Cool Parents vs. Crappy Parents

I heard a local news story recently that got me thinking about the difference between "Cool Parents" and "Crappy Parents".

The story was about a couple in Bridgeton who were arrested and charged with aiding and abetting someone under age for allowing their teen daughter and her friends to drink at their house.

When I first heard the story I immediately assumed "party pooper". I thought either someone who wasn't invited or possibly a neighbor called the cops on the party and got everybody in trouble. Then I heard the details...

"Officers found fifteen teens between the ages of 12 and 15 drinking."

WHAT??? 75% of the people drinking were UNDER FIFTEEN YEARS OLD!! These 2 idiots deserve to have the book thrown at them because that's just stupidity. Either they were trying to be cool in the eyes of a bunch of kids (which is sad) or they didn't see where this could go badly (which is even sadder).

If this had been a group of 18 & 19 year old teens I'd have no problem with what happened and would even commend them for allowing their kids to party responsibly if they choose instead of sneaking around and risking getting in trouble or worse. However, if you're hosting keggers for kids who aren't even old enough to DRIVE, you really need to re-evaluate your situation.

Sunset Sessions Rock! 2013 Recap

Earlier this month I made my 3rd annual excursion to southern California for Sunset Sessions Rock! Sunset Sessions at its core is a music conference. Record labels, management, and individual artists and bands come out to perform for an audience of radio professionals, music supervisors (the people who make movie, tv, video game, and other soundtracks), and other music industry professionals. We spend 4 days talking music, discovering new bands, and building a network within the industry.

This year's started on sketchy terms when I woke up 2 days before my flight out with a sinus infection. An overdose of zinc, Vitamin C, and cold meds got me cleared up enough by the time I arrived that I was fine so the weekend was underway. The first day started with the "Passion Panel" which is kinda like speed dating but much cooler. We rotate between tables and get to know each other and introduce ourselves. Afterwards we headed off to Belly Up, the venue for the nightly performances, to see the first night's bands. Cameron Rafati, The Unlikely Candidates, Faulkner (3rd great SSR show), Semi Precious Weapons (AWOLNATION-esque), and Monster Truck (denim wearing, Canadian classic rock style) were the first round of artists and all were great. Feral Vinca and Big B both returned as alumni to perform on the Late Night stage. After hours we headed back to the resort for an acoustic jam with various artists jumping into the mix.

Day 2 kicked off with Oleander acoustic by the pool and a discussion panel and an encore acoustic set by Bib B. Then we talked about social media and how to make the most of our social networks then more acoustic by the pool. Next we got to sit in on an interview with the legendary Sammy Hagar! Great discussion, debut of 4 new songs, and some of his Beach Bar Rum. After that we snuck off for a while to try a West Coast staple: In 'n Out Burger! It was amazing!! Back to the resort and off to the main stage we went. Night 2 saw Cheating Daylight (very talented teen "family" band), Leogun (dirty Brit rock), Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr., Michelle Delamor, 7Lions, Redlight King (friends of The X and always a great show), Heaven's Basement (mind blowing Brit rockers) and Ed Hale & The Transcendence. The highlight of the night for me was Heaven's Basement who I had heard their album but after seeing them live, I was a full blown fan. Forgot to mention that our boys Skratch 'n Sniff were mixing between bands both nights. Great seeing them as always!

Day 3 started with Bloody Marys and a greasy breakfast to calm the head and stomach. Then a few panels and a really cool keynote discussion with Warped Tour founder Kevin Lyman that blew my mind at how far Warped Tour has come over the years as a festival. Before the main stage we also saw a poolside performace by The Negotiators, a band of NINE YEAR OLDS who KILLED IT! The final Main Stage rocked with Strange Native, The Boxer Rebellion, Eve To Adam, Acidic (a band I played on Local 99 in the past who kicked some serious ass), Dig The Kid, Brand New Machine, and D-Strutters.

Sunday it was all good-byes and packing as we all headed back home. I had a late flight so I spent the day puttering around San Diego and sightseeing. I did make a trip to the ocean (which was right across the street from our resort) on Saturday and walked in the sand and took some cool pics. Once again I met some amazing people, saw some great friends, discovered some great new bands, and had a freaking blast doing it!

Counting the days till next time...

Making Dreams Come True

Everybody has dreams. Some have big dreams like a career goal or being a celebrity. Others have smaller dreams like a new car or more time with their families. Well, what would you do if you had the chance to make someone else's dream come true?

A guy eating out on Sunday had that chance and ran with it. A waitress was chatting with one of her tables and told them about her family in Italy. She went on to tell them about how she'd never been to Italy to visit, even though she's had 8 years of art education and Florence, Italy (where her family is located) is one of the art capitals of the world! The bill was brought and after the table left, she found this:



The guy left a $999.58 tip so the woman could make the trip to Italy! Of course, this story is from the internet and there's no way to verify (the story only lists the restaurant as being in a "small town") but it's still a great story about a type of person we should all strive to be.

Carolina Rebellion 2013 Recap

This year marked the 3rd year in a row that Carolina Rebellion was not only the biggest show around... but also got BIGGER! It started as a one day show, then they added a Friday Night Pre-Show, and this year they expanded it out to a full weekend!

Due to work I wasn't able to make it Friday night but I hear Eye Empire and Beware of Darkness kicked some major ass.

Saturday started off chilly and breezy as hell but that didn't stop the bands from bringing the ROCK! Young Guns kicked off the day with a dose of Brit rock that was like a sonic cup of coffee to start the day. I didn't get the chance to see many of the bands but I could hear plenty from where we were and Sick Puppies did a badass Foo Fighters cover, In This Moment blew minds with their stage setup and sonic assault, Aranda showed us how they made a name for themselves with a killer set, Matt showed the world he was the perfect replacement at the front of Three Days Grace, and even Limp Bizkit hit the stage and sounded PERFECT! Honestly, there wasn't a bad show the whole day.

Sunday we were expecting some rain but I don't think anybody knew exactly what we were going to get hit with. It rained a ton, it was cold as hell, and the wind blew it's ass off. Several bands had to cancel their sets due to weather and the show was called off later in the day but bands like All That Remains, Sevendust, Pop Evil, and Hollywood Undead trudged thru and brought the rock to the fans. Steel Panther even gave us some face shredding comedic relief. Even with the cancellations the day still rocked.

All in all it was a freaking blast yet again. Had a great time meeting rockers, chatting with old friends, and rocking the eff out!

Cinnamon Challenge Mega Fail

Last week I blogged about photo memes that have been spreading like wildfire. I didn't mention, however, the equally long and insane list of VIDEO memes. One of my favorites has always been the Cinnamon Challenge.

For those who haven't seen one of these videos yet it's pretty simple: you take a spoonful of cinnamon and try to swallow it without water. It's basically impossible and causes an immediate and strong gag reflex, kinda like these:




As you can see, it's not fun. Well, a new study out of the University of Miami shows it can also be DEADLY! It can cause all kinds of problems all the way up to EMPHYSEMA if the cinnamon is inhaled. Last year alone poison control centers got 222 calls about cinnamon swallowing incidents and 30 teens were hospitalized after attempting the challenge.

Find a damn hobby people!

Meme Mania!

Dictionary.com defines meme as "a cultural item that is transmitted by repetition in a manner analogous to the biological transmission of genes". Basically that means a meme is something that gets spread around society via things like social networks and grows, develops, and mutates as it spreads.

Some classic examples of memes are "planking" (lying flat in a random place like a plank):



Then there was "Batmanning" (hanging upside down like Batman):



Then it was "owling" (perching like an owl):



Then it started getting more complicated with  "Hadukening" (posing like u just got hit by a fireball in Street Fighter):



Which lead to "Vadering" (posing like you're being Force Choked by Darth Vader):



And the newest way to prove you have nothing better to do with your time is.... "QUIDDITCHING" (posing like you're playing Quidditch in the Harry Potter universe):



Although like most memes, it will be EVERYWHERE then disappear to make way for the next meme which is going to be...

Creepers Gonna Creep

Everyone reading this has either been the giver of or recipient of the dreaded "uncomfortable stare". It happens. Sometimes it's just our mind wandering and our face happens to be pointed at another person. Sometimes a hottie or stud catches our eye and we get caught up in the view. Other times, it's just plain creepy.

Take for example this past Sunday when me and my girlfriend had dinner in New Bern. We were walking back to the car and saw this random dude staring at the wall... or so we thought. Upon closer inspection he appeared to be reading some promotional flyers hanging in a store window. At least, that's what we thought until we saw that there was a Zumba class in the store he was standing outside of. Then we joked that maybe it was some perv watching the class but figured it was probably someone's husband.

Well, we found out later from someone who was in the class THAT HE WAS A CREEPER! He just stood out there watching them exercise. This brought several questions to mind: Did he think nobody would notice? What was his plan if anyone asked what he was doing? Does he not have internet access to watch porn at his leisure?

The moral of this story is: don't be creepy.