Movie mania!



As it is summer, I have begun to watch movies again. Lots of movies. So this post will be a quick run down on all that I have seen recently (both in the theater and on DVD).



Spider-Man 3: Three and a half to four stars. By far the best of the three Spider-Man films. It has something for not only the die hard Spider-Man and comic book fans, but also those who aren't into them at all. Definitely a two thumbs up movie.



Pirates of the Caribbean 3: At World's End: Four and a half stars. Wow, see this movie. If you see nothing else this summer, or even this year, see this movie. It seriously is that good. Do be warned though, if you haven't seen the second one (and I know people who still haven't yet), you need to see it before seeing this film. And for those of you who have seen the second but not the third, this one is by far the best out of the three.



300: Four stars. Yeah, I know, it's been out for quite a while and I saw it quite a while ago, but it's been a while since I've done any movie reviews on here. Yeah, all the rave is true and none of the gore is gratuitous (think Braveheart).



Night at the Museum: Three and a half stars. It was definitely funny and I really liked Robin Williams as Teddy Roosevelt.



My Date with Drew: Four and a half stars. Yeah, yeah, I can't shut up about this movie; so you might as well watch it to see why I can't stop talking about it.


The Nativity Story: Four stars. One thing that sets a movie above others in my book is how well they are shot. If the movie itself is beautiful, it will be a pleasure to watch. Some examples are Collateral, Panic Room, and American Beauty. These films, in and of themselves, are like paintings on a wall. A feast for the eyes. The Nativity Story would be another that I would hang in an art gallery. Sure, there's some things that I could nitpick and the pace is rather slow, but I highly recommend it; for it is a feast for the eyes.

Anywho, that's it for me now. If you see any movies that you think I will enjoy, feel free to drop me a comment. I will be sure to check it out. Until next time, take care.

Muggy

So, lately, it has been crazy humid here. And humidity has a way of short circuiting my brain. Not only is my memory effected by it, but it also has crreated problems thinking clearly. So fair warning if this post doesn't make a lot of sense.

So yeah, it has made things interesting. It takes me longer to think of the answer and my short term memory is even more short term. Good times, let me tell you. Ice water and a nice cool breeze help, but I need copious amounts of both to reverse the "damage" of the sticky weather. Oh, you know, some rain would help too.

Anyway, other than that, all is good. I'm actually enjoying my job now that everything is straightened out. Not much is new, but if something comes up, I will let you all know. Oh, yeah, one last thing. Exactly a month form today I will be going on vacation. It has been a long time coming, let me tell you.

Crisis Averted

So, I have some good news to report. I am staying at Starbucks. I talked to my manager today and everything got straightened out. She said that I'm doing an excellent job and that she's highly impressed with my customer service skills. She mentioned that there is still some operational stuff that I need to improve on (which isn't surprising considering the fact that I'm new); but other than that, she was greatly impressed with how well I am doing.
What a difference a day makes, let me tell you. I have to admit, I was feeling disappointed at wanting to leave my job so soon. But now that that is over with, I don't have to worry about it.


That's about it for news-other than that I have a mild sunburn and my food handler's permit. I am very excited about my life right now and it feels like it is going in a good direction.Take care out there and I will post again later.

Burned

So those who know me would definitely describe me as white. Another adjective that might be used would be pasty. Not anymore. That's right, yours truly now has a very red face and it's not because he's embarrassed. Couple that with my lower arms and a tender neck and you have one crispy dude.

This all stemmed from several factors. Number one is that I have been putting off getting my food handler's permit and decided that today was the day. Second, we have had the most amazing weather lately (85 today) and I spent most of my day out in it. The reason is that I happened to have gotten rather lost looking for the place to take the test. And after I had taken the test (which I passed with flying colors), I spent some more time outdoors.

Speaking of the permit, I have decided to put off quitting until I not only have another job lined up, but have started it as well. I've done this before, so I don't forsee any problems. It doesn't mean that I won't have any problems; I just don't forsee any.

Anyway, that's all that's new with me. Take care, you guys, and I will post again soon.

Couple bits of big news:

First off, at this point right now, I'm quitting Starbucks. Today I suffered some public humiliation and I am sick and tired of not being able to trust anyone and being treated inferior. I've had it and I'm not going to take it anymore.

Second, someone I know is finally getting out of a destructive relationship. Her insignificant other treated her especially bad and even said to her (and I quote) "I know I'm being shallow, but if you lost some weight, I would be attracted to you." Yeah, to know this guy, or really just to encounter him, is to hate him. I think even the word loathsome is too good for this guy, but it's the closest I can think of. By the way, apparently, that was just the tip of the iceberg of what he said to her.

Anyway, that's about it for big news. If you think about it, both were kind of something I should have seen coming, but was blindsided by them. The first one was a total body blow that I hadn't been prepared for and the second was something that was a long time coming, but was still a huge surprise.

Letting go

The hardest part of life is living it. When you wake up each morning, you are committed to living that day. Even if you go back to sleep, you are still going to have to wake up. Hiding isn't an option and it shouldn't be. This is your life and it's completely up to you how you live it.

Let me back up here. Tonight I was browsing around on the web, waiting for the first tendrils of sleep to tempt me into going to bed. I happen to be on U2's website because it's one of my favorite bands and I was looking for an unrelated lyric. What I spotted was the song "Sometimes you can't make it on your own" from the album "How to dismantle an atomic bomb" (a CD I want). This album came out a year after my dad died and this song, for some pretty obvious reasons, made me bawl each time I heard it. Not cry, bawl. It still makes me weep and it's one of the very few songs out there that have this effect on me.

I had a flashback last month (while I was in the middle of instant messaging a dear and close friend of mine no less) and the tears instantly were flooding down my face. The flashback was not from his death or even something from his final years, but it was him sitting on the couch laughing. I actually had to end the conversation because of how deeply and suddenly I was upset.

If you have ever lost someone close to you, especially a parent, the pain never goes away. You will have this on your heart for the rest of your life. It's up to you to either let it control your life or to let your life control the pain. The good news (trust me) for me is that I took the death completely personal and have since decided to not only live my life; but to treat each day as if it were my last. Let me tell you that there is a certain liberation when you know how close death really is. You stop caring about when you're going to die and start caring more about how you're going to live.

This is it folks. This is your life. Everyday is a new adventure and each life is worth living. This is how I have been living my life for the past couple of years (yes he died in '03, but '04 was total hell for me). I'm seizing opportunities that are presented to me because I might not be alive for the next one. Do I want to live a long and full life. Yes. Who doesn't? But is there any guarantee that I'm going to have the chance to? No. I've discovered how much this side of eternity is not certain.

Have I made mistakes since then. Definitely; and some whoppers at that. But that's the beautiful thing about each day. It gives you a chance to right the wrongs you made the day before. If you live your life like today's your last day, you will have truly lived. Regrets are still going to happen, no matter what. Mistakes will still be made. We are but human and humans are known to screw up from time to time. But tomorrow is still another day and with each sunrise comes a myriad of possibilities.

In closing, I have three recommendations for you. The first is a book: The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren. I've read it before, but this time I'm actually following it and that makes a big difference. The second recommendation is a CD: The Beautiful Letdown by Switchfoot. By far, so far, their best CD and it also has helped me move on and live life. The third and final recommendation is a movie: My Date with Drew. I love this movie and after you watch it, you will understand not only why I am telling everyone about it; but also why it's never too late to fulfill a dream.

Take care everybody and I will talk to you all later
Cheers,
Jeremy

In this moment, I am happy. VERY happy.

It's amazing how good you feel when you get stuff that you had pent up off your chest. There is such a release in getting things off your chest and out in the open. Especially when you are telling these things to someone you care deeply about.

I've decided that from now on, it would be a lot healthier for me to, instead of keeping things inside and dwelling on them, to just say what I mean and pray for the best. Words that are left unsaid can be the ones that hurt the most of all. Even if you didn't say them for the best intentions.

Now don't get me wrong. I'm not talking about those people who are always saying "you missed a spot" or "you really blew it and that sucks". What I'm saying is that I am going to start saying things that I mean to say, but for some unknown reason, don't. I have been lucky enough to know only one person who is like the example I have given. Unfortunately, he is married to my mother, which is the sole reason why I avoid talking to her. It's a sad that I have to do it, but every time that I call her, she insists on putting him on the phone; to which a fight almost immediately breaks out. I hate him and it takes a lot to get me to hate someone.

But I digress. I realize that much of the stress that I have been experiencing has been because instead of speaking my mind like normal people do, I hold back until I wind up saying the wrong thing at the wrong time. Or even just the right thing at the wrong time. I need to work on my timing like you wouldn't believe. Ask anybody.

I guess this is the reason why I have this blog. I have been nothing but honest on here and there are times when it's the only time I can get something off my chest. I will continue to do so, but I will also try to do it more in the real world as well.

All right, I'm done. My mind is once again clear and I am definitely at peace. It's been a gorgeous day today and I would even say that it got into the mid 70s. I mowed the front yard, which means that you might get another blog soon about my back. I feel it twitching already and I have already started to stretch it so I won't be in as much pain later.

Today was a very good day.

A limo in Hell

I'm not going to lie to you here-there are days where I absolutely hate, loathe and despise my new job. Today was definitely one of those days. We were slammed all day and I could do no right. Everything I did seemed to get on the nerves of all my coworkers and I the only time I was even remotely happy was when I was talking with customers in the drive thru.

It was while I was on drive thru that a limo pulled up in the parking lot and just sat there for, I kid you not, 20 minutes. That's it, just sat there. The driver left the car a couple times to smoke and then, just as mysteriously, it left. It was the strangest thing.

Anyway, yeah, about my job. I'm not denying it doesn't have it's perks, but it isn't worth it on some days. Most days, actually. It has it's good days and really, really bad days. Such as today. I'm sick of everyone giving me that condesending look; that you should know better, but you're the new guy look. That, do we really have to put up with him look. And I'm even more sick and tired of walking into conversations that I know are about me. One thing I hate about my job is that people are constantly talking about me behind my back. I'm not being paranoid, because I have caught people on quite a few occasions. I do not enjoy working at a place where I can't trust anybody.

All right, now that that's off my chest, I feel better now. I'm sure, in the distant future, I will enjoy working at Starbucks. That all I have to do is grin and bear it and it will get better. And right now, that's all I have to go on.

Second chances and lessons learned

One thing that I have been dealing with a lot in my job is failing at something. Screwing up is a big part of the learning process and I am doing a lot of it.

Last night, because I wasn't paying attention to what I was doing, I knocked off a shot glass and it broke. While I was assured by several coworkers that it's a common occurrence, I still felt really bad; as it was the first (and hopefully last) thing that I have broken. I have also botched drinks and gotten orders screwed up and countless times I've just been in the way. But with each mistake I make, it's one more lesson that I've learned.

I've discovered that all it really takes is for me to screw up big time just once before the lesson is completely learned and I don't make the same mistake twice. If I fall really hard, I pick myself up and make sure that I don't do it again. This applies not only to my new job, but also to life in general. If I blow it big time, I won't ever do it again. All it takes is once. With each failure is one more step to succeeding.

Some mistakes I have made are huge. I am but a human and my flaws are great. I've said things that I didn't mean and meant to say things and didn't. With my words I have started fights and with my silence I have hurt others. I don't always think about what I'm doing when I'm doing it and when that happens I usually blow it. And I blame no one else but myself. When I fail, I own up to it.

This is also why I am a big believer in giving as many second chances as possible. I forgive easily and I forget even easier. I feel like every one should be allowed to speak their peace, no matter how harsh the words might be. It's often the words that aren't spoken that mean more than the words that do. While you may have lost my trust once, it doesn't mean that you've lost it forever. Anger subsides to regret, and regret brings about the possibility for forgiveness. Anger doesn't last forever, so why should grudges and hard feelings? We all have needed a second chance at least once in our lives, so why not give second chances?

Trust is very important to me. There have been people in the past who have done something to, at the time, I felt like I could never trust them again. It wasn't until I gave them the second chance that they deserved did they earn my trust back. I have lost friends and regained them on more than one occasion. This is the other reason why I am a big believer in second chances. I would have a lot less friends if I never gave anyone a second chance and even less if they never gave me one. Failure is part of learning.

Time is the biggest healer of them all, I have found. With time and some space, a lot can be accomplished. From past experiences, I have found that time often softens blows that really hurt when you received them. I am more likely to forgive someone if I've had time to sleep on it.

Anyway, enough of my ramblings. I will let you enjoy the rest of your day. But I hope and pray that you take my words to heart. Second chances are worth more than gold to me and time more than all the riches in the world. Because after you're dead and gone, all the fights and arguments mean nothing in the end. Only the hurt and loss remains.