The John Cleaver series is a trilogy of books by author Dan Wells. They are supernatural horror/thriller novels labeled as Young Adult fiction. Even though they feature the exploits of a fifteen-year-old kid, don’t let the YA designation fool you. These books are full of terrible things happening to people of all ages…for your entertainment.
I heard of these books while listening to the Writing Excuses podcast, of which Dan Wells is one of the cast. He often speaks about the writing process by referring to his first novel, I Am Not a Serial Killer. In fact, it’s probably the title of the book that made me want to read it more than anything else did.
These books are about John Cleaver, a fifteen-year-old kid in a small town with an obsession for serial killers. He lives over the mortuary where his mother and aunt works and even takes part in the embalming process with them. Diagnosed as a sociopath by both himself and his therapist, he tries to cope with being different.
Mr. Monster
Everything takes a turn when an actual serial killer shows up in town and starts murdering people. This excites John and sends him on the trail of the killer. At the same time, his own inner monster comes to life. He does not know if he wants to catch the killer, or participate.
One thing you need to know is that this is a “supernatural” horror/thriller. I only stress this because, apparently, people seem to become upset when the story goes from being pure thriller material to supernatural horror.
There is one thing about the series that I find a little unsettling. There seems to be an overall lack of emotion. This is understandable from them main character’s point of view. After all, he’s a sociopath. But over the course of three books, there are several serial killers killing and a multitude of suicides…all in less than a year. You would think that in a small town, these things would make people a little…edgy. The situation comes up a bit in the third book, but overall, it seems as if nobody really cares about all these atrocious murders happening. That’s only a small concern of mines. These books are fun, enjoyable, entertaining and very easy to read.
If possible, you should get all three books and read them back to back. Each novel takes place almost immediately after the last. And since they are all fast reads, you won’t have to wait to get right into the next installment.
And as usual, I must begin with apologizing for not posting anything for a while. Just had my first kid on December 16th and all the time leading up to it and all the time since, I’ve been trying to make money and do right, for the most part.
Well, you don’t wanna hear about the personal stuff. Here’s what’s gonna be happening around here for the O-12
I am cleaning out my closet. Yea, the whole thing if possible.
I have YEARS of unfinished projects hanging around. I’m talkin, lots…and lots of stuff. Poems, half-finished songs and lyrics, half-finished articles, file after file of ideas that I typed down, mad audio clips of half rhymes, ideas and thoughts; and so on and so on. There are notebooks, papers, and writing tablets FULL of more of the same.
I would like to spend all this year getting rid of that stuff, finishing the half-done projects no matter how I feel about them. If I feel it is hopeless, I’ll just get rid of em or release the ideas into the wild. I wanted to post most of what I do to this blog, but I figure that with so much stuff, I can put something here and something there. For instance, I started writing an article for a television show I watched. I was gonna post it here, but I didn’t like it. At the same time, I didn’t wanna just toss it neither, I spent time on it after all. So, I gave it up to an article site. I’ll probably write an article about content mills and article writing sites for those that may be interested, but I won’t post it here, it’ll be on another of my blogs.
But yes, 2012 is like my final hurrah. I figured 2012 is a good year to do this. It coincides with many other things that I hoped would happen for me this year (yup, been looking forward to 2012 since I was a teenager) – Hopefully, if all goes well, I’ll be starting up my creative juices again in 2013 (should civilization still be around:) a much better artist. What that means is, I will be trying hard not to start ANYTHING new this year. Gotta get this old shit outta here!
If you would like me to contribute any of this content to your projects, I’d be happy to do so. Verses, hooks, poetry whatever. I got words for ya! For ANY reason. And I love collaboration.
Anywho, that is all for now. I’m currently going through a folder with hundreds of .txt files in it, trying to make some sense of em and organize em…for YOU dammit, for you.
I also need to update the look of this site…desperately.
Here are 3 poems, written quickly and posted to either to my facebook page, or twitter stream. It seems that since I wrote my post on iambic heptameter, I’ve been stuck writing most my poetry in a sorta semi-rhyming, faux-blank verse version of it (I don’t know the term for it:)) I also learned that I naturally tend towards heavy usage of enjambment…who knew. Well, here they are, enjoy :)
@SilencioBarnes SilencioBarnes“I want to come inside you,” / said the handgun to the brain. // But the only thing that came / was the last gasp of his name. Nov 20 via CoTweetFavoriteRetweetReply
“I want to come inside you,” said the handgun to the brain.
But the only thing that came was the last gasp of his name.
Yes, I know I’m late with this. This post is just a quick note for people looking for info. I’m not going to get into all of the details of what NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) is all about, I’ll assume you know or at least have access to Wiki…which states:
National Novel Writing Month (also known as NaNoWriMo) is an annual internet-based creative writing project which challenges participants to write 50,000 words of a new novel between November 1 and November 30.
And yes, there are a few rules as well:
Participants’ novels can be on any theme and in any genre, and in any language. Everything from fanfiction, which uses trademarked characters, to novels in poem format, and even metafiction is allowed…Starting at midnight November 1, novels must reach a minimum of 50,000 words before 11:59:59 PM on November 30, local time. Planning and extensive notes are permitted, but no earlier written material can go into the body of the novel, nor is one allowed to start early and then finish 30 days from that start point.
Participants write either a complete novel of 50,000 words, or simply the first 50,000 words of a novel to be completed later…Some participants set higher goals for themselves, like writing upwards of 100,000 words, or completing two or more separate novels. To win NaNoWriMo, participants must write an average of approximately 1,667 words per day…There is no fee to participate in NaNoWriMo; registration is only required for novel verification.
No official prizes are awarded for length, quality, or speed. Anyone who reaches the 50,000 word mark is declared a winner.
Anyway, here’s some things that might help ya and keep ya motivated
NaNoWriMo 2011 Desktop Calendars –
Zabé has created some gorgeous November 2011 calendars with the accumulating word count for each day of writing. It goes up to 50,000 words, but she says that if you have a different goal, she’ll make one for ya :) http://zabe.net/blog/2011/10/nanowrimo-2011-calendars/
Dan also has some Calendars as well – His are more humorous in nature and more varied. He has some for just one week, as well as whole months – check them out here: http://surlymuse.com/2011-nanowrimo-wallpaper/
I always loved the word count trackers. Excel sheets preformatted and coded with all the nice little formulas to help you track your word count and your progress. There’s a lot of them out there and it’s easy to find an old one and update to 2011…but rest assured, that’s been done for ya already :)
I’m not going to get much deeper into it, just like the calendars, these spreadsheets can be found all over the place try this search
That’s it. I could add more, but like I said, I’m about 6 days late as is and all the information you could ever want or need is just a search away. I made this post because I noticed a lot of people were searching for nanowrimo and related info and finding my site. So I’m obliging them :) I like being helpful.
If you want more info, or would like to know about some free tools you can use that may help you with your writing, let me know and I’ll speak on that as well.
Finally, by the time this post is published, you should be damn near 10,000 words in! Get to it!
Note: Below you will find an exercise and an explanation on iambic heptameter. You will see three different versions of the same poem, with changes highlighted – enjoy:) This warning was suggested by a fellow poet on facebook
I want to preface this with the fact that I may have absolutely no idea what I’m talking about :) Always do your own research (that’s why I supply hyperlinks!)
Here’s an exercise in creating some traditional(ish) forms of poetry :) It started with me writing a quick poem in response to another poem I read by a Facebook friend of mines. Now, this poem was not meant to be blogged or advertised or anything. I posted on my Facebook page but I didn’t plan on adding it here. It was just a quickie ;)
I wrote it in rhyming quatrains without really thinking about it. This is not unusual as I tend to automatically fall to quatrains a lot when I’m just writing. I suspect it comes from me writing a lot of lyrics, specifically rap lyrics which I tend to think of in terms of quatrains (16 bars, with 1 bar being a line, is 4 quatrains for me).
What I’m trying to say is, this was something of a “throw-away” poem for me. However, I found myself wanting to share something of the poetry writing process with my audience (such as it is). Especially those of you that asked me how I write or what my process is. Well, this is not specifically MY process, but it is A process that you can use to come up with more traditional (English) forms of poetry.
So here’s the poem (I even recorded it, which you can hear in this post) – I recorded it as is so what you’ll hear is the original, unedited version. I may re-record the final version
The king in all his wisdom saw that something was amiss
The priest, forever pious, saw that something did not fit
And both saw a solution that they knew did not exist
Genocide of mind created so that they could get their wish
Well the king he knew the way he simply told them what to do
And they did it; he was pleased but felt that something was not true
Do they do it off his word or is it just what people do?
Are they slaves by birth or slaves because he wants it to be true?
To test the thought he gave some extra freedoms to one man
And saw the others did not like it, they couldn’t comprehend
How one man (‘cept the king of course) could be allowed to stand
Above the others, who was he that they should have to bend
They ridiculed him, cast him down and made of him a fool
The king was highly pleased at this and saw it as a tool
As long as scapegoats kept them riled they cared not that he ruled
Therefore, his rule was absolute; fair, unfair or cruel
The priest, he witnessed all of this and had a great idea
He saw that people were like sheep; in his mind it became clear
He would supplant the king and plant within them all a new idea
Once he had their minds and souls, their vision he would then make clear
For if they see what he believes (or at least what he claims to see)
They will see a promise greater than themselves, they will be free
“For you see, the king has made you slaves and I shall make you free.
But in order to be free you must believe and pay the fee.
And of course, that freedom is promised, when at last you lay to rest
Give money to the church and turn the cheek when you’re beset.
So…technically, you’re still a slave but when you die, you will be blessed!
So obey the king, but give to me…I mean give to God’s request!”
The king in all his wisdom saw that something was amiss
The priest, forever pious, saw that something did not fit
And both saw a solution that they knew did not exist
Genocide of mind created so that they could get their wish
Fourteener
A Fourteener in Iambic Heptameter
Now, there’s a few things you’ll notice, or should notice right off. My first stanza contains 3 fourteeners. A fourteener is a 14 syllable line, so, if I wanted to go about making this more traditional in order for it to flow more smoothly, I have something I can work with. You may have also noticed that I used a repeating rhyme to introduce the king and then again to introduce the priest. (You may also note I used “free” twice back to back…like I said, this poem wasn’t for the mainstream :))
So, let’s see if we can transform this poem into ALL fourteeners. In order to do this, we may have to change some lines up but still keep the overall meaning. Could be challenging. I’ll be right back with the results :)
Before I post it, I want you to note that a good chunk of this poem is already naturally written as a fourteener. This was NOT by design, it’s just how it came out. That’s how a lot of writing is, especially when employing any sort of rhythm. So, if you’re new to this, don’t beat yourself up trying to create a specific meter, just write and see what you get. You can make a better decision from there.
The king in all his wisdom saw that something was amiss
The priest, forever pious, saw that something did not fit
And both saw a solution that they knew did not exist
Create a genocide of minds so they could get their wish
The king he knew the way he simply told them what to do
They did it; he was pleased but felt that something was not true
Do they do it off his word? Is it just what people do?
Are they born slaves or slaves because he wants it to be true?
To test the thought he gave some extra freedoms to one man
The others did not like it, they just could not comprehend
How one man (‘cept the king of course) could be allowed to stand
Above the others, who was he that they should have to bend
They ridiculed him, cast him down and made of him a fool
The king was highly pleased at this and saw it as a tool
As long as scapegoats kept them riled they cared not that he ruled
So his rule was absolute, whether fair, unfair or cruel
The priest, he witnessed all of this and had a great idea
He saw people were like sheep; in his mind it became clear
Supplant the king and plant within them all a new idea
Once he had their minds and souls, their vision he would make clear
If they can see what he believes (or what he claims to see)
They’ll see a promise greater than themselves, they will be free
“For you see, the king has made you slaves, I shall make you free.
In order to be free you must believe and pay the fee.
Of course, that freedom is promised, when last you lay to rest
Give money to the church and turn the cheek when you’re beset.
Technically, you’re still a slave but when you die, you’ll be blessed!
Obey the king, but give to me! I mean, to God’s request!”
The king in all his wisdom saw that something was amiss
The priest, forever pious, saw that something did not fit
And both saw a solution that they knew did not exist
Create a genocide of minds so they could get their wish
Okay, so now we got it formatted. Each line is 14 syllables long. You’ll notice that this made it flow smoother in some places, but made it really awkward in others. The reason for this is because I payed attention to syllable count but not meter.
Fourteener’s do no necessarily have to be written how I have it here. It’s possible to break the lines as long as they equal up to 14 syllables. In fact, most fourteener’s that I’ve seen are written in couplets and not quatrains like these.
They can also be broken further down, as long as they contain 7 feet and 14 syllables, which brings us to:
Iambic Heptameter
This Line is an Example of iambic heptameter
So, we’re going to try to tighten this poem up further by attempting to restrict it to iambic heptameter. What was that you ask? What IS iambic heptameter?
Iambic heptameter is a meter expressed in 7 feet. A foot is a small measurement of meter, usually in syllables. For instance, an iambis a two-syllable metrical foot. An iamb consists of an unstressed syllable fol
lowed by a stressed one or a short syllable followed by a long one. Think of it as “da-DUM” – that’s one iamb.
Heptameter is just a word that means a meter of 7 iambs. So, 7 iambs give ya 14 syllables…get it?
There are other types of feet as well, so you don’t have to stick to just iambs, you can mix and match em with others…as long as you know what you’re doing. Let’s get into some examples with this piece.
“The king in all his wisdom saw that something was amiss” – this line is perfect. It flows correctly in iambic heptameter. 14 syllables, 7 iambs – well, maybe not perfect. Depends on how you read it.
But this is how we want ALL of the lines to be.
Oh, one more thing. Did you notice the strikeout I put on the word “and” in the third line? It’s because that word does not have to be there to keep the meter straight. A space of time can be the same as a syllable. Understand?
So, let’s see if we can tame this poem into iambic heptameter.
No, I’m not going to go through this word for word. Instead, I’m going to read it out loud. Wherever I stumble or become unsure of how I should say it, is a place where the meter is screwed. You can also try to read it with a metronome, that can be a great help as well.
Something you should remember though – not all strict meter is always good. You don’t have to constrict your verse for the sake of meter. Many great poets break meter regularly to keep the flow tight. Or to make a specific sort of statement.
For instance, I was okay with how this poem originally sounded when I read it out loud…more or less. By tying it up with meter, I’m less satisfied. Meter can force you to sound almost robotic when it’s not mixed up a bit now and then. Also, a fourteener does NOT have to be in heptameter. They traditionally are, but it’s up to your own discretion.
The king in all his wisdom saw that something was amiss
The priest, forever pious, saw that something did not fit
And both saw a solution that they knew did not exist
Create a genocide of minds so they could get their wish
The king he knew the way he simply told them what to do
They did it, he was pleased but felt that something was not true
Do they just obey his words? Was it just what people do?
Are they born slaves or slaves because he wants it to be true?
To test the thought he gave some extra freedoms to one man
The others did not like it, they just could not comprehend
How one man (‘cept the king of course) could be allowed to stand
Above the others, who was he that they should have to bend
They ridiculed him, cast him down and made of him a fool
The king was highly pleased at this and saw it as a tool
As long as scapegoats kept them riled they cared not that he ruled
So his rule was absolute, fair or foul, unfair or cruel
The priest, he witnessed all of this and had a great idea
The people were like unto sheep, his purpose became clear
Supplant the king and plant within them all a new idea
Once he owns their minds and souls, it’s their vision he’d make clear
If they can see what he believes (or what he claims to see)
They’ll see a promise greater than themselves, these devotees
“For you see, the king has made you slaves, I shall make you free.
In order to be free you must believe and pay the fee.
Of course that promised freedom, comes along with final rest
Give money to the church and turn the cheek when you’re beset.
Technically, you’re still a slave, when you die, you’ll all be blessed!
Obey the king, but give to me! I mean, to God’s request!”
The king in all his wisdom saw that something was amiss
The priest, forever pious, saw that something did not fit
And both saw a solution that they knew did not exist
Create a genocide of minds so they could get their wish
Well, that’s that. Now, there’s a bunch of different things I could have done to mix it up and make it fresh. I could have broken the rules of meter, or I could have used something other than iambic heptameter. I could have used alternating 12 and 14 syllable couplets or something. There are an infinite amount of possibilities.
In fact, a more traditional way of breaking up a fourteener in iambic heptameter is to split it between two lines, typically 4 iambs on one and 3 on the other:
The king in all his wisdom saw
That something was amiss
The priest forever pious saw
That something did not fit
But that would have created an overly long poem for me. However, if I were to take the next step in constricting this poem even further, I would go about breaking it down into this 4/3 iamb structure…but this post has gone on long enough :)
Even as it is, I’m not sure if I did exactly what I was trying to do. Maybe somebody who studies these things will chime in and let me know where I erred :) This was actually my very, very first time (outside of writing a sonnet in high school) that I intentionally tried to dissect my writing and make it more traditional with a specific meter…how did I do?
I notice, the more practiced
make it seem so fluid smooth
I’ll try to practice up until
I too can do that too :))
For further application, you can also use these tools in writing other things as well. Apply it to lyrics if you’re looking for a specific sort of cadence (especially devastating when applied to head nodding beats) – you can use it in your prose of fiction when you want to convey a specific feeling, although, it probably won’t be rhymed (it’s called blank verse, play with it) – and I’m not talking specifically about heptameter, experiment with other forms of meter and different feet. As I do the same, I’ll add posts similar to this one :)
Some further reading? Be sure to check the hyperlinks in the post itself, most are from Wikipedia of course.
I love this chick Frankie (@idowhatilike) – she has a blog where pretty much every post is written in iambic heptameter, admittedly, it hasn’t been updated in a while, but you should check it out if this particular meter interests you (I did, while writing this post, it’s good stuff) – http://thingsihaveloved.wordpress.com/
I’m often asked where does the name SilencioBarnes come from and I always wanted to write a post that I could direct people who want a full explanation to (is that pretentious?) -
Anywho, it’s no big mystery. However, to understand the name you must understand a coupla things first:
What’s In a Name?
Really? If you were called by anything else…wouldn’t you still be you?
I’ve had quite a few names over time, and I still answer to all of them. Here’s a non-exhaustive list:
Lil Shady (after a name they apparently used to call my father)
Preacher (from how I talk)
Malcolm (from how I carried myself…and talked)
Poet (I would guess for obvious reasons)
Nalij (Knowledge)
Barnes (or Mr. Barnes)
There’s a few more. Some of which I’ve forgotten and some are the types of pet names I got from relatives or women (such as SheenyBeeny and Boops). Some involve my government name (such as RaRa and SheenSheen) and some just came about in an organic way involving a place, time and situation (“Great Mind”…again, supposedly after my father…but in a different town).
However, although I still answer to each of those, SilencioBarnes (or Silence Born) is the name I’ve settled on :)
SilencioBarnes is an amalgamation of two different names – Silencio (Silence) and Nalij Barnes (Knowledge Born)
SilencioBarnes is written in CamelCase when used as my uh, rap name. It’s written separately as Silencio Barnes when used in any other context. Why? I don’t know.
Barnes (Born)
So, here it is. I’ll start with the Barnes part, as that came first. Around my way, I chose the name Nalij for myself (a bastardization of Knowledge) – there are many reasons for this. For one, I felt the name suited me; the name fit my personality…more or less. Even the deliberate misspelling of it had more to do with my idea of twisted knowledge than any sort of hooded out affectation :)
To this day, I’m still known as Nalij (or Barnes) to many and I readily answer to it.
It must be noted that at this time I was also on my 5 Percenter shit, studying my 120 and all that. (Side Note: Here’s somebody’s interesting challenge to the 120) Barnes is a bastardization of the word Born. Born being represented by the #9 in Supreme Mathematics and Knowledge by the #1. When the movie Belly came out, there was a character named Knowledge in it (yes, the name Knowledge is quite ubiquitous among the Nation of Gods and Earths). Now there’s a point where the character played by Method Man greets him with “Knowledge Born! What’s the Science?!?” – this saying spread around the hood like wildfire and from then on out, anytime I was introduced to somebody as Nalij…they would say that catch phrase…it stuck. But understand, that when ya say “Born” it comes out sounding like “Bones” or “Barnes” :)) That’s just hood vernacular in action for ya.
It got to the point where people would just drop the Nalij and call me Barnes. That’s where the Barnes comes from.
Silencio (Silence)
Silencio – well, that’s a different and much shorter story. At one point in my life I went to trade school, the Cassadaga Job Corps center to be exact. While there, due to my initial reticence to talk much when around strangers, a bunch of the Spanish kids started calling me Silencio. It stuck. To the point where non-hispanics would call me Silence. I liked the name and ran with it. It fit who I was at that place and time. I also wanted to get away from the GodBody stuff as it no longer held any interest for me. I always appreciated it’s core concepts…but building with the Gods can get a little confusing (imagine talking politics and race relations with a dude named C Peace Cipher Divine I Allah that throws more slang, acronyms, abbreviations, big words and metaphors at you than a street poet’s bible (in ONE sentence!) and you’ll get the picture).
At one point, I was thinking of doing something with my music but was dismayed when I did a search for Nalij and found that there was a million of em – but as I identified with Nalij most, I was at a loss as to what to do about it. Eventually I came up with the idea of putting the Silencio with the Barnes. I thought it was rather clever and unique (yes, I know it’s a mouthful at 5 syllables). The problem with that was…what to do with all the music where I call myself Nalij? :))
There is a special, spiritual and poetic significance to my name as well. Playing with the concept of Silence and the idea of Born. Sometimes it pops up in my work although I can only think of one example at the moment; the chorus of my quick track challenge track, Silk
“I think, therefore I stay in form, with darkness comes the quiet storm
Within that storm my thought is formed and that is where my Silence Borns”
– And sometimes it just means to bear the weight of silence.
Get it? No? Well…fuck it then, I tried.
– yea…and if you actually just read all of that…then I love you. No, seriously.
I haven’t been writing poetry consistently for a good long while now, it’s hard to get back into that deliberate mindset
I haven’t tried to write poetry specifically for publication in years – it’s a different process…
I am using several different methods for trying to write these poems, some of which are very new to me
I’ve also been writing a bunch of haiku as well…but that’s something different :)
I’ve never really thought about the ocean before. I mean…not poetically. I don’t swim (can’t) and I never really spent a lot of time at the beach or on a boat. But I do appreciate the ocean as an entity. A giver and sustainer of life.
With that being said, I wanted to come from a unique angle and I’ve had a few ideas. For instance: I noticed that when I moved to PA, something was missing. I didn’t know what it was, but I realized when I took a trip back to my hometown (Amityville NY on Long Island) that what was missing, was the presence of the ocean. I never noticed nor payed attention to the vibe you get by being close to the ocean, after all, I was born and raised close to it. Nope, didn’t notice it…until it was no longer there to feel.
I think I found something to explore in that. I recorded some audio of me talking about the experience. I’m going to use that to craft a poem or two (that was one of the new methods I’m trying :).
I’ve also had a few other ideas and have already written a few poems that I’m letting incubate…and I’m actually kind of sad that I can’t share the work with you all :( I want to, but many places consider online publication (even on a personal website) to be a relinquishing of first time rights (which is what most publications buy) and sometimes, electronic rights too.
But we can talk about the ocean! And if anybody would want to share some words here in the comments – or on facebook or twitter - on the subject, then feel free.
Listeriosis, a serious infection usually caused by eating food contaminated with the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes, is an important public health problem in the United States. The disease primarily affects older adults, pregnant women, newborns, and adults with weakened immune systems. However, rarely, persons without these risk factors can also be affected. The risk may be reduced by following a few simple recommendations.
What are the symptoms of listeriosis?
A person with listeriosis usually has fever and muscle aches, often preceded by diarrhea or other gastrointestinal symptoms. Almost everyone who is diagnosed with listeriosis has “invasive” infection, in which the bacteria spread beyond the gastrointestinal tract. The symptoms vary with the infected person:
Pregnant women: Pregnant women typically experience only a mild, flu-like illness. However, infections during pregnancy can lead to miscarriage, stillbirth, premature delivery, or life-threatening infection of the newborn.
Persons other than pregnant women: Symptoms, in addition to fever and muscle aches, can include headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, and convulsions.
As of 11am EDT on September 26, 2011, a total of 72 persons infected with the four outbreak-associated strains of Listeriamonocytogenes have been reported to CDC from 18 states. All illnesses started on or after July 31, 2011. The number of infected persons identified in each state is as follows: California (1), Colorado (15), Florida (1), Illinois (1), Indiana (2), Kansas (5), Maryland (1), Missouri (1), Montana (1), Nebraska (6), New Mexico (10), North Dakota (1), Oklahoma (8), Texas (14), Virginia (1), West Virginia (1), Wisconsin (2), and Wyoming (1).
Thirteen deaths have been reported: 2 in Colorado, 1 in Kansas, 1 in Maryland, 1 in Missouri, 1 in Nebraska, 4 in New Mexico, 1 in Oklahoma, and 2 in Texas.
As you can see, this is serious stuff. Especially if you’re elderly or pregnant. The recall is on cantaloupes shipped by Jensen Farms – Rocky Ford cantaloupe. It’s possible they may contain this sticker on them: http://www.cdc.gov/listeria/images/cantaloupe-sticker.jpg
Sigh…I ran into all types of issues while trying to put this track together…but I won’t bore you with the details :)
I thought this track up while…walking down an empty hallway at work. It was as if the environment lent itself to self-evaluation. So, I asked questions…but the hallway remained silent :(
As usual, it probably sounded better in my head than it does recorded :P I used another one of those Big B beats, it’s called Twisted, and I thought it worked well for the what I was trying to do (in my head) – maybe he’ll take the acappella and throw it onto another beat. Let me know what you think people.
In an empty hallway, I let my mental float Hoping that it reaches a so much better coast I ask my fading hopes for the things I want the most But it’s just an empty hallway, quiet as a ghost
Where did all my time go, where are all my folks Caught up in day to day or struggling I suppose Where are all my old friends, they vanished in the smoke Caught up in the hustle or chasing after hoes
Maybe I’m just bitter cuz I feel I’m getting old And the things I’m used to doing don’t do much for me no more So maybe I’ve been searching for that thing that makes my core glow Maybe I’m just fooling myself, maybe I’m just bored though
Don’t ask about the future cuz no one ever knows They say they going somewhere but no one ever goes They claim they know the secret but no one ever shows Man, that secret they can keep it, I’m on another road
I’m driving in the fast lane but they moving too slow Everything is my way, it’s fucking up my flow Poisoning my baby food, they don’t want me to grow Please don’t think I’m greedy when I say I’m bout the dough
In an empty hallway, I let my mental float Hoping that it reaches a so much better coast I ask my fading hopes for the things I want the most But it’s just an empty hallway, quiet as a ghost
I got demons on the inside telling me attack Demons on the outside riding on my back Angels keep on falling tryna keep my ass on track But my angels lack the gumption so they let me fade to black
They are not the reason this is not their fault Sometimes I keep my feelings locked inside my vault When I pull them out people seem to be appalled So I gotta put them back in and switch to my default
The last time it was all good I really can’t recall They say to keep your pride but that comes before the fall They say if I need help all I gotta do is call But when I make the call they say they can’t help at all so
They ask me if I love them, I keep them so enthralled They ask me for my love but first I have to make them crawl Sometimes I get so caught up I forget that it’s all false It’s just another memory that plagues this empty hall
So, I hooked up my microphone for the first time in this new room just to see how it sounds. I had the urge to wanna start recording again so I made this test track using some old lyrics on an old Big B beat.
The result? Well…terrible. But I expected that. The problem is, the room is kinda cavernous, plus, it’s untreated in anyway. The next problem is something I never really stopped to think about too much: the fact that I’m recording over low quality mp3′s – Now any studio engineer will tell you that they dread when an artist comes in and hands them the track they are going to be recording over as an mp3, already mastered, already deadened by the conversion process etc. – They have a few tricks that help, but I’m not so musically inclined. I just don’t have the ears.
So after this next batch of songs, I’ll only be recording over beats I can find tracked out, uncompressed or at least in .wav format. Barring that, the mp3 has to be 320kbs, no less. Something I have to tell Big B since he tends to send me mp3s in the 128-192kbps range. It especially hurts because I tend to record at like 88k/32bit :)) Upconverting an mp3 to that just so I can rhyme over it is kinda overkill.
Another problem is mixing…I have no monitors! So all of my, ahem, mixing (or close proximity thereof) is done in headphones…which is a big no-no. I try to play the tracks on different devices to see how it sounds (usually terrible) but it’s kinda pointless and tedious without the monitors.
Anywho, here is the track. Keep in mind it’s a test track…using lyrics from a thousand years ago :)) You should probably listen to it through headphones, and for the love of Saint Cecilia please don’t attempt to turn it up loud! You’ll regret it :))
Filename Bullet2Heart.mp3 Title Bullet2Heart Artist SilencioBarnes Album PracticeWordz Year 2011 Genre Rap Bitrate 320 Freq 44100 Duration 0:02:41 Size 6.3 Mb
See Mixing and Mastering My Sound part 1 for more complaing :)
A gritty mind-bending thriller about three twenty-somethings who find themselves in an impossible time labyrinth, where each day they awaken to the same terrifying day as the preceding one.
The other day I sat down and watched this movie Repeaters. I hadn’t previously heard of it, but saw that it was recommended here and there as a new sci-fi-ish movie that was worth a look. All-in-all…it was an okay movie. Just okay. I mean, your mileage may vary, but it’s a decent watch.
I suppose it’s impossible to talk about this movie without first talking about Groundhog Day. And I KNOW you’ve seen Groundhog Day. If you haven’t, then you should immediately get a copy however you choose and watch it before reading anymore of this article. Go ahead…I’ll wait.
Now, if you’ve seen Groundhog Day, you probably walked away from it thinking something like: “If that was me, I would’ve (insert heinous/criminal act)” – Well, Repeaters is sorta like that. But instead of Bill Murray, it’s three twenty-something-year-old recovering addicts…in rehab. Yes…hilarity ensues.
Well, not really. This is a very serious and dark movie. There are scenes and situations that will make the darker hearted of us laugh…but they might make some of you cringe as well. Is it a very good movie? I wouldn’t say so. But it’s adequate.
It’s a Canadian flick which I didn’t know until after watching it. It stars a few faces you may remember, Dustin Milligan, Amanada Crew (both were in Final Destination 3) and Richard de Klerk. All three of these actors have spent a lot of time doing television (US and Canadian) so they’re not exactly newbies to the screen.
However, with that being said, I find that I didn’t much care for the characters they portrayed. The script called for a few scenes that were supposed to make you feel something for these people, but in the end, I didn’t really care. The actors performed within the confines of the lines given them, but none of them transcended their roles in any way. Well, Richard de Klerk gave it a good try. All in all, I think this may be one of those movies where the script is better than the final product.
Ultimately, I think this movie is asking us what would we do if we knew that each new day started with a clean slate, no matter what you may have done the day before. I’m sure there are also a few metaphors involving addicts and how, to them, each day is just like any other when your sole raison d’etre is chasing that next fix.
I don’t know. But the Canadians certainly loved it. I found it an entertaining escape and well worth a watch. Maybe with a friend or two and some smoke in the air. There’s enough tension and action to keep your eyes on the screen. There’s also enough to drive some deep philosophical and intellectual discussion…if you’re into that sorta thing.
In the end, I think this movie would have been so, so much better…if Groundhog Day didn’t exist :)
Also, this movie is not on DVD in the US as of yet (don’t ask me how I got my copy ;) I’ve only seen it on the Canadian Amazon website, no mention of it on the US site. There’s not even a Wikipedia article!
There’s an official website as well as a Facebook Page – for more info and discussions, you can check IMDB
Child of Kings is actually the last track I finished for my Track Every Other Day Challenge – It’s short and quick like the others in that series and it’s done over a Three-Six Mafia beat I found in one of these instrumental collections of mines. It’s one song that I was actually really proud of…why? I dunno, but I sure as hell like playing it :)) Maybe you will too!
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