January 2008

  • An Introduction to Hip-Hop Culture

    Culture is defined in the Webster’s Dictionary as “the customary beliefs, social forms, and material traits of a racial, religious, or social group.” Hip-Hop is a way of life for a certain group of people. It has unique rules and customs that are observed. As such, hip-hop is clearly a cultural movement. Rap and hip-hop […]


  • Why Can’t Teaching Be Like Coaching?

    I saw a great movie on the weekend called We Are Marshall. I was really impressed with the coach in this true-life story. He was an amazing character that brought out the best in his staff and players. As I was watching the movie, I started to draw comparisons between being a coach and being […]


  • Album Spotlight # 1

    Raising Hell – Run-DMC This is the album that introduced me to rap music. I remember it quite well. I was at a family due and my cousin had the cassette tape. He made sure that the adults weren’t around and he played it for a few of his cousins. One of the rappers swore […]


  • Give the Cameraman Some!

    I used to volunteer at the community cable station in Stoney Creek. It was quite the experience to go into a tiny television studio, operate the equipment, and actually be part of a team that put on television shows. That was a long time ago but the memories stay with me. Operating a camera inside […]


  • Transformers – Just Can’t Seem To Get It Right

    Transformers are an iconic part of my childhood. I remember quite clearly running home form school to watch the cartoon show. I was excited about the theatrical release and dragged my parents to it. I even bought the soundtrack. The songs wouldn’t normally have been my taste of music but it was Transformers so I […]


  • My New Novel

    I started working on a new novel three weeks ago. I had a situation, a character name, one rough scene of dialogue, and not much else. That was my starting point. I didn’t really know where I was going with it, but I sat down and typed away anyway. I wrote a prologue and then […]


  • Random Acts of Kindness

    First I saw a commercial where cars were stuck in a gridlock and a few of the drivers stuck started to blow bubbles. It was a light moment in a usually tense situation. It was also kind of beautiful. The voice over announced this as a “blatant act of road joy.” Nice! I then came […]


  • Album Spotlight Series

    Tuesdays are when new music is released. I used to look forward to Tuesdays. I would run to the record stores downtown and try to find the lowest price on the new must-have tape. Yup, I said tape. I reluctantly started buying CDs when I realized that I could not save the cassette tape format […]


  • Recommended Reads # 6

    Story by Robert McKee I first heard of this book from a comic book convention. I sat in on a writer’s panel discussion and was quite fascinated. It was amazing to hear writers speak of their craft, characters, and creations. I have been to a few of these events and have been able to meet […]


  • Blog Surfing – Wave 4

    It was one of those rare occasions where I had time to surf for blogs. Here are a few that I found today that I thought might be of interest. http://www.valeriemorrison.net/blog/ Thinking Out Loud – humour, observations, etc http://zenhabits.net/ Self help advice, etc http://daily-rambler.blogspot.com/ Daily Rambler – info on blogging, advice, etc http://writetodone.com/ Advice and tips for writers http://nathanbransford.blogspot.com/ Nathan […]