Small Time Celebrity

Recognize this guy?  (photo credit to exposay.com)

Yeah, it’s ok. Neither did I. But that’s probably because I didn’t watch VH1’s Rock and Roll Fantasy Camp. Then maybe I would be more educated on who this gentleman is.

My coworker is the new lead singer for a local band called From Slaves to Kings, and I went to their show last night. They were special guests at the Epic Proportions tour featuring Lost in Atlantis. By the way, From Slaves to Kings killed it last night, and I highly recommend checking out their music at http://www.reverbnation.com/fromslavestokings. They’re gonna be big.

There were two artists on the tour who played before them, and that guy up there, Gabe Kubanda, was one of them. He is a solo artist who plays guitar and sings. And he decided to hit on me after his set.
Now, I don’t know if anyone’s ever been hit on by anyone of celebrity status, even small-time reality TV celebrity status, but it’s kind of interesting. He’s not the first celebrity (or otherwise) that I’ve met, and it gives a cool story, at least. He was pretty respectful about it, as well, and not as creepy or cocky as some other guys tend to be. He asked if I’d go on their next tour with them in September and be their promo model, and then he could possibly convince me to be his girlfriend. His words, not mine.

I did have a pretty cool conversation with him, though, so that was still an upside. Needless to say, I will not be going on tour with him in September. Sorry dude. And who knows? Maybe one day he’ll see this because it has his name and picture can probably be searchable to Google in this post now. Doubtful, but possible.

Have you ever had a cool conversation with a celebrity, big name or otherwise? Have you ever been hit on by anyone of famous status? Got any cool celebrity stories at all? Let’s hear them.

“Call Me Maybe.” No.

So you can’t go anywhere nowadays without hearing certain songs. And because pop music seems to be going downhill fast, these songs are usually irritatingly catchy and terrible at the same time.

Some Candian girl no one’s ever heard of got big with “Call Me Maybe.” Talking to you, Carly Rae Jepsen. And if I’m not mistaken, I think Beiber had something to do with her getting signed to a record label, which makes it even worse. I think Beiber is just handing out record deals now, I don’t know. But anyway, you hear “Call Me Maybe” everywhere now, and I’ve never heard another song by her. We frankly don’t need to; she could probably retire off the royalties on that song alone. And the parodies? Don’t get me started.

I was perusing failblog.org the other day, and I found this:

To read the full version, go here: http://failblog.org/?s=carly+rae+is+crazy+maybe

But to break it down, this guy basically wrote a Facebook post aimed at Carly Rae Jepsen and explaining how little sense her song actually makes, and then asking for clarification. He mentions the fact that you don’t throw “a wish in the well.” That’s not how wishing wells work. He basically breaks down lines in the song and picks them apart, also stating that the possibility of calling her (maybe) is entirely misleading; she says “here’s my number” but never gives a number to call her at, hence nulling the entire concept of the song. It’s a little long, but I highly recommend reading the whole thing. It’s hilarious, and I don’t do it justice.

This is basically the fate of popular music. I could go on and on about terrible song lyrics that are all the rage with the kids these days, but I just don’t have the strength. What is our world coming to??!! Who listens to these songs and enjoys them??!!

Yeah….

To be fair, I didn’t know it was recording. Okay fine, I was completely aware. I admit it! This song is a complete and utter guilty pleasure for me to jam out in my car to and sing terribly off key to. So sue me. You win, Carly Rae.

So let’s hear it: what is your guilty pleasure? Are you a closet Carly Rae Jepsen fan like me? Do we like these songs because they’re terribly awesome?

Nerd Moment #958: Absolute Zero

credit: http://shirtoid.com/8834/absolute-zero-is-the-coolest/



So I’ve been known to nerd out from time to time. Okay, I nerd out a lot, and it’s all over different things. So today’s nerd moment is a concept from physics that I’ve been mulling over for quite some time.

It’s called absolute zero. It’s something we can never, ever achieve, because it goes against the second law of thermodynamics. And because it’s impossible, it’s fun to speculate the idea of what would happen if we ever did truly achieve absolute zero.

By this point, I’ve either lost readers, or everyone is wondering what in the world absolute zero is. But only a true nerd would blog about this, so that tells you what you, as a reader, are getting into.

Temperature, to explain in a physical sense, is the speed of particles. If something is cold, the particles are moving very slowly. If something is hot, the particles move faster. This is why solids are tightly compacted and gases are able to expand; water, in ice form, is very cold and therefore its particles move slowly and keep it together. In steam form, the particles are hot and moving very fast, allowing the gas to go everywhere if not contained. Therefore, absolute zero is exactly as it sounds: it is 0 degrees on the Kelvin scale, –273.15 degrees Celsius, and –459.7 degrees for those of us in the states using Fahrenheit. In other words: it’s freakin’ cold.

At cold temperatures, atoms move very, very slowly, basically slowing movement to a small vibration if it’s cold enough. At absolute zero, motion stops completely. The atoms are not moving at all, and the electrons surrounding an atom are not moving randomly in their orbitals as they should. Nothing is moving at all at absolute zero. So this raises the question of what happens when things that are constantly in motion just stop.

credit:http://wikibon.org/blog/unhackable-encryption/



I’ve heard many theories on what could happen at this point, but the coolest one I’ve heard is the one I’ll mention here, though I question whether or not this could even be the case in absolute zero. One theory is that once all motion of electrons around an atom cease, it will allow particles in a solid to separate. The constant movement of electrons bumping into other electrons it comes in contact with keeps things from going through each other. So, if they stop, the theory is that solids could move through other solids because that constant bumping is not there to prevent it. We could walk through things. This concept blows my mind. This concept also presents the idea that if nothing is moving, what would happen to the perception of time? What about the perception of space? Would they cease as well? It’s hard to fathom, but I find it fascinating.

Now, whether or not this theory has any actual weight to it, who knows. I would research more into it, but 1.) it’s a cool idea, 2.) I don’t want to shatter that concept for myself, and 3.) there are many theories out there including this one. Unfortunately, the closest we’ve ever come is around one billionth of a degree (in Kelvins) above absolute zero. It would take an infinite amount of steps of pulling heat and energy away from a particle in order to achieve absolute zero, which is why we can only ever hope to get so close.

Nerd rant over. What concepts blow your mind?

Be brave.

I’ve learned it’s tough to get to a point in life where you don’t care what people think. We all do it; you’re hard-pressed to find someone who doesn’t worry about others’ opinions of them. And those middle school years? They’re the worst. But I’ve found that I’m ten times happier when I stop concerning myself with what others think and just “letting the freak flag fly,” as they say.

So today, I’m being brave. I’m doing something that I didn’t think I’d ever do. And to be honest, maybe it’s something I really shouldn’t be doing. But oh well. Today I am singing and posting it online. I know, sounds menial and like something only a true member of my social-media-driven generation. I know it’s a small thing to be brave about, and maybe it’s a trivial thing to be brave about. But I’ve always hated how I sing, and I have never been too keen on singing in front of people because it’s embarrassing to me.

Today, I go against both of those things. Today, I am brave.

And no, I don’t care if you think I’m a bad singer. I do, but here I am anyway. And I love this song. So there.

So what are you going to be brave about today? What are you going to do that goes against your norms? What puts you outside of your comfort level? Because I’ve strayed a ways out of mine…

Allow me to introduce myself…

Okay, so my first post was not exactly what I wanted to write about to start with, but it had to be done. This one is a more proper introduction to me, my blog, and what we’re about. So as a “welcome to the blogging neighborhood” type of deal, I’m going to revert back to the long forgotten days of….forwarded emails. Oh yes, annoying blast from the past happens NOW!

So I don’t know about you guys, but I used to love doing those surveys you would get from your friends that had questions you would answer, then send to someone else so they could change the answers and send it along. Not the best way to get to know someone, but through the internet world, it’s what we have to work with. So here, ladies and gents, are my survey answers. Allow me to introduce myself:

Name: Megan

 What time did you get up this morning? 8:00

What was the last movie you saw in a theater? Ted. Freakin’ hilarious and so raunchy.

Favorite TV show?  I don’t generally watch too much TV, but I’m a fan of Archer and Taboo. I get stuck on National Geographic a lot…

What food do you dislike? Liver

What kind of car do you drive? Honda Civic SI and a Kawasaki Ninja

Favorite sandwich? I’m sorry…what? Favorite sandwich? Who chooses that as a legit question? I don’t recall singling out one particular sandwich and playing favorites. I’m anti-sandwich discrimination. But sure, grilled cheese is awesome.

What characteristics do you despise?  Okay, to be honest I left this question on here because the person who filled it out before said “dishonesty, anything resembling George Bush.” Nice.

If you could go anywhere in the world, on vacation, where would you go?  This is tough because I want to go too many places. I’ve never been out of the U.S. I’ve been to Tijuana, but we all know that doesn’t really count…

Favorite sport to watch?  MMA fighting. Or hockey. Call it my inner violent spirit.

When is your birthday?  April 17

Are you a morning person or a night person?  I deal with insomnia, so I’m more of a night person because I just can’t sleep.

What is your shoe size?  I’ll let you know when they start using a universal measurement system that allows you to have a single shoe size that works for any shoe.

What did you want to be when you were little?  For the longest time, I wanted to be a teacher. Now, I don’t think I could imagine being a teacher at all.

What is your favorite flower?  Roses or fuschias

Do you have any tattoos?  yes, three and counting

What are you listening to right now?  9 News at 8, soon to be 9 News at 9

What was the last thing you ate?  A bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios

If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Razzmatazz. Look it up.

Favorite color? Silver. And I’m tired of people telling me, “that’s not a color!” or “that’s an element!” So what.

How is the weather right now?  77 degrees and sunny

This is where the question about my favorite band would be, but I took it out. There’s no way I can even start answering that in any short way.

Last person you talked to on the phone?  My dad

Favorite soda?  Dr. Pepper. But I’m a tea addict by nature, so I haven’t had Dr. Pepper for quite some time. I usually ditch it for Raspberry Iced Tea when given the opportunity.

Favorite restaurant?  HuHot Mongolian Grill

Hair color?  Brown

Chocolate or vanilla?  Chocolate

Coffee or tea?  Tea!

What is under your bed?  Some shoes, an old laptop, probably my cat

What did you do last night?  Worked

What are you afraid of?  That one day, I will not have as much motivation to produce artwork as I do now.

Salty or sweet?  Sweet. Unless it’s popcorn with candy in it. Then both.

How many keys are on your key ring?  Again, who chose these questions?  Four.

How many years at your current job? At one job, 3 years. At the other, almost 2 months.

How many towns have you lived in?  Just one.

Xbox or Playstation? I have an Xbox 360 and a PS2. I’m non-partisan.

Favorite appliance?  Seriously? I don’t even know how to answer that…fridge? Sure. Fridge.

Favorite movie? This one’s tough, but I’m going to go with The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. There will probably be a blog post about this later.

Geez I miss those sporadic, nonsensical questions. So come on, let’s have a flashback. Copy and paste it and change your answers, then send it along to all your friends. Or your blogs. Or your friends’ blogs. And feel free to ask any questions that I didn’t answer here. This is the start of getting to know each other. I’m hoping you get to know me through my blog, and I get to know you through yours. Welcome to Forever Building Castles in the AIr.

Gone, but never forgotten

I didn’t want this to be my first blog post. It’s not exactly something anyone expects or anticipates writing about. But it’s been pervading my mind, as well as everyone else’s, I’m sure, and there was just no way around writing about it before anything else. It’s just too relevant for me to shove aside.

Aurora is my hometown. I’ve lived there my whole life, and I’m sure I’ll be there a while longer. It’s the only place I grew up, it’s the only city I went to school in. It’s the only home I’ve ever known. It’s been my life. And to wake up one morning and realize that anyone I’ve ever known here may not have had the luxury of getting out of bed like I did that day was a bitter pill to swallow.

I woke up around 7 a.m. July 20th with missed calls and texts from concerned friends and coworkers asking if I was okay. It was only when I turned on the TV and saw the news that I even knew why they asked. Of course, you go through the worst case scenarios in your mind: did I know someone who was there? Are they still alive? Those reactions were only followed by one thought: that was almost me.

A few friends and I considered going to the premiere of The Dark Knight Rises that night, and since Century 16 Theater is in such close proximity to all of us, it was definitely a theater we considered going to. I’ve seen countless movies there throughout the years, including Ted, which we had seen there not even a week before. But I decided not to go because I was tired from working all day, and my friends figured it was probably sold out anyway, so they just wanted to try for a different night. I don’t know if Century 16 would have been the theater we ended up going to, but I thank God that I never got to find out.

I saw on Facebook that morning that a few of my other friends were there, and that they had luckily made it out safely. My eyes were glued to the news for the rest of the day, awaiting the release of the names or pictures of those who died, and hoping none were familiar faces.

The Sunday after the tragedy, there was a vigil held for the victims and their families at the memorial the community created across from the theater. I wish I could’ve been there, but I commend those that did. It takes a certain level of strength to attend something like that, and the strength of the community that day was so undoubtedly clear during that vigil. I was at work, and we observed a moment of silence in the evening to pay our respects though we couldn’t be there in person. Some of my coworkers were personally affected, and it was so hard to look them in the eye after the silence.

After work, a small group of us wanted to visit the memorial. We got off around 11 that night and all signed balloons to place at the site. I even got to do a little artwork on one of them, brandishing a bright blue balloon with the words “Colorado Proud” in Old English style calligraphy, our signatures and prayers encircling it and three other balloons representing the colors on the state flag. We tied them to a rock and placed them with the amazing amount of candles, stuffed animals, signs, and other tributes.

We also got two dozen roses to place on the twelve crosses erected in honor of each of the fallen. When we arrived, I promised myself I would stay strong and keep from crying as hard as I could. After seeing the glow from the dozens of lit candles shining on all the gifts and seeing how many members of the community were still there at 11:30 p.m., I started to falter on that promise. I saw some of my group start to tear up, and that didn’t help either.

We divided the roses and put one on each of the twelve crosses. One of my coworkers asked us if there were extras, so we gave her a few of the ones left. She offered them to a man and two women talking in front of one of the crosses. The elderly woman accepted them, saying, “thank you so much. I’m going to give these to my granddaughter.” Then she knelt next to the cross and gently laid them down at its base. There was absolutely no stopping the tears that flooded from my eyes once I heard and saw that. I completely lost it. Shoot, I tear up now thinking about it.

Two young men asked everyone if they’d like to join them in a prayer. Not a single soul declined, so the entirety of the people still there formed a giant circle, locking hands with friend and stranger alike. I can’t remember half of the prayers said because I couldn’t stop sobbing. It was by far one of the most emotional and difficult nights I’ve been a part of.



Days later, it’s still plastered on the news. It will be for months to come, as more unfolds about the tragedy, the victims, the theater, and the court hearings. Whether we want to or not, we will hear about it incessantly. It’s not something we can easily escape.

I’m frustrated most by those who say things like, “oh, of course it happened in Aurora.” I’ll admit, growing up, friends and I would joke about how “ghetto” Aurora was, and I’ve heard others say the same. But let’s face it; it’s a large town with mostly middle class families. We don’t get shot up or held at gunpoint on a daily basis, we don’t have gang wars running the streets, and as far as I know, we aren’t exactly known for our prostitution rings or drug cartels. Aurora can be questionable at times, but it’s far from the ghetto.

What if, and God forbid, this happened in a place like Cherry Hills? Would people pay more attention if a theater in Highlands Ranch was under attack? How about in Denver? Would we still have the cynics who can brush if off in areas where it may not be so “expected” to happen? The point is that this very well could’ve happened ANYWHERE. The shooter had no regard for the people he killed or hurt; socioeconomic status, race, gender, age, where they lived, it didn’t matter to him. He isn’t even from Colorado, and probably didn’t choose Aurora because of it’s “hood status.” Claiming that it happened and shrugging it off simply because “that’s just how Aurora is” is the same “bound to happen” mentality as thinking a woman asks to be raped because of what she’s wearing. It’s an unjustified cause, and makes no rational sense. Correlation does not equal causation. It could’ve happened to anyone, anywhere.


I’m proud of the community and how unified people can be when they’re needed the most. It makes me glad to be part of the so-called “ghetto” town of Aurora, and I’m not going to move just because this happened. My deepest and most sincere compassion goes out to everyone affected by this senseless act of violence. But I know that we’re going to come out stronger in the end.


Photo credits:
therepublic.com
newstimes.com