And Then…

It was a quiet and lonely night
As I closed my eyes in thought
Feeling the rush of wind on my face
And then I was scared no more

I was calm and my body went limp
Remembering the joy of youth
All was safe and I was happy
And then I remembered school

I was awkward and dysfunctional
But my friends were just as much
We were ready to take the world
And then I remembered Melinda

Had an embarrassing crush on her
She was my love and desire
But it was false and unrequited
And then I remembered Mary

Our wedding was delightful
Found someone who wanted me
Willing to give her all I could
And then realized it was a scam

And then I remembered all the fights
And then I remembered when she left
And then remembered what I had done
And then I hit the ground

J.A. Scott

Jeffrey Scott's Coffee Klatch - 2

When I did my traveling of last year, I feared something was going to happen. I had this realization I was likely going to develop the travel bug. Not surprising, it has hit me and I'm desperately trying to decide where I want to go next. Last year I was in Mexico, London and Paris. How do you top that? I likely won't get as much travel in this year, but would still like to go somewhere decent. This year my problem is I'd like to take my kids somewhere but overseas is out of the question. Most likely it'll be somewhere fairly close, like Mall of America, as we did last year. But I don't want to repeat that. So now I must think of somewhere cool to take the kids, and at the same time plan a trip for myself. You'd think traveling would be boring, but I rather enjoyed it. Where have you traveled alone?
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In lieu of an interview this week I've decided to do a game review.

Not sure if there are any other game players in my audience, but I do enjoy my games from time to time, why else would I have purchased the PS3? Oh, that's right; the Blue-Ray player. Seriously though, I used to be addicted to games, especially online games. Anyone remember Evercrack? Oops, I meant Everquest. Fortunately I'm much older and have more important things like my writing to keep me busy. But I'm digressing, on to the game review.

If you love creating your own personalized character, you'll love this game. If you love interacting with other characters in the DC Universe, you'll love this game. If you like to play as a villain, you'll love this game. The character creating is great and lots of choices are available such as powers, and movement type. I am slightly (this is a very slight complaint) disappointed in the outfits available. Don't get me wrong, there are many, just not as many as I'd have liked. Of course, if you have a particular hero you'd like to pattern yourself after you have that option. Or if none are available, and you are creative enough you can do so yourself. As a big time Legion of Super Hero fan, I've created a Brainiac 5 and Sun Boy characters. Possibly more on the way, I enjoy creating characters as much as I enjoy playing the game.

Once you finally get into the game, you'll be given various missions from the heroes and villains of the game. As can be expected, the more missions you go on, the more experience you get, the higher in level you become. There are options for joining with others in a group or creating a League. If you love super heroes, online games or the DC Universe I'd highly suggest playing the game.

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Today's musical guest is 5 for Fighting, "Superman (It's Not Easy)"
Enjoy


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So what did you watch this week? Maybe I'll cover it here, if not feel free to leave a comment on what you think was awesome to watch this week.

"The Amazing Race"

"V" -

"Biggest Loser" -

"Parenthood" -

"Survivor" -

"Office" -

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"The fact that some geniuses were laughed at does not imply that all who are laughed at are geniuses. They laughed at Columbus, they laughed at the Wright brothers. But they also laughed at Bozo the Clown." - Carl Sagan

Jeffrey Scott's Coffee Klatch

Welcome to the first episode of 'Jeffrey Scott's Coffee Klatch'. So what is the coffee klatch? It's a great way to start your Friday morning and weekend. A little rag on happenings of the past week, musical guests, videos, reviews, guests, jokes and/or water cooler chat. You never know what you might find here.

Guests? Do you run a podcast, own a website or have some project you'd like to promote? Contact me and we can set something up. Essentially, I'd like to produce a transcribed interview, highlighting various projects people are working on, the websites where people can find them and other contact information they may want to share.

I hope you enjoy the first edition. Have a seat, pour yourself a fresh cup of coffee and enjoy the show.

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Being the first episode, I thought it might be fun to do an interview of myself to try and give others an example of how exactly I'd like to produce the interviews. Also, it'll give everyone a chance to see who I really am. So without further ado, I'd like to welcome my guest today, me!

Jeffrey Scott: Welcome to the Coffee Klatch.
Me: Thanks for having me.
Jeffrey Scott: So, are you a coffee drinker?
Me: Like you wouldn't believe. I've even written poems about coffee. (laughs)
Jeffrey Scott: What are you drinking this morning?
Me: I'm in one of my favourite coffee shops at the moment so I just picked up the strongest blend they had. Not sure exactly the brand.
Jeffrey Scott: So you mentioned already you're a poet, do you have any projects in the work?
Me: Not really. I'm always working on my poetry, one day I'd like to produce a collection, right now though I'm concentrating heavily on my blogging.
Jeffrey Scott: Do you have any musical inspirations?
Me: I love music, and love many artists in various genres. My two favourites are 80's and jazz. I love the work of Diana Krall, Mindi Abair, Blondie, Huey Lewis, Sade, Barenaked Ladies and was recently introduced to Tegan and Sara.
Jeffrey Scott: I've noticed a lot of interesting stuff on this blog, do you have any others?
Me: Yes, I do. I have one I call Carrot Sticks & Cottage Cheese, essentially it's dedicated to my zeal for fitness. I've struggled with my weight for many years, I found it a great way to keep myself motivated. And if I can motivate one other person, I'll feel I've done my job.
Jeffrey Scott: So what have been your inspirations for the sight?
Me: If you look at the link address, you'll notice a clue to my motivation. Yes, I'm a big Biggest Loser fan and hope to one day be a "Big Loser" myself.
Jeffrey Scott: Well, thanks for stopping by. Enjoy the coffee, and feel free to help yourself on a baguette on your way out.
Me: Thanks for having me.

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Well, that does it for the interview. It's now time for our musical guest. For reasons that may or may not be apparent, our first musical guest is 'Tegan & Sara' Enjoy! We'll be back with 'Coffee Chat'. A few thoughts on shows I've watched throughout the week.



I'd like to thank Tegan & Sara for the video. If you want to find out more about this group, visit them at their website here: Tegan & Sara.

So what did you watch this week? Maybe I'll cover it here, if not feel free to leave a comment on what you think was awesome to watch this week.

"The Cape" - I'm a sucker for Super Hero TV shows and such but the one thing always troubling me is, is it really that hard to tell who a person is just because they have a mask on their face? I mean especially if they are well known. Faraday meets up with his old partner, and has much dialogue. You're telling me he couldn't tell it was his previous partner? One redeeming feature for me - Summer Glau.

"V" - Usually I hate remakes, I loved the original V. But I have to admit, so far I'm really enjoying this show. So what irritated me this week? Anna essentially holding all the cards lately. She's playing Ryan and now Hobbes like fiddles. I hope they break that storyline because I find it boring. I'm waiting for the full-out fight between the 5th column and the Visitors. Something I love they've done is hire Jane Badler to reprise (sort of) her roll as Diana, who was the main baddie in the first series.

"Biggest Loser" - Congratulations to Arthur for his 20 pound weight loss. They were really focusing on him this episodes and I predicted he was either going to lose a major amount of weight, or be voted out. Nice to see it was the weight loss. He certainly still needs to be on the ranch.

"Survivor" - Yes, once again Survivor has started. This time with a few changes. Boston Rob and Russel have been brought back (I think they'll bring each back till they finally win), and they now have 'Redemption Island' where if you are voted off, you've got a slim chance of making it back to the island (if you are good enough). Kristina was stupid in whom she trusted. Couldn't she tell from the initial chat that Phillip was an idiot? Did you know he was a Federal Agent? I thought I'd mention that in case you happened to miss it. I will say, she was brave not to use the immunity idol, but I assumed she wouldn't have. it should give her an additional three days. I loved Rob telling her to give him the idol and she'll stay. It's probably a good thing for Rob she didn't, because he'd have a bigger target on his back.

"Office" - 'Threat Level Midnight' was hilarious. I loved how they made is as if it were filmed several years ago. I really enjoyed the cameos and the campy feel to it. Of course it wasn't supposed to really be a great film, it was made and produced by Michael Scott after all. Quite a bit of fun, I have to admit. In the film, we learn here the reason behind Goldenface's evil ambitions. "Michael Scarn's most evil adversary who goes around blowing up All-Star games in hopes that the trophies will explode and people will turn gold like him."

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Thanks once again for joining me on this first episode of 'Jeffrey Scott's Coffee Klatch'. Remember to leave a comment with your coffee chat, suggestions for upcoming musical guests or suggestions for real guests. I'll leave you with a little joke, see you next week.

Jeffrey Scott’s – Best of his Blogs 2010

Most of my friends know I maintain two blogs. One dedicated to health and fitness and one for my creativity. I’m proud to say I’ve kept up with both this year. So for those of you only familiar with one of the two, I’ve decided for the first time ever to do a cross-over blog. And why not, I’m a creative person and both illustrate that in various ways.





January
Jeffrey Scott - Will You Miss Me
An interesting poem I wrote. But can you tell what it’s really about?
Carrot Sticks – Biggest Loser (No Motivation)
I began to recognize my fitness was slipping. I wrote a few observations as to why.

February
Jeffrey Scott – Haiku
In 2009 I wrote several Haiku’s. In 2010 I wrote one last one. Follow the links to view more.
Carrot Sticks – Biggest Loser – Top 5 Faults With the Show
I’ve always been a Biggest Loser fan, but at times it can irritate me. Here’s why.

March
Jeffrey Scott – Travel Preparations for London
Two month from the actual trip, I began making lists.
Carrot Sticks – Feed Me Seymore
Random thoughts on how I can do better at what I eat and what my downfalls are.

April
Jeffrey Scott – Loss & Love
For a month, I worked on a short story on Facebook. I reprinted it to my blog.

May
Jeffrey Scott – I’m Nothing
Sometimes a poem hits me. Here is one I wrote this year.
Carrot Sticks – Procrastination vs. Motivation
You can either procrastinate or be motivated. Here are my thoughts.

June
Jeffrey Scott - Fuse CD Review
I discovered a new CD and wrote a review. The artists read it and enjoyed it!
Carrot Sticks – Tracking Disaster
I tried to become more serious about my tracking, but I failed.

July
Tegan – Interview With An Admiral
I had a nice chat with Admiral Ackbar from Star Wars.

August
Tegan – Who is River Song?
I’ve got a firm belief, but this was one farcical theory.

September
Jeffrey Scott – I Tweet Therefore I Am
Another poem, this time based on…. Twitter???
Carrot Sticks – A-Z Fitness (Atmosphere)
In hopes of making myself more accountable, I began a new fitness series.

October
Tegan – Doctor Who (The Early Years)
I give in to my nerdyness and begin writing a Doctor Who themed series.
Carrot Sticks – Jillian Michaels – GoDaddy Commercial
A funny commercial Jillian is now appearing in.

November
Tegan – Time Travel Museum
Can you find your favourite time machine in the time travel museum?
Carrot sticks – Top 9 Way To Tell If You’ve Been Watching Too Much Biggest Loser
With a lot of my posts centered on Biggest Loser, I wondered if I watched too much.

December
Tegan - Jelly Babies
I did a photo shoot with… candy???
Tegan – Saturn Girl Selling Telepathic Telecommunications
I guess I’m a true Legion of Super Hero nerd to come up with this.
Carrot Sticks – Tastes So Good
I wrote a song parody and why junk food tastes so good.

That’s not all I wrote in both logs, but it gives you pretty good idea. If you enjoy both, why not subscribe and follow both? You’re bound to find something you like sooner or later. ;)
Jeffrey Scott

Mexico - Day 4

With all our bags packed, we had the morning to do last minute shopping and visiting a few places we failed to take pictures at. This was the view immediately outside our room.



At the entrance of the shopping center was familiar face, Speedy Gonzales. Not exactly sure why he was there but I have a few friends who'll be interested in him.



I don't generally spend a lot of time taking pictures of corridors, but I'm not likely to return any time soon and I did find this somewhat interesting.



The night before we went to a dance club with a Star Wars theme. The bar her reminded me somewhat of the cantina bar in Star Wars. There were other items strewn about; a Millennium Falcon, life size Yoda and a few more Stormtroopers.



This time it was my decision to take a picture of the local flora. I've always thought it was a bit artsy to take flowers pictures, so it explains this shot.



There are many sculptures and statutes strewn about the place. One was this gigantic harp. My sister is posing, as if she's playing. Looks pretty convincing to me.



This is a daytime shot of one of the local places we frequented at night for drinks. Depending on the day and time, all the chairs could be filled with guests ordering drinks, associating, meeting new friends, or just checking email with the free wifi provided.



A closer shot of the actual 'bar' area. Yea, I know - another shot of the alcohol. For the most part we ordered our drinks here instead of waiting for someone to take our order. This was where my sister ran into some old friends.



As we said our goodbyes to the many people and places we knew, some of the local wildlife also came to bid us adieu.



As stated before, there was lots of 'atmosphere' via statues and such. This was one prime example. Loved the looks of it, but it seemed it was supposed to be trickling water. I never saw that the entire time I was there.



This wasn't the courtyard of our set of rooms, but it was interesting enough for me to capture it on 'film'.



All good things must come to an end, as did this trip. It was now time for us to make it through the jungle to the clearing where our airplane waited for us. Time to make one last use of the machete I purchased for protection.



Here we are on our way home, as taken from the plane (obviously). I believe if you look close enough you can see the locals waiving goodbye.

The Best Thing About Snow

It’s a layer of white
all upon the ground
freshly fallen.

The children run outside
to a winter wonderland
of playfulness.

Snowballs and snowmen,
sleds and toboggans
snowfall fun.

* * * * *

Heavy and gray
the snow remains
to be moved away.

Shovels and snow tires
the bitter cold
any icy street.

What’s special to me
is when Spring arrives;
the snow departs.

J.A.Scott

Mexico - Day 3

My sister and I actually planned something for our last full day in Mexico. On Saturday we decided to visit Playa del Carmen and do a bit of shopping. As a person who loves to shop and experience new things, I was all in favour of this. Here is our first view of the city, and one we wanted to remember as our bus back was to be from this exact location.



The driver gave the layout of where various things were, so we set out. This appears to be a park/common area of the city. I love the walk-way.



Prime example of why I'm such a nerd. Not only is the first stop a local Wal-Mart, (I love to visit international versions of local stores for comparison) but I take a photo of the Spanish version of Apples to Apples, one of my favourite games.



Turns out our trip to Wal-Mart was just as eventful as anything else that happened. As we were walking around, we noticed the smell of smoke. Suddenly, one of the associate doors flew open and two staff members ran out carrying axes. A fire broke out towards the front of the store. We were horrified to realize the store was not being evacuated. So after we finished our shopping, a picture was taken of the police and fire truck outside.



We spent the rest of the time at the local street shops. Chris was searching for gifts for home, most importantly a hammock for the family.



I wasn't really looking for anything in particular, probably a good thing since I'm not good at negotiating prices and that seemed to be the trick of the trade. Essentially, I went all the way to Mexico and all I got for my kids were those stupid T-shirts.



Lately, it seems Gelato is the next trendy thing. Even the local Metro Market has suddenly started selling it. So once I saw this shop, I decided it was time to give it a try. Of course I opted for the Mango flavour. Problem is, isn't gelato an Italian ice cream? And I had it in Mexico. So what exactly did I eat? Mexican/Italian ice cream?



I saw this place and really wanted to get a coffee, but we decided to save it for later in case we didn't have time. Turns out Chris really wishes we had gone. Once our time in Playa del Carmen was over we headed back. The two of us were the only ones in the bus and it didn't seem to be taking a direct route back to the highway. Also it was going through some really rough parts of town. I got the feeling she thought we were being kidnapped so I talked to the driver to make sure he was heading back to the highway. This broke the ice and Chris started talking to him in partial Spanish and soon we were on the highway, and more importantly back at our resort.



After our ordeal in the city, we decided to relax on the beach for the rest of the day. On our way I decided to stop at the swim-up bar and get a drink. I need to try any new experience, at least once. I believe the drink 'special' of the day was a Bahama Mama.



After the drink, I spotted a bird I was unfamiliar with. In an attempt to bolster my artistic skills with shots of the local flora and fauna, I decided to shoot this bird, with a camera of course.
Update: I believe this is called a 'Purplish-Backed Jay'.



Finally we made it to the beach where we spent the rest of the day, till evening came upon us. It was time for dinner so we went back to the steak place. Afterwards we decided to do as much packing as we could so we'd have the entire next morning to eat breakfast and say goodbye to the resort.

(To be concluded)