In the spirit of Halloween...

Having just read a rather creepy article on Cracked.com, I now give you the urban legends of our time that are completely true. Enjoy.

1. The feeling of being watched.

You all know the feeling. You're alone in your house, and suddenly, you just feel like someone is there. You can ignore it and rationalize it all you want, but it doesn't go away. The creepy part is that sometimes... you may actually be being watched. A man had this happen several times, and so, when he went to work, he set up cameras in the style of Paranormal. He then watched the tapes when he came home, and had the scare of his life. Nothing for a while, then a surprise. A woman walked out of his pantry, did some things around the house, and went back into the pantry, and did not come out again... the pantry that was literally inches from where he sat watching the video. A quick search discovered her, and he found that apparently she had been in the house for over a year, eating and showering while he was at work.

2. The body in the hotel bed.

An often-cited story that winds up at every campfire party. A couple rents a hotel room, and it smells funny, but they don't want to complain about it, so they just sleep and change the sheets the next morning. What they find is a tangle of rotting flesh, bones, and clothes under the mattress. This actually happens more than you might expect; a motel mattress is a great place to hide your dead body if you think about it.

3. The man-eating escalator.

Sure, we've all feared that machine of metal that carries our lazy rear ends to the next level when we were little, but we're mature enough to know that it's an irrational fear, right? Wrong. The contraptions known as escalators thirst for human blood. No joke. On several occasions, shoelaces have been caught in the joints and crevices, and people have bent to get them out. I can't stress this next part enough: do not, on any account, try to get them out with your hands unless you want a few less fingers. Escalators have minds of their own, and will not hesitate to rip your fingers from your hand. To quote a nationally-certified escalator safety manager: "It's unbelievable what an escalator can do to human flesh."

People have died by strangulation as well when their hoods are caught in the system. People have lost pieces of feet, toes, and hands to these things. Maybe a ski lift made from chainsaws will be next.

So, now that I've made you wince at least once, happy Halloween!

Ender's Game

The title of my all time favorite book. If you haven't read it, I suggest you do, but I must warn you. It's not for the faint-hearted. This book has shaped my life in more ways than I can think of. Under a thick disguise of science fiction, the book is also deeply psychological and even more philosophical, and gives you much to think about even as you turn the last page. Among other things, it had taught me to try to understand what people mean instead of what they say, and that the best teacher you can have is your worst enemy, and that in some cases, your worst enemy is yourself.

I don't expect many of you to read it, but if you do and/or have, please discuss it with me. It's a great books for geeks like me as well, so any/all of you who are geeks should love it.

All in all, I would argue that it is one the greatest books ever written, bar none. If you are 14 or older, I would highly encourage it.

On another note, here is the trailer for the upcoming film The Avengers: http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi1636408857

You're thoughts on any of this?

Daniel

Purpose

There is so much in this life that goes beyond the simple 'body mind soul' mentality. Ecclesiastes 3 says it best:

a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
a time to tear, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;

a time to love, and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace.

Life must not be lived in excess of any one thing; one shouldn't spend all his or her time working out and skipping class. In the same way, one shouldn't study all the time and never cut lose. Perhaps even harder is that one should not be actively praying all the time. Not that you should not make every action a prayer, but physically kneeling down and actually speaking to God should not be done all the time. It makes for a dangerously uneven wheel.

Now that I've had a deep thought, I'll tell you what this blog is about. It will be about everything. No joke. Sometimes it will be as simple as a review of a book I read or a movie I saw; sometimes it will be as complex as the meaning of life. I have no problem with people disagreeing with me, so please argue back. A huge part of life is simulating discussion, and I look forward to your comments.