Sonny-D on YouTube

If you'd like to know the origin of this blog's name, check out the actual hip hop song I recorded on youtube. About 8 years ago, I recorded a hip hop album under my rap name 'Sonny-D' called 'The Suburban Assassin'. I'd like to warn you that there are explicit lyrics (except for the aforementioned 'Ville Street Blues') so don't listen if you offend easily. Remember, they're just lyrics! Coming soon are some newer songs I recorded in a real studio. Special thanks go to my brother in law for putting some of my music up on youtube for me.

http://www.youtube.com/user/TheSuburbanAssassin

What Kind of Facebook Status Updater Are You?

It's no secret that the social networking site 'Facebook' has become hugely popular over the last few years. With it has come a whole new way for the self important narcissist to advertise things about their lives that they think other people are really interested in, but only sort of are.

But with the emergence of Facebook popularity has come the popularity of the Facebook status update. The little nuggets of information we post on our page for all in our social network to read. There are different categories of status updaters though. Without further ado:

*The Angry Updater: They post something they are pissed off about all the time. They hate their job, the people at it, and don't care who knows it. They curse a lot too, without censoring themselves. I could divide these into two different categories because the cursers are not always angry, but in the interest of space I will lump them into one. I think a lot of people forget that their parents, priests, or sweet old granny maybe reading their updates, and they may not want to hear how you "motherf-cking love" that new song from your favorite metal band.(yes, they're usually all metal fans too)

*The My Kid Did This Today Updater: We get it. You have a baby. It consumes most of your life. That's normal. But is anything happening in your life? We are friends with you on facebook, not your 3 year old Freddy. You would be hard pressed to find a status update from this person that does not have to do with their kid(s).

*The Movie Quote Updater: I think I am one of the most guilty of this one. Anytime I don't have much to say I put up a random, sometimes obscure, sometimes way overused quote from one of my favorite movies.

Coupled with the above is ...
*The People Who Don't Get That You're Posting a Movie Quote Commenter: No, dear Aunt Ethel, I did not really have a problem with my TPS reports today at work, Peter in 'Office Space' did.

*The Bible Quoting Updater: Um, yeah, religion, I'm not going there. But they are out there. You have one as your Facebook friend.

*The Bad Spelling/No Punctuation Updater: I know Facebook is not a Harvard Essay, but can you make your stuff the slightest bit readable? The run-on sentences with no punctuation choc-full of the OMG's and WTF's are tough to read. I'm so sorry to hear that 'omg u lost ur phone today wtf this is tha worst day ever o well at least i have my babies i will always luv them'. Huh?

*The Melancholy Updater: They're always sad and melancholy, and often sound suicidal. Some of the updates may prompt you to ask them in a private message "Are you okay?" I think sometimes people are so wrapped up in themselves that they do not realize how they sound to others. That obscure song lyric about how 'life is not worth it without your special flower' is killing us. Really. Lighten up. Being alive is a good thing. Also, we get it, you screwed up in your relationship and now you want your girlfriend back, move on.

*The Way Too Many Details About Your Day Updater: Thanks to your status, we all know you're about to change into a red shirt and some jeans, head out to an appointment at 2pm, then meet your uncle for dinner at Carraba's at 6pm, then maybe you'll stop for a drink with Suzie, but maybe not, and then you're home to relax on the couch until you fall asleep. Oh, and we're glad the stuff you ordered from Amazon got there today. We can all rest easy now.

*The Bragging Updater: Personal accomplishments are certainly something to be proud of. No one is denying it. But the constant "today I________!" can wear on your average reader. I'm very glad you did the stairmaster for an hour, very glad for you, but honestly it doesn't do much for me. Plus, you're not being that subtle when you sneak in your status that you went to the gym, among your other errands for the day. You really just want to tell us all that you're working out, right?

*The Obvious Updater: John Doe hates bad weather! Jane Doe hates being sick. Joe Doe hates terrorism. Really? Because we all LOVE those things!

*The Passive Aggressive Updater: Often they direct some sort of gripe, insult, or song lyric at someone, but won't ever mention who they mean. They hate liars. They can't stand backstabbers. And yes, they may be talking about you.

*The Facebook Veejay Updater: They are our Facebook DJ's, or VJ's I should say, as they post music videos all day long from youtube. Seems to be that the Facebook VJ posts a new song for every emotion they're going through. Sometimes, they even do the DJ intros, such as : "Here's one for all the single ladies out there tonight..." Don't get me wrong, I have posted music videos before, and I surely I understand relating to songs in times of different emotions, but when you post 5 different videos within 15 minutes, it starts to looks a little weird. We are barely through your first music video before you are posting a second and third. We can't keep up Mr. DJ!

*The Roller Coaster of Emotions Updater: They're going through a breakup with their significant other. First, they show us phoney happiness about being free, "Good riddance! Can't wait to party as a single tonight! You had your chance with me but you ruined it!". Here's when they change their default picture to a shot of just them by themselves. Second, here comes the anger if things didn't go their way. There's usually some sort of 'I'm better off without you' type of song lyric in there and sometimes they will get mean and nasty, giving the world way too much information. Third, they're regretting the breakup and post some sort of sad song lyric, followed by a change of their default picture again, back to one of the two of them. Fourth, if they get back together with their significant other, they are happy again, before the entire cycle repeats itself soon enough. And this cycle will repeat itself over and over again with this type of updater.

*The Self Important Updater: They seem to think we are sitting by Facebook with popcorn, watching their lives 24-7, as if they are Jim Carrey's character in 'The Truman Show'. They post everything about every move they make, and they just assume we always know what they're talking about. Their sense of what other people care about is a tad out of touch with reality. "Well, that meeting went well, time to practice, and hopefully I can get on the ball this time, lol." Um, what meeting? Practice what? Yes! Please let us know if you can 'get on the ball this time'! We're biting our nails in anticipation.

*The Sports Superfan Updater: We all know who your favorite team is and who your favorite player is. We've seen the countless photos of you in your jersey, and thousands of pictures of the players. In fact, before you came to Facebook, I did not even realize anyone cared about this sport. Thanks for the sports updates. It's a good thing I have Facebook, otherwise, I would not have known that there was a game tonight.


And just to show you what a good sport I am....

*The Self Advertising Updater: Yes, this is me, many times. Listen to the songs I just recorded! Read my blog(s)! Check out the article I just wrote! I need more page views, more facebook "likes". Okay, I know, you get it. ;-)


Happy Facebooking!

It's Not Goodbye, It's 'See ya Later'

Today is my last day as a full time employee of SSA's fitness center. I have been here close to 5 years. It's a bittersweet move for me to make, as I am excited about new opportunities at an upcoming job, but sad to leave some of the finest people I have had the pleasure of knowing.

Sure, I have met a lot of jerks here. Let's face it, in a place with thousands of workers, a government facility to boot, you're going to have a wide range of personalities. I have dealt with them all here in the gym. But for the most part, I have made relationships with great people that I am sad not to see everyday anymore.

Such is life, people move in and out of your daily routine quickly. I just wanted to write this blog as a thank you, to all the people who made my days more interesting for the past 5 years. It has truly been my pleasure.

This place has a lot of "ghosts". The walls and ceilings are painted with memories. I now consider it a privelege to be one of those "ghosts", and am honored to be on those walls and ceilings.

Granted, I'm only leaving a job for another one, this happens all the time in life. It's not the hugest deal. But it means a lot to me that I have met so many people in the past 5 years who have made it so difficult for me to say goodbye.

But life is way too short to not keep in touch with people that have meant something to you, so I hope, no I plan, to see them all again in some way, shape, or form.

So I stress that this is not goodbye, just 'see ya later'.

Thanks for the memories.

D

"How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard."
-Thomas Meehan and Carol Sobieski

Reading

For the past year or so, I've taken to reading books much more than I ever have.

I resisted it for so many years I think probably because growing up, my parents stressed it's importance so often. Me not reading was some sort of misplaced youthful rebellion that carried on into adulthood out of habit.

But times change and now I find it very entertaining. I like forming the pictures in my mind of what I am reading, rather than have it spoonfed to me.

I am also enjoying reading books recommended to me by other people, that is, people whose opinion I value. I find it fascinating to take in through my own eyes what that person already has, and I believe it makes you and the person more relatable and compatible, whether you enjoy their recommendation or not.

Reading, for me, and I'm gonna get a huge "I Told You So." from my dad on this, has made me a better writer. At least I think so anyway. I'm finding more clarity when I am writing here, in my rap lyrics, or even in the social networking scene.

I know I am just preaching to the choir to people who already know the joys of reading, but for me, at age 33, this is a revelation. I am finding a certain inner peace when I am sitting outside, with no sound but neighborhood kids and birds in the background and I am lost in a story.

Ultimately, I believe I am loving reading because it's always been difficult for me to concentrate on one thing for too long, and I think it helps to tame my self diagnosed Attention Deficit Disorder.

From The Morning

Sometimes a song just hits you, relaxes you, and gives you peace of mind. This one does that as well as stirs some emotions for me, happy and sad.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2JjJPDz3EE&feature=related

Here are the lyrics:

From The Morning-Nick Drake

A day once dawned, and it was beautiful
A day once dawned from the ground
Then the night she fell
And the air was beautiful
The night she fell all around

So look see the days
The endless coloured ways
Go play the game that you learnt
From the morning

And now we rise
And we are everywhere
And now we rise from the ground
And see, she flies
And she is everywhere
And see, she flies all around

So look see the sights
The endless summer nights
And go play the game that you learnt
From the morning

"Everything Happens For A Reason"

I hear this cliche' thrown around a lot, but I really do not believe in the popular saying 'everything happens for a reason.'

Good or bad, shit just happens.

Sure, bad things that happen can open doors for good things to happen, but it can also be the other way around. Every event that happens in life leads to other events. Imagine the day you were conceived(if you dare). If one of your parents had made one slightly different move that day, you may not be here today to read this incredibly insightful blog. :-)

The point is, I hear this cliche used a lot when people are trying to console someone else after a bad turn of events for that person. And if it makes someone feel better about matters, then by all means, I'm not taking that away from anyone. I'm not writing this with some jaded attitude, I'm merely pointing out that I don't think there are any magical forces at work in the atmosphere. We create what happens with the choices that we make.

If you get fired from a job, then get hired for a better one down the line, some people will say "See? Everything happens for a reason." But how about you just got fired (fair or not), and you applied yourself heavily and got hired for a better one?

Are you going to tell me that if my town gets anniahlated by a hurricane, a natural, uncontrollable weather occurrence, that there was a reason for that? My house is in shambles and people are hurt or killed and I am supposed to find some underlying goodness to it? No, this happened, now I have to react to it. How we respond is really the thing that is under our control.

There doesn't always have to be a reason, or some underlying, uncontrollable force at work in the air. As much as I'd like to believe that, it is not reality. We make our own opportunities. We work to get what we get.

Hypothetically, what if you divorce from someone and someone tells you "everything happens for a reason."? But then nothing good really ever comes from it? What was the 'reason' for that? Maybe it awakens another part of your soul and you get involved in activities and meet friends whom you never would have met if you hadn't of divorced. But is that a magical force or a natural occurrence of events that you yourself made happen?

Hey, I'm all for quips and cliches if they help you get through something horrific. But I do think sometimes that someone going through something awful may not want to hear that there was a reason for it.

I'm sure I am in the minority, but to me, good or bad, stuff just happens. That's just how life is.

Driving in Nice Weather

To my future teenage boys (and anyone else who want to hear it):


An important lesson I would like to teach my children when they start driving is to of course, always be careful. But even more important, be extra careful when the weather becomes nice.

Something my father taught me as a teenager when i started driving was to really watch the people around you on the road when it's sunny and nice out. I would like to pass this lesson on.

Something happens to us behind that wheel, and I am not excluding myself, when the weather suddenly turns nice after a bad winter. We get that natural high of endorphins rushing through us when we can finally roll down all of our car windows, turn our radio up, and let that cool, sunny breeze rush through our hair, especially after a nasty, cooped up Winter. We get so wrapped up in the moment that we become a little less aware of what is going on around us. I have witnessed this first hand every time Spring rolls around ever since I started driving in 1992. It happens like clockwork. I will see people in traffic taking dumb chances,speeding,or making dumb moves just because they are feeling so good cruising along in the nice weather.

I think, even though the conditions are obviously more hazardous for driving in the Winter or in the rain, people are way more careful. They're more mindful of their surroundings and driving the speed limit because the weather leaves them no other choice. It's the nice weather you have to watch out for on the road.

Don't get me wrong, I love to roll my windows down and pump my music up on a nice day as much as they next guy. But nice days are the days that we should be extra careful, because most likely there's someone else on the road feeling the weather too, not paying quite as much attention as they should be.