The Scariest movie I've ever seen! Eden Lake

Holy shit! I don't know what to say. I nearly shit myself watching this one. Rodney a Galaxy Video customer kept talking about this British horror movie for the past two months. I kept shooing him away cause frankly I'm not really into horror films. I usually find them unbelievable and far from scary. Boy was I wrong. He brought in a bootleg DVD of the film for me to watch and I was scared out my mind. Mind you I saw the film in a crowded video store with lights on and I still jumped almost every time. This is one for the ages. That movie you use to look cool in front of your friends, like you have that secret touch and know those special people. The premise is very simple: Guy takes hot girlfriend to the woods for a romantic picnic where they can be alone for some quality time. When a group of Yob's interrupt the couple, romeo decides to stand up to them. What happens next is the most shocking shit since Irreversible. I hear the film is scheduled to come out around Halloween. Do yourself a favor and check this one out. It will make you look at horror films in a new light. Uncensored trailer below.

The Retun of Anime: Sword of the Stranger

Well it's about fucking time. Here's a nice little gem that probably went under everyone's radar. I haven't enjoyed the anime genre honestly for the past 5 years. The worn out cliches of God-children, high school coming of age tales and teen Robot wars has really taken it's toll on the anime enjoyment process for me. So it's really nice to see a movie take a step back and return to the creative aspect of anime that hasn't been revisited since the 90's. Produced by Studio Bones (Cowboy Bebop KOHD, Wolfs Rain) this is old school anime through and through with action and animation to die for and a nice little story about a boy, his dog and a nameless samurai trying to forget his past. Plot points wont be ruined here but if you love redemption pieces this one's got it all. Released on DVD in April 2008 in Japan I am doing everything in my power to get this one into the store. Subtitled trailer below. Enjoy. Do yourself a favor and seek this one out.

Arcade games are back! Street Fighter 4 hits!

It's been about a month since 40th street Universal Pinball got their 2 Street Fighter 4 arcade cabinets flown from Japan. This game is really something! I don't know how they did it, but Capcom fused all the play mechanics of the past street fighters into one monster of a fighting engine. It's incredibly balanced and the 3D graphics really take the animation up a notch. You can see animation on every detail, the hairs on Zangiefs chest move, each finger of Abel's hands animate when he's standing still, its all in there. I've been dropping quarters in trying to master the system. If your in the center city area you really have to take a trip and try the engine out. Focus attack video after the jump.

Back For The First Time!

Sorry again for the delay. Porn, bad video games and shitty comics have been killing my free time. Oh yeah and the store. Galaxy is really coming around. Who knew? Anyway back to business. Instead of only creating posts when the shit hits the fan. I'll be posting anytime I want to run my mouth. Anything from games to terribly immature Web videos will now be posted. That way you can always find something amusing when you visit. On that note here we go.

The Fear of Trying!

"Death is not the biggest fear we have; our biggest fear is taking the risk to be alive -- the risk to be alive and express what we really are."

Don Miguel Ruiz

Mexican Author

The Four Agreements

I've got a problem. It's kind of a big fucking deal, really. I'm a dreamer. At first I was going to use the word idealist but after checking dictionary.com I find that word too optimistic for the situation I'm relating to. See I'm one of those people that doesn't get the 9 to 5 guy. The dickhead that still rebels against adulthood. The guy who doesn't want to grow up. I don't do anything I don't want to because I'm disillusioned enough to believe that life isn't worth living if your not doing what you love. And there lies the gift and the curse. See, I'm doing what I like to do but not what I love. For me to do what I'd love; I'd have to give up what I like and head back to school for re-education. While I'm a dreamer I'm not crazy. You just don't want to be a mechanic and just start fixing cars. You need to be taught the engineering skills to better understand the car. Recently I've been having kind of whats referred to as a midlife crisis. Don't you fucking laugh! I'm serious. Yes, I know I'm only 28 but are you really alive after 60? Come on, your dead mentally way before that. See I believe an end is coming. The club life that I'm currently mentally and financially involved in is coming to an end. Sorry Sheldon, the dream is over. So I started asking myself what comes next. What's the next step? First I thought maybe I should be a businessman. Start a small company and work my way up, learn the trade and go work for one of these big corporate offices and build a good resume, marry a nice girl, shit like that. But that's submission. That's not what I want to do at all. What I'd like to do is write. It's true! I want to be a writer. I'd get into specifics but I've come to the realization that we have a few hating ass fagots(Scott Brooks) who read this blog and go blab the information to other people trying to start trouble. So I'll be generalizing from now on to avoid this. I tried my hand at writing before. It was total disaster. You know when you think your the shit and you show your stuff to people actually in the field and they laugh you out the room? Well that's what happened to me when I first made a serious attempt at it. I was untrained. My stories had no themes, believable characters, plot devices, nothing! It was just me telling a story that I thought people wanted to hear. It was vanity. So after my failure I asked around what would be good reading to get me on the right path. Everyone said Robert McKees fabulous book Story was the book for me. After reading it cover to cover I was on my way. But its not enough. You need to get your feet wet. So I have to make the decision; give up what I have now and go for it or stay here and just forget my dreams and grow up. It's really tough. I don't know what to do.

Real talk. In the end YOU must come FIRST!

"If we were told a man had lived a long and prosperous life in the world of Chicago gangsters, we would be entitled to makes some guesses as to the sort of man he was. You can make some influences about a man's character if you know something about the conditions in which he has survived and prospered. The argument is that we, and all other animals, are machines created by our genes. Our genes have survived, in some cases for millions of years in a highly competitive world. This entitles us to expect certain qualities in our genes. I shall argue that a predominant quality to be expected in a successful gene is ruthless selfishness. This gene selfishness will usually give rise to selfishness in individual behavior. However, as we shall see, there are special circumstances in which a gene can achieve its own selfish goals best by fostering a limited form of altruism at the level of individual animals. Much as we might wish to believe otherwise, universal love and the welfare of the species as a whole are concepts that do not make evolutionary sense."

Richard Dawkins
Author
The Selfish Gene

Okay people, I'm back. The hedonism has died down so lets get back to talking shit and discussing current events in the little Haitians life. First on the menu is SELFISHNESS. Why are more people not looking after themselves? Let's get right into it. As we mature into actual adulthood certain analogies, morals that we were taught as children by our parents are rendered inept. They aren't realistic. "What goes around comes around. Treat others how you want to be treated. All good things come to those who wait" . Sure they make us good children but we can not apply these things to the cut-throat, overly competitive real world. You'll be taken advantage of and swallowed up by those who use your weakness for their own gain. Why am I ranting about this now? Well there's a shift occurring in my little inner circle of friends. We're in our mid to late twenties now and some of them are settling down into serious relationships, others are finalizing their career goals. Since I'm lucky enough to be in a financially healthy job position, I can remain neutral and observe my surroundings. What I find puzzling is that some of my friends are still playing the Virtuous role and failing miserably at life yet still continue following the same childish cliches over and over again abiding some twisted duty even though the end results never bear any fruit. We all love the nice guy but no one loves a simpleton more than a browbeater (you know who you are! Taking advantage of the weak). As a former super simp (ask Sheldon) I've had to go through various bouts of being used and dealing with my morality. But as we mature and see things for what they truly are you come to the realization that you'd rather be hated and be secure with yourself than loved and have nothing to show for it. If your girlfriends holding you back, dump her and move on. Your co-worker not pulling their end, blow the whistle on him and sacrifice em to save your job position. Boss giving you a hard time, start making plans to go elsewhere and find a better work environment. Bottom line, take care of yourself. You'll be seen as a selfish prick to many but who gives a fuck. You'll be secure mentally. You can no longer afford to rely on others or take the easy way out. If you do not grow out of these cliches your doomed to an endless cycle of failure. Comment and share your opinions.

And the winner is...... not MGS 4!

"Granted, watching near-superhuman heroes and villains gloriously beat, slash, stab and shoot the living crap out of each other for 15 or 20 minutes while surrounded by exploding vehicles, decapitated bio genetic war machines, and psychotic soldiers is always entertaining. However, that willingness to be drawn through lengthy action-rich cut scenes quickly fades once characters begin repeatedly engaging in bouts of mind-numbingly preposterous exposition revolving around the horrors of war, political influences, world domination, nanotechnology, A.I. mind-control systems and the morality of genetics... that can last for upwards of 45 minutes at a time."

Stevie Smith
Play TM
Metal Gear Solid 4 review

Guess I'm back people. Wish I was in higher spirits though. I've been wondering how to put my thoughts on Metal Gear Solid 4 into the proper wording for this blog. My disappointment with the final chapter of the Solid Snake saga has me in a state of disbelief. This is a game I was truly waiting four years to play. The single reason I brought a PS3 and its an epic letdown bringing back memories of the first Spiderman movie and the recent Michael Bay Transformers. The problem is in the game design and narrative. Its dated to the point of ridicule. Anyone who's experienced any truly next generation games such as Uncharted, GTA 4, Bio Shock, Lost Planet, Rainbow Six Vegas, Mass Effect, Call of Duty 4 even the over-rated Gears of War will have a tough time defending the ham fisted story, follow the arrow level design, lengthy and do I mean LENGHTY cut scenes ( I swear some characters took nearly 30 minutes to die while spewing social political mumbo jumbo before finally taking their last breath) and uninspiring AI (who never duck for cover or work in unison when under attack). The whole experience feels archaic. This is a big step back for gaming and makes me wonder if the Japanese game companies understand that the 360 and PS3 are more than boxes for better graphics and sound. I am aghast at the reviews for the game. 9/10 reviews praise the game for all its flaws, calling them nostalgic. They go on and on calling Kojima a genius for remembering to tie all loose ends in the MGS mythos but the way this is accomplished is ridiculous. When it comes to MGS I consider myself a harcore fan. I have all the MGS games, the Twin Snakes Gamecube game, the making of MGS2 DVD, the MGS3 Subsistance game and both Metal Gear Acid and Portable Ops PSP games. Having played all the Metal Gear Solid games numerous times you'd have to be insane to think things could possibly play out the way that they do. Characters are given numerous roles some of them impossible to be true due to the characters age, location or tools at their disposal. While playing you can almost feel Kojima making sure you don't have a reason to ask for another MGS from him, making sure all questions are answered no matter how many character mythos he has to break to make everything connect. And who can blame him, its been 10 years of doing the same thing. He's tapped out and it shows. A tragic end to a series that helped shape my life. The dead horse is beaten. Trust me on this, grab Grand Theft Auto 4. That game represents everything next gen gaming should be. This is coming from a guy who never understood the GTA series popularity before 4. With GTA 4 you can at least see that Rockstar cares about you. They poured their heart into that little gem. cares. They truly made the game with you in mind trying hard to please you on all fronts. Skip MGS 4 or rent it if its just to quench your thirst or if you want to know what the hub bub's all about. I'll be waiting for Resident Evil 5 and the next game from team ICO.

Metal Gear Solid 4 is here!

" It's with a mixture of sadness and pride I present to you Metal Gear Solid 4. Sadness, that a huge part of my life comes to an end as you finally get to experience Snakes final mission, and pride in producing what I consider a truly fitting end to one of gamings true heroes."

Hideo Kojima
Kojima Productions

The day is finally upon us. I got the phone call and am heading to Gamestop at 3:00pm sharp. Metal Gear Solid 4 Guns of the Patriots is here. Lol! Yes I know I sound like the biggest loser since Sheldore "Gadegetsmsher" but I cant believe its finally here. 4 years I've been waiting for the end of the Solid Snake saga. The sole reason I brought a PS3 was to be able to play this game. I'll have a review up as soon as I spend some quality time with this monster. If you ever needed a reason to own a PS3, you finally got one. Final Kojima preview video after the jump bitches.

Sorry for the Hedonism! I'll be back.

Sorry for the lack of posts lately on this little blog of mine. Work has been tremendously frustrating so I've been doing a lot of escapism, keeping myself preoccupied with GTA 4 (its over and it was amazing), comics, Blu Ray movies, heavy partying and now Metal Gear Solid 4. I ask that you guys bear with me a couple more weeks till I get refreshed and back on my work game. I have many things in the works including a new business plan for Galaxy, new job opportunities, new blog entries about the amazing movies I've watched over the last couple of days and a few about the situations I've experienced (so long Brian Charles). Its gonna be worth it trust me.

Why We Will Never Win! Galaxy Edition

I got to put up with this 7 days a week.

Reality Check!! FAIR or UNFAIR!?!?!

Fair is the worst thing we are taught in kindergarten. Fair is a four-letter word and it fucks us up for life. We should be taught from an early age that there is no organic "fairness" to life. And that to even survive we have to maximize whatever meager scraps we do posses and get over the fact that the person sitting next to us might get promoted first, might marry somebody better, and probably has a grandmother who will leave him more money. Being taught that fairness matters cripples us. It forces us to wait for the scales to be adjusted. It makes us miss opportunities we should snatch before somebody else does. And, worst of all, it sets us up for a life of deep disappointment.

Augusten Burroughs
Details Magazine
March 2008

Because We Cant Get Enough of GTA4!

Photographer Matthew Johnston has a little flickr page in which he has taken photos of New York City and compares them to their Liberty City counterparts. Check out the site and kill a few minutes and marvel at the painstaking detail Rockstar had to go through to create a believable virtual portrayal of New York City.

Grand Theft Auto IV Saves Francks Sanity

After a stressful two weeks at my jobs with both the video store and the club struggling, my boy Kalazo dropped off Grand Theft Auto IV a full five days before its April 29th release on my doorstep. I'm about six hours in now and already the stress is lifting. This is what video games were meant to be, a complete immersive experience that makes you forget about the outside world completely. Liberty City is very huge and you'll love the stories and people you meet in it. All nationalities are represented some way or another and I fucking love this Niko Bellic character. He will change the way you look at video game characters for quite some time. He moves and feels almost real. I know I sound corny but its that good. Go cop it when it drops this Tues. I reserved my PS3 collectors edition already. You wont regret it.

Geekology: Monthly Comics That Aren't shite!

Fantastic Four
Mark Millar
Bryan Hitch

"I think it's the advice that Stan Lee gave me before taking over FF. He said any idea can be used in the Fantastic Four. There is nothing too silly to be in the Fantastic Four, which is not the same in most comics. If you read Batman or Spider-Man, for example, if they go to another dimension or to space, it doesn't really fit the character. However, with the FF that's just what they do before breakfast. You can honestly write the craziest things you can think of. It's called "The World's Greatest Comic Magazine," so as the writer I just have to make sure every issue is spectacular."

Mark Millar

Captain America
Ed Brubaker
Steve Epting

The reason this is happening in the book now, right on the heels of "Civil War," is because "Civil War" left me with a few options, but most of them I felt had explored already in "Captain America" or in other recent books - such as my own first arc of "Daredevil." So, since I didn't want to do a "Cap gets on a motorcycle and finds America" story, or a "Cap behind bars" story, I decided to bump up the timeline on my big "Red Skull Strikes Back" story instead, and go straight for the jugular. The basic idea of this arc – "The Death of the Dream" – is something I've been building towards since issue #1. Some of the beats and the way it goes down, of course, have been altered since this follows "Civil War's" ending so closely.

Ed Brubaker

Iron Man
Daniel and Charles Knauf
Roberto De La Torre

“What I love about Iron Man is that he’s the one super hero who doesn’t eclipse his alter-ego, Tony Stark is a very complex, messed-up dude. This is a guy who desperately wants to help the human race, but his creative energy is almost exclusively dedicated to weapons design. What’s wrong with that picture?"

Daniel Knauf

All Star Superman
Grant Morrison
Frank Quitely

"I wanted to make All-Star about being a guy, what it’s like to be a man, and fall in love, or lose parents, or be misunderstood…role models, rivals, all that sort of stuff but viewing it all through the lens of alien worlds, mighty feats and super powers.
It was never meant as a pastiche of Silver Age comics or to service nostalgia…which is why we took care to add new situations and characters to the mythos, like Leo Quintum, Zibarro, new types of Kryptonite and new villains like Krull, the Chronovore, Mechano-Man, or whatever. We wanted the stories to seem timeless, mythic, rather than tied to any particular period or interpretation of Superman."

Grant Morrison

Daredevil
Ed Brubaker
Michael Lark

"It's a noir, pulp kind of book. That's what it is and what it's always been at its best. What I'm going to try to do a bit more of is give it a little bit more of that roller coaster ride feel, maybe a bit more action. The first few issues that I've got are really going to pull the rug out from people. I've got a lot of surprises in store. I want to try and do something similar that I've done with "Captain America" which is sort of touch on who the character is in this roller coaster ride kind of story, but also include a real flavor of the Marvel Universe. I think it's really cool to have this huge playground to use. I wish I could say more, but I'm trying hard not to spoil any secrets!"

Ed Brubaker

All Star Batman And Robin
Frank Miller
Jim Lee

I like him. There are certain characters that just talk to you. I regard Batman as unusual in that I really don’t believe in any single interpretation of him as being carved in stone. I see Batman as a piece of folklore – a huge jewel that you can throw against any wall, and it won’t break, but will show you another way of looking at him. There are at the very least, a dozen different ways to do Batman, and they all work. Everything from Neal Adams/Denny O’Neil to Adam West to Dark Knight – the character is so resilient that he can be interpreted any which way…and work. I, for instance, love Dick Sprang and Jerry Robinson’s depiction, and base a lot of the ways I draw the character on their view of him.

Frank Miller

The Planetary
Warren Ellis
John Cassaday

"Planetary are three people who walk the world for strangeness and wonder. Sometimes, ordinary people uncover things that are best left covered. Sometimes, things best left covered emerge into ordinary life and do not have the world's best interests at heart. These are the times when Planetary arrive, invited or not, and deal with the situation while learning from it, adding to their own knowledge of how this world really works. In every issue, they (and we) learn and see something new, something that evokes that old mythical Sense Of Wonder that so few people do any more..."

Warren Ellis

WTF: What's the deal with the Girly Men?

"Effeminacy in men is without doubt associated with homosexuality. Certainly not all homosexual people give evidence of these characteristics, and many effeminate men are not homosexual, but the traits are common enough to create almost universally recognized stereotypes. Homosexuals use these characteristics to identify each other, and more often than they should, heterosexuals suspect homosexuality when they encounter an effeminate man or a masculine woman."

Tim Bergling
Sissyphobia

What the fuck's up with all the effeminate cats showing up asking for big brother advice and getting clingy as of late? Where is this coming from? When did I ever say I had the answers to the universe (I ain't Sheldon) or hinted that I needed more friends? I'm at a loss. I don't usually create these type of posts but this shit is getting WAY out of hand. I don't know if these guys are just lonely or if maybe they haven't come out of the closet yet. At Galaxy I'm getting hit constantly, cats coming by, telling me all their problems, bitching and whining about the same thing over and over again. Can't read a book or surf the net, cant get any store work done. It's so bad, I cant even take a lunch break. They want to follow me when I leave the store. No joke. They actual try to invite themselves, "Yo! Where you going? Let me role with you." This sounds a little vain but I cant hold it in anymore. How do I break it down to them without hurting anyone's feelings? Unbelievable!

I'm Trying!

"Do not accept the role society foists on you. Re-create yourself by forging a new identity, one that commands attention and never bores the audience. Be the master of your own image rather than letting others define it for you. Incorporate dramatic devices into your public gestures and actions - your power will be enhanced and your character will seem larger than life."

Robert Greene
The 48 Laws of Power

The stores slowly (and I do mean slowly) growing into a legitimate business. The time invested is starting to pay off with more to build upon. We're really improving on our customer service and our shipments are meeting demand. Drunk Francko is retired, though I still drink I do it in moderation and only go out 1 day a week. I try to stay out of trouble and have reduced the blackouts to a minimum. Heat and Brasils are getting back to where they used to be when the business first opened up 2 years ago. Though Joey (owner) and I don't always see eye to eye on various things about the club, things have improved. A lot of the regulars are coming back and we continue to draw in lots of new faces. We might be able to make up for our shitty winter, this spring and summer. I found someone really special. That special ladies information will remain private for now. People, Francko's trying. It truly feels like a new day is dawning on my life. Weather it's positive or negative is up in the air. Who would have guessed? This goes against everything I was taught to believe in. I hope I can cope with what happens next. Cause I know the good times aren't going to last forever.

WTF: Blade of the Immortal Anime Series?

I've been reading Blade of the Immortal in manga format over 10 years now. It's one of my favorite manga. Hiroaki Samura really crafted something special with the title. His art style is really unique cause he incorporates many panels done in a finished, shaded pencil style rather than in inked line art which most Japanese manga choose to incorporate. I'd go into the story but you could use the links to do that yourself. I came across news of the anime series browsing the web for new anime releases to pick up for the store. I was quite shocked to see this because Samura has stated many times over in interviews that he doesn't believe the manga could function properly as an anime title. What changed his mind is still a mystery as no interviews have surfaced yet. The series is being handled by Production I.G's (Ghost in the Shell) subsidiary BeeTrain studios (.Hack, Madlax, Noir). The director is Koichi Mashimo. Personally I'm very skeptical of the series working as an anime due to the art style not likely able to make a good transition to color successfully. The pencil shaded art style plays a key role in how the manga handles things like character expression, action and even anatomy. I just don't think it'll work well in color. We'll have to wait and see though. The series starts airing on Japan's AT-X animation satellite channel the 24th of April.

Chromeo Is Straight Killing the Game!

Helped George move into his new place today. While we were making trips back and fourth to his new and old apt, I kept hearing these weird 80's tracks on his girlfriends car stereo. I asked what it was and they told me it's a group called Chromeo. These muthafuckas are straight killing it right now. I downloaded both albums and they've been getting heavy spins on the iPod (Fancy Footwork is my favorite track). If your a fan of 80's themed music with a twist or remember the Vince DeCola days (he did the Rocky IV and Transformer Movie music) will fall in love with this shit. Check the mySpace link and give them a shot.

When is it Safe to Quit your Job?

"When we judge people and find them coming up short, we then start to criticize and micromanage them. In the age of the sensitive knowledge-based worker, thats a self destructive cycle. It engenders nothing but resentment and push-back."

Steve Chandler
The Hands off Manager

When is it safe to quit your job? Does your dissatisfaction with your boss or work environment factor in? Maybe relocation plays a key. You could just want to try something new. I've been asking myself that alot over the last few months. Its getting harder juggling two jobs and working seven day weeks. Its not physically draining, its just hourly taxing. I'm working 60 hour weeks. Now I'm not retarded, I know most people in the employment field have it harder than me, but I still have to be truthful to myself. You must come first or life ain't worth living. I feel like my youth is passing me by. I don't go out as much with the fellas, I'm missing recent movies, falling behind on my novel reading etc. This strange fucking feeling just keeps bubbling in my stomach and fear and indecisiveness is messing with my thinking. I've been thinking of quiting my bar tending job altogether and just dedicating myself to the video store full time. It would restore me to my earlier, vigorous self. I would have new goals and priorities. It's a very stupid move financially but it could give me the initiative to push the store to new heights. Another option is to sell the store in December and continue bar tending full time, getting 2 bar gigs and working them for a couple of years and building a bigger nest egg. Money plays a large role in how I live my life so its always good to feel financially secure. Bartending does provide me with vast amounts of cash for little work. The future is unpredictable and you never know what life will throw at you so its always good to plan for a rainy day. I'm pretty torn about this. I know way too many people with financial turmoil to make my move now, but I could just be using that as a cover to hide my fear of failure if I was to move on and not make it. What do you guys think? Comment below.

March Rain is Killing Business.

What the fuck is up with the rain we've been getting the last 3 weeks? Three straight weeks of rain on Friday and Saturday. Its nuts! Only on the weekends, like some fucking curse. Brasils and Heat are getting slaughtered by it and Galaxy Video is down 60%! If this continues I might as well sell out, pack my shit and move to Miami.

Howard Stern Still Got it!

Rita G was on the Howard Stern show. She really took the cake as one of the most unintelligent women I've ever seen on the show. For those who don't know (women), Rita G is the sexy girl from Kanye Wests Flashing Lights video.

Real or Fake - The best bloopers are a click away

Drunk Francko! Retired!

" He has all the virtues I dislike and none of the vices I admire."

Winston Churchill

After embarrassing myself in front of my co workers at Heat last weekend. I've decided to put drunk Francko behind me.He had a good run. You've seen the mySpace pics. $200 to $500 tabs. Invitations to parties way out of his league. A knack for embarrassing himself in public. An amazing ability to make enemies of friends and family. A passion for making out with ugly women. But its time to grow up.

Grow Up and Stop Crying!

" To the ladies and gentleman that may have taken offense to my blog. I say Fuck You and good day. "

Frances Angelo Francois II
Da Blue Mood

You call or email without purpose. You bore me with speeches but wont comment the blog. You call me vain for sharing opinions. Fuck off. Its all in good fun people.

Brian, Booze and Broads.

"The masculine error is to think that eventually things will be different in some fundamental way. They wont. It never ends. As long as life continues, the creative challenge is to tussle, play and make love with the present moment while giving your unique gift."

David Deida
The Way of the Superior Man

My pal Brian Charles (read his journal section) stopped by the store the other day. He just got two graphic design jobs and was in the mood to celebrate. After closing up we hit up the Khyber for a few beers and shot the shit. Four beers in, the conversation changed to women (as it always does) and fears and expectations in life. Now for those of you who don't know Brian he's my polar opposite. I'm a pessimistic, reclusive asshole :(, he's an optimistic, erudite, vagrant :), so when we get together the shit hits the fan 9/10 times. We think differently so that makes for good conversation. We began exchanging abstractions on what our ideal woman should be. Brian being an artist believes that couples should share various similarities for a relationship to work. He's been in several long term relationships with artists so I agreed with him to a point. The problem is his relationships usually end badly (sorry to put you on Front St). Why pursue something that usually ends up hurting you? I believe successful relationships usually consist of women who're your complementary opposite. Unlike Brian my relationships rarely last past 6 months (99% of the time its my fault.), but I'm still friends with the majority of exes and keep in contact with most of them. We argued this for several hours and of course came to no conclusion (read quote above) but a good time was had by all. Comment below bitches.

Infection: Avoid the Unhappy and the Unlucky!

"You can die from someone else's misery - emotional states are as infectious as diseases. You may think your helping the drowning man but your only precipitating your own disaster. The unfortunate sometimes draw misfortune on themselves; they will also draw it on you. Associate with the happy and the fortunate instead."

Robert Greene
The 48 Laws of Power

Real talk. February was a real tough month for the kid. Besides the shit I've had to put up with juggling two jobs, old friends have been popping up left and right asking for favors that's been slowly taxing my financial and emotional progress. Now I don't know if its a metro-sexual thing (I consider myself an old school alpha) but this seems to be a problem facing a vast majority of males I encounter (lady's seem to have a grip on shit in Philly). To me being a man represents standing on your own two feet, taking responsibility for your actions. Most of us encounter trying times in life, some more than others, how you overcome those obstacles are what determines how a person views you as a man. Asking for help is acceptable to me if its done in moderation, but showing extreme weakness' such as repeatedly asking to borrow money, needing a place to crash, lacking direction, mooching and the worst of all repeated indecisiveness really puts a strain on my respect for a person. A friend should be an equal, someone you respect. How do you respect a fuck up? I don't respect patsy's or underlings and certainly don't want them in my circle. I believe they'll bring you down. Am I being too judgmental, harsh? Comment and share your opinions. I can use another point of view on this cause its really fucking with me emotionally.