Could it be that piracy is so rampant not because people enjoy things for free but because it offers it in a format that people can use and enjoy? I ask this question because piracy is rampant nearly a decade later despite the best efforts of the entertainment industry.   The RIAA has been suing individuals for 7 years and even though they claim they have stopped they really have not.  The MPAA is no better with producers sending out blanket statements through groups like the U.S. Copyright Group that accuse you of infringing even if you haven’t.  They then try to convince you to pay them a settlement fee to avoid going to court.   It’s open for debate if they would actually take you to court as it appears to be more of an extortion scheme.  I digress however.

With all the forms of media available through bit torrent networks even after the “win” over the Pirate Bay you have to begin to question if people are trying to say something here.  DRM does not help the user experience but instead punishes the legitimate customers, and does nothing to slow down or stop piracy.  Games that require a live internet connection and CD to be played are often more annoying than they are worth which leads individuals to find a copy on the internet that works how they want it to instead of how the game creators wanted it to.  Movies are no different.   Here is a popular image being shared around the internet about the difference between a pirated movie and a DVD.   It shows how Hollywood has made the home movie experience a frustrating one.  Their attempt at controlling how you view media is backfiring as people want the freedom to view it on their TV, Laptop, iPod or any other mobile device.

David Gerald did a great write-up of this over at wired.com about this very issue which really does hit on the issue of piracy at its core.  More than anything it’s the convenience of being free to use media however you want to.  The sooner the Entertainment Industry learns this the sooner it can innovate to capitalize on this.  You can’t restrict people in what they do with the content they purchase.  The days of selling the same thing on different formats is over and they need to embrace this if they hope to remain competitive and relevant.

Why do you think that people pirate content?

I keep this blog open to everyone by allowing anonymous posting, and removing all available locks on my material.  If there is a technology topic that you would like my take on or would care for me to explain then leave me a comment and I will be happy to write about it.  I post Mondays and Thursdays and will let you know when it gets posted if you leave me a way to contact you.  Thanks for reading!

There is some debate going on currently that with so many people moving to the use of Cloud Computing that the use of Windows and the Office Suite are coming to a close.  To begin though let's go over what exactly Cloud Computing is.

Cloud Computing is where you take the files, photos, applications or anything else you might otherwise run locally and store on your computer and move it to the public internet.  This means that GMail, Google apps, Flickr and other sites are cloud computer applications.  Google apps is the clearest definition of it.  Basically instead of opening Microsoft Word, writing a paper, and then saving it to your hard drive you would navigate to the Google Apps page to run the app within the browser window and save your file to Googles Servers instead of your hard drive.  What this allows is more collaboration between people, and easier access to your files since you no longer need to put them on a removable storage device (cd rom, flash drive etc) to bring the files to another computer.  It should now be accessible to anyone who has a web browser and active internet connection.  It is because of this greater flexibility and ease of sharing among a group of people that many are speculating the end of the Windows era.  For myself though I disagree and see some serious flaws with this design. 

My first concern is of course Privacy.  In Cloud Computing I no longer control that document.  This can allow the company who owns the server I store my document on to search and review anything I write even if it is meant to be private.  If I were to just write and store the document on my own computer with my own hard drive then no one could view or search the document without my permission.

The other problem I have is that you may not be able to access your document at critical times.  Let's say that you spent all week working on a paper for school, and the day you were going to print or e-mail it to your teacher/professor but your internet connection is down.  You now have to scramble to get to where there is a working connection or risk turning in your paper late.  Obviously you take the same risk on a personal computer if a virus takes over or your hard drive crashes but this can easily be minimized through careful security and regular backups of all critical documents.  I don't like the idea of depending on my internet connection for my grades.

The final problem with the Cloud Computing VS. Windows argument I have is businesses which is Windows bread and butter.  Companies everywhere depend on Windows because it's what people know, and what's easy to support.  There is no strong competitor for the business market yet so Microsoft will continue to hold it's dominance there.

With all that said though Microsoft is not without it's problems.  It's mobile market is weak and dying.  People are talking iPhone, Android, and Blackberry but not Windows Mobile.  They are being overtaken by Apple in revenue dollars, and everyday Firefox eats into IE's market.  For too long Microsoft has rested on their laurels and have been slow to innovate.  They have to work to find solutions and to be more nimble but when a company gets to be the that large then that task becomes increasingly more difficult.  Bureaucracy takes over which slows down decision making and reduces the amount of risk that management is willing to take.  Microsoft is not dead but if their not careful competitors will begin attacking their core business of office suites and Operating Systems soon enough.  Google has announced they are working on the Chrome OS and Apple is selling more Macbooks, iPads, and Desktops now than ever before in the past.  The future for Microsoft is uncertain but if they are not careful it is possible they become the IBM of their time.  Still around by largely irrelevant and seeming a relic from the past to the youth of today.

Increasingly the way we look at success as a musician is changing.  It used to be that success came when your band got signed to a label and when you were no longer with a label you had flamed out or failed completely. These days however you see bands holding celebratory concerts because they are free from their labels (see Techdirt's write up here)  With the digital age we are seeing success come in many different ways and it's no longer tied to the sale of shiny plastic discs.  Instead it's through downloads (illegal or legal) and concert sales.  The truly smart musician even realizes that if you connect with your fans and give them a reason to buy (CWF + RTB is all over Techdirt in case your interested) that you can find success in other ways.

Technology is changing the way we work.  It's taking out the middle man and allowing anybody with enough time, talent, and effort to make their own success.  You don't need the backing of label anymore which leads me to my point.  Often the media and then in turn the public view Record Labels as the Music Industry but that is all wrong.  The Record Labels make up a part of the Music Industry but they are not the whole thing.  In fact while the Record Labels are failing and growing more and more irrelevant the Music Industry is growing.  There are more music being made now more than ever.  There are entire websites devoted to just helping independent artists (see CDBaby.com) and without the Record Labels in the way musicians are making more revenue than ever before (see Techdirt again). 

I feel it's important to make this distinction because the Music Industry would like you to believe that they are victims of piracy when in fact they are victims of their own demise.  Instead of innovating to keep up with the world around them they chose to sue anyone caught downloading which alienated fans around the world.  The true innovators is the independent musician who is willing to try new business models.  That is the real success story here.  Why should we prop up the middle man when we could be encouraging the artist directly?  I support the idea that the money I spend on tickets, merchandise, or music goes into the pocket of the artists and not the label.  The more you look into the lies that the RIAA and Record Labels would like you to believe the more you see it just doesn't hold up.

What do you think the future of the Music Industry looks like?

There has been a lot of fuss lately over Facebook.  With over 500 million active users I am sure many of you on Xanga are also on Facebook.  you may or may not be aware of the recent changes to the privacy policy that Facebook has and even if you are aware you may not care.  I want to take the time to explain why you should.

Facebook started out as a closed system that was limited and private.  You couldn't even sign up without a College E-mail address (anything ending in .edu) which made it ideal for college students everywhere.  However as time has gone on Facebook as gone back on that notion and made it more open than anyone would have ever imagined.  Think about all the third parties that are looking for you to use "Facebook Connect" to register for their site.  It isn't to make registering for a site easy so much as it is for them to grab a lot of useful information about you and all your friends. 

That's right the problem really lies in that even if you never share your Facebook with out sites, and never play the goofy games like Farmville or Mafia Wars your friends could be selling your information out.

Those are all the things that your friends can shared about you.  I know it's not a good image but this is the text on that page.

"When your friend visits a Facebook Platform application or website, they may want to share certain information to make the experience more social. For example, a greeting card application may use your birthday information to prompt your friend to send a card.

If your friend uses an application or website that you do not use, you can control certain types of information the application can access. Please note that applications will be able to access your Name, Profile Picture, Gender, as well as any information that is visible to Everyone. They will also be able to access your Connections, except the Connections noted with an asterisk below. In those cases, although the information is considered a Connection, you can control whether an application can access it."

With all the choices on settings and controls this is easy to miss but a big deal.  It can share a lot of personal information about you without your permission.  Are you careful about the friends you keep on Facebook?  I know for myself I am not very choosy so I turn all of those settings off.   This is just one area though so how can you make sure that your privacy and personal information is safe on Facebook?  There are a few things that you can do.

1) Treat it like a public space that everyone can see.  I mean EVERYONE.  If you think your pastor/priest, mom or dad, or boss would be offended by what you have on there THEN GET RID OF IT!  Seriously think about what you put on there.

2) There are tools to help make it more private for you.  CNN had these listed:

"ReclaimPrivacy, a donation-based project, recently launched a tool that scans your Facebook page’s privacy settings. It alerts users when their privacy settings have defaulted to public.

SaveFace, which is free to install, automatically sets users’ settings - contact information, search settings, friends, tags, connections, personal information and posts - to “friends only.”

TinEye is not specifically for privacy conscious Facebook users. However, the reverse image search engine can be useful when looking to see if an image posted on Facebook has made its way across the Web. Simply upload a photo and let TineEye search the Web to see if the image has been used elsewhere.

Finally, there's OpenBook (warning: potentially offensive language), a site that doesn't exactly help you manage your Facebook privacy settings, but it might scare you into wanting to keep your info private. The site lets you search through public status updates. Some really embarrassing stuff shows up."

I found ReclaimPrivacy to be the best.  Check out OpenBook to see just how bad Facebook can be if your not careful.  There is plenty of private information that is easily found.  It's scary.

So be careful out there kids.  Be safe about what you post.  I personally love that Xanga gives me the option to make my blog friends only to control what gets out there.  I choose not to use that but I love the option.

Sometimes I get bored and my mind wanders.  I get these crazy stories in my head and I thought maybe I should start writing them down.  I have written down my latest day dream.  I might turn it into a full fledged novel as there are definitely pieces to this story that are pointless, or need to be expanded on but here it is in it's rough draft glory.  Enjoy!

I get to work and sitting on my desk is a bucket with car cleaning supplies, and at the bottom of the bucket are keys to a car. My suspicions are raised immediately but it has a remote on it to lock,unlock, and hit the alarm when you want to draw attention. I walk around the garage hitting the buttons and the car that responds is a 2010 Dodge Challenger RT, black with two red stripes running from the hood to the quarter panels. It's a thing of beauty, beauty that cost $30,000 dollars. I don't trust it and don't touch it for fear of getting my finger prints on it. No instead I contact the police but that's when things get weird. I tell them the story but when they run the plates the car shows up in my name. The cops think it's a hoax but because it was a good story in their otherwise mundane day they let me off with a warning. I am still leery however so I go about my day. I can't stop thinking about the car though and how great it would be to drive it. Where did it come from though and who on earth would leave me a gift that expensive without a note or explanation? By the end of the day I can't resist it so I get in and start it up. This car is decked out with all the latest technology from head to toe. It's incredible and the engine just purrs like a cat ready to play. Truly a thing of beauty. Suddenly though a voice comes in through the bluetooth stereo using a phone I did not see sitting near the dash. “ We were wondering when you would take the car for a test drive Mr. Schmidt.” I look all around in disbelief and reply “ It's too good to be true. This car is not cheap and I know there must be a catch. What's the deal?” Calmly and assuredly the mysterious passenger says “all in due time Mr. Schmidt. Check the glove box.” When I open it I find another set of keys. I stare at it blankly and see on the keychain an address. “No way! Are these to a house?” “They are indeed Mr. Schmidt. It's everything you ever wanted in a house and it will surely meet the needs of your wife and dog. We know everything about you so this house has the top of the line kitchen ware, home theater, and anything else you could dream about. We'll come back to that later though.” I think to myself of course, nothing is free in this world and someone with this kind of power and resources must be bad news. I've seen enough movies to know this is how someone gets started in a life of serious crime. “ What do you want from me?” I reply assertively. “Meet us for dinner and we will lay it all out for you.” I reply back “ I can't do this without my wife though.” but without hesitation I hear “Naturally of course, she's invited. Dress nice and when your ready hit the start button on the GPS unit in front of you and it will lead you to the restaurant” and with that the call ends. My head is swimming but I gotta at least see what they want. I call my wife and tell her to put on that purple dress she wore to the symphony just two weeks before. When she asks me why I tell her I can explain it all when I get home and to just get ready for a nice dinner out. She must have been able to hear the urgency and confusion in my voice because she stopped asking questions and said simply she would be ready. I race home faster than normal because I find it difficult to drive a normal speed in a car with this much power. It's hard to resist. When I get home I call my wife again to see if she is ready. She says she will be shortly so I tell her to meet me in the parking lot once she is. Just a short five minutes later she comes strolling out looking as beautiful as the day I met her but clearly confused because she does not see the Ford Taurus I drive every day. I start the Challenger again and begin revving the engine. I lean out the driver side window and say “Hey there pretty mama, wanna go for a spin?” She can't believe I am actually driving the car of her dreams as she squeals with delight. I drive her around a bit as I catch her up with the days events. After she is all caught up we agree to attend the dinner and hit the start button. It leads us to the wealthy side of town where we stop at a beautiful Italian restaurant we had always wanted to try but couldn't because of the fact it runs about two hundred dollars a plate. As we stroll inside the matre d welcomes us as if we are regulars and leads us into a private room where I am finally face to face with the voice I heard earlier in the car. He introduces himself simply as Mr. Jones and asks we order our dinner before we discuss the business I am wanted for. Our orders are quickly placed as we can barely stand the suspense of what they could possibly want with me. I'm a nobody just trying to make his way in the world like everyone else after all. Mr. Jones tells me that he is part of a secret organization that defends the U.S. From those who would wish to harm it. They are not tied with any government organization and run independently. He tells me that I am a genius and he believes I have what it takes to help them. All my life though I have been average and while I am not dumb people would not say I am genius. Mr. Jones explains to me though that the genius they are looking for can think creatively, independently, and is more than book smarts. Since I am considered average by so many my talents have largely gone ignored which is good for them because it's easier for me to disappear and fade into the background. They can't tell me the specifics on what I would do as it's very top secret work that I couldn't even share with my wife if I were to take this job on. I am assured though that I won't have to kill anyone ever, that I only work 100 of the 365 days a year, and that the money is more than we would ever need. We can jet set around the world in any of the companies private jets as long as I do my job well. The catch is though I can't have any contact with anybody else from my previous life except for one friend of my choosing. I immediately pick my best friend Adnan but Mr. Jones says I can't have him. When I press on he clams up and just keeps stating to pick another. I go to my next closest friend which is Matt. Mr. Jones then tells me I can't pick Adnan because they are working on recruiting him too. I nearly spit water in his face with laughter because the thought is preposterous. Adnan is the biggest conspiracy nut I know and would never join up with a place like that. Mr. Jones tells me not to be so sure and says in the same empty, emotionless voice he has used all night to simply bring him in. My mind is racing with fear that they have somehow brought Adnan here against his will and that something terrible will happen to him if he does not agree to join them or perhaps he is being used to convince me to join. Instead though he strolls in on his own free will and tells me he is on board. I know Adnan is not like me though and cannot be so easily bought with material goods, and when I ask him what he got in return he says that he cannot divulge that information. All deals are kept secret. When I ask what he would do for them he lets me in on the bombshell that if I join he is my partner. When it comes to business everywhere I go he goes with me. We have each other backs in this whole thing. I figure with Adnan on board I would be a fool to pass this up so I agree to whatever it is I would be doing. Sure it's a blind guess, and my wife and I have to leave our families behind forever. It's a sacrifice but it's a chance to be somebody, to defend my country, and to live the life that most people only dream about. It's a gamble for sure but in life you gotta take the risks to get the rewards and the bigger risks you take the bigger rewards you reap. Yup I began my life as a member of a secret organization in that crazy mixed up day and I can't tell you anymore than that. Everyone thinks I disappeared, except of course Matt. Don't forget I got my friend, and only he will know the truth of what has gone on since that fateful dinner so many nights ago.

So through the use of Twitter I have been able to meet an independent filmmaker in the UK who acted in, produced, promoted, and helped write a great horror comedy.  His name is Ryan McDermott and he is Mark Macready.  I got a sneak peek at this wonderful short film that has been making it's way around the film circuit and even won MOST ORIGINAL FILM of 2009 at the HORROR UK FILM FESTIVAL. 

Here is my review having been privy to see this movie before it's release on May 31st for everyone to see for free online.

Mark Macready and the Archangel Murders is very well shot with a dark and gritty film style.  It doesn't detract but in fact adds to the overall suspense of the film.  It's beautiful and you can see the care that each scene was staged so that nothing is lost to the viewer. Each shot is carefully planned and having been in independent films myself I know how tough that can be but this was wonderfully filmed.

The music is incredible and sounds just as great or better than what you would see in any mainstream film.  It's subtle yet very effective and helps draw you into this seedy paranormal under world.  As the film progresses you are drawn deeper and deeper in the mystery of the Archangel Murders and what has happened to Mark Macready's wife. The music helps build the tension all the way through without coming off as cheesy or overdone. It's perfect in that you notice it when you should and yet plays beautifully in the background when it's prominence is not needed.

The acting can be over the top at times but it's intentional and helps lighten the mood in some high tension scenes. The comedy they provide is appropriate in all the right places and are sure to illicit a laugh out of anybody. While comedy and horror do not always work well together it fits perfectly together in this short film. Each only serves to compliment the other. No easy feat for sure but it works and holds up quite well here. Overall the acting is splendid and helps to really propel the film along while giving the audience plenty of people to cheer for. I would not suspect to see a Texas accent in a UK film but boy did I laugh when I heard it and loved every bit of that character. The lead, Mark Macready, is a simple and yet complex. You can really feel his pain and how he finds the strength to carry on to find his lost wife. You hope and pray for her safety and he rushes around to solve this mystery that threatens to turn his life upside down.

At only a little over 30 minutes in length the movie leaves you hanging for more and I doubt this is the last we have seen of Mark Marcready. As is the custom with horror movies there is plenty of room for a sequel, but before that happens we will be treated to this film being made into a feature length. I eagerly anticipate it as I have so many questions and curiosity's that this film has left to satisfy. As the popular adage goes though...always leave them hanging.

A friend of mine wrote this note on Facebook and I wanted to pass it along to get the word out.  He makes a well informed argument and I feel that this point here is strong and informed.  Read it and see what you think afterwards.

" I have noticed a number of folks on Facebook have decided to become fans of REQUIRING DRUG TESTS FOR WELFARE (like thirteen thousand in one group), and I find this disturbing for a few reasons. First, allow me to say that I assume that this also means that we’d deny benefits to those who tested positive (I know, assumptions are dangerous, but I’m interested in an argument against that assumption). My initial gut response was “what a great idea- let’s make sure that we cut the life line to people who might be dangerously addicted to drugs! That’s exactly what I’d do to ensure my feeling of safety while walking down the street. Wouldn’t it be comforting to know that there were almost instantly a bunch more people who are desperate and starving for a chemical, dropped into a situation where they might very well choose to inflict harm on another person or their property? What a great way to help soothe my moral outrage at the fifteen bucks of my tax money spent yearly on people getting welfare!” It should also be said that I can’t whip up sustained outrage over welfare at all. Do I see various government assistance programs abused sometimes? Sure. Just like everyone else, I see people using EBT cards who are wearing two hundred dollar shoes. I see the people who live next door and clearly never go to work sitting in their living room in January. How can I see them sitting in their living room? Because they have the door hanging open when it’s 22 degrees outside. A recent visit from the Laclede Gas man confirms my suspicion that that means they’re on assistance- he says he sees that all the time. But with everything else that’s wrong with the world right now, this just isn’t one of the things that makes me really, really angry. It’s an irritant to be sure, but not one that gets me bent out of shape to the point that I’d suggest trampling on anyone’s Fourth Amendment rights or anything.

And that was my second thought about this: civil liberties are very important to me, and the basic idea of the Bill of Rights is that these are absolute rights that are guaranteed to us not by the government, but by the simple fact of our birth as human beings. Drug testing, especially random testing by the government strikes me as a clear violation of the Fourth Amendment. Let’s review the fabulous Fourth, shall we?

“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”

In order to be searched, there has to be an oath or affirmation that you’ve done something wrong- and that requires probable cause. I’m not sure that asking for welfare benefits is probable cause to assume that you’re on drugs. If you feel like you might want to pose that old favorite: “well, if you’ve done nothing wrong, then you have nothing to fear”, please don’t. I’ve never understood the morality of that one, on this or any drug testing issue. Should an employer be allowed to come over to your house and look in your sock drawer too? I mean, what if you’re hiding drugs there? How about periodic surprise strip searches at your job? I mean, if you’re not hiding anything, what do you have to fear? I’m confused by people who would fight you if you looked at the contents of their wallet, but quietly submit to having their own blood scrutinized under a microscope. It’s a right, for the love of god. Rights are inalienable, and ignoring them just because you know you’re not guilty of whatever the powers that be have made illegal this week is the first giant step into slavery and subjugation. (And not forgetting the cry for smaller government all over the datashpere these days, let’s not forget that it would be the government taking away an inalienable right to allow its own citizens to sign up for a program.)

A question for those who feel strongly enough to click “Join this Group”: is this some sort of epidemic of which I’m unaware? Are the great majority of welfare recipients mooching, strung-out junkies milking the system? Not at all, says a report from the Southern Poverty Law Center. Six percent of welfare recipients satisfied the diagnostic screening criteria for illicit drug dependence (i.e., their drug use impairs their functioning in significant ways). Six percent? Seriously? According to the peer-reviewed journal for the American Academy of Family Physicians, 8-12% of doctors will develop a substance abuse problem at some point in their careers. That’s right- according to these stats, the folks on welfare have less common incidence of drug problems than the people who treat us when we’re ill. Why is there no Facebook group for you to express your outrage over the fact that the person who will make sure you don’t die when you go in for that routine surgery isn’t required to take a drug test?

And my last problem with this is that it’s just moralizing, and totally counterproductive. Drug testing tells us absolutely nothing about the ability of a person to do a job, it only tells us that their body is metabolizing a certain substance. It can’t even tell us when the drug was ingested. Counter to the common (and wrongly) held belief that welfare is a cakewalk that finds people skating on the system for life, it is actually a program that gets people back into the workforce, thanks to the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996. According to a Washington Post article from 2008, the definition of welfare is now “a finite program built to provide short-term cash assistance and steer people quickly into jobs”. It is a program whose goal is to move people from lives of destitution and poverty into more meaningful lives through developing skills. Finding out that they smoked pot sometime in the last month only becomes an issue if they are clearly impaired on the job, and in no way suggests that they aren’t going to be able to do a job. And while we’re at it, why not test for everything that might suggest that the candidate has some sort of impairment or addictive behavior? Alcohol, caffeine, nicotine, cold medicine… can you imagine the results if we decided to take people who tested positive for any of these off the work rolls? Or deny them benefits? And how are they so different, especially alcohol? Back in 1992, a report counted 14 million Americans had a problem with drinking- that was 7.5% of the population at the time. Imagine a 7.5% across the board layoff. But to continue to use the analogy correctly, we’d have to lay off those that use alcohol regularly, as they would simply test positive for alcohol consumption- and that’s 50% of the population.

Why don’t we use the time and resources that we would put into this counterintuitive witch hunt into more infrastructure projects that people who are unemployed can sign on to? We can make our country stronger, our workforce better, and our national ethic something that history will be proud of, rather than something that will embarrass our descendants the same way that McCarthyism embarrasses modern Americans and The Inquisition embarrasses present-day Catholics. And is this even an issue? You bet. Right now several states have rules on the books making drug testing for welfare mandatory, and several more are considering it. "

Everyday is a new exciting adventure.  This week I have found people from all over the world who not only love horror as much a sI do but share some of the same viewpoints and beliefs.  I am very active on Twitter and have found people in LA, Scotland, and England all doing amazing things. 

The girl in Scotland makes jewlery and me, her, and a guy in LA bonded over our hatred over the original Halloween.  We all liked the remakes better.  She is looking for a short story that helped inspire John Carpenter make Halloween in fact so we can take that in ( he was also inspired by Black Christmas which I knew).

I also learned about this producer in England promoting his film called Archangel Murders.  He has offered the chance to be one of the first 5 people to review this independent horror comedy film.  I was very excited to get into this so I naturally put my name in the drawing and wanted to help promote his film so I am retweeting it out to everyone I can.  Well he is extremely gracious for that and has told me this " @radioactivesmrf Oh thanks matey, Im just happy to help and give everyone an opportunity. Honestly if your name doesnt get drawn I'll...ensure you all get to see it or at least get involved in our next marketing plan straight after first off b4 anyone else"  Is that not exciting or what?

Too think that just 10 years ago this would have never been possible.  What an amazing thing to happen and such joy to help with it.  I am so excited and proud to help give back to a genre I have loved so much.  To actually help in some way with a horror film is simply exciting and I am proud to be a part of this.   That's why I am forever in love with social media and all that it can offer.

This was sent to me from someone elses blog.  It really moved me so I wanted to share it with all of you.

I'm gonna include an excerpt from the inside booklet of Jumpsteady's "The Chaos Theory" album. After reading it the first time I thought to myself how he really has a point. Anyway, here goes.

"When you die, and come to stand before your Book of Life, What do you think you will find? For each new experience that you have, a page is added to this book, making it fuller and longer. If you lead an adventurous life, your book will be an enormous tome, full of wondrous experiences, accomplishments, and yes, even failures. Unfortunately, many people are stuck on the same page because they are caught up in a routine, such as going to work, coming home, watching t.v., and going to sleep, with very little deviation from the norm. They are mired on that same page, so no new pages are written in their Book of Life, and when they die it will be very thin. They know what tomorrow will bring, because they lived it the day before. When they think back on their life, it will appear that time has flown by, because they have no strong memories to grasp on to. That same day they kept living over and over will be remembered as just one long day.

Live your days with this knowledge, because with new experiences also comes wisdom, and a deeper understanding of life and what comes after. Never pass by any good opportunity, for it may never come again. don't be controlled by your fears, because this leads to regret, and regret is the heaviest weight one can carry. Chaos provides strength, because even though at times it may be dangerous, it can get you pointed in the right direction, even when all other factors hold you back. In other words, sometimes you have to say 'fuck it!,' and just do something even if it doesn't make total sense or wasn't planned out. Chaos mixed with passion is like keys opening the doors to your desires. The more freely you behave, the more free you will become, and you shall break freeof the prison that is all too likely to be your own mind. Besides, think of all the stories you'll be able to tell, whether good or bad.

So tell that girl how you feel, break up with that jobber you're too afraid to leave, ditch that wack city and move to wherever the hell you want to live, save your money and take that trip overseas, do things on the spur of the moment, start that business you were thinking about, visit your old friend that you haven't seen in years. Whatever it is you want to do. Now is the time. Live in the present. Don't talk about what you're going to do one day. Start making it happen today. This is the Chaos Theory: that chaos can bring strength, adventure, and make your dreams possible, where rational thought might fail. Living your life in this way, for better or for worse, is sure to be more entertaining than not living your life at all."  -Jumpsteady