NFL Picks Week 13

Last Week: 10-6

Season Totals: 92-51

Winners are in bold

Tennessee at Detroit
Seattle at Dallas
Arizona at Philadelphia
San Francisco at Buffalo
Baltimore at Cincinnati
Indianapolis at Cleveland
Miami at St. Louis
NY Giants at Washington
New Orleans at Tampa Bay
Carolina at Green Bay
Atlanta at San Diego
Denver at NY Jets
Pittsburgh at New England
Kansas City at Oakland
Chicago at Minnesota
Jacksonville at Houston

NFL Picks Week 12

Last Week: 9-6

Season Totals: 82-45

Winners are in bold

Cincinnati at Pittsburgh
Tampa Bay at Detroit
NY Jets at Tennessee
Buffalo at Kansas City
Chicago at St. Louis
New England at Miami
Minnesota at Jacksonville
Philadelphia at Baltimore
Houston at Cleveland
San Francisco at Dallas
Oakland at Denver
Washington at Seattle
NY Giants at Arizona
Carolina at Atlanta
Indianapolis at San Diego
Green Bay at New Orleans

Perspectives??????

Balance is one of those things almost everyone attempts to deal with. In America, people live to work and in other countries people work to live. I fit into the category of work to live. I enjoy the field I am studying and hope to make a big difference someday, at the same time though, I plan to have a hell of a lot of fun while I am doing it. Dealing with people's problems all day can get very draining and troublesome. Almost dehumanizing people. This is not good. There needs to be balance. I am amazed at those who seem to find it and I want to help those that cannot. I am in total awe of people like Mother Theresa or the Dalai Lama. These are people who all their lives have helped people in the most drastic of hopeless and stressful situations, yet they find away to be there for the next person and maintain their love of humanity. What is the difference between them and the person that gives up? The person that has had enough and calls it quits? I really don't know the answer and maybe there isn't one, but I lean towards the idea of perspective.
Perspective is something that has helped me greatly many times throughout my life. Sometimes I have gone through some really shitty times just to gain perspective. The whole idea of religion, spirituality and philosophy is seen through the perspective lens. People talk to other people about their problems to get a perspective that maybe they did not see. I think the difference between people like the Dalai Lama and Mother Theresa is perspective. They see the whole picture. They see the good, the bad, and the ugly and they treat it all the same, with unconditional love and understanding. Most of us wouldnt know how to handle talking to a stranger as they die from cancer or saving your people when your government kicks you out of your own country and tries to kill you. Most of us have a breaking point and for alot of us its as simple as driving a car. How does the pastor manage to visit dying people in the hospital, homeless in the shelter, kids with cancer and mental disabilities. Most people couldnt do it day in and day out. What is thier perspective that drives them foward to another day of grief for those you care about?
For me its hope. I have a very hopeful perspective of a better day. That maybe today a client will realize what is causing their issues, maybe today they wont use drugs, maybe today someone will be honest, maybe today. As the sun rises and sets things are born and die. Change is everywhere all the time. From the sun, moon, stars, sky, leaves, wind, rain...nature. Its in our nature to change, sometimes it just takes awhile. My life has been one of constant change and I have felt hope many times and seen a change on the other side many times. I am hopeful because of where I came from, what I went through, to gain perspective. When I sit in class learning how to help people in new ways I remember that today is a great day. I am not on a bench in a park, stung out, and starving. I am broke but happy. I work hard, I play hard. I am passionate about the things in my life, working to live not living to work. I don't know what drives so many of the people I admire, but I would like to think that we have a similar way of viewing the world and its beauty and imperfections. If I could do any of the things for other people what people have done for me I will have served a purpose, which is yet just another perspective.

The pics at the top are in no way spinning so why are they spinning?
The last picture: 1.) Stare at the 4 little dots on the middle of the picture for 30 seconds
2.) then look at a wall near you
3.) a bright spot will appear
4.) twinkle a few times and you'll see a figure
5.) What do you see? Or even WHO do you see?

Into The Wild

I have to say of all the movies I have seen in the past few years there are only a few that standout and "into the wild" would be one of best. I couldnt tell you who it stars but it was directed by and written for the screen by Sean Penn who I admire not just as an actor but as an avocate of change and the soundtrack is by none other than Eddie Vedder who without Pearl Jam makes a more laid back "folky" album that shines with the insightful lyrics and the voice that belongs to Mr. Vedder. This story is one that truely moved me as few movies do. There were feelings of hope, amazement, shock, despair, happiness, excitement, intrigue, freedom, and perspective throughout the movie.

This is a true story of an actual person, Christopher McCandless, as told by his sister. Chris always percieved his parents as materialistic and manipulative so he makes a huge decision to burn all of his identification documents, donate his savings to charity, and set out across the counrty to live alone off the land in Alaska. Of course he runs into many different sects of people like the farm owner, who is played by Vince Vaughn, some hippies, and an older man who lives alone. It takes him 2 years to finally get to Alasks and when he does there is noone there. He finds his freedom living off the land and if you want to know the rest watch the movie.

I know my perspective on life is so different than most people. I am an idealist like Bob Dylan, Jack Kerouac, Hunter S. Thompson or anyone from the 60s. In a personality survey that I recently took I scored as an idealist and only 8% of the rest of the world scores that way. I like to think I am unique. This movie has major things that I would love to do. I would love to go cross country and would certainly love to find that sort of freedom. Our society is work to make money so that you can spend money because everything costs money. If this wasnt the case there would be some real freedom there. Seeing that portrayed is intense. As Desiree and I found out this summer, we would not be able to do things like this becuase we couldnt even start a fire in the middle of the desert.

I love the nature aspect of this movie. The wild. Most people get a sense of awe from nature and before religion nature spoke for itself. There is nothing like the pacific northwest. The trees are huge, the air is fresh, the water is cold and it is everywhere. The wildlife is unbeleiveable because there is not alot of people out there. Whether I am at the beach, a lake, a river, the mountains, or in a very flat land I am amazed by nature. It was here before people and will be here after people. Every religion teaches about these wants that we have, desires, suffering, greed, envy, lust, sloth, and idolatry but they are all a part of every religion and every society except in nature. Nature just is. The natives respected nature unlike many societies today. If i remember right God took Noah and 2 of every animal. Not 2 humans but every animal. Who was more beloved? who kills who? but thats another story.

This is also a portrayal of the ultimate rebellion. In that rebellion every person he meets shares that desire to just go from the life that has been made for you. I am more free in the US than anywhere else but from the time you are born you are conditioned to be a part of the whole. You go to school where they teach you what they want you to learn, you go to church where they teach you what they want you to learn, you play the sports they want, you are held to thier standards and why not escape all of that. This was the point of "another brick in the wall" by Pink Floyd. We are not just people in the factory of life, but we are. We are born and trained to go to school, work, pay taxes, get married, have kids, raise them and die fullfilled. Maybe there is another way? In this movie the character has the courage to do this as I actually do not. But the thought remains the same.

People really find out who they are when they are alone. You learn alot because there is nothing to distract it but then if you cannot share it did it really happen. Some things I beleive are meant to be seen and felt when you are alone just as some things are meant to be seen and felt with others, everything has a time and a place. Humans are unique because of these experiences of thought. The challenges we overcome. When you rely only on yourself, you find out alot about your limitations and your strengths that get masked when other people are around. Knowing these things about yourself and sharing them with others builds great relationships and moments in life. If you can be happy on your own another person is icing on the cake. When I see a sunrise I am in awe but when i see a sunrise with Desiree there is a shared moment of awe that cannot be communicated. When the character goes for this it is unreal to see it play out and know that this really did happen.

I loved this movie and the soundtrack on top of it had to be the best I have heard in a long time. I highly recommend the soundtrack and the movie. Ill leave you with some lyrics from the movie:

"Society"

It's a mistery to me

we have a greed

with which we have agreed

You think you have to want

more than you need

until you have it all you won't be free

society, you're a crazy breed

I hope you're not lonely without me

When you want more than you have

you think you need

and when you think more than you want

your thoughts begin to bleed

I think I need to find a bigger place

'cos when you have more than you think

you need more space

society, you're a crazy breed

I hope you're not lonely without me

society, crazy and deep

I hope you're not lonely without me

there's those thinking more or less less is more

but if less is more how you're keeping score?

Means for every point you make

your level drops

kinda like its starting from the top

you can't do that...

society, you're a crazy breed

I hope you're not lonely without me

society, crazy and deepI hope you're not lonely without me

society, have mercy on me

I hope you're not angry if I disagree

society, crazy and deep

I hope you're not lonely without me

"Rise"

You can never know

Just where to put all your faith

And how will it grow

Gonna rise up

Burning black holes in dark memories

Gonna rise up

Turning mistakes into gold

Such is the passage of time

Too fast to fold

Suddenly swallowed by signs

Low and behold

Gonna rise up

Find my direction magnetically

Gonna rise up

Throw down my ace in the hole

NFL Picks Week 11

Last Week: 11-3

Season Totals: 73-39


Winners are in bold


NY Jets at New England
Denver at Atlanta
Philadelphia at Cincinnati
Chicago at Green Bay
Houston at Indianapolis
New Orleans at Kansas City
Oakland at Miami
Baltimore at NY Giants
Minnesota at Tampa Bay
Detroit at Carolina
St. Louis at San Francisco
Arizona at Seattle
San Diego at Pittsburgh
Tennessee at Jacksonville
Dallas at Washington
Cleveland at Buffalo

NFL Picks Week 10

Last Week: 11-2

Season Totals: 62-36

Winners are in bold

Denver at Cleveland
New Orleans at Atlanta
Tennessee at Chicago
Jacksonville at Detroit
Seattle at Miami
Green Bay at Minnesota
Buffalo at New England
St. Louis at NY Jets
Baltimore at Houston
Carolina at Oakland
Indianapolis at Pittsburgh
Kansas City at San Diego
NY Giants at Philadelphia
San Francisco at Arizona


Bye: Cincinnati, Dallas, Tampa Bay, Washington