DJ Ahren's Blog

COMPLETEly Forgot

noreply@blogger.com (djahren) — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 04:14:00 +0000

This very well may have been THE scariest moment in my life so far.

Have you ever had it happen where you completely forgot something? And I'm not talking about, "Oh I'm so so sorry I like completely forgot our little get together, my bad." I'm talking about where there was something that someone reminded you of and you have absolutely no clue what they are talking about. This just happened to me.

Tonight, we had dinner, and it was a fairly pleasant one at that. Then afterward we are all hanging around, my mom, my brother, and I, and my mom mentions to me, "Ahren, it's Friday night, it's your dishes night." I quickly retorted back, "No it's not, Tuesday's my dishes night." She replied, "Yes, Tuesday and Friday." I didn't know what to say except, "No, my dishes night is Tuesday and then I wash dishes on Sunday morning as well." It was then that my brother chimed in, "No, Ahren, I know you do dishes on Friday because when you started doing dishes on Friday, I switched dishes to Thursday night."

Now sometimes it'll happen where I will forget something and then be reminded of it and then remember or sometimes I will forget something, be reminded about it and vaguely remember what they are talking about. Never have I had an experience, until now, where I was told something and didn't have a clue what the person was talking about. At first, I was confused, then defensive and then I became scared. What is happening to my mind? Is this some sort of sick joke? Are they just trying to get me to do more chores? Out of everything in my body one of the things I value the most is my brain and my intelligence and I've always had a great sense of memory albeit sometimes selective though. This time was not one of those. I have racked my mind over and over and over again trying to remember just the tiniest tidbit, word, even feeling, memory, anything! but I have no recollection of doing my regular dishes on a Friday night.

In all honesty, I'm scared. I don't know what is happening to me or if it's normal. My mom and brother tell me it is but this has never happened to me before. I've always been able to remember something even if it was just a sense of the notion. This is the first time I have drawn a total blank and it scares me so much.

I want a comfort hug.
:'(

Random Writings

noreply@blogger.com (djahren) — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 04:12:00 +0000

There is a technique in writing called free writing. The concept is that you start writing and don't stop let anything stopyou no matter what (not editing or anything, just letting thoughts flow through your brain onto the paper) until you are done. (you can do it for a timed period or not). I recently was inspired by a wonderful person to write a bit, as he posted a beautifully written blog about writing. I ended up writing this. It's not too spectacular but it's something. Enjoy.

A yawn, a sigh, and "I wish you were here". The world is much to lonely of a place. Companionship and friendship is a force that keeps people alive. We need to be able to live together and love one another. I feel like life is this thing, this thing that is delicate and yet so solid. It's taken for granted. One day we will open up like blossom full of light. Intricate petals with drops of rain creating radiant sparkles in the sun. I long to be that flower giving joy to a small toddler who marvels in wonder at the beauty. The child's eyes reflecting it's image and it's radiance. Marvelous beings these children are who see the world with out judgment or bias. And when the only way to hurt a child is to not hold them, it makes you wonder how hurt we are from day to day. It's one of the reasons I love free hugs. We are able to give people touch in a healthy way, something that so many people are missing in their lives.

My Problem With Blogging

noreply@blogger.com (djahren) — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 12:42:00 +0000

I speak when there is something important that I feel that needs to be said or shared. I've never been too much for story telling but never the less, I love to share of myself and my knowledge. I just don't see the point in rambling on about the trivial details of my life. There is a whole question that arises (and it's a different answer for each individual) of what is worthy to share. What story or event in my life is blog-worthy and what is something just to pass by. What makes a good story and what is plain boring? Are these rhetorical questions or are they not? Am I trying to slip humor into an otherwise slightly drab blog...or not?

Let me give you a hint.... *WINK*
If this makes sense...then good...if not...I have the excuse of the fact that it's 4:41 in the morning!
Ha!
Ahren.....OUT.

Website Completed: My Life Has Returned!

noreply@blogger.com (djahren) — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 19:56:00 +0000

Exciting News!
I have a life again!
After a super long haul, my current website project is done. I know many of my friends and family have noticed my almost constant state of stress and depression and hopefully those times are now over. This project was a huge one almost one too big but now it lays behind me for the most part (I still have minor things to do to get everything running and such but the majority is behind me).

The Website:
The website is: http://soulfireproject.com. It is a site that is to gather funding for the film "Connected" by Amy Walker. The idea is that the film is "produced" (funded) by the human community (as opposed to a corporate company) and that it's everyone's project as much as the creator's. Each person who donates (only one $dollar) gets their name in the credits of the film.
Overall I am very very proud of my work on the site and over the process I have learned so much.

Technical Overview:
The page website is built on PHP, MySQL, JavaScript, CSS, HTML and integration with Google Checkout. There is the basic page layout which uses a lot of CSS & JavaScript to display content and create the overall feel of the pages. I'm not going to go into too much detail should this information fall into the wrong hands.

My Standpoint:
I know there are still many things I need to work on regarding client relationsions and this has helped me see that. I am so thankful to have had this opportunity to do this because it has forced me to learn so much and that, I have! I now have what I'd consider to be sufficient knowledge in MySQL & PHP and other web technologies, not that I didn't before just that it was very very limited. I know my overall confidence with webdesign (especially that of the dynamic nature) has expanded leaps and bounds beyond what it was before.

I'm not all too sure what else to say but a BIG thank you to those who have helped me along with this process. I really couldn't have done it without you. There were many times in which I have thought about quitting along the process but I fought to stay in the game and it was because of your support that I was able to. (You all know who you are)

So check out the site and then celebrate with me!
http://soulfireproject.com

Dog House Disappointments

noreply@blogger.com (djahren) — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 15:03:00 +0000

Ever since I can remember, my family has gone to The Dog House (a local restaurant). It was most-likely one of the first places we went to eat as well when we moved to Whidbey Island over 17 years ago. A while ago (i don't know when exactly) the restaurant and tavern was handed over to new management (I think because the owner died). I had not been to the place since but as luck would have it, the Braeburn (where we were planning on going) doesn't serve dinner and the pizzeria was packed and we had a show to catch so our third option was the dog.
We walked around back like usual to go into the restauraunt part of the building and open the door and there is no-one there...at all. I've never been there when there wasn't a mob of people already there. We find our seets at a table and then I noticed that my favorite funky lighting fixtures had been replaced by "stylized" new ones that don't even fit the rest of the building's look. We recieved our menus from someone who didn't seem at all happy to be serving us and I reviewed mine. There was my favorite thing that I almost always got - the spicy bean burrito. I have so many memories of that dinner. It's what I almost always had, you could count on going to the Dog House with me and I would have the Spicy Bean Burrito and a Cream Soda, now over the years that's changed some but still stayed pretty consistant. I decided that I couldn't break tradition so I ordered my Spicy Bean Burrito.
When the food came though was when I was even more dissapointed. The burrito was TINY! I remember that I would always have trouble finishing my meal and I would always have a to go box. Then one fateful day, I finally finished my burrito in one sitting, I remember being so proud. So then to have this small burrito that didn't even compare to the original one but was $3 more expensive was a total gip. I finished it in a couple bites and then was still hungry. I ended up finishing off a few of other people's dinners and half a plate of mis-ordered nachos from another table. All of it was not anywhere as good as it once was which really made me sad and frustrated. It's the same kind of feeling when you grow up and realize that your parents aren't perfect but in this case, it's not just a childhood fantasy gone awry, it actually got worse.

Set the Default View in Windows Explorer - Windows XP

noreply@blogger.com (djahren) — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 14:56:00 +0000

It seems to be a common desire to have all of your folders in one specific view in windows. There should be an easy way to set this default view and there is but how is the big question.
Just follow the instructions in my tutorial image below :)

(Click the image to view a large version)

I hope this helps all of you who may have had this question.
Peace from Ahren

Why I love Gmail :D

noreply@blogger.com (djahren) — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 03:54:00 +0000

This is just amazing and has some wonderful subtle comedy.
The reason why I love it (gmail/google) so much....well because it's unparalleled in its amazingness and usefulness/features and it's built and maintained by people that are totally on my level and don't pretend to be big professional know-it-alls.

<3 Google 4ever

Fun News In Ahren's Life

noreply@blogger.com (djahren) — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 22:48:00 +0000

I got a didjeridoo.
My mom called the police on me.
I had a whole alcoholic beverage (for the first time).

1. For my mom's 50th birthday we took a trip up to see her dear friend (which she has known since high school). We stayed there for two nights and had a wonderful time. Some highlights were:

making our own pizzas in the backyard professional pizza oven (some of the best pizza I've ever had)
having good adult conversations with intelligent and awesome people
hanging out with a really cool guy named Jim (my mom's friends partner), who I can really relate to in many ways, talking and playing dij
doing a bit of portable recording and sequencing
spending time with my mom on her birthday, going to the used record shop, looking at colleges, and having lunch together
receiving my own didjeridoo.

I got to play a lot in the 3 days that I was there. Didjeridoo is something that comes fairly naturally to me and I guess I impressed Jim by how well I could play and how much joy I got out of it. He actually makes didjeridoos and so when I was about to leave he said that I could take one with me and that next time that we saw each other, he would help me make one. I am very excited for that and in the mean time I get to play one that I have on a semi-long-term loan! :D

2. I was invited to go to my friend's house for a barbecue...the club plans fell through because she did not have the plastic version of her ID yet. Damn :( (but I think this was actually better of a plan since I was pretty tired after driving back from my mom's friend's and didn't totally feel up to go out dancing).
I took a short nap and set my palm pilot's alarm so that I would have enough time to go and get dressed and ready then catch the bus. I had forgotten that I had set my palm pilot to silent the night before to make sure I wouldn't disturb anybody so naturally my alarm didn't go off and when I looked at my watch, the bus had already gone by. So I asked my mom for a ride up to the highway to catch a different later bus going to my friend's work where I was going to meet her. I waited out there for about half an hour but the bus never came. I then decided that I would just go straight to her house and wait for her or meet her there. I rode an altogether different bus as close as it took me then walked the rest of the way to her house (a nice 23 minute and 33 second walk). I got there but there was no one home so I couldn't call anyone and let them know that I was there. (the following details may not be completely true but they are what I have figured must have happened). Naturally when I didn't show up at her work, my friend called my house wondering where I was. My mom told her that I had been dropped off at the bus. My friend then ended up driving around searching for me and when she had not found me she ended up calling my mom again to let her know. My mom ended up freaking out about me and getting worried and eventually called the police. Eventually my friend ended up coming home and I was happily waiting there for her.
I called home and talked to my mom and she was still sort of freaked out and informed me that she had called the police. I was sort of aghast and I thought it was a bit much... This all occurred last night and today when I was in our main little town, I went in to go and get coffee. The woman that was working behind the counter was very thankful to see me and exclaimed something to the extent of "Oh my gosh, Ahren, you are alive!" she then proceeded to tell me how she was at a play audition last night when a police officer came in looking for me and wanted to talk to one of my good friends. She ended up giving me a coffee on the house cause she was so glad to see that I was okay. Also today I was talking to Max who was also at the audition last night and the first thing he said was "The cops were looking for you yesterday. Are you safe?" and then when I asked him to he went on to explain...
"We were all doing vocal warm ups and Ethan got pulled away to talk to a police officer. Evan and I were really confused at first. We thought Ethan got in trouble or something. Apparently the officer saw him outside the theater and followed him in. Anyways, I think Ethan mentioned that they policeman thought his last name was Bader, or something like that. He said he was confused at first as to how they knew to talk to him, how they knew that he was your friend."

It's crazy how these things spread in a small community.

3. All of my life I have never really had any alcohol. Occasionally I will take a sip from my mom's wine or try some of my godfather's beer. All of those times I have never really liked the taste and all of the times I have never had anything more than just a very small amount. Last night however at this barbecue, my friend was making drinks and asked me if I would like one. I replied, "ummmmmmmm" then she asked "If I made you a drink, would you drink it?" and I said I would try it. I ended up drinking it all and it wasn't all that bad. I took my time though and drank it over the period of an hour or more so I don't think I got a buzz off of it at all. It was a really fun nice evening hanging out with awesome people who are all quite amusing.

So that's recent events in the life of Ahren.

Hittin' da Club!

noreply@blogger.com (djahren) — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 16:56:00 +0000

OMFG I'M GOING TO AN 18+ CLUB TOMORROW WITH VIOLET! :D
SO EXCITED

yay 4 first experiences

Half-Finished Happiness

noreply@blogger.com (djahren) — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 07:44:00 +0000

Today was a good day.
I had an appointment with a client and then was going to hang out with my friend but she was supporting one of her close friends. I decided that I was not just going to go home though; I need to get out more. I ended up going into Langley for a few hours. I did not find anyone to hang out with but I did end up taking a walk. My walk led me down to the beach where the tide was way out and so I made my way all the way out to the water.
When I arrived at the water's edge I sat down on a dryer part of the sand bar. Just to be out there with the water in front of me and nothing but beach to my left and right was so peaceful and inspiring. I started to write something while I was out there. It goes as follows:

Seaweed is tumbled by wave upon wave
Water crystals form then are broken again
Current creates crests atop waves then crumbles
The wind winds riddles of unwritten gratitude
While resting on crushed rock; the seagull sits in the sand

Today was a good day.

Published Photography

noreply@blogger.com (djahren) — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 22:47:00 +0000

Just for fun, I chose to google my name and I came across many things, most of which didn't surprise me at all. Though I came across this one, that was an article from the Marin Independent Journal about my friend, Chris, who worked for the South Whidbey Youth Connection but then moved back to Cali.
The article is a wonderful article about Chris and his connection with nature and his "waterfall spirituality". The article was nice to read and makes me smile to think of Chris (I really should see if I can get back in touch with him) but on top of it all, my photo that I took of him a while back was used for it!

http://www.marinij.com/lifestyles/ci_9509392

YAY! My photography has been publicly published!

Hmmm I wonder what the prefix "pub" means and how (or if) public and publish are related to each other and I wonder how a plain old pub fits into all of it...hmmm
OOOH! *Looks down at the button below* IT SAYS PUBLISH! :D

This is a test.

noreply@blogger.com (djahren) — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 12:34:00 +0000

Question: Does it work?

Answer: Should be self-evident