Making The World A Better Place

Making the world a better place isn't going to happen by any big idea or huge movement. It's going to happen by everyday people and companies working together. A major thing I wish the United States would see is how much better glass products are rather than plastic. I visited Europe a few years ago and most of all drinks were bottled in glass rather than plastic. The glass is much easier to be recycled than plastic and is much more organic. Melting and reshaping glass is much simpler than trying to recycle plastic products. Oh yeah, as far as driving, manual transmissions should be required. Think about the typical American driving experience. You get in your car, you turn it on, you put it in drive and that's that. This allows for pretty much anyone to be able to be on the road. Which could be dangerous. To pass your driving test in Europe you must first pass it driving a car with a manual transmission. There's a reason DWI rates are lower in Europe. Think about it. Could you imagine a person under the influence trying to shift gears, or even get a car going in manual? No way. It makes it tougher on the person but it also keeps them off the road.. depending how "gone" they are. Also driving manual makes you a lot more focused on the road, the conditions, and what's going on around you. You don't have time to text, read the newspaper, and have your thanksgiving feast while driving. Americans put down manual transmissions. Why? Most of the time the reply is because "it's too much work." Yeah, and that's why America is the way it is...

Check Your Tire Pressure

No but seriously. Check your tire pressure. Hi, Rudy here with your weekly automotive tip (haha). Going down the road I cringe every time I see a poorly inflate tire bulging out at the bottom due to the extreme weight of what's above it. Ironically the driver most likely complains about his poor gas mileage. Did you know that if your tires are properly filled your gas mileage could improve by up to five miles per gallon? For some reason people look at airing up their tires as this big monstrous task that maybe they should just leave up to their mechanic. Well uh, it doesn't require a lift or anything crazy like that! Just a compressor. If you or your father doesn't have one you can find one at most local gas stations, car washes, and any place where cars are serviced. Be sure to also have a tire pressure gauge as well. To find what pressure (psi) is optimal for your tires just look at the face of them. Somewhere you'll see the reccomended pressure. After finding this check what the current pressure rating is by using your pressure gauge. If it's low, put a little air in and recheck the gauge, if it's too high do the exact opposite!  Expect to spend up to a minute or so on each tire. I recommend checking them every week or so, it just takes five minutes. Filling up your tires to the right pressure will only make them last longer, perform better and save you some gas money so go and check yours right now, RIGHT NOW I SAID!

December 23rd

My band plays a lot of shows every year. Some good, some alright, some just plain dumb. The show matters a lot on the venue which it is held at, who is running it and most importantly, who shows up! Club Infinity is a venue I always look forward to playing. This place really has it down. The sound guy know's exactly what he's doing and owns most of the sound equipment in the place. You can always count on getting a great sound there. Also if you're headlining there, like how my band does sometimes the lighting guy also does a phenomenal job. The room's just big enough to pack people in there to make it look bigger than it is. Playing there is also nice because it's closer to drive to. Which doesn't mean much for me, but mostly to local fans. When you tell your friend's at school you're playing at a club downtown most don't feel like making the drive. Club Infinity always seems to make them want to go. It's close, it's convenient and it has a bar for the parents and a kitchen for the kids. Great place to see and play a show. My band will be headlining the annual Christmas show there this year. Come and see us December 23rd, live at Club Infinity!

Thanksgiving Traditions-

I don't really have any major thanksgiving traditions. Something a little cool my family does is switch who hosts Thanksgiving and Christmas. This year for example my aunt hosted thanksgiving and therefore my family will have everyone over on Christmas. Kind of a cool way to spread all the holidays out evenly and get together at each other's houses. Besides that I think I have the general thanksgiving experience. Turkey, stuffy, mashed potatoes, gravy, lots of drinks, lots of corn and turkey. One thing we do every year is watch Christmas Vacation. I love this movie. Not only is it a classic and very funny but it also gets you right in the mood for Christmas which is ultimately right around the corner! This year we hung out at my aunts awhile before coming home and watching the movie. Besides stuffing my face I helped my Uncle set up his new wireless router, and external hard drive. Knowing as much as I do about technology I've sort of become the I.T. person in the family. It's nice being able to help everyone but at the same time, sometimes frustrating. My family tends to not always be the most patient folk when dealing with fragile technology. Either way I enjoy helping everyone out!

Favorite Holiday

My favorite holiday of all time... hmm you know, I'm probably going to have to say Christmas. I love Christmas for many reasons. The snow, which we don't have too much of yet, always sets a good mood. The lights are another big thing I like about this holiday. The lights and how they glow onto the snow and into the cold and dark nights make neighborhoods look like cheerful winter villages. Also finding, cutting down and decorating the tree is always nice. Then there's Christmas Eve. Even though I'm seventeen now Christmas eve feels just as cheerful and magical as it ever did. Plus it's my moms birthday. Normally for Christmas eve we visit my grandparents in Cheektowaga. There we exchange gifts and eat a huge dinner which my grandma probably spends a week on preparing. (Seriously). Driving home from there is always really nice. Being out on Christmas ever seeing all the decorated houses and what not, it's nice. I've always like Christmas and I can't wait to have kids sometime way down the road in my life so I can watch them enjoy it as much as I always have.

Recording in NYC

This winter my band will be recording our third release. The first was a four track disc recorded in 2009. Listening to it now I cringe. The stuff sounded great for how old we were at the time and what we were capable of as musicians but nothing like our second release and debut album. This one we spent months and months of just writing. The songs we would throw around and play at shows to see how they'd work out. We had a few winners in there and I think the album really showed how much we had progressed as musicians. We spent days here and there during the summer of 2010 recording it and the process was always interesting but most importantly fun. We recorded it in our producers basement so it was nice to let other members record their parts while working on our own in a different part of the house. It was a great experience to say the least. This year we will be recording four brand new songs which we've written over the past six or seven months. We've wrote, thrown away, changed, and written more and better parts to find what we like the best. Now that we have what we feel to be a solid set of songs we're going to be recording them over christmas break. The drums will be recorded at the goo goo doll's studio in Buffalo and the rest will be recorded and produced at our producers studio in New York City. Words can't describe how excited I am for it!

Where's The Snow?

Blame global warming, blame lake erie, blame whatever.. the fact of the matter is that it is December Twelfth and we've only had one snowstorm so far this year. Where is it?! Normally by this time of year we're sledding down bunny hills, skiing doing larger ones and shoveling our snow covered driveways. But as I look out the window I still see the leaves of fall, and the grass of summer. Very odd isn't it? Then again, as I think... do we really want all the snow? Do we want all the salt on the road, the ice to slip on and the slippery conditions? Well, personally, I think I do. I love the winter for a little bit. That's right,  I said a little bit. December and January are great. The cold weather and snow provide the perfect scenery for Christmas time leading up to and after New Years. Cutting down the Christmas tree wouldn't feel right without the cold snow packed underneath you as you lay there cutting it down. While the snowfall this year has been light I think we're in for quite the beating. Warmer temperatures have caused Lake Erie to warm to abnormal temperatures. With the cooler winds blowing in snow is inevitable. I wouldn't be surprised if this is one of the worst winters we've had in a few years; that is, if it comes at all!

New Vs. Used

A common misperception in today's economy is that buying used items is almost always cheaper than buying new. Honestly I have to say there are some used gems out there that are a great buy and will save you a lot of money. Although, In my opinion it's actually better to buy something new and just get the best deal on it that you can. Cars may devalue a couple thousand dollars when you drive them off the lot, but at least you know what you're paying for. Used cars can save you tons of money, but you don't have a clue what they've been through, or how they've been treated. The same goes for all electronics. That four month old Apple MacBook looks great and especially for two hundred dollars less than market price! Don't get me wrong here, I love finding used stuff which I can save money on but sometimes if we really need something to be reliable and we're going to use it a lot we should maybe just buy it new. That way we know how it has been treated and taken care of. Not to mention if you have a decent job, financing also makes many things affordable and accessible. Buying used could save you hundreds of dollars, but it is also filled with risks and uncertainty. Buy smart. 

Favorites In Media

My favorite book ever has to be Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. The reason I like it so much is because I feel I resemble the main character, Holden in a few ways. For instance Holden very much so values innocence but yet he isn’t exactly innocent himself. I connected with this book very much, especially because of what I was going through when I read it. I believe something which can make any book better is when you can find a personal connection in a way to the story and or characters. Then in a way it almost feels as if the book was written about or for you. Either way, Catcher in the Rye is a great story and it qualifies as a book I wouldn’t mind reading again!

Favorite movies? That’s a tough one. I guess to answer this best I’ll have to say my current, recently released favorite. Then I’ll talk about my favorite classic and then one of my other favorites! So currently, my favorite, recently released movie is Horrible Bosses. Yeah yeah it came out many months ago but having it on Blu-Ray is like relieving the humor and entertainment I experienced in the theater every time I watch it. What makes this movie so great is the unexpected writing style of it combined with the great actors, semi-adult humor and action. Everything about this movie is just straight out done well. My favorite classic movie of all time is a tough one as well. Honestly, I’d have to say Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. I love this movie. Watching the day unfold and how Ferris manages to get away with things is hilarious. Also another favorite movie which goes along with the time of the year right now would be, National Lampoon’s, “Christmas Vacation.” The movie follows the Grizwald family through their very interesting and stressful holiday season leading up to and including Christmas. It’s a very funny story perfect to watch with the family for the holidays!

I surprisingly don’t have a “favorite” genre of music. I will admit I find myself listening to rock alternative more than other genres but honestly I like anything besides modern country music (regurgitated pop music). In one day I could go from listening to the soft, mellow acoustic stylings of Bon Iver, straight to the hard rap of Kanye West. Some of my current favorite artists are Coldplay, The Foo Fighters, Rage Against The Machine, The Killers, Mac Miller, Drake, Kanye West, Bon Iver… as you can see a huge diversity in music. As far as classical music it’s not that I don’t like it or anything, I just don’t find myself listening to it often. I respect the genre greatly though.  To sum it up, there aren’t many genres of music I dislike and the genre I find listening to most often would be Alternative/Indie/Rock.

In the future...

What I'd like to do after high school is a question thats been running through my mind for many years. I've been in a band the past few years. The past year has been really big for us. We've packed local clubs and venues and have written and recorded an entire album. We're not taken seriously by many in our school, but outside of school we're very well known and very well received. This winter we're going to be spending a week in New York City with our producer recording our next project. These songs we record this winter are the ones we're going to be sending around to record labels and people who are, "higher up." It's a very exciting time for the band but being a realistic person I know I have to have a back up plan. Which is easy for me because I'm also very passionate about film. I've already started my own side project where I make money my shooting weddings and commercials for which I've already done a few. So I guess to answer the question you're asking I have big plans for when I leave high school. The current plan is to go to a local college such as Buffalo State for a year, just until our bassist gets out of school. Then we plan on moving to Chicago and trying to make it there. There I will attend Columbia College of the Arts, majoring in film production. So if the band falls through, I'll have a budding career in film going on as well. If I choose to pursue film in my life, I'd like to be a producer of a television show.

Favorite Class So Far

So far this has been a reasonably easy year. A light course load; but full of courses that make sense in relation to what I want to do in life. I would say this year the course that I feel I'll learn the most from is Media Production. In this class I produce our schools news (WACS NEWS). I have to be honest, technically I haven't learned much more than I have already known. Where I'm really learning is with dealing with people. Classmates, former students, and my co-producer. Somedays everything flows perfectly, other days I find myself frustrated, annoyed and feeling like giving it up. All of the things I have to put up with, the attitudes, the weird personalities, the laziness, it all just makes me a stronger person. In the real world I'm going to have to interact with tons of different people, learning how to handle different sorts of people now will only help me when I'm in college or when I have a career. While somedays I feel as if I'm wasting my time in there I know in that class I'm most likely learning more, and more important things than I am in other classes this year. Sure economics may be more important but learning life lessons in a high school class is priceless. Every days different and I'm always becoming stronger and more refined, no matter what.

Best Teacher?

If I had to choose one teacher who has positively impacted me over the years here at Alden Central School District, I would have to go with former choral teacher, Andy Buscemi. I met him in sixth grade general music and had him as a vocal teacher for sixth, seventh, ninth, tenth, and eleventh grade. As a student I find myself learning best when I can connect with a teacher in some sort of way. Mr. Buscemi was actually one of the people who influenced me to be the Apple Computers enthusiast I am now. In sixth grade general music we had a project where we had to use his macbook to create a jingle to be used in a fake commercial. Using his laptop made me realize how much I wanted a mac. Along with all of that he was a great choral teacher. In middle school he had to put up with children who wanted to be a part of the chorus and take it seriously, and also kids who didn't care and showed him little respect. This never bothered him, or at least he never showed that it got to him. Later in High School we became better friends. He even volunteered his own time out of school to come and take promo pictures for my band. He was a cool guy to say the least.

Alden's Hidden Gem?

Choosing one’s favorite restaurant is easy for some, and tough for others. Surprisingly to most, many factors go into choosing your favorite restaurant. Service is probably one of the largest considerable factors, but for me it’s mostly the vibe, the authenticity and how it relates to the food. With that being said, my favorite restaurant in Alden, that is, when I actually eat out in Alden is the Town and Country. The rustic and home-like feel of the place accompanied by the the friendly mother-like service truly makes for a rare experience in dining. Then to add on to the experience you’re already having the food is excellent. The portion sizes are not too large, but at the same time not too small. For most folk, it’s just right. The food itself is very hearty and, “home cooked” styled. I’ll be honest, eating in Alden normally doesn’t appeal too much to me, but if I’m driving through town and have the time I’d much rather go and grab some coffee and get myself a nice and full breakfast at the Town and Country, rather than going over to McDonalds which is just a stones through away. 

The lunch's of the Alden Central School District

I believe the best school lunch is a salad. Let’s be honest, no one really knows what goes into the actual lunches so eating fresh seems to be the best idea. Also then you can load your salad with whatever you want to fill you up. I normally go pretty heaving on the croutons, a favorite of lunch time. The chipotle dressing also adds a very nice spicy touch. Combined with this I like to pick up a nice southern styled Arizona Tea from the school store, which is just around the corner. If I’m feeling lucky that day I may even through some chicken on the salad as well. It all depends how it looks. I have to say, the best days are when the hot and spicy chicken rice soup is out. Eating that soup, with the salad and crunchy croutons washed down with some iced cold arizona tea always makes for a good lunch. Now, to be honest with you, I haven’t packed a lunch in probably around four to five years. All I can really remember about those days were turkey sandwiches with hot sauce. I can’t really remember how I came up with that concoction but I really enjoyed it! Also the interesting thing about packing my lunch, way back when, was that everyone would always trade their items. In a way us twelve year olds had established our own nutritional stock market. Very strange. Kids would verbally fight it out to see who could get the best salty chips, or the very popular, “Sunny D.” If I remember correctly, one day a kid traded his entire lunch, just for a Sunny D. I remember laughing and then continuing on eating my turkey sandwich with hot sauce. All in all I’m happy that now I can just get myself a nice salad, where there normally is less of line. 

In My Life_ (Unfinished)

In life I've experienced many memorable moments. Sometimes hilarious, other times scary. For the most part though, interesting and enjoyable. I really don't have any "greatest ever" moment. I'll save that for my wedding someday, if that should ever happen. Up until now I've just had a lot of good times, and bad ones. As expected in anyone's life. Luckily I've had many more good times than I have had bad. Shows with my band normally add to the good. I love playing shows. My bands been together for awhile now so we have nice looking and more importantly sounds gear. Also we have road cases for everything. There's nothing I enjoy more than rolling in all our cases to venue when you know it's sold out that night. It's such a cool and indescribable feeling. Then when the venue starts filling up with people and your one of the headliners, it's really awesome. As I said, I don't have a single greatest moment, only a stockpile of memories that will be with me for the rest of my life.

Spring spring go away come again some other day.

My favorite season of the year has to be… well anything but spring to be honest. If I had it my way summer would start when winter ends and fall would remain the same. I love the heat of summer which brings with it a taste of being somewhere tropical, especially when I go out to rushford lake and go boating and such. Strangely, I also enjoy cutting the grass and doing different activities and work outside in the summer. Then there’s fall. It brings with it beautiful sights, cooler temperatures and a relaxed, cozy atmosphere. It makes you want to just relax. Take some time to yourself, drive around, and submerge yourself into your own little world. Then after thanksgiving the snow starts coming down and fall turns into winter. Let me get something straight. I absolutely love winter. I love the snow, the bare trees, the bright moon reflecting off of the fresh snow, I love it all… for about two weeks. Then I start wishing it were summer again. Winter’s great for holidays such as Christmas and New Years because it really adds to the feel. After that those holidays it just becomes miserable. Your body misses the bright and beautiful sun which used to shine so brightly, and now everything is just cold, barren looking and miserable. Winter also seems like it lasts forever. By mid-February it makes me want to move to Florida, or Texas, or anywhere else besides here. So if I had it my way January fifth to September fifth would be nothing but summer. Then from September fifth to November twentieth it would be fall. From November twentieth to January fifth it would winter. That would be perfect. No spring, winter when needed, fall and a long summer. Mother Nature, would you like to arrange a meeting?

FaceBook, the face of evil or the future?

FaceBook has over five hundred million users, and consider myself one of them. With millions of users, opinions are strong regarding the use of FaceBook. Some claim it as a time waster, a stalking service; others say it’s a way to keep in touch with long lost friends and relatives. I find myself in the middle of these two mindsets. As a human I always try and lean to the positive side of things, I personally think Facebook is great. It’s a way to get in contact with basically anyone. You can share different parts of your life in ways you never could before. You can be on vacation and upload photos for all of your friends to see. It works especially well for me because I’m in a band. Facebook makes it easier than ever to communicate with fans and reach out to new ones. A simple status update can send a message to thousands of people with just a click. It truly is a great form of updating people. Although, as great as FaceBook is, it still possess negativity. First off, people can say whatever they want. While sitting there you think, well, anyone can say what they want whenever anyways. You’re correct, but it’s a lot easier to say things you normally wouldn’t say in real life on FaceBook. It removes a certain social filter on some people which results in posts and comments which can come off as ignorant, cruel, and sometimes just plain stupid. Also sometimes people make the mistake of putting their entire lives on it, for everyone to see. Recently colleges and employers have been using FaceBook as a tool for finding more out about people than they are willing to put on an application or resume. It sounds scary right? It’s not, at all. Just like anything else FaceBook is something that needs to be used responsibly. It’s not the service that should be blamed for problems; it’s the users who use it in the wrong way. If used right, FaceBook can be a great way to know what’s going on with your friends, and keep in contact with anyone you want.

Interests and Influences

There are many things I feel comfortable about. Most likely because of how many different things I’m interested in. At the same time I do believe there is a bit of difference between an interest and a passion. A passion is more of an interest that’s become, in a way, emotionally attached to who you are. I know that I can say that I’m passionate about film and music. I really enjoy shooting, editing and producing short films, commercials and soon, weddings. As for music, I’ve always had a strong connection to that. More and more I think I get that from my mother’s side of the family. Her grandfather was a great musician in his time, and one of the more prominent musicians of Buffalo and the northeastern United States for that matter. So I have two things in life that I’m truly passionate about. Besides those things, I have a ton of interests. Flying, driving, boating, cars, guitars, macintosh, apple, and working are just a few of the many. How I obtained all of these interests I have no idea. I’ve always been into technology and media. It started at a young age when my parents used to spoil me with the sounds of The Beatles and giving me an old laptop. I would sit there whenever I could figuring out all the mysterious keys, musically and physically. I think influences when you’re a kid can really influence who you are and what you may turn out to be.

How you like me now?

How you like me now?

A review of the film, Horrible Bosses.

Some critics call it raunchy, others, hilariously satisfying. Either way you’re bound to be laughing at some point during the movie. How could one not relate to the idea of disliking a superior? In this movie three friends, Nick, Kurt, and Dale, all have what they consider horrible bosses. Kurt’s boss is a psychotic man set to destroy his father’s business. Dale’s boss is a woman trying to wreck his marriage. Lastly, Nick’s boss is the typical arrogant, emotionless, and cold boss. While having dinner together one night the idea of the bosses being gone came about. They laughed it off, but soon realized how great life would be without them. This is one of the most well written movies I’ve seen in a while. It has everything the American movie-goer looks for, suspense, romance and most of all comedy. The unsuspected humor from the three takes away the sometimes heightened suspense and makes the scene that much more enjoyable. Unlike many movies, this one features a story line which, for the most part cannot be thought of before it actually happens. Situations and events happen that I never expected coming. The writers did an amazing job with this movie. The producers and directors also did a fantastic job. They used the Panasonic Genesis camera to film the movie; a digital camera. While movies for the past one hundred years have always been film, more and more studios are starting to use digital cameras. They’re much easier to work with and look just as good as film cameras, sometimes even better due to their high definition. Altogether, this movie is excellent. It’s obvious that the writers, actors, crew, and producers really knew what they were doing and did it in a way that made it one of the top movies of the summer.