Thursday, January 28, 2010

RIP JD Salinger

Sad news today: author and long time recluse/hermit JD Salinger has passed away at the age of 91 in New Hampshire. Salinger has penned such masterpieces as "Catcher in the Rye" "Franny and Zooey" and "Nine Stories".

I spent the better part of the day trying to think of exactly what to write in what I hoped would be a mini-tribute to this life-changing author. It is apparent to me now that I have no words to describe the extent of which his writing has effected a great number of teens at some point in their lives. This is author whose book was banned from high schools because it was thought to be too provocative, but turned out to be an eye-opener for multiple generations. It is said that the man who shot John Lennon was inspired to do so after reading this novel. I, on the other hand, had no such motives but was changed in one way or another after a reading of this book. I've read it multiple times since and I still enjoy it just as much each time.

The novel that inspired my pen name, "Franny and Zooey" should be enough proof of how deeply Salinger's writings have been imprinted into my character. I often wish my future spouse's last name will just happen to be "Glass".

I know this tiny tiny tribute does no justice to the genius that is JD Salinger, but believe me when I tell you that he is much more than an author. Read his works and you will know what I mean.

From the bottom of my heart, I wish he rests in peace in a place much better than this one, where he may continue to influence all those around him and still stay out of the spotlight. And I hope he forgives me for being so cheesy as to quote from his own writings: "This is a perfect day for banana fish"

Forever in his debt (more than figuratively if I had to pay royalties for using the name),

- Franny.

Friday, January 15, 2010

Haiti Earthquake Disaster

First of all, I apologize for not posting this sooner, but I have been very busy with school. I know that is a terrible excuse, but it is what it is, and I sincerely apologize. By now all of you have probably heard about the earthquake that hit Haiti on Tuesday. The earthquake was charted at a magnitude of 7.2 while some of the aftershocks were charted in the 5-6 range.

A phenomenon like this always puts things in perspective for people when sometimes we forget. Our daily little troubles, like choosing what we want to eat for dinner, are so minuscule they don't even compare to the troubles that an entire nation is going through right now.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper was very quick to get aid to Haiti as soon as he heard what had happened. Military and medical supplies were shipping out and hefty dollar donations were flooding in Thursday as Canadians responded fast and furiously.

The federal government announced a program to match donations dollar-for-dollar from Canadians to build an emergency fund of up to $100 million toward humanitarian efforts in the earthquake zone.

After dropping his own donation at the Red Cross office in Ottawa, Prime Minister Stephen Harper, hinted the government will soon relax immigration rules to help reunite Haitian families in Canada. “The minister of immigration has been discussing these matters with us and we will have announcements in the not-too distant future,” he said, noting the situation is “complicated.”

Liberal MP Jim Karygiannis accused the government of acting to score points in the Montreal area which has a large Haitian community (which is a shameful thing to say). He said permanent protocols should be put in place so they can kick in fast when disasters occur around the world.

Also, the first group of Canadians caught in Haiti's earthquake arrived in Montreal early Friday morning. The nearly 100 evacuees were brought home on the same military aircraft that carried Canadian soldiers into the disaster zone Thursday. A second plane carrying more evacuees followed closely behind. However, it is being reported that 4 Canadians were killed in the earthquake while 4 others are still missing.

The B.C. government is contributing $500,000 to the Red Cross to support victims of Tuesday's earthquake in Haiti. I have already donated $150 to the Red Cross, I would have spent that money buying a new pair of shoes but that didn't seem right. So I urge you all to do the same, every donation counts even if it's just $15. You can donate to the Red Cross by clicking this link: Donate Now.

May our thoughts and prayers be with those in Haiti.

Peace and Much Love To Ya

Monday, January 11, 2010

Negligence.

Heyo ya'll! Hope the New Year has been treating you well! It sure has been awhile since my last post and I must thank my dear co-blogger-extraordinaire Jabberwocky for stepping up during my inexcusable absence. Here's what I've been up to: (Warning: major "news" dump)

- Currently I am in my Creative Writing for New Media class that is quite interesting. I'm not entirely sure which direction we're taking pertaining to the title of the class but we're constantly talking about blogging (which I apparently do occasionally).

- I realize that football, pro and college, is not my sport. I love watching it, but every team I choose to have a successful season ends up on the wrong side of history. I wasn't a huge fan of college football before this year but after watching a few games, I set my heart on the Texas Longhorns to win the BCS and QB Colt McCoy to win the Heisman Trophy. Unfortunately (for me anyway), Mark Ingram of Alabama won the Heisman and the Crimson Tide won the BCS. I'd rather not mention the NFL...Bears...Patriots...Steelers...*sigh*

- I'm in two political science classes but it seems I've been ignoring politics these days. I can't remember the last time I saw KO on Countdown rather than Football Night in America on TV (thank god for podcasts). I do know that health care is about to pass and that Americans aren't happy with it because for Democrats it's insufficient and for Republicans the fact that it's happening at all is upsetting. My opinion? One of the few things I like about Canada, besides Mr. Harper, is that I never have to care about my health. Or who pays for it. Ever.

- Mark McGwire admits to using steroids? *Yawn* Should've admitted this on a Friday so I don't have to pretend to care for the rest of this week.

- Derek Jeter is getting married? Don't pull a Tiger buddy. Minka Kelly is a very lucky lady.

- Finally, I want to congratulate (for like the Nth time) Patrick "Seton" O'Connor from the Dan Patrick Show for getting "it" done. "It" being big boy things such as the birth of his son lil Jeets, who may or may not have been born yet but should be born today...This birthing thing is very difficult for me to understand through his sporadic tweets so forgive me if it has/hasn't happened yet.

I think that's enough for ya'll today. I am confident I will have more concise posts in the future, but then again, can't promise anything really. I'm sounding more and more like a politician everyday...

- Franny.

Saturday, January 2, 2010

Let DeMar Dunk!!!

Toronto Raptors rookie DeMar DeRozan is getting a little outside push to get a spot in the NBA all-star slam dunk contest, and since I love the Raptors I thought I should do all I could to make it happen.

The high-flying Raptors rookie, has been given no indication he will even be considered for such a spot when the league finally gets around to putting the field together. He has made it clear that he would love to have the opportunity to take part in the highlight event of the all-star weekend festivities in Dallas this year. In an interview with RealGM, DeRozan even went as far as saying that he could win the dunk contest this year even if "His Airness" himself was his main competitor.

“Yeah I can win it,” said DeRozan. “I don’t care if Jordan was in it.”

Some old friends at Ballislife.com, who have followed DeRozan since he was a junior in high school, in conjunction with Team Flight All-Stars (TFA), have started an Internet campaign to get DeRozan one of those spots.

You can take part by going to http://www.letdemardunk.com and signing the online petition. Let's get DeMar in the Dunk Contest!!!

Here is the official Ballislife Demar Mixtape of his high school days, just let the video play out rather than following the links in the video,





Peace and Much Love To Ya :)