A 'lil HooHaa

Messing with the blogging world since 2005

life

It is a number and only a number

Today seemed like a good day to write this post.

As more applications go out from me to potential/hopeful employers — some realistic, some not so much — I have been wondering when this bad trip will end. I keep hoping I’m going to wake up and know it’s a bad dream. Alas, I know it’s reality. But, I’ve been sending things out to hopefully good matches and something might come of it.

Right?

It’s likely hitting me harder knowing a few things — I recently found out a friend I hadn’t talked to in a while has been out of work nearly as long as I have, and that my unemployment will be ending by the end of the year.

That last part socks you in the face because it’s nearly impossible to get by now with that coming in. I can’t imagine continuing this job search without it. Alas, if it comes to that, I will do what I need to do to get by.

I’ll keep fighting.

Last week, I visited a trade school of sorts. Friends know what I’ve been looking at, but I’m not ready to share it all here. I’m going to fill out the financial aid forms and see what can come out of it. But this would be to fully change careers. And when I say change, I mean change.

But that could be a good thing.

A number doesn’t define some of the great things in life.

Today, I creep closer to the big four-oh. Well, I creep closer to that every day. But today puts me even closer. I’ve always said age is just a number and I firmly believe that. I’ve never been big into birthdays, so this day really doesn’t mean much. The only thing I’m figuring comes with age is it hurts more the day after a softball game, a couple rounds of disc golf, a long paddle or a day of hiking.

I can deal with that.

On the flip side, I also watch friends — younger and older — doing well in this world. As they march through life, they have good jobs, families and whatever else. It’s not that I’m jealous. In fact, it’s the complete opposite. I smile knowing what people are doing.

At the same time, I think about years down the road and retirement and know so many others are successfully building toward that and I’m still trying to figure out what retirement plans are!

I look back at what happened to me when my position was cut an I do think, in the long run, I’ll be better off. Let’s face it, newspapers are hurting and it isn’t going to get better. Major papers are cutting back to three days per week. It’s an online world and many newspapers are doing that. Unfortunately, some places won’t survive that. I see companies going to universal hubs, cutting people, cutting publications and more. There’s no way I would have survived in newspapers for the rest of my career.

Still, I’m finding many people are coming out of college with these degrees. And it’s made it a tougher job market. Public relations jobs and writing jobs are getting hundreds of applications. It’s a buyer’s market, that’s for sure.

Guess that Master’s degree is looking like a waste of money right now, eh?

So now it’s getting drastic in my eyes.

I’m hoping something comes along soon. And, if not, maybe the career change might be a good thing. It would be exciting. The program takes about eight months, so I’m trying to figure out how I would afford it with finding part-time work, paying for school and all that.

Who knows.

But I’ve also realized life’s short. And with that in mind, I’m trying to start doing other things better and taking a better look on life. Recently, as I’ve  stepped on the scales, my weight is the lowest it’s been in a couple of years. My pants don’t fit well. My sweatshirts and such are fitting better. So I need to continue down that path.

In the end, something good will hopefully happen.

Simple things in life are what make you happy. A sunset. A stroll on a quiet evening. A little pro rasslin’ on the tube or the excitement of September baseball.

Simple.

This day is about some number increasing by one. But it’s just a number. Age really isn’t much when thinking about the big picture. Some people reach big numbers, some, unfortunately, don’t.

It’s just a number.

And for me, the number is only part of the big picture. One I hope has a bright look to it for the future.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

The world of writing — and blocking

As far back as I can remember, I’ve been somewhat of a writer.

Rumor is, I used to do it at a young age and slid it under a door to my aunt when she was once visiting. I don’t remember that, but she once told me that.

When I was in high school, writing and English classes were always my strong point. Science and math? I was awful. But I could do very well in the English and writing classes. In fact, by the time I graduated from high school, I was already working and writing for the local weekly newspaper. One of my favorite teachers gave me a leather portfolio to store stories for future use.

Writing was in the future, it appeared.

That continued in college, where getting through basic algebra classes required me utilizing some others in class to try and explain things on a more simple level. Thankfully, I did well enough to allow those grades to transfer from the two-year school I first attended to my eventual four-year school.

When I got to my second college, five years or so later, I was told I needed to take four semesters of a foreign language. I never had to do it in high school, so I was a bit worried. Those four classes were some of the hardest I ever took. I went with French because I enjoy traveling to Montreal and thought it would come in handy.

You know what I found out?

I read and wrote it better than I spoke or understood it. Go figure.

If you check out the archives on this site, you’ll see it dates to 2005. And when checking that drop-down menu, you’ll see months and such with a number after in parentheses. That number shows the amount of posts for that certain month. Over the years, the posts go up and down and such. But I’ve always found a way to write. And it’s come naturally.

Obviously, there needs to be a point to all of this, right?

Kind of.

Part of the reason of this post is to write. I’ve recently — likely because of having this site and the Rattling Chains blog — been hitting a roadblock with writing. I’ve struggled. But it’s also in part because I have a few writing projects I’m slowly working on that I am really excited about. And that’s been in my mind.

See, I have the chance to write a few in-depth pieces on some people I’ve met over the past couple of years.

One of those will easily make a book if I do it right. The other I’m hoping to turn into a Kindle Single or something along those lines. It will take a lot of work, dedication and time. But I look forward to it.

Here’s the thing — I don’t expect to get rich off any of it. As a writer, like many others, my dream has been to write a book. I’m not concerned about making millions. I’m concerned about doing it right, telling the full story and, in the end, having something I’m proud to call my own. Will it get picked up by a publisher? Will I self-publish? Who knows. But the goal, truthfully, would be just to do it and then go from there.

See, I write because it’s what I do. I watch as people I graduated with have successful careers and do other things in this world. I’m an out-of-work journalist who sees more and more from my field be in the same position each week. It’s a tough market and it’s tougher by the day.

But I write. No matter why I was one who got this “skill,” I did. And though riches won’t likely follow, it’s what I do. But I write because it’s what I do. And it is who I am.

Of course, during all of this, I am still taking a lot of time to apply for jobs, interview when I get to that point, and search for more jobs. That is a full-time job in its own right.

Add all of these together and it can lead for a lot of writing things going through my mind!

I guess the point of this post is to let the readers of this blog know what’s up. That’s why, sometimes, you’ll see me go a day or two extra without a post. The readership of this blog isn’t through the roof, but those of you who do come and visit, I appreciate and want to keep in the “loop,” per say.

The two projects I want to do likely won’t start for a little while. I need to make sure I have everything lined up. But you can bet that during the process, I’ll be giving clips and such here on the blog. Why wouldn’t I, right?

Now to the final reason for this post.

It may seem like it was a random post full of nothing but ideas and such. But in the end, it was also a way for me to put everything out there. To get my thoughts on paper. As you can see, I have a lot of things rolling around in my melon. So hopefully this will help me organize those things, get a plan and attack.

The reality is, I have time to do a lot of these things. I just need to make it work. It doesn’t have to be a full-time job to have side writing projects — as I’ve proved (I’ve done blogs while employed and my job hunt is a full-time job now, so I do the writing when done with those things each day). And, I just need to figure out how to get my thoughts out there on one subject and get through this whole blocking thing.

So the reality was this post is hopefully therapeutic. And I thank you for getting through this and “listening!”

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook! 

Will the blackout be enough to help stop SOPA and PIPA?

Wikipedia went dark for 24 hours to protest SOPA and PIPA.

As most regular readers know, I’m not a political person.

I don’t bring politics on this blog because I find that it’s one of the most explosive and one-sided topics out there. By one-sided, I mean this: The person making the argument is going to be right. His or her opponents are going to be right. Why is everyone right? Because the majority of the time, there’s not going to be any bending. People have their beliefs and usually they won’t be swayed.

So I avoid it.

But the blackout that happened with some Internet sites yesterday — Wikipedia had a full blackout of its English language site — to oppose legislation being considered in the U.S. Congress was an admirable gesture.

Did it work?

Google blacked out its logo and linked to a page so people could sign a petition to oppose the legislation.

Only time will tell. What is being opposed are two pieces of legislation that could censor parts of the Internet. It’s being backed by the entertainment industry, which is screaming for this as a way to stop online piracy.

Wikipedia did post some startling statistics and notes from the day of the blackout. It’s worth a read. Check it out here. (There’s a ton of interesting things there, but one thing that stood out to me? More than 162 million saw the Wikipedia blackout page, according to Wikipedia).

The two bills — and maybe you’ve heard of them or seen these being talked about online — are SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act) and PIPA (PROTECT IP Act). Wikipedia also gives you two links where you can track the progress of the bills through GovTrack — SOPA and PIPA.

I can’t even begin to say I could explain these whole acts. Click the links above and they will take you to the Wikipedia page explaining each act. I’ve read a lot and don’t know if I can grasp it all, but I know this much — we should try and see what’s going on here because the future of the Internet as we know it could be on the line.

Look, I don’t agree with online piracy. I realize it needs to stop. But to have these pieces of legislation pass through — with vague writing and everything else — could possibly give too much power to people in the government and elsewhere. The normal Joe — Joe Plumber — could go to jail or be sued for something extremely small.

It could, essentially, be crippling.

I’ve spent a lot of time looking at all of this. I’m not sure I even fully understand it. But there are some great things out there for people to read to try and get a grasp on what this legislation is actually about.

Do you realize that parts of these bills could mean if you sing an artist’s song, record it and put it on YouTube that you could go to jail?

Seriously.

I’m not a fan of Justin Bieber. But he got his start doing this very thing. Find out more info about the bills and hear Bieber’s response to all of this at the website freebieber.org.

One thing is for sure — I don’t need the people in Washington deciding how I use the Internet. Or how I get information. Or if  I want to put a family video up with a song playing in the background. I’m not trying to make money off it. Leave it be.

As a journalist, I am a firm believer in the constitution and what it stands for. It seems those in Washington who support this bill might not believe in it so much. This is the reality — there are a bunch of an older generation in Washington getting ready to vote on a bill that could hamper the growth of technology and the Internet for future generations. I don’t think that should happen, personally.

That small group will decide this.

One group.

Speak up, America.

Here’s a very good video about these bills and what it could mean to all of us, from fightforthefuture.org:

If you follow the link to their website, you can also write congress directly from there and voice your opinion about these bills.

All I ask is that you see what these bills are all about. Speak your mind. Tell your congress people what you think. This is our future. The future of the upcoming generations.

Remember that genius comes from the craziest places. There are some phenomenal internet-based companies that could be shut down or sued because of these bills. Blogs could come under fire for sharing content. Sites people love — YouTube, Facebook etc. — could all get into trouble for having things that are protected. Users could get in trouble.

The Internet as we know it could be done.

Please read some stuff about it. Get educated. Sign the petition if you are against it. But make sure your voice is heard.

The future of the Internet could be in danger, so get your say in while you have the chance.

Google has a lot of information about these bills. This could be a good place to start (and there’s even a place to sign a petition there): End Piracy, Not Liberty.

My final plea is to take a stand against censorship. Do your part. This goes beyond politics. This goes beyond partisan thinking. This is life. Life as we know it. Don’t let the future be dictated by the few people in Washington who are more worried about the bigwigs in the Entertainment industry and their lobbyists.

Speak up before it’s too late.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook by clicking the button on the right side of the page!

 

50 questions that free your mind: No. 9

As part of my Day Zero Project, I will be answering the 50 Questions That Free Your Mind. For each of these, I will blog an answer and then it will be linked here as well. Some of these will have longer responses, some will be extremely short. But by the end of the Day Zero Project, I will have answered all of these.

No. 9: To what degree have you actually controlled the course your life has taken?

As much as I hate to say it, I wonder if I have controlled much of it.

This question seems to be somewhat close to No. 8 in that one is supposed to think about controlling life/worrying about a life span.

So back to this one.

Life has thrown all sorts of curves, slurves and knucklers at me. I usually figure a way around them. But I haven’t really controlled things, per say.

I’m definitely not where I thought or would have wanted to be at this point in life. I went to college late, I got a job I always thought I never would have or would want and then that job eventually dropped me on my head, despite doing really solid work and being a benefit to the company.

That being said, it’s never too late, is it?

With everything that has gone on in my world over the past year or so, I’m doing all I can to take control. I’ve expanded this blog as one of those things and I’ve been working on an idea for another large product, if it all goes well.

And I keep looking for work that will make me feel fulfilled and like I’m controlling my world.

Now, as for the course my life has taken, of course I have controlled that. I’ve made choices. I’ve made decisions. I need to live with the results of those decisions, good or bad. So that control has been done. Next up I have to take control of things that happen after I make those decisions. I hope that makes sense.

If not, allow me to try and clean it up.

My life has taken twists and turns — as most people’s lives have. I’ve controlled the decisions to make me get to certain points. But there are some points in the last year where I’ve had no control. And that’s really made me spiral a little because the point I am currently at is not of my choosing.

However…

I’m trying to get that control back. Because in the end, though I was put where I am with something out of my control, in the end I have to be in control.

So I’m working on that.

And hopefully, when all is said and done, I’ll be back in total control of the direction I am headed!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook by clicking the button on the right side of the page!

Where should I go?

Help me, people.

I need some inspiration.

For photography. For myself. For life.

It’s been a long road since I was laid off. I’ve worked to find a career — a job that I am suited for. It’s a tough job market out there. But it’s been frustrating. Recently, I got a flood of rejection letters. That was tough as several were jobs I really was interested in.

No calls. Nothing. Just a “thank you, but we’ve gone in a different direction” letter.

I need some sort of peace. Some sort of inner zen. Something to clear my mind and make me realize that eventually, life will get better. It won’t be all about paying bills from unemployment dollars. It will be being able to afford certain things that I would like to so. Simple things. Things that make me smile.

I need to realize that the sun will eventually come up in a brighter way (outside of this heat wave we’ve been stuck in!)

So, how can you help me?

Well, it’s simple.

I need to go somewhere. Not far as the funds won’t allow it. I want to find a weekend trip. Some place where I can sit and realize life is good just by staring. Some place I can clear my mind.

Remember, I don’t have money to go to big places.

My plan? To have it in driving range. I’d leave on a Friday. Come back late Sunday night. I don’t need computers. I don’t need luxury. I might take a tent and camp. I might sleep in my car. I might find a cheap motel on the side of a road, just to take a shower. Who knows. But I just need to find a place to get away and clear my head.

Do I head toward Maine and sit atop Cadillac Mountain and stare out at an amazing sunrise?

Do I find a secluded beach somewhere, stick my feet in the sand and just think?

How about a small town with some amazing minor league baseball?

Maybe it’s a geocaching adventure into the Adirondacks? (though that might defeat the purpose!)

Maybe I should go off to find some new covered bridges or waterfalls in New England?

Or a place I need to see, just because?

This could all be a dream, too. I need to pay for gas for this trip, so I have to make sure I can pull it off. I have no issues taking a cooler with peanut butter, bread, some chips and some fruit and eating away the weekend that way. My camera and my iPod would be my true entertainment.

So what do you all think? Remember, I’m in central New York. I don’t want to have to drive 15 hours to go somewhere. But a 6-8 hour ride? Sure. I’d do it if I could do it financially and within reason.

So help me clear my mind. That’s what I want to do here. Who knows what weekend I’ll do it. Could be soon. Could be in August. Could be never. But I’m debating it to see what I could possibly pull off to clear my head and make me realize life’s pretty grand right now. Believe me, I know it doesn’t suck. There are, unfortunately, a lot of people out there who have it worse than me. And I know that. But in times like this, it’s hard to think about others when you wonder about yourself, your path and your future.

If you have ideas, drop ’em in the comment area!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com.