Update: WHAAAAA? Edition

After a LONG hiatus, I'm updating to tell you that I have a new blog:

jsgrosch.wordpress.com

I promise that I'm going to update that one more regularly than this one.

It's weird posting about it on this blog. It's like introducing your ex-wife to your new wife, and you then tell her "Yeah, I'm actually going to pay attention to this one."

Just read the new blog. You'll like it!

"It's fun to do bad things"

This video is a bit old, but if you haven't seen it... I can't even describe it for you.

At night, I go for a swim...

First of all, an apology: I haven't updated in quite some time. You know the routine: I apologize, and then I update. No harm, no foul.

Secondly, a complaint: I just bought "Tired of Waiting for You" by the Kinks on iTunes. The artist is listed as the Kinks. However, it is a really crappy cover by some chick, not the classic rock strains I was expecting to hear. I'm a little upset.

Thirdly, I have the strongest urge to go swimming right now. However, I'm feeling pretty damn sick right now, the worst I've felt in quite some time, so going for a swim is probably really stupid. This continues a streak of weird night-urges (or nurges) I've been having: cotton candy craving the other night, wanting to run last night, and then swim tonight. At least they're getting healthier as urges go.

Fourthly, go see the Dark Knight. I don't care if you've seen it already or not. Go again. Right now. It's the best movie I've seen in quite some time, and the more I think about it, the performances, the writing, the characters, the story arcs, not to mention the action sequences and just jaw dropping cinematography... the more I am amazed by it. Also, I've never had so much delight and awe watching a character come to life as I did seeing the late Heath Ledger transform into his terrifying version of the Joker. My brain is too dead for deep analysis, but I will say this: if I could only watch 5 movies for the rest of my life, it would definitely be on the list.

Speaking of movies, I have finished the first draft of my script (which I why I've been lax in updating this blog). It's my first first draft ever, and I'm pretty proud of it. Look to this blog for updates on the script as it goes forward.

Alright, that's it for this WWWupdate. My brain and heart feel like they are simultaneously imploding. It's an interesting feeling, but I wouldn't recommend pursuing it.

WWW 6: Courage

I've heard many times that if you're serious about being a writer, you'll treat it like any other job. So, this week, I've made a resolution to have writing be my summer job. I'd show up at 10, work until about 5, and see what I've got. So far the plan's going reasonably well, but not quite as I've predicted. Somehow, I've subconsciously taken up the late shift. My hours now start around 10 PM and go as late as 4 in the morning. I'm happy with the work I'm getting done, yet I'm a little upset that it's at the expense of my normal sleeping hours. But art is a mysterious force. This script I'm working on is an odd creature: it consumes my mind, it's hard to see what the future will be, and it keeps me up at night. Script, I have enough women in my life that do that to me, thank you very much.



But I'd like to talk a little bit about Tiger Woods. If you missed any bit of the US Open this weekend, I'm sorry. You missed what will go down as one of the greatest and most gut-filled performances of all time.

Here's a disclaimer, I'm a huge Tiger Woods fan. I have been for almost 10 years. I had his records posted on my wall in my old bedroom. I always wear red on Sundays when he's in contention. My screenname on AIM is a play on his Tiger Slam victory in 2001 at the Masters. Am I biased as to what happened this weekend? Yes. But am I amazed? Yes.

In April, Tiger underwent knee surgery and didn't play until last week's US Open. There was much speculation about how hurt he was. I personally thought his knee would be fine. It was revealed today the extent of Tiger's injuries while playing the US Open. His ACL was torn and he had two stress fractures in his left Tibia. His doctor had recommended that he have "6 weeks of inactivity" a couple of weeks before the US Open. If a doctor told me to be inactive for 6 weeks, I'd take it as a cue to be as lazy as I want to be. "Oh, you need someone to help you move? Sorry, doctor said 6 weeks of inactivity. I know, that was 8 weeks ago, but my leg's still kinda sore."

Tiger goes "I'm playing in the US Open, and I'm going to win it." Now, I'm sure that tid-bit wouldn't have come out if Tiger didn't make those putts on the 18th hole on Sunday and Monday to extend the tournament, but still, that takes a supreme level of confidence.

I have a deeply held belief that putting yourself out there, risking everything, and embracing what can be scary is the only way to find the greatest places in your life. Tiger would never make it seem this way, but I'm sure with his knee audibly rattling, the prospect of injuring himself even worse, and the prospect of risking all of that and losing: it was scary. And hard. But he embraced the scary, and he ended up with what he calls his "greatest victory."

In an interview earlier this year, Tiger Woods said that "every day is a chance to get better." He wasn't just talking in a golf context. He was talking in a life context. Every day is a gift given to us, and if we take advantage, it's a chance to become a better person, a harder worker, a better friend. It's a chance to face our fears and let go of our anxieties. It's a chance to start living the life we've always dreamed of.

I know, you're probably just thinking "Jeez, it's just a golf tournament. There are so many more important things in the world." And you'd be right. But watching this golf tournament, I saw that creed put into action, and it gave me hope. And that should be worth something.

Or maybe he is just another man dressed in silly clothes chasing a small white ball around. This weekend he just did it on one leg.

Weekly Wednesday Wupdate 5: Sickly Edition

Something that's wonderful: falling asleep next to the window during a thunderstorm.

Something that's awful: waking up and then realizing you have a fever.

I'd continue this post, but my thoughts are a bit delirious right now. Almost as delirious as this clip, from a real Japanese Game Show called "Quiet Library." It's great.

Lack Of Update: An Explanation

Things were looking upward after last week. "A Wednesday Wupdate? On Wednesday?!?!" most of you probably exclaimed, jumped out of your seats and feasted on the fatted calf as you slowly read my update over a period of 48 hours, savoring and analyzing every word like it was your last. Or so I imagined.

Also, I think that the first sentence in this update is so long and convoluted that it killed all other sentences. Sentences are survived by his wife, statements with ellipses, and his bastard children, fragments and run-ons.

Alright, I think that's enough grammar humor for the night.

So, this week was updateless. This doesn't count. It's more of a mea culpa. It's not that I haven't had anything to write lately. It's just that most of what life is throwing me right now deserves a more intimate writing. I would post the progress on the screenplay i'm writing or all of the poetry, but A) screenplay's story is a secret (I've only divulged any of the details to one person), and as for the poetry B) this is not the livejournal of a 15 year old. So, those private writings remain just that. For now.

I must just write a little bit about transformation, because it's been on my mind recently. It's hard not to be after seeing family members for the first time in years at my sister's wedding, and pretty much the only thing I heard all weekend was "I did not recognize you at all!" It gets a little old saying "yes, I got older," but it was amusing as well. This year featured one of the most profound changes in me. Physically, I grew up a bit. But really, mentally, I went through a dramatic shift, which I've only been seeing the fruits of very recently. The last four weeks of my second semester were really odd. I sat around and didn't do much, and played way too many hours of videogames. It was like I was in a cocoon, and now I've emerged. I feel oddly responsible, strangely health conscious, and suspiciously ready to take on anything. I work out and write every day. I'm doing things that scare me. And I'm playing far less videogames (I mean, I love videogames, but you would think that my consumption would go up rather than almost disappear once coming home). I feel like an adult, and for the first time, that doesn't scare me.

I'm ready now.

So, I'm now prepared to be surprised. We'll see what transformations life leads me to.

Life is good.

WWW4: On Time Edition?

Hello all. As I start this post, it is 11:17 PM EST on Wed, May 28th. Which would mean by some miracle that I will post the Weekly Wednesday Wupdate on an actual Wednesday. Praise the Lord.

Life has been uneventful the past few days, so I don't have much to talk about. I thought for this update I might give a few quick-shot reviews like I did for Indiana Jones for things that have captured my fancy the past few weeks. Here goes:


Grand Theft Auto IV The attention to detail in this game should be something as well thought out in all forms of media. At first, it's easy to miss why this game is so groundbreaking. It really feels like a GTA game, which millions of people are already pretty familiar with. But below that surface is a level of detail and storytelling that hasn't been realized in a videogame before. Roger Ebert thinks that, by putting the control into the consumer of the medium and taking some away from the auteur, videogames cannot be considered art. GTA IV is the biggest argument against that, as it defines good videogame storytelling as giving the player control. The game presents you with several choices to make, and they aren't easy. I had to struggle with moral decisions as the protagonist would. Being able to experience that viscerally is probably the coolest moment I've ever had encountering a videogame narrative. The game has some small technical flaws (pop-in is predominant in the XBOX 360 version, and I've experienced some slowdown recently, even though I didn't notice it much at all during the first many hours of the game). However, all of the flaws are not even noticeable in this amazing game. Buy it.

Boom Blox: A videogame for the Wii by Steven Spielberg. It pretty much consists of reverse jenga, where your goal is destruction of blocks. You get to throw balls at stacks of blocks and knock them over. Sometimes they explode. This should be screaming to the inner 5-year old in you. Playing with blocks, and knocking them over, is now part of our DNA. This game taps in on that. That's all I really need to say.

Prof. Layton and the Curious Village A great puzzle game. Even though the story might seem a little convoluted, especially when they do things like "This man is dead. There has been a murder... That reminds me of a puzzle!" it's still a very clever romp.

Moment of Truth: This show is nothing short of despicable. Much like boom blox and GTA to an extent, this taps in on our fascination with destruction. Unlike GTA and Boom Blox, Moment of Truth is in the business of destroying real lives, not fake polygonal ones or stakes of make-believe blocks (blox?). They bring up some two-timing, cheating sleezebag in front of their family and friends and ask them to truthfully answer questions like "Have you cheated on your wife?" or "Have you ever suspected your best friend of hitting on your girlfriend?" Usually the answers are yes. The contestants get paid for being honest. I guess it's compensation for ruining all of your personal relationships. And the worst part about it is that it's impossible to stop watching once you start. I feel dirty, but I couldn't look away. Sadly, I will stop watching this show not because it's morally offensive, but that I hate how it's edited. They do so many time-fillers and cheesy cut-aways to commercials that the American Idol results show seems about as action packed as an episode of Lost. And they will replay the same minute of footage at least twice during the show. It's like watching a 30 minute show strangely cut to be played out over 60 minutes. And that is truly sickening.

Speaking of Lost, the three-hour finale event is on tomorrow on ABC. I'm so pumped, I can hardly explain it. All I can hope is that there will be lots of Michael Emerson in the finale and that he lives into next season. He's a fantastic actor, and Ben is easily my favorite character on TV right now. Yeah, eat it House.

Actually, I really like House too.