Blogging Obsolete?

I'm on Facebook all day every day it seems. It's like a miny blog. Anything I'm doing I post there instead of here. Anyone that normally reads my blogs are on Facebook anyway. I can post pics, videos, etc. I'm starting to not find a use for my blog...

If you're missing my blog updates (which I doubt), get 0n Facebook, add me as a friend, and check your FB every now and then. It'll all be there.

If you're not a FB person, REPENT!

Hey everyone, I'm texting from the top of Half Dome! I MADE IT!!! It was SERIOUSLY hard and very scary at times, but I'm here! YEA! <-Jay>

Happy Memorial Day. And a huge thank you to all those who serve or who have served in our armed forces!

Facebook and the Allusion of Grandeur

Okay so I'm a Facebookian now. A lot of people I know have been using Facebook for years. I've had an account but never even looked at it to see what it was. I was bored the other day so I checked it out.

The main feature on Facebook is "The Wall." This is bascially a place for you to post short messages about what you're up to at the time (such as: "I started reading Angels & Deamons today" or "I just found a really great Mexican restaurant in Vegas" or "I can't wait for the season finale of American Idol"). When you post something, it automatically shows up on your friends' walls as well. So when they log into Facebook, they can quickly, at-a-glance, see what's going on in your life.

So basically the whole system opperates on the assumption that people actually care about what you're doing at any given hour of the day. Saddly enough, it seems to be true.

I actually find it quite interesting to check my Facebook and see what my "friends" are up to. Some are talking about how excited they are for the Survivor Finale; I wouldn't have known they were fans of the show otherwise. Others are preparing to run a half-marathon and are posting about how they're preparing. My best friend, Rich, recently posted pictures of his kids and the crafts they made at school. These wall postings are all very interesting.

What's annoying (but rare it seems) is when someone takes up wall space with a comment like "I'm bored" or "I'm tired."

You can, of course, post comments on your friends' wall postings as well.

BUT HERE'S THE BEST PART! I've discovered the JEWEL to Facebook (it was no secret, but I'm new and just found it). You can set up your cell phone to be able to text a posting directly to your wall. What this means is that now I can be anywhere in the world and send a text to Facebook about what I'm doing (assuming, of course, that anyone actually cares... regardless of that answer, it's still fun).

I have a friend (another choir teacher) that is currently on his choir trip and he's been posting all weekend about the progress of his trip via text message from his cell phone. He's posting how his kids did at the competition, etc. I'd know nothing about his experience otherwise.

Another great thing I recently discovered, is that when I text in a post to my wall, and someone comments on my post, that comment is sent to me as a text, to which I can text a response to the comment. And all of this is logged on my Facebook Wall for all my other "friends" to see.

So I'm hooked. I'm totally into the facebook thing. Unfortunately, a LOT of you (that read my blog) are not. It's unfortuante because I'd be interested to read each day what you're thinking about, what you're up to, what is annoying you, what you're excited about, what fun thing happened today. And just look how easy it'd be??? You don't even have to ever GO to the Facebook homepage. After it's set up, you could send that info to all your "friends" via text to your Facebook wall.

So what are you waiting for? Go check out my Facebook page, add me as a friend if you don't have me already, and GET STARTED.

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Jason Dougherty's Profile

I just set up my phone so that i can post directly to my blog via text message. This is so awesome. Also i just started using Facebook a lot, go check me out!

Real Superhero: Shadowhare

This is the best story I've ever heard. Apparently there is a guy in Cincinatti that has literally put on a cape and mask and has begun roaming the streets as a superhero. The guy doesn't actually have any powers so I guess he's not "super" but he claims to protect the citizens and help the homeless.

I watched a few videos about the guy and it looks like most of his time is spent whole-heartedly and genuienly helping the homeless. I commend him for that. His costume is silly and he walks around in broad daylight but after watching a few videos and reading a few articles, I actually find myself feeling a bit of hope--which is his self-proclaimed goal.

You need to do yourself a favor and read this article: http://www.wlwt.com/news/19305002/detail.html

In addition to the video posted here on this blog, I recommend the "web only" video about a day in the life of Shadowhare (or just click here: http://www.wlwt.com/video/19322147/index.html)

YouTube SUCKS!

I hate Youtube now. I make great videos. I like to upload them to show my friends and family how we're doing. One of the things that makes my videos great is my choice of music as a background for what's showing.

Well all of a sudden YouTube has decided to ban videos that have "unauthorized" music in the soundtrack. Are you KIDDING ME??? What is with these people? It's just a stupid video. I'm not making any money on it. I'm not promoting or demoting any musician or "pirating" their material.

These copyright laws and piracy laws have gone WAY too far. YouTube even sent me an email saying that my video had been removed due to content that was "owned or licensed by WMG."

GIVE ME A FREAKIN' BREAK! I used to love YouTube. Well I'm here to tell you that they HAVE SOLD OUT! Google owns them now and I'm seriously disappointed. They used to have a motto at Google: Don't Be Evil. Well you screwed up this time. Now you've got one seriously unhappy customer and I'm blogging about it in hopes that I can convince at least a few other souls out there that Google is making a turn to the dark side.
And for the record, the video was a documentary of a camping trip my Dad and I took to the Anniversary Narrows. It was an amazing trip. But now, thanks to Google/YouTube, you'll never get to see it.

Digg this post! Forward it. GET THE WORD OUT! GOOGLE/YOUTUBE DESERVES TO SSSUUUUFFFFFFFEEEERRRRRR!!!!


*p.s. okay, I'm being overly dramatic... but I'm just messing around.... except for the part about everything above...

Pwned!

I subscribe to "nigahiga" on Youtube. I love thier videos. Seriously funny stuff such as "How to be a Ninja" etc. But they posted a new video this week that got me laughing outloud. If you've seen the phrase "pwned!" online then you'll think it's funny. If you've never heard of it, then you'll be totally confused. Still, pretty funny:

Revenge of the Fallen

I'm surprised I hadn't heard anything about this until I stubled accross it on Fandango..... Wow. Bring it on. Can't wait. Take a look for yourself:

Best. Rumor. EVER.

For those of you who don't know, aintitcool.com is the leading source for accurate and validated "rumors" on the internet. They mostly divulge rumors about movies and often conduct their own interviews with actors, directors, and producers, and then posts the results. It's a fairly legit site that doesn't post any old stupid fanboy rumor (*cough* imdb *cough*). Aintitcool.com takes "rumors"only from the primary source. ;)

And today I read the BEST rumor I could have read. See here:

"Bryan Singer has refused to undertake a re-boot of the Superman franchise and has left the Executives at WB with no choice but to take a fresh creative direction.

He stated the Wachowski Brothers had been approached to re-boot the franchise as a trilogy and they are currently reviewing their options as its like being asked to take the final play in a superbowl final. Says if they do agree, he will likely either succumb to providing second unit support on the movie or will champion the directorship of Plastic Man - He started to giggle as he stated its like a young child for the Brothers and they wont give that up easily.

Says, the very thought of the brothers making a superman movie is unbelievable as they have grown up in the world of comic books and they would be ideal for the project.

Stated that Bryan Singer is looking to move on to Logan's Run a movie to be produced by Joel Silver."

In my opinion, havign the Wachowski brothers (Matrix, Speed Racer) do Superman is only a winning combination. It would be AMAZING. I think I would have a seziure of glee.

To read the whole article, click here.

P.s. For the record, the top photo is just a joke. Of course it wouldn't be the matrix cast in the new movie. :P

Letter from the Govenor

Some of you know that I, along with all Nevada state employees, are receiving a 6% pay cut due to a poor economy. I just got a letter from the Governor (below). Apparently he is going to give us some resources to help us cope with the pay cut. See his letter below:

Important Notice to All State Employees and Teachers!

All State employees will now be required to look happy while working, even after your pay and benefits have been reduced . State-approved supplies will be provided to each State employee at little or no cost to meet this new requirement.

Each employee will be supplied 2 paper clips and rubber bands. (See Fig 1.)

Fig 1.

Assemble items as shown in Fig 2.

Fig 2.

Apply as shown in Fig 3.

Fig 3.

Enjoy your day. This new office equipment will help you to reach the end of a low pay productive work day with a smile on your face!

Cheers!

-The Governor

Madelyn as a Teenager

This month we took a couple of pictures that came out SO cute of Maddy. And I couldn't help to think that they kind give us a glimpse of what she will look like as an older kid, teenager, or young adult; especially this first one:

Dark Side of the Moon

I set up my tri-pod and set my camera to night shot just to see what I could do. This first photo is a bit blurry-ish, but still pretty cool. You can see the dark side of the moon. Not too bad for a little razor-thin pocket camera.

And this one may just look like a bunch of nothing, but click on the photo and see the larger size. This is actually a picture or the constellation Orion. Again, not too shabby for a little razor-thin pocket camera.

My Living Room

I'm having a lot of fun using my AutoStitch program. I took 13 photos of my living room, and stitched them together (click to see bigger):

Here's the cool thing (if you think about it), you'd NEVER be able to get a picture of the full view of my living room without this stitch program. It's amazing how easy it is to use (not to mention fun).

Panoramic Bliss

I just discovered an AMAZING program called AutoStitch. It is a free download that puts your panoramic photos together to make them look like one. You know, you start taking pictures from the left, and keep snapping photos as you turn toward the right. Then you put them in AutoStitch and it's like MAGIC. The program does everything for you. (for an awesome visual of how the program works its magic, click here) It's really quite amazing. See for yourself (click any photo to see a larger more detailed version):

This photo is made up of 4 images stitched together:


This one is made up of 5 images stitched together:


And this one is made up of 13 (yes, thirteen) images stitched together. It's actually a 360 degree view:
And finally, a vertical stitch. Two images:
*To view these photos even larger, click here

I will be taking a lot more panoramic photos now that I know this is possible!

David Cook

If any of you are NOT fans of American Idol, you might roll your eyes when you read this name. But just hear me out a second.

Regardless of where someone is discovered, talent is talent. I've watched 2 seasons of American Idol now and I have CDs from at least 5 or 6 past winners and runners up.

David Cook takes things to a new level. He was last season's winner. Now, I actually kind of liked David Archuleta more than David Cook, but there is no comparison in the albums.

David Cook came out with a FANTASTIC album. Every song on the CD is amazing and I could listen to it again and again.

Sometimes "idols" are smirked at simply because they were discovered on "Idol." But forget that for a second, click on one of David Cook's tracks that I just put onto my playlist on the side bar and listen for yourself.

I think David Cook can go far. He cut a stellar album. It's on my top 5 list of favorites at this point. Give it a listen. ---> click on Bar-ba-sol or Light On by David Cook in my playlist here on this page. Enjoy.

3.7 Miles

As most of you know by now, I'm getting very excited for my Yosemite trip. I'll post soon about a major change we're making for the trip.

But today, Saturday, I decided to do a bit of hiking to start/continue the "get in shape" process. For Christmas I got my hiking boots and today I strapped them on to break them in.

It was a BEAUTIFUL day here in Vegas. I walked 3.7 miles. It was no problem. It's still yet to be seen if I'll be sore tomorrow, but right now I don't feel like I will. I feel good. It was super fun. I want to do some sort of hiking each Saturday and then, when it gets close to the trip, I might start walking to work and back. It's 2 miles there, 2 back, total of 20 miles a week.

My Calves Hurt

I've been trying to climb stairs lately to start my slow trek to getting at least somewhat in shape for my Yosemite trek in June. Yesterday I climed 8 stories of stairs at Sunset Station. It took me all of about a minute. My heart was pounding by the end. I went home.

Today I can't move. Ouch.

So after only 60 seconds (give or take) of climbing stairs, I'm beat and sore. I can't imagine at this point hiking Half Dome. I've got some serious work to do.

For more information on my Yosemite Trip, check out the website I've created for it: http://sites.google.com/site/yosemitetrip2009/

Funniest. Video. Ever.

A student sent this to me and I about roll over laughing every time I watch it. Enjoy:

SO Unfair!

Okay so those of you who know me well, know that I'm a big BYU football fan, true blue through and through. Blue = good, Red = Evil.

However, Utah this year (like in their 04 season) got a bid to a BCS bowl. For those of you unfamiliar, that means: They be VERY good. They went to the Sugar Bowl as the ONLY undefeated team in college football. They played Alabama who, before this game, spent a large part of the season in first place. They were strong and looking to go to the national championship. They lost thier last game and dropped from first to 4th.

Now Utah was the only undefeated team but still in 6th place (it's a long story why, but it has a lot to do with strenth of schedule). AAAaaaaanyway....


Utah CRUSHED Alabama last night in the Sugar Bowl. It was AWESOME! Why am I rooting for the devil (Utah)? Because they are a Mountain West team, and it's GREAT for our conference if a team can break into the BCS.

Why unfair then? Because now Utah is the ONLY undefeated team in college football. But they're done. They don't get a shot at the national title. Who's to say they'd lose to who ever wins the naitonal championship next week? It's absurd. The BCS system sucks. WE NEED A PLAYOFF!

Our Day at Sea World

Today we went to Sea World. The kids LOVED it. It was SO fun to spend the day watching Maddy and Kaelyn enjoy all the cute animals. Maddy especially loved the penguins.

Here are a couple of pics of the kids at Sea World, enjoying life. And don't miss the priceless video below of Maddy and Kaelyn enjoying the sea otter show!

TB Sauce Makes Mouth Happy

Every time I go to Taco Bell, I knowingly ask for 3 times the ammount of hot sauce that I think I'll need. Then I save the extras. I've got a huge bag at home. Then, every time we make homemade tacos or homemade burritos, or taco salad, etc, I've got the TB sauce. And suddenly, homemade tastes like restaurant (Taco Bell) bought. YUM!

Reading is Bliss

The first four years that Del Sol (the high school I work at) was opened, we had what we called D.E.A.R. (Drop Everything And Read). It's what we used to know as SSR (Sustained Silent Reading). Basically for 20 minutes a day, everyone on campus would, well, drop everything and read.

I loved it. I read an average of 4 novels a school-year only during the 20-minute DEAR periods (let alone any time I spent reading at home).

But this year the school canceled the program (followed by much cheering on the students' part). Since then, I haven't read much. Come to find out that most of my reading over the past 4 years was done during DEAR.

Thankfully, Christmas has reinvigorated my reading itch. I got a couple of good books for Christmas and now I can't do anything but read. Quickly I finished the book I had been slowly working on for about 6 months (Empire, By Orson Scott Card), and straight away picked up my newest book (The Good Guy, by Dean Koontz). Granted, I'm not working right now (winter break) so I have a bit of extra time on my hands, but I've really enjoyed my reading time. I'm half way through this new book and I started it 2 days ago (that's fast for me).

One last thought: Every now and then someone will ask what your happiest memory was, your best vacation, or maybe a time when you were most relaxed. More often than not my answer to these questions (other than my wedding day, birth of children, etc, etc) is when I had a free day in Fiji. I lay down in a hammock on the shores of a beautiful Fiji beach and read a book. When I got tired, I slept, when I awoke, I returned to reading in the most beautiful of settings (the photo above is NOT of my vacation, it's just a random photo I found online, but it reminds me of that wonderful day). Many of my best vacation memories include reading.