I’m a bit lazy. Especially when it comes to doing things for just myself.

Cooking is one of those things that I’ve always had a bit of a problem getting excited about. Mostly because I’m usually just cooking for myself… which leads to a lot of leftovers… which means I don’t have to cook all that much.

I do, however, like to make some fancy food every now and then. It’s been an acquired skill that started as a way to save money. Now, every so often, it gets used to entertain other people. (Something I really should try to get back to.)

Food, in general, is something that really comes into play this time of year. All the holiday parties are excuses to whip up something new (or trot out an old favorite) to share with friends and family.

Today in the vlog, I just kind of ramble on about food. But what I really want to know is: what are your favorite recipes or food traditions for the holidays?

Don’t forget that you have some say over what goes on for the next 100 days… click the big green button below here to get to the page where you can submit topic suggestions and questions (so I know what kinds of things you want to see go on in these videos).

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Of all the Marvel properties so far that have found their way to the screen (big or small) as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), Jessica Jones is the one I’ve known the least about when it comes to the source material. (The Guardians of the Galaxy team that hit the big screen is a close second… they’re not the Guardians I used to read, but I did know a bunch of the characters from back in the day.)

After just one episode, I’m totally sold on the character. Krysten Ritter is fantastic (as is usually the case) and the feel of the show is wonderfully different from everything else Marvel has done so far. It’s at least as dark as Daredevil (with grand potential to be considerably darker… or, at least, more disturbing) and just as well done.

Yeah, I’ll be binging a bit this weekend it seems.

It’s definitely whetting my appetite for the second season of Daredevil, the promised Luke Cage series, and the maybe-or-maybe-not-happening Iron Fist series. (Not to mention what’ll happen when they all culminate in a Defenders film… which I, personally, hope will also include Doctor Strange.)

If you liked Daredevil, definitely check out Jessica Jones. Heck, if you like good TV, check both of them out (if you haven’t already).

Here, watch me gush a bit over the first episode of the show on today’s vlog.

Don’t forget that you have some say over what goes on for the next 100 days… click the big green button below here to get to the page where you can submit topic suggestions and questions (so I know what kinds of things you want to see go on in these videos).

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Last week, I talked a bit about the similarities and differences among the concepts of being content, being happy, and being thankful.

This week, as we approach Thanksgiving, I’m looking a bit at three more related concepts: Gratefulness, Happiness, and Acceptance.

I won’t  prattle on here, since I’m relatively happy with how it came out in the vlog. But did notice that I left out mentioning one concept.

I talked about the negative spiral and how much trouble that can cause. What I didn’t mention was that there’s also a positive spiral. That may not sound like a bad thing, but it can be. Getting stuck in a positive spiral can blind us to actual problems, either in the situation we’re in or in how we’re dealing with the situation we’re in. That leads to us doing things like justifying someone else’s bad behavior toward us, convincing ourselves that we’re just overreacting to a situation, and, generally twisting reality to be a lot better than it is.

A positive spiral is taking optimism to an extreme that makes it a very bad thing.

So, check out the vlog and set yourself firmly in reality.

Don’t forget that you have some say over what goes on for the next 100 days… click the big green button below here to get to the page where you can submit topic suggestions and questions (so I know what kinds of things you want to see go on in these videos).

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Diving back a little into Gen X flavored stuff. This time by talking a bit about one of my favorite movies that I think is definitively Gen X: Pump Up the Volume.

It’s a movie I’ve written about before, so I won’t go in depth again in this bunch of text.

What I will say here is that this is yet another one of those vlogs that I’d love to go back to one day and re-visit with a pre-written script (and teleprompter). I almost totally forgot the centerpiece quote “Feeling screwed up at a screwed up time in a screwed up place does not necessarily make you screwed up.”

And I would have loved to splice in some clips. Have some more elegant parallels set up.

Anyway… it’s an important movie to me. It’s an important movie for a lot of people I know. Hopefully it’ll be an important movie for a new person or two who haven’t heard about it until now.

So, check out the vlog and remember: Talk hard.

Don’t forget that you have some say over what goes on for the next 100 days… click the big green button below here to get to the page where you can submit topic suggestions and questions (so I know what kinds of things you want to see go on in these videos).

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