It's All An Illusion...

Yes, that's right, it's the title of my current Script Frenzy screenplay. I'm exploring the magician as detective genre, with a twist. While waiting for my writing partner to end her turn, I came across this video that explores the main theme of what our hero, Scott Randall, Magician Extraordinaire, has to overcome.... Enjoy, and Comment :)

Related articles by Zemanta

• Script Frenzy 2009 (johnaugust.com)
• Read the Best Movie That You're Never Going to See (cinematical.com)

This has been happening more and more...

Image via CrunchBase

Today's topic is, Twitter!!! Yes, that's right, you knew it was coming, yet another Twitter post. Ok, here's the thing: I have @ last count, almost 1500 followers, and more everyday. This is not to say that I'm a social media expert, because, one of the clues that you're not a social media expert is that you claim to be one. In cases like this, I always goto Sir William of Goldman's Roman Numeral I, which states simply, ”Nobody Knows Anything.“

More on that phenomenon later, quite possibly @ a different site, (How many do I write for? 5?) However, specifically, when it comes to Twitter, I have really just one pet peeve, that is simply this: people that are not following me, tend to Direct Message me.

Now, to me, that implies that you want to take the conversation private. Ok, that's fine, I don't need to broadcast to the world who's flirting with me, or more importantly, who I'm flirting with, however, for the conversation to be truly private, you have to be following me as well, so that I may DM you back.

Two things happen when this is not the case. As I use TweetDeck, I have a really quick way to click to reply back privately, however, I can't do it, because you're not following me. I don't find this out, until after I attempt to DM. I've wasted my time typing a response, and now, I'm less likely to respond to your query, as maybe I don't want to put my response in the public timeline.

Therefore, you've created a situation wherein you won't get a response. Unless I'm kind enough to take the additional time that it requires to change the D to an @. Which is really, not much of the time lately. As I stated, I've got about 1500 followers, which means I'm receiving roughly 20 tweets every 2 minutes. TweetDeck again :) It's more fun, and productive for me, to deal with those, than to deal with you, because you've decided to be well, for lack of a better word, rude.

This has been a public service announcement.

Please Retweet.

I wonder if she knows....

Originally uploaded by overannalyze1

Just how sexy she is....

Authority

What is it? Who has it? Who wants it? Why? Where are they? I'm here today to tell you, I don't know. However, there are others out there that would have you think, say, act, or do differently. Because they have it.

And by it, I mean something that The Law!!! doesn't recognize....

Why, you ask? Or, maybe you didn't. Again, I don't know.

Previously, I've discussed how truly nobody knows anything. Now that you have this information, what should you do with it? Well, I choose to claim authority in all things having to do with nothing, or in this case, a mathematical calculation of a philosophical concept.

To wit: As opposed, to twit: If I have 35K+ followers on Twitter, while at the same time, following roughly the same amount, how do I get any work done? Or, the actual question I started to ask, do I have the authority to make grandiose pronouncements? How do I effectively use my theoretical one million plus Myspace friends to my advantage?

Let's find out together, shall we? We don't have to mind you, as you can get off this ride at any time. As opposed to anytime. In any case, I can't, as I haven't made my word count yet. Confused? Good! Then you're starting to understand.

Any mathematical formula that you come up with will fall woefully short. Simply because, you can't have authority in everything. Why are 35K plus people listening to me? Well, go ask them. Maybe I know something they don't, in which case, my information has value. To them.

Otherwise, if they already know what I know, what I say or do or even think, isn't as valuable. Think of it: Information I have, may have different value to others. Am I an authority to those that already know what I know? Well, maybe I am.

I may be able to disseminate the information differently than they. There 'they' are again. The theoretical 'they' of whom we know little if anything about. What if I don't care what 'they' have to say? In this case, 'they' have no authority, and none should be given to them. I have an extremely diverse background, and yet, I'm sure there are others out there that I can learn from in my various fields of endeavor.

I will give them authority, when requested. Not before. Until such time as I need their expertise, their information, or even data, may not be useful. N.B. There is a difference between data and information. Information is how you disseminate the data. Or, mine it. But as always, that's another post for another blog that I don't necessarily write for.

Did you know that grammatically, it's now ok to end a sentence in a preposition? I just found this out recently, from a grammarian, that I gave authority to. As opposed to which I gave authority. It's interesting, and even fascinating to note at this point that the root word of authority is, you guess it, author.

Who created the information in the first place? They should probably be the ultimate authority over it. We may interpret it differently, at which point, The Law!!! comes into play. Scary, isn't it?
Well, maybe it is, and maybe it isn't. The doom and gloom you hear preached on almost a daily basis by the media elite is at best, an illusion. Ultimately, the media should be reporting the facts, and not interpreting them, to their own ends.

Those that would claim authority over their various niches, should indeed realize that they may not be the authority they think they are. There 'they' are again. 'They' seem to be everwhere. Who are 'they?' 'They' are not us, as we are not one of 'them.'

I'm sure this will all make sense one day, to someone that reads it this far. As for me, I choose to end here. For now. Tune in next week when the random ramblings of this Idea Master go off on yet another tangent.

72 and sunny in Redondo Beach.

Adjust your expectations accordingly.

This was originally written for Idea Masters™, however, has yet to be published there.

The Suck Scale

At one time or another, you have probably uttered a variation of the phrase, “That sucks!” And like I have, you've finally come to the conclusion that everything sucks, to some degree. For this, The Suck Scale is born. It goes from 1 to 100, and as you can't have more than 100% of anything, will never go any higher. Of course, you can peg the meter.

Or, to put it simply, something that sucks massively rates a 100, while the least amount of suck rates a 1. However, and I find this quite unlikely, something may indeed, not suck, as in, “That doesn't even rate a 1 on the suck scale!”

The Suck Scale is purely subjective, and is of course subject to interpretation by those viewing whatever it is that sucks. You may think that Obama getting elected rates a 100, others may find it to be a 1, while most of us fall somewhere in between, unless of course, for you it doesn't suck, in which case another scale is needed, as we have previously defined it, everything sucks to some degree, and therefore, deserves a rating of some amount of suck.

You may not realize that something in your life sucks, in which case, someone needs to inform you that it does. Someone could walk up to you on the street and say, “That rates a 73,” and you wouldn't know what that means. A search on the term 73 wouldn't come up with anything, once you arrived home, and you'd be forever in the dark. Therefore, awareness of The Suck Scale is key.

You might ask yourself, “Self, why does everything suck?” At which point, you may try to answer the question, or, more likely, figure out how much overall suckage exists. Clearly, most movies suck. Don't take my word for it, stand in the lobby of any major movie theatre after the movie ends, and listen to the comments of most people coming out. I could give examples, but most of them simply boil down to, “That movie sucked!” If you'd like to figure out how much, simply assign a percentage of the overall comments that are similar, and that will be your score. Remember, lower scores are better, and LA Story doesn't even rate a one on the suck scale.

Restaurants, to some degree, will of course also, suck to some degree. Just ask any notable food critic. They can always find something wrong with the soup, or their steak gets undercooked, “I ordered it medium, not medium rare!!!” This fact alone will probably garner you a suck rating at that particular restaurant in the high 60's.

Traffic during rush hour rates a 100, no question. Unless of course you like sitting in your car for hours at a time going nowhere quickly. Frankly, if I'm going to sit in my car for hours, I usually pick a secluded spot, and a beautiful woman to share the time with, which again, doesn't rate anything near The Suck Scale.

You've probably heard the phrase, “Work sucks, but I need the bucks...” uttered at your place of employment, if you haven't seen it on a bumper sticker in the above mentioned rush hour traffic. If you enjoy your work, this probably rates in the low 20's, however, I'm guessing for most, it's in the high 80's. Now, finding a career that gives you fulfillment as well as enjoyment, doesn't touch The Suck Scale at all.

These are just a few examples of things that may suck in your life, for which I have now provided you an appropriate way to measure them. Of course, this is your life, and not mine, as the ability to make a beautiful woman smile via a simple message on the 'net, definitely does not suck....

Sounds Like Something from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang...

In my never ending effort to at least blog something everyday, even when I don't have something, I found this:

So when I say I’m seriously impressed with HootSuite (formerly known as Brightkit, which was an awful name) that’s no light recommendation.Steve Woodruff, StickyFigure, Feb 2009

I suggest you click the link, and if you follow me on Twitter, you'll start seeing more of these types of links from me. And, if you're not following me on Twitter, why not?

Twitter Survey That I'm Taking

Image via Wikipedia

I've been spending a lot of time on Twitter lately, to almost the exclusion of all else, as you may or may not know. I have a simple follow algorithm: Be interesting, and I'll follow you, almost anywhere :) Have met several fascinating new people, including @WhenIGroUpCoach. She asked me five questions, to wit:

* Where the heck did Matches Malone come from?

That one's simple. Anyone that has read a Batman comic or three, knows that it's his alter ego when he needs to go undercover, to ferret out some information he couldn't otherwise get as Batman.

* How do you decide which avatars to feature on your Twitter background?

I can't take credit for this one, actually. My original idea was for a background with my top 36 followers, and then each of their top 36. I sent this to @HughBriss who ran with the idea, and came up with something different. I've only made one change on it since. If you look carefully, there's someone on there twice. We could talk about the Shorty Awards, but that might veer off topic.

* What one book has blown your mind, and what about it has stuck with you?

The Dark Knight Returns, by Frank Miller. Batman at age 50. Groundbreaking stuff in 1986. Watchmen came out around the same time, however, Batman's always been the fictional character that anyone could actually be, if they dedicated their life to it. The whole canon is inspiring, actually, but this one stands out.

* If you can be given one superpower, what would it be?

Ok, this goes against everything I just said, however, it would be cool to fly. Wouldn't need a car ever again. Either that, or to actually be psychic, which hasn't been properly represented in any medium, at least, recently.

* What do you have a soft spot for?

If I give you the answer to this one, I'll give away a confidence, which I'm not ready to do. Suffice it to say, interesting and intelligent women :)

Sometimes, I wonder...

Image via CrunchBaseLately, I've been taking a morning walk of approximately 2 miles, everyday. This is a good thing. The thing that's not so good, I'm finding out, is I've been taking pics of where I've been along the way. Ok, not so bad in and of itself, however, I have been uploading them to my new home on Twitter, via a Twitpic.

It occurs to me, that since I've been using my cellphone, and there's an embedded GPS signal thrown into the mix, that a smart person taking the time might be able to figure out where I live. Or worse, I've given my current coordinates to Skynet, and we all know how painful that can be....

Inaugural Fail Whale

Inaugural Fail Whale
Originally uploaded by Steelopus

It would seem that today's Fail Whale will be carried away by the American Bald Eagle. Very appropriate, however, a color scheme change might be in order....

Haven't Done This Here In Awhile...

Image via WikipediaSo, now seems as good a time as any for my personal All I Need To Know, I Learned From Star Trek List:

1. Books are more valuable than the same information stored in computers, as well as the computer itself.

2. There is no such thing as the no win scenario.
Corollary: There are often more than two choices.

3. “You kenna change the laws of physics!!!”

More as I think of them, as I've got other stuff to do.... :)

The Case For @Scobleizer

Image via CrunchBaseOver on FriendFeed, there's a conversation wherein @TechCrunch called out @Scobleizer on his social media addiction. To which I say, huh? The numbers that are significant are these: 7 hours a day on Friend Feed, for, a year, more or less.

@TechCrunch states that @Scobleizer's “Addiction” has decreased his blogging time, and everyone that matters, has seen this as a problem. @Scobleizer stated his rebut as it were, somewhere. Points were made by both sides, however, let's do the math, shall we?

Now, I bill my time @ $150/hr minimum 2, when I“m hired as a consultant. @Scobleizer may make more or less than that, so, let's stay with that #. Based on the above, 7x7x52x150= wait for it, a whole lot a money. Or, $382, 200 US, lest you didn't think I had a calculator. There are too many other things that I don't know, and if this goes viral as I suspect it will, someone's going to straighten me out. But I digress....

If the company that he works for pays him less than that, they're getting a great deal. If he makes more than that, He's getting a great deal. Why should we believe anything beyond that? Most of use work eight hours a day, and we make significantly less. @Scobleizer has found a way to work only 7. I want that job!!!

The Blatant Self Promotion Tour

In an effort to continue what I started, And to win really just the nomination for the award, I give you more, Blatant Self Promotion. I could probably write this better, however, I'm going for the circular thing mentioned in the original post, and I'm trying some new stuff....

So, if my followers read this first, you must read the article referenced above, at which point, the link to nominate me should be in there. I think. I haven't quite tested everything yet. That's right, I'm making this up as I go....

It's snowing at Word Press.

I don't know if this is site wide, however, the last two Word Press blogs I've visited, have visible snowflakes falling in front of not only the picture, but the text as well. I'd twitter about this, but it takes more than 140 characters....

Ignored Netflix Movies Fight Back

The classic movies in your Netflix queue that you never actually watch are sick and tired of your neglect. At least, that's what the blurb says.... Ever feel that you're just one innovation behind the curve?

read more | digg story

I might be doing the right thing...

Couple this with the recent announcement that bloggers are now MSM, and I should be thrillled and delighted....

clipped from www.clickz.com Study: Blogs Influence Purchases More Than Social Sites By Enid Burns, The ClickZ Network, Oct 28, 2008 Articles  |  Contact Enid  |  Subscribe to Newsletters  |  RSS Feeds Blogs can have more impact on purchase decisions than social networks, a new study finds. Blogs create a conversation and trusted resource that influences purchase decision. The study, "Harnessing the Power of Blogs," sponsored research by BuzzLogic and conducted by JupiterResearch, a Forrester Research company, looks at the evolving influence from the reader's perspective. "What we wanted to do was look at the reader's side of the coin, look at reader patterns and how people are reading blogs...and drill down into the content impacting other media platforms," said Valerie Combs, VP of corporate communications at BuzzLogic.

And if that doesn't convince you...

This whole thing comes downto, who do you trust? And more importantly, who has the better plan. I believe it's McCain. Others will disagree with me, however, they have yet to tell me why Obama's plan is better. Taxing the 5% of Americans that are responsible for what was the last number I heard? 98%? Of the money coming into the federal government isn't the way to go. I know it's counter intuitive to believe that lowering taxes is a good idea to raise more money, however, the taxes that are generated as a result of me spending the money I keep, helps more at the state and local level, not to mention the economy of the businesses I choose to be associated with.

And, this coming from one of the 95% of American's whose taxes won't go “up” under Obama's plan. Of course, I don't believe that, either....

clipped from www.gopusa.com “Sen. Obama owes it to the public to let us know how much of our hard-earned money he, in his wisdom, believes we have a moral obligation to give away to poor people around the world—and how much of our money that he has a moral obligation to extract from our wages forcefully, through federal taxation.” —Tony Blankley

Why I'm voting for McCain

And why it doesn't make me a racist.

clipped from theblacksphere.blogspot.com So in his comments, Obama has set the stage for Murtha’s comments, since he talks of the small town Pennsylvanians “cling(ing) to guns or religion…”. This comment was Obamaspeak for small town Midwesterners being stupid, racist, and redneck.

UK Schoolboys punished for refusing to pray to Allah!

Two UK schoolboys at Alsager School, near Stoke were given detention after refusing to kneel down and ‘pray to Allah’ during a religious education lesson.Parents were outraged that the two British boys (11year-olds) were punished for not wanting to take part in the practical demonstration of how the Muslim God Allah is worshipped.That's the front of the story.... The rest is worse. Much worse. If we are indeed in End Times, as one of the commenteers projects, then I suggest you all prepare yourselves for The Rapture. Not to be confused with the mediocre movie of the same name....

read more | digg story

My Whole Universe is Blown....

Many people know my favorite character in all of literature and media is, Batman. Other's know that I am indeed, him. But that's another rant for possibly a different blog. Right now, I'm focusing on the comic book, as Comic Con is coming dangerously close to reality.

There's too much out there to keep up with it all, given a finite amount of money with which to purchase the various Bat-titles. I thought long and hard about that hyphen, BTW. In any case, my recent influx of money, courtesy of other unfortunate randoms, allowed me to catch up.

Or so I thought. Bruce Wayne had a heart attack. He's got a 'new' girlfriend. New Batmobile. Looks cool, but still. Why wasn't I notified? I understand that change is a constant, especially in the DC Universe, however, another epic with my favorite character might be one too many for me.

Don't get me wrong, I'm ok with Grant Morrison creating a storyline to tie up all his work on the title, however, don't hit me with the "so and so will never be the same!" mantra, as I've heard it too many times before.

Oh yeah. Jason Todd is apparently still alive, and running around as, get this, Red Robin. Thumbing the proverbial nose at all those that voted for, and thought he was, dead. Maybe I'm the last one to know. However, if you stopped reading about ten years ago, and then picked up the comic again, you might be in for a rude awakening.

So, to review, Batman will never be the same. Good to know.

One Really Big Fish

Or, a beautiful Koi. You be the judge....
I just thought this was cool, based on what it is.