The Science of Sleeping

So my sister and her husband are down for a few days for the holiday weekend. At dinner it comes out that my sister, and my brother as well, suffer the same problem as I do when it comes to sleeping. It seems that we, as a family, have a knack for falling asleep at inconvenient times, despite getting "enough" sleep. By inconvenient times I mean in the middle of classes or conversations or what not. I suppose this could be confused with a low grade narcolepsy but I'm not so sure these days. My sister has apparently been to a sleep clinic and they said there was nothing wrong with her. But what I wonder is this: a sleep clinic studies you in more or less a controlled environment, but what if, as in this case, the problem occurs outside of normal sleeping hours or conditions?

To that extent, I propose some sort of portable EEG machine, which would pretty much just consist of electrodes and some sort of miniature data recorder. An iPod sized drive that would record the brain wave data. Concurrently, the patient could make a record of what they do as they go through their daily routine, noting when they slept or when they felt tired and so on. This can then be analyzed to see if there is indeed any problem on the mental side of this or whether this is something more physiologically based.

Way to Go America!

So the World Cup began on June 9, and since I've really had nothing to do so far this summer, I've been watching the games. It's interesting, and it's in high definition here. Which, by the way, if you haven't experienced, is exquisite. Now, as you may have heard, the United States, that's us, although if you're reading this from another country, "Hello! How are you?", has been knocked out of competition. As far as I can tell the United States finished in a tie for 26th out of 32. Here's the kicker, or one of them: we finished tied with Iran! Irony, thy name is the World Cup. I suppose the other kicker is that this is supposedly the best team this country has ever fielded for the World Cup, if you believe all the hype, which as an uneducated American, I did. But here's the thing, and the point of this post. I think it may actually be the best thing for US soccer, or football as the rest of the world calls it, to finish so low. I mean just suppose that the US wins the World Cup. We were going off at about 70 to 1 depending on who you believe. But suppose we win. I suppose the good will in this country lasts about a week or two, before the stories stop appearing on TV, radio and newspapers. But now, the outcry is "What the hell went wrong?" If US Soccer drags this whole process of analyzing things, changing things, maybe leaking some reports, the could maintain interest, at least in the media, for a few months, which is a half dozen more weeks that the average Sportscenter watching person would hear about soccer.

I also heard a comment made, in general about US international sports, comparing this World Cup team to the Olympic men's basketball team. Something about how other countries are getting their players into the NBA, which is apparently the best basketball league in the world. So I came up with this. Right now, the NFL uses Europe as its developmental league, NFL Europe, how creative. So why not do the opposite here? In the interest of the national team, start sending MLS players over to some maybe second tier league in Europe that could be sponsored by MLS or at least a team. I have no clue as to how the logistics on this one would work out, but we have got to stop sucking at sports. We've lost basketball gold, hockey gold, the WBC, the World Cup... so the only things we really have left are NASCAR and bowling. They're like the retards of the sporting world.

Charity and Alcohol

So yesterday Preston and Steve, morning radio hosts on 93.3 WMMR, had the first leg of their "Blood Alcohol" charity event. Yesterday was a blood drive held at the Franklin Mills mall, and people who registered and gave blood got tickets for this Tequila Slam concert/party thing with Sammy Hagar. I'm stealing this idea. Or at least the concept. The details are my own. I suppose this is more in the vein of a fraternity charity event, so keep that in mind. I'll start by giving you the title: Rum Runners. It would be a charity 5k or 10k or whatever. For MS or cancer or starving babies. I don't know. Get people to sign up to run and get people to sponsor them. Either that or have them pay a registration fee. Or both. It doesn't matter really. Maybe get some t-shirts made. Get some corporate and/or school sponsorship. Run the damn thing. Then have a party. Probably third party vendor sort of thing. But only with rum. I mean that's the point of calling it "Rum Runners." People with t-shirts get in free. Otherwise you have to pay a cover charge. Which would also go to charity. Maybe have a pirate/caribbean theme. I'm not sure. But this is too good to let go to waste.

EDIT: This struck me later in the day. Get Captain Morgan. Literally. The guy in the costume. How awesome would that be?

Mission Impossible 4: Updating Regularly

So for the most part, I'll try to update this at least twice weekly, possibly more. Just trying to avoid the downfall of the last blog.

Welcome Back Internet

It's been a while since we've seen each other. What's it been now? Less than a year? It certainly feels like more than that. So how are things? The wife, the kids, the dog? What's that you say? The dog died? Well that's a shame. I suppose the kids took it pretty hard, bless their tiny fist-sized hearts. Me? I'm alright I guess. Feels like its been a lifetime since I've posted anything, not since the break up with that other site. We just drifted apart over the years. I stopped posting, she stopped listening. Matter of fact, I don't think anyone was ever really listening back in those days, but I don't think that was ever the point. Strangely similar to my return now, but I figured it's time I get back on that horse, eh? I'm sorry am I boring you? Sorry about that, I get a little down sometimes, but no matter. Moving along then.

Aside from that strange one sided conversation there, this is my slightly less than triumphant return to the internet, aside from the only thing I ever really bother to update which would be my facebook profile, which, incidentally, you most likely have access to if you are reading this, or I am on your AIM buddy list whether I know it or not. Back about almost a year now, I stopped posting on my Xanga account, which I have since deleted, since it really served no purpose, save to allow me space to vent some frustrations or what-have-you's. As gleaned from the aforementioned conversation, I decided it was high time a get back on the wild bucking bronco that is blog posting on the internet. Now as to the actual point of this little fiasco.

If you possess the ability to read this, then I am guessing you have read the title. By the way, if you do not possess the ability to read, what the hell are you doing at this site? Why are you even using a computer? All illiteracy aside, for those who know me in almost all but the loosest sense (in the sense that you may have heard my name mentioned, seen me at a party or what have you), should know that if nothing else, I can come up with ideas, depending on the situation. (Aside: Ironically, this ability fails me everytime I've tried to come up with a new screen name for AIM, but that's neither here nor there.) This, I suppose, is the major focus of this blog, as you may have gathered from the title. Now these are not ground-shaking, planet-moving ideas, at least not yet. More so they are the kind of ideas that come from random internet browsing or preposterous conversations with my brother. I figured it was high time I got these ideas down on paper or on silicon, or whatever the hell they use, before they disappeared from the contents of my memory. Some of these ideas may come in the forms ongoing stream of consciousness posts or simply one line notes, such as those made by people into handheld tape recorders, although I have neither the time, money, nor patience for one of those. Odds are there will be little in the way of opinionated posts, save as a means to an end, or updates on current events. This is not CNN, nor is it, God forbid, Fox News. Just good old fashioned grey matter. On paper. All thought. No mess. And with that I bid you adieu.