tree became a symbol of the Christmas season.
In the Christian faith, the color green is a symbol of hope for eternal life that Jesus Christ offers. Evergreen trees, which remain alive and green throughout the year, expand on that representation.
The color red is intended to symbolize the blood of Christ, which was shed for all people so that they could be saved. The holly berry, with its green leaves and red berries is meant to symbolize both life and blood and as such has become a popular Christmas staple.
 In the advertising business, the Coca Cola company began a marketing campaign in 1931 magazine ads featuring Santa Claus as a jolly rotund man in a bright red suit. Created by artist Haddon Sundblom, this red image of Santa has continued on to present day in many countries.
Whatever the reason, and for more centuries to come, the colors red and green will always be associated with the Christmas season.
Tags: Christmas, Colors, Green, Red
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Tuesday, November 24th, 2009 |
 Thanksgiving is a couple of days away and, as with every year, I look forward to spending a day with the family, doing what I can to help with the massive task of the meal preparation (which mostly involves consumption on my part), throwing my elbow out playing on the Wii with my niece or re-hashing family stories and having a laugh while playing the various board games that we have dusted off.
I was flipping through the various collections I’ve accumulated and I came across one of my favorite works of art that echoed my Thanksgiving sentiments, the immortal Norman Rockwell’s “Freedom from Want”. One of the “Four Freedoms” paintings, the work was part of a series that was inspired by Franklin D. Roosevelt’s 1941 State of the Union address and is generally recognized as the “Thanksgiving painting”.
I am drawn in by the nostalgia of this work, its idealistic setting and the strong image of family. I am always struck by the power the work invokes thru sheer simplicity, timelessness and masterful use of color and depth. It reminds me to take pause of my surroundings and to give thanks for what we have in this country, to lend my hand to those in need, to appreciate those that we love, and to protect the ideals and freedoms that define our unique land.
Happy Thanksgiving!
M
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Tuesday, October 27th, 2009 |
 He was a role model, a protector, a man of action, a man’s man – GI JOE! No, not the mini-smurf sized abberation that came later, but the real McCoy. 12 inches of the American Dream!
He was the first action hero. Yeah, plenty of girls out there will point out that Ken was around long before him, but Ken was never a Sailor, a Marine, a Sergeant or a Pilot. He never went into space in a Gemini capsule, nor did he ever drive a tank or fly on a jet-pack. GI Joe was the personification of action – true grit!
A few things always puzzled me though…the guy could not hold his pistol correctly and couldn’t aim his rifle if his life depended on it. But I’d do my darndest to wedge the pistol on his index finger or twist his torso into an un-natural position in order to get the shot down-range. But that didn’t really matter much, because when push came to shove, GI Joe always got the last laugh.
I was fortunate to have been able to spend a few years growing up abroad in London. Their version (err…RIP OFF!!!) of the action hero was called Action Man. My dad bought me one…once. Once was enough. This dude was the epitome of cheese, made from paper thin plastic and limbs that would break off like brittle twigs. Nope, there’s no replacing good old American quality. There was only one GI Joe.
Now years down the road, as we approach the holiday season, I fondly look back to the many Christmas mornings when my brother and I would toss every other gift aside in search of that rectangular shoe-box shaped bundle of adventure. Ralphie might have had his Red Ryder, but it could never compare to my Real American Hero!
Tags: GI Joe Action Hero
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