It's amazing to think about the amount of music there is in the world and you'll never really get to listen to it all, you'll listen to as much as you can and there's stuff you'll like and dislike, just like everything else, I've always drifted towards Jazz and Blues personally.
The Blues came first and I drifted more towards Jazz, I guess I got bored with Blues because it always seemed to sound the same but I gradually listened to artists who played delta blues and country and listened less to the more electrified blues. Jazz is a different animal, always evolving and everchanging, I'll never forget listening to a live recording of John Coltrane storming through 'My Favorite Things' and one particular moment where he held a note for what seemed like forever, those musical moments that everytime you listen to them, it makes you smile, or cry, depending on the piece of music, great music should be able to reach inside of you and make you think 'FUCK YES' those moments don't come along very often.
Those moments for me, tend to come from instrumental pieces mainly because there are no words and the instrument in question does all the work, I started listening to a man called Keith Jarrett last year and it amazes me what the man can create just sitting at a piano, with two hands, he keeps you transfixed like a good speaker, he tells a story with music and no words and it's amazing to hear


Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzqMJWlKMsY

This also a reason why I absolutely love the experience of a live recording, hearing a band interconnect with each other, play off each other and push each other, The Who are the greatest example of this, the energy they could produce live is absolutely astounding with Pete attacking his guitar with precision, Keith Moon and John Entwistle providing a swirling rhythmic foundation and Daltrey growling out out front, this band provided a rhythm so tight it just might break.


Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9g30nwCpyaA

There are plenty of other bands that I'd include in that vaulted pantheon of greatest live bands ever which include Allman Brothers, Led Zeppelin, Early Fleetwood Mac among others but the sheer energy that is created when a performer or a band hit's that perfect level of interaction is amazing to hear.

I love it when a show becomes more than just the standard plot of the week and starts to actually build a world within it's borders. The concept of 'The Wire' could translate to any major city but that isn't what the show is about.

The terrain of cops'n'robbers is a concept set in stone, there aren't many ways to approach it without stagnating so it's a credit to David Simon that he's created such vivid portrayal of men working both sides of the law and still remain fascinating. It's funny to think the whole Avon Barksdale saga is kicked off because one cop mouthed off to a judge off the record and from there it spans into an epic piece of storytelling on the war on drugs, the politics involved and how it's been handled. Simon is clearly not impressed with the way it's been handled and he vents his frustration through this series, this series could be labeled an exercise in cyncism but he's not so much interested in the cynicism but how institutions shape a city and no matter how much people try to shape those institutions into something better, other people only care about their own self-interest. This is nothing new, of course but fascinating nonetheless.

The characters of McNulty, Stringer Bell and Avon Barksdale form the main arc. For McNulty, Barksdale and Bell are like his Moby Dick, he's absolutely relentless in his pursuit of those two men to the detriment of his personal life, which is a mess but that's not what makes him interesting, he's a man so in love with the idea of making a big case and getting the accolades that he doesn't realize that's all he has, the making of a big case will not fix his mess of a life, he only realizes this in Season 3. Stringer Bell is another great character, he's worked himself up from the streets to be a gangboss but he wants more than that, it's great to watch the parallels between the way police work and how drug dealers, it's remarkably similar, the hierarchies except when you fuck up on a drug deal you end up dead but there's still a structure there which works in a similar way to law enforcement. It's fascinating to watch Bell try to crack into the world of legitimate business only to realize he's not quite smart enough.

I've only got seasons 4 and 5 to watch, now that the Avon Barksdale saga is over, I wonder which direction it'll take. Regardless, I'll be watching.

At the beginning of the year, I decided to go back to school and get a diploma in digital TV and film production, so far it's been really good, I'm getting a solid education even though it feels weird being surrounded by people 10 years younger than me, man, am I feeling my age.
It's been an interesting past 6 months, the classes include cinematography and lighting, group project, Industrial Production Practices and Technical Operations and logistics (that class fries my brain but it's fascinating nonetheless)
The cinematography and lighting class is an interesting look into how lighting serves as a plot for the film, various lighting techniques that are used and how cinematography is used for character, it's really opened my eyes as to how films are lit and how plot points and character dynamics are used via lighting.
The group project has us doing a live new broadcast, of which we each go out and film news segments to fill the news program, it's given us a broad knowledge of how to shoot and edit a 1:17 segment to be aired and all the paperwork involved.
The industrial production practices class is probably the least exciting class as it involves learning about paperwork and the various processes that go into making a film.
Technical Operations and Logistics is the most difficult class for those of us that aren't technicians and don't have that kind of brain but it's interesting nonetheless, I'm amazed I got 84% on one of my assignments.M
As a result, I'm now a student and I'm constantly broke which sucks. I'm also trying to get back into running and getting fit which my brother wholly endorses (he's a gym junkie)
Man, Indiana Jones was disappointing, they may as well have stuck an ad for scientology at the end of it.
If all goes well, my short film should be screened at a fairly well known film festival, it's tough finding time to write a feature screenplay.

I picked up a CD by this singer called 'Betty Davis' the other day. I think I'm love. The woman is absolutely ferocious. She sings about sex in a way Prince can't even imagine. She inspired Bitches Brew and assembled a crack band including the bass and drummer from Sly and the family Stone as well as members from Santana. Steppin' out in her I.Miller shoes is incredibly addictive and has an amazing groove. The rest of the CD is like that. This woman needs to be heard. 

I've finally decided to start the new year with a proper goal in mind, I'm going for a diploma in digital TV production, sounds exciting, doesn't it, the debt isn't but I guess that'll be paid off once I get a job.

I also screened my film a few nights ago at a filmmakers meetup group, it went down quite well, a woman who runs a screenwriting group I attend asbsolutely loved it and wanted a copy so she could use it in her course and also send it to a friend of hers who runs a film festival in the UK.

I've also been reading alot of classic literature, I've already got through The Iliad, The Odyssey, The Aeneid, Amores, Heroides and am currently getting through Metamorphoses, some absolutely brutal stuff but it's interesting to see how these myth's have been told retold throughout the ages.