spin, spin, spin the black circle

A bird in the hand was worth two in the bush when I purchased my turntables.

I knew that I shouldn’t deplete more than half of the money I had in savings.  I knew that it was a big risk and I’d probably never make that money back through gigs.  I knew the smart thing would be to either buy cheaper turntables (rather than the top of the line ones you’d find in clubs) or to be realistic and buy nothing at all and continue to save that money for life.

But, at that time, having those turntables and getting to learn on them and become a DJ for a few years was worth far more to me than anything in the future I could have used that money (and the interest it would have accrued) for.

If I’m tagged twice do they cancel each other out?

I’m just not sure I want to be “it.”  Couldn’t we play a nice game of dodgeball instead?

Too late, the game is Tag and I’m already it, so here we go:

– The Rules –
1. Post these rules.
2. Post a photo of yourself and eleven random facts about you.
3. Answer the questions given to you in the tagger’s post.
4. Create eleven new questions and tag new people to answer them.
5. Go to their blog/twitter and let them know they have been tagged.

“Facts” about me:
1) I’m really excited for the new Superman movie: Man of Steel.
2) I don’t actually dress like I did in the picture above anymore.  Though, I have to say: I pulled it off!
3) I may watch too much TV.
4) In my case, Snickers does in fact satisfy.
5) So does Cookies and Cream ice cream.
6) I’ve never really been fond of the number 6.
7) I’m not really a fan of Tuesday’s either.
8) I’m writing this list while watching “The Big Bang Theory.”
9) I may watch too much TV.  Oh, scratch that.  I think I repeat myself too much.
10) I am constantly amazed by how much I’m enjoying this whole blogging thing.
11) I’m not sure why this list needed 11 items.

My second tag was inflicted upon me by Kim at Tranquil Dreams.  Here are her questions for me:

1) Cookies or Cakes?
Cake with cookies on top.  Duh!

2) What was your first Blu-ray or DVD you ever purchased?
The Matrix.

3) Whats the most inspiring book/movie you’ve ever read/seen?
Les Miserables (kind of works for both)

4) Cats or Dogs? Or other pets?
Kitties, kitties everywhere!

5) What type of music do you like?
Yes

6) Whats your favorite Grimm’s Fairy Tales?
Um… I’m more of a fan of Happy’s Fairy Tales.

7) Console, Handheld, PC or Arcades?
PC

8) Favorite flavor of chips?
Nacho Cheesier

9) What animal do you visit first at the zoo?
The big cats.

10) What food could you eat every single day?
Fajitas

11) Who is your favorite superhero?
Superman

…..

My first tag came from Steph Rogers and here are her questions for me:

1) Who is your favourite celebrity and why?
Hugh Jackman – multi-talented, and generally just seems like a nice guy.  Which is a rarity in Hollywood.  Plus, he plays both Wolverine which satisfies the comic nerd in me, and Jean ValJean which satisfies the literary nerd in me.

2) If you could take one thing into outer space that wasn’t for survival what would it be?
iPod

3) Lemon sorbet or double chocolate ice cream?
I’m sorry.  Did you ask something?  All I heard was “Chocolate chocolate or chocolate chocolate chocolate chocolate?”

4) What music do you listen to?
Yes

5) What’s your favourite movie of all time?
What?  What kind of question is that?  All time?  How can I answer when I don’t know about the movies I haven’t seen yet?  Here is a list of my favorite movies so far:  Braveheart, Tombstone, Spiderman 2, LOTR Trilogy, Crash, Requiem for a Dream…

6) How many pairs of shoes do you own?
4
Wait.  Do flip flop/sandals count?  Then 6.
Wait.  Do snowboard boots and normal snow boots count?  Then 8.

7) If you could have any animal, real or imagined, for a pet what would it be? The luck dragon is mine!
Dragon dragon dragon dragon dragon dragon dragon!!!!  What other choice is there?

8) Beer or wine? Or maybe something stronger?
Beer.  But, real beer – something dark, with flavor, and you can’t see through it.

9) If Bert and Ernie could have kids, and they had a baby would it be a boy or a girl? Name the baby
Boy = George

10) If your skin could be any colour in the rainbow, or combinations of colours, what would you choose? Blue? Purple? Rainbow with sparkles?
I don’t know… I was going to say blue, but that has pretty much been covered by Avatar, right?  So, to be different, how about silver.  Then if I got tired of walking while I was out and about I could just stand still and people would think I was a statue and stop running into me.

11) Truth or dare?
In my youth = dare.  Now = truth.  I wonder what that says about me…

….

Ready, set, go!  You’ve been tagged:
http://soyouthinkyoucanthink.wordpress.com/
http://jonathanhilton.wordpress.com/2013/02/19/what-if/
http://soumyav.wordpress.com/blog-writing/
http://gordonflanders.wordpress.com/about/
http://knockedoverbyafeather.wordpress.com/about/
http://desertskys.wordpress.com/about/

My questions for the unlucky few I just tagged:
1) What does “inconceivable” mean to you?
2) Have you ever had fun storming a castle?  If yes, please elaborate.
3) Can you name the three terrors of the Fire Swamp?
4) If you were named “Buttercup” would you keep that as a name or change it once you could legally do so?
5) Have you ever been walking around and just happened upon four white horses?
6) If you could pick new actors to play Inigo and Fezzick, who would you pick?
7) Have you ever pondered if you would make a good Dread Pirate Roberts?
8) Do you prefer your magic pills coated in chocolate or vanilla?
9) Do you have a wheelbarrow or a cloak?
10) Have you ever said “As you wish,” and really meant “I love you?”
11) What could quite possibly be the greatest movie ever made?

Daily Prompt: (2012) Time Capsule

Today’s Daily Prompt asks us what we would put in a time capsule from 2012. 

An intriguing question, to be sure.  Should I put items in of historic national and international importance?  Should I put items in of personal importance only?  A mixture of both?  Songs?  Books?  Knickknacks?

How big is this time-capsule?

I think items of national and international significance will probably be covered in other posts, so for my time capsule I’m going to keep it all personal.  Note, after creating the below list I was sad that I hadn’t included anything specific about my wife or the rest of my family and I was halfway through adding some additional items when I remembered I was keeping this time capsule “personal.”  So, this one is mine.  If I was going to create other capsules I would definitely include things of significance and remembrance related to my family.

….

thematticuskingdom Time Capsule contents:

Elizabeth Pass – obviously I can’t fit the whole mountain into my time capsule, so I will just throw in some photos and notes related to the experience of coming down the pass on my backpacking trip from September.  I’m including this partially because it is an experience I never want to forget: because it was amazing and because I never want to forget to never do it again.

Ultrasound photo – the wife and I are expecting our first, and we got our first look at our child back in August, tiny and perfect.  The photo embodies so many different emotions and thoughts from that first moment seeing it on the screen and hearing the heart beat throughout this whole journey.  It will be amazing to pull this out of my time capsule in the future and have all of that come flooding back.

Sierra Storm – my NaNoWriMo project from this year.  It was so much fun to write and get feedback and encouragement on from my faithful followers.  I’m in the process of editing it currently and will be sending it off to try to get it published eventually and while it won’t be done in 2012 I started it this year so it makes sense to include it in my time capsule – plus it would be fun to pull up in the future and see the difference between the first draft posted at thematticuskindgom and what it eventually became, and what I manged to write since then.

Technic Turntable – 2012 marked the year I dismantled my decks (“I’ve got two turntables and a microphone” – okay, actually I have four turntables, a Numark Mixer, a Chaos Pad, a couple microphones, a Gemini CD turntable, and a Mackie speaker) to make room for a crib and other assorted baby gear.  This year marked a huge transition in my life from the DJ I was to the father I’m going to be.  But, I never want to forget that prior part of my life and when I open my time capsule and see that turntable I will remember and relive the hours spent beat matching and blending songs together in my room and in the clubs.

The December page ripped out of a calendar with the 21st circled – I would include this final item as a reminder of how silly we can be at times, for a bit of humor, and to have me think back on all the crises the world has survived since the 21st of December, 2012.

The stereo is magic.

When my grandmother passed away, a few years after my grandfather, and our extended family was going through the process of cleaning out their house there was only one thing I wanted: the Zenith Turntable Cabinet.

In truth, there were countless items, gizmos, gadgets, and heirlooms that I would have loved to have.  Some of them were too painful to want to request and some of them other family had more claim to. 

It’s been 10 years and sometimes the pain is as fresh as it was all those years ago.  Just thinking about all the items in their home hurts.  Everything in that house spoke of them, who they were, the lives they lived, and conjuring up their possessions makes me miss them all over again.

Perhaps I’m overly emotional.  Perhaps it’s the same for everyone who has lost such beloved family members.

Of all the items available to hang on to, to hang to a piece of them, the Zenith stereo meant the most.

It sat in their living room up against the bay window overlooking the green hedge, green lawn, and giant leafy green tree that comprised my grandparents front yard.  You couldn’t see the stereo without seeing the window and seeing the meticulously cared for yard beyond.  I can’t think of the stereo now and that accompanying view without also thinking of the countless hours spent running wild on that grass, hiding behind the hedge, and climbing high among the sturdy limbs of that tree.

I can’t help but smile.

Aside from the view, though I don’t have many memories of the stereo actually being used to play a record or tune into a radio broadcast I do have many memories of the stereo being the launching pad for countless indoor adventures growing up.  It was where my brother and I built cities with our Micromachines.  It was the safe zone for untold numbers of hide and seek games.  It was where Santa would pile up the presents.  (At the time I was always so delighted that Santa would think of us twice – once at home and once and grandma and grandpa’s.)  It was where we found a note with our names and a few dollars each time we went for a visit.  That was our allowance for such chores as: showing up, being cute, playing games, etc…

It was those memories, and my newfound love of vinyl and turntables in college, that made me covet the stereo above all of the other treasures I could have claimed in those dark days.  The stereo held memories that I loved, that I would always remember, and therefore I would always remember my grandparents because it was theirs, because it rested in their house, because it was the gateway to the view that was evidence of how they cared for their home and their loved ones.

Now the stereo resides in my condo and while it doesn’t have the same sort of prominent position that is solely because I have no grand room, no bay windows, no spot to place it where it can adequately be displayed.  But, I still have it, and I always will. 

That stereo is magic.

Every time I look at it I can simultaneously recall the abundance of wonderful memories from my grandparents and I can see it one day sitting in a house of my own, a real house.  I look at the stereo and I know that I will have a house of my own, I will have a yard that I will also meticulously care for, and one day I will have grand children come to visit me and they will find presents with their names on them waiting on the polished wooden surface of the Zenith Turntable Cabinet.

And, maybe, it will be magic for them as well.